Fertility Customs and Magic

The Beltane season is a time of fertility, not only for people but for the land as well. If you plant a garden each summer, Beltane is a good time to do some fertility magic so that you will have an abundant crop by the time the harvest rolls around. There are many different methods of ensuring the fertility of the land, and you can incorporate any of these into your rituals and ceremonies.

• In ancient Rome, it wasn't uncommon for the master of the land to take his wife out to the fields and have sex right there on the ground. If you had a lot of land, this could take all day, but it was practically guaranteed to ensure that the field would be fertile and productive once your slaves got the planting done.

• In some traditions, menstruating women add a bit of their blood to the soil to add potency. It's a scientific fact that blood contains a lot of nutrients, so it makes sense to blend this in with the dirt before planting.

• Farmers in the Congo region of Africa make offerings to the spirits of the land before they begin clearing it for planting. In addition to the offerings, there is also a great deal of chanting, drumming and singing, and it is only after the spirits indicate that they are pleased with the gifts and performances that the farmers may plant their crops.

• The Algonquin peoples of the mid-Atlantic region performed ritual dances to ensure a bountiful agricultural crop each year. Dances involved a lot of noise, in order to wake the sleeping earth.

• In Crete, a sword dance called the Kuortes was held each spring. During the Kourtes, a group of men gathered together, moving in unison with sticks or swords. Although it sounds warrior-like, it wasn't a martial dance but one that scholars say promoted fertility, instead. If you think about it, banging a stick or sword on the freshly plowed earth has quite a bit of fertility symbolism.

• Roman women paid tribute to Flora, the goddess of flowers, in order to ensure fertility of both the land and the womb. A woman who was having trouble conceiving a child might offer flowers at Bona Dea's temple on the Aventine Hill. In an interesting paradox, Bona Dea was a goddess of both virginity and fertility, and was represented by the snake, often connected to fertility as well.

• In Nagoya, Japan, residents still celebrate the annual Honen-sai festival. This is held each year in the spring, to make sure the crops will be plentiful, and includes a parade - the highlight of which is a giant penis on a float (the penis, carved from a cypress tree, is about fourteen feet long and quite impressive indeed).

Reblogged By Patti Wigington
-The Crafty Witch

Today begins the Celtic Tree Month Of Willow & The Wind/Blood Moon

The Willow moon was known to the Celts as Saille, pronounced Sahl-yeh. The Willow grows best when there's lots of rain, and in northern Europe there's no shortage of that this time of year. This is a tree associated with healing and growth, for obvious reasons. A Willow planted near your home will help ward away danger, particularly the type that stems from natural disaster such as flooding or storms. They offer protection, and are often found planted near cemeteries. This month, work on rituals involving healing, growth of knowledge, nurturing and women's mysteries.

Also

In April, the thunderstorms of March are beginning to subside, and the wind picks up. Seeds are being blown about on the breezes, spreading life all around from one place to the next. In fact, this lunar cycle is often known as the Seed Moon. Trees have buds on them, spring daffodils and tulips abound, and the birds are nesting once more. Much like March, this is a time of conception and fertility and new growth.

 

Correspondences:
Colors: Bright primary colors -- red, yellow, blue -- and their combinations

Gemstones: Quartz, selenite, angelite

Trees: Hazel, forsythia, lilac, willow

Gods: Ishtar, Tawaret, Venus, Herne, Cernunnos

Herbs: Dandelion, milkweed, dogwood, fennel, dill

Element: Air

This is a good time to work on magic related to new beginnings. Looking to bring new love into your life, or conceive or adopt a child? This is the time to do those workings. It's the time to stop planning, and start doing. Take all those ideas you've had brewing for the past couple of months, and make them come to fruition.

 

Also Known As: Seed Moon

 

Examples:

Willow celebrated the Wind Moon by planting some seeds in small cups of soil.

via about.com


-The Crafty Witch

DIY Blood Candle

This project I like to call the Blood Candle, so spooky and really ties a room together during your halloween celebrations.

Best of this entire project will only cost $2.00!

What you'll Need:

• White Pillar Candle

• Red Taper Candle 

• Candle Holder

*All items underlined are optional

Easy Step-by-Step Directions:

1. Put the White Pillar Candle on some sort of safe, non flammable surface.

2. Light Red Taper candle and melt over the edges of the white candle to give it the blood effect, (total project time is est 4 min - depends on how "bloody" you want your candle)

3. Set on some sort of candle holder or safe surface. Enjoy

 
 

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-The Crafty Witch