February is the last bit of cold before the Spring comes, and we’re naturally beginning to think about the growth season ahead. We’re feeling the stirrings of activity as the days are getting longer and sunnier, though there’s still a strong chance of Winter weather. We can’t help but get excited when the snow drops, daffodils, and other early flowers begin to bloom, and some trees are even budding now!
February was named after a Roman purification ritual called Februa, held on February’s full moon. And the theme of purification is perfect for this time of year, as we’re feeling the need to open the windows and air out the house from all the stifling Winter stuffiness. This is also a great time to get a jump on Spring cleaning/decluttering/organizing to make space for fresh new energy!
I’ve been seeing so many hawks lately, but not much else. Even the cardinals that are usually around all year have been quiet. I found a small grey snake a few weeks ago, but it was injured and didn’t make it. So I’m leaving him on a stone in the yard in hopes that I can come and find his bones later. I expect to start seeing more birds as February moves along, as we do start to see birds pretty early here in the South. Last week, we were supposed to get snow and didn’t, and next week we’re allegedly going to see temps in the 70s. Here’s to surprises!
Lunations:
February 4- New moon in Aquarius, 4:03pm, EST
February 19- Full moon in Virgo, 10:53am, EST
Astronomy:
February 8- Alpha Centaurids meteor shower begins
(That’s it. Kind of a slow month.)
Celtic Tree Month:
Rowan (Jan 21st- Feb 17th): Protection, inspiration, vision, clearing the mind for meditation, attunes us to nature, broadens perspectives, protects from harm on a journey, brings spiritual enlightenment, hidden mysteries of nature and quickening of life force
Ash (Feb 18th- Mar 17th): Mastership and power, psychic/prophetic dreams, strength, harmony, being in tune with your surroundings, heals loneliness of human spirit by forming a link between gods, man, and the dead, key to universal truth and cosmic wisdom, tree of initiation.
Holidays (non-Pagan):
February 2: Groundhog Day
February 5: Chinese New Year
February 14: Valentine’s Day
February 18: President’s Day
Holidays (Pagan):
February 1: Imbolc
February 1 -14: Festival of Dionysos
February 3-6: Old European Lunar New Year- celebration of the Triple Goddess
February 5-6: Feast of Isis the Healer
February 5-6: Anthesterion Noumenia- Greek festival honoring all the Gods and Goddesses
February 8-9: Feast of Aphrodite and Eros
February 10-11: Feast of Artemis
February 13-15: Lupercalia- originally honoring the Roman Goddess Fauna
February 15-18: Anthesteria- Greek festival honoring Plouton as god of the dead
February 22: Caristia- Roman family festival where feuds were forgiven
February 24- March 3: Lesser Eleusinian Mysteries, where Kore/Persephone and Dionysus/Plouton return to the land of the living
February 28: Slavic Velja Noc- when spirits of the dead and Veles (Lord of the Dead) return to land of the living to visit living relatives- also considered new year
Themes for the month: Purification, cleansing, self-love, self-care, romance, the seeds we’re planting, watching them quicken into life, the fire we hold inside that will help us through the last of Winter’s cold.
General activities for the month: Planning a garden, sharing romantic times with people you love, practicing self-care and self-love magick (ritual baths, time alone, positive self-talk, luxuries like massage or decadent face masks), looking around you for the very first signs of Spring (the first flowers, sprouts emerging from the soil, buds on the trees, birds changing shifts)
Herbs I’m using: Sandalwood as incense for its warming scent, cloves and cinnamon in my shampoo to stimulate scalp and hair growth, a new umami seasoning blend from Trader Joe’s that makes ramen taste amazing!
Stones I’m using: Aragonite (deeply connected with the earth, keeps us grounded and connected through the earth star chakra), fire agate (the epitome of fire energy- motivation, quickening, warmth, light), rhodonite (great for the heart chakra, and especially practicing self-love)
Goddess of the Month: I’m feeling so drawn to Brigid right now. This makes sense, since Imbolc is her holiday, but I’m really connecting with her outside of that as well. As the goddess of healing, I’m drawn to her because I have so much healing to do, and I want to help others by showing them how I’ve healed myself so far. As the goddess of poetry, I’m deeply drawn to her in all of my creative writing endeavors. I want to connect with the spirit of prolificness in my writing. As the goddess of smithcraft, I feel her presence because I’m trying to create a physical reality that best supports and reflects my inner world. I want to manifest the beauty that’s in my head in a physical way, mostly through my home.
I don’t know if I’m being called to her, or if I just need some of her sacred flame in my life right now, but I’m going to do some reading and self-reflection to see how this connection will best be served.
3 card reading:
Here we start with the 5 of Cups. So we’re feeling disappointed, like everything has come crashing down. But the reality is that while we have a few cups that have spilled, we still have 2 that are upright. And if we don’t spend our time dwelling on what has been lost, we can figure out how to best utilize what we can salvage and find a way through the present situation.
Next, we see the 5 of Wands reversed. So while we’re disappointed, and focused on the negative, at least we can see that the struggle is finally over. Something we worked and competed for is done, and we can relax and breathe for a while.
Finally, we have the King of Wands reversed. So I feel like this is a time to stop fighting, stop struggling, stop trying, and to simply be. Perhaps our energy is better served this month not by trying to work our will in the outside world, but to go within and examine ourselves and what we have to offer to our future selves. I feel like this card is telling us to kind of rev ourselves up for action, but hold onto the energy we create until we have a clear path to charge down.
Our special guidance card is Individuality. And this is a really great card for this situation. We have an opportunity to take stock of our gifts, the things we care about and are good at, to find solutions and new pathways. So don’t look at what other people are doing and try to follow in their footsteps, create your own footsteps and use your strengths to make your way.
from Light: Winter
By Inger Christensen
Translated by Susanna Nied
Winter is out for a lot this year
the beach already is stiff
all will be one will be one this year
wings and ice will be one in the world
all will be changed in the world:
the boat will hear its steps on the ice
the war will hear its war on the ice
the woman will hear her hour on the ice
the hour of birth in the ice of death
winter is out for a lot.
Out for the houses the cities
out for the forests the clouds
the mountains the valleys fear
the heart the children peace.
Winter is out for a lot this year
the hand already is stiff
the crying of children is heard in the house
one will we be one life
I hear my house slip with the world
and scream all that has been screamed
the heart rams its boat into ice
shells rustling in the hull
winter is out for as much.
If I freeze fast in the ice
if you freeze fast my child
my great forest next summer
my great fear as I come
if you freeze fast my life:
then I am a vulture of wings and ice
tearing my liver, my living life
awake in eternity.
This winter is in for a lot.
My personal tides: The card reading above is SO PERFECT for me right now. A major thing that I’ve been working on for the last 4 years has fallen through, and I’m a bit numb. I didn’t really count on it working out, but it would have solved so many problems if it had. So I’m having to regroup and look for other options as far as how to simply survive. We could easily falter and end up homeless right now, but I feel like there’s a path through all this. I just need to find it. I’m scared, but also extremely grateful right now for really basic things. I have an amazing marriage to someone I love and admire, I have top notch kitties, I have things to read, a computer (which is a tool to help me find my way through), and for the time being, we’re warm and safe and have food to eat. As for the future- we’ll do the best we can with what we have.
I’m trying to see this as an opportunity to pare down to the essentials in life, and do some major life decluttering. It’s a much more positive take than being afraid of losing everything.
My personal goals: It’s hard to set goals when you’re feeling so drained. But to be fair, this is a time of the year where I usually feel drained regardless. So my goals this month are pretty easy. I want to continue cleaning my house, separating what I really need from what I need to let go of. I want to continue with my daily spiritual practice, including my ‘Planner of Shadows’, meditation, prayer, and a daily card draw. I haven’t done as well as I’d hoped with this so far, but my energy is kind of hit-or-miss during the Winter months. I also want to spend some time studying Brigid. It seems to me that her flame is also a flame of purification, and I would like that very much in my life, plzthx.