Moura Day

 Dear Reader,

Today is the first day of Moura. Moura is the fifth season of the Filianic calendar and the final month of the year. It is set aside from 'ordinary' time as a season of purification, prayer, and preparation for the high holiday of Eastre. There are as many different observances of this holy day as there are practitioners of the Fililianic and Déanic faiths. Within the early Madrian tradition, Moura Day was a solemn occasion observed with a full fast and acts of penance.

Within my tradition, it would be set aside for a full fast with exemptions made for children, the ill, and people who are medically unable to fulfill it. The fast begins at sunrise and lasts until sundown. A hearty meal before sunrise and an equally hearty one after sunset would bookend the day. Beverages would not have a restriction upon them (thus if one were to have a 'meal' shake to prevent problems from low blood sugar, it is permitted because it is a beverage of sorts).

I am medically unable to keep a full fast. I, however, have been forced by life circumstances into a restricted diet that resembles a partial fast. In this case, one would have smaller meals than usual and give up snacking through out the day. (As an aside, it is the intention that matters more than the act. If you are unable to keep a full fast but you can do a partial fast, you have met the ritual requirement for the day.)

The ritual purpose of the fast is to purify the body by setting aside the 'bread of tyrants' for the day. This act of abstinence purges some of the impurity associated with this. Some choose to refrain from sweets and other delights for the purpose of mild mortification of the flesh to force themselves to refocus upon the Spirit. This is a secondary result of fasting and not the primary focus of the fast. The primary focus of the fast is to put aside the transitory things of the world in a symbolic fashion so that we may better attend to the Spirit. (There are multiple ways to accomplish this goal but that moves beyond the scope of this post.)

Moura Day is also the day that I gather together my supplies and tools for deep cleaning my home. I invoke Déa's blessing upon them and the work that I will be doing to cast out the spiritual miasma that had built up in the home over the course of the year. This is similar to the act of banishing unhealthful spirits and sealing the home against them that is practiced on Sai Herthe's day. Indeed, such an act of banishment and sealing is proper in the course of cleansing and sanctifying the space.

I also begin what I call my 'Moura Protocol'. During the time of Moura, I wear dark colors that are associated with Sai Rhavë and the Dark Mother. I dress in a more modest fashion than usual (though my wardrobe is rather modest to begin with so it isn't much of a departure from usual). I make a point of veiling when ever I go out in public. (I had been veiling all the time but I am beginning to see thinning of my hair and some hair loss due to the fabric rubbing against my scalp. Thus, I only veil when necessary in accordance with my taboos and for the month of Moura.) Every time I wash my hands, wash my face, or otherwise attend to personal grooming, I focus on ritually cleansing myself of miasma that I have picked up and seek Déa's blessing upon me for it. 

I additionally spend time in meditation and prayer at sunrise and sundown as frequently as my schedule allows me. Ideally, as I am a priestess, I would be observing all the ritual hours of the day. Life has made that difficult because of the other responsibilities that I juggle. I make a point of invoking Déa's blessing and protection over my family during this month. I usually do this in the evening as I am preparing dinner. 

I use Moura's time of self-discipline to instill and strengthen good habits. Where others may give things up for Moura, I take things on. This year, I have the spiritual goal of praying the Rosary every day. I have the material goal of improving my physical health. And I have the mental goal of embracing and expressing my creative self more fully. I feel a bit like I'm cheating this year because I started on these goals shortly before Luciad, but if it gets results then it gets results.

Werdë's Day (a day late)

 Dear Reader,

It seems to be the theme, this year, of my writing posts about the Filianic holy days at least a day or two late because other stuff in my life keeps me from the desk. Werdë's day was a busy day of doing domestic tasks, seeing family, and actively biting my tongue in an effort to keep the peace. It was a challenging day. During what little downtime I had, I spent much of it fretting about the future. Specifically, I was worrying about how things were going to go with school starting again in a little less than a month.

Sai Maia has spun into my wyrd many interesting things but I'm not sure I enjoy them. Life that is hard lived is difficult to keep a tranquil heart in the face of further challenges. I know that I have the capacity to do that. Sai Maia has ensured this but I have a hard time staying on that path because I also have a great deal of tension spun into my life's thread that manifests as anxiety issues. As a spinner myself, I recognize that strong thread requires a good deal of tension both in the initial spinning and in the plying so that it does not drift apart or fray when put to work. Ah, but do I wish there was a little less tension. Still, that tension does also manifest as a great deal of energy and drive to do things. So, perhaps it is not so bad after all. My feelings on it are mixed, like the results.

Sai Werdë has thrown the shuttle through the tapestry and I know not where I go but forward. I have passed through times of great difficulty in the past. I know that COVID-19 is but another part of a time of great difficulty for the world at large and that it is part of the tapestry. I take comfort to some extent that this will eventually pass. That we shall adapt to the challenges and find ways to be healthy and take care of each other. I worry at times that my diminished capacity for some things means that I am the weak thread in the tapestry and among the first to unravel before it is due. I recognize that the grand tapestry of the universe is not dependent upon me to so great an extent, but the smaller one of my family is. Thus I worry about such things. I try to lay my worries in Déa's hands, but it is difficult to let them go because I fear to be a burden upon She who holds the whole of creation in existence. I blame my upbringing for that anxiety and I work daily to set it aside.

Sai Kala has helped me in many ways. She has helped me end toxic cycles of abuse. She has helped me let go of people who are harmful to me and my family. Sai Kala has brought the end of a lifetime of denial that I was unwell. From that ending, new beginnings have come. This epicycle of growth moves me forward upon my life path. It makes me think that Sai Kala is as much a part of the weaving of the tapestry as Sai Werdë. Where the tapestry is uneven and undesireable bits stick out, it is a practice to run a sharp blade over it to cut away those bits to restore harmony to the work at large.

I know not what the next year holds for my wyrd. I only know that wyrd goes as it will and we can only follow along. The collective wyrd of the world at large will wend its way on past COVID-19 and we shall continue to survive. I take hope in that despite the current disaster unfurling. Déa is good and she will see to it that her children survive this disaster, just as we have survived others in the past.

Wishing a blessed Epiphany to you.

Dear Reader,

I sincerely wish you and yours a blessed Epiphany day. And a happy New Year to all of you who are not celebrating Epiphany. Within Filianism, Epiphany is the day of the revelation of the Daughter in her Mother's arms. It is the final celebration of the Nativity season. It is also the Name Day of the Daughter, for the scriptures read that the Mother pronounces:

Her Name shall be called Inanna
For She shall be Lady of Heaven.

It has been a challenging season for myself and my family. Illness has been making the rounds and proving difficult to shake. At the same time, however, there has been a good deal of peace and calmness to our Nativity/Yule celebration that may have helped everyone get better a little faster.

Epiphany is a Greek word that means revelation of something that was hidden. In modern common usage within then English language, epiphany continues to retain that meaning but has also acquired the meaning of sudden insight and understanding. It is my hope that epiphany day has not only brought upon us the blessings of knowing Dea more fully through the Daughter but a sense of insight and understanding of the goodness within humanity through Dea. For the scriptures teach that the human heart is a microcosm of the universe and Dea is present within us as well. May it be that the light of epiphany allow us to see Dea's presence in others and honor her in all ways.

High Holidays: Filianic

Eastre

Florimaia

Exaultation

Rosa Mundi

• Blessed Solstice & Rosa Mundi 2016

Chelayna

• Autumn:Harvest and Creation 2018

Cuviyana

• Autumn: Harvest and Creation 2018

Tamala

• Tamala/Samhain 2018
• A Shrine for the Beloved Dead 2014

Nativity

• Yuletide 2015
• Advent Begins 2015

Lucaid

Amity Day

• Love is Love is Love 2017

Moura Day

• The Season of Moura 2018
• Moura Day 2016
• Moura Eve 2016

Kala

• Eve of Kala Thoughts 2018

Hiatus

• Hiatus and Equinox 2017

This page will be updated as the relevant posts are collated and put here.

A proposal: Winter Carinval

Dear Reader,

I have a modest proposal for my good friends in the Filianic and Déanic communities, as well as they who follow similar belief systems based upon these faiths. Just as there are many in the Christian community who celebrate the period between Nativity and Lent as a time of great feasting and joyous behavior, I propose that a similar celebration be embraced. Please consider my reasoning for this proposal.

1. It is during this period that the Daughter is most present in the World. She wears the mantle of Princess of the World as her primary role at this time. According to the holy writ, she moves through the World freely. This is a thing that should be celebrated as it is a miracle most holy and joyous.

2. The winter stores may be getting depleted in our households. While we have greater access to things by way of grocery stores than out ancestors did, there are still special things we put buy or make in winter like holiday cookies that we should enjoy before they are out of season. (As my Beloved husband says, this is the time to enjoy the eggnog while it lasts.) Why not do so with great happiness and gratitude for it?

3. The time for turning expectations upside down is traditionally during this 'season'. Perhaps the embrace of New Year's Resolutions is a minor manifestation, where we are expecting ourselves to break out of established habits. And perhaps we could include an expectation for greater joy in our lives when all the world seems to encourage us to believe that joy is in small quantity. We have the wonderful ability to manufacture situations where we may be joyful. It is a tiny way to put the world's expectations of doom and gloom on their head, is it not?

4. It is also a wonderful way to fortify our spirits in preparation for the stern season of Moura and the times of restriction that come with it. While we may look forward to the Resurrection of the Daughter with great hope, should we not also celebrate the life of Her and that holy presence in the world beyond the mysteries of Nativity?

Full Moon Rite: Full Corn Moon/Full Barley Moon

First, I must apologize for this post being a week late. Things have been quite busy with the start of school and I simply have not had the time to get this finished by the last full moon (Sept. 6, 2017). This rite is one that could be used for pretty much any full moon during the harvest season. What I am presenting here is a fairly generic ritual that can be applied with minimal modification for other deities and faith practices that fall outside of the cultural norm of the USA (mostly Christian).

Like most of the other rituals and spells I present, I use a lay out that is similar to a recipe. Spells have a more focused 'ingredient' list and the steps taken are going to be different but the methodology is actually pretty close to the same for these. It is because I believe the more consistency we have in our magical and spiritual lives, the much easier it becomes to access this part of our lives at any given point in time.

For this ritual, it is best if it can be performed outdoors to take advantage of the last of the warm season's weather. Inclement weather will always demand safety of the participants (and comfort can be a big part of safety so don't count that out). If you are doing your rite indoors because it is cold and rainy, this is not a problem. (And may actually be an excellent time to acquire some rainwater for future ritual and spellcraft use.) The ritual has a central space for focus, this is the altar space. It can be a table dedicated for this use specifically. It can also be as simple as a coffee table in the living room. A cloth that evokes autumnal qualities is pleasant, but not vital. The rite can be performed with out an altar cloth of any sort or a table. As long as the altar space is visually designated as separate from the rest of the ritual space, that is all you really need here.

Candles are popular. In some cases, the old fashioned flame burning candles are not a good choice. I have found equal success with electric candles as I have with wax. (I do my best to use rechargable batteries with my electric candles to minimize the environmental impact of disposing of batteries. If I must throw my batteries away, I collect them in a safe container and then bring them to places where they are disposed of properly. If you ask your local electronics store or automotive store, they can usually tell you where they are collected for disposal.) At least one candle is dedicated to the deity(s) you are invoking.

In addition to candles on the altar, ritual tools for cleansing and purification are there. As are offerings and some manner of nourishment to be shared with the deity(s) and participants in the ritual. Breaking bread together has long been a blessed sacrament in countless faiths into antiquity as it is an expression of trust and community. If you can not make your own food stuffs for this rite, don't be troubled. Store bought is just as good (as a certain famous chef has said).

The Pre-Ritual Rites

Prior to this ritual, please make sure that the area is clean and easy to move through. This helps the ritual to proceed easily.

With the altar space clean and ready, place all tools, candles, icons, and food stuffs for the feasting portion of the rite. With the first tool for cleansing the space (I prefer to use incense of a floral nature with pine resin added in.), walk the perimeter of your ritual space. (If you are working in an established, permanent ritual space, the cleansing of the space via spirit is not a necessary step, though it may assist you in entering proper ritual mind set.) As you walk the perimeter, declare the intention that the space be cleansed of harmful and contrary energy to your goals. The first pass around the ritual area complete, place the first tool of cleansing on the altar and then repeat the process with the second tool (I asperge the space with blessed salt water.).

Ritual space established, if a candle is being used to signify the presence of spiritual allies, guardians, and guests, light said candle at this time. As you do so, make your invocation of these beings, making your invitation as specific as possible. This is an excellent time to request your spiritual allies and guardians to ward the ritual space and participant(s) from harm by way of malevolent and contrary spiritual beings that seek to disrupt or otherwise influence the ritual.

Invitations made to those upon the spiritual realms that you desire to have present or witness your ritual, it is now time to invoke your household and personal deities. (In my case, I would be requesting the presence of Ingvi-Freyr; Anna, the Priestess of the World; Mother Marya; and Deam Mysterium.) At the time of requesting the presence of the deities, it is good to state what the purpose of your ritual is and ask their blessing upon it.

The Ritual

The Full Moon rites of Wicca, and related faith traditions, are generally ones of thanksgiving when they are not focused upon magical work. The ritual I present to you today is based in the Wiccan ritual format, as this is how I was trained initially in ritual practices. The Full Corn Moon / Full Barley Moon is the harvest celebration that is closest to the Autumnal Equinox and when the harvest celebration of Mabon (one of the major celebrations of Wicca and related faiths) happens.

[...]

Alright folks, I need some help here.

I'm looking this post over and I feel like I am just going on and on. I'm going to take another swing at this, but before I do, I would love some feedback.

Where do you think the strengths of this style of post are? What do you feel is missing? (Other than the other half of how to do this ritual.) I don't want to be boring you. I worry that this post's high level of verbage is taking away from the really purpose and goals of this post - to be informative and making knowledge accessible to pretty much anyone.

So, please, take a look at this draft. I've been trying to fix it because I have the distinct feeling something is wrong with it. I just can't place what it could be.

Please post your comments, suggestions, and recommendations in the comments below. Thank you so much for your time and your help. I want to make this the best little blog I can. I need a bit of help to do so.

Book Update: Available NOW!

Hi there dear Reader,

After a bit of exasperation and some challenges, the Southern Hemisphere edition of A Year With Dea: A Filianic Daybook is available for purchase. While I am confident that I have ironed out all of the issues, there may be a revision coming on this in a few months. (My anxiety tells me that I missed something huge and very important. Though I have rechecked my work several times. So, I'm going to go back through it in a few months, just to make sure that everything is entirely as it should be.)

The Northern Hemisphere edition will be re-released in a few weeks after I get everything set for the cover art. The plan is to have both books with similar cover art. Presently, I am narrowing down the right picture. Obviously, I am continuing with the theme of roses and celestial backgrounds.

I am also coming down to the finish line on the book that I referenced in both texts: Drowning in Light. If everything goes according to schedule, I may actually finish it by the end of July. My being unwell has delayed pretty much everything I've been working on, including finishing edits and formatting for publication.

Thank you for your patience with me in this process. I will be updating pages and including pictures of cover at as soon as I figure out how to make that work. (My computer has been a bit challenging. I have my expert helping me out, also known as my exceptionally supportive and patient husband. In the process, he has been teaching me how to work this stuff out myself. So, it can definitely be described as a learning process.)

Thank you again.

♥

Amity Day: Love is Love is Love.

Today is commonly known as Valentine's Day. It is the feast day of the Catholic saint named Valentinus. The stories surrounding this saint all agree that his death was decidedly unpleasant (one variation included his being beaten with clubs and beheaded before getting dumped into a shallow grave before being disinterred and reinterred elsewhere by the Christian faithful). The general reasons for this man's death usually are cited as performing marriages for Roman soldiers who had been forbidden from marrying and his association with Christians. Precise details about this era are not as strong as one would like because there are multiple individuals known as Valentinus who died for approximately the same reasons. This is additionally confused with the very varied writings that made up medieval hagiography.

Within the Filianic/Déanic communities, February 14th (also known as Brighe 23rd according to the sacred calendar of these faiths) has become known as Amity day. This is the day where love is celebrated in its many splendid forms. Where as the secular over-culture that we are generally aware of focuses upon romantic love (of a very specific variety) on this day, the Filianic/Déanic communities have a broader perspective. Indeed, it is often found that a focus upon Platonic and familial love in these communities. It is not that romantic love is unimportant as much as Platonic and familial relationships more closely mirror the ideal relationship between worshipers and Dea.

There are many in the wider pagan community that honor this as the feast of Lupercalia. Lupercalia is an ancient fertility festival that is reckoned to have been celebrated at approximately the same time of the year. The festival is historically associated with wolves and the deity known as Faunus (who is considered a Roman cognate to the Hellenic deity Pan). The focus of this festival has historically been the celebration of fertility, the appeasement of unfriendly spirits, the increase of health and vitality in the community, and purification of the city. One would only presume that along with the focus upon purification of the city, there was perhaps a parallel focus upon purification within one's own home.

Today, the 14th of February is treated as a day of sanctioned debauchery along certain lines. The indulgence of people in extravagant purchases to display their affection, in having sweet treats, and physical displays of affection is so heavily entrenched in the over-culture of the United States that it seems some sort of strange irony considering how many people are judgmental of others for such indulgences at other times of the year. The ideas that there is a certain standard of behavior that is required to observe this day properly creates an incredible amount of stress and anxiety for many, many people.

There are people who are extremely upset that they do not have a lover to dote upon them. There are people who are extremely anxious that their displays of affection are not extravagant. The combination of the stereotypes of what a 'good Valentine's day' looks like and the general lack of reasonable allowances for people to express their affections in a manner that is most comfortable for them turns a day that could have been one for deep spiritual and emotional connection in to a day of anxiety, stress, and general misery for many people.

Thus, one is encouraged to focus more upon love as a concept at large rather than a specific manifestation, with the exception of how those manifestations enrich one's life. Taking time on amity day to focus upon acts of self care as healthy self love is just as valid as taking one's sweetheart out to dinner. Some would dare say that that moment of self care is even more important right now. Focus upon love as that all encompassing wonder that moves through the world.

Filianic Calendar Notes - Astraea 3336

The Filianic Calendar denotes the beginning of the season of Winter with the first day of the month of Astraea (11/28). In many households, this is when the Yule tree is put up. There are also those who will set up an Advent wreath at this time.

Each Rayadi/Sunna's Day/Sunday, a candle is lit with prayers of anticipation of the birth of the Daughter. This happens until the week of Nativity. Different color candles are associated with different themes for each week. More will be discussed about this as the season of Advent progresses.

The holidays observed this month are the following:

Advent begins: Astraea 1 (11/28)

Feast of Conception: Astraea 11 (12/8)

Winter Solstice, Mother's Night: Astraea 24 (12/21)*

Nativity Eve: Astraea 27 (12/24)*

Nativity Day: Astraea 28 (12/25)

Yule is reckoned as beginning with Mother's Night and lasting for thirteen nights and twelve days in the Germanic/Nordic faith traditions. The celebration of Nativity is thirteen nights and twelve days, beginning on Nativity Day.

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Mother's Night is celebrated by some on the evening of the Winter Solstice. It is argued to have historically fallen around Nativity Eve and there is many historical signs to indicate that this was a shift of the traditional date to coincide with newly adopted Christian practices.

Cuivanya, Mabon, Autumn Equinox: What day is it?

Near the autumnal equinox, many people within the pagan community celebrate the harvest. Many people celebrate Mabon at this time. The Filianic community (and others of related faiths) celebrate Cuivanya. And there are people within the pagan community who don't celebrate this time of year beyond the secular joys of football and pumpkin spice everything. The 21^st of September is generally the day these celebrations happen on (though the equinox falls on the 23^rd this year). It falls roughly at the mid point of the harvest season in the northern hemisphere. This season is reflected in the names of the moons for the months of August, September, and October.

The full moon of August is known colloquially as the full Corn moon. This is because the grains planted in spring begin to become ripe at this time. August first is the date of Freyfaxi, Lammas, and Chelanya. Freyfaxi is a holy day for Freyr, wherein the first harvest is celebrated, his sacrifice for the good of all life is recalled, and (for me) a day honoring the labor of taking in the harvest. Lammas has many spellings. The date is also called Lughnassadh, in honor of the Irish Celtic god Lugh whose myth cycle includes matters pertaining to grain, fertility, and prosperity. The Wiccan community (and pagan faiths derived from Wicca) honor Lammas as a time of fertility and prosperity. There is much celebration of things that have come to fruition over the year. This is the theme over the entire harvest season.

Chelanya is the first of the Filianic harvest connected holy days. It is, by some, considered to be a mirror of the celebration of Eastre, when the Daughter dies and then returns from life. Chelanya is a time focused upon the resurrection of the Daughter and the soul into new life as children of Dea. The time of Chelanya is a period where the resurrection/rebirth of the world that comes with the Daughter's return from death is celebrated along side the harvest. Scriptural readings focus upon the elements of the Daughter's mythos where she arises from death and upon her giving of herself in holy sacrifice¹.

The full moon of September is known colloquially as the full Harvest moon. During this time, the harvest is in full swing and pretty much everything that is ripe this time of year is ready for gathering. Mabon is a celebration of, amongst other things, the grape harvest. This is because the grapes become ripe for harvest at this point and traditionally wine making began with the harvest. Wine, in the Wiccan faith, is considered to be holy and by some to be the blood of the Green Man (also known as the Harvest God, a vegetal deity who, again, sustains the world through his death and rebirth).

Cuivanya is the second of the Filianic harvest connected holy days. It is the celebration of Divine Life. The focus of this holy day shifts from the renewal of all things in the Daughter to the life of Dea in all three aspects. The predominant focus rests upon the Bright Mother. The bounty of the season is celebrated as gifts from Marya to the world, given to keep all things alive and well. Interestingly, where the symbol most predominant with Chelanya is the grain itself, the symbol that is most important in Cuivanya is the sickle. Here, we see Dea as the giver of life in the sickle that cuts the grain which feeds us. We also see Dea as the Dark Mother to whom all life returns in the sickle as it ends the life of the grain². Another symbol of this holiday is the apple of wisdom, due to this being when apples are most predominant. The common meditative focus of this holy day is Dea as the Ground of All being, the source of all that exists.

The full moon of October is known as the full Blood Moon. In antiquity, this was the time when livestock was slaughtered in preparation for the winter. This could be described as the final harvest of the season when the herds are culled to both provide meat for the winter and to render them a size that could survive the winter given the supplies set by for the coming season. At the end of October comes the celebration of Halloween, Samhain, Winter Nights³, and Tamala. So much has been written about Halloween and Samhain, I really leave that to others right now. Winter Nights is when a blóts are held to honor the alfar and the disir. Many focus upon honoring the dead at large at this time. In antiquity, this celebration was held during the first three days of winter.

Like Winter Nights, Tamala is a three day celebration. It is the third of the Fire Festivals (the other two being Sai Herthe's Day in January and Rosa Mundi in June). Tamala is the time where Dea as the Dark Mother is honored. But it is predominantly when the dead are honored. Tamala is when death is a meditative focus. Here, it is not the cosmic death of the Daughter or the 'death' of the universe as it is brought into union with Deam Mysterium. The death that is considered is the death of the individual and the transmigration of the soul through the lives that happen upon the wheel of incarnation. It is a time where the living reach out to the dead and honor them. It is also a time where the 'Family of the Faithful' is celebrated, wherein all are united within the Daughter via her sacrifice. Thus, there is emphasis placed upon reunion with those who have died before us and shall be reborn into incarnation at some point in the future.


Now, back to the matter of September's celebrations. I personally view Cuivanya and Mabon as much the same celebration. Both are harvest celebrations that focus upon life's preciousness. I also consider this time to be one where the holy work of harvesting should be honored, though I primarily celebrate the work of harvest at Chelanya/Frefaxi/Lammas. If I am able, I give offerings of what I have harvested thus far through the season. I also try to make a point at this time of year to begin the process of preparing for winter. If I have nothing I have harvested (such as produce or herbs), I try to give an offering of homemade bread or something else that I have fashioned myself.

If you celebrate the Filianic holiday or the Wiccan/Wiccan derived one, it is still a time for thanksgiving and preparation for the coming season.

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1. The sacrifice of the Daughter is much like the sacrifice of Freyr. Her life is given for the sake of the world and it is compared to the lifecycle of grain. While orthodox Filianism does not give much exposition upon this, it is my belief that the Daughter's sacrifice not only brings the rebirth/resurrection/renewal of the world but also that which sustains it. For, like Freyr, she sustains the world through her actions.

2. While the grain is technically not alive anymore when it is harvested, it is viewed as still 'alive' while it is standing in the fields. This is an ancient perspective that is reflected in some of the oldest of folk music out there. I encourage you to consider the song John Barelycorn as a British isles manifestation of this musical theme.

3. Winter Nights is celebrated pretty much anytime between the Blood Moon and Yule in the Heathen community. Many of the kindreds that I know of will celebrate it around the time of Halloween because it is convenient and dovetails nicely with the secular celebrations of this date.

Florimaia: Feast of the Flowers

Today is the holy day of Florimaia. Flowers are especially important within the Filianic belief systems because they are viewed as signs of Dea's grace. They are also part of Mysteries of Eastre, where they were strewn before the Daughter upon her return from the Netherworld and when the Daughter treads upon them the flowers are unbruised and whole after her passing.

Florimaia is a celebration that is, in many respects, wholly of this world. This does not make it any less important of a celebration, but it is very firmly rooted (if you'll for give the pun) in the manifest world. Flowers are given as gifts between Dea and the world. They demonstrate her loving regard for us. They show us that beauty exists in even the most impoverished soil (be it spiritual or physically). They are a distinct sign of her grace and blessing.

At the same time, we offer flowers to Dea as signs of our high regard for her and in a gesture of appreciation for the blessings she has given us. We offer them in bloodless sacrifice to honor her. And, flowers are offered up to Dea as a gesture of childlike adoration for our Bright Mother.

This year, Florimaia falls on the date of the secular holiday Memorial Day. (I am based out of the USA, this is a reflection of this.) My flowers have not yet budded out. I honestly don't know if they have survived this crazy weather we have been having. I did, however, place one of the paper poppies that I got from the VFW on my shrine in offering. In giving this offering, I not only am honoring Dea but asking that she extends her blessing and protection over all branches of the military and grant the Mighty Dead blessed repose and rest in their afterlife.

It is a very small gesture. In terms of purchasing flowers, it is a pauper's purchase. At the same time, however, it is what I have to give and I believe it will be well received because of that. Because a mother cherishes every gift given from her child, even if it is the least pebble found upon the ground.

May the flowers of Dea's blessing and grace surround you and fill your life with divine light.