good time oatmeal

The Big Picture

All the major pre-Christian holy days were astrologically based. Imbolc, which we now call groundhog’s day, marked the halfway point between the winter solstice and the spring equinox. In a similar fashion, Beltane, (our May Day) marks the midpoint between the vernal equinox and the summer solstice. Mayday is the most anciently recorded Solar Festival in history. Its mentions are widespread from the Mediterranean through Central Europe, the British Isles, and into the countries bordering on the North Sea. As we shall see, this is a curious fact since Mayday is one of the cross-quarter days of the almost universal solar calendar year accepted by everyone in the temperate northern hemisphere of our planet up until the iron fist of the patriarchal priests of monotheistic religion attempted to crush it out. For the record, note that the earliest written evidence of the May festival I could find is taken from a drawing from a window of a 600 year old church in Staffordshire England. The best date we have on this is about 1460 during the reign of King Edward IV. It is obvious to any student of antiquities that the Mayday festival preceded the birth of Christianity by several thousand years.

The Celtic name for Mayday is Beltane. The Teutons call it Walpurgis, while the Romans knew the festival as Floralia. The month of May arguably takes its name from Maia a grandmother goddess of sex, death and rebirth (the usual qualities of the ubiquitous triple goddess). Maia scorned marriage in favor of free promiscuity. Young couples from nearby villages, which rarely traveled to see each other in these ancient days of plowed fields with sticks of wood as the bronze plow failed to be sturdy enough to cut the rocky soil, traveled to the festival meeting places to dance the maypole dance and to be paired off, somewhat at random, to go into the green for the evening. What we have here is a matrilineal form of genetic selection where the wise-women knew that the inbreeding due to the harsh life of the village peasants was detrimental to the survival of the larger more widespread clan. We find this to be true in isolated cultures today such as certain areas of the Southern Appalachian region. The tradition of Maia favoring promiscuity rather than fidelity is probably the source of our current superstition that June weddings are the best. In many cultures weddings were forbidden in the month of May. The children of these festivals, born in early January were not claimed by the fathers but raised by the men of the community assisting the mother. They were said to be the children of Gods. Such characters as Little John, Robin o’ the Wood, Free John, John Merry and Robin Hood arose as a result of this myth. Note that Maia’s name was vulgarized by the Roman Christians into the maid Mariann. Hence we have the licentious Friar Tuck joining Robin Hood’s band of Merrimen, defenders of the goddess. The name was later changed to the Merry Men of the woods. There is also a connection to a sea goddess whose name took on various forms of the word Mare or Mer. Note that Mare is Latin for sea and in this case Maid Mariann becomes the mermaid. The men who worshipped this goddess made their living from the sea and were called Merriners. As language tends to do, this word also evolved into the word Mariner.

The symbols of the Maypole are about as numerous as you would care to count. Perhaps the most obvious one was the tree of life similar to the Norse Yggdrasil where-on the Everdying God was nailed and died so that his blood may be drunk as the wine which replenishes the life of the land. His body also was broken into bread and eaten as a sacrament to encourage fertility. This dying God symbolism permeates ancient history as Osiris, Odin, Prometheus, Baal, Baphomet and of course the Christian Jesus. Another symbol of the Maypole is represented as the hub of the wheel of the spinning Earth. It is believed that dancing and weaving ribbons around this symbol balances the natural powers of the Earth itself. A third symbol of the Maypole is that of the phallus of the Everdying God with the feminine baskets and wreathes full of flowers set below.

In parts of Europe today, large trees are stripped of their lower branches and then moved with large cranes to be set each year in the village square. On each branch is a symbol of the town’s guild, trades, vocations or other achievements.

The genuine and prehistoric roots of Mayday are that it was a Solar festival celebrated on May the 5th when the Sun rose halfway between the Spring Equinox and the Summer Solstice.

Robert Graves identifies Maid Mariann as a virgin Sea Goddess dressed in blue wearing a string of pearls. This is linguistically traced to the phrase Merry Olde England which means “The Rose of the Sea”.

Ritual sacrifice was certainly practiced and recorded by some of the last Romans leaving Briton and Gaul as late as the fourth century. Perhaps the sacrificial dying heroes still burn in the fires of the high hilltops today my fey friends; and on the tops of the ghostly rocky points peering out over the ocean where the mermaids rule. We may still see the Wicker Man burning brightly tonight.

Beltane was a genuinely frolicsome time. Given the harsh environmental conditions our ancestors faced; infant mortality was high, and the clan needed more strong survivors. It was known that those who were “Merry Begat” (conceived on Beltane) would be birthed in the dead of winter and would be suckled until the first berries of spring began to show.

The winter birth tried the babe’s constitution appropriately to produce either a stout child or early (and therefore less energy and resource consuming) infant mortality. The ruling matriarchs paired the “May Queens” with the clan’s healthiest, finest males, thereby achieving a sort of favorable genetic selection. With few metal tools to work the ground or chop wood, strong constitutions were a necessity. Now lets look at this month’s transits.

Mars conjuncts Jupiter on May 1st. This is a VERY positive, lucky, prosperous, rejuvenating transit. It happens once every two years. Good health, good luck, richly charismatic personal effects are readily available. The focus covers about five days centered on this date. Plan ahead when you see this coming and prepare to take initiative beginning two days before the above date. More money, success in love, success in sports, promotions or self promotional activity are favored. Good for medical procedures, good for just about anything you want. good for legal matters, travel, personal growth and a renewal of faith in yourself as you gain a deeper understanding of your place within the socio-economic and spiritual environment. Choose faith, and trust in your ability to make your world a better place. Expand your business. Raise your personal goals.

The only down side is the possibility that you will feel so good and confident that you may over expand or over indulge. Trust to good fortune and use common sense. PLAY at the game of self improvement, don't work at it. Find meaning in your life. Overcome your past limitations. Share your joy with others. Decide what you want; imagine it clearly with strong powerful bursts of positive emotion. I assure you the results will follow.

Begin projects now, especially things involving two year goals. In two years, approximately, you will experience this alignment again.

The New Moon of May turns at 2:51 AM EDT in the wee hours of May third occupying the 13th degree of Taurus. For vegetable and flower gardeners living in the middle latitudes of North America, the next two days are probably the best of all times to set out seedlings or plant seeds. Though it may be insignificant to non-gardeners, I predict this as an excellent year for all kinds of peppers, as a number of planets now are transiting fiery Aries. Yes, I do love to grow several kinds of peppers; you can’t beat the homegrown quality.

On a broader scale, this New Moon is composed of a strong base of fertile Taurus energy while being excited by five of our nine planets in Aries. The result is a real kick in the butt lunation. New Moons are always a time when new beginnings are made. This particular Moon will affect Taurus, Aries, Libra and Scorpio people with an especially powerful initiative for change and growth. There will also be a tendency to firmly consolidate recent gains in the personal arena. Due to an opposition between Venus and Saturn, relationships begun in the first week of May will tend to last a long time. This goes especially for relations involving a mutual sense of responsibility.

The period between May 11th and the 16th could be an interesting time. Mars leaves his home sign of Aries on the 11th, picking up a Taurus approach to his affect. The frantic pace slows down, but a complex porridge of minor aspects could generate a sort of “karmic clearance sale” as friends and enemies from past lives enter the picture. Here lie opportunities to clear out old resentments or to re-establish old alliances. At the very least, we will be left pondering and thoughtfully, gently pulling on our proverbial beards at the curious nature of the twists of fate. For some unknown reason, I recall watching similar periods over the past 30 years or so and I notice Scorpio people seem to toy and twist at their usually beautiful hair at these times. Its a rather small detail but I find it fascinating and intriguing and have no idea why. Just check it out yourself. Watch how often your Scorpio friends touch their hair. A lot of situational awareness is required to see this. Just a little bit of astrological fun and games amid the serious times of life….

On the 15th both Venus and Mercury begin their transit of Taurus. By now things have become quite exciting and the natural sensuality of Aphrodite may enthrall us as we see the beautiful spontaneity of Spirit intersecting Matter in our three dimensional world of the ripe influence of color and shape and sound and motion. Where Venus goes, Eros usually follows, filling out the rich texture of the tapestry of life while synchronicity pops up all around, free for the taking.

The Full Moon happens at 7:10 AM EDT on May 17th. Luna rests in the27th degree of Scorpio while the Sun Takes the same degree of Taurus. All the personal planets have now followed Sol into Taurus and this will cap off a definite peak period in the month. There is a sense of secret enchantment on the warm breeze. A blend of personal security and depth of feeling abide. Global events will continue to occur at a hectic pace, with some possible major problems. Extreme weather effects; either drought or flood; or more tectonic plate drift effects are likely to occur at some spots around the globe. These events will be contrasted against a backdrop of compassion and desire for peace flowing through most of the human race.

Mars trines Pluto on the 20th of May

"I want this mess cleaned up right now!...All of it!!"
God;... from Monty Python's 'Time Bandits.'

Most Mars transits last about three to five days. This one is about self empowerment, release, and realignment between the ego and the soul. All Mars/Pluto contacts convey a tremendous surge of power demanding we use our personal free will to affect self individuation.

Now your ego can more easily handle the passionate river of your soul's desire for rejuvenation. YOU GET WHAT YOU FOCUS ON. There is no universal law more fundamental than this. You embrace change willingly. On this day you can manifest with amazing power. Use this time to build up powerful positive bursts of emotion while visualing that which you wish to achieve. Renew your faith in yourself and/or in your God or Goddess and you will overcome many obstacles. See what can be released from your life. Clean up your act and focus on your best intentions. You now have a chance to pass through a portal of self initiation leading to a quantum increase in creative joy and vigor.

You can heal yourself. You deserve the best. Pass it around.

"Use the Force, Young Skywalker. Don't try. Do.....or do not."

The Sun enters the air sign of Gemini on the 21st. Gemini sometimes sacrifices depth for breadth, flowing around obstacles rather than pushing through. This mutable sign embraces change and seeks harmony through a constant overtone of motion. The pace of business affairs picks up speed and diversity is advisable. More on Gemini next month.