Strawberry Rose Moon Blessings
INFO FROM DJ CONWAY'S Moon Magick
Also Known As: Honey Moon, Oak Moon, Moon of Horses, Lovers' Moon, Strong Sun Moon, Mead Moon, Sheep Moon, Brachmanoth (Break Month), Moon of Making Fat, Basil Moon
Element: earth
Nature Spirits: sylphs, zephyrs
Herbs: skullcap, meadowsweet, vervain, tansy, dog grass, parsley, mosses, mugwort
Colors: orange, golden-green, gold, yellow, red
Flowers: lavender, orchid, yarrow, rose
Scents: lily of the valley, lavender, rose
Stones: topaz, agate, alexandrite, fluorite
Trees: oak, maple
Animals: monkey, butterfly, frog, toad, horse
Birds: wren, peacock
Deities: Aine of Knockaine, Isis, Neith, Green Man, Juno, Cerridwen, Bendis, Ishtar, Persephone
Power Flow: Full but restful energy; protect, strengthen, and prevent. A time of Light; Earth tides are turning. Decision-making, taking responsibility for present happenings. Work on personal inconsistencies. Strengthen and reward yourself for your positive traits.
Mantra (By Yasmine Galenorn in The Witches' Datebook): My life reflects the joy in my heart.
Info on This Moon From About Dot Com: In June, the sun has taken over and the fields are growing. Flowers have bloomed, we're beginning to see some early summer fruits and vegetables (a great time for strawberry crops!), and the days are getting longer and longer. It's a far cry from the darkness of winter, and we typically try to spend as much time outside as possible. It's a time for bonding with friends and family, and forging what connections we can. Nurture your relationships, your garden, your career, and your soul this month.
This is the month where magical workings are well suited to maintaining and enhancing things you already have. Weed your garden, prune the bushes, give your lawn all the tender loving care it needs. Take time to let your personal life blossom as well -- focus on things that improve your job or education, as well as your relationships with family and friends.
BY THE (other) BOOKS
The Complete Idiot's Guide to Wicca and Witchcraft by Denise Zimmerman and Katherine A. Gleason
Also known as the Strawberry or Rose Moon, the Lover's Moon brings with it energy for love, marriage, and success. Is it any wonder that in some traditions this Moon is called the Honey Moon? This is a time to nurture your garden and marvel at its beauty and abundance. If you have taken that new job, now is the time to make sure you have everything running smoothly. And you might want to keep your eyes open to see how you can move into a more desirable position.
The Complete Idiot's Guide to Paganism by Carl McColman
JUNE (Dyad Moon)-- Sacred to faeries and nature spirits. Honor the growth in fields, like a pregnant belly.
The Craft - A Witch's Book of Shadows by Dorothy Morrison
Name: Mead or Honey
Cakes & Ale: lemon cookies and honey-sweetened tea
Colors: bright hues of yellow and amber
Altar Decor: yellow or orange candles,flowers, shed feathers, and butterfly cocoons
Incense frankincense and myrrh
Esbat Purpose: Celebrate life anew, metamorphosis
Try Drawing the Circle With: a fallen feather
Witch's Brew: Good Spells for Peace of Mind by Witch Bree
June heralds the Strawberry Moon with the Solstice and the sweetness of life.
Witches Datebook by Yasmine Galenorn
This month let us turn to the oceans, lakes, and streams for our inspiration to cast a spell for peace and happiness this Full Moon.
Decorate your altar with a pale blue cloth and a pair of gold candles. Light the candles, cast a circle, and invoke Aphrodite, foam-born Goddess of the Sea. Now take a glass gallon jar and spread a layer of blue aquarium gravel in the bottom. Atop the gravel, layer quartz crystals, silver beads, and seashells of varying sizes.
Fill the jar with water, and tint it a pale aqua. Cap the jar tightly. Focus on peace and happiness filling your life, and say:
Ocean Mother, Father Sun, let my will now be done.
TO this spell bring joy and love, roses wild, gentle doves.
Aphrodite smile down on me, as I will so mote it be.
Set the jar out under the morning sunlight and leave to collect the rays of brilliant light from this, the most joyful of months.
Affirmation for the Strong Sun Moon: My life reflects the joy in my heart.
Witches Datebook by Edain McCoy (2002)
Hawthorn is sacred to the old Gods of Ireland known as the Tuatha de Danaan. Long ago driven below the ground by foreign invaders, today the Tuatha de Danaan are the fairy folk of Ireland. This is an excellent Moon for fairy contact as you explore the unity of polarized forces that is the Hawthorn Moon.
Witches Datebook by Edain McCoy (2004)
Over a century ago, the musical play H.M.S. Pinafore debuted on the London stage. One of the songs from the score insisted that, "Things are seldom what they seem." These words personify the hawthorn-- a tree that, in folklore, is much more than what it seems. Even in modern Ireland you'd be hard-pressed to find someone willing to move or harm one for fear of upsetting the capricious fairy spirits who call it home.
When you need to know what is what, call upon the spirit of the hawthorn to assist you:
Fairies of the hawthorn, of you I ask,
A favor and a simple task;
Show to me what is false and true,
And I shall give a gift to you.
When you've received a vision of your answer, tie a pretty ribbon on the bush or plant a coin near its base in thanks.
Witches Datebook by Ellen Dugan
June is the traditional month for weddings. One of the oldest names for this month's Full Moon is the "Mead Moon." The term "honeymoon" arose from an ancient northern European wedding custom. For the first month of marriage, newlyweds drank a daily cup of honeyed wine called mead to promote fertility. So during the Mead Moon, tap into its energies. Cast spells to promote fertility, desire, or loving relationships.
Call upon Freya, the Norse Goddess of love and sexuality. Her magical correspondences include amber, strawberries, and primrose. Light a golden candle for Freya, add coordinating magical items, and repeat this spell under the Full Moon to pull a little love your way:
Flowers and candles, symbols of desire and love,
Freya hear my call to you and answer from above.
Bless my relationship, keep our love lasting and true,
Guide my magic, and assist in all I do.
For the good of all, bringing harm to none,
Under the Moon of Mead, this spell is done!
Witches Datebook by Dallas Jennifer Cobb
With summer's warmth almost upon us, June's Full Moon is a time for peaceful relaxation. The seeds already sown, the flowers opened, the fruits not yet ready to harvest, this natural lull in farming meant time for other traditions. June was a time of weddings and honeymoons-- a time to enjoy the fruits of love, romance, and success. Knowing the crops were thriving, the new mother cradles her healthy child in her arms, at her breast. The babe is peaceful, the mother thankful, time now in a delicious rest. Summon restful energy to care for yourself, strengthen your health, and be your best. Gather flowers to make mead wine, to weave a celebratory wreath, or to store for future magical use. Rest and reward yourself with a sip of life's sweetness.
Lovers' Moon, Honey Moon, Rose Moon sweet,
Flowers, herbs and fruits our sacred treat,
Isis, Juno, Ishtar, Neith,
Weave love and strength in a protective wreath.
Witches Datebook by Elizabeth Barrette (2016)
June is called the Sheep Moon. This is a time of quiet growth after the hustle of spring but before the peak of the harvest. Sheep exemplify this energy because they produce wool without effort; as long as they can eat and relax, they grow a luxurious fleece. They are dreamy creatures who do best in a soothing environment where they can create wool without being pestered.
To cast this spell, you'll need some wool for any kind of fibercraft that you'd like-- yarn for braiding or knitting, loose wool for felting, etc. (If you're allergic to wool, consider substituting another animal fiber such as angora or alpaca, which are less allergenic.)
As you work on your project, ask the Gods of wildlife (like sheep) to bless your inspiration and teach you the ways of effortless creation. Let go of angst and competition. Just be, and let things flow out of you like wool growing on a sheep. This energy will go into whatever you are making. Afterward, thank the Gods for helping you.
When you finish your project, keep it nearby as a reminder of your woolly muse. Touch it whenever you find yourself getting too caught up in stress and judgement.
Witches Datebook by JD Hortwort
Think of the first romantic dinner you cooked for a sweetheart or, perhaps, that a sweetheart cooked for you. Was it spaghetti-- maybe pizza or some other Italian treat? And what was the key spice in this concoction? Basil, of course.
It's little surprise when the Full Moon rises in June (the month of weddings) that the alluring scent of basil is in the air. There was a time in Italy when a woman might use basil to snag a lover. A pot of basil on a lady's windowsill meant she was ready to receive amorous company. Of course, men weren't above using it to entice a wife, either. When burned as an incense, it can helps dispel negativity and promote peace during family squabbles.
Fortunately, basil is very easy to grow, requiring only full sun, average soil, and regular watering. When kept pinched back, basil will supply its gardener with spicy foliage all season long. If the desire is for variety, O. basilicum can oblige with varieties that include a hint of lemon, lime, cinnamon, licorice, or anise.
A safe and happy holiday to all who celebrate~!