October 28
October 28, 2008
In ancient times, the Phoenician sun-god Baal of the Heavens was honored annually on or around this date. He presided over nature and fertility, and was associated with Winter rain. Sacred sun-symbolizing bonfires were lit in his honor by his worshipers in Syria. Depicted as a warrior with a horned helmet and spear, he was once worshipped as the principal god on Earth for thousands of years.
In ancient Egypt, a series of Autumn ceremonies for the goddess Isis began each year on this date. They lasted for six consecutive days.
October 27
October 27, 2008
Allan Apple Day. In Cornwall, England, an old Pagan method of love divination is traditionally performed each year on this day. A single gentleman or lady who wishes to see his or her future spouse must sleep with an Allan apple under his or her pillow, then get out of bed before the crack of dawn the next day. The person then waits under a tree for the first person of the opposite sex to walk by. According to the legend, the passerby will be the future marriage mate.
October 26
October 26, 2008
Birthday of the Earth. According to the calculations of a seventeenth century Anglican archbishop, the Earth was created on this date in the year 4004 BC.
On this date in the year 1440, Giles de Rais (one of the most notorious necromancers in history) was hanged in France as punishment for practicing black magic and making human sacrifices to the Devil, among other crimes.
October 25
October 25, 2008
Shoemaker’s Day is celebrated annually on this date in honor of Saint Crispin, the patron of shoemakers who was beheaded in the third century A.D. According to legend, a new pair of shoes bought on this day will bring good luck and prosperity to their owner.
October 24
October 24, 2008
On this day, many Wiccans from around the world celebrate the annual Feast of the Spirits of Air. Incense is offered up to the Sylphs (who often take the form of butterflies), and rituals involving dreams and/or the powers of the mind are performed.
This day is sacred to Arianrhod, Cardea, Dione, Diti, Gula, Lilith, Maat,
Minerva, and Sophia.
October 23
October 23, 2008
On this date (approximately), the Sun enters the astrological sign of Scorpio. Persons born under the sign of the Scorpion are said to be magnetic, psychic, imaginative, mysterious, and often prone to jealous obsessions. Scorpio is a water sign and is ruled by the planets Mars and Pluto.
October 22
October 22, 2008
In Japan, the purifying Festival of Fire (Hi Matsuri) is celebrated annually on this night. A traditional torchlight procession parades through the streets of Kurama and ends at a sacred shrine, where the ancient gods are believed to return to Earth at the stroke of midnight.
October 21
October 21, 2008
In the former Czechoslovakia, an annual festival known as the Day of Ursala is held on this date in honor Ursala, the ancient lunar goddess of Slavic mythology who
later became Saint Ursala.
October 20
October 20, 2008
On this date in the year 1949, Wiccan priestess and spiritual healer Selena Fox was born in Arlington, Virginia. In 1974, with the help of Jim Alan and a small group of Neo-Pagan friends, she formed Circle Sanctuary in Wisconsin. She is known as one of the leading religious-freedom activists in the Wiccan and Neo-Pagan movements.
October 19
October 19, 2008
On this day, an annual fair called Bettara-Ichi (“Sticky-Sticky Fair”) is held in Tokyo, Japan near the sacred shrine of the god Ebisu. Children carry sticky pickled radishes tied to straw ropes through the streets in order to chase away evil spirits and to receive blessings from the seven Shinto gods of good luck.
