Hey look at this.... I think that, despite my reticence to accept it, this is a sign that aforementioned Goddess has been communicating with me.. I found the following about yesterday's new moon at http://darkstarastrology.com/new-moon-july/..The New Moon on July 19 is at 26º Cancer and on fixed star Procyon in the crazy little doggy (canis minoris). We have a melancholic and slightly rabid Moon who “vants to be alone” since it is widely square Saturn and conjunct asteroid Hekate.... the rest of the article is also worth linking into.... AND since my earlier post a so far unidentified bird of prey fetched down a bird in my garden (sorry about the quality of the pic it was all over before I could get a good one).. do all birds of prey belong to her too I wonder?

Wormwood...?

During the new moon in Cancer..  The old gal (Hecate)spoke to me... Wormwood, it appears, must be in the garden so I've been out in the wild photographing said plant and have put together some ideas for it's use together with some historical research...

Wormwood

Parts used: leaves or flowering tops

Gathering: May to September preferably when flowering is almost done

Actions:

Bitter tonic

Anthelmintic

Anti- inflammatory

Carminative 

Indications: This common wayside herb stimulates and strengthens the whole digestive process. It is very effective in the treatment of heartburn or other manifestations of indigestion.

As its common name suggests this herb is effective in the treatment of worms particularly thread and roundworms.

Wormwood is a good general tonic and is useful for many diverse maladies. It will help the body deal with fever and infections.

Preparation and dosage: Warning - this brew is bitter!

Infusion: 1-2 teaspoons of the dried or 2-4 teaspoons of the fresh herb to each cup of boiling water. Infuse for 10-15 minutes. Take a cupful 3 times a day.

Tincture: Take 1-4 ml of the tincture 3 times a day.

Folklore, History and Kitchen Witch: Wormwood is governed by Mars. Its generic name is derived from the Greek goddess Artemis. As testament to the value given by classical herbalists to of this group of herbs an early translation of the Herbarium of Apuleius (Circa 550 – 625) states that: 'Of these worts that we name Artemisia, it is said that Diana did find them and delivered their powers and leechdom to Chiron the Centaur, who first from these Worts set forth a leechdom, and he named these worts from the name of Diana, Artemis, that is Artemisias.'

Presumably, Artemis gave Chiron the herbs dedicated to her so he could try them on himself…Chiron the centaur was a Greek God renowned for his healing skills and art as a physician. Nevertheless, when poor Chiron was accidentally shot in the knee by his friend Hercules with an arrow poisoned with the venom of the hydra he was unable to successfully treat the wound. After this incident Chiron became known as the 'wounded healer'.

The Bible often references wormwood usually in relation to its intense bitterness. In Proverbs V King Solomon says: Mind not the deceit of a woman. For the lips of a harlot are like a honeycomb dropping, and her throat is smoother than oil. But her end is bitter as wormwood, and sharp as a two-edged sword...What an old cynic… maybe he was just unlucky in love?

And whilst of the subject of the relationship between love and wormwood, Mrs Grieve sourced a lovely old love charm in her Modern Herbal it runs thus: 'On St. Luke's Day, take marigold flowers, a sprig of marjoram, thyme, and a little Wormwood; dry them before a fire, rub them to powder; then sift it through a fine piece of lawn, and simmer it over a slow fire, adding a small quantity of virgin honey, and vinegar. Anoint yourself with this when you go to bed, saying the following lines three times, and you will dream of your partner "that is to be":

‘St. Luke, St. Luke, be kind to me,

In dreams let me my true-love see’.

Wormwood has always been associated with visions in one-way or another and Wormwood and debilitating alcoholic beverages seem to go hand in hand. Jeremiah in his lamentations complains: ‘He hath filled me with bitterness: he hath inebriated me with wormwood’. Of course, this may not mean that he had actually drunk any thing with wormwood in it but rather that it just that it felt like he had. Pliny the elder makes numerous references to wormwood as flavouring for alcoholic beverages and it is well known that it was once used to flavour beer in the absence of hops. Wormwood is also an ingredient in Pernod and Vermouth but it is as a vital component of the, very naughty, absinthe that wormwood is best known.

To make your own absinthe

First make a tincture by soaking a couple of large sprigs (more or less to taste) of fresh wormwood, a teaspoon of fresh lemon balm, I star anise, a small pinch of fennel seeds (crushed) in a pint of vodka for 6 weeks (shake daily).

Strain the tincture and combine it with a bottle of Pernod, Anisette, Ouzo or Ricard (my personal favourite)

And now it’s time to party like its 1899…

How to drink it… it’s bitter so you need sugar… Absinthe drinkers, romantics one and all, seem to have formulated their own set of rituals around the drinking of their own particular poison. The idea is that the sugar is placed on the spoon (the one in the picture is the classic bistro spoon) and cold water is poured over the sugar to dissolve it. Of course you can simply use sugar syrup or dissolve granulated sugar in the glass it’s just not so … well… theatrical…. (If you really like drama you can drench the sugar cube in absinthe and set fire to it) the ratio of water to absinthe is a matter of taste and don’t over do it or you will regret it … but don’t let that put you off the green fairy is actually very good 

Hesiod on Hecate

"Asteria of happy name, whom Perses once led to his great house to be called his dear wife. And she conceived and bare Hekate whom Zeus the son of Kronos honoured above all. 

He gave her splendid gifts, to have a share of the earth and the unfruitful sea. She received honour also in starry heaven, and is honoured exceedingly by the deathless gods. 

For to this day, whenever any one of men on earth offers rich sacrifices and prays for favour according to custom, he calls upon Hekate. Great honour comes full easily to him whose prayers the goddess receives favourably, and she bestows wealth upon him; for the power surely is with her. 

For as many as were born of Gaia (Earth) and Ouranos (Heaven) [the Titanes] amongst all these she has her due portion. The son of Kronos did her no wrong nor took anything away of all that was her portion among the former Titan gods: but she holds, as the division was at the first from the beginning, privilege both in earth, and in heaven, and in sea. Also, because she is an only child, the goddess receives not less honour, but much more still, for Zeus honours her. 

Whom she will she greatly aids and advances: she sits by worshipful kings in judgement, and in the assembly whom she will is distinguished among the people. And when men arm themselves for the battle that destroys men, then the goddess is at hand to give victory and grant glory readily to whom she will. 

Good is she also when men contend at the games, for there too the goddess is with them and profits them: and he who by might and strength gets the victory wins the rich prize easily with joy, and brings glory to his parents.

And she is good to stand by horsemen, whom she will: and to those whose business is in the grey discomfortable sea, and who pray to Hekate and the loud-crashing Earth-Shaker [Poseidon], easily the glorious goddess gives great catch, and easily she takes it away as soon as seen, if so she will. 

She is good in the byre with Hermes to increase the stock. The droves of kine and wide herds of goats and flocks of fleecy sheep, if she will, she increases from a few, or makes many to be less. So, then. albeit her mother's only child, she is honoured amongst all the deathless gods. 

And the son of Kronos made her a nurse of the young who after that day saw with their eyes the light of all-seeing Eos (Dawn). So from the beginning she is a nurse of the young (kourotrophos), and these are her honours." - Hesiod, Theogony 404

Hecate's antiseptic (Vinegar of the Four Thieves)

Thought this might be of interest ... There are many variations on both the legend of the four thieves and the recipe for their vinegar, but briefly, and as it was told to me, the story surrounds four French men who plundered the homes of plague victims around Marseille in the 1600’s and yet remained unaffected by the plague themselves. They were captured and, as the penalty for looting was death, they bargained for their lives by offering the magistrate the recipe for their vinegar.  It is said that he happily accepted their offer and that they were spared. It occurred to me that there was more than a hint of Hecate about this particular recipe... 
so here it is...

Vinegar of the Four Thieves 

(A useful protection against disease and magical attack since the 1630’s)

You can take this remedy a teaspoon at a time, add it to salad dressings, use a splash in your bathwater or dilute a little in a spray bottle to help clear a space.

You will need:

A large container with a lid (Kilner jar is good)

Ingredients:

2 tbs. of garlic roughly chopped

A handful of each of lavender, sage, rosemary, thyme, rue and wormwood 

Enough cider vinegar to cover the herbs

Method

1.      Roughly chop all the herbs if fresh

2.     Place all plant material in the jar

3.     Cover with vinegar with about three fingers of vinegar over the top of the plant materials

4.    Fasten tightly

5.     Stand somewhere warm for about a month and shake often

6.     Strain and bottle.  

News of Herbal seminar

Equinox inipi and new moon approaching..

So the vernal equinox is tomorrow morning 20th March 2012 at 5:14 am when the sun moves in to 0 degrees Aries. The new moon is on thursday 22nd of March at 2:37 p.m... 

time to walk that dog in the woods methinks... 

and then inipi weekend at Ashlodge... could life be any sweeter? 

Lavender...

Lavender

lavendula augustafolia(formerly lavendula officinalis) 

Lavender is under the dominion of the planet Mercury, which presides over communication, the mind and the nervous system. Plants under the rule of mercury are often very ethereal with slender stems and feathery leaves and lavender is a good example of this. In 1647 W. Lilly in his Christian Astrology, reported that Mercurial herbs: ‘have principle relation to the tongue or brain, lungs and memory; they dispell winde and comfort the animal spirits, and open obstructions.’ All these qualities are in fact, present in lavender although the language used by Lilly seems rather archaic.

Lavender has been in use since the earliest times and it is mentioned in the regimen sanitatis Salernitanum (c 12-13^th C) a book of writings about the care of the body, which reports that: “Sage, castoreum, lavender, primrose, Nasturtium, and athanasia cure paralytic parts of the body”.

During the twelfth century, washerwomen were ordinarily known in the north as Lavenderesses, from whence comes our name Laundress. It appears that the title was not gender specific as a ‘Lavender man’ is mentioned in the black book of Edward IV (1442 – 1483). This entry confirms lavender’s enduring association with cleanliness as the lavender man in question was authorised to collect from the stores ‘enough soap for the King’s personal use’.

Lavender appears as a sign of homely hygiene in Izack Walton's Compleat Angler (1653) it says: ‘I'll now lead you, to an honest ale-house, where we shall find a cleanly room, Lavender in the window, and twenty ballads stuck about the wall’.

Lavender is mixed with balm, violets, yarrow and rose petals in love potions and is one of the herbs that may be worn in an amulet to attract the love of a man.

Lavender is also one of the herbs connected to the goddess Hecate who is patroness to witches and sorcerers and also to her daughters Medea and Circe. It is said that an amulet of lavender will avert the evil eye.

In the 17^th century lavender was included in nosegays to prevent the plague and to this end it was also included in the vinegar of the four thieves (see recipe section).  

Mrs Grieve reports that during the Second World War the French Academy of Medicine used the oil for swabbing wounds and other antiseptic purposes. However, recent research has shown the antiseptic qualities of lavender to be rather low and variable from batch to batch. So if it’s antiseptic you want you would be better off looking at Cayenne, Echinacea or Garlic.

Parts used: the flowers

Gathering: the flowers should be collected just before they open between June and September.

Actions:

Anti-depressant

Anti-spasmodic

Carminative

Rubefacient.

Indications: A beautiful herb which has many uses in food, cosmetics and general well being. Lavender has been used since time out of mind for cases of nausea, indigestion and flatulence.

In cases of faintness lavender can be used instead of smelling salts.

This herb will help strengthen the nervous system it is therefore recommended for nervous exhaustion and debility and it is very effective for stress related headaches. Lavender should not be overlooked when treating the symptoms of low mood because it is a gentle tonic for the nerves.

A lavender bath at night followed by a cup of lavender tea works wonders in cases of insomnia especially when caused by stress.

The essential oil has many external uses: mixed with honey it is an excellent treatment for burns after initial first aid with cold water and I have personally witnessed on several occasions a single drop of neat lavender oil in the ear cure a really nasty earache.

A drop of lavender oil neat on the skin is advised at the first sign of spots or pimples.

Lavender oil it is also useful as a component in a liniment for the treatment of rheumatic aches and pains the recipe for which is in the how to section. The essential oil is often added to disagreeable herbal ointments to improve their scent and also because of its long-standing reputation as an analgesic agent. 

Preparation and dosage: infusion: add a cup of boiling water to a teaspoon of dried herb or two teaspoons of fresh herb and infuse for 10 minutes. Drink a cupful 3 times a day.

The oil can be rubbed on the skin, inhaled or used in baths. For perineal discomfort following childbirth 10 drops of lavender oil can be added to a sitz bath, which can be taken when necessary.