My Top Three Astrology Books for Absolute Beginners

There is a part of me who just wants to read and recommend books all day long. Am I the type of person who while in the process of reading a book is already writing a post in my head on how I would review and/or recommend said book? Yes, yes I am. It’s one of the ways that I synthesize information, trying to understand out where things fit in my web of knowing and learning, and figuring our whether or not a resource feels useful. I also just like imaging that I am a librarian.*

So, while I do recommend books occasionally in my newsletter and increasingly over at my patreon, I realized that recommendations for beginner-level astrology books on the blog was long overdue. So here is a list of three books that I love to help get you started on your astrology studies!

View fullsize

You Were Born For This: Astrology for Radical Self-Acceptance by Chani Nicholas

I love Chani Nicholas. I love the ways that she has played a pivotal role in expanding and re-membering the world of western astrology into the vast and inclusive space that it is. If you don't already follow her and support her work please do (in fact, I think Chani might've been the first person I supported in a monthly, patron-style basis). In addition to her amazing horoscopes, she offers online courses (they are beautiful and beginner-friendly), some of my favorite playlists, and now you can watch her read charts of the likes of Janet Mock and more. (Also, her wife runs the incredible Freefrom - heck yeah to lesbian power-with couples). 

So as you can imagine, I ordered her book the moment it came out earlier this year and it was a very good investment. The focus of Chani's book is tight which is super useful to some one brand new to astrology. She walks us through the three foundational keys of your birth chart - your Sun, Moon, and Ascendant. The Sun and Moon in western astrology are traditionally known as the Luminaries and along with the Ascendant can tell you a lot about a chart. Through exploring these three keys, Chani also introduces the reader to a number of other important parts of a birth chart including the elements, houses, aspects and more, all delivered in Chani's approachable and inclusive style. What shines through with all of Chani's work is that she loves the art of astrology and loves teaching it in a way that will help folks experience the power of homecoming and radical self-acceptance that knowing our stars offers us. Chani also brings the best of feminist and queer creative thinking to her work - yes, the language is built to invite us in and make astrology feel like a friendly tool as opposed to some obscure and fatalistic art, but she always makes space for the sacred mystery inherent in the practice and learning how to move within such places.

I hope that this is one of many books and other such projects from Chani. As a tool to accompany You Were Born For This she created her own birth chart generator which is my favorite online tool for beginners just getting to know their chart (and, well, anyone really). She's already been updating it and expanding its capabilities since premiering it since last year because she is a generous star queen. So if you're looking for an easy-to-use book that will help you understand how to read the basics of the birth chart and leave you feeling empowered and starry-hearted, check out Chani's work.

You Were Born For This is for those folks who are brand new to astrology but know that there is more to their birth chart than their Sun sign and are excited to learn more.

Edit: A few months after posting this, Chani released her membership-based astrology app. It is an excellent and inspiring resource - I highly recommend it!

View fullsize

Astrology for Yourself: A Workbook for Personal Transformation by Douglas Bloch and Demetra George

I was first exposed to the work of Demetra George not as an astrologer but as a feminist spirituality scholar with her book Mysteries of the Dark Moon: The Healing Power of the Dark Goddess. She is the type of author that writes with depth and reverence and research (i.e. my love language) and is well-respected as an elder within western astrology. Her expertise is in Hellenic astrology, which forms the foundation for much of western astrology, and she's revived aspects of chart reading such as bringing Goddesses (as embodied in asteroids) back into readings. Even though she's an expert able to speak fluently on a number of complex astological traditions both ancient and modern, she's co-written with Douglas Bloch one of the best astrological guides for beginners, which takes a profound level of skill as a teacher.

What I love about Astrology for Yourself is that it really is a workbook that not only helps you to understand components of your chart, but to learn to speak the story of your birth chart. It's why the book is not only helpful for teachers like myself seeking out resources to help students begin to navigate their own birth charts, but for absolute beginners who want to gaze into their birth chart and see themselves reflected back in it. Astrology for Yourself is the book for folks who like workbook style learning (i.e. where you go along filling in information about your own chart as you learn) as well as a full overview of nearly everything a beginner needs to know about their chart. And, fun fact, Demetra George is one of Chani Nicholas' teacher and it's really beautiful to see the ways that Demetra's work has informed Chani's.

Astrology for Yourself is for those folks who want to be enrolled in their first year at astrology school - this is the first year in book form.

View fullsize

Chart Interpretation Handbook by Stephen Arroyo

Astrological “cookbooks” seem to be the most easily found in any metaphysical section of a book store. These are the books that list out (often short) descriptions of each sign and aspect of a birth chart. It’s where a lot of some of the worst tendencies of astrology can come out such as the harmful stereotyping of signs (Leos are drama queens! Scorpios sleep around and are sooo kinky!) and oversimplication of chart dynamics. 

Side note: Look, modern western astrology is associated with womxn and when anything is seen as a “woman’s thing” there is plenty of misogyny and harmful enforcement of binary boundaries to be found. Popular, mass-produced, and, I would argue, unethical astrology is ripe with it. If the art of astrology is reduced down to a new age personality test for womxn, then of course signs that are powerful and confident (hello, Leos!) or ones associated with healthy, self-expressive sexuality (hello, Scorpios!) are going to be denigrated. The examples of this are plentiful and one of the reasons I avoided studying astrology for so long. This sort of reductionism in astrology is tiresome, un-creative, and I recommend avoiding it. Astrology should be empowering so be sure to seek out the sources which help you fall in love with all that you are.

So what makes this astrology cookbook different? Stephen has used the cookbook model while maintaining a commitment to presenting astrology as a system of holistic flexibility. He’s conscious of the dynamic of cookbook style books to lead to reductionism and harm, so he’s purposeful in his choice of words and also takes time to simply and effectively communicate some key themes to chart interpretation without overwhelming the new student. It is one of those books that is easily passed around a group of friends as each of you dive into what different parts of your birth chart mean - and that’s great! Astrology should be something which brings us together rather than create these harsh divisions between different signs. 

The Chart Interpretation Handbook is for those folks who want something as accessible as Chani’s book but a bit more in-depth but not a whole introductory course to astrology that you’ll find in Astrology for Yourself. 

—

What are some of your favorite astrology books for beginners?

We are currently going through a publishing boom when it comes to astrology and I’m excited to see what other books I’ll be learning from in the years to come. My overall guideline is that if you’re reading through an astrology book and the interpretations that the author is offering makes you feel bad about yourself, uninspired or confused, pass it on and find something else. It took me years to find astrological resources that spoke to me and made me feel seen and empowered - you deserve to feel that way, too.

If you’re looking for a my recommendations for medical astrology, I’m working on an expanded list from what you’ll already find here. Keep updated on when a more extensive resource list on medical astrology is released by signing up for my newsletter.

May your stars speak to you, whispering the secret and most true names you keep etched on your heart, reflecting back the ways that you have been shaped and the wisdom that you carry.

This post was made possible through patron support.
❤︎ Thanks, friends. ❤︎

*Hello, librarian friends, who read the sentence above about my fantasy of being a librarian and perhaps thought, “Ha! Recommending books? That’s like number 384 on the list of things I do as a protector of public access to information, safe spaces for folks to learn about themselves and the world, managing all sorts of human rights and mental health issues, organizing rooms for dogs so that kids can read to them, cleaning books (why is this so sticky?!), feeding and educating kids, dealing with the endless wave of beauracracy trying to strip the libraries of resources all the friggin’ time. Need I go on!?” Friends, you’re the absolute, underpaid, and overworked best. May we grow a world where you have to carry less of the burden of protecting public freedoms and more of just recommending the latest and greatest queer romance novel.

The Moon Returns: A Lunar Return Tarot Spread

Last month I wrote about the magick of Lunar Returns, framing the practice of calculating and observing your monthly return of the Moon to the exact location it was in at your birth as act of rest and homecoming. As I shared in that post, I'd been wanting to write about Lunar Returns for a while, but waited until I had a bit more insight and feeling about the practice before doing so. One of the gate-openers for me to write about this particular aspect of Lunar magick was reading through Awakening Together: The Spiritual Practice of Inclusivity and Community by Larry Yang.

It is a beautiful book and one that I'm recommending more and more alongside my longstanding recommendations of books like Emergent Strategy by adrienne maree brown. While Yang is specifically speaking to the Buddhist community (and especially the one within North America that many white folks practice within), the wisdom and insights within his book are easily applicable to many spiritual communities. My own activism - both my personal roots and official trainings - have always been from a spiritual (mostly multi-faith) foundation, so I'm always looking for resources like Awakening Together. Yang's book is honest, welcoming, and encouraging while talking about difficult subjects like spiritual bypassing and what liberation for everyone actually looks like and asks of us.

Cards from The Pagan Otherworlds Tarot.

Part of why Yang's work inspired my post on Lunar Returns was because writing about astrology (and herbalism and magick) is my small attempt to expand the language in which we talk about our experience of self and the world beyond the limiting words and concepts so many of us were given. And that our revolutions need the tools of protest and agitation as well as the tools of softening and homecoming. I'm not proposing that protest and softening are on opposite ends of some arbitrary activism spectrum, but that it can be very easy, especially in our increasingly visual age, to value public works over instead of alongside private work. The energies of protests can burn quick and hot and we need that forge and fire to spark change. We also need the cooling and adaptable lunar energy which reflects to us the truth of change and our very real need to turn in before we strut out again. To value the ebb as much as we love the flow.

I'm so encouraged and humbled and in love with the work of so many activists and organizers, in all their myriad forms, that I'm basically trying to write love letter after letter to all of you, focusing on the wisdom of tending to your tenderness. Because tenderness is a fertile land for our hope. 

View fullsize

From left to right: Marshmallow Marseille; Slow Holler Tarot; Thea’s Tarot

So here is another lunar-oriented love letter for all of you that is tied into the magick of Lunar Returns but can also be used for the Moon cycle in general. The Moon Returns tarot spread helps us to connect with the energies of our Lunar Return (or the monthly cycle of the Moon in general) illuminating where we might find places to rest and places to extend our energies. If you’re wanting to read this spread for your Lunar Return, be sure to read my tutorial first.

The Moon Returns is a simple three card spread that is meant to be cast monthly, helping us to both find deep meaning and honor the swift passage of the monthly Lunar Return or Moon cycle. There are plenty of ways to read the cards and practice divination in general, but eventually we are faced with developing the skill of interpreting time, its passage, and influence on us through our chosen divinatory medium. When working with Lunar Returns and the cycle of the Moon we learn to practice the infinite of our consciousness - its revelation, growth, decay, and renewal - within the embrace of the finite. In interpreting time and the weight of interpretation of each card within a Moon-centered spread we can explore how to hold meaning with an open hand passing through eddies of time rather than trying to hold the waters of wisdom in a closed fist. I guess what I’m trying to say is allow space for whatever comes through in the following spread to be both profound and passing.

Card 1 · The Moon Returns, I Return

This card illuminates some of the messages from the House that the Moon will be returning to. So, if your Lunar Return is happening in the Second House, this card might highlight issues of your emotional wellbeing as it is tied into your financial and material security and access. In other words, this card helps us to understand the overarching themes of our Lunar Return (or monthly Moon cycle if you're not reading for your Lunar Return). Since I also pay attention to the House of Cancer in a Lunar Returns I might pull two cards here - one to represent that House of the Lunar Return and another to represent the House of Cancer.

There are two alternative approaches to this card if you are not using this spread with your Lunar Return and just the monthly Moon cycle. You can choose to have this card represent the sign of the New or Full Moon. Another approach is If you have a bit of astrological know-how you can choose for this card to represent the House that the New or Full Moon will be in. 

Card 2 · The Moon Ebbs, I Ebb

This card helps us to see where we might need to pull back, pause or rest your energies during your Lunar Return (or Moon cycle in general). If a particularly challenging card shows up here it might be highlighting areas of your life that need extra love and care that you've been ignoring or pushing aside (we all do this, don't worry, be kind to yourself). A challenging card here can also help us to understand a place of stagnation we might be in from another perspective including seeking out additional community support and resources to help you manage a deep pause.

Card 3 · The Moon Flows, I Flow

This card helps us see where you might extend, stretch outward or fill out your energies during your Lunar Return (or Moon cycle in general). If a particularly challenging card shows up here it might be highlighting areas of your life that you've been overextending yourself for too long - which is easy to do with so many of us living unsupported in overproductive cultures. Challenging cards showing up here can also warn of burnout and the need to examine beyond this lunar cycle where you are extending your energies too far beyond what is sustainable for you.

Looking for more lunar inspiration? There are Moon spells, a tutorial on shadow work and the Lunar Mansions, Moon-inspired teas, and a whole year of New Moon healing magick. I am a decidedly Moon-oriented Witch and I'm happy to provide plenty of resources to connect with the sacred Moon in all sorts of ways.

This post was made possible through patron support.
❤︎ Thanks, friends. ❤︎

Always Coming Home: An Introduction to Lunar Returns

There's an aspect of astrology that I've found to be super useful and magickally inspiring but don't find it talked about much. Of course, it should come at no surprise that it is a Moon-centered astrological practice as you are reading the blog of someone who likes the Moon very much. For me, I have learned more about myself, my needs, my boundaries, my magick, and my ability to show up to my calling through my work with the Moon more than any other aspect of astrology. As we are currently going through a global shift in culture, not only do I think that there are lunar lessons that can aid us in our journey towards a more just and more kind world, but I'm invested in making sure that we all have the tools and networks to continue to do the work and play and visioning that needs be done for generations to come. Observing and working with your Lunar Return is one way of tending to the needs of your inner world in a way that supports you and the resilience and wisdom you can hold sustainably in your outer work and relationships. So here is my offering to you - a look at what a Lunar Return is, why you might want to find yours and how to chart it, as well as inner world tools to help you nurture your emotional nature. 

While for many, exposure to astrology is through weekly horoscopes, much of astrology is often concerned with much longer expanses of time. When I began to study (mostly medical) astrology in earnest, I was intimidated by these long forecasts, especially when I came across remnants of the more fatalistic foundations of astrological practice that emphasized fatedness over the promises of growth, change, and freedom of movement. When I was working on The Lunar Apothecary, my online course which engages lunar-focused astrology and herbalism as a tool of self-discovery, I came across the practice of casting charts for Lunar Returns. I was deeply intrigued by the short span of time that a Lunar Return chart was reading for and how it aligned with my current devotional observation of the nearly month-long Moon cycle. But as I've come to practice more and more with Lunar Return charts I realized that it's actually a great practice to learn about the healing magick of transits (i.e. charting the path of the planets through your birth chart) for those a little beyond beginner astrology students.

So what is a Lunar Return? Every month the Moon returns to the location it was at when you were born and in astrology this is known as a Lunar Return. The chart of a Lunar Return can be read as a forecast of the month ahead (i.e. the time between the current Lunar Return and the next one). While reading or having your Lunar Return chart read can be a beautifully meditative practice, you don't need any special astrological skills to find and benefit from your monthly Lunar Return.

If you're brand new to the ideas of astroherbology and medical astrology, you might want to start over here first. If you want to figure out how to spot the Moon in your birth chart, I talk about that over here. I have written this post for someone who has basic understanding of western astrology, knows how to create a birth chart, and has some familiarity with what all the symbols and lines on that birth chart means. It's meant to be an introduction to Lunar Returns and not a complete study in the practice, but something to get you started. Be sure to check out my recommended resources at the end of this post for further information.

Below I'll tell you how to get your own free lunar return chart as well as basic interpretation focused on the House that your Lunar Return takes place in. I've written about the Moon and the Houses before in my simple guide to rest for each of the Moon signs, but I wanted to expand on that original post as well as make some general suggestions for how you might create magick and space in your life with your Lunar Return. Lunar-centered herbalism and astrology is one of my favorite forms of self-discovery and the cultivation of insight for our work as healers and our healing relationships in general, which is why I wrote a whole course about it. This is one of my longer posts, so if you'd like a printable version you can get it for free by signing up for my newsletter where you'll gain access to my member's only page full of all sorts of free resources.

image by @korpa

Return to Our Feelings

Paying attention to what my body is feeling-experiencing is a foundational practice in my magickal and spiritual work. Feeling-experiencing is an attempt to describe not only what I'm am conscious that I am feeling on an emotional and physical level, but what I am also experiencing around and within myself from the rushing of my blood, the functioning of my organs or to the other unconscious experiences happening in and around me. Within many forms of modern Paganism, these experiences are codified through the elements, sometimes planetary forces (especially the Moon and Sun), as well as personal relationships between a person and their Holy Ones to help us make sense of the world and find ourselves in it. The body is honored as inherently sacred, as an oracle, and a filter of perception that for often brief but brilliant moments, is able to experience the great expanse of the universe. As I was exposed to more and more esoteric and healing arts as a young Witch I began to understand that many of these practices served a similar purpose: to expand a person's awareness and to change consciousness through acting upon that growing awareness. 

When I began studying astrology I didn't recognize the mindfulness that it had to offer right away. Knowing my sun sign and timing my magick to the phases of the Moon was about as close as I got to the art for many years. Truthfully, I was intimidated by looking at an ephemeris (the charts that show the calculated positions of different celestial bodies like the planets) or a birth chart which looked like a lot of numbers and unfamiliar symbols. Also, astrology seemed to involve a lot of math of which I was never very confident in. 

Then, something magickal happened when I chose to have my chart read for the first time. I was very fortunate to get my chart read by a deep-hearted oracle and suddenly astrology seemed less like an indecipherable game of math and more of a celestial love language meant to grow our inner and outer perceptions. I felt profoundly seen during that reading and through my birth chart - the map of the sky at the very moment of my birth that my curiosity - I overcame my fear just enough that I was able to begin to study medical astrology with an herbal focus. 

One of the unexpected gifts of studying medical astrology and lunar-centered astrology in general was being given a language to talk about the body that respected its wholeness and bridged the experience of our very intimate physical self with the broader celestial turnings of the vastness of consciousness. I wasn't expecting to build a new and kinder way of relating to my body through studying the stars, but it has been a perpetually renewing and unfolding gift. The stories of the stars and planets, the attention to a holistic approach to addressing distress and diseases, along with the very felt sense that there was deep ancestral knowledge being accessed through the birth chart, brought me to a place of feeling of and in my body and being able to express those feelings. It has been endlessly illuminating for which I am endlessly grateful. 

The return to the center of the labyrinth for me was coming to appreciate the sanctuary of self I found when studying the Moon in the birth chart, adding a new layer and depth to my Moon-centered work as a Witch and affirming the holy mystery of the Moon to my Pagan soul. Now, the study of Lunar Returns has added a new, easy to reach for tool in my practice.

image via @korpa

The Moon Illumined Path

The Lunar Return chart, a snapshot of the sky each month when the Moon returns to exact location of your birth, can be seen in some ways as an astrological equivalent of casting a monthly Celtic Cross tarot reading - it highlights obstacles and opportunities, but also does a very good job of making recommendations on how to take care of your emotional, mental, and experiential health. One of the gifts of the Lunar Return chart is that it's only meant to measure the time from one Lunar Return to the next - roughly one month - so it's less about making big calculations and year or multi-year long planning and more about day-to-day, night-to-night life for a short cycle. In his book Lunar Returns, John Townley offers further insight about the wisdom gleaned from the Lunar Return chart:

The challenge in interpreting the Lunar Return is not to plumb its depths for a vast network of details-its life is too short to get bogged down in that-but rather to extract the relevant events and eliminate the blinding chaff, to see through the smoke and dust to the immediate terrain and its possibilities. It's kind of a monthly birthday, and the arrangement of planets it displays reflects the patterns of your coming month. Each month, this "re-birth-day" works out its potential for you and then is renewed once again 27 1/2 days later with a new set of surprises and opportunities. (1)

Finally, and perhaps most importantly, the actual day and days surrounding your Lunar Return are celestially attuned for your renewal and restoration, which is what we'll be focusing on in this post.

In our birth charts, the Moon represents the richness of our inner life, our (often invisible) emotional experience of the world, and the truest parts of our story. There is a reason that outward focused, bold, and often performative for better or worse Sun signs have been so focused on in western astrology in the more recent manifestations of the art. The Sun sign, along with the Ascendent or Rising sign, represents the public and productive self which has long been prized in patriarchal and capitalist society especially as compared to the private, often mysterious, definitely untameable, and eternally ebbing and flowing personal self of the Moon. The Sun, when reduced within the confines of such societies, produces eternally at the beck and call of rulers and markets. But the Moon?

The Moon, in their sacred changing, disappearing and re-emergering, reflects to us the wisdom that we are never meant to be always on, always serving, always moving, always doing. With the wisdom of our inner Moon we birth words solely for our own stories, that can never be captured, stolen or translated against us. The Moon sings and speaks that we are meant to rest, to retreat, and find refuge in the sacred dark of possibility. And every month she returns to the spot in the sky where they first gazed down at us at the very moment of our birth, illuminating the next few steps we might take along our path.

Are you feeling this? I hope so. Let's learn how to find your monthly Lunar Return.

image via @korpa

Calculating Your Lunar Return

While you can use an ephemeris and a bit of math to calculate your Lunar Return, the easiest way is to use an online resource like Astrodienst to create a chart for your lunar return or a calculator like the one AstroSeek provides. I like Astrodienst as a resource in general for information on astrology and great free birth and astrological chart services while AstroSeek has a lot of cool calendar options (i.e. you can calculate all of your lunar returns for a year with one click). If you do end up using Astrodienst I highly recommend signing up for a free account because you'll be able to save and store your birth chart (and many more) on the site, which makes calculating your monthly Lunar Return chart much easier. 

Here are the steps for calculating a Lunar Return Chart on Astrodienst.

1. On the homepage click "Free Horoscopes."

2. Under the "Horoscope Drawing Section" click on Extended Chart Selection. At this point you'll be given an option to proceed as a guest user or to register an account. Accounts are free and you can store up to 100 birth charts on their site which comes in handy for keeping the birth charts of your friends and family readily available.

3. Once you're on the "Birth Data Entry" page, enter all of your birth data, and hit continue. Side note: there is a gender selection - you can select the gender you're comfortable with or select "event/other" (which I think limits everything you can do for a chart). For my chart collection, I select the "female" option for everyone so I can access all the chart settings easily. 

4. Now you'll be on the "Extended Chart Selection" page. If you live in a place different than the place of your birth you need to change the location that the chart will be calculated for. In the "Default Settings" section you'll want to click the "modify data" button to change the reference location of your chart to the place that you are currently living.

5. Next, still on the "Extended Chart Selection" page, in "Sections" you can select "Chart Type" and you want to choose "Lunar Return Chart." In the section below "Options for zodiac and houses" you have the option of choosing a house system - if you have a system you prefer choose that - but if you don't have a preference then I recommend "whole signs." The whole signs system is one of the oldest used in western astrology and not only to I find it to be accurate but it's much easier to read than a lot of other styles.

6. Finally, if you have used a site like  AstroSeek to find all of your Lunar Return dates for the year, you can enter the exact date of your Lunar Return that you want to calculate for under "Sections." This is useful if you're looking ahead in time and want to calculate your Lunar Return in future months, otherwise the chart you'll be shown is for the Lunar Return period you are currently in. You'll see an exact date for Lunar Return the chart is calculating for in red on the top left hand side of the generated chart.

7. Once you've made all of your selections on the "Extended Chart Selection" page, you can click the button to show your chart. 

8. Congrats! Your Lunar Return chart is cast!

View fullsize

I've gone ahead and shared with you the sample chart that I use for The Lunar Apothecary to help you see what a Lunar Return Chart looks like. I'll use the Lunar Return Chart sample to highlight the practices I recommend for engaging with your Lunar Return.

image via @korpa

Finding Meaning

Once you have your Lunar Return chart in hand, it is time to read the story of your chart. You can interpret as much or as little in your Lunar Return chart as your heart desires - just remember that it is meant to be a snapshot of time that only lasts a month. For the needs of this tutorial, I'll be focusing on Lunar Return and the Houses and Elements as invitations and monthly recommendations for rest and renewal.

First we want to find the House that the Moon is in as well as the House of Cancer. Looking at your Lunar Return chart, find the Moon and the House that it dwells in. In the Lunar Return chart above, the Moon is in the Fifth House. Where the Moon resides in a Lunar Return chart is where the energies of the Moon will be focused until your next Lunar Return in roughly a month's time. Here, you can reference your favorite astrology book about each house, but I've also given a brief lunar-oriented synopsis below.

A Brief Guide to the Moon in the Houses

The First House: You, individual identity, self-expression, inherent vitality, health constitution, and physical form. The Moon focuses on or reveals how we intuit information as well as how we express what we feel (or want to feel) through our physical appearance. 

The Second House: Material security, money, earnings, and possessions. The Moon focuses on or reveals what we think we need to feel secure and safe in the world. In other words, what it is we need to feel that we have an abundance of or control over to feel like we have worth or value.

The Third House: Learning, education, exchange of information, and social networks. The Moon focuses on or reveals the ways we learn best in order to express ourselves emotionally. Additionally, the Moon focuses on or reveals how we want to be cared for by our social networks or community.

The Fourth House: The home, family, nurturing (or lack thereof) environments. The Moon focuses on or reveals who we are when we feel safe enough to be completely ourselves. Additionally, the Moon highlights emotional patterns and stories from childhood and youth. 

The Fifth House: Creative self-expression, love affairs, children, taking a chance, gambling, and the unexpected nature of living. The Moon focuses on or reveals your inner child, source of spontaneity, joy, and pleasure. In other words, the Fifth House Moon highlights what it is that makes you lose yourself completely to the moment (including canceling plans and overcommitments). 

The Sixth House: Health, day-to-day work, service, responsibilities and duties. The Moon focuses on or reveals what we are called to be of service in the world beyond day-to-day survival. In other words, the Moon illuminates our day-to-day desire to be an agent of change (whether it be change on a personal or global level) and how we act on that desire. 

The Seventh House: One-on-one relationships, primary relationships that influence all areas of life. The Moon focuses on or reveals how you show up to relationships emotionally and how we get our needs met within the complex give-and-take of relating to another. We are shown how we let (or don’t let) ourselves be cared for.

The Eighth House: Desire for emotional security, sex, secret and psychic knowledge, power. The Moon focuses on or reveals what we desire in order to feel emotionally secure and includes our desires for intimacy, including sex, power, secret knowledge, and material wealth. On a deeper level the Moon shows us the impact of our woundedness in our life (how we may learn to heal and be a healer from it). Additionally, the Moon highlights our desire for social and community power. 

The Ninth House: Philosophy, spiritual practice, travel and exploration (both inner and outer), life experience, the unknown. The Moon focuses on or reveals how we engage with the unknown and how we develop our life’s philosophy. In other words, the Moon highlights how we understand and tell the stories of our truth.

The Tenth House: Life calling, career, reputation, ambition, what we feel called to contribute to the world. The Moon focuses on or reveals what we hope to achieve in the world by connecting us to our bliss. In other words, the Moon shows you your unique path to happiness. 

The Eleventh House: Social groups, community, where we feel at home outside of our home, chosen family. The Moon focuses on or reveals how our individual emotional reality is connected to the shared emotional experience of the community at large. The Moon highlights what type of community we need to feel emotionally fulfilled, seen, and held.

The Twelfth House: Unconscious, esoteric studies, dreams and visions, transcendence, spiritual unity, that which happens deep below the surface. The Moon focuses on or reveals our deepest emotional and spiritual yearnings, which are often hidden from us until they are suddenly not. In other words, the Moon in the Twelfth House helps us to discover how to live our own myth.

Looking at our sample chart, the Fifth House represents the pleasures of our life, creating and taking risks that bring us closer to our sense of self, love in its myriad of forms, as well as children and/or your own own inner child. When the Moon returns to your Fifth House, it is a time to center pleasure and joy in your life with a healthy dose of playfulness as tools of self-recognition and emotional expression. You might consider getting in touch or making space for your inner child when making plans (whether social, personal or professional) and taking on projects during this Lunar Return or simply do something that gave you a lot of joy when you were little. 

You'll notice in our sample chart that there are three planets plus the Moon in the Fifth House. When there are three or more planets or lights (i.e. the Moon, Sun, and Ascendent) in a House this is known as a stellium and indicates an area of your life that has a lot of energy focused on it. When a stellium of planets occur in a Lunar Return chart, even if it is not in the House that the Moon is in, pay attention to the area of your life that it is highlighting. For my more experienced astrology practitioners, you can look up what each of these planets bring to the Fifth House, placing more emphasis on the inner planets (remember, we're measuring a short time span here) than the outer planets. 

The other House to pay attention to in a Lunar Return Chart is the House where Cancer sits. This recommendation comes from April Elliot Kent in Astrological Transits and she points out that this is "where in your life you are able to work out some of your emotional challenges this month." (2) Every sign of the zodiac has a Ruling or Domicile - or as I like to call it, a Guardian - Planet which is where a planet is most comfortable and empowered in a chart. It is also the sign which expresses that planet's energy most easily. The Moon is the Guardian Planet of Cancer which is why it can be useful to check out the House where Cancer sits. 

In our sample chart, Cancer sits in the Eleventh House of socializing and social groups. It is the House opposite to the Fifth and in many ways it is in the Eleventh House where the creative and personal work of the Fifth Mansion is translated into public performance, social connections, and sharing. I like to think the while the light of the Lunar Return Moon might be shining in the House that it is transiting in (the Fifth House in the case of our sample chart), that the Moon's light reflects to the House that Cancer sits in, casting some shadows and revealing previous emotional patterns, conflicts, and wisdoms. For our sample chart, I would say that there is an opportunity for healing social wounds - whether that is a time of retreat and emphasis on the self instead the group - and a general reassessment, guided by the Fifth House's emphasis on pleasure and play, with how one shows up in their life. Again, for my more practiced astrologer readers, you can investigate the stories of the other planets and celestial players that show up in the House of Cancer for further insights. 

What if your Moon Sign is in Cancer? In this case, the House that Cancer is in and the Lunar Return Moon House will always be the same. It just means that in some ways your emotional story is fixed on one chapter rather than flipping wildly throughout the book. In many ways, this is pretty Cancerian since this sign is known for its ability to dwell within a particular stretch of memory or emotional experience far more than most other Moon signs. 

Finally, consider the Elemental tone of the Lunar Return Chart. On our sample chart you'll see a small box near the right hand corner with three columns (for Cardinal, Fixed, and Mutable which are descriptions of astrological qualities) and four rows (for Fire, Air, Earth, and Water). Look at the row which has the most symbols or astrological glyphs. In the case of our sample chart that is the row of Earth which has four planets, the Moon, and the Ascendant (represented by AC) in signs of Earth. What this tells me is that there is a strong Earth energy happening this Lunar Return which can guide the ways that we choose to take care of ourselves, set boundaries, open up relationships, manifest decisions, and generally go about our lives. Sometimes a chart won't have a strongly manifest elemental tone or two or more elements will be in balance - that is valuable information, too, helping you to pay attention to the elemental energy you might invite into or balance in your life. 

The Elements of the Lunar Return

Earth: An earthy Lunar Return can emphasize the needs of the body and the how your emotions manifest in your life. You might choose to make space for your feelings in a special way on or around the day of your Lunar Return by practicing that which feels comforting and nurturing to your physical self. An earthy Lunar Return can both highlight our physical needs as well as illuminate physical challenges or the manifestation of feelings in our body that need more attention. Asking yourself questions like "Where am I feeling this in my body?" throughout your Lunar Return can be a helpful bit of earthy magick.

Air: A Lunar Return with a lot of air can emphasize the needs of mind, our social needs, and a focus on how we communicate (verbally, textually, visually, emotionally, etc.) ourselves to the world. You might choose to take a much needed break from the busy communication patterns of your life, such as performing a social media pause during or around the day of your Lunar Return. Airy Lunar Returns can highlight our needs for speaking, processing information, and being heard as well as illuminate the challenges of speaking truthfully, kindly, bravely, boldly. Asking yourself questions like "What needs to be said and how do I want to say it?" throughout your Lunar Return can help clarify what you're trying to communicate during this time. 

Fire: Fiery Lunar Returns can emphasize our creative, action-oriented needs, and the way that we make space for or dismiss our creative impulses and needs. During a fiery Lunar Return you may choose to make space to create - whether returning to a beloved medium of making or trying something completely new. Lunar Returns of Fire can highlight our needs for trusting our pleasures and passions as well as illuminate the ways we deny our creativity whether through comparing ourselves to others or denying our inherently sacred impulse for pleasure. Asking yourself questions like "What do I want to create more of in my life? Less of?" throughout your Lunar Return can help clarify what you're trying to create over the next month.

Water: Lunar Returns with a lot of Water can emphasize our emotional, deep feeling (or denying of our deep feelings), intuitive, and the difficult to communicate types of felt experiences. During a watery Lunar Return you might choose to make space for more intuitive and esoteric arts from divination to ritual to dreamwork. Lunar Returns of Water can highlight our needs to drift and feel while not being beholden to explain our experiences as well as illuminate our fear of going too far from shore when exploring the complexity of our inner worlds. Asking yourself questions like "How do I feel about this?" and "What do I want to feel more of? Less of?" throughout your Lunar Return can help clarify the month ahead.

image via @korpa

Putting it All Together

Ok, so you've pulled up your Lunar Return chart (and maybe the Lunar Return charts for the rest of the year if you're really feeling it), found out what House the Moon will be showing up in, found the House of Cancer, and discovered the elemental tone. So, with all that information, how do we synthesize it so that we can transmute knowledge learned into lived wisdom? Here are a few recommendations:

• Mark the day of your Lunar Return in your calendar and try to take some time for yourself - however that feels best to you - on or around that day. I can personally attest to the magick of giving oneself space to be in your Moon and hope you get the opportunity to experience it yourself.

• Write down one or two simple lines about the House that your Lunar Return Moon is showing up in as well as the House of Cancer. It can be something like "The Moon is shining a light on {energies of the House} in my life" for the first and "The shadow of {energies of the House of Cancer} is being illuminated" for the latter. Do the same for your elemental balance.

• If you journal, spend time writing on one or more of the questions offered in the descriptions of elemental tone above. If you cast cards or practice divination, pull a card for the Lunar Return and/or Cancer House as well as one for the Elemental tone.

• If you like, build a Lunar Return altar full of lunar-centered symbols and images, items representing the significant Houses of your Lunar Return chart, along with candles, plants, incense or whatever feels sacred to you. You can even incorporate items to represent any significant Moon phases that'll be happening during your Lunar Return such as a Full or New Moon.

• At the end of one Lunar Return and the start of another, take a moment to reflect on how deeply the energies of the Return was felt (re-read those sentences I suggest you write in the last tip) and spend some time at your altar if you built one. This is a time to check in on yourself and your inner world. It's also an important part of practicing astrology - we need to look back to see how true our observations of our chart rang for us, what maybe didn't make sense when we first looked at our chart that does now, as well as recognizing what we may have overemphasized or missed.

Finally, how might we bring this beautiful inner work into our communities? It can be very sweet to share the dates of Lunar Return amongst your close friends, coven or circle, and maybe even sending each other a supportive message on their Lunar Return day (Or hilarious meme! Or both!). Share with other folks how they can calculate their Lunar Return chart or tell them planetary myths and stories to help them re-member their connection to the vivid vastness of life. Consider the ways you can make more lunar spaces for quiet connection (i.e. community spaces that are geared more towards our introverted selves than our extroverted ones) and why we need more of them. Build and host contemplative lunar altars in public spaces (respecting the land you're on and the people around you). I'm sure many of you are already thinking of ways to bring some Moon magick into your community work - share in the comments below what you're doing.

Time As A Story

Again and again in healing work, whether looking at the stars or sitting with plants, I am reminded that we are engaging with time and space in a new way in order to create change. There are seasonal changes of time that are measured by the movement of the planet, the Sun and Moon and the way that the Earth shifts and changes all around us. But then there is the time that is arbitrary and socially defined - the workday or how long it is appropriate to sleep each night or when we should be "feeling better" - and that is where a lot of healing takes place. We all carry stories of timing in our lives - when we should be successful or have figured out a problem or gotten over our grief. Many of us also carry around shame and feelings of inadequacy with a lot of these time stories.

Through healing work we begin to unpick these stories, listen to the memory of the body which is unconcerned with how we measure time and more concerned with what it is experiencing in the here and now (even when, to our conscious mind, our body still might be reacting to something that already happened-  in cases such as PTSD - or something that has not or may never come to pass as often shows up with different forms of chronic anxiety). 

When we choose to work with the Moon and stars and begin to measure time through the lens of the Birth or Lunar Return chart, we begin to move away from the construct of never-ending linear time that is always moving forward, and find our ways back to a spiralling time that allows us to break free of expectation both personal and cultural. Because the Moon is a cyclical creature, She reminds us that we, too, are cyclical and ever-changing, able to return again and again to wherever we need to be to find healing and wholeness. Time then becomes an ally instead of a relentless taskmaster of "progress" and endless growth. Time becomes more cyclical, seasonal, full of new starts, seeds, and decay, allowing for periods of exuberant output and deep withdrawal and profound transformation. If we are to make this world more just and more kind, we must examine our relationship to time, reshaping it so that time becomes breath easily shared that supports life, instead of a commodity that only a privileged few get to determine the worth of how it should be spent.

I hope that you'll integrate the practice of Lunar Returns into your life, even if it's just to mark on your calendar the day that your Lunar Return is happening and observe it in some sort of way, no preparatory analysis needed. I think it's a rather useful tool of collaborative exploration to be used with clients, covenmates, friends, and family if you're called to share these skills with others. Ultimately, I hope that a gate opens for you, a passage way from one way of being into another that feels more freeing and expansive, that helps you to find yourself more readily, and call yourself home.

Additional Resources

• Lunar Returns by John Townley is one of the only books on the subject. In general, I like Townley’s interpretations and I mostly follow his guidelines for interpreting a Lunar Return chart.

• Astrowiki offers additional information on what to look for in a Lunar Return chart.

• Lunar Return House Positions by Lynn Koiner is a concise and useful introduction to possible manifestations of the energy of whatever House the Lunar Return Moon is transiting to.

• The Astrology Center of America offers a brief but interesting guide to interpreting Lunar Returns.

• Astrological Transits by April Elliott Kent is a great book and while it doesn’t cover Lunar Returns in depth (beyond what I shared on this post), Kent has such an approachable and understandable style of teaching astrology.

If you got through all that and shrugged but still want more lunar magick in your life, I’ve got some resources for you. Naming the Moon to Empower Your Year is one of my favorite practices and here is a full year of New Moon herbal allies, healing rituals, and oracle questions to keep you engaged. Here’s a guide to making herbal medicine by the Moon. But what about witchcraft, you ask. Here, my witch friend, here. And tarot? Here’s a spread for your lunar readings.

Looking for more depth about Lunar Returns? I’ll be creating a longer tutorial for my starry-hearted students over in The Lunar Apothecary.

May the practice of charting your Lunar Returns brings you many an hour of contemplation, new ways to connect with your inner world, and lots of hope.

This post was made possible through patron support.
❤︎ Thanks, friends. ❤︎

(1) Townley, John. Lunar Returns. Llewellyn Publications, 2003. Page 15.

Hag's Medicine: Mullein Plant Profile

I realized that it’s been a few months since I wrote my last plant profile for all of you and continuing the last few posts on breathwork and herbs for respiratory wellness, Mullein (Verbascum thapsus) felt like the wonderful ally to celebrate and learn from this month. So let’s do just that!

image via wikimedia commons

Mullein
(Verbascum thapsus)

Common + Folk Names : Hag’s tapers, beggar’s blanket, graveyard dust, candlewick, Jupiter’s staff, torches, velvet dock, witch’s candle, lungwort, shepherd’s staff, duffle, fluffweed, fleawort, tinder plant, Cuddy's lungs, hare’s beard, Our Lady’s flannel, Quaker rouge, Aaron's rod, Jacob's staff, verbasco, Nookaadiziiganzh.
Tarot Cards : The Devil, The World, Two of Pentacles - learn more about tarot + herbs
Element : Earth, Water
Zodiac Signs : Capricorn
Planets : Saturn
Moon Phase : Waning Quarter Moon
Parts used : Leaf, flower, root
Habitat : Native to Eurasia and North Africa but naturalized throughout North America.
Growing conditions : Grows in waste areas and roadsides. Likes full sun and well-drained soil. 
Collection : Collect the flowers and leaves from second year and older plants. Roots in the fall. 
Flavor : Pungent, slightly bitter
Temperature : Cool
Moisture : Moist
Tissue State : Damp/Stagnation, Dry/Atrophy
Constituents : Carotene, choline, calcium, magnesium, sulfur, resin, saponins, glycoside, flavonoids, mucilage, tannins, triterpenes, volatile oil.

Actions : alterative, anodyne, antibacterial, antihistamine, anti-inflammatory, antiseptic, antispasmodic, antiviral, astringent, decongestant, demulcent, diuretic, emollient, expectorant, pectoral, vulnerary. Flower: analgesic, anti-inflammatory, antispasmodic, demulcent, emollient, mucilaginous, nervine, sedative. Root: anti-inflammatory, antispasmodic, anodyne, diuretic, nervine.

Main Uses : Mullein is described by Nicholas Culpeper as being under the guardianship of Saturn, which is in part why the herb is considered a plant of Capricorn. The herb is a great ally during the winter months, helping to clear phlegm from the system, reduce inflammation, and protect against infection. It is excellent for clearing out chronic, long-standing coughs, especially dry and spasmodic coughs, and can help with a number of respiratory complaints including bronchitis, asthma, and general lung weakness. Mullein has traditionally been used for tuberculosis, whooping cough, and pleurisy. Bartram's Encyclopedia of Herbal Medicine describes a traditional Irish preparation of Mullein for the treatment of tuberculosis prepared by adding a handful of the green leaves to two pints of fresh milk, strained, and then sweetened with honey which was then drunk once or twice daily. Think deep, thick, and chesty coughs. Look for signs of adrenal stress, especially after long bouts of illness and conditions worsening when lying down.

Add the herb to your cold and flu blends with Elder (Sambucus nigra) and Peppermint (Mentha piperita) for a lung-opening, immunomodulating blend. Mullein is useful, too, for Capricorn folk who tend towards stagnant cold states which lead to swellings and cysts as the herb helps to dissolve such manifestations of buildup. As a decongestant, Mullein is good for allergies such as hay fever, helping to clear phlegm and relieve pain. In her Physica, Hildegard von Bingen recommended Mullein for “one who is hoarse or has a pain in his chest” recommending that they combine the herb with Fennel (Foeniculum vulgare) in a medicinal wine. Use also for asthma (especially if there is heat and aggravation) and general chest infections. Mullein has immunostimulating properties which is another reason that it is excellent for cold and flu season and especially for someone succumbing to chronic viral infections. The herb is effective against viruses such as herpes, too. 

image via wikimedia

As a moistening diuretic, Mullein helps to soothe an inflamed urinary system and help with the release of urine. Mullein is also well-suited for many cases of edema and water retention. The herb also helps to remove toxins from the body because of its ability to move water out of the body. Use in cases of arthritis, rheumatism, gout, UTIs, and cystitis. As a digestive, Mullein is a mild bitter that relieves indigestion, especially in cases of a damp and stagnant digestion, and can help alleviate the pain of peptic ulcers. 

Mullein can be used for nerve pain and combines well with other nervines such as Skullcap (Scutellaria lateriflora) and St. Joan’s Wort (Hypericum perforatum). Use internally as well as an oil for neuralgia and especially nerve pain the hands and feet. In particular, the root can be used in cases of Bell’s palsy and facial nerve pain. The herb helps to loosen up stiff joints and connective tissue.

Topically, the mucilaginous Mullein is excellent for dry skin conditions but also as a healing compress or salve for boils, bruises, inflammation, hemorrhoids, eczema, sciatica, and joint pain. Use in a steam for lung conditions like asthma, bronchitis and other respiratory imbalances already described. In Plants Have So Much to Give Us, All We Have To Do Is Ask: Anishinaabe Botanical Teachings, Mary Siisip Geniusz recommends following a steam with Mullein a cup of Yarrow (Achillea millefolium) and then to bed to clear the head and chest. Mullein is used similarly as a smoking herb as well as an aid to help wean off tobacco. Mullein is useful in cases of bulging discs and bone setting. The herb helps the skin repair after a wound, burn, sore, and ulcer and can be used for skin infections, too. A compress of the leaves is excellent for alleviating the pain of swollen joints, sore muscles, swollen glands, eczema and for headaches. Use also for lymphadenitis and mumps. Create a gargle of the tea or extract for laryngitis, swollen gums, and tonsillitis. Mullein and garlic ear oil is a trusted remedy for ear infections helping to relieve pain and infection. I always keep a small bottle of Mullein and Garlic oil in my home care kit just for this reason. Mullein is also a common herb in smoking blends.

Magickal Uses : The long thick stems are sometimes referred to as Hag’s Tapers (the dried stalks dipped in wax will burn as a somewhat messy candle) as they are associated with the magickal workings of Witchfolk. Mullein is a plant long associated with the working of Hags - the womxn overculture has always feared who teach us to embrace what has been deemed unpalatable to value systems that our not our own into essential tools of our self-understanding. Burn at the initiation rites of transwomxn stepping into their power. The tapers can be burned at rituals of all kinds as well as funerals to protect against unwanted and malevolent spirits. You can also tuck the leaves into your shoe for added comfort and protection on your journeys. Use for general protection against sorcery, the evil eye, and malevolent spirits. Specifically protective against wild animal attacks and guards against the Night Mare. Use as a substitute for graveyard dust in spells and charms. Burn Mullein in your Midsummer bonfire for protection and gather the ashes to use in protection charms.

The Mullein Personality : The Mullein person has something to get off their chest which can sometimes manifest as chronic respiratory infections and a barking cough that doesn’t allow them to get a clear word out. Their adrenals are often run down and mornings - just as they are getting out of bed - can be some of the most difficult times for them physically and emotionally. Often, Mullein folk come off as dried out (which can manifest in their physical symptoms), but they may appear dry because all of their waters have pooled deep in the body. With their unexpressed truth settling in the body they are stewing, sometimes even bubbling over. They need to learn how to light their torch, even if the words that come out aren’t “perfectly” illuminating or fit in with the standards that they or others hold them to. Mullein folk can be confused about what they stand for because they have been so focused on “correct” social customs and traditions. Mullein will help them to become honest with themselves and release these stagnant patterns of seeking authority outside of themselves and help them to speak their words. Ultimately, they learn that morals, values, and laws aren’t of any use unless they align with their morals, values, and inner sense of lawful justice.

Contraindications : Considered generally safe.

Drug interactions : None known.

Dosage : Standard dosage.

Recipe: The following tea is useful for alleviating the pain and tension of backache and neuralgia. It can also be made into an herbal oil or liniment and used topically.

Stand Tall Tea

• 1 part Nettles (Urtica dioica)

• 1/2 part Mullein Leaf + Flower (Verbascum thapsus)

• 1/2 part St. Joan’s Wort (Hypericum perforatum)

• Optional: 1/2 part Ginger (Zingiber officinalis)

Add the Ginger if the condition is worse with cold and better with heat. Sweeten with honey or coconut sugar and milk of choice.

I write more about Mullein and it’s uses as an herbal ally for fire season and it is featured in my list of herbs for breathwork and respiratory wellness. Mullein is one of my favorite herbs to use for Capricorn energy and learning more about the sign helps to understand the energy and magick that Mullein offers. Of course, you can always follow the tag for Mullein to see where it might guide you.

If you like plant profiles, be sure to check out the ones I’ve written. I also create plant profiles just for my Patreon community like my one on bright and bold Calendula (Calendula officinalis). Enjoy!

This post was made possible through patron support.
❤︎ Thanks, friends. ❤︎

A Might-do List for Midsummer

Midsummer, also known as the Summer Solstice, Litha, and Alban Hefin, marks the longest days of the year. Many ancient megaliths were built to align with the movement of the sun on Midsummer, the longest day of the year. Midsummer celebrates the height of the sun's power as well as the still distant but ever growing turn towards the cooler months. The Summer Solstice is also a day long associated with the magick of the Good Folk who are said to be more present than ever across the land. At Midsummer we celebrate the brightness of living and so much abundance that we have plenty to give and receive in turn. Now is a time to celebrate the expansiveness of life and the unique ways we express ourselves as necessary and loved members of our wider community. Continuing a project started last Lughnasadh, here’s a list of nine things that you might-do (or not) for the long day festival and hot season of the Summer Solstice.

Rise with the Sun. A simple and very sweet ritual is to rise with the sun on Midsummer. Meditate in silence or celebrate in song as the Sun rises up into the day, shedding light across the land. Planning to have special foods ready for breakfast can be an extra bonus.

Build simple stone cairns with friends and family. Glennie Kindred has a lovely suggestion for creating a participatory and engaging ritual space in her book Earth Wisdom. As folks are gathering together in the ritual space have them look for or bring five stones - one for each of the five elements of Earth, Air, Fire, and Spirit. As part of the ritual, each of the elements are called in and one-by-one folks bring their stone for each element into the center while offering personal thanks and blessings at each turn. Slowly a cairn or mound of stones will be formed by all of the stones placed by those gathered. Cairns can be left up (if environmentally appropriate) and used as places to make offerings to the Good Folk, but at least for the rest of the ritual the community-created cairn serves as a focal point for chanting, dancing, and general merriment.

Self-Heal (Prunella vulgaris)

Harvest herbs. The Summer Solstice is a traditional time to harvest herbs and especially those herbs associated with the Good Folk, the energies of love, and the powers of protection. St. Joan's or John's Wort (Hypericum perforatum) is traditionally harvested at Midsummer and turns into a beautiful red oil symbolizing the regenerative lifeblood of the land. Be sure to harvest herbs in a way that respects the land and its inhabitants tending to the places where they grow with as much care as plants tend to our healing needs.

Create some beautiful solar themed decorations. Decorations that catch the light and are bright in color are all wonderful options for Midsummer. Make faux stained glass with crayons and wax paper or your own sun wheels out of thread and twigs. Sun-shaped salt dough ornaments, wreaths made of dried herbs, and wild grass crowns are all seasonally appropriate and easy to make. Sun catchers and crystals hung in windows can bring rainbow light into our homes as well as outdoor ritual spaces. Whenever making or purchasing items, consider their long term environmental impact and try to align your choices with your earth-centered and celebrating festivities.

Energize culture-changing movements. Midsummer is an excellent time to call in and store up energy for the coming months and into winter. You can be intentional with your energizing magick and help to direct it towards and store it up for culture-changing movements and protests. I like to turn protest signs into magickal objects, bless my street medic bag and supplies, as well as raise energy and store it into other charms and amulets that I use in my work for a more just and kind world. 

Practice the magick of generosity. At the longest day of the year, marking a season of abundance and the peak of growth before the First Harvest in a few weeks time, Midsummer is an opportunity to practice the magick of generosity. I love the sentiment expressed in Circle Round: Raising Children in Goddess Traditions: "The Goddess at Summer Solstice gives us not just what we need, but extra. We can feel close to her by being generous, giving more than we're asked to give, doing more than our fair share. That way we make abundance for all." Generosity comes in many forms, but consider the ways that it is built into your magickal and spiritual practice at Midsummer, vowing to continue to act in abundance in your life and the lives of others.

Built an altar to the Sacred Dreamer. There are different myths from around the world about the shift of power from the light to the dark. At Midsummer the light of the Sun is at its peak - but from here on out the dark and lunar energies begin to rise. Some folks work with the myth of the Oak and Holly Kings and their never ending battles (and if you have an opportunity to see a ritual battle it can be a lot of fun). My own traditions align with stories of holy isles and descents into the underworld, where we draw closer to the world of dreams. Again, quoting Circle Round, they speak of the transformation of the God, noting that "[e]verything and everyone who fulfills their purpose must change… Now he becomes the Dreamer, asleep in this world but awake in the world of dreams and visions, the seeds of what will come to be in this world. He becomes the Messenger, carrying our hopes and prayers to the spirit realms." The Sabbats are a time to remember that change is a holy and necessary thing, that we aren't always meant to be doing the same thing throughout the year, but growing and retreating, shifting and changing with the seasons. 

Cast spells with candles. An alternative - and much shorter - version of the might-do lists for the Sabbats would simply be "Every six weeks(ish), burn stuff." The tracking of light and dark along with the necessity of fire for warmth and in the preparation of food stuff shows up powerfully in different ways at each Sabbat. The two times of year that candles are especially essential to my magickal practice are at Imbolc and then again at Midsummer. Whether building a dream altar to light the way for the Sun to descend into the underworld, to more traditional pin and candle spells, using fire in our magick at Midsummer can be a powerful act of energetic alignment.

Create a beacon of light. Lighting bonfires on hilltops is an ancient tradition of Midsummer that is still carried on in some Celtic cultures. You can create your own beacon of light whether an actual candle burning in your window or a piece of art displayed in a way for others to see. Fires on the hill were/are a form of spiritual devotion but also connection and community-building. What sacred symbols do you want to see more of in the world around you? How do you move through the world as a person of sacredness? What are the beacons that you're wanting to see to help you know that you're not alone in the work of repairing the world? If you're looking for social justice and mutual aid oriented images, Just Seeds is always a great place to check out. You can charge up your beacon from sunrise to sunset on Midsummer day, infusing it with the holy constant of solar light.

Learn more about magickal practices for the season of summer or cast some cards for the Summer Solstice. Here’s a midsummer brew to try and you also might like the refreshing taste of swamp tea. Finally, here’s some more herbal lore on the magick of the Summer Solstice.

You can also check out the rest of my might-do lists for the sabbats and beyond.

• Samhain

• Winter Solstice (Yule)

• Imbolc

• Spring Equinox (Ostara)

• Beltane

• Summer Solstice (Midsummer)

• Lughnasadh

• Autumn Equinox (Mabon)

May your day be bright and abundant of blessings. May your heart shine like a bonfire guiding you from longest day to slow-growing night. May we all come together in the spirit of generosity, knowing that there is enough, committed to the change needed to create equitable and holy access, and dancing all the way home.

❤︎ This post was made possible through patron support. Thanks, friends. ❤︎