Full Moon Esbat Saturday, June 3, 2023 at 6:00pm PT Join Inner Circle Sanctuary for a Full Moon Ritual. Our members will ritually create a magic space where everyone will come together to create and empower their own unique spell. The full moon is a good time for work that involves growth and abundance and harnessing the ultimate energy of the moon. Spell ideas: Money growth Success in a new venture Finding love Better communication Healing We ask for a $10 donation or whatever you can afford. All donations collected will be given to a local charity. This event will be held in-person. Please message us for online information (innercirclesanctuary@gmail.com). As always, our events are family friendly and potluck, so feel free to bring a dish to share. We will be at the Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Las Vegas. 3616 East Lake Mead Boulevard Las Vegas NV 89115 http://www.uuclv.org/ Find our event on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/events/492761406218470 Click HERE for more ICS Events. Follow Inner Circle Sanctuary on Facebook, Twitter, & Instagram.
If you are interested in learning more about us, please don't hesitate to Contact Us. If you are interested in joining our classes, please start with our questionnaire here. Want to see how we do things? Try out a sample test: Follow this link to a Google Doc: https://forms.gle/7oaQ5GF3d8k4CsA37 Litha, Camera, Action! Ah, Litha - that most glorious Sabbat! Sunna shines, but the hottest days of Summer are not yet upon us. This year, it was as if the Gods of the North blessed us with one more cold evening to remember them by. I loved it! We call this time Litha, in the manner of the old Anglo-Saxons, as described by Bede. I first read about the Anglo-Saxon names of Moons/months in the excellent novels Rhinegold by Stephan Grundy, and The Wolf And The Raven by Diana Paxson. I much prefer these over the uncited Moon names found in most modern Pagan books and calendars. They are also indicative of the ever evolving nature of Wicca, which draws inspiration from ancient sources, made usable by modern practitioners. These Sabbat names, much like Magical Names, Robes, Magical Tools, etc. make for a more highly charged magical environment. Virtually everything we do is aimed at this singularly focused goal. Along these same lines, we refer to the Solstices and Equinoxes as Solar Sabbats, and they are an essential part of the Wheel of the Years. There are no Greater or Lesser Sabbats in our Tradition; all of our Sabbats are great! But I digress. Litha marks the end of Gemini and the start of Cancer. Lady Morgana also told me it was her favorite Sabbat*, thanks to the procession of torches. The torches have become various flameless luminaries over the past three decades, thanks to the massive drought we are surviving here in the West. ICS like TOTIC before us, fastidiously follows all fire restrictions that are established to cut down on the threat of wildfires. Anybody that doesn’t should stay their inconsiderate asses home. Especially as windy as it was! The day was beautiful and bright, and the site was one of our favorites. Several of our people were away on Summer vacation, and some were out with Covid, but our smaller crew laid out the Ring and set up a gorgeous Altar. Sabbat days, while a lot of work is involved, are also great social times and a wonderful bonding experience. As nightfall approached, the call “Robe up!” went up. There is just nothing like all of your fellow Witches decked out in their Sabbat Best! Our procession for paying respects is a time honored and beautiful part of our Tradition. The Ring was further prepared by a Pentagram Ritual, and the Maiden of the Ring sweeping it with the traditional chant given to us by Lady Morgana’s Lady Our Quarters were called by two first timers, and a First Degree Initiate and an Elder. One thing about our Tradition that is different from most is that we call our Quarters before throwing a Ring, mainly so it isn’t immediately broken. The mix of energy of the different levels of experience amongst these folk was very exciting, and magically effective. In our Coven, everyone can and often does play every part, regardless of gender. The Priestess of Bealtaine served as the Priest of Litha. The Priestess of Litha will be playing the Priest of Mabon. Looking back a year, Litha 2021 featured 2 males playing Priest and Priestess. We truly embody our Lord Mordred’s motto ‘Everyone Has A Right To The Goddess’ and our Sabbats are all the better for it! Our Priest and Priestess this year have been classmates for quite a long while and were perfectly attuned to each other. They moved together as if in a dance, and led the Coven in this dance. This takes the form of a spiral with the procession of torches, which then light the Center “Fire”. It’s so much fun! After the Ring is picked up, and the Quarters dismissed, all take part in the consecrated beverage and cakes, and at Litha, we dance some more, and listen to the wise words of a yearly chosen “Old Man.” She was awesome! Piles of food. Drink. Songs, jokes, and stories. The Farrars write that Sabbats should become a party, and ours always do. Even the wind, more so even than at Bealtaine, was very much an honored Sabbat guest. C’est la vie! Litha was fabulous. This high point of the year was celebrated in high fashion - as was the online Sabbat, which involved several Witches who couldn’t attend the live event. Now comes the heat of the Summer- the sign of Cancer and the first half of Leo, before Lammas is here. The providence of the Earth Mother becomes apparent before the first harvest and this Litha was a triumphant way of kicking it off! We are so proud of all the Great Work our people have done. It’s one of the most gratifying aspects of being a Guardian of our Tradition. *Lady Morgana named each Sabbat as her favorite Sabbat depending on the time of year, and to whom she was speaking. One of the beautiful things about Wicca is its adaptability. If you don’t feel about all the Sabbats the way Lady Morgana did, you can change them so that they all become your favorite. -Lord Tanys Follow Inner Circle Sanctuary on Facebook, Twitter, & Instagram.
If you are interested in learning more about us, please don't hesitate to Contact Us. If you are interested in joining our classes, please start with our questionnaire here. Want to see how we do things? Try out a sample test: Follow this link to a Google Doc: https://forms.gle/7oaQ5GF3d8k4CsA37 WELCOME TO INNER CIRCLE SANCTUARY'S JUNE NEWSLETTER As we say goodbye to the month of May, the month named for the Goddess Maia, the time of the fullness of Spring in the northern hemisphere, we begin to enter the season of Summer. The days have been getting warmer and warmer and the nights shorter and shorter. June delivers itself to us tomorrow and brings with it the month of the Sun. For us, as Wiccans, it is the God’s month, dominated by the advent of the Summer Solstice holiday. However, the God and Goddess go hand in hand, so while June may be a month long celebration of the Sun, it is named for Juno, the goddess of marriage and wife to Rome’s supreme deity, Jupiter. The Romans, along with honoring Juno, also celebrated the festival of Vestalia (June 7-15), where “married women could, for one day only, enter the temples of the vestal virgins. There, they would be allowed to make offerings to Vesta, the goddess of hearth and home.” Juno is often depicted wearing a crown, carrying a scepter, and accompanied by a peacock. Her husband Jupiter had fallen for a young woman named Io and to hide her from Hera, he transformed her into a cow. Hera captured Io and set her servant, Argus, to keep an eye on her. The task would be easy for Argus because he had a hundred eyes, which only a few were shut at one time. Unfortunately, Ju[iter sought out Mercury to help retrieve Io from the giant. After many long, winsome tales and lulling the giant to sleep, Mercury beheaded the giant. Juno was saddened by the loss of her servant so she gathered up his one hundred eyes and scattered them over the tail of her favorite bird, the peacock. June’s birthstones are pearl, alexandrite and moonstone. Pearls Pearls were believed to be the tears of mythical creatures like the mermaid and nymphs; the treasures of dragons; and tears from the moon herself. Highly associated with the moon, pearls are considered feminine associated with nurturing, healing, happiness, innocence, honesty and integrity. They can be used in magic for relationships and commitments or can be worn to heighten intuition and imagination. Alexandrite By the magic of science, Alexandrite is a color changing gem. In daylight it is a bluish-mossy green color and under lamplight it flashes a warm raspberry color. Alexandrite is believed to help bring a sense of calm and a peaceful state of mind to the wearer. It can attract joy, prosperity, good luck for gamblers, and boosts creativity and magnetism. Moonstone Ancient Romans considered the moonstone to be the solidified light of the moon herself. Wear to attune yourself to the natural rhythms of the moon, to attract true love, to enhance fertility, to settle disagreements in a relationship, and to arouse passions. Moonstone is also said to bring wonderful dreams at night. June’s flowers are rose and honeysuckle. Rose Roses have been in gardens for over 5000 years. It is said that the foam that dripped from the freshly born Aphrodite as she emerged from the sea turned into white roses and when she mourned over the body of Adonis, her tears turned the white roses red. Roses are highly prized for all love magic. Roses bring peace, love, and are empowering to the spirit. Honeysuckle Since ancient time honeysuckle has been burned for prosperity within the home. It is also used in love magic and to induce dreams of love and passion. With its ability to cling to walls, honeysuckle is also known as ‘love bind’ and is symbolic of devotion. If you know someone born in the month of June, their zodiac sign is either Gemini or Cancer. Gemini If someone is born before June 20th, their zodiac sign is Gemini. Traits for the Gemini are adventurous, have a love of variety, are charming, sociable, and quick-witted although, on occasion they can be talkative or bitingly sarcastic. Gemini’s are very independent yet can sometime throw caution to the wind. They are intelligent, adaptable, and confident yet can be unemotional, devious, and tend to take their own path. Cancer If someone is born on or after June 21, they are a Cancer. Traits for Cancers include loving, loyal, and intuitive yet can be overemotional, clingy, and overly sensitive. They are self-motivated, natural leaders, and practical yet can side on controlling, bossy, or pessimistic. Cancers love helping others although can have a hard time trusting others. They love feeling secure but can tend to overreach on occasion. Cancers really enjoy the people they care about but aren’t fond of change. Join Inner Circle Sanctuary for an |
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Inner Circle Sanctuary
An Eclectic Traditionalist Oath-bound, Initiatory Wiccan Coven |
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