August 2023 witch guide
August 2023 witch guide
Full moon: August 1st in Aquarius
New Moon: August 16th
Blue moon: August 30th Aquarius into Pisces
Sabbats: Lughnasadh August 1st
August Sturgeon Moon
Also known as: Corn moon, harvest moon, ricing moon, barley moon, dog moon, fruit moon, grain moon, herb moon, red moon & wyrt moon
Element: Fire
Zodiac: Leo & Virgo
Animal spirts: Dryads
Deities: Diana, Ganesha, Hathor, Hecate, Mars, Nemesis, Thot & Vulcan
Animals: Dragon, lion, phoenix & sphinx
Birds: Crane, eagle & falcon
Trees: Alder cedar & hazel
Herbs/plants: Basil, bay, chamomile, fennel, orange, rosemary, rue & St. John's wort,
Flowers: Angelica, marigold, sunflower
Scents: Frankincense & heliotrope
Stones: Carnelian, cats/tiger's eye, fire agate, garnet, red jasper & red agate
Colors: Gold, orange, red & yellow
Energy: Authority, appreciation, courage, entertainment, finding your voice, friendship, gathering, harvesting energy, health, love, pleasures, power &vitality
Sturgeon moon gets it's name from the high numbers that are caught at the Great Lakes & Lake Champlain in North America during this time of year. The names come from a number of places including Native Americans, Colonial Americans & European sources.
Lughnasadh
Also known as: Lammas, August eve & Feast of bread
Season: Summer
Symbols: Scythes, corn, grain dollies & shafts of grain
Colors: Gold, green, yellow, red, orange, light brown & purple
Oils/incense: Aloe, apple, corn, eucalyptus, safflower, rose & sandalwood
Animals: Cattle & chickens
Stones: Aventurine, carnelian, citrine, peridot, sardonyx & yellow diamond
Foods: Apples, grains, barley cakes, wild berries, cider, honey, potatoes, rice, sun shaped cookies, blackberry, corn, nuts, breads, blueberry. berry pies & grapes
Herbs/Plants: Alfalfa, aloe, all grains, blackberry, corn, corn stalk, crab apple, fenugreek, frankincense, ginseng, goldenseal, grapes, myrtle, oak leaves, pear, rye, blackthorn &wheat
Flowers: Sunflower, cyclamen, heather, hollyhock & medowsweet
Goddesses: Aine, Alphito, Bracacia, Carmen, Ceres, Damina, Demeter, Freya, Grain goddesses, Ishtar, Kait, Kore, Mother Goddess, Sul, Sun Goddesses, Taillte, Zaramama, Ereshkigal & Ianna
Gods: Athar, Bes, Bran, Dagon, Ebisu, Dumuzi, Ghanan, Grain Gods, Howtu, Liber, Lono, Lugh, Neper, Odin, Sun Gods & Xochipilli
Issues, Intentions & Power: Agriculture, changes, divination, endings, fertility, life, light, manifestation, power, purpose, strength, success & unity
Spellwork: Sun magick, rituals of thanks/offerings, bounty, abundance & fire magick
Activities:
Bake fresh bread
Weave wheat
Take walks along bodies of water
Craft a corn doll
Watch the sunrise
Eat outside with family/friends/coven members
Donate to your local foodbank
Prepare a feast with your garden harvest
Give thanks to the Earth
Decorate your altar with symbols of the season
Clean up a space in nature
Plant saved seeds
This cross-quarter fire festival is celebrated on August 1st or the first full moon of Leo & the seventh sabbat of the year. It represents the first harvest when the Earth's bounty is given for the abundance received.
Some believe this is the time where the God has weakened & is losing his strength as seen in the waning of the day's light. The Goddess is pregnant with the young God who will be born on Yule.
In some traditions, this day honors the Celt god Lugh, the god of craftsmanship; He is skilled in many things including wheel making, blacksmithing & fighting. Though there is some discrepancy as to why Lugh is honored on this day. Some tales say it's because he held a harvest faire in honor of his adoptive mother, Tailtiu.
Sources;
Farmersalmanac .com
Boston Public Library- The Origins & Practices of Lammas/Lughnasadh by Dhruti Bhagat
Llewellyn's Complete Book of Correspondences by Sandra Kines
A Witch's Book of Correspondences by Viktorija Briggs
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Sturgeon Moon - August 1, 2023
Buckle up, witches - with two supermoons in store, August is gonna be a wild ride!
Sturgeon Supermoon - August 1, 2023
The Sturgeon Moon is the name given to the first full moon in August. The name comes from the plentiful numbers of sturgeon which appear around this time of year.
Sturgeons are living prehistoric relics, examples of which appear in the fossil record as far back as 200 million years ago. Today, they are endangered due to overfishing, pollution, and habitat loss, but giant sturgeons growing up to 12ft (3.65m) long were once a common sight in the Great Lakes and Lake Champlain in North America.
Other North American Indigenous names for this moon include Flying Up Moon (Cree), Corn Moon (Algonquin and Ojibwe), Harvest Moon (Dakota), Dry Moon (Catawba), Mountain Shadows Moon (Tlingit), and Black Cherries Moon (Assiniboine). European names for this moon include Haymaking Moon (Norse), Lightning Moon (English), and Grain Moon (Anglo-Saxon).
It's also interesting to note that in China, the seventh full moon of the lunar year is called the Hungry Ghost Moon, during which spirits of departed ancestors visit their relatives and homes, and trickster spirits may cause mayhem among the living if not properly appeased. Food offerings and incense are put out for ancestor spirits, families visit gravesites to offer prayers and site maintenance, and festival dances and floating lanterns celebrate the honored dead. In 2023, the Hungry Ghost Moon month will take place from August 16th to September 14th, beginning and ending on the new moons.
Blue Supermoon - August 30, 2023
Blue moons can occur when a full moon appears twice in a calendar month or four times in a season, as opposed to the usual three. August's Blue Supermoon is an example of the former, falling on the night of August 30-31 and peaking around 9:36pm EST.
This blue supermoon is especially notable, since it's the closest that our beloved satellite has been so far this year. The next time the moon will be this close to Earth again will be November 5, 2025, and we won't see another Blue Moon until August 19, 2024.
What Does It Mean For Witches?
Both blue moons and supermoons are particularly advantageous times for spellwork, especially that which involves the fulfillment of goals, desires, and wishes, or the culmination of long-term plans. It's also a great time to start new projects and set new goals for the fall and winter.
Blue moons carry your magical workings forward with a little dash of extra strength and vigor, and may provide extra clarity during divination or reflection. It's also the perfect time for spells related to second chances and abundance, drawing in that much-needed do-over or extra bit of luck or prosperity you've been needing.
What Witchy Things Can We Do?
In August, we harvest one set of crops and sow another, reaping the rewards of our previous efforts and planting the seeds of future success. Look back on the magical workings you've done so far this year - how are they working out? Have any of your spells manifested in especially notable results? Go back and add to your notes, making sure to record anything that worked particularly well.
Evaluate your progress and reflect on what you want to carry forward and what you might need to put on hold or just let go for the time being. If you're partial to divination, a reading may help to provide some additional clarity on your current status, as well as some perspective on the possibilities for the near future.
Celebrate the harvest of grain and corn with your favorite recipes or a summer picnic. This year's August moon falls on Lughnasadh, also called Lammas, and the baking of bread and corn cakes are traditional for this occasion. But don't just limit yourself to corn and wheat! Late summer fruits are also ripe and make a tasty addition to any table.
Set your intentions and your goals for the latter part of the year and start preparing for the autumn and winter. It may seem silly to prepare for the cold when the weather is still blazing hot, but it will be here before you know it. Take time for one more summer beach trip or camping excursion before the hustle and bustle of the fall sets in.
The observation of the blue moon as a magical occasion is a modern addition to witchcraft, but the lack of antiquity doesn't mean there's any shortage of metaphysical potential!
Dive into your stash of blue clothes and accessories for some color magic. (Blue is generally associated with peace, harmony, understanding, clarity, and truth.) Set out a big jug of potable water to catch the light of these double supermoons - it will be great for cleansing, protection, wish-making, and drinkable potion bases later!
All in all, August is supercharged with lunar energy and primed for magical workings, so make your spells count!
Happy Sturgeon Moon, witches! 🌕🐟
Further Reading:
Additional Lunar Calendar posts by Bree NicGarran
Sturgeon Full and Blue Moon: August 2023, The Old Farmer's Almanac.
Sturgeon Moon 2023: The Unique Supermoon Meaning of August, The Peculiar Brunette.
Blue Moon Meaning and Astonishing Spiritual Secrets in 2023, The Peculiar Brunette.
Hungry Ghost Festival, China Travel, June 20 2023.
Sturgeon, Wikipedia Article.
Lughnasadh, Wikipedia Article.
Everyday Moon Magic: Spells & Rituals for Abundant Living, Dorothy Morrison, Llewellyn Publications, 2004.
Image Credit: "Leaping Gulf Sturgeon," by Dawn Witherington
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