Dragonfly Medicine

There is one myth that dragonfly’s were once dragons, with scales as transparent and beautiful as a dragonfly’s wings. It would fly through the night bringing light with it’s fiery breath. Coyote challenged and tricked the dragon to change it’s form to that of the dragonfly. In accepting the challenge to prove the challenge to prove it’s power and magical prowess, dragon lost his ability and remained as a dragonfly.

The archangel Ariel/Uriel is one of the four most powerful angels. Ariel is the ruler of the element of Earth, planet Pluto and psychic development. Ariel uses the dragonfly as a messenger to appear before people he wishes to connect with.

Around the world the dragonfly show is a positive symbol. To the Japanese, it symbolizes summer and autumn and am admired and respected all over, so much so that the Samurai use it as a symbol of power, agility and best of all, victory. In China, people associate the dragonfly with prosperity, harmony and as a good luck charm. Amongst Native Americans, it is a sign of happiness, speed and purity. Purity because the dragonfly eats from the wind itself

If dragonfly has come into your life recently encourages you to explore what you can change or transform about yourself. Have you put on too much weight, have you overloaded your life or are you forgetting to be grateful for what you have? If you feel the need to change, call on dragonfly to aid your transformation.

The Dragonfly Eulogy - to comfort those who feel they have lost contact with the one that has passed on

Once in a little pond, in the muddy water under the lily pads, there lived a little water bug in a community of water bugs. They lived a simple and comfortable life in the pond with few disturbances and interruptions. Once in a while, sadness would come to the community when one of their fellow bugs would climb the stem of a lily pad and would never be seen again. They knew when this happened, their friend was dead, gone forever.

Then, one day, one little water bug felt an irresistible urge to climb up that stem. However, he was determined that he would not leave forever. He would come back and tell his friends what he had found at the top. When he reached the top and climbed out of the water onto the surface of the lily pad, he was so tired, and the sun felt so warm, that he decided he must take a nap. As he slept, his body changed and when he woke up, he had turned into a beautiful blue-tailed dragonfly with broad wings and a slender body designed for flying.

So, fly he did! And, as he soared he saw the beauty of a whole new world and a far superior way of life to what he had never known existed. Then he remembered his bug friends and how they were thinking by now he was dead. He wanted to go back to tell them, and explain to them that he was now more alive than he had ever been before. His life had been fulfilled rather than ended. But, his new body would not go down into the water. He could not get back to tell his friends the good news. Then he understood that their time would come, when they, too, would know what he now knew. So, he raised his wings and flew off into his joyous new life!

Bugger it's Mabon!

Friday, 23rd September, 2011 is the day of the Autumn Equinox and the pagan festival of Mabon (Spring Equinox/Ostara for the Southern Hemisphere). An equinox occurs twice a year, when the tilt of the Earth's axis is inclined neither away from nor towards the Sun, the centre of the Sun being in the same plane as the Earth's equator. Mabon is a festival marking the second harvest, the changing of the seasons and the time to begin preparations for the winter ahead.

There are plenty of rituals for this festival and I am always a fan of adapting one to personalise yourself or your group. However for many Wiccans a full ritual on Friday may not be possible. Whether you have work or family commitments, can't find a quiet space for an hour or two or it slipped your mind (may the Gods forbid) there are still some small things you can do to honour the festival;

Mabon
- As this is a time when the trees are losing their leaves it is a time contemplate and meditate on what you can shed from your life, both mentally and physically.
- Cook corn on the cob for dinner as this is a food associated with Mabon. Other foods include corn bread, beans, pomegranates and baked squash.
- Treat yourself to a nice red wine.
- Take a walk in nature and collect a few dried leaves and seed pods to decorate your space with. - Buy yourself or a loved one a bunch of chrysanthemums
- Dress using the colours of red, orange, deep gold, brown, russet, maroon and/or violet.
- Light candles in the colours of red, orange, yellow, gold and brown to illuminate your space.
- Carry or meditate with crystals such as amethyst, yellow topaz, carnelian, lapis lazuli, sapphire, yellow agate and red jasper.

Ostara (for those in the Southern Hemisphere)
- This is a time to plant the seeds for the year ahead. Write down your goals and design and action plan, commit to email five people to progress your goals or actually do some gardening and plant some seeds.
- Take a walk through nature. Don't focus on getting exercise but rather take the walk with a focus on being triumphant of all the great things they lay ahead for you in the coming year.
- Paint and decorate eggs with children (or the children at heart).
- Buy some daffodils or pick some native wildflowers (if local laws permit).
- Include lots of seeds, nuts and leafy green vegetables in your meals.
Dress using bright colours especially green, yellow and pink.
- Light candles in the colours of yellow, green and pink to illuminate your space.
- Carry or meditate with crystals such as jasper, jade, rose quartz, turquoise, aventurine and citrine.

Snowy Owl Medicine

There is much to learn from the Snowy Owl. The Snowy Owl uses great patience to hunt and teaches us to do the same. Be patient and know that what you need will come. Also know that when the time comes, you are equipped with what you need to handle the situation, just as the snow owl is adapted to living in the icy climates and hunt and digest their prey.

Like all owls, they are associated with wisdom and prophecy, having the ability to see the unseen, know the unknown. Snowy Owls seem to have the ability to migrate to places where food is plentiful and foresee famine areas.

Athena is the Greek goddess of wisdom, courage, inspiration, civilization, warfare, strength, strategy, female arts, crafts, justice and skill. She is often depicted with an owl on her shoulder or head. It is said the owl would reveal unknown truths, thus ensuring what she spoke was always the truth.

For the Oglala Lakota Indians, (one of the seven subtribes of the Lakota people) the Snowy Owl represents the North and the north wind. They also were admired and respected by the tribe. Warriors that excelled in combat wore a cap of owl feathers to symbolize their bravery.

While trees are the chosen nesting place for most birds, these are few and far between in the regions where the Snowy Owl inhabits. They usually build their nest on the ground, preferably on a boulder or mound of dirt. They will sometimes take over abandoned eagle nests. The female will lay 5-14 eggs, one every other around May. They will hatch approximately five weeks later, making them all Geminis and Cancers!


If the Snowy Owl has appeared to you recently, it may be trying to pass on a message related to the above information. It may appear in reality, dreams, pictures, conversations or any other form.