Correspondences

April 1998

Sun	Mon	Tue	Wed	Thu	Fri	Sat
			1	2	3   Persephone's         return Waxing Moon (3:18 pm)	4
5 Festival of Kuan Yin	6	7	8	9	10 Sun Dance	11 Full Moon in Libra  (6:24 pm) Start of my personal 3rd house
12	13	14 Festival of Sommersblat	15 Festival of Bast Beginning of the celtic tree month Saille	16	17 Moon in Capricorn	18
19   Waning Moon      (3:53 pm) Sun enters Taurus	20	21	22	23	24 Moon in Aries	25
26 New Moon (7:41 am)	27	28 Floralia	29 Pagan Tree Day	30 Walpurgisnach

April Fool's Day (also known as All Fool's Day) is typically considered a day for playing practical jokes on friends, loved ones, fellow workers, etc. The roots of this day come from olden times, when inmates of insane asylums were allowed out in the streets on this day for the amusement of those who were "normal."

The annual return of the Goddess Persephone from the Underworld, allowing the Earth to bloom again was celebrated every year on this date by the ancient Romans.

Each year on this day, the Chinese Goddess of healing, mercy, compassion, and forgiveness, Kuan Yin, is invoked during the Festival of Kuan Yin for protection, love, mercy, and wisdom. Incense and violet-colored candles are placed as offerings on her alter, along side rolled pieces of rice paper upon which the wishes of worshipers have been written.

According to ancient Celtic folklore, the Sun dances each year on this day. In much of Ireland, people still arise at first light to watch the Sun dance on the water.

The Norse festival of Sommarsblot is celebrated annually on or around this date to welcome Summer.

In ancient Egypt on this date, a huge annual fair called the Festival of Bast was held in honor of the Goddess in Egypt. Thousands of worshippers journeyed up and down the Nile, accompanied by flutes, castanets, and lots of wine. Although Bast was mostly identified with the gentle, creating power of the Sun, she was also identified with cats and the Moon. The cat was Egypt's most sacred animal, and the black cat was especially sacred to Bast. To kill a cat was an automatic death penalty!

The Begining of the Celtic Tree month of Saille.

On this date (approximately), the Sun enters the astrological sign of Taurus. Taurus is an Earth sign and is ruled by the planet Venus.

In ancient Rome, the three day festival called the Floralia, was held annually on this date to honor the beautiful floral Goddess Flora. She was a fertility and vegetation Goddess of Springtime and flowering plants. Her three-day festival marked the beginning of the growing season. The Floralia is still celebrated in many Central and Eastern European countries. People dress in fancy decorated costumes and wear adorn their hear with flowers. Secretly delivering baskets on May Day is a remnant of this old festival.

On this day, plant a tree dedicated to your patron Goddess or God. For instance: plant a myrtle tree to honor Venus and Aphrodite; a pine for Attis, Cybele, and Pan; an oak for Demeter, Diana, and Hera; a rowan tree for all Moon-Goddesses; a sycamore for all Egyptian Gods and Goddesses; a willow for Artemis, Brigid, and Persephone; a yew for Hecate and Saturn; etc.

Walpurgisnacht begins at sunrise on this date in Germany, and ends at sunrise on the first day of May (May Day). Birch branches are placed on doors and windows to protect the home from evil spirits. Traditional bonfires and torches of rosemary and juniper are lit. According to legend, Witches can be seen riding across the sky on their broomsticks on this magical night.

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