The Goddess Tree Grows

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IVY
Hedera Helix

11th month of Celtic Tree calendar, September 30 - October 27
11th consonant of the Ogham alphabet - Gort

Planet: Moon, Saturn
Element: Water
Symbolism: Fidelity and Fertility, Protection, Healing
Stone: Opal
Color: Indigo
Animal: Bear
Bird: Lark, mute Swan, Swallow
Deity: Ariadne, Artemis, Arianrhod, Pasiphae, Dionysus, Bacchus, Osiris

Medicinal properties:
WARNING: All parts of the ivy plant are poisonous if ingested...Ivy should never be used for self medication or given to others. Medicinally ivy was used in making salves, poultices, for relief from toothaches, as an astringent, as a salve for sunburn, for infections, and as an aid to bring on menstruation. It was also added to mixtures of other herbs for pain relief.

Magickal properties:
Ivy is carried by women (and brides) for good luck, since it is equated with female energy (as holly is the male energy.)  Ivy is magickally paired with Holly. Ancient poets were crowned with Ivy to give them honor. Wherever it is grown or strewn, it guards against negativity and disaster. Use ivy in fidelity and love charms.

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True friends, like ivy and the wall,
both stand together, and together fall
~Thomas Carlyle

When planting your magickal garden, or even when making arrangements as gifts, remember that the leaves and tendrils of the Ivy stands for fidelity and love.

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THE CELTIC TREE ORACLE
by Liz and Colin Murray

The Ivy Grows, spreads and flourishes in many conditions - cultivated land and wasteland, in light or in near darkness, in fertile soil or on rubble and stones. It will push its way through tiny cracks and crevices to reach the light and it is strong and difficult to destroy. Since ancient times, the Vine and the Ivy have been regarded as enemies. If the Vine, through intoxication, releases prophetic powers, the Ivy, in contrast, puts you in touch with your own inner resources, giving you the ability to see through the eyes of the soul beyond the everyday world. The color associated with the Ogham Ivy is gorm, sky- blue. Retain a vision of the clear blue sky to which you aspire in your mind's eye.

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Ivy represents the spiral of the self and the search for self. The maze of the labyrinth is also linked to Ivy, since it symbolized the wondering soul, circling inward and outward, seeking nourishment from within & without, leading you to enlightenment. Ivy can be an aid in helping others on a spiritual journey.

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Aditi, Goddess of the Luminous Void

Shamans speak of the void as a place of creation, unlimited possibilities. The Hindu goddess of the void, Aditi, is paradoxically also a sun deity. Her domain is "the nothing" no time and no space. She is the primordial womb from which all creation arises. They say she had no birth herself, yet is the origin of all things.


Aditi, goddess of the empty form, boundless with possibilities.
Aditi speaks now from her place of the vast unlimited:

"I am the original manifestrix, the black being, womb of initiation in the luminous darkness.

You are from me. I welcome your visits to my velvety blackness. I am not just a one-time port of call. I am the repeat destination. I hold all and nothing. Stamp your feet. Unburden your heart. Crack open your head. I am the dreaded yet the necessary. Come, meet with me. Pour out all your troubles. They dissolve into the cosmic emptiness. Pick up something else while you're here. How about a little elixir of eternity, some medicine for your soul? Do not worry. That is my healing counsel From the perspective of void, the vastness of creative forms, all is possible. If one way does not work, another will.

Let's talk about pain. Your fears. Your hollowness. Your loss and loneliness. Look inside me, now. Are you looking? Yes - see, pain is a device that keeps you distracted, keeps you off center. Sure, it tells you something is wrong, needs to heal, needs to change. But pain can create more pain. Leave it lay. Jump tracks. Get on the healing way, the path of infinite love. Here all things are possible, swimming and floating around in my void. Eventually it's time for labor, birth. You can release your pain in me or you can nurture and feed it. Your choice. There's a lot of life out there. Keep your focus on what you seek. Not on what you are missing.

The luminous void paints creation, breathes with wholeness, spaciousness: it supports and comforts you. It's your sacred well. Drink of the dark vastness and be healed. I am Aditi. I am the unborn who gives life to the world. Vaster than vast. You know me. All your yearnings and future possibilities rest in me.

Pray to me. Light a dark candle in your soul. I will find you. I never miss. Your breath is my trail to you."

~Beth Beurkens 2007 and WeMoon 09

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Sunday October 4, 2009 Full Moon in Aries
Sunday October 11, 2009 Waning Half Moon in Cancer
Sunday October 18, 2009 New Moon in Libra
Sunday October 25, 2009 Waxing Half Moon in Aquarius

IVY MOON
Ivy travels everywhere - it spreads happily and thrives in many places where no other greenery could survive. Its determination to reach through obstacles toward light and nourishment is well known, too. If you were born under this tree sign, your networking abilities will further both your personal goals and the purposes of your "cause" - whatever that might be. It's important that you use this talent to reach out, like the ivy, in a productive way.
Be sure to use this talent productively. Don't allow yourself to bind others to you, or to be bound by guilt, worry, or fear of the future.  ~Written by Kim Rogers-Gallagher, and Llewellyn's Witches' Datebook 2000

As the winter months draw closer, you will need to improve your resilience and tenacity. Spells for good health are advised at this time of the year.

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A Druid's Herbal of Sacred Tree Medicine by Ellen Evert Hopman

Ivy reminds us that nature provides enough for all. If Ivy has entered your awareness today, you are being reminded that all things have their place in sacred creation. Everything is unfolding as it should and there are no mistakes. See what sweetness and wisdom you can gather from your experiences, to bring back to the people.

"Oh Ivy who blooms in the chill Autumn wind,
show me the way to gather the light of my Higher Self and share it with all Beings."

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Oh, a dainty plant is the ivy green,
That creepeth o'er ruins old!
Of right choice food are his meals I ween,
In his cell so lone and cold. . . . .
Creeping where no life is seen,
A rare old plant is the ivy green.
~Charles Dickens

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I honor the energy of ivy, the spiral to center.
I will do all that I do because of my own inner desires.
I will listen to myself, and will remain balanced and centered while I do this work.
So mote it be

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Pray Peace

This letter is a labor of love, from Gwendolyn
Permission to share freely, please in its entirety, with links and credits
Feel free to contact me: gwendolyn@thegoddesstree.com

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from Moon Bee Acres

There is a branch for you to sit upon with a beautiful view.
Climb up into her arms, and stay for a spell.
Feel her roots, her bark, her branches, her leaves.
She is shade, shelter, a home, a hide-away.
She is an escape.
She rocks you to sleep in your hammock.
She holds up your birdfeeder, your wind chimes, and your decorations.
She embraces anyone who loves to climb.
In the spring she offers life, and in the fall she gives her own.
She does not judge.
She just is.

Gwendolyn
thegoddesstree.com

http://thegoddesstree.com/MotherNature/Ivy.htm

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