September

Legends and Lore for September

September, the ninth month of the current Gregorian calendar and the first month of Autumn, derives its name from septem, the Latin word meaning "seven", as September was the seventh month of the old Roman calendar.
The traditional birthstone of amulet of September is the blue sapphire; and the aster and the morning glory are the month's traditional flowers.
September is shared by the astrological signs of Virgo the Virgin and Libra the Scales (or Balance), and is sacred to the following Pagan deities: Persephone, Thor, and the Wiccan Goddess in Her aspect of the Mother.
During the month of September, the Great Solar Wheel of the Year is turned to the Autumnal Equinox, one of the four Lesser Sabbats celebrated each year by Wiccans and modern Witches throughout the world.
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September 1
On this date in the sixth century B.C., the Persian prophet and mystic known as Zoroaster was born. He founded the religion of Zoroastrinism, which teaches that all of mankind is trapped in a perpetual battle between good spirits and bad spirits.

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September 2
On this date in ancient Athens, an annual Grape Vine Festival was held in honor of the Greek deities Ariadne and Dionysus. In Crete, Ariadne was worshipped as a goddess of the Moon, and Dionysus as the son of Semele (who was also a goddess of the Moon).

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September 3
On this day, the annual Path Clearing Festival (Akwambo) is held by the Akan people of Ghana to honor and receive blessings from the ancient god of the sacred well.
The Maidens of the Four Directions are honored on this day each year by a Hopi Indian women's healing ceremony called Lakon.

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September 4
At sunrise on this day, the Changing Woman Ceremony is held annually by the Native American tribe of the Apache in Arizona. The rite, which lasts for four consecutive days, marks the coming of age of a pubescent girl, who ritually transforms into the spirit-goddess known as Changing Woman and blesses all who are in attendance.

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September 5
In ancient Rome, the Roman Games, in honor of the god Jupiter, began annually on this date and lasted until the thirteenth day of September.
Ganesh, the elephant-headed Hindu god of good luck and prosperity, is honored on this day throughout India with a parade and a festival of rejoicing.

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September 6
An ancient Inca blood festival called the Situa was held annually on this date to ward off the evil spirits of illness and disease. As part of the ceremony, parents would eat a special cake consecrated with the blood of their offspring.

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September 7
Healer's Day. This is a special day dedicated to all women and men who possess the Goddess-given gift of healing and who use it unselfishly to help others.
Daena, the Maiden Goddess of the Parsees, is honored on this date each year with a religious festival in India.

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September 8
On this date in the year 1875, the Theosophical Society (an organization dedicated to spreading occult lore and ancient wisdom) was founded by Madame Helena Petrova Blavatsky, Henry Steel Olcott, William Judge, and other occultists.

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September 9
In China, chrysanthemum wine is traditionally drunk on this day each year to ensure long life and to honor Tao Yuan-Ming, a Chinese poet who was deified as the god of the chrysanthemum.

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September 10
The Ceremony of the Deermen is held every year at dawn on the first Monday after Wakes Sunday (which normally falls on or near this date). As part of the ceremony, held at Abbots Bromley in Staffordshire, England, the Deerman, wearing antlers and carrying clubs surmounted with deers' heads, escort two young men dressed as Robin Hood and Maid Marian across the village.
On this date in the year 1930, Carl Llewellyn Weschcke (former Wiccan high priest and owner of Llewellyn Publications) was born in Saint Paul, Minnesota. In 1972 he was initiated by Lady Sheba into the American Celtic tradition of Witchcraft, and in 1973 he helped to organize the Council of American Witches.

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September 11
In Egypt, a centuries old festival called the Day of Queens is celebrated annually on this date in honor of Hatshepsut, Nefertiti, and Cleopatra, who were also regarded as goddesses.

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September 12
On this date in the year 1902, actress Margaret Hamilton was born in Cleveland, Ohio. She is best known for her memorable role as the Wicked Witch of the West in the 1939 film The Wizard of Oz. She died on May 16, 1985, in Salisbury, Connecticut.

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September 13
wiccan All Souls' Day. Every year on this date, the ancient wiccans celebrated a religious festival known as The Ceremony of Lighting the Fire. Sacred fires were lit in temples in honor of the spirits of the dead and the goddess Nephthys, protectress of the dead and Queen of the Underworld.

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September 14
In ancient Rome, the Feast of the Holy Cross was celebrated on this date in commemoration of a supernatural vision of a cross in the sky, as well as a battle victory of Roman Emperor Constantine I.
On this date in the year 1692, the Witch trial of two Pilgrim women opened in Stamford, Connecticut. One was found not guilty; the other was convicted and sentenced to die, but was later reprieved by an investigating committee.
On this date in the year 1486, ceremonial magician Agrippa von Nettesheim was born in Cologne, France. He was skilled in the arts of divination, numerology, and astrology, and wrote several books that had a great influence over Western occultism. He died in Grenoble, France in the year 1535.

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September 15
The full moon of September, known as the Harvest Moon, normally begins on or around this date. Many believe it to possess great magickal powers, and numerous superstitions are connected with it. Harvest Moon rituals are performed throughout the world on the first night of the full moon by many Witches and Pagans, especially those who dwell in the country.

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September 16
Feast of Saint Cornely. On this day, villagers and farmers who live in Brittany honor Saint Cornely, the patron of horned animals who is believed to have created the Carnac megaliths by magickally transforming enemy soldiers into stone. At midnight, oxen are blessed in a shrine dedicated to him.

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September 17
On this date in the year 1964, Bewitched (the first television sitcom about a Witch) made its debut on ABC-TV. It became an instant hit and received twenty-two Emmy nominations.
In ancient Greece, the goddess Demeter was honored annually on this date with a festival of secret rites.

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September 18
In the town of Berkshire, England, a centuries-old celebration known as Scouring the White Horse begins on this date. The festival of games and athletic competition takes place on a hillside carved with the huge figure of a galloping steed, and lasts for two consecutive days.

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September 19
On this day in ancient Babylonia, an annual festival of prayers and feasts took place in honor of Gula, the goddess of birth.
On this date in the year 1692, Giles Corey (a Massachusetts man charged with the crime of Witchcraft) was pressed to death by two large stones in Salem for refusing to acknowledge the Court's right to try him.

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September 20
The Spring Equinox (South of the Equator) was celebrated approximately on this date by the ancient Incas. It was a time for honoring the Sun God, feasting, rejoicing, animal sacrifices, and divinations. Festivals were also held on this date throughout South America to celebrate the birthday of the god Quetzalcoatl.

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September 21
Saint Matthew's Day. In many parts of the world, this is a traditional day for performing divinations of all kinds. In Germany, fortune-telling wreaths of straw and evergreen, made on this day by young girls, were used for love divination.
In ancient Greece, the birth of the goddess Athena was celebrated annually on this day.

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September 22
On the first day of Autumn (which normally occurs on or near this date), the Autumn Equinox sabbath is celebrated by Wiccans and Witches throughout the world. Autumn Equinox (which is also known as the Fall sabbath, Alban Elfed, and the Second Festival of Harvest) is a time for thanksgiving, meditation, and introspection. On this sacred day, Witches rededicated themselves to the Craft, and Wiccan initiation ceremonies are performed by the High Priestess and Priests of covens. Many Wiccan traditions also perform a special rite for the goddess Persephone's descent into the Underworld as part of their Autumn Equinox celebration.

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September 23
On this date (approximately), the Sun enters the astrological sign of Libra. Persons born under the sign of the Scales (the Balance) are said to be artistic, resourceful, extroverted, balanced, and often indecisive. Libra is an air sign and is ruled by the planet Venus.

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September 24
In ancient Egypt, the annual death and rebirth of the god Osiris was celebrated once a year on this date. A festival held in his honor consisted of song, dance, and ceremonial plantings.
In West Africa, this day is sacred to Obatala, a hermaphrodite deity who was believed to have given birth to all Yoruban gods and goddesses.

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September 25
On this date in ancient Greece, a feast of beans known as the Pyanopsia was celebrated annually in honor of the great Olympian god Apollo and the three beautiful goddesses of the four seasons known as the Horae.
The birthday of Sedna, the Eskimo goddess of both the sea and the Underworld, is celebrated annually on this date in Greenland, northeastern Siberia, and the Arctic coastal regions of North America.

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September 26
Theseus, the great hero of Athens who slew the Minotaur and conquered the Amazons, was honored on this date in ancient Greece with an annual festival called the Theseia. The celebration lasted until the twenty-ninth day of September.
In ancient times, a goat sacrifice was performed annually on this day to appease Azazel, a Hebrew fallen angel who seduced mankind. He was associated with the planet Mars.

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September 27
Moon Festival. On this date, an annual ceremony takes place in China to honor the Moon Hare and to give thanks to the gods for a harvest of abundance. The rites associated with the Moon Festival are always performed by women as the Moon represents yin, the female cosmic element.

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September 28
On this date in ancient Athens, an annual Thesmophoria festival was celebrated in honor of the Greek goddess Demeter. The festival lasted until the third day of October.

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September 29
Michaelmas. According to English folklore, it was on this day that the Devil fell from Heaven, landed on a blackberry bush, and cursed the berries. Therefore, it is unlucky to pick blackberries after Michaelmas. In parts of Scotland, special Michaelmas cakes are eaten by the superstitious on this day to ward off all evil and misfortune in the coming year.

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September 30
On this date, the annual Meditrinalia festival was celebrated in the city of Rome in honor of the goddess Meditrina, a deity who presided over medicines and the arts of healing.
In ancient Greece, the Epitaphia was held once a year on this date to honor the souls of the warriors slain to battle.