January

Legends and Lore for
January
January, the first month of the current Gregorian calendar and the second month of Winter's rule, derives its name from the ancient Roman god, Janus.
The traditional birthstone amulet of January is the garnet; and the carnation and the snowdrop are the month's traditional flowers.
January is shared by the astrological signs of Capricorn, the Goat and Aquarius the Water Bearer, and is sacred to the following Pagan deities:
Antu, Felicitas, Inanna, Irene, Janus, Pax, and Venus.
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January 1New Year's Day
This day is sacred to the goddesses known as the Three Fates, the German goddess Bertha, the Morrigan, the Parcae, and the Japanese household gods.
Many modern Witches and Wiccans around the world traditionally start off the new year with a spell for good luck and a ritual to bless the new year with peace, love, health, and prosperity for all.
This is a traditional time for ending bad habits and beginning New Year's
resolutions.
The first day of January was dedicated by the ancient Romans to the god Janus. Janus possesses two identical faces looking in opposite directions: one to the past, and the other to the future. He is a god of gates and doorways, and a deity associated with journeys and the beginnings of things.
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January 2
The birth of the Pagan goddess Inanna has been celebrated annually on this day since ancient times. Inanna is the Sumerian queen of heaven and earth, and a deity who presides over both love and war.
Every year on this date, the Perihelion of the Earth takes place. When this occurs, the planet Earth reaches the point in its orbit closest to the Sun. Many astrologers consider this to be a highly significant event.
In ancient Egypt, a religious ceremony known as the Advent of Isis from Phoenecia was performed yearly on this date in honor of the goddess Isis.
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January 3
On this day, an annual fertility ceremony known as the Deer Dances is performed by the Native American tribe of the Pueblo in the southwestern United States. The ceremony, which includes sacred ritual dances performed by shamans wearing deer headdresses, is centuries-old and dedicated to the great female spirit-goddess known as the Deer Maiden.
In ancient Greece, a Pagan religious festival called the Lenaia was celebrated each year on this date in honor of Dionysus, the god of wine and fertility.
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January 4
In Korea, the annual Sacrifice to the Seven Starts (Chilseong-je) is performed on this date at midnight. To receive good fortune and divine blessings, water and white rice are offered to the god who rules the constellation Ursa Major.
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January 5
Twelfth Night and Wassail Eve (in England) heralds the end of Christmastide. In ancient Egypt times, it was believed that the waters of the mystical and sacred River Nile possessed special magickal powers on this date.
On this date in the year 1918, renowned astrologer and author Jeane Dixon was born in Medford, Wisconsin.
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January 6Day of the Triple Goddess
On this date in the year 1988, Circle Sanctuary of Mount Horeb, Wisconsin, became legally recognized as a Wiccan Church by its local Township and County levels of government. Circle Sanctuary's attainment of church zoning was a significant victory for Wiccans around the world, for it was the first time a Witchcraft group had been publicly sanctioned as a church by local government officials.
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January 7
In the seventeenth century, it was customary on this day for a special Epiphany Cake to be baked with a coin in it. Whoever was lucky enough to receive the portion containing the coin was saluted by the family as a "king" or "queen" for the day. As part of the tradition, the "king" or "queen" would draw cross symbols on the ceiling with white chalk to drive out evil spirits and ward off misfortune.
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January 8Old Druid's New Year
In ancient Greece, Midwife's Day (dedicated to the goddess Babo) was celebrated annually on this date, while an annual festival called Justica's Day was celebrated by the early Romans.
In ancient times, this day was dedicated to the Norse goddess Ferya (or Freyja), who presided over both love and fertility.
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January 9
On this date in the year 1989, Jamie Dodge (a Wiccan who had been fired from her job at the Salvation Army because of her Wiccan beliefs) won a lawsuit against her former employer for violating her First Amendment right to freedom of religion and unnecessary entanglement of government with religion.
On this date in the year 1880, "Old Dorothy" Clutterbuck was born in Bengal. She belonged to a hereditary Witch coven in the New Forest of England, and was the High Priestess who initiated Gerald B. Gardner into the Craft in 1939. She passed away in the year 1951.
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January 10
The Feast of Dreams, a centuries-old ritual, is performed annually by the Native American Indian tribe of the Iroquois to celebrate their New Year, which occurs on this date.
In rural England and Scotland, Plough Monday (the first Monday after Epiphany) occurs on or around this date. A plough is traditionally paraded through the streets and a ritual sweeping with brooms is performed to drive away evil spirits from the village.
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January 11
In years gone by, an old ritual to ward off Witches was performed annually on this date in many fishing villages along the coast of Scotland. At sunset, a barrel of tar would be placed on top of a pole, set on fire, and allowed to burn throughout the night. Afterwards, charred pieces of it would then be used by the villagers and fisherman as protective charms.
In ancient Rome, a festival called the Carmentalia was celebrated annually, beginning on this date and lasting until the fifteenth of January. The festival honored the Roman goddess Carmenta, a deity presiding over childbirth, whose priestesses cast the fortunes of children at the moment of their birth.
Juturna, the ancient Italian goddess of pools and still waters, is honored each year on this day.
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January 12
Each year on this date, a sacred solstice ritual called the Makara-Sankranti is celebrated by Hindus in India with saffron, songs of joy, and ritual baths in sacred rivers.
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January 13
Saint Silvester's Day. Evil spirits are traditionally driven away with clanging bells on this night by villagers in Urnasch, Switzerland, where the pre-Julian New Year's Eve continues to be celebrated on this date.
In pre-Christian Ireland, the thirteenth day of January was celebrated each year as the Feast of Brewing by the ancient and mysterious priests known as the Druids.
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January 14
On this date in the year 1967, a psychedelic spiritual "pow-wow" called the Human Be-In took place in San Francisco's Golden Gate Park. The event drew approximately 20,000 people (including Allen Ginsberg and Timothy Leary) and consisted of chanting, dancing, poetry readings, music, and celebrations of love and the unity of humankind.
In Southern India, the three-day Pongal festival begins on this date each year to celebrate the January rice harvest, honor the great sun-god Surya, and give thanks to the spirits who
bring the rainy season.
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January 15

In ancient Rome, a sacred festival called the Feast of the Ass was celebrated each year on this date in honor of the goddess Vesta and the ass that saved her. Vesta presided over the hearth and her temple was lit by a sacred fire tended by six virgin priestesses known as the Vestal Virgins.

January 16
Each year on this date in the country of Indonesia, the fire-god Betoro Bromo is honored by Buddhist monks and pilgrims who gather at Mount Bromo. At the first stroke of midnight, offerings of food and flowers are cast into the volcano where the god is believed to dwell.
On this date in the year 1976, the famous astrologer and author known as Zolar died.
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