October
October gave a party; The leaves by hundreds came-
The Chestnuts, Oaks, and Maples, and leaves of every name.
The Sunshine spread a carpet, and everything was grand,
Miss Weather led the dancing, Professor Wind the band.
October derives its name from the Latin, Ocoto meaning eight. When the Julian and Gregorian calendars added the months of January and February, this month retained its original moniker even though it was bumped to the 10th position. The number eight represents balance, harmony, and prosperity, which remains fitting, as October has a real sense of balance about it. Here there is the balance of justice. Karma, reincarnation, and the veil between life and death all speak of a cosmic harmony. Even the figure eight, when resting on its side represents infinity. Look to the larger picture in October, and find your sense of place and peace.
Birth Customs of October
July Flower
Brightly painted butterflies
incline me to romanticize
the lovely larkspur on display
welcoming this July day
October Zodiac
In crisp October’s thinning veil
Libra weighs her trusty scale
When Scorpio comes into power
Intimacy seeks to flower
October Stone
October’s child is born for woe,
And life’s vicissitudes must know,
But lay an opal on her breast,
And hope will lull those woes to rest.
Magic of October
Correspondences
Herbs: Pennyroyal, Angelica, Burdock
Totems: Snake, Sparrow
Stones: Tourmaline
Birthstone: Opal
Birth Flower: Calendula
Celtic Trees: Reed (or Blackthorn) & Elder
Nature Spirits: Jack Frost
Spellwork
Balance
Renew
Prosper
Heal
Justice
Aromatherapy
Take a Hike
3 drops Sandalwood
3 drops Cypress
1 drop Pine
Meditation
I would believe only in a God that knows how to dance.
Friedrich Nietzsche
Science of October
Astronomy
Name: October
Length: 31 Days
Full Moon: October 13th
New Moon: October 28th
Zodiac: Libra & Scorpio
Full Moon
Colonial American: Hunter Moon
Celtic: Harvest Moon
Chinese: Kindly Moon
Algonquin: Raven Moon
Old English: Blood Moon
Poetry for October
October
O hushed October morning mild,
Thy leaves have ripened to the fall;
Tomorrow’s wind, if it be wild,
Should waste them all.
The crows above the forest call;
Tomorrow they may form and go.
O hushed October morning mild,
Begin the hours of this day slow.
Make the day seem to us less brief.
Hearts not averse to being beguiled,
Beguile us in the way you know.
Release one leaf at break of day;
At noon release another leaf;
One from our trees, one far away.
Late Autumn
October – and the skies are cool and gray
O’er stubbles emptied of their latest sheaf,
Bare meadow, and the slowly falling leaf.
The dignity of woods in rich decay
Accords full well with this majestic grief
That clothes our solemn purple hills to-day,
Whose afternoon is hush’d, and wintry brief
Only a robin sings from any spray.
And night sends up her pale cold moon, and spills
White mist around the hollows of the hills,
Phantoms of firth or lake; the peasant sees
His cot and stockyard, with the homestead trees,
Islanded; but no foolish terror thrills
His perfect harvesting; he sleeps at ease.
Calendar of October
