June draws its name from Juno, ancient Roman Goddess and the wife of Jupiter (ancient Roman King of the Gods). It is the second of four months with 30 days. June's birthstone is the pearl or moonstone and its traditional flowers are the rose and the honeysuckle. No other month begins on the same day of the week as June in any calendar year. In the Southern Hemisphere, June is the first month of winter.
|
June 1 Festival of the Oak Nymph. This Pagan celebration honours all hamadryads (female nature spirits who are believed to inhabit oak trees). Decorate your altar with acorns and wear some oak leaves in your hair. Kiss an oak tree or place a small offering of some kind before it, and the tree nymphs who dwell within it will surely bestow a blessing upon you.
June 4 Whitsunday, an annual Christian festival marking the descent of the Holy Ghost upon the disciples, is celebrated on the seventh Sunday after Easter (which normally falls on or near this date). However, like most Christian holidays, Whitsunday was at one time a Pagan fertility festival. It was celebrated in Europe with a "heathen feast" that marked the death of the spirit of Winter and the birth of the spirit of Summer.
June 7 The Vestalia, an annual festival in honour of the hearth goddess Vesta, began on this date in ancient Rome. During the eight-day festival, the shrine of Vesta was opened to married women. After the festival was over, the shrine was once again forbidden to all except the goddess' attendant vestal virgins.
June 10 On this date in 1692, the first person is hanged as a result of the Salem Witch Trials - a woman named Bridget Bishop.
June 12 The Greek god Zeus is traditionally honoured on this day.
June 13 Today in 1884, Gerald Gardner (founder of the Gardnerian tradition) was born in Lancashire, England.
June 14 In ancient Rome, the goddess Minerva (patroness of wisdom and the arts, and a goddess of battle) was honoured annually on this date at her sacred festival, the Lesser Quinquatrus of Minerva.
June 16 Silver Chalice Day. Every year on this date, Wiccan friends and coven members gather together in a circle to rejoice and share a traditional silver chalice of wine (or fruit juice) consecrated in the names of the Goddess and the Horned God. Many Pagan handfastings and Wiccanings are performed around this time of the month.
June 19 In ancient Rome, the Day of All Heras was celebrated annually on this date in honour of the Goddess within as well as all wisewomen.
June 20 On this day, Pagans in parts of England celebrate the Day of Cerridwen in honour of the ancient Celtic goddess of fertility. Vervain (the herb most sacred to Cerridwen) is burned in small cauldron pots as an offering to the goddess, green ribbons are tied to trees, and green candles are lit on altars dedicated to her.
June 20, 21 or 22 (Southern Hemisphere Winter Solstice) Today is the Lesser Sabbat of Yule in the Southern Hemisphere (the Lesser Sabbat of Litha in the Northern Hemisphere).
June 23 Saint John's Eve. This night is a traditional time for Witches to gather herbs for spells and love potions, for it is believed that the magickal properties of plants are at their peak on this night.
June 24 In ancient times, the festival of Fors Fortuna was celebrated annually on this date in the city of Rome to honour and receive blessings from the goddess Fortuna. On this date in 1950, Reformed Alexandrian Witch and author Janet Farrar was born in London, England.
June 25 Gay Wiccan Pride Day. This is a time for gay and lesbian Wiccans from around the world to unite and celebrate life, love, and the Goddess. Come on out of the proverbial "broom closet" and be proud of who you are! A centuries-old women's festival is held in India every year on this date in honour of the goddess Parvati.
June 27 On this day in 1956, Wiccan author Scott Cunningham was born in Royal Oak, Michigan.
June 28 On this day in 1916, Reformed Alexandrian Witch and author Stewart Farrar was born in Highams Park, Essex, England. |
