St. Martin, The Beaver Moon + Celtic Advent
winter begins
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Martinmas
Just a few days ago, on November 11th, we remembered St. Martin and opened the gateway to winter, Martinmas, which in the old Julian calendar was Hallowmas Eve, aka Halloween/Samhain.
I know the update to the Gregorian calendar some four hundred-odd years ago solved the time drift problem, but I like how the old Julian calendar pushes our current celebrations out by about two weeks, which aligns more with the season and the weather.
In my neck of the woods, October 31st was unseasonably warm and didn’t feel like winter was knocking at the door. All that has changed this week, and Old Hallowmas and Martinmas feel right on time and in harmony with the weather.
Using the old Julian calendar as a touchstone allows you to deepen your encounter with Hallowmas, Halloween, and Samhain by stretching out your celebrations, rituals, and meditations from November 11th through November 15th, when our recent ancestors would have been marking this season.
A few years ago, I wrote an in-depth essay on Martinmas, which, if you are not familiar with, you should read to gain background and context. Find it HERE
In a rather magical way, in some countries, Martinmas celebrations begin at the eleventh minute of the eleventh hour of this eleventh day of the eleventh month, at 11:11 a.m. on November 11th. Many of you will be familiar with the modern (New Age? spiritual/magical?) belief that if you notice 11:11 on a digital clock, you’re supposed to make a wish or understand it as a message from the Universe. Yet, here, we see the 11:11 numerical pattern recognized long ago.
The Story of Martin
Martin was born in Hungary in the early 4th century AD. His parents were pagans, but he chose Christianity, the new religion. While still a teenager, he was forced into the Roman Army.
One bitterly cold and snowy night, Martin passed under a dark bridge and came upon a poor man huddled in the cold, starving and nearly frozen to death. Seeing such suffering, he removed his soldier’s cloak and, drawing his sword, rended it in half, giving the homeless man a portion of the warm, waterproof woolen cloak. That night, he had a vivid dream in which he had a vision of Jesus wearing the half-cloak and saying to the angels, "Here is Martin, the Roman soldier who is now baptized; he has clothed me.”
That vision changed Martin’s life. He petitioned for release from the army and was granted his request. He became a monk known as Martin, the Merciful protector of children and the poor because of his generosity.
One of the things I love about Martin’s story is the shift in the archetypes he must live with. He begins as a very young man upon whom the Soldier and Warrior archetypes are placed. He does not seek these out or perhaps even embody them naturally. We don't know what Martin had hoped to do with his life before he was conscripted into the army.
In a moment of testing, we see the authentic Martin, who is moved by compassion and a desire to help his fellow human beings. The roles he is plunged into, Soldier and Warrior, don’t seem to have erased his inner and authentic self or his desire to live out his Christian beliefs.
Afterward, Martin chooses to move through his life within another archetypal pattern, that of the Monk, which may have strands of the Hermit, the Priest, and the Protector woven together.
Martin’s story is an inspiring one of compassion, acceptance, and authenticity. Like Martin, we are sometimes dropped into situations that don’t align with our true nature. Martin inspires us to stay true to our north star and moral compass, allowing love and mercy always to be present. Martin shows us how to keep kindness and compassion in our souls even when our situation requires other traits and actions of us. Martin is a Soldier who is also merciful and compassionate. Martin also encourages us to ask for what we need even if it seems impossible, believing that Divine forces are working on our behalf and helping us realize our true calling.
Martinmas, as the Gateway to Winter, also becomes a parable, reminding us that as the dangers of winter surround us, a picture of life’s harsh realities, we are vulnerable like the homeless, suffering, destitute man. While all may seem lost, divine love offers hope and sends people into our lives to help us at precisely the right time. This is the earthly manifestation of the Divine love we are offered when our soul is in peril and nearly lost. Like so many tales, songs, and seasonal stories of winter, Martin’s story offers hope, a light to brighten winter's night, and a way out of the darkness.
This is a lovely song to begin your winter season and perfect for Martinmas. Enjoy. (It has a long intro, but wait for the beautiful lyrics.)
A Musical Offering
The Beaver Moon
November’s full moon, the Beaver Moon, sometimes also called the Frost Moon, is also the last supermoon of 2024. It will bring a dramatic close to the 2024 supermoon cycle. This supermoon falls in the constellation of Taurus, the Bull. It will also sextile Neptune and trine Pluto.
Let’s break that down a little. Taurus is fixed earth. Taurian ways are set in stone, immovable, and stubborn. Taurus is grounded, rooted, and committed to its visions, relationships, and possessions. Its realm is material possessions, wealth, income, and luxury. It corresponds to the suit of Pentacles or Coins in the Tarot.
The moon is exalted in Taurus, meaning that it is amplified, strengthened, and even exaggerated. The Moon (as much as we love her) is a deceptive and destabilizing force, waxing, waning, and changing our perceptions. This supermoon will likely force that kind of lunar energy into overdrive.
Neptune rules Pisces, the sign of the High Priestess in Tarot. Neptune corresponds to dreamy states, illusions, escapism, blurring boundaries, confusion, mysticism, inspiration, and a connection to photography, film, and the entertainment industry. I would suggest being especially careful when watching videos and viewing pictures on social media under this supermoon; deception and illusion for the purpose of confusion seem likely.
Pluto is a planet of transformation and rebirth through destruction and devastation, especially with the collective. A shake-up is coming, and the Neptune influence may mean we won’t be able to discern it accurately because of deception, so we may be tempted to drift off into daydreaming and denial.
To gain insight into what this may mean for you, I suggest meditating on these Tarot cards:
The King of Pentacles (RWS)
Taurus ( Mike Willcox Tarot & Oracle),
The High Priestess (aka Sophia, The Byzantine Tarot)
Pisces ( Mike Willcox Tarot & Oracle) ruled by Neptune (Astro Starcode Oracle)
The Moon (The Byzantine Tarot)
Pisces, the sign of the High Priestess/Sophia (Astro Starcode Oracle)
The Last Judgement (RWS)
Pluto corresponds to The Last Judgement (Astro Starcode Oracle)
The Eight of Pentacles (RWS)
Mercury - my art on JourneyCircles(TM) Star Card
Celtic Advent
In days long past, Martinmas was called St. Martin’s Lent, a time for spiritual reflection, fasting, and giving to the poor in preparation for Christmas, just like the more familiar Lent is a preparation for Easter.
The Celts, way off at the edge of the Empire, adopted Christianity and let it absorb some of the already existing spirituality where appropriate. They also allowed the seeds of the new religion to grow up wild, spreading its roots and branches in ways unencumbered by continental Christianity's tutelage. Thus, Celtic Christianity, at least as we see or imagine it nowadays, feels authentic, earthy, and even magical. It’s a version of Christianity that feels more inviting, more in tune with nature, and more enchanted while remaining faithful to its essential teachings.
Read the 2022 Celtic Advent Essay HERE
Below is an excerpt from 2023’s A Celtic Advent Gift : guiding you into a wilder winter season (updated for 2024 dates) and a link to your Celtic Advent guide to download
During Celtic Advent (which begins Nov. 15, with traditional Advent starting Dec. 1, 2024), we can find our way back to something wilder. We can seek what our souls long for in wells, springs, stones, trees, and animals, all en-souled, living, and conscious. We can plumb the mysteries of how it is that Creation can sing and the particular Advent imagery of a tree that has withered springing to life again from its root, known as Radix Jesse, the root of Jesse, or the mystery of all Creation groaning as if in the pangs of childbirth. We can wonder what Mother Earth is birthing, what the New Tree that springs up will look like, and what kind of fruit it will bear.
Celtic Advent also offers the opportunity to discover new language and metaphors to describe our spiritual experiences and how we interact with Divinity. It also draws us into Nature and into practices that are earthy, embodied, and harmonious with the ways of Nature.
We know that the whole Creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time. Not only so, but we ourselves, who have the first fruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait...
Celtic Advent emphasizes seeking God in Nature and receiving revelation from the wisdom of Creation. This helps us break out of limitations, structures, and conventions that have trapped us in our heads, bound by rationalism and materialism.
It may seem odd that the very earthy and bodily nature of Celtic Advent would be the cure for materialism. But in fact, the enchanted vision of Nature we find in the Celtic imagination dissolves the reductionist materialist view that matter is dead, our bodies mere biological machines. It fills the longing that Advent stirs. During Celtic Advent, we glimpse the divine spark in everything; we see through the veil of gray mist into the golden dawn of a restored Earth and a repaired human relationship with it. We also find through this period of longing ways in which our souls can be restored and repaired and fit to hold the light of Divinity within. Celtic Advent makes us light bearers in a dark and troubled world.
For you shall go out in joy and be led forth in peace; the mountains and the hills before you shall break forth into singing, and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands.
Because I find the weeks of Celtic Advent so soul-satisfying as longing is stirred and Earthy encounters with the Divine are cultivated, I have created a printable 15-page Celtic Advent Guide for you.
It contains weekly themes, poetry, journaling pages, a Celtic Blessing, pages for doodling, drawing, and general creativity, and embodied practices to bring your body, mind, and spirit into the sweet longing of the season.
Download your Celtic Advent Guide HERE
To help you prepare for this season, I’ve included a little calendar page with important dates. (click on the image to download)
Enjoy this season and delve into all it has to offer. The darkness is often the best place to find illumination.
Don’t forget that a Tarot reading is an excellent way to bridge the gap between what we see and what is going on but obscured from our sight. Contact me for a special comprehensive reading. This comprehensive intuitive + psychological reading works perfectly for a complex question and a general reading of energy during the season of Samhain. Paid Hedge Mystic subscribers receive a 20% discount on all Tarot readings. Contact me to schedule your reading.
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Comments and conversation are always appreciated and enjoyed, so feel free to let your voice be heard. I read them all and try to respond to each one.
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The Celtic Advent Guide is really beautiful and inspiring! Thank you so much for this generous gift!