Its been an extraordinary busy few weeks here in the Avalonia office. There has been a sudden surge in some of our titles, especially in The Isles of the Many Gods and The Visions of the Cailleach (both by Sorita d’Este and David Rankine).
We have also been preparing ourselves for the launch of two new titles – Seidr: The Gate is Open by Katie Gerrard and Vs. (anthology) edited by Kim Huggens. There is a great deal of interest in both these titles already and we expect that they will both serve to expand the esoteric horizons for those whose lives they will touch.
If you are interested in trance work within a Pagan or Heathen context, then Seidr by Katie Gerrard is going to be a wonderful addition to your library and learning. The author draws on her extensive practical work as well as her research to present a highly practical, tried and tested system of work, which will benefit both groups and solitary workers. We have been asked quite a bit about the cover art of this book too, it is an original painting which was commissioned by the author from the artist Laura Daligan ( see http://www.lauradaligan-art.com/ ) who previously created the cover for Odin’s Gateways. You can find out more about Seidr: The Gate is Open at http://avaloniabooks.co.uk/221/?page_id=1113
Of course today is Valentine’s Day, a day for Romance and Love, though here in the office we rather prefer to celebrate the spirit of Lupercalia instead – it seems more magical and less commercial! Lupercalia (13th to the 15th of February) was the Roman festival in which near-naked youths would run wild in the streets scourging people with strips of goat hide to purify the city, as well as to encourage prosperity and fertility in all whom got scourged. The festival is believed now to have been in honour of Lupercus (a god who is sometimes equated with Pan or Faunus), though it is also likely that it is a survival of an older festival Lykaia, which was celebrated at Wolf Mountain, the tallest peak of Arcadia – with strong connection with wolves, the god Zeus and werewolves!
As for those of you who find yourself single and filled with the desire to know when you will meet Mister or Missus right, there is an old divination which, providing you know your birds, might help. This avian augury will help you to know the nature of your future partner based on the first bird you see on Valentine’s morning. So, seeing a sparrow your future spouse will be a poor one, but you will be happy; if its a robin you will marry a sailor; where as a dove symbolise happiness and money; but best of all if you see a goldfinch it symbolises happiness and great wealth.
Whatever you celebrate – have a great time and a fantastic week!
Best wishes from under a cold, dark Celtic Sky
~ Avalonia
www.avaloniabooks.co.uk
******** )o( *******
Now available for pre-order
Both Vs. (An anthology exploring duality and conflict in magick, mythology and paganism) edited by Kim Huggens and Seidr: The Gate is Open by Katie Gerrard is now available for pre-order. Order before the end of the month for a special launch price of just £12.50 and receive free postage and packaging (worldwide). Go to http://avaloniabooks.co.uk/221/?page_id=1214
Thank you for sharing this Sorita! While its easy to see Pan (Faunus) in the symbols of the Lupercalia, I can also see the hand of Hekate inaugurating and in a sense sponsoring the Lupercalian rite — Pan’s goats provide the whips or ‘Februa’ to reach out and touch the people, but Hekate’s sacred dog — partner of the shepherd, guardian of pastoral civilization, brother of and defender against the wolf of the wilderness — provides the guardian spirit that makes sacred the race. And that race is held in Hekate’s realm of borderlands, round the perimeter, the crumbled walls of the ‘old city’, first demarcation of urban civilization against the pre-history of the palatine hill…