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Sunday, May 1, 2011
Donna Henes: May Day: A Bawdy Festival of Fertility
May Day is an old European spring fertility and copulation festival held in honor of the trees and their mistresses, the virgin vegetation goddesses. Celebrated as Floralia by the Romans, Walpurgisnacht by the Teutons, Whitsuntide by the Dutch, and Beltane by the Celts, it centered on romantic devotions to the nubile goddesses of spring, Flora, Walpurga and Maia, for whom this month is named. Maia can be traced back to Maya, the pre-Vedic mistress of perceptual reality who was the virgin mother of the Buddha. The Greek goddess, Maia was the virgin mother of Hermes. Her descendant, Mary, the Blessed Virgin Mother of God, is patroness of the month of May, which the early church dedicated to Her.
The festivities began on May Day morning when the young girls would go out in the pre-dawn hours to wash their faces in May dew, which was held to be fortifying as well as beautifying. In 1515, Catherine of Aragon was reported to have traveled into the forest with 25 ladies in waiting to bathe in the May dew. Samuel Pepys notes in his diary that his wife gathered May dew in 1667, "which Mrs. Turner hath taught her is the only thing in the world to wash her face with: and I am contented with it." Oliver Cromwell, who died in 1658, is said to have partaken of May dew on medical advice. This custom survived until relatively recently in the Ozark Mountains where girls washed their face in May dew at sunrise so that they might marry the man of their desire.
At first light, the boys joined them in the forest and together they brought in the May -- small trees, branches and flowers with which to decorate the village green, streets and houses. In England, they sang in the May, adding music to their forest procession. This custom continued well into the twentieth century in the practice of leaving May baskets filled with flowers and sweets and rhyming love verses at the door of one's beloved at dusk on May 1.
The group of young folks then stripped a tall tree of its branches and set it up in the village square. The top was crowned with a wreath of flowers and sometimes a female figurine as well. The garland wrapped pole is a clear and graphic representation of a phallus encircled by a yoni. This Maypole was then hung with ribbons which were woven around the pole in the course of a grand-right-and-left spiral dance, intertwining the young men and women in the process; bringing them, binding them, ever closer together. In Medieval and Tudor Britain, May Day was an important public holiday, still sizzling with sexual abandon.
Early spring rites included the wearing of the green, a symbolic modeling of the earth's verdant new garments, a sign of imitation and identification with the natural world. A loving gesture of sympathetic magic, which has continued in the Irish tradition of putting on the green for St. Patrick's Day. May Day festivals, which began with great public gaiety, usually ended in orgiastic display of sexual licentiousness. Marriage vows were temporarily forgotten during this honey month. People coupled freely in the woods and fields, fertilizing the soil and each other, sharing a fervent participation in the regenerative magic of the earth.
It is no wonder that the puritan Anglo-Saxon Protestant fathers were deeply offended by the Maypole ceremony, with its not-so-subtle sexual connotations and pagan sensibilities. Maypoles were forbidden by act of parliament in 1644, which called for the removal of "Maypoles (a heathenish vanity, generally abused to superstition and wickedness), the Lords and Commons do further order and ordain, that all and singular Maypoles, that are, or shall be erected, shall be taken down and removed by the Constaples and Church Wardens of the parishes and places where the same be; and that no Maypole shall be hereafter set up, erected, or suffered to be within this Kingdome of England or Dominion of Wales."
Maypoles later regained favor during the Restoration. The last permanent public Maypole was erected in the London Strand in 1661. It took twelve British soldiers under the personal supervision of James II to plant the 134-foot cedar pole in the ground. In 1717 it was removed to Wanstead Park in Essex where it was adapted by Sir Isaac Newton for use as part of the support of the largest telescope in the world. In its new job, the pole, the representation of the tree of life, rooted in the ground and reaching up toward heaven, serves exactly its original symbolic function: the unification of the earth and the sky.
Like all of the devotional rites dedicated to the popular earth goddesses that they could not repress, May Day was ultimately claimed by the Church as its own. In doing so, the veneration of the Maypole was left completely intact. The tree simply became the cross, which is venerated on May 3 as Holy Cross Day.
This May Day let us pay tribute to the Earth Mother and Her daughter goddesses of green growth by planting May trees and flowers and then dancing around them to celebrate the lovely, lusty miracle of life.
Some rituals deserve to be repeated.
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Follow Donna Henes on Twitter: www.twitter.com/queenmamadonna
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Prince William & Kate Middleton?s Royal Wedding Schedule
The highly-anticipated Royal Wedding is almost here!� Check out the time and schedule of the Royal Wedding of Prince William and Kate Middleton!
It?s the night before the huge event?the Royal Wedding!
Prince William, 28, stopped to chat with a crowd behind barriers outside of his London residence, and revealed, ?I hope I?m not too nervous tomorrow.?
As for the bride-to-be Kate Middleton, 29, she was spotted at the Goring Hotel where she is staying with her family and seemed to be anxious.� But who wouldn?t be with the whole world watching?
?She looked gorgeous, but she definitely looked a bit nervous,? says a source. ?She seemed to have the wedding jitters but she seemed so excited. Of course she would be.?
Here?s the schedule of royal wedding events (In Eastern Standard Time):
3:00 a.m. ? 4:00 a.m. ? The morning of April 29 will begin with an announcement from the Queen?s office stating the titles that Prince William and Kate Middleton will receive.
3:15 a.m. ? General wedding guests will begin their way to Westminster Abbey, entering through the Great North Door.
4:50 a.m. ? Special guests including Governors-General and Prime Ministers of Countries under the Commonwealth of England, Diplomatic Corps and distinguished guests will arrive to the church, entering through the West Door.
5:10 a.m. ? Prince William and his brother and best man, Prince Harry, will leave Clarence House.
5:15 a.m. ? Prince William and Prince Harry will arrive at Westminster Abbey.
5:20 a.m. ? Members of foreign royal families are scheduled to arrive at the church.
5:20 a.m. ? Kate?s mother Carole Middleton and brother James Middleton will leave the Goring Hotel.
5:27 a.m. ? Carole and James Middleton arrive at Westminster Abbey.
5:30 a.m. ? Royal Family members will begin arriving at the Abbey.
5:38 a.m. ? William?s father Prince Charles and his wife, Camilla will leave Clarence House.
5:40 a.m. ? Prince Andrew (William?s uncle) and his daughters Beatrice and Eugenie; Princess Anne (William?s aunt), and her husband; Prince Edward (William?s uncle) and his wife, will be arriving at Westminster Abbey through the West Door.
5:40 a.m. ? Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip leave Buckingham Palace.
5:40 a.m. ? Groom Prince William and his best man and brother Prince Harry will move into St. Edmunds Chapel right before the royal wedding begins.
5:42 a.m. ? Prince Charles and Camilla arrive at the Abbey.
5:45 a.m. ? Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip will be the final guests to arrive to the church.
5:48 a.m. ? Kate?s bridesmaids and William?s pageboys depart the Goring Hotel.
5:51 a.m. ? Kate Middleton and her father will leave the Goring Hotel in a 1978 Rolls-Royce from the royal state car collection and head to Westminster Abbey.
5:55 a.m. ? Bridesmaids and groomsmen will arrive.
5:58 a.m. ? Bride-to-be Kate Middleton and her father Michael arrive at Westminster Abbey.
6 a.m. ? The ceremony begins. The service will last about an hour and will include the ceremony by the Bishop of London, the Queen?s private clergyman..
7:15 a.m. ? Prince William and the new Princess Catherine will leave Westminster Abbey in a carriage and head to Buckingham Palace. Their carriage will be followed by four others carrying the bridal party, parents, Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip.
7:30 a.m. ? The Bride and Groom arrive at the Grand Entrance of Buckingham Palace.
7:40 a.m. ? Members of the royal family, foreign royal families, and other reception guests begin arriving at Buckingham Palace.
8:25 a.m. ? The married couple reappear on the balcony at Buckingham Palace with the Queen and their families for 10 minutes.
8:30 a.m. ? The Royal Air Force, where Prince William serves as a search-and-rescue pilot, will perform a flyover.
Click thumbnails for larger pictures
Images: wenn.com
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Donald Trump At White House Correspondents' Dinner: Happy Or Unhappy Camper? (POLL)
Potential presidential candidate Donald Trump found himself a prime target for President Barack Obama and comedian Seth Meyers as they delivered their respective speeches at the White House Correspondents' Dinner on Saturday night.
The president said Trump has shown the acumen of a future president, from firing Gary Busey on a recent episode of "Celebrity Apprentice" to focusing so much time on conspiracy theories about Obama's birthplace.
After a week when Obama released his long-form Hawaii birth certificate, he said Trump could now focus on the serious issues, from whether the moon landing actually happened to "where are Biggie and Tupac?"
"No one is prouder to put this birth certificate matter to rest than 'the Donald,'" Obama said, referring to Trump taking credit for the release of the document last week.
For Trump's decision to fire actor Busey instead of rock singer Meat Loaf from his TV show earlier this month, Obama quipped: "These are the types of decisions that would keep me up at night. Well handled, sir."
And then, as a coup de grace, Obama showed a screen with his vision of how Trump could bring change to the White House. "Trump" was prominently displayed in glittery letters and girls could be seen with cocktails on a Jacuzzi-augmented front lawn.
Trump chuckled at some of the earlier jokes, but was clearly less amused as comedian Seth Meyers picked up where Obama left off.
"Donald Trump often talks about running as a Republican, which is surprising," said the Saturday Night Live actor, entrusted with providing some of the comedy for the evening. "I just assumed he was running as a joke."
Trump stared icily at Meyers as he continued to criticize the real estate tycoon. Did Trump look like a happy camper to you? Vote below, and scroll down for video of Meyers' remarks, which begin at the 11:55 mark.
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[Behind The Scenes Video] Katy Perry On Tour In The UK
Katy Perry shows fans what she’s really about in a new behind-the-scenes video from her California Dreams Arena Tour 2011. The five-minute clip incorporates footage from several UK dates, as well as interviews with her dancers and DJ. The video gives fans an all-access pass to Perry’s touring life, including glimpses of her meet-and-greets, wardrobe [...]
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William and Kate delay honeymoon
William and Kate delay honeymoon
The new Duke and Duchess of Cambridge aren't leaving immediately for their honeymoon after all, royal press officials said Saturday.
Instead, after spending the weekend "privately" in the UK, Prince William will return to work as a search-and-rescue pilot next week at his RAF base in north Wales. The couple l
"The couple have asked that their privacy be respected during the coming weekend and during their honeymoon," the palace pleaded. The couple departed early Saturday, when a helicopter picked them up at Buckingham Palace.
The palace Twitter feed showed a picture of William and Catherine dressed in casual clothes (he in khakis and a jacket, she in a blue dress and espadrilles) heading for the helicopter, stopping to shake hands with staff members before boarding.
Possibilities for an overseas honeymoon include scuba-diving in Australia, a private island in the Caribbean, a jaunt to Africa or a stay on the Greek island of Corfu where grandfather Prince Philip was born. Talk that they might go to Jordan to visit the ancient ruins of Petra seemed more far-fetched in light of recent unrest in the Middle East.
See photos of: Royal Wedding, Prince William, Kate Middleton
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