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reetings from Australia.
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Hail to the day,
whose kind auspicious rays Receipt (recipe)
for a stoppage in the throat: The Rev Richard
Johnson, our official chaplain to the settlement, conducted the first
divine service in Sydney preached in the open air on a text from Psalm
116. The wind of change
is blowing through the continent The intelligent man who
is proud of his intelligence is like a condemned man who is proud of his
large cell. As I worked in
the factory, the affliction of others entered into my flesh and my soul
… There I received for ever the mark of a slave, like the branding of
the red-hot iron which the Romans put on the forehead of their most
despised slaves. |
Celebrations for Setsubun in Ikuta Jinja, Kobe February 3, 2006, by Shadi Hijazi |
February 3 is the 34th
day of the year in the Gregorian
calendar, with 331
days remaining (332 in leap years).
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Feast day of St Blaize (Blaise;
Blase; Blasien; Blasius; Biagio; Sveti Vlaho; Vlasü) Bishop of Sebaste
(Great water moss, Fontinalis antepyretica, is
today's
plant, dedicated to this saint.)
A physician and bishop of Sebaste (modern Sivas), Armenia, Blaize was martyred by being beaten, attacked with iron carding combs, and beheaded in the persecution of Licinius around 316. Because iron combs were used to tear his flesh he is the patron saint of wool-combers. Wool-combers in Bradford and other English towns, particularly in Essex, Yorkshire, Wiltshire and Norwich, had a septennial jubilee on this day in honour of the saint and of the Greek god, Jason (he of the Golden Fleece).
At the head of the procession, the masters went on horseback, each bearing a white sliver, or ribbon, of wool. Then their sons followed, then their colours, then apprentices, uniformed and on horseback. Persons representing the royal family and attendants followed. Then came Jason and Bishop Blaize, followed by shepherds, shepherdesses, wool-combers, dyers and so on, some in woollen wigs.
Apparently for no other reason than the sound of the
saint's name, in England it was customary to light fires on this evening,
on hill-tops. "Country women went about during the day in an idle
merry humour, making good cheer; and if they found a neighbour spinning,
they thought themselves justified in making a conflagration of the
distaff," says Chambers (Robert
Chambers, (Ed.), The
Book of Days:
A miscellany of popular antiquities in connection with the calendar, etc, W & R Chambers, London, 1881 (1879
Edition is online and 1869
edition here with CD-ROM available; See also The
English Year: A Personal Selection from Chambers' Book of Days))
It was earlier believed that by a charm in the saint's name, a thorn could be extracted from the flesh, or a bone from the throat. One held the patient and said: "Blaize, the martyr and servant of Jesus Christ, commands thee (in the case of a bone) to pass up or down; (in the case of a thorn) to come forth."
St Blaize can cure sore throats. He lived in a cave;
wild beasts came daily to be cured by him, and if he was praying, they did
not interrupt. He once cured a youth who had a fish-bone caught in his
throat, by praying.
He was scourged; seven holy women anointed
themselves with his blood; whereupon their flesh was combed with iron
combs, their wounds ran milk, their flesh was whiter than snow, and angels
came and healed their wounds as fast as they were made. They were put into
a fire, which would not consume them; they were then beheaded. Following
this ordeal, St Blaize was ordered to be drowned in the lake, but he
walked on the water, sat down in the middle, and invited his persecutors
to sit with him. Sixty-eight were drowned, and he walked back to be
beheaded.
A wolf once ran away with a woman's pigs. She prayed
to St Blaize, and he promised she would have swine again. The wolf brought
them back. She killed the beast and offered the head and feet with some
bread and a candle to St Blaize, who ate, thanked God, and told her
"that every yere she sholde offre in his chirche a candell". She did
so, and prospered, so people burnt candles to St Blaize and these candles
were found to be good for toothache.
At Bradford, England, a septennial festival procession was held by worsted and woollen manufacturers, seeing the saint as the inventor of wool-combing. There were thousands of people in the small town, as they came from miles around. A 'king' was elected, and Jason and Blaize were represented. Apprentices and masters' sons wore ostrich feathers, flowers and knots of variously coloured yarn, finely combed wool, and they all wore coloured clothes, with shepherds, shepherdesses and swains attired in green. Wool combs were held up on standards, as were rams' heads, golden fleeces, gilded horns and other emblems. The poem above was recited. ('Hail to the day...').
St Blaise is one of the
Fourteen Holy
Helpers,
invoked in the case of sick cattle. He
patronage includes: against wild beasts,
animals, builders, carvers, construction workers, coughs,
goitres,
stonecutters, throat diseases,
veterinarians, whooping cough,
wool-combers and wool weavers.
Blaise is the patron saint of the city of Dubrovnik (where he is known as 'Sveti Vlaho'). He is believed to have appeared in a vision in 971 to warn the inhabitants of an impending attack by the Venetians. In Russia, St Vlasü, as he is known, is the patron saint of herds.
In art he is depicted as a bishop with a metal comb and a tall candle. He might also be shown with crozier and two candles (no comb), or else martyred by being torn with iron combs. Sometime Blaize is shown in a cave with wild animals, or discovered by hunters, a fawn near him (not to be confused with the monk, St Giles). He might be blessing the birds in front of a cave; rescuing a poor woman's pig from a wolf; saving the life of a boy who swallowed a fishbone; or with the city of Dubrovnik in his hand or being carried over the city by angel. He may also be depicted with crossed candles. Such crossed candles are used for the blessing of throats on the feast day of St. Blaise, which in the Western Church falls on February 3, and in the Eastern Church on February 11.
The popular enthusiasm for the saint is explained by the belief that Blaise had brought prosperity (as symbolised by the Woolsack, the seat of the Lord Chancellor in the House of Lords, the Upper House of Parliament in the United Kingdom) to England by teaching the English to comb wool. According to the tradition as recorded in broadsheets, Blaise came from Jersey. Jersey was certainly a centre of export of woollen goods (as witnessed by the name 'jersey' for the woollen textile). However, this legend is probably the result of confusion with a different saint, Blasius of Caesarea ('Caesarea' being also the Latin name of Jersey).
Festival of San Blas, patron saint of Paraguay
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Highly recommended:
 Charmed Circle: Gertrude Stein and Company
 Be A Goddess
To support this project
 The Great War for Civilisation By Robert Fisk
Photo of the day
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Wikipedia tells us: In Japan, Setsubun is the day before the beginning of each season. The name literally means 'division of season'. Usually the term refers to the Spring Setsubun, properly called Risshun, celebrated annually on February 3 (associated with the Lunar New Year). Spring Setsubun is traditionally celebrated by the head of the household throwing pan-heated soybeans out the door, while chanting "Oni wa soto! Fuku wa uchi!". The literal meaning of the words is "Demons out! Luck in!" – the beans are thought to symbolically purify the home. In the Heian era, a famous Buddhist monk was said to have driven away Oni (demons or evil spirits) by throwing beans. At Buddhist temples and Shinto shrines all over the country, there are celebrations for Setsubun. Priests and invited guests will throw roasted soy beans (some wrapped in gold or silver foil), small envelopes with money, sweets, candies and other prizes. In some bigger shrines, even celebrities and sumo wrestlers will join. Many people will come, and the event turns wild, with everyone pushing and shoving to get the gifts tossed from above. Families will also put up small decorations of fish heads and holly leaves on their house entrances so that bad spirits will not enter. People also eat the same amount of soy beans as their age, plus one for bringing good luck for the year to come.
Photos of Narita-san Setsubun Festival in Chiba Setsubun (Bean Throwing Festival) Deities of many cultures in the Book of Days Festivals in Japan
Amaterasu From Wikipedia: Amaterasu (Amaterasu-ōmikami; Ōhiru-menomuchi-no-kami) is in Japanese mythology, a sun goddess, and perhaps the most important Shinto deity (kami). She was born from the left eye of Izanagi as he purified himself in a river, and went on to become the ruler of the Higher Celestial Plane (Takamagahara) and was also considered to be directly linked in lineage to the Imperial Household of Japan and the Emperor, who were considered descendants of the kami themselves.
First week of February, Easter Island festival Men
participate in a decathlon of swimming, reed rafting, and a running
race around and across the crater lake of the extinct volcano Rano
Raraku, home of the famed Giant Statues (Moai).
The small (119 sq km, or 46 sq mi), isolated island (about 2,000 kilometres from the next nearest inhabited island) is famous for its numerous mysterious stone statues (moai) located along the coastlines. It is home of the only written language of Oceania, a hieroglyphic script known as Rongorongo, which has never been deciphered despite the work of generations of linguists. More at Wilson's Almanac Scriptorium Rapa Nui page Lesser Eleusinian Mysteries, ancient Greece (Feb 1 - 3) Festival of the Lênaia to Dionysus, god of wine and pleasure, ancient Greece (c. Jan 28 - Feb 5) Day of Remembrance for Oleg the Prophet
(Visionary) Powamu Festival
(for the Hopi Sky Father) Feast day of St Aelred Feast day of St Berlinda of Meerbeke Feast day of St Caellainn Feast day of St Claudine Thevenet Feast day of St Felix Feast day of St Ignatius of Africa Feast day of St Laurentius Feast day of St Lawrence the Illuminator Feast day of St Margaret of England Feast day of St Remedius Feast day of St Trifone Feast day of St Werburg of
Mercia (Wereburge of
Chester) Horaiji
Dengaku Matsuri,
Horai,
Japan Mando-E, or Lantern-Lighting Ceremony, Nara, Japan Shiwasu Matsuri, Mikado Jinja, Nango,
Miyazaki Prefecture, Japan (Jan 20 - Feb 20) Owase Yaya
Matsuri (Shouting Festival), Japan (Feb 1 - 8) Sounkyo Ice Festival, Sounkyo Onsen (spa),
Hokkaido, Japan (Jan 29 - Mar 5) Heroes' Day, Mozambique Four
Chaplains Day, USA
Martyrs' Day,
1338
Jeanne de Bourbon (d.
1378), wife of
Charles V of France
1677 Jan Santini Aichel (d. 1723), Czech architect 1690 Richard Rawlinson (d. 1755), English minister 1721 Friedrich Wilhelm von Seydlitz (d. 1773), Prussian general 1747 Samuel Osgood American patriot 1754 George Crabbe (d. 1832), English naturalist 1795 Antonio José de Sucre (d. 1830), South American independence leader 1809
Felix
Mendelssohn Bartholdy, German composer (Midsummer Night's Dream overture; Scotch Symphony) (d. 1847) 1811 Horace Greeley (d. 1872), American journalist, editor, publisher 1821 Elizabeth Blackwell (d. 1910), first female physician in the United States 1830 Robert Arthur Talbot Gascoyne-Cecil, 3rd Marquess of Salisbury (Lord Salisbury; d. August 22, 1903). Also known as Lord Robert Cecil (before 1865) and Viscount Cranborne (1865 - '68). British statesman and Prime Minister. 1874
Gertrude Stein,
rather self-engaged American author, lover of Alice B Toklas
and mentor to the 'Lost Generation'
of writers in Paris after World War I
(Three
Lives; Paris,
France; The
Autobiography of Alice B Toklas) (d. 1946) She boasted: "I have been the creative literary mind of the century", but Clifton Fadiman was less kind: "A past master in making nothing happen very slowly". 1883 Clarence Mulford, American writer who created Hopalong Cassidy 1894 Norman Rockwell 1904
Pretty Boy Floyd 1907 James A Michener (d. 1997), American author (Hawaii; Tales of the South Pacific, for which he won a Pulitzer Prize in 1947). Memorable for massive, detailed novels, many of which were almost mass produced, with a team of assistants and researchers.
1918 Joey Bishop, American comedian
1921 Dr
Ralph
Asher Alpher (d.
August 12,
2007), American
cosmologist, best known for his 1926
Shelley Berman, American comedian 1944 Dave
Davies, musician (The
Kinks), brother of Ray Davies 1950
Morgan Fairchild, actress 1971 Hong Seok-cheon, South Korean actor 1974 Miriam Yeung, Hong Kong actress 1974 Elisa Donovan, American actress 1976 Isla Fisher, Australian actress 1977 Daddy Yankee, Puerto Rican musician 1978 Adrian R'Mante, American actor 1980 Sarah Lewitinn, American writer 1982 Jessica Harp, American singer (The Wreckers) 1989 Ryne Sanborn, American actor
Phew!! Have a rest before the big This day in history section
Do you forget birthdays and anniversaries? Schedule your cards to be sent during the coming year.
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It is customary to eat uncut maki-zushi
on Setsubun while facing the yearly lucky compass direction,
determined by the zodiac symbol of that year. Charts are published
and occasionally packaged with uncut maki-zushi during
February.
Rapa Nui, known also as 
