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Carpe diem! (Seize the day!)

Pip Wilson

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Today is

By us … the Saturnalia, the feasts of January, the Brumalia, and Matronalia are now frequented … How much more faithful are the heathen to their religion, who take special care to adopt no solemnity from the Christians.
Tertullian, on the observance by Christians, in about the year 230, of Roman festivals; De Idolatria, Ch. 14, in Hislop, The Two Babylons, p. 93

I Martius am! Once first, and now the third!
To lead the Year was my appointed place;
A mortal dispossessed me by a word,
And set there Janus with the double face.
Hence I make war on all the human race;
I shake the cities with my hurricanes;
I flood the rivers and their banks efface,
And drown the farms and hamlets with my rains.
HW Longfellow (1807 - '82); The Poet's Calendar for March

One of the miracles alleged of St David is, that at the anti-Pelagian synod he restored a child to life, ordered it to spread a napkin under his feet, and made an oration; that a snow white dove descended from heaven and sat on his shoulders; and that the ground whereon he stood rose under him till it became a hill, "on the top of which hill a church was afterwards built, which remains to this day."
William Hone, The Every-Day Book, or a Guide to the Year, Vol., 1, William Tegg and Co., London, 1878

Fluellen: Your majesty says very true: if your majesties is remembered of it, the Welchmen did goot service in a garden where leeks did grow, wearing leeks in their Monmouth caps; which, your majesty knows, is an honourable padge of the service: and, I do believe, your majesty takes no scorn to wear the leek upon Saint Tavy's day.
King Henry: I wear it for a memorable honour: for I am a Welch, you know, good countryman.
Shakespeare (Henry V); William Hone, ibid

Pistol: Qui va lá?
King Henry: A friend.
P: What's thy name?
KH: Harry le Roy.
P: Le Roy! a Cornish name: art thou of Cornish crew?
KH: No, I am a Welchman.
P: Knowest thou Fluellen?
KH: Yes.
P: Tell him, I'll knock his leek about his pate
Upon St David's day.
Shakespeare, ibid

Gower: Why wear you your leek today? St David's day is past.
Fluellen: There is occasions and causes why and wherefore in all things.—The rascally, scald, peggarly, pragging knave, Pistol, a fellow look you now of no merits, he is come to me with pread and salt yesterday, look you, and pid me eat my leek. [I]t was in a place where I could not preed no contentions with him, but I will be so pold as to wear it in my cap till I see him once again, and then—(Enter Pistol)—Got pless you, ancient Pistol! you scurvy knave, Got pless you!
P: Hence! I am qualmish at the smell of leek.
G: I peseech you heartily scurvy knave, at my desires, and my requests, and my petitions, to eat, look you, this leek
P: Not for Cadwallader, and all his goats.
F: There is one goat for you. (strikes him.) Will you be so goot, scald knave, as eat it?
P: Base Trojan, thou shalt die.
F: I desire you to live in the mean time, and eat your victuals; come there is sauce for it.— (strikes him.) If you can mock a leek, you can eat a leek.
Shakespeare, ibid

He (a Welshman) is pretious [sic] in his own conceit, and upon St David's day without comparison.
A wife, now the widdow of sir Thomas Overburye, being a most exquisite and singular poem of the choice of a wife, whereunto are added many witty characters, &c, London, printed for Lawrence Lisle, 4to. 1614   Source

David and Chad
Sow pease good or bad. (Weather good or bad.)
English traditional proverb; "An old proverb meaning that one should sow peas by the saints' days on the first and second of March regardless of weather conditions."  (Evans, Ivor H, Brewer's Dictionary of Phrase and Fable, Cassell, London, 1988)  

Sow beans and peas on David and Chad
Be the weather good or bad.
English traditional proverb  

First comes David, next comes Chad,
Then comes Winnold, as though he was mad.
English traditional proverb

Upon St David's day
Put oats and barley in the clay.
English traditional proverb

The first of this month some do keep,
For honest Taff to wear his leek;
Who patron was, they say, of Wales,
And since that time, cuts-plutter-a nails,
Along the street this day doth strut
With hur green leek stuck in hur hat,
And if hur meet a shentleman
Salutes in Welch; and if hur can
Discourse in Welch, then hur shall be
Amongst the green-horned Taffy's free.
Poor Robin's Almanac, March 1757  

Tradition's tale
Recounting tells how famed Meneva's priest
Marshalled his Britons, and the Saxon host
Discomfited; how the green leek his bands
Distinguished, since by Britons annual worn,
Commemorates their tutelary saint.
Cambria of Rolt, 1759

Why, on St David's Day, do Welshmen seek
To beautify their hat with verdant leek
Of nauseating smell? For honour 'tis, hur say,
"Dulce et decorum est pro patria" –
Right, Sir, to die or fight it is, I think,
But how is't Dulce, when you for it stink?
Diverting Post, 1705

When March comes in like a lion, it will go out like a lamb.
English traditional proverb

March, various, fierce, and wild, with wind-crack'd cheeks
By wilder Welchman led, and crown'd with leeks!
Charles Churchill, 'Gotham' iii 101

A dry March never begs its bread.
A peck of March dust is worth a king's ransom.
(Both these proverbs refer to the fact that in England, dry weather is required at this time of sowing and planting)

Whan that the month in which the world bigan,
That highte March, whan God first maked man.
Geoffrey Chaucer, English poet, c. 1343 - 1400, The Canterbury Tales, 'The Nun's Priest's Tale', l. 3341  

Sturdy March, with brows full sternly bent,
And armed strongly, rode upon a ram,
The same which over Hellespontus swam,
Yet in his hand a spade he also bent
And in a bag all sorts of weeds, y same
Which on the earth he strewed as he went,
And filled her womb with fruitful hope of nourishment.
Edmund Spenser (c. 1552 - January 13, 1599), English poet; Faerie Queen, 'The Cantos of Mutabilitie'

March, various, fierce, and wild, with wind-crack'd cheeks
By wilder Welchman led, and crown'd with leeks!
Charles Churchill; Gotham, iii, 101

So many mists in March you see
So many frosts in May will be.
English traditional proverb

The March sun lets snow stand on a stone.
English traditional proverb

Better to be bitten by a snake than to feel the sun in March.
English traditional proverb

In March much snow,
To plants and trees much woe.
English traditional proverb

A wet March makes a sad harvest.
English traditional proverb

A peck of March dust and a shower in May
Make the corn green and the meadows gay.
English traditional proverb

And gladly wolde he lerne, and gladly teche.
Geoffrey Chaucer; Canterbury Tales, 'Prologue', Line 310. On March 1, 1360, King Edward III of England paid 16 pounds to ransom Chaucer from French captivity

Ther n' is no werkman whatever he be,
That may both werken wel and hastily. 
This wol be done at leisure parfitly.
Geoffrey Chaucer; ibid, 'The Marchantes Tale', Line 585

The desired resultant from the execution of this plan would be to place the United States in the apparent position of suffering defensible grievances from a rash and irresponsible government . . . and to develop an image of a threat to peace in the Western Hemisphere … In as much as the objective is overt military intervention … both overt and covert operations [should] be assigned [to] the Joint Chiefs of Staff … Harassment and deceptive actions to convince the Cubans of imminent invasion would be emphasized. Our posture throughout execution of the plan will allow rapid change from exercise to intervention … We could develop a Cuban terror campaign … in Washington … Hijacking attempts against civil air and surface craft should appear to continue … It is possible to create an incident which will demonstrate that a Cuban aircraft has shot down a chartered civil airliner en route from the US to Jamaica, Guatemala, Panama or Venezuela … It is possible to create an incident which will make it appear that Communist Cuban MIGs have destroyed a USAF aircraft over international waters in an unprovoked attack … It is understood the Department of State also is preparing suggested courses of action to develop justification for US military intervention in Cuba.
[Emphasis mine.]
In March, 1962, Operation Northwoods, with the written approval of all of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff, was presented to President Kennedy's defence secretary, Robert McNamara. The Joint Chiefs of Staff were calling for a campaign of terror in the USA to be manufactured and blamed on Cuba.  More  More

March 1 is the 60^th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (61^st in leap years), with 305 days remaining.
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March birthstones: Bloodstone (red jasper) and aquamarine: signifying courage and optimism.

Who on this world of ours their eyes
In March first o'en shall be wise,
In days of peril, firm and brave,
And wear a Bloodstone to their grave.
Traditional birthstone rhyme

March

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopaedia.

March is the third month of the year in the Gregorian Calendar, with 31 days. It was named for Mars, the Roman god of war.

Mars was the son of Juno and either Jupiter or a magical flower. As the word Mars has no Indo-European derivation, it is most likely the Latinized form of the agricultural Etruscan god Maris. Initially the Roman god of fertility and vegetation and a protector of cattle, fields and boundaries, Mars later became associated with battle and identified with the Greek god Ares. He was also a tutelary god of Rome, and as the legendary father of its founder, Romulus, Mars was considered the ancestor of the Roman people.

In ancient Rome, March was called Martius. It was named after the war god (Mars) and was considered a lucky time to begin a war. In ancient Hellenic civilization, March was called Anthesterion.

Trivia

• In March the Sun passes through zodiac constellations Aquarius and Pisces.
• March begins on the same day of the week as November in all years and as February on regular years.
• The signs of the zodiac within the month of March are Pisces and Aries.

Roman festivals and notable days in the Book of Days    Deities of many cultures in the Book of Days

Mars in Roman Religion    March poems and folklore

Old New Year

Historically, March 1 was considered to be the beginning of the year. The names of some months reflect this. (September = Seventh, October = Eighth, November = Ninth, December = Tenth). (see New Year) If the days of the year were counted from March 1, till the next March 1, each date of the year would have the same number every year, unlike counting from January 1.

Old names for March

March is named after the Roman God of War, Mars, as is the Red Planet. The old Dutch name for it was Lent-maand; the old Saxon name was Hreth-monath (rough-month, from its boisterous winds, or some say from Hertha, or Nerthus, Earth Mother goddess), subsequently changed to Length-monath (lengthening-month); it was also called Hlyd-monath (boisterous month). In the French Revolutionary Calendar it was Ventôse (windy month, February 19 to March 20).

"Dr Sayer says the Saxons likewise called it Rhed-monath, a word derived by some for one of their deities, named Rheda, to whom sacrifices were offered in March; others derive it from raed, the Saxon word for council, March being the month wherein wars or expeditions were usually undertaken by the Gothic tribes. The Saxons also called it Hlyd-monath, from hlyd, which means stormy ..."
William Hone, The Every-Day Book, or a Guide to the Year, Vol., 1, William Tegg and Co., London, 1878

Today was a big day in ancient Rome: it was New Year and

also the Matronalia, Festival of Juno, Goddess of Womanhood

New Year

Hestia, in all dwellings of men and immortals
Yours is the highest honour, the sweet wine offered
First and last at the feast, poured out to you duly.
Never without you can gods or mortals hold banquet.

The Vestal Virgins rekindled the sacred fire of the Temple of Vesta on this day. The Roman goddess Vesta (virgin daughter of Saturn and Ops; analogous to Hestia in Greek mythology) and her sacred fire were considered tightly bound to the fortunes of the city, and failure to show proper respect for either was punishable by death. Vesta's fire could only be rekindled by a burning glass, or by friction on a piece of wood from a fruit tree. In Roman homes, a small cake would be thrown on the fire for Vesta, and it was considered a good omen if it burnt with a crackle.

It was a New Year custom, as with today's Christmas, for the Romans to present gifts (strenae) with accompanying good wishes. The word is connected with the name of a Sabine tutelary goddess, Strenia. From her precinct beside the Via Sacra at Rome consecrated branches were carried up to the Capitoline today. The strenae consisted of branches of bay and palm, sweetmeats made of honey, and figs or dates, and these were supposed to bring joy and happiness in the forthcoming year. The fruits were covered in gold leaf as they are today in Germany – the word as well as the custom, survives in the French word etrennes.

The pontifex maximus (head of the Roman religion, from where the current Roman Catholic Pontiff, or Pope, gets his title – read more) today had the privilege of choosing the priest known as flamen dialis, from a list of three candidates nominated by the college of pontificates or pontiffs. Today, also, the old laurel branches around the doors of the regia (home of the pontifex maximus), rex sacrorum, the great flamines, the curiae, and the temple of Vesta were replaced by new branches, bringing to mind the Christian custom of taking down Christmas trees, holly and other decorations at Epiphany.

The Salii ('leapers') processed today in honour of the war god Mars, carrying special shields known as ancilia. They were dressed up in armour and helmets of ancient design and would then jump, leap and bound through the streets, beating their ancilia with their swords, shouting and chanting. Frazer (Frazer, Sir James George, 1854 - 1941, The Golden Bough, 1922) says the leaping was originally meant to show the plants in the fields how to grow in the coming Spring. Frazer also tells us that a Roman custom of expelling the old god Mars at the beginning of the new year in Spring is identical with the Slavonic custom of 'carrying out Death'. The festival of Mars lasted from March 1 to 19.

 

Temple of Vesta and house of the Vestals

"The House of the Vestal Virgins, (Atrium Vestae), was the residence of the Vestal Virgins, the high priestesses of the cult of Vesta. The cult of Vesta is very ancient, and the Vestal Virgins had their residence in the same location from the 6th century BCE to the end of the 4th century CE. It is located on the Forum Romanum, just behind the Temple of Vesta, between the Regia and the Palatine Hill.

"The oldest building on the area was much smaller than the present ruins. It was aligned on a E.-W. axis and formed a single complex with the Temple of Vesta, the Regia and the Domus Publica, which encompassed all the religious duties of the king and his family. It is likely that the wife and daughters of the king administered the cult of Vesta in this period. When the king was expelled from Rome a group of young patrician women were appointed to the cult of Vesta.

"The first known house of the vestals was a simple building at the foot of the Palatine Hill. It was within an enclosure that also included the Temple of Vesta, and it consisted of front room in the full width of the house on the N. side towards the temple, and six separate rooms in the back. It is tempting to assume that the rooms are for the six vestals, and hence the house is from after the expulsion of the king."   Source

Claudia Quinta, a Vestal Virgin, and the goddess Cybele, in the Book of Days

 

See also Vestalia

Matronalia

Let us sing now of Hera, the women's goddess.
she who rules from her throne of gold.
Let us sing now of Hera, child of earth,
daughter of that most ancient of goddesses.
Let us sing now of the queen of gods.
Let us sing now of the most beautiful goddess.
There is no one more beloved than you,
womanly Hera, no one we honor more.
There is no one more revered than you,
queenly Hera, no one more blessed.
Above all others, you are the most honored.
Above all others, you are the most beloved.
Homer; Hymn To Hera

Juno was the Roman Mother Goddess, known to the Greeks as Hera, and her original name to the Romans was Junonius. Juno is a counterpart of Janus and the divine watcher over the female sex, so this month is considered the best time to marry. As Juno Moneta, guardian of wealth and money, she had a temple on the Capitoline Hill in Rome where the empire's coins were minted.

Among Juno's attributes, she is queen of heaven, approximating Frigg in the Northern Tradition, and Mary in the Christian. She is ruler of the high point of year, when there is maximum light and minimum darkness (the northern Summer Solstice).

Today, the Matronalia, was sacred to the goddess in her aspect known as Juno Lucina, protectress of women and marriage, and a later representation of Eileithyia, the Greek goddess of childbirth. Matronalia was celebrated at the temple called the Aedes Junonis Lucinae which was built in 375 BCE in a grove that had been consecrated to the goddess from very early times. Livy records that the grove (lucus) on the Esquiline Hill is the origin of the goddess's name. We know from Ovid's Fasti  (iii.247) that the Matronalia was commemorated annually on this day, the day of the temple's consecration.

Women and girls prayed to her and brought offerings where the goddess was represented veiled, with a flower in her right hand, and an infant in swaddling clothes in her left. Prayers for prosperity in marriage were offered.

By the 2^nd Century BCE, this aspect of Juno was associated with childbirth because the name lucina was thought to have come from the Latin word lux (light); thus, when a child was born it was said to have been "brought to light". In this aspect the goddess was a lunar deity, often paired with Diana and depicted as holding a torch. In the worship of Juno Lucina, women had to untie knots and unplait their hair – sympathetic magic to prevent entanglements in the delivery of babies. In Roman homes, prayers were offered for prosperity in marriage, women waited on the slaves, just as the men did at the Saturnalia, and women received presents from men.

The Matronalia was probably instituted in memory of the peace between the Romans and the Sabines, which was brought about by means of the Sabine women. At this festival wives used to receive presents from their husbands, and at a later time girls from their lovers; mistresses also were accustomed to feast their female slaves. Because of this reversal of the established order we find the festival called by Martial the "Saturnalia of women". (Europe continued with such customs in the tradition of the Lord of Misrule.)

Today the people feasted on similla, cakes decorated it with twelve balls of marzipan around the edges. Cakes with a similar name, simnel cakes, are associated with Mid-Lent Sunday (Mothering Sunday) in England from which Mothers' Day is derived.

Some sources refer to this day as the Matralia. However, that festival was on June 11 and associated with the goddess of dawn, Mater Matuta.

List of Roman festivals and notable days in Wilson's Almanac Book of Days    Deities of many cultures in the Book of Days

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Festival of Idun (Iðunn; Iduna), Norse Goddess of Spring A note on the dating of items in Wilson's Almanac In Norse mythology, Idun (also Iduna, Idunn, Ithun, or Idunnor) was the goddess of youth, fertility, and death. She was the custodian of golden apples which allowed the Aesir gods to maintain their youthfulness, and