Happy birthday to everyone who was born on 26 July !

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“I was the shadow of the waxwing slain
By the false azure in the windowpane;
I was the smudge of ashen fluff--and I
Lived on, flew on, in the reflected sky”.

In my life I read many published diaries, memoirs and letters written by historical persons or literary characters who lived in different historical periods; in particular I looked for the date 26 July in those books, because I wanted and still want to know what happened in the lives of my favorite writers and their personages on this day. But in vain. Without going into particulars, I never found this date; all the authors, as if on purpose, avoided mentioning of 26 July, and some of them omitted the very month July. Only in one novel by a certain English writer 26 July was the eve of an important, crucial event in the life of the narrator. But that’s not enough; I’d like to know more of the day when I was born.
Some events of the day:
Independence Day in Maldives and Liberia (sic!)
Births:
1856 - George Bernard Shaw, Irish writer, Nobel Prize Laureate (d. 1950)
1875 - Carl Jung, Swiss psychiatrist (d. 1961)
1894 - Aldous Huxley, English-born author (d. 1963)
1908 - Salvador Allende, President of Chile (d. 1973)
1928 - Stanley Kubrick, American film director (d. 1999)
1943 - Mick Jagger, English musician (The Rolling Stones)
1949 - Roger Taylor, English musician (Queen)

Many happy returns of the day!
with kind regards
Lara

P. S.
*Late at night*
Look there--
with expanded wings the wise owl flies down
from Olympus, from Athena’s shoulder,
and it crowns the top of the cedar.
The owl is lacking for a swan’s grace,
but its quick yellow eye
reads the book of darkness, silence of the night…
The owls--night butterflies among the birds. The cobwebs of imagination and bunny. A ladybug upon a hawthorn leaf. A frightened bird--flight of an arrow from Eros’s bow. The bow is both life and death: now Eros’s bow, now Ares’s. Eros and the curve of time--and a final twist in the plot.
*~*NEW BOOK*~*
http://stores.lulu.com/store.php?fAcctID=935938

*The Agathos Daimon*
“To Light, To Guard. To Rule and to Guide”, said a Catholic prayer to one’s guardian angel. Christianity has long maintained tradition of a personal and protective spirit; this guide may even act as the voice of one’s conscience. What may not be known is that this ancient belie can be found in the Greek and Roman era pre-dating Christianity.
The Greek term “daimon” means spirit. In the Hellenistic view, the daimon was less powerful than a god; it served as an intermediator between man and the higher orders. While a god may rule a whole province, such as the sea, a daimon might control a stream or tree. If the daimon was positive, it was called “agathos” or benevolent. Over time the view of this spirit became entirely negative. Daimon is the source for our modern word demon.
In antiquity, the agathos daimon or agathodaimon was androgynous. It was represented by a snake, which seemingly has no sex. It was in the form of a giant serpent that Alexander the Great killed and revered the daimon. He founded his city upon the site and called the city Alexandria. The city held a prominent civic shrine to the agathodaimon. Later antiquity declared the daimon to be male. The form changed to the image of a young man bearing aloft a horn of plenty. The snake and cornucopia image became the genius of the family and penantes (household guardian of plenty) to the Romans.
The worship of the spirit, outside of Alexandria, was not a public one. An Athenian calendar sets aside the second day of each lunar month to honor the agathodaimon. A few drops of unmixed wine were poured out to him after every meal. Small offerings were sometimes left out to the daimon, which appeared as a snake about the household. The spirit was honored privately in each home.
The occupation of the agathos daimon was not confined to Athens or Alexandria. Pindar and Socrates speak of him; Proclus and Plotinus mention their guardian daemons as well. In literature the spirit acted as a guardian against error and a guide in life. In late antiquity the agathodaimon became associated with the sending of dreams and the practice of divination. The guiding daimon was mentioned in the low magic of charms and victory spells as well.
This concept of agathodaimon can become a modern day practice. One doesn’t need to be a Hellenic or Roman reconstructionist to honor this spirit. The idea of a guardian or familiar spirit is almost standard to pagan practices. Ceremonial magic speaks of having conversation with one’s Holy Guardian Angel. How we contact, honor and communicate with such a spirit is up to us.
You can honor your agathodaimon with libations, speak to him on a regular basis asking for guidance and protection, approaching your spirit with personal needs and desires. This holds especially true when you need quick results or small things that do not require drastic action. You can send your daimon to friends in need when you cannot be there physically. You can also use your daimon as a messenger in your prayer life.
The agathodaimon is ahousehold spirit. Your daimon can be instrumental in helping you find and secure a home. The well being of yours and your personal belonging is protected by the strong presence of your agathodaimon. While the spirit may not be tied to your ancestors or the land your dwelling is on, it does not mean he is an impersonal force of luck or fortune. The agathos daimon is to be found wherever your heart is. And where your heart is you make your home.
sources:
Jordan, Michael. Encyclopedia of the Gods. New York. Facts on File Inc. 1993
Nillson, Martin P., Greek Folk Religion. Columbia University Press. 1981
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