AUGURI

Changing of the seasons, bird migration and ancient divination

Thanks for taking the time to read what I am called to share here, I hope you enjoy learning more about the root of the Italian Word Auguri!

It has been a while since I have been called to sit and write a blog post, and I think the beginning of Autumn is as good a time as any for my Sunday share!

Since this past February, I have been working as a paraprofessional in Special Ed. To say my life has changed in the past year and a half is an understatement. I am still making herbal products but not at the pace I have in the past because of how much bandwidth and time I currently have.

Stay tuned for more offerings in the fall!

So, writing like I used to and really, my life since moving away from Oakland, has changed. We are living rurally now, loving it and grateful and all of that, and also I am missing Oakland and the Bay Area so much. ESPECIALLY in the Autumn and especially missing the people and the food! I miss my cemetery time at Mountain View, and my daily walks around Lake Merritt. I miss all the inspiring energy that was swirling around me for the 25 years that I called Oakland home. I miss trips to San Francisco museums, golden gate park, and North Beach. I miss music in the streets and random magical moments with strangers.

But this post is not about nostalgia for Oakland and the Bay,

Today I am inspired to share around the intersections that I have been thinking about recently and that are occurring right now

• September 29th is the feast day of Saint Michael (I am not writing about him today, but he is winged, so I want to note that connection with flight and air)

• A week after the equinox and in Libra Season

• Days approaching the Kalends/New Moon in Libra

• Billions of Birds migrating this week

• Huge catastrophic hurricane

• Election Season

AND

• The history and etymology of the Italian word auguri.

When we want to wish someone a happy birthday or say congratulations in the contemporary Italian language, we say Auguri! (well wishes)

A while ago, I thought, "what is AUGURI anyway?!" And when I looked into the etymology of auguri, it took me down a fascinating rabbit hole into some of my ancestors sacred divination practices.

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From American Heritage Dictionary

augur /ô′gər/

noun

1. One of a group of ancient Roman religious officials who foretold events by observing and interpreting signs and omens.

2. A seer or prophet; a soothsayer.

3. An official diviner who foretold events by the singing, chattering, flight, and feeding of birds, or by signs or omens derived from celestial phenomena, certain appearances of quadrupeds, or unusual occurrences.

4. One who foretells events by omens; a soothsayer; a diviner; a prophet.

   
   

intransitive verb

1. To predict, especially from signs or omens; foretell. synonym: foretell.

2. To serve as an omen of; betoken.

   "trends that augur change in society."

3. To make predictions from signs or omens.

4. To be a sign or omen.

   "A smooth dress rehearsal augured well for the play."

5. To conjecture from signs or omens; to prognosticate; to foreshow

From etymology.com

late 14c., "divination from the flight of birds," from Old French augure, augurie "divination, soothsaying, sorcery, enchantment," or directly from Latin augurium "divination, the observation and interpretation of omens" (see augur (n.)). The sense of "omen, portent, indication, that which forebodes" is from 1610s. Often in plural, auguries.

also from late 14c.

From infogalactic.com

The augur was a priest and official in the classical world, especially ancient Rome and Etruria. His main role was the practice of augury, interpreting the will of the gods by studying the flight of birds: whether they are flying in groups or alone, what noises they make as they fly, direction of flight and what kind of birds they are. This was known as "taking the auspices." The ceremony and function of the augur was central to any major undertaking in Roman society—public or private—including matters of war, commerce, and religion.

The Roman historian Livy stresses the importance of the augurs: "Who does not know that this city was founded only after taking the auspices, that everything in war and in peace, at home and abroad, was done only after taking the auspices?"

From Wikipedia

The Augur holds a lituus was a crooked wand used as a cult instrument in ancient Roman religion by augurs to mark out a ritual space in the sky (a templum). The passage of birds through this templum indicated divine favor or disfavor for a given undertaking.

The lituus was also used as a symbol of office for the college of the augurs to mark them out as a priestly group.

Also https://www.britannica.com/topic/augur

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I've been thinking so much about the ancient priests with their spiral wands, lituus' (initially carved out of wood and later evolved into a bronze instrument of the same name), who would map the sky temple and read the flight of birds, predict and transmit omens, etc.

This past year has been my owl year. I’ve had some really magical moments with the owls (mostly great horned) that live around me. 

I listen to them at night. I spend time with them at dawn and dusk.

A friend of mine introduced me to this free app to identify birds by their songs, it is brought to us by Cornell Lab of Ornithology and is a fantastic way to get to know the birds you live around! Check it out! https://merlin.allaboutbirds.org/

I am also surrounded by crows, vultures, hawks, hummingbirds, and many other birds . I am in no way a bird watcher or really hold any fun facts about birds, except I did learn recently that how WE see birds is in NO WAY how they see each other!

https://www.nwf.org/Magazines/National-Wildlife/2012/AugSept/Animals/Bird-Vision

Throughout my life, I have had many profound experiences with birds. Do you have certain birds that show up in your life? Are you called to specific symbolism around birds, flight, the sky, eggs? Well, it looks like humans have been like this for as long as we know!

Birds have been here for 80 million years. So it is safe to say humans don't know what it's like to ever live apart from them, their songs, or eggs, feathers, and their company.

Recently, my mom sent me a reel on Instagram that talked about why hearing birdsongs is so deeply calming and resetting for our nervous systems. As long as we know, like forever, the sound of songbirds signaled to predators are not around. That we were safe. The sound has carried us and our ancestors for ALL THE GENERATIONS.

When the birds stopped singing, it signaled to our ancestors, and they knew something was going on; a change in the air, in the energy around them.

I have always paid attention to, and divined with the birds. And so to have learned about the ancient ceremonial practices of the Augurs feels so special. And to know the energy lives on in the language, in Italian, when we say Auguri for the celebrations of births and our accomplishments, is so beautiful to me.

Everything is connected.

I’m choosing to share this now because I read that this week, hundreds of millions, if not billions of birds will be migrating South.

https://birdcast.info/

I was wondering, what happens to them in a hurricane?

https://www.allaboutbirds.org/news/how-do-hurricanes-affect-migrating-birds/

Above is the Augur buzzard, a large African bird of prey

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What does this have to do with election season? Well, inauguration comes from augur!

Very informative site here, if this subject fascinates you, I recommend reading:

https://klassieken.nu/2017/12/22/inauguratie/