The year has turned, the Holly king rises into ascendancy as the light begins to wane.

http://www.thegoddesstree.com/trees/Holly.htm

Tree of SacrificeIlexEighth month of the Celtic Tree calendar, July 8th – August 4th Eighth consonant of the Ogham alphabet – Tinne
Planet: Mars and SaturnElement: FireSymbolism: The Sword of Truth, Unconditional love, sacrifice, reincarnationStone: Ruby, BloodstonePowers: Protection, Anti-Lightning, Luck, Dream MagickBirds: Cardinal, StarlingColor: RedDeity: Lugh, Tannus, ThorSabbat: Lughnasa, Celtic festival of the Sun God Lugh, LammasDeath of the God of the Waxing year (Oak King)Birth of the God of the Waning year (Holly King)Folk Names: Aquifolius, Bat’s Wings, Christ’s Thorn, Holy Tree, Holm Chaste, Hulm, Hulver Bush Medicinal properties: The powdered leaves were brewed into a healing tea for measles, and the ashes from burning the leaves in a drink soothed whooping cough. Hot compresses made from the leaves and bark helped ease the pain of broken bones and dislocations.  Magickal properties: A “par excellence” protective herb, it protects against lightning, poison, and evil spirits. When thrown at wild animals it makes them lie down quietly and leave you alone.  Sprinkle an infusion made with Holly on newborn babies to protect them. Holly is considered the male counterpart to the female Ivy. Even though Holly’s Yule festival greens are traditionally burned at Imbolg, a small sprig us kept for luck and to keep evil away throughout the year.
CAUTION: Holly Berries are purgative and often cause nausea and vomiting. They are poisonous to children.
	Use Holly berries with your favorite spell for female fertility and sexuality: Red Holly Berries symbolize the life-giving blood of the Mother Goddess. Gather three berries (or a multiple of three) and carry them in your hand to a body of water. As you say your incantation, drop the berries into the water. Visualize a circle of light surrounding you as you go through your spell. adapted from Whispers from the Woods, by Sandra Kynes
Lammas Lammas is the ancient Celtic festival at the beginning of harvest time. Lughnasad is the Irish name for this festival; it was a time of fairs, trading and celebration.  Now, when the days grow visibly shorter and the sun seems to decline, the crops ripen.  So too, when we work for justice, when we have expended huge energies to bring about change, the results often come only when the tides of enthusiasm and urgency seem to be ebbing.  When the marching and the shouting die away, public opinion quietly shifts.  Lammas means “loaf-mass” the festival when we honor and celebrate the grain and the food that sustains our life. In a just world, no one would go hungry. All people would have access to good quality food – organic, fresh, local, and truly nourishing.  The grain stands golden in the fields, but has not yet been gathered in. We stand poised between hope and fear. Lammas is a time of consequence, when we reap what we have sown. Globally, we are now reaping the consequences of decades of injustice, of neglect and exploitation of the earth. Will we make the change, in time to avert disaster? Will we reap destruction, or harvest a new world based on harmony, balance and love? Our choices and actions will tip the scales.Starhawk 2007 and We’Moon ’08
Tree Magickby Gillian Kemp  Like the Evergreen Holly tree, or “holy tree” you have divine talents at the root and heart of your being. Your whole world can grow “evergreen” from it. Like the berries or the smooth or prickly leaves on a male of female tree, your life will take shape around its essential nature. The thorny leaves and red berries represent suffering. When the fruits are discovered by patience, what is possibly a test now will prove a credit to you. This is a fresh start, a second chance, or time of renewal and permanence, promising a fortified heart and a happier life. Parties and reunions lie ahead, just as the Holly tree enjoys Winter while anticipating the Spring.
Holly berries were used to predict winter weather. If there were a profusion of berries, that meant it would be a hard winter, because the Goddess was providing extra berries for the birds. Holly is one of the three timbers in the Chariot Wheel.It represents personal sacrifice in order to gain something of greater value.
LESSON OF THE Hollyfrom The Wisdom of Trees by Jane Gifford Holly reminds us of the need to calm our emotions, if we are to reach wise decisions about our situation. The often painful consequences of our actions are brought to the surface for examination, and calm acceptance of our responsibility is required. We are reminded of the need to view ourselves, as well as others, in the light of compassion and unconditional love. Like the Hanged Man of the Tarot, holly represents personal sacrifice in order to gain something of greater value.
Green Man Tree Oracle	The Holly and the IvyWhen they are both full grown,Of all the trees that are in the wood,The ho