Game plans

Given the sentiments of the this week's posts it should come as little surprise that today it was announced that Prince William and Kate are to visit Glenturret distillery on 29th May, where they will officially open the renovated Famous Grouse Experience, bottle some Glenturret whisky, and indulge in a bespoke beef and onion pie.  (Daily Express)


It's worth noting that 29th May is Oak Apple Day.

Pure bursting

Oak Apple Day, also known as Royal Oak Day, was a holiday celebrated in England to commemorate the restoration of the monarchy in 1660. It was House of Stuart, Charles 2nd, who took the throne. Allegedly, oak apple refers to Charles previously hiding from his enemies in the trunk of an oak tree, although it is suggested that many of the ceremonies conducted on the date are "continuations of pre-Christian nature worship". 

From Oak Apple Day - Echoes of our Druid Past :

For the Druids, whose name may mean ‘wisdom of the oak’, the oak is never more sacred than when mistletoe grew upon its branches. Drawing an analogy between the sticky substance extruded from mistletoe berries and human sperm, the Druids believed that mistletoe enhanced fertility in animals and people alike. In effect, the plant produced the sperm of the oak. We remember something of these beliefs when we kiss under garlands of mistletoe at Christmas.

Charles II was clearly no Druid and yet his Oak Apple Day began to take on saucy overtones. Anyone not wearing an oak apple or a sprig of oak leaves had their bottoms pinched in what became colloquially known as ‘Pinch Bum Day’. Harmless fun. But perhaps also a conflation with the Druid’s mistletoe ceremony and its overtones of fertility. Even the oak apples people wore looked slightly rude.

A bearded Druid greets tartan clad Ben Hur, on their way to hear Jesus - From the movie ((here)

It's not the first time we have noticed correlations between Oak Apple Day and the current monarchy:

Back in 2009, Prince Harry laid a wreath at Ground Zero in respect of those who lost their lives in 911. (BBC News). (Note that the oak tree is officially America's "National Tree")

A ginger Jesus

Taking the piss ?

Whilst in Scotland's capital city of Edinburgh, on the same day, 28 members of the band of the Royal Regiment of Scotland assembled at the top of Salisbury Crags to pose for photographs being taken by a Sea King helicopter. At the time, Prince William, was training to be a Sea King pilot (Arthur's Treat):

What needs to be considered here, for those not acquainted with the geography of Edinburgh, is that Salisbury Crags is contained within Her Majesty the Queen's, Holyrood Park, directly next to sphinx-like, extinct volcano, Arthur's Seat.  Holyrood was founded by King David, allegedly after an encounter with a stag whilst out hunting.

In Aleister Crowley's, Tables of Correspondences under the Orders of  Qliphoth, 28 is noted as "the number of the Beast, that is Bahimiron which is Bestial...In his book Gematria, about the numerology of mystic numbers, we are told that in the static universe 28 means power (Netzach, also spelled netsach), and in the world the magician makes it means 'My victory, my power.'. (Holy Hexes quoting Springmeirer)

Crowley considered Scotland to be of great occult importance.
 
The Royal Regiment of Scotland's motto is Nemo Me Impune Lacessit (No One Assails Me With Impunity) which is the motto of the Order of the Thistle. It was the aforementioned Charles 2nd's brother, James 2nd and 7th, who on gaining the throne after Charles's demise,  re founded the Order on Oak Apple Day 1687. He claimed he was re founding an earlier order, although there is much controversy over this. (wiki)
 

 Prince William became  a Knight of the Order of the Thistle on 5th July 2012. It was the Aphelion, when the Sun is at it's furthest from the Earth. Usually it falls on 4th July; 2012 being leap.

Modern Druids delight in the solstice - Prince William's birthday - and it's winter mirror.

It was a Druid who married William and Kate
 

cheers