The meaning of Friday the 13th and how to embrace the edge

Lady luck may have left you, but your chances of getting lucky are still good.

Insert horror movie apocalypse music – Friday the 13th is approaching, bringing with it a general sense of unease and unexpectedly delightful horoscopes.

Before we discuss primality and shadow work, let’s talk about ominous reputation.

Why is there a fear of Friday the 13th?

The day’s ominous significance dates back centuries to Norse folklore, where the twelve main gods of the Norse pantheon hosted a dinner party in Valhalla (fun).

Loki, the god of trickery, came uninvited as the thirteenth guest and planned the “mistletoe murder” of the handsome god of light and joy, Balder. Balder’s death brought grief to the world and consolidated the evil aura of the number thirteen.

The ill-fated feast lived on in Christian tradition.

Friday is not fun at all, the Bible is full of death

Thirteen people were present at the Last Supper; Judas, probably Aries and Jesus’ red-haired betrayer, was the last to arrive, further suggesting a connection between this number and impending death or destruction.

The craze continues, friends.

Friday has several other uses in the Bible; Jesus was crucified on the Friday after the Last Supper, and according to legend, Friday marks the day a) Cain killed Abel and b) Eve presented the fruit of knowledge to Adam.

oops.

Friday the 13th in history

From the Bible and beyond, Friday the 13th has been the site of some abominations that have furthered its reputation as a villain. The most notable of these are the arrest and subsequent massacre of the Knights Templar in 1307, the bombing of Buckingham Palace in 1940, the murder of New Yorker Katie Genovese in 1964, and the murder of rapper Tupac Shakur in 1996.

Fear of the date is as deep-rooted as its history; there are even two terms to describe the phobia that sound an awful lot like Ikea furniture: paraskavedekatriaphobia and friggatriskaidekaphobia.

Astrology for Friday the 13th

In astrology, Friday belongs to Venus, the planet of love, beauty, attraction, assets, aesthetics, and ambient light.

And coincidentally, this year Venus will enter her home sign of Libra on Friday the 13th.

This transit amplifies the energies of love, attraction, beauty, and hospitality, making it a great time to fulfill desires and an excellent time to head out on the town or for role-playing with strangers, home horoscope therapy, freelance opportunities, or hotel dates.

Venus in Libra = Gets excited about turndown service and goes all out in the space that someone else has to clean up.

Black Moon Lilith and Friday the 13th

In a combination of status quo and disruption, Venus will also combine or fuse energies with Black Moon Lilith (BML) on Friday the 13th.ra represents traditional attraction and desire, while BML is all about toe sucking, shadow walking, forbidden salty wet belly.

Speaking of the dark associations of Friday the 13th, BML represents our wild selves, our primal urges to create and destroy, the dark side of human sexuality, the shame we are endowed with, the subconscious, hidden desires and sources of power.

You know, sunny stuff.

During this conjunction, the lines between illegal and legal become blurred, and expression and experimentation are encouraged. Venus asks us to fully engage in the physical pleasures of being alive, while BML asks us to own and initiate those things that make us feel alive, powerful, and free.

Releasing, beginning, ending, and speaking your truth are all excellent ways to honor the spirit of this transit and to greet next week’s eclipse (whose major theme is forthcoming).

Given the hype surrounding the Friday the 13th horror movies, might I suggest channeling the painful/delightful anticipation and darkly curious energy of these horror extravaganzas into your pursuit and enjoyment of all things horror?

Astrology 101: Your Guide to the Stars

Astrologer Reda Wigle studies and objectively reports on the planetary configurations and their influence on each sign. Her horoscopes incorporate history, poetry, pop culture, and personal experience. To schedule a reading, visit her website.