Stillness 9-6: As far as we know, the Ancient Greeks first named the days of the week after the sun, the moon and the five known planets. The planets were named after the gods Ares, Hermes, Zeus, Aphrodite, and Cronus. The Romans substituted their equivalent gods for the Greek gods: Mars, Mercury, Jupiter, Venus, and Saturn. In English, some of the Latin names for the gods were substituted by Norse gods: Tiu, Woden, Thor, Freya.
So from the beginning, the days of the week were connected to various planets, which in turn were connected to a god or goddess. Each of these relates to a metal, a crystal, a personality. And a color. Being aware of the color that lives in each day can help us weave a pattern of balance and simplicity into our busy lives.
How? For one thing—by keeping it simple. Simplicity is the essence of calm, harmony, serenity. Having to choose between a number of things is stressful. Becoming aware of color can simplify our lives enormously. This is true even in something as basic as deciding what to wear: If it’s Friday—a day symbolized by the serene green of Freya-Aphrodite-Venus, the goddess of love—reach for a mint green sweatshirt; no agonizing. If it’s Saturday, wear dark blue jeans. At the mind-numbing market, if you can’t decide between blueberries or strawberries, let the color of the day be your guide. Accessories are easily decided on as well: reach for those moonstones or pearls on Monday, or the grey and purple silk tie. Not only is this relaxing, but it makes mundane tasks much more fun. When my children were young I’d often avoid arguments by pointing out that they had to eat their green broccoli because it was Friday. Or that the red t-shirt was just right since it was Tuesday.
Another way color can help us is by tempering our temperaments. Each color has a different vibration, and each one impacts us differently. Burger King and Dunkin’ Donuts have known this for years (all that pink and orange actually does make us eat faster). Blue draws us inward to a place a quiet. Yellow lifts our spirits. By becoming conscious of all the different colors in our limited spectrum, we balance our natures. Otherwise we might be particularly drawn to reds, and then lose the blue-ness of our interior being. Or we might be fond of green, but forget to absorb the soul of purple. Balancing our melancholic tendencies by wearing yellow, or soothing our anxiety with a peaceful green makes sense.
Here’s an abbreviated outline of the soul qualities of each day:
Monday—Selenes/Luna/Artemis/Diana: lavender or dark blue. The day of the moon is internal, emotional, reflective, a day for quiet and meditation.
Tuesday—Ares/Mars/Tiu: red. The warrior god helps us in our search for Self, standing up to others, fighting for the good, working hard…he symbolizes action and energy. In Norse mythology Tiu was the god of war and sky.
Wednesday—Hermes/Mercury/Woden is the messenger god. His color is yellow. This is a great day to handle communications and accomplish tasks that require mental acuity. Hermes (or Mercury) is known as the god of commerce, communication, invention, and travel. In Norse mythology, Woden is known as the headstrong leader of the wild hunt.
Thursday—Zeus/Jupiter/Thor. Orange. Kingly. Expansive. Friendly. Opportunity, luck, good fortune. A good day to look at the big picture or start a new project under the generous auspices of Zeus, the Greek king of the gods. Thor is the god of thunder and Roman Jupiter created thunder and lightning.
Friday—Aphrodite/Venus/Freya. Green. The goddess of love and beauty appreciates the attention you pay to beautifying your environment and yourself, as well as socializing with those you love.
Saturday—Cronus/Saturn. Dark blue or black. Saturn helps with the details: making sure everything is on track in the material world. He’s there to help you over the long haul. He’s also known as the god of agriculture and time.
Sunday—Helios/Apollo/Day of the Sun. White. Apollo is the storyteller, the musician, the poet, the god of light. This is a good day to be creative.
P.S. I’m featured in yesterday’s A Rainbow in the Clouds podcast. I was interviewed by writelighter and color therapist Eleyne-Mari. You can listen here.