Wheel of the Year
Lets start with the Celtic New Year, Samhain, otherwise known as Halloween or All Hallow's Eve. This holiday is celebrated on October 31st every year. This is a quiet resting day for us. It is a time to reunite your selves with those that have past during this year. The veil between this world and the Otherworld is at its thinnest from sundown on October 31st until sunup on November 1st or All Saints Day and this is the time to commune with those spirits.
Next is Yule, celebrated around December 21st or 22nd and is also Winter Solstice. It is the longest night of the year and the birth of the Sun. From this point on the days will begin to get longer. A common story of Yule is the fight between the Holly King and Green Man. The Holly King is the King of cold weather and the Green Man the God of warm weather. The Holly King looses, thus the Oak Man or Green Man can start His reign.
Imbolc is celebrated on February 2nd or Ground Hog Day. It time to celebrate the Goddess Brigit or Bride, the Spring Goddess. It is the sabbat that celebrates the midwinter and the return of the sun. It is the first intimate encounter between the Maiden Goddess and the Young Lord and ensures fertility of the months ahead. It is also known as the festival of lights for pagans. It is a time when all lights and candles are lit for a short time in the house as a welcoming of the sun.
Ostara is celebrated around March 20th or 21st. It is the Spring Equinox or the first day of spring and is celebrated by Christians as Easter. It marks the rekindling of life within the Earth and the renewal of fertility to our spiritual lives. Equinox means Equi (equal) and nox(night). This balance of night and day and the balance of other aspects of our lives have long been a focus of spring rituals.
Beltane is the 1st of May and is a great fire festival. A little before dawn on May 1st, the Celtic peoples would gather the nine sacred woods and prepare them for the birthing of the new fire, which was thought to purify the air of all evil forces. As the people watched, the fires were kindled at the rising of the sun and the flames leapt, the people waked deosil around the bonfire three times. Water collected from wells or cupped stones to catch the morning dew, called May dew, was believed to be especially powerful for holy water, and was sprinkled about the home to ensure good fortune, health and happiness.
Litha or Midsummer/Summer Solstice is around June 20th depending on when the sun is at 1 degree Cancer. Litha means moon. This is the longest day of the year and is a celebration of service, sharing and of giving our due to the planet. It is time for preparation of the harvest season.
Lammas is celebrated July 31st and August 1st. it is also called Lughnasadh and marks the middle of summer and the beginning of the harvest season. We pay homage to the Sun God Lugh, for His role in the Earth's fruitfulness, thus called the feast of the first fruits.
And thus we come to the last holiday or sabbat of the year. Mabon or the Fall Equinox is celebrated around September 21st. It is the second of the three harvest festivals concentrating on the fruits and vegetables of harvest. It is the first day of autumn and a time to celebrate the Earth's bounty and thank Her for the blessings She brings us. It is often called the "Witches Thanksgiving" It is associated with the Underworld and is a time to remember our ancestors and those that have gone on before you
Lets start with the Celtic New Year, Samhain, otherwise known as Halloween or All Hallow's Eve. This holiday is celebrated on October 31st every year. This is a quiet resting day for us. It is a time to reunite your selves with those that have past during this year. The veil between this world and the Otherworld is at its thinnest from sundown on October 31st until sunup on November 1st or All Saints Day and this is the time to commune with those spirits.
Next is Yule, celebrated around December 21st or 22nd and is also Winter Solstice. It is the longest night of the year and the birth of the Sun. From this point on the days will begin to get longer. A common story of Yule is the fight between the Holly King and Green Man. The Holly King is the King of cold weather and the Green Man the God of warm weather. The Holly King looses, thus the Oak Man or Green Man can start His reign.
Imbolc is celebrated on February 2nd or Ground Hog Day. It time to celebrate the Goddess Brigit or Bride, the Spring Goddess. It is the sabbat that celebrates the midwinter and the return of the sun. It is the first intimate encounter between the Maiden Goddess and the Young Lord and ensures fertility of the months ahead. It is also known as the festival of lights for pagans. It is a time when all lights and candles are lit for a short time in the house as a welcoming of the sun.
Ostara is celebrated around March 20th or 21st. It is the Spring Equinox or the first day of spring and is celebrated by Christians as Easter. It marks the rekindling of life within the Earth and the renewal of fertility to our spiritual lives. Equinox means Equi (equal) and nox(night). This balance of night and day and the balance of other aspects of our lives have long been a focus of spring rituals.
Beltane is the 1st of May and is a great fire festival. A little before dawn on May 1st, the Celtic peoples would gather the nine sacred woods and prepare them for the birthing of the new fire, which was thought to purify the air of all evil forces. As the people watched, the fires were kindled at the rising of the sun and the flames leapt, the people waked deosil around the bonfire three times. Water collected from wells or cupped stones to catch the morning dew, called May dew, was believed to be especially powerful for holy water, and was sprinkled about the home to ensure good fortune, health and happiness.
Litha or Midsummer/Summer Solstice is around June 20th depending on when the sun is at 1 degree Cancer. Litha means moon. This is the longest day of the year and is a celebration of service, sharing and of giving our due to the planet. It is time for preparation of the harvest season.
Lammas is celebrated July 31st and August 1st. it is also called Lughnasadh and marks the middle of summer and the beginning of the harvest season. We pay homage to the Sun God Lugh, for His role in the Earth's fruitfulness, thus called the feast of the first fruits.
And thus we come to the last holiday or sabbat of the year. Mabon or the Fall Equinox is celebrated around September 21st. It is the second of the three harvest festivals concentrating on the fruits and vegetables of harvest. It is the first day of autumn and a time to celebrate the Earth's bounty and thank Her for the blessings She brings us. It is often called the "Witches Thanksgiving" It is associated with the Underworld and is a time to remember our ancestors and those that have gone on before you