Summer Solstice

Summer Solstice

by | Jun 20, 2020 | Seasons

At Midsummer, the life-giving power of the Sun has reached its climax. We celebrate the longest day of the year! In pre-Christian tradition, it is said, that during the 12 days of Midsummer and the 12 days of Christmas the veils between the world are thinnest. At this time spirit beings can easily cross the threshold that separates our worlds. Likewise, those who are particularly perceptive to the ‘otherworldly vibes’ can receive magical gifts, or catch a glimpse of the spirit folk. It is a time of celebration, but also for making offerings to the Gods, to ask for protection of the harvest, and to receive blessings. The wisdom-keepers would use it for scrying, to determine the signs of the times. But for most people it was a festive time, celebrated with gatherings around huge bonfires fires. Dancing, feasting, and merry-making were the order of the day – the Sun-God and the Earth-Goddess were celebrating their wedding day and consummate their love. The people joyously join their celebration and thus ensure fertility and abundance for all.

At Midsummer, Bel, the young Sun-God has reached his climax and exhausted his power. Lugh takes over the reign. We are at the turning point of the year and about to begin our long journey of descent through the dark half of the year.

This is a good time to cherish the gifts of nature, to count our blessings, and to give thanks for all that we have. It is a time to share our blessings and to join in the spirit of celebration with friends and kin.

For herbalists, it is the prime time for gathering healing herbs. This is also a good time to seek council from the spirit world or to embark on a vision quest.

Happy Beltane!

Happy Beltane!

by | Apr 30, 2020 | Seasons

On May 1, we celebrate Beltane, the festival of spring. 

The earth is clad in her most beautiful flower gown and the birds are singing from the trees. The heart rejoices, the spirit soars. At Beltane we celebrate the miraculous powers of regeneration, of fertility and of abundance – the lushness and beauty of it all. The God and Goddess are in love and wherever they go, they spread the sparkling glow of their ardour.

This is a good time to celebrate life. We share in nature’s passion and are full of zest for life. Companionship, love and merry-making are the order of the day.

This is also a good time to nurture young seedlings and budding projects. It is nurture and love that turns intention into manifestation. The power to work this magic lies in our caring hands.

Spiritually, this is a good time to reflect on nature’s generosity and to practice gratitude.

Easter/ Oestara

Easter/ Oestara

by | Apr 8, 2020 | Seasons

For many Christians, Easter is an even more important festival than Christmas. Easter is a festival of sacrifice and resurrection. We commemorate Christ’s sacrifice on the day he died on the cross as Jesus, the man, only to be resurrected as Christ, the son of God and redeemer of mankind. In Christian symbolism, the cross commemorates the crucifixion. However, the cross is a much older symbol and in pre-Christian traditions it was more often associated with the cosmic order, the four directions, the axis of time and space, and the sacrifice of the ego, which is bound to the material world.

Sacrifice, in the symbolism of the ancient world, was not a celebration of death, as it may seem, but of life. A sacrifice was a way of giving back, to offer life to life, so it may continue. Death and rebirth as two sides of the same door. Life feeding on itself and continuously regenerating itself.

A sacrifice had to be something special. Not any old rat would do! This was a gift to the Gods! So, it had to be the very best, something precious! Originally, it was the king himself. Later, it became the his first-born. Eventually, animal tokens were used instead of the self. At Easter, that sacrificial animal was an innocent lamb. Even today’s traditional Easter feast often features a lamb roast as the centre piece. A distant echo of this ancient sacrificial tradition.

Easter is a movable feast, which is a clear indication that it is a festival that dates back to pre-Christian times. The date, which changes every year, is determined by the first Full Moon that follows the first New Moon after the Spring Equinox. Originally, Easter, or Ostara, as it was known, was the festival of the Goddess Eostre, a pagan Mother Goddess that has been linked to the Great Mother Kali.

Her sacred ‘Moon Hare’ has become the ‘Easter Bunny’. And as for the eggs, they are a symbol of life. The egg represents unborn potential, and the promise of rebirth. Traditionally, the eggs would have been dyed red, the colour of life. To give these as a gift is a blessing: Life! Abundance! May your potential unfold and blossom!

Source:

The Woman’s Encyclopaedia of Myths and Secrets, Barbara G. Walker, HaperCollins, 1983

Spring Equinox

Spring Equinox

by | Mar 21, 2020 | Seasons

Happy Spring Equinox!

A new cycle is beginning – but what a strange beginning it is, with half the world in lock-down! The earth is waking from her winter retreat. Persephone is returning to the upper world and life is ready to burst forth again. At Spring Equinox, the forces of light and dark are hanging in the balance. But with every passing day, the sun is gaining strength now. Birds are returning and are singing their little hearts out to welcome the spring. Buds are bursting and Mother Earth has donned her cloak of early spring flowers as she turns the land verdant and fertile once again.

This is usually a joyful, busy time, full of expectation. This year is a little different. It feels cathartic, rather than light and joyful, the way it usually does. And still, the garden is calling, eager to receive the seeds as soon as the soil has warmed up. This is also a time of spring cleaning, purification, painting and decorating. It is a time to get ready, so everything is set on GO! These are things one can still do, locked down or not, in anticipation of the coming spring. 

Physically, that means boosting your energy with the fresh vitamins and nutrients of the early spring herbs. And this is especially true this year. Boost your immune system and don’t give that virus half a chance!

Mentally, this is a time to be strong and focused. Check on everything that you have planned for and make sure that the pathway for your intentions is clear.  The crisis will pass eventually and there is a light on the other side. Good planning prepares the way to success.

Spiritually, the Spring Equinox augurs new beginnings. We can turn a page and make a new start. It is also a time to celebrate the eternal life-force and the powers of self-renewal. 

Imbolc Awakenings

Imbolc Awakenings

by | Jan 30, 2020 | Seasons

Imbolc is the time of the light maiden Brighid, a virginal Goddess that appears as the returning light. Quite noticeably the days are getting longer, by a few minutes each day. It is still the midst of winter and yet, if you look carefully, the buds are swelling. Some precocious winter flowering plants defy the odds. Here and there some particularly perky wildflowers are peeking through the snow or old leaf litter:  snow drops, winter aconite or dwarf crested irises, perhaps. Deep within the Earth, the life-force is stirring, the seeds are soaking up the waters of the thawing snow and begin to germinate. The wheel of the year is turning. Slowly the sap begins to rise once more.

Imbolc, or Candlemass in Christian terminology, is the festival of growing light, of cleansing and  purification. It augurs the time of Lent, traditionally a time of abstinence and fasting to purify body and soul.

In the olden days, people would fast or restrict their diets in order to cleanse the body of all the residues of heavy winter foods. To practice a little self-care in this way is to prepare body and mind for the new season.

It is a also a time for scrying and divination, for visualising in your minds eye the possibilities that lay ahead. Take a little time out to prepare yourself for the challenges and opportunities yet to unfold. Reflect on your strengths and weaknesses, on good and bad habits, and on making a commitment to your soul journey. What kind of nourishment do you need to feel fulfilled? What kind of meaning are you giving your life (or want to give your life)? Are you walking your talk?

Imbolc is a good time to charge the seeds that you want to flourish with intention and to foster your inner flame. Take care of that light through the dark of the night. Soon the sun will soon rise again.

 

Winter Solstice

Winter Solstice

by | Dec 18, 2019 | Seasons

Winter Solstice is upon us – the longest night is here!

The trees have lost their leaves and all signs of life have retreated below ground. The countryside is bare. The sun barely rises above the horizon and shines only a feeble light. Birds have departed. The Earth has entered hibernation mode.

Yet, at these dark times, we find cause to rejoice! For deep within the Earth, a tiny light has been born! Fragile as a baby in its crib the new sun-savior god has returned.

We are at the threshold of a new cycle. As yet we do not know if the baby will grow. And yet, it is a cause to celebrate the hope of growth to come.

In the old days, the 12 days of Christmas were a time when the veil between the worlds is thin. Spirits and ghosts are passing through, howling frightfully during the night. We huddle together by the fireplace and cherish each other’s company, the gift of family and friendship. They finished on January 6th, when the three sages finally found the stable where the sun-god had been born.

We share the memories of summers past and feast on the gifts we have preserved at harvest time. We dream of the return of the light that will turn the Earth green once more.

Winter Solstice is a festive time despite being the shortest day and longest night. It is a moment of serenity and gratitude for all that has brought us here. And yet it also marks the turning point and harbors the promise of things to come.

This is a good time to count your blessings and celebrate. The wheel of time is turning. The light has returned. Let us cherish this blessing so it may grow strong and return life to Earth once more.

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