Wheel Of The Year
October 31 -- November Eve -- Samhain
The night lengthens and we work with the positive aspects of darkness in the increasing star- and moonlight.
Many Craft traditions, following the ancient Celts, consider this the eve of the New Year (as day
begins with sundown, so the year begins with the first day of Winter). It is one night when the barriers
between the worlds of life and death are uncertain, allowing the ancestors to walk among the living,
welcomed and feasted by their kin, bestowing the Otherworld's blessings. We may focus within
ourselves to look "through the glass darkly", developing our divination and psychic skills.
December 21 -- Winter Solstice -- Yule
The sun is at its nadir, the year's longest night. We internalize and synthesize the outward-directed activities
of the previous summer months. Some covens hold a Festival of Light to commemorate the Goddess as
Mother giving birth to the Sun God. Others celebrate the victory of the Lord of Light over the Lord of
Darkness as the turning point from which the days will lengthen. The name "Yule" derives from the
Norse word for "wheel", and many of our customs (like those of the Christian holiday) derive from
Norse and Celtic Pagan practices (the Yule log, the tree, the custom of Wassailing, et al).
January 31 -- February Eve -- Imbolc
As the days lengthening becomes perceptible, many candles are lit to hasten the warming of the earth and
emphasize the reviving of life. "Imbolc" is from Old Irish, and may mean "in the belly". It is the holiday
of the Celtic Fire Goddess Brigid, whose threefold nature rules smithcraft, poetry/inspiration, and
healing. Brigid's fire is a symbolic transformation offering healing, visions, and tempering. Februm is a
Latin word meaning purification -- naming the month of cleansing. The thaw releases waters (Brigid is
also a goddess of holy wells) -- all that was hindered is let flow at this season.
March 21 -- Vernal Equinox -- Ostara
Day and night are equal as Spring begins to enliven the environment with new growth and more newborn
animals. Many people feel "reborn" after the long nights and coldness of winter. The Germanic
Goddess Ostara, Goddess of the Dawn. It is she, as herald of the sun, who announces the triumphal
return of life to the earth. Witches in the Greek tradition celebrate the return from Hades of Demeter's
daughter Persephone; Witches in the Celtic tradition see in the blossoms the passing of Olwen, in
whose footprints flowers bloom. The enigmatic egg, laid by the regenerating snake or the heavenly bird,
is a powerful symbol of the emergence of life out of apparent death or absence of life.
April 30 -- May Eve -- Beltane
As the weather heats up and the plant world burgeons, an exuberant mood prevails. Folk dance around the
Maypole, emblem of fertility (the name "May" comes from a Norse word meaning "to shoot out new
growth"). May 1st was the midpoint of a five-day Roman festival to Flora, Goddess of Flowers. The
name "Beltane" means "Bel's Fires"; in Celtic lands, cattle were driven between bonfires to bless them,
and people leaped the fires for luck. The association in Germany of May Eve with Witches' gatherings
is a memory of pre-Christian tradition. "Wild" water (dew, flowing streams or ocean water) is collected
as a basis for healing drinks and potions for the year to come.
June 21 -- Summer Solstice -- Litha or Midsummer
On this day, the noon of the year and the longest day, light and life are abundant. We focus outward,
experiencing the joys of plenty, tasting the first fruits of the season. In some traditions the sacred
marriage of the Goddess and God is celebrated (in others, this is attributed to the springtime holidays).
Rhea, the Mountain Mother of Crete, has breathed out all creation. It is also the festival of the Chinese
Goddess of Light, Li.
July 31 -- August Eve -- Lammas
This festival has two aspects. First, it is one of the Celtic fire festivals, honoring the Celtic culture-bringer
and Solar God Lugh (Lleu to the Welsh, Lugus to the Gauls). In Ireland, races and games were held in
his name and that of his mother, Tailtiu (these may have been funeral games). The second aspect is
Lammas, the Saxon Feast of Bread, at which the first of the grain harvest is consumed in riutal loaves.
These aspects are not too dissimilar, as the shamanic death and transformation of Lleu can be compared
to that of the Barley God, known from the folksong "John Barleycorn".This time is also sacred to the
Greek Goddess of the Moon and the Hunt, Artemis.
September 21 -- Autumnal Equinox -- Mabon or Harvest Home
This day sees light and dark in balance again, before the descent to the dark times. A harvest festival is held,
thanking the Goddess for giving us enough sustenance to feed us through the winter. Harvest festivals
of many types still occur today in farming country, and Thanksgiving is an echo of these.
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