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April 30 |
Beltane: Mayday, Bealtinne (Caledonii),
Festival of Tana (Strega), Walburga (Teutonic)
April 30 (Mayday is celebrated on the first of May)
Beltane is one of the Greater Wiccan Sabbats and is usually celebrated
on May 1st, but can be on the night of April 30th, depending on your tradition.Beltane
is the time of the sacred marriage which honors the fertility of the Earth;
it represents the divine union of the Lord and Lady.
This Sabbat is primarily a fertility festival with
Nature enchantments and offerings to wildlings and Elementals. The powers
of elves and fairies are growing and will reach their height at Summer Solstice.
A time of great Magick, it is good for all divinations and for establishing
a woodland or garden shrine. The house guardians should be honored at this
time.
Celebrants sometimes jump over broomsticks or weaving a web of life around
the Maypole, both as symbols of fertility. Bonfire leaping and horn blowing
are other forms of traditional celebration. Weaving and plaiting are traditional
arts at this time of year, for the joining together of two substances to
form a third is in the spirit of Beltane.Wiccan handfastings are common
at this festival.
This is a time of self-discovery, love, union and developing your potential
for personal growth
Ostara: Vernal (Spring) Equinox,
Alban Eiler (Caledonii)
Around March 21
The Spring Equinox is the point of equilibrium - and it celebrates the arrival
of Spring, when light and darkness are in balance but the light is growing
stronger. The forces of male and female are also in balance. The Easter
Bunny also is of Pagan origin, as are baskets of flowers. A traditional
Vernal Equinox pastime: go to a field and randomly collect wildflowers (thank
the flowers for their sacrifice before picking them). Or, buy some from
a florist, taking one or two of those that appeal to you. Then bring them
home and divine their Magickal meanings by the use of books, your own intuition,
a pendulum or by other means. The flowers you've chosen reveal your inner
thoughts and emotions. Cultivating herb gardens is also a fine Ostara project
. This is the time to free yourself from anything in the past that is holding
you back.