I have worked 17 days straight and tomorrow I am taking off. So far the weatherman’s prediction for tomorrow is looking relatively clear. At least clear enough for us to feel comfortable planning a trip to New Hope, PA. The plan is to walk, browse my favorite Witchy stores as well as the shops that [...]
From: The Sabbats - A Celebration of MAY DAY by Mike Nichols'Perhaps it's just as well that you won't be here...to be offended by the sight of our May Day celebrations.' --Lord Summerisle to Sgt. Howie from 'The Wicker Man' There are four great festivals of the Pagan Celtic year and the modern Witch's calendar, as well. The two greatest of these are Halloween (the beginning of winter) and May Day (the beginning of summer). Being opposite each other on the wheel of the year, they separate the year into halves. Halloween (also called Samhain) is the Celtic New Year and is generally considered the more important of the two, though May Day runs a close second. Indeed, in some areas -- notably Wales -- it is considered the great holiday. May Day ushers in the fifth month of the moder
"Here we come a piping, In Springtime and in May; Green fruit aripening, And Winter fled away. The Queen she sits upon the strand, Fair as lily, white as wand; Seven billows on the sea, Horses riding fast and free, And bells beyond the sand." Doreen Valiente.
A Coming of Age Ceremony - for a young woman
Beltane Ritual - by Jillbe Badb (Avalon Risen)
Bardic Beltane Ritual
Beltane Rite
Beltane Ritual - from llewellyn’s website
Beltane Items at Amazon.com
Beltane: Springtime Rituals, Lore and Celebration - by Raven Grimassi
Celebrating The Seasons Of Life: Beltane to Mabon : Lore, Rituals, Activities, And Symbols - by Ashleen O’Gaea
Beltane: Songs [...]
Excerpt from Beltane Ritual from Lady Rose’s original Book of Shadows (1970s)
Priest and Priestess stand at the altar (invocation pose), lead circle members in chant - repeat 3 times; (members circle around the circling and leaping on riding poles or brooms around the circle while chanting):
“Round about the circle go.
Here we jump, high and low.
Silvery [...]
Beltane Ritual by the Correllian Nativist Church International and the Temple of Astral Light at Trinity Temple in Albany, New York on May 5, 2007.
this is a non-English video but as the Southern Hempisphere will be celebrating Samhain as we in the Northern Hemisphere will be celebrating Beltane it seemed appropriate.
[...]
My training was to use spells “to help and heal in times of need” or to better oneself
and to always remember to ”harm none”.
Spells included in this feature will adhere to these guidelines.
A Prosperity Spell by Rowan Moonstone - plan to use this on Samhain!!!
For those who are curious, the intent of the spell is to attract money. More specifics are available on the spell author’s page by following the link.
notes:
the author suggests the spell be cast quarterly
it calls for 16 candles (gold, green, and white), pine oil, and salt
the spell gives very specific timing guidelines - “The spell is to begin at one minute past midnight (during daylight savings time that means 1AM) on the night of April 30 (May 1), July 31 (Aug 1), Oct 31 (Nov. 1) and Jan 31 (Feb 1)
In other words, on the first minute of the cross quarter day. “
I have been away and busy over the past few days and missed out on celebrating the Celtic holiday of Beltane, so instead i will do a little write-up on what Beltane is and what it means to the pagan community that celebrate this festival.
Beltane is an ancient Irish Gaelic holiday celebrated around the 1st May. The Celts marked Beltane as the beginning of the summer season where their livestock were taken out to pasture to graze on the summer fields and mountainsides. The lighting of bonfires on the eve of Beltane on hills and mountains are one of the main rituals and held ritual and political significance during the festival. Beltane fires can be observed during modern times by some neopagan groups, but in majority of cases these are just for cultural revival practices rather than the unbroken survival of the ancient tradition. (more…)
י"ד באייר תשס"זApparently, a large cross of ash on a Catholic teen's forehead on Ash Wednesday is OK by school officials, but a small pentagram on a Druid teen's cheek is NOT OK. The latter is "distracting", while the former is not, according to school officials.Hanover teen sent home for pentagram on cheekWednesday, May 2, 2007 12:30 AM CDTBY MELANIE CSEPIGATimes CorrespondentCEDAR LAKE The parents of a 16-year-old Hanover Central High School freshman say they expect an apology from school officials for sending their daughter home Tuesday (Beltane) for wearing a pagan symbol to celebrate a religious holiday.Andy Pecenke, of Cedar Lake, said his daughter Sky Holeman has been a practicing pagan for three to four years.Pecenke said he, his wife, Sharene Pecenke, and Sky are of that religion.I've been a member of the Order of Bards, Ovates and Druids for 13 years," Andy Pecenke said, adding that May 1 celebrations are a centuries-old tradition. "It signifies the end of sprin
י"ד באייר תשס"זHenceforth, I will observe [1] a witch's Fire Festivals (cross-quarter points), equinoxes and solstices according to their actual astronomical correspondences.For example, while Beltane (the Fire Festival marking the cross-quarter point between the vernal equinox and the summer solstice) is generally observed October 30/May 1, the actual astronomical midpoint between the vernal equinox and summer solstice is Saturday, May 5 at 4:08 pm in my time zone.Consequently, I am resetting Beltane observance to May 5 this year and will observe the Sabbat a second time in parallel with Shabbat.Footnote:[1] ritually as an individual; although as a witch within the greater community of witches, I will still mark it at the traditional timeTechnorati tags: beltane beltaine beltaen cross quarter days sabbats fire festivals
First and foremost Blessed Beltane and Happy Mayday to our readers. Most people, regardless of faith have a favorite holiday and I have to admit that Beltane has a special meaning to me beyond the Pagan connotations.
I met my husband in Staten Island, NY during the mid 1980’s and we dated on and off for about a year and a half before our relationship ended in part due to us each moving to out of state locations. At the time of our parting he was the first and only boy with whom I had done more than kiss.
While we saw each other briefly during June of 1991, we were not living in the same state again until he appeared on my doorstep a few days prior to Beltane of 1993.
The 2 years in between those meeting were rough for me in many ways. It saw the ending of a relationship with a man I had planned to marry. It also saw the ending of the relationship I found myself in directly afterwards. The second relationship ended finally when I came home one night to hear the loud a
Beltane celebration, Handfasting of Leigh Dupee and Cynthia Stebbins, and May Pole dance. Sponsored by the Temple of Astral Light and held at Trinity Temple. April 29, 2006
a slideshow
Maypole song from the original movie The Wicker Man
