Some Rituals for Beltane

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beltane

Beltane is an ancient Celtic ritual that dates back from the Iron Age. The word Beltane roughly translates as bright fire. It’s also known as Cétshamain, which can be translated from Gaelic as first of summer. It takes place the night before May 1st and it celebrates the first signs of summer. Fire is very important on this day, and many of the rituals of Beltane involve fire. Fire is believed to purify, heal, and protect, and people would jump around, walk around and dance a ceremonial fire lit for Beltane to benefit from its properties.

The time of Beltane is around the time that cattle were first taken out for pasture. Cattle were among the first beings to walk around the ritual fires of Beltane so they would be protected for the season. Beltane celebrates the return of fertility for the land. Fertility and creativity are rekindled and celebrated and courtship rituals took place around this time as well. It was historically celebrated in modern-day Ireland, Scotland, and the Isle of Man. In fact, a lot of mythological events in Ireland are tied to Beltane.

Some rituals you can do on this date is lighting a bonfire outside to encourage the creative endeavors of your community. This is a great day to donate to causes that fund creative pursuits for children and other members of marginalized communities. You can speak to the fire and ask for it to burn away anything that may be ailing you – either physically, mentally, emotionally, or spiritually.

Yellow and white May flowers are often used to decorate doors and windows during Beltane. This is a way to invite the energy of the element of Fire to your home. Passion, energy, vitality, and creativity will enter your abode and help you in your daily duties. During Beltane, some people also make a May Bush, which is a thorn bush or branch decorated with flowers, ribbon, shells, and fairy lights. This is a great activity to do with children and celebrate the joyful spirit of Beltane. Beltane dew is thought to bring beauty and maintain youthfulness, so you may also go on a walk during the early morning to benefit from this.

Because of its links to creativity and fertility, Beltane is a great day to work on your Sacral Chakra by doing yoga or meditations that aim to open it up and harmonize it. You may also meditate with Carnelian placed four fingers under your belly button (where the Sacral Chakra is) so the chakra is harmonized.

Have you ever celebrated Beltane? Which of the rituals are you the most excited to try? Tell us all about it in the comments!

Some Blessings to Expect on Ostara

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spring equinox

Ostara is the celebration of the Spring Equinox. In the Northern Hemisphere, this takes place around March the 21st. Christianity has adapted this Pagan holiday and calls it Easter, celebrating the resurrection of Jesus and even going as far as adapting certain symbols of Ostara, such as the egg and the rabbit. Ostara or Eostre is also a West Germanic spring Goddess, and this festival celebrates her.

Ostara marks a point of perfect balance between the day and night, which are now of equal length. The year is now waxing and light is starting to defeat dark. Ostara is seen as a day of perfect balance in which light and dark and the masculine and the feminine are in equilibrium. The energy feels expansive and exuberant, and the promises of Imbolc start to be fulfilled. This day was often celebrated by planting seeds. In Ostara, the agricultural cycle begins and farmers begin to plant seeds. The seed and the egg are two of the symbols linked to Ostara because of their promise of new life. The rabbit and the hare are also symbols of this holiday, as March is their mating season and they are seen everywhere. Ostara is a day for fertility, rebirth, and renewal, so it makes sense that a fertile animal like the hare is one of the symbols of this holiday.

Ostara’s colors are green, pink, white, and yellow. You may light candles in her honor in any or all of these colors asking for her blessing in any new undertaking you may have – from a work of art to a business you want to start. Whatever Ostara blesses will grow immensely. If you want to be pregnant or if your partner has this desire, gaining Ostara’s blessing is key. Ostara is a great time to conceive indeed.

Other activities include the typical Easter activity of painting eggs, as well as cooking with one of Ostara’s sacred ingredients, such as honey. You may leave a jar of honey outside early in the morning of Ostara for the Goddess to bless. A simple meditation while sitting on the ground of your garden or a nearby park is also a wonderful way to celebrate Ostara. Let nature speak to you and communicate how it feels and how it’s growing.

Have you ever celebrated Ostara? Which of the ideas on this post are you the most excited to try? Tell us in the comments!

Some Blessings to Manifest on Imbolc

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spring

Imbolc celebrates the halfway point between the Winter Solstice and the Spring Equinox. More, specifically, the first stirrings of spring are celebrated. After a long winter, we start to observe little patches of life and a small amount of plants and flowers coming into bloom. In the Northern Hemisphere, it’s celebrated between January the 31st and February the 1st. It originated in Neolithic Ireland and Scotland, and it’s no surprise it’s intimately linked to a Celtic Deity, Brigid.

Rebirth is celebrated during this time. This makes it a great time to manifest or rebuild yourself after a hard time. The color of Imbolc is red and fire is a very important part of the celebration. You’re encouraged to light candles and enjoy fire in other ways, such as lighting a fire in your hearth, if you’ve got one in your home. Use this time to ask for guidance and help during a transformation process.

Red is one of Brigid’s sacred colors. Some people leave a piece of red ribbon outside of their homes overnight on Imbolc and then look at the state of it once the night has passed. If it looks lush and may even look longer, you’ve been blessed by Brigid and can expect a fruitful springtime. If, on the contrary, it looks dull and it looks shorter than it was the night before, you may expect hardship this coming spring. The ribbon that you dedicated to Brigid during Imbolc can be used later as a healing tool. Tie it around your head when you have a headache, your stomach if you need to settle it, and so on. You may reuse the same piece of red ribbon every Imbolc to make it stronger.

Apples and dairy products are also sacred to Brigid, though, if you’re vegan or allergic to dairy, you may replace dairy with vegan milk. Almonds are a very abundant dry fruit and oats have cleansing and protective qualities, for example. A great activity to do during Imbolc is to bake an apple pie, as it combines many products that are sacred to Brigid. Given the fact that apples have ties to longevity, you can set an intention of manifesting stability and solid relationships and job opportunities while you bake the apple pie.

You may also light a red candle in honor of Brigid. As Brigid is the Goddess of Poets and Imbolc is her holiday, you may use this opportunity to manifest the end of a creative’s block or eloquence. Crystals like Orange Calcite are great for putting an end to creative’s block, whereas Blue Aventurine is a better choice for eloquence. Brigid may also restore the passion in a relationship that seems to have lost it along the way. Remember, Imbolc is all about rebirth.

Have you ever celebrated Imbolc before? What’s your favorite part of Imbolc? Tell us in the comments!