Beltane

Beltane is the conventional modern spelling. Bealtaine is the traditional Irish spelling. 

Beltane officially beings at moon-rise on the evening before the first day of May. It is the Celtic festival corresponding to May Eve, which is metaphysically understood as the moment when Earth's generative, reproductive, and sexual energies are at their peak. Beltane, is among the many May festivals celebrating Earth's sexual and reproductive powers; however Beltane has added resonance in Celtic lands as it also inaugurates the second half of the year. One may visualize this calendar as akin to a yin-yang symbol, with Beltane proclaiming the start of the bright yang portion. 

Much of what we know of Celtic festivals derives from Ireland, although the Celts once dominated a good part of Europe. There are indications that similar festivals were held elsewhere in Celtic Europe, not lease by the prevalence of May Day celebrations throughout the entire continent.

Known as Calan Mai in Wales, Beltane is the Celtic fire festival marking the beginning of summer. The name may derive from "bel" (light) or "bil" (luck) and the general consensus is that Beltane means "bright fire". The name may also honor the Celtic deity named Bel or Belenus. Another possibility is that Bel is either derived from or identical to the pan-Semitic fertility deity Baal. 

Fire may be understood as a little bit of the sun on Earth. In the spirit of the metaphysical adage "as above, so below", the magickal power of the sun was rekindled and enhanced by the Beltane bonfires. These bonfires were known as "bel-fires" or bale fires. They joyfully celebrate and proclaim the return of fertility to Earth. Beltane bonfires were ritual fires and were traditionally kindled by friction or by sparks from a flint. 

The bonfires convey the magickal, healing, energizing force of fire. In order to benefit from this positive magick radiant energy, people dance around the fire, jump over it, crawl through it once it gets low and also drive their livestock through. Although any animal can benefit from the magick of the bale fires, cattle, the sacred cow so intrinsic to Irish myth, are especially associated with Beltane. If there are twin fires or multiple fires, people will dance between them and lead animals between. The ultimate goal of these rituals is disease prevention and the termination of bad luck, as well as the renewal of fertility and creativity.

Although a sacred day, Beltane was a happy, raucous holiday, not a serious, solemn one. It is impossible to celebrate Earth's sexuality without simultaneously reveling in human sexuality too. Beltane was one of those anarchic festivals where everyday constraints were thrown to the winds. The Christian Church would eventually condemn the carnal licentiousness of Beltane rites, accusing the populace of indiscriminate copulation. Although defamatory, these accusations weren't without a vestige of truth, however disapproval stems from perspective and perhaps a wee bit of jealousy. After all, some people were having fun when others weren't. Children whose birthdays fell near the Celtic festival imbolc, which occurs precisely nine months later, were affectionately known as "Beltane babies", and were considered to be special children with strong psychic powers and favored by the fairies. 

Beltane was understood as a witches' festival, when witches came out to play, as well as a day that was sacred to devotees of the Fairy Faith. Perhaps their very visibility on this date made those with magickal or Pagan inclinations vulnerable to those with other orientations. Notions of sacrifice, and especially of sacrificial witches permeate many historic Beltane traditions, and May became a time when witches and their animal allies were persecuted. 

*Cats and rabbits discovered in the fields in Ireland during Beltane were traditionally understood as witches in disguise and frequently killed on the spot, often by being tossed into the bonfires. 
*Litters of kittens born during the entire month of May were feared as potential witches' familiars and summarily drowned. 
*A tradition known as "burning the witches" persisted in the Scottish Highlands into the 18th century. young men took bits of the burning Beltane bonfires onto pitchforks. They then ran through the fields shouting "Fire! Fire! Burn the witches!" The fire is scattered through the fields to enhance their fecundity-which in fact, it does. 

The joyful aspects of Beltane have been incorporated into contemporary Wicca. Aspects of the festival devoted to the sun, human sexuality, and the regeneration of life and magickal power are emphasized.  


*Credit to Judika Illes

Witchcraft: The Wheel of the Year

The seasonal shifts and holidays are extremely important. The Wheel of the Year is celebrated though ritual holidays falling on the equinoxes, solstices, and points in-between called fire festivals. The modern Wheel is a collection of rites taken from European lineages, primarily Celtic and Teutonic. The modern Wheel tells the story of the Goddess and God, through many faces and myths, as they grow and change through the season of the year. The changing season help Wiccans get into immediate contact with deity, harmonizing them with the world. (In later postings I will address each holiday in its own post.)

The winter solstice, also called Yule, is when the Sun's light starts to grow. Cultures across the Northern Hemisphere saw it as the birth of the Young God. Many of the familiar Christmas celebrations were taken from Yule, including mistletoe, Yule logs, and decorating evergreen trees with lights, a symbol of the everlasting Goddess and the return of the God of Light. Although still deep in winter, the light and life are returning to the world. 

Imbolc comes on February 2nd, a fire festival often dedicated to the goddess Brid, or Bridget. Brid is the triple goddess of light, and a patron of the home, healers, poets, and smiths. Some compare her to the Greek goddess Hestia, the goddess of the home and hearth. Candles are lit and homes are blessed. Advent wreaths are a remnant of Brid's crown of candles. Imbolc is sometimes known as Candle-mas.

Ostra, the spring equinox, is the celebration of the Goddess rising and the Earth's resurrection. She returns from her winter slumber and brings with her the first signs of spring. The festival is names after the Teutonic goddess Ostre, the egg or see goddess. Blessing and planting seeds and painting eggs are part of these traditions. Although names after Ostre, the Greek myth of Persephone rising from the realm of the dead to usher in the growing season with her mother, Demeter, also resonates on the equinox. 

Beltane is the first festival of May 1st. Traditionally, herds were driven between two large bale fires of sacred wood to purify them of any lingering winter illness. Modern purification rites, both with fire and water, are performed on Beltane. It is dedicated to the young, fiery god Bel. The God has grown from the winter solstice into a young man, and claims his role as the Goddess' lover. Sexuality and passion are enjoyed on Beltane, and May Pole dances are traditional, representing the union of the God into the Earth Goddess.

The summer solstice, or Feast of Litha,is the divine marriage of Goddess and God. They are at the peak of their power, as the land is in full bloom and the harvest is expected. The day is the longest of the year, giving us an extended period of twilight, when the doors to the faery realm are open wide and we may celebrate with the spirits of the other-world. Some traditions see this holiday as the battle of the divided light and dark aspects of the God. The dark king is victorious, claiming the throne with the Goddess. 

Lammas, the fire festival of August 1st. In the Irish traditions it is known as Lughnassadh, after Lugh of the Long Arm, a god of light and grain. His talents are many and unequaled. Games and sports are played on this feast. Though originally names Lugh's Funeral Feast, after his mother's death, it is now associated with Lugh's own death, as the scarified king of the grain. Corn-dolly effigies are burned and the first grains of the harvest are cut and given as an offering to the gods in thanks. The sacrifice of the old God ushers in the bounty of the first harvest. 

The second harvest is the fruit or wine harvest on the fall equinox. Named after the Celtic god Mabon, who gets lost in the Underworld, this is a time to journey to the dark. Wine is one of the ways to open the magickal passages between realms. Myths of other harvest gods, particular those associated with wine, such as Dionysus, are celebrated. 

Samhain is the traditional meat harvest and the Celtic New Year. Falling on October 31st, it has been turned into modern Halloween, but was a very important pagan festival. Samhain is the day of the dead. This was the day when the first of the herd was slaughtered, opening the veils between the worlds. Since the day is one of death, ancestors who have passed on are associated with it, coming back through the veil to give blessings and advice. Soul meals are prepared for the dead, goodbyes are said to lost loved ones, and candles are lit to mark their way back. Eventually this thinning of the veil became a fearful event, and costumes were worn to scare away the walkers between the worlds, though originally it was a normal part of the culture, with no fear or dread. 

These eight festivals are called Sabbats, thought the individual traditions celebrated them differently. The term harkens back to the Burning Times, to the Hebrews Sabbath, when witches and Jews alike were prosecuted as heretics. Modern witches have adopted the word. An Esbat refers to another type of ritual, usually a Moon ritual. Esbats are typically private circles, for covens, small groups who work magick together. Community and family are usually welcome to the Sabbaths, which are more celebratory in nature. With Esbats, the goal is working magick in an intimate setting. Esbats usually coincide with the Full or Dark Moon. Witches celebrate the 13 Moons of the lunar year. The term circle is sometimes used synonymously with Esbat, or with a group of practitioners, but a circle specifically refers to the ritual of the circle, a ceremony of celebration and magick called a witch's circle, moon circle, or magician's circle. Circles are cast in both Esbats and Sabbats or any other magickal event, depending on the tradition. 

Life rituals, or rites of passage, are marked along with the holidays. Like tribal people, pagans mark turning points in life with ceremony or ritual. Traditions are individual, but usually birth, coming of age, hand-fasting (marriage), elder-hood, and death are celebrated. 




*Credit to Christopher Penczak

Stereotypes of Witches

All witches do not wear black! I don't always wear black, actually, I wear a lot of pinks and red. Which in due time I will address colors and what their meaning is and what effect it has on spells, daily life, others, etc. But, black is appropriate for ritual because it is a dark goddess color, and it attracts energy. Rituals are celebrated at night for the same reasons, though many take place during the day as well, depending on the tradition. Witches can feel empowered to wear black outside of the ritual space, but wearing black is not a requirement. Black and late evening rituals were also practical during the Burning Times. If you were afraid of getting caught, black cloaks would hide you at night in the forest from prospective witch hunters. Black is also the color of clergy, used by priests and rabbis. Perhaps they adopted that practice from witches...

Witches DO NOT perform animal sacrifices, thought it may have been a part of our distant history, as it was in Judaism and many other religions. Many Wiccans are animal right activists and environmentalists, subscribing to a theory of "harm ye none". Witches DO NOT abuse children in or our of ritual as part of their faith, nor do we perform curses or hexes. 

Witches and other pagans do believe in and practice magick. Magick is the art of making change, manifesting your dreams, and banishing the things that no longer serve you and hold you back. Though the effects can be quite startling and powerful, magick usually manifests in the form of  unusual coincidences and connections. The first time you have success with magick, and even the second or third time, you might dismiss it. After repeated successes, however, you know you are no longer working with the fabled "Law of Averages", and that some other forces, namely magic, is at work. Magick is usually spelled with a k by modern practitioners, to distinguish it from illusion and sleight of hand tricks. 

Spells, specific acts of magick, can be created through ritual or meditation. To a witch, spells are like prayers. They are simple acts of sending out an intention to the divine, asking it to manifest. The difference between spells and prayers is that witches study the nature of the universe to understand better how to create change. Many people who pray think it is a give and take process, where one has to give up something "sinful" to receive the boon of the prayer. Though there is always an exchange of energies, witches know that the universe is ever abundant. 

We do not label ourselves white or black witches, as was done in the Burning Times. Though the distinction of white and black magick can still be found in the initial lessons of high ritual magick, most modern witches do not subscribe to it. Magick is ruled by intention. 


*Credit to Christopher Penczak

The Weaver

The words witch and witchcraft evoke a sense of humanity's mystical past and a hope for the future. Whenever someone, individual or culture, sought to understand spirit through the cycles of life, honored the divine as being both masculine and feminine, recognize the Earth and sky, quieted themselves enough to hear the soft inner whisper, and took an active partnership with nature, they were practicing witchcraft. It is only through an unfortunate period of history that the words witch and witchcraft became maligned. 

The most important aspect of this tradition is the individual's sovereignty. Each practitioner is his or her own priest or priestess. Teachers, elders, and healers are respected and can help you on the path, but ultimately witchcraft is about your own personal, individual relationship with the divine. through such training you have the ability to perform your own spiritual rituals and seek guidance. We have the last word on what is correct and good for us, as well as the responsibility of living with those decisions. 

The eclectic witch borrows from many cultures. These cultures do not necessarily have to be Celtic or even European to be a part of the modern craft, even though some traditionalists feel that witchcraft is exclusively Celtic. We come from a tradition filled with the mysteries of the past, but now witchcraft generally encourages one to find the path that works for the individual. All our other "hats"-healer, therapist, herbalist, shaman, mother, brother, priest, priestess, environmentalist, counselor, researcher, writer, psychic, and teacher-all fit nicely under the "hat" of witch, for witches are all these things, too. The path of the witch is truly the path of knowledge and, more importantly, wisdom. It changes and adapts as new information is discovered. Witchcraft is a living religion. 


*Credit to Christopher Penczak

The Walker

Witch can also be defined as "a walker between the worlds". Due to a revival of interest in Native American practices, many people associate the shaman with the medicine man of a tribal people. Shamans are spiritual leaders, but that is not the entire picture. The term originated in Siberia, but has been applied to native practices throughout the Americas and more loosely to practices across the world. The shaman believes in nonphysical, spiritual realms and learns to send his or her spirit to such realms. In these worlds, one can retrieve information and healing energy, and commune with spirits. The shaman ministers to his or her people through the ability, to effect healing of the mind, body, and spirit. 

Witches, too, believe in nonphysical realms. They believe in the physical and a multitude of spiritual dimensions. Witches hone their abilities to pierce the veil and travel to these dimensions, where they speak with goddesses, gods, and spirits. Like the shamans, they are expected to remain grounded in the material world with responsibilities to their people, yet keep one foot ever ready to enter the spiritual world. They are bridges between worlds, seeking to bring their people into greater partnership with the divine. The native people in Siberia and the Americas remained more tribal and retained a certain amount of reverence for these shamans, even in the modern era. As the European people became less tribal, they stamped out their very own shamanic traditions, the practices of the witch. That fear of spiritual power, of the unknown, of mysteries in a culture with a growing patriarchy, turned the image of the witch from a priestess and healer into a monster of the night. 

*Credit to Christopher Penczak

Animism

The word "animism" was coined by the English anthropologist Sir Edward Tylor, generally acknowledged as the "father of anthropology". Tylor gave this name to what was perceived as the earliest phase of magical and religious thinking, deriving it from the Greek "anima" meaning "soul". According to Tylor, prehistoric humans believed that every person, creature, and object - everything-had a soul, was animated, and hence the name animism. That Sir Tylor did not identify or particularly empathize with the human subjects of his research is apparent by the words he chose to describe them: "savages" and "rude races". 

Animism was perceived as a backward, primitive, uncivilized, unenlightened belief: the lowest rung on the ladder to civilization. That said, if one can cut through the thickest of value judgments, Tylor came very close to defining what might be understood as magical perception: the vision of the world that makes shamanism, witchcraft, and magical practices possible and desirable. 

In this vision, everything is alive, continually interacts and can potentially communicate, if it so chooses, if it can be so compelled and, most crucially, if you can understand. There is no such things as an inanimate object. Because you cannot hear or understand them doesn't mean that rocks, wind, trees, and objects are not communication or cannot communicate. The shaman can hear, the shaman can understand, and maybe most importantly, the shaman can hold up her end in a dialogue. 

The shaman, sorcerer or witch is the person who desires this knowledge and/or shows personal aptitude for this type of communication. This aptitude is invaluable and may have been crucial to the survival, success, and proliferation of the human species. Creation stories tend to end with that magical act of creation. 

Science posits a lengthy trial and error period. Conventional shamanic wisdom suggests that those animated plants, animals, and substances identified themselves and explained their gifts and dangers in a manner comprehensible to the shaman, who served as their medium to the greater human community. Animals, humans' elder siblings, taught us healing, hunting, and basic living skills. This type of shamanism still exists, although it is as endangered as the rain-forests in which it is now largely centered. 










*Credit to Judika Illes