Samhain (pronounced sow-in), which means “summer’s end”, is the final of three harvest festivals and is the beginning of the Wheel of the Year. It is also the origin of the name Halloween (we’ll get back to that in a moment). In the Celtic calendar there are 8 high holy days that revolve around nature […]
Mabon: Fall Equinox and the Wisdom in the Dark
Mabon (pronounced may-bon), also known as the Fall Equinox, is the second harvest festival of the Celtic calendar. In the Celtic calendar there are 8 high holy days that revolve around nature festivals. Mabon is a quarter festival – along with Ostara (Spring Equinox), Litha (Summer Solstice), and Yule (Winter Solstice) – that mark the […]
Happy Lammas! First Harvest Seasonal Wisdom
Today Nature takes a subtle seasonal shift with the little known pivot point to First Harvest, also known as Lammas (pronounced lah-mass). What the heck? Fall Equinox is 6 weeks away, you might protest, but this is something that summer worshipers don’t care to admit: Solstice has come and gone, and though summer is at its […]
Litha: Summer Solstice Ancient Origins + Seasonal Wisdom
Summer Solstice, meaning “sun standing still”, is the climax point in the Wheel of the Year. Summer Solstice is called Litha and is one of the quarter festivals – along with Mabon (Fall Equinox), Yule (Winter Solstice), and Ostara (Spring Equinox) – of the Celtic calendar with the cross-quarter festivals of Imbolc, Beltane, Lammas, and Samhain celebrated in between. Litha […]
Beltane: Fire Fertility Festival + Ancient Seasonal Wisdom
Seasonal wisdom shifts our attention to Beltane (pronounced bell-tain as in “rain”), a spring fertility festival. It celebrates the quickening fires of the coming summer and is the midpoint between Ostara (Spring Equinox) and Litha (Summer Solstice). In the Celtic calendar there are 8 high holy days that involve nature festivals. It includes the equinoxes and solstices […]