The Parsley Patch

As the Winter Solstice occurs, the Celtic festival of Yule begins. As the sun passes a halfway mark in the celestial heavens, it is essentially being reborn into a new cycle of life, growing brighter and stronger every day until the Summer Solstice. Bonfires would be lit and a giant Yule log wassailed and set a light in hopes the sun would be reignited to rise higher and brighter in the sky, banishing the cold Winter.

The Celtic festival of Samhain is one of the oldest and most important. It marks the end of one year and the beginning of the new. As the final of three harvest festivals, it is also the start of the winter season. During this special time of transition the veil between worlds is thinnest and the ancestors are able to return to visit their loved ones. So strongly rooted in the old world was this festival that the church could not abolish its observance, but instead incorporated it into Christian doctrine as All Hallow’s Eve, a time to honor the dead.

To us summer is just beginning, but to the ancient Celts who saw the year as divided solely between summer and winter, we have reached the mid-point of summer and so celebrate Midsummer. It falls on the Summer Solstice, the longest day of the year. The sun now high over head is at the height of its power. For several days it may appear to stand still, but shortly begins waning as the days begin to grow shorter.

Beltane, one or the four greater festivals of the year occurs on May 1st. Deriving its name from the Celtic fire god Bel, it was when “bael” or bonfires were lit to purify and insure the fertility of the land. People jumped the flames for luck and prosperity and cattle were driven between two fires so they too were blessed.

The festival of Ostara falls on the first day of spring, the Vernal Equinox. It’s a time when light and dark are perfectly balanced. On this day it is said an egg can be balanced upright on a flat surface! Drawing its name from the Germanic (Anglo-Saxon) goddess Eostre, it’s when the rebirth and prosperity of the land are celebrated. Eostre’s name, and many customs associated with her, can be seen in much of modern Christian and secular tradition surrounding Easter.

Winter is soon to come to end when Imbolc (Gaelic meaning ewe’s milk) occurs on February 1st. After a long, hard winter, the first signs of spring are born in birthing sheep and the first feeding of the infant lambs. It was said that the goddess Brigit traveled the countryside with her companion, a red-eared white cow, to unveil her mantle of green across the land at this time.

Mabon, the second of three Celtic harvest festivals takes place on the Autumnal equinox. It’s a time of balance as light and dark are equal. But from this point light dwindles as the cold, dark days of winter approach. This is a time of great celebration and thanksgiving for all the good that has come from the year.

As summer begins to wane we come upon the first of three harvest festivals. In Celtic lands the festival of Lughnasadh was held around the 1st of August. The festival takes its name from the Celtic deity, Lugh – a sun god of many talents. He was aptly called The Many Skilled. The celebration began originally to honor his mother who died toiling to clear land for cultivation. Not one to want people to mourn her, she decreed that games should be held in her honor.