A Celebration of May Day -- Mike Nichols'
article
Irish Fire Festivals: Beltaine -- and you thought
the day was all about love and sex and playing?
Holiday Folklore: Beltaine -- more lore
and information
Beltane: Its History and Modern Celebration in Wicca in America
-- a well-researched article from Rowan Moonstone
Creating a Beltane Garden -- from Scott Cunningham
A small group of Myths and Stories
Beltane is the last of the three spring fertility festivals, and the
second major Celtic festival.
Beltane, and its counterpart Samhain, divide the year into its two
primary seasons: Winter and
Summer. Beltane joyfully heralds the arrival of summer in full garb.
It is said that if you bathe
in the dew of Beltane morn, your beauty will flourish throughout the
year.
Beltane literally means "fire of Bel". Bel is the known as the bright
and shinning one. On the eve
of Beltane the Celts build two large fires, created from the nine sacred
woods. In the honor of
summer they were lit, and the herds were ritually driven between them,
to purify and protect
the herds. The fires celebrate the return of life and fruitfulness
to the earth. Celebration
includes frolicking throughout the countryside, dancing the Maypole,
leaping over fires, and to
"go a maying".
Beltane marks the handfasting (wedding) of the Goddess and God, the
reawakening of the
earth's fertility in its fullest. This is the union between the Great
Mother and her Young Horned
God. This coupling brings new life on earth. It is the unifying of
the Divine Masculine and the
Divine Feminine to bring forth the third, consciousness.
May is the month of sensuality and sexuality revitalized, the reawakening
of the earth and Her
Children. It is the time when we reawaken to the vivid colors, vibrant
scents, tingling summer
breezes, the rapture of summer after a long dormant winter.
It is customary that Handfastings, for a year and a day, occur at this
time. These are the trial
marriages, that typically occur between a couple before deciding to
embark on life eternal. It
was understood by our ancestors that one does not really know another
until they live with them,
and things change. With this understanding unions were entered upon,
first as a test period, and
then a further commitment. Always knowing that it is only through the
choice of both to remain,
can the relationship exist.
Beltane brings our brightest hopes for the future. Hopes of love, prosperity,
friendship and
peace. As we dance among the glorious scented flowers, feeling the
fresh dew covered grass on
our feet, our thoughts wander through our lives and love blessing us
with their wondrous gifts
of ecstasy.
Also called: May Eve, May Day, Walspurgis Night
dates: April 30, early May
colors: rainbow spectrum, blue, green, pastels, all colors
tools: Maypole & ribbons, flower crowns, fires, bowers, fields
energy: youthful play, exhuberance, sensuality, pleasure
goddesses: May Queen, Flora
gods: May King, Jack in the Green
rituals: love, romance, fertility, crop blessings, creativity endeavors
customs: dancing Maypole, jumping fire, mating, flower baskets