In  love, the Horned God, changing form and changing face,  ever seeks the Goddess. In this world, the search and the seeking appear in the Wheel of the Year.  She is the Great Mother who gives birth to Him as the Divine Child Sun at the Winter Solstice.  In Spring, He is sower and seed who grows with the growing light, green as the new shoots. She is the Initiatrix  who teaches Him the mysteries. He is the young bull; She the nymph,seductress.  In  summer, when light is longest, they meet in union, and the strength of their passion sustains the world. But the God's face darkens as the sun grows weaker, until at last, when the grain is cut for harvest, He too sacrifices Himself that all may be nourished. She is the reaper, the grave of earth to which all must return. Throughout the long nights and darkening days, He sleeps in her womb; in dreams, He is Lord of Death who rules the Land of Youth beyond the gates of  night and day.His dark tomb becomes the womb of rebirth, for at Midwinter She again gives birth to Him.

The cycle ends and begins again, and the Wheel of the Year turns, on and on.
 ~ from the oral Faery Tradition
 

The above 'tale' is not the only way to look at the eight Sabbats of the Witches calendar, also known as the Wheel of the Year.  (But it is a good *short* version!) Although I will be creating a new, separate page for each Sabbat, I also have gathered here some good background information for you to ponder.  Mike Nichols' Introduction to the Sabbats is a good place to begin.  As well, his Eight Sabbats is available in both the original (long) version and a ZIP file for you to download.

I have created a collection of Sabbat Correspondences for you to peruse, as well as having gathered two poems -- 'The Wheel of the Year' and 'The grass was no longer green' -- for you to read to get a slightly different perspective on the Wheel.

 More than anything else, I would urge you to experience the Wheel of the Year for yourself. Go outside, play in the crunchy leaves, throw snowballs, and get wet. Taste the crisp air, eat the foods of the Harvest, celebrate the wondrous event of your family and loved ones.  Mourn the passing of the Dead.  Light candles against the Dark, smell the daffodils as they poke up through the new grass.  Go for walks in the rain, bask in the sun.  Watch the leaves fall ...

in love,
Lady Maat
 

"Wheel of the Year" illustration by Joseph A. Smith
(from the book "Witches" by Erica Jong

Lammas/Lughnasahd
Mabon (Fall Equinox)
Samhain
Yule (Winter Solstice)
Imbolc
Ostara (Spring Equinox)
Beltaine
Litha (Summer Solstice)