Wheel of the Celtic Year

The Wheel of the Celtic Year is marked by four great festivals that indicate the turning points of the seasons: Samhain, Imbolc, Beltane and Lughnasadh.

Long ago, when our ancestors experienced their lives intricately woven with Earth's cycles,

these magical thresholds between the worlds were celebrated by colorful customs and rituals, stories, songs and music.

The wisdom of the Wheel of the Year can liberate us from our modern linear model of time, reminding us that death yields to life again and again.

By actively participating in these natural cycles today, we can attune ourselves to the creative forces that flow through us, and learn how to live in harmony and balance with ourselves and with the Earth

The four festivals and our tokens to community:

=Morrigan's Rose=

Morrigan is a goddess of battle, strife, and fertility. Her name translates as "Great Queen" or "Specter Queen". She is often linked with the death portent faery, which was seen washing the armor of soldiers who would perish in the upcoming battle. She is also known as the Goddess of rivers, lakes, and fresh water. During our Festival of Samhain we honor Morrigan, the Patroness of priestesses and witches, by giving out to community a flower that remind us prophecy, magic, wisdom and respect to those who has passed away.

=Brighid's wreath=

During Imbolc Festival, Brighid the Mother steps aside so that Brighid the Maiden can assume ... It is at sunrise on Imbolc that the Holly wreath of Yule is replaced by three ears of corn as a symbol of the tripart Goddesses return to the world of man. The term Imbolc means "in the belly". Just as a woman in the early months of pregnancy does not display the new life within her for all to see, so does the apparently barren Earth nurture life within her soil, awaiting the right time to bring forth new life.

=Beltane's Fire=

When the Druids raise the Beltane fires on hilltops throughout the lands on May Eve, they are performing a real act of magic, for the fires are lit in order to bring the sun`s light down to earth. Druids give out Beltane's candles to everyone in our community, so they can proclaim the triumph on the light over the dark half of the year.

=Taltius Herb=

The Taltius herb is our gift to community during Festival of Lughnassadh, the harvest festival. The festival takes its name from the Irish god Lugh. He is seen as a bridge between human and the divine worlds. Lugh dedicated the festival to his foster-mother, Taltiu, the last queen of the Fir Bolg, who died from exhaustion after clearing a great forest so that the land could be cultivated. When celtic men gathered at her death-bed, she told them to hold funeral games in her honor. During Lughnasadh artists and entertainers display their talents, there are much storytelling, music, and high-spirited revelry. This is also an occasion for handfasting or trial marriages.

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Druid Elder