Springing Foward

this article originally appeared in The Fellowship Journal of UUFLB in March of 2005.

The coming of March heralds the Spring. Long has the Earth slept in the cold, and now it is finally the Springtime. The Goddess is the Maiden, as all that she touches starts to bloom again. Day and night are equal at this equinox, and the coming days grow ever longer as we continue on the spiral towards the Summer. The first flowers are praised and the God and Goddess thanked for the true return to happier times for all.

This holiday is named for the German Goddess Eostre, the Goddess of Fertility. Her symbols were the egg and the rabbit. She is also the goddess of purity, beauty, and new life beginnings. The God is also in his prime this time of the year, as the young animals grow. One traditional way Ostara can be celebrated is by collecting wild flowers and pondering their meaning. There are numerous books printed on the magickal meanings of flowers and herbs.

Some people like to wear very bright clothes, with lots of flowers in their hair and around their houses, and lots of accessories and decorations. Many take this time to actually plant seeds in their gardens, while others only plant figurative seeds that will come to bloom later. Some like to decorate and eat eggs.

At Imbolc, plans might have been made for the future, now is the time to put them in motion. This is a time of beginnings, action, planting, and of tending the gardens. The green buds that were pushing their way through the snow in February are now bursting with life.

This is a time of transition, and the weeks before and after the Equinoxes can be stressful, brining everything in to balance. ight is gaining, as is life, for this new season about to start.

Other Spring celebrations use the same symbols of life and rebirth. The egg is commonly dyed and decorated on Easter, which also celebrates the rebirth, or resurrection, of Jesus. Passover, celebrated most years near the Equinox, has as one of its symbols an egg, again to celebrate rebirth and the Spring. In fact, eggs are one of the oldest symbols of spring, and in Ancient China, Rome and Greece, eggs were given as Springtime gifts.

See you Sunday,

Trys

Sources:

* Holidays, by Akasha: The Celtic Connection

* Ivy’s Pentacles; Ostara Fact Sheet

* The Pagan Wheel of the Year

uploaded 3 mar 05

Wheel of the Year Series