The Wheel of the Year

Samhain is the beginning of the Celtic New Year and a farewell to the old.  Just as the day is said to begin at sunset, Samhain is the gateway through fall to winter, the dark time.  On September 21, the day and night become equal in length and the days thereafter begin to shorten quickly.  40 days later on November 1, the days have become quite short and the “dark time” has arrived.

Traditionally the night of Samhain, just like Beltane, is a night where the veil between worlds is thinnest and influences can penetrate from one into the other.  Where Beltane is associated with birth though, Samhain is associated with death. For those who believe in reincarnation, this is the death which precedes life, just like night precedes day.

In our practice, Samhain is the moment when the God who was sacrificed at Lughnasadh finally passes into the Otherworld in a mirror of his passage into this world via birth at Beltane after his fertilization at Imbolc.  

In ancient Egypt abn aloë vera was planted after the death of the pharaoh so when it flourished it was seen as the first sign that the pharaoh had arrived at Osiris (Sirius). Thus, the time between Lughnasadh and Samhain is the time between the physical death and the arrival of the soul in the other world. Samhain is one of the three Harvest Festivals.

Yule is the time when the noon day Sun is at the lowest point in the southern sky and the hours of light are shortest.  The point of sunrise is the most south-eastern and the point of sunset most south-western. It is the shortest day and the longest night.  From now on the days will become longer and the Sun will again climb higher in the sky. We feel that every minor Sabbat holds a promise of what is about to happen in nature as seen in the major Sabbat to follow.  Yule is the promise of fertilization at Imbolc, which will eventually lead to birth at Beltane. 

In northern Germanic traditions, Yule was a feat of particular importance, because it was the first sign that the days were no longer going to shorten, and that the Finbul (winter) would slowly end, announcing that the feared Ragnarok was yet to come.

About 40 days following the shortest day of the year, the coldest average day will occur.  From this point forward the days will slowly become warm again. Imbolc is the feast of conception.  For the Celts it was the goddess Brigid who played the lead role in this festival. In one of the Irish-Celtic creation myths the first Oak was created from the fertile waters of Danu and the first divine couple, Dagda and Brigid, out of two acorns.

We celebrate with Imbolc the fertilization of Brigid.  In nature it is the time when the Earth is again plowed and fertilized.  The dark period that began with Samhain is now finally over. In Greek myths the period between Samhain and Imbolc was the period when Persephone dwelt in the underworld under Hades rule.  At Imbolc the goddess returns to her mother Demeter and the realm of the living becomes fertile again. The Scottish Celtic tradition designate nine “light” months ruled over by Brigid and three “dark” months ruled over by Cailleach.  Another meaning for Imbolc is sometimes translated as “in the belly.”

The Spring (or Vernal) Equinox is the point at which the lengthening day has finally matched the night.  The Sun now rises exactly in the east and sets exactly in the west, traveling in a perfect 180° degree arc through the sky.  After Ostara the Sun will rise further and further towards the north until the arrival of the longest day, Litha. We feel that Yule gives the promise of conception which is realized at Imbolc; the Vernal Equinox is the promise of birth which will be realized at Beltane.  

The English word “Easter” is derived from the name of the goddess Ostara.  Eggs have long been symbols of the promise of birth. The hare is a symbol of the coming of new life, the explosion of which we see at Beltane.

40 days after Ostara nature sees an explosion of new life: Everything is in bloom ,buds burst and the trees get new leaves.  As Samhain announced winter, so Beltane announces summer. As Samhain is the feast of the dead, Beltane is the feast of new life.  For us Beltane is the feast which celebrates the birth of the new god into this world. Because the gods are not people, this new god is also immediately mature, symbolizing youth and the awakening of adulthood.

In the Irish-Celtic tradition it is the god of love, Angus Og.  The word “Of” means “youth.” Beltane was the time of year when young couples would first go to the forest to love.  The Celtic name “Beltane” is usually translated as “the fires of Belenos.” Belenos or Beli, which in the Irish-Celtic tradition is known as Bile, is the god of the underworld or known as the “Dark Sun.”

Litha is the moment of the longest day and the shortest night, the polar opposite of Yule.  Sunrise and sunset have now reached their most northern point and the position of the sun at noon is the highest in the southern sky.  One could even imagine the god and goddess of Beltane as two young lovers. In our practice, Litha is the moment when the god accepts his responsibilities.  He must close the sacred marriage with the goddess, she who is the land to which he is the sun. 

In ancient Rome, the month of May was a time for love, but marriage was taboo; June was the time for weddings and closing contracts.  The inclusion of that responsibility is also an acknowledgement of the sacrifice that will be called for come Lughnasadh. 

49 days after the longest day follows the hottest average day of the year...from now on it will slowly become colder.  We celebrate Lughnasadh as the feast of sacrifice. Already the days grow shorter and, in order to make room for the next cycle of fertility and birth, the god must be on his way to the Otherworld.  He will arrive there at Samhain, to fertilize the goddess come Imbolc so a new god can be born at Beltane.

In nature this is the beginning of the grain harvest.  The peasants scythe cuts the “head” from the stalks of corn, and the corn god sacrifices his life. The god is a sacrifice of himself, to himself.  Lughnasadh makes up the beginning of the “Death Cycle” of the god. The wound inflicted here will lead to the physical death at the Autumnal Equinox before the crossing of the veil that happens at Samhain.  

The nights are getting longer again and will soon overtake the day.  Day and night are equally long in this moment. The sun now rises exactly in the east and sets exactly in the west, making an arc of 180° degrees across the sky.  After this point the sun will continue to rise further and further to the south until the shortest day of the year at Yule. 

In our practice, Litha is the promise of the sacrifice that occurs at Lughnasadh.  The Autumnal Equinox is the promise of the arrival of the soul in the Otherworld which will happen at Samhain.  This moment of balancetransitioning into darkness is also the promise that the soul will reach the Otherworld on Samhain. The celebration of this Equinox as a holy day is recent, with its introduction coming with the early traditions of Wicca.