Saturday March 20, 2021 is Spring Equinox.
Time to celebrate Spring!
Dance a jig, say a prayer, light a candle,
make an offering to Gaia, sing to the trees…
Offer gratitude to Mama Earth.
Celebrate the turning of the seasons.
Spring is here.
🌱
#season #growth #rebirth
#grateful #wheeloftheyear #ritual
#joy #flowers #celebrate
#honor #sacredearth
#balance
in the belly
of the mother
seeds are stirring
shhh, listen.
life is awakening
in the body of her
the sacred wheel
turns toward spring.
~Nancy Lankston
There is natural magic afoot right now. It is there, running just beneath the surface. Can you feel it? All winter long, Mama Earth holds the seeds of spring safe for us. As the cold wind blows and the snow piles up, the Mother holds them safe in her soil body.
Then, in early February, as the wheel of the year slowly turns towards spring, the seeds begin to stir. Life is reawakening in the ground of the Mother. Imbolc has quietly arrived.
Imbolc was a ritual feast time for the ancient Celtic tribes. Their legends tell us of the Cailleach — the divine hag Goddess who rules over winter and death. The Cailleach is said to gather firewood for the rest of the winter on Imbolc. If the Cailleach wishes to make winter last a lot longer, she will make sure that the weather on Imbolc is bright and sunny, so she can gather plenty of firewood. But, if Imbolc is a day of foul weather, it means the Cailleach is asleep and winter is almost over. This is the origin of modern Groundhog Day.
The Cailleach is the sacred Earth Mother Goddess in her bare winter form. She is is also the Bone Mother who collects the bones of the animals that die in the winter. The Bone Mother sings and prays over the bones of the animals all winter long. She does this out of love, so that the animals will cross over and be able to return as new life in the spring.
Celebrate!
Spring is on its way.
Note: Imbolc means “in the belly”. It is an old Irish word that honors the pregnant ewes carrying new life in their wombs at this time of year. Imbolc is traditionally celebrated at the halfway point between winter solstice and spring equinox.
Winter Solstice is upon us in the northern hemisphere.
Our Earth has reached a transition point in its journey around the Sun (far right in the graphic above). Here in the north, our days have been getting shorter and shorter since summer. But now, the light begins to return to us. Our days will gradually lengthen and lighten until Summer Solstice in June (far left in the graphic).
At Winter Solstice, our ancestors paused to celebrate this seasonal shift and the return of life giving sunlight. Now is a time for earthy rituals.
Light a candle, say a prayer, walk in nature and offer our Earth and Sun gratitude for the alchemical magic of sunlight, water and soil that sustains us all.
🌞🌎
#CyclesandSeasons
#ReturnoftheLight
Image: Wikipedia
And now, the dark half of the year begins in the north.
Ancient Celtic tribes celebrated Samhain (pronounced sow-in) to mark this auspicious time. Samhain, or summer’s end, is a celebration of life. The last of the harvest has been gathered. The bounty of Mama Earth will bless and nourish us all winter.
The Celts believed that the veils between the worlds grow thin at this time of year, making it easier to connect with loved ones who have crossed over into the land of the dead. This is the ideal time to honor and celebrate our ancestors.
As you enter into the dark half of the year, pause. Offer love and gratitude to Mama Earth for the water, food and shelter she provides. Say a prayer for any loved ones who have moved beyond this world.
Celebrate Life.
🎃🍎🌽🥦🍞🎃
Image: Wendy Andrews
The autumnal equinox has arrived in the northern hemisphere. At the time of the equinox, light and dark find balance. Even here in the Rockies, day and night are of equal length for a little while. And the leaves put on a fiery show before winter descends.
This is the perfect time to offer a prayer of gratitude to Earth and Sky; gratitude for the comforting rhythms of our cyclic seasons; autumn follows summer just as surely as night follows day.
Get out in Nature now. Ask Mama Earth and Papa Sky to show you how to find balance and equanimity in the midst of all the chaos and change washing over the planet right now.
Thank you beautiful Earth and Sky for the oxygen, water, food and shelter you provide that make life possible. Thank you, thank you, thank you.
“We are all thankful to our Mother, the Earth, for she gives us all that we need for life. She supports our feet as we walk about upon her. It gives us joy that she continues to care for us as she has from the beginning of time. To our mother, we send greetings and thanks…”
~Haudenosaunee Tribe Thanksgiving Address excerpt
☀️
Early August is when the first grain is harvested all over the northern hemisphere. And Sun God Lughnasadh gives his name to the harvest festivals that used to take place at this time in the ancient Celtic lands of Northern Europe.
The celebration of Lughnasadh typically involved the ritual cutting of grain and the making of bread. The people also came together to feast, sing and dance in honor of the harvest that would nourish them through the long cold winter ahead.
Take a few moments this weekend to celebrate this time of harvest. Go outside. Express your gratitude to Earth and Sky for creating the nourishing bounty that feeds all life on this planet.
🌎❤️
#WheeloftheYear
#Lughnasadh
#GiveThanks