†
Or, as the Hawaiians would term them, the four thousand gods, the forty thousand gods, and the four hundred thousand gods. “Gods” here refers to deities and semi-divine beings of both genders.
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Nine is a number of the Goddess.
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Some Wiccans—particularly those reclaiming women’s spirituality—may also place a labrys (double-headed axe) there as well. The labrys is symbolic of the phases of the moon and of the Goddess. It was extensively used in Crete.
IN THE PAST,
when people lived with nature, the turning of the seasons and the monthly cycle of the moon had a profound impact on religious ceremonies. Because the moon was seen as a symbol of the Goddess, ceremonies of adoration and magic took place in its light. The coming of winter, the first stirrings of spring, the warm summer, and the advent of fall were also marked with rituals.
The Wiccans, heirs of the pre-Christian folk religions of Europe, still celebrate the full moon and observe the changing of the seasons. The Wiccan religious calendar contains thirteen full moon celebrations and eight sabbats or days of power.
Four of these days (or, more properly, nights) are determined by the solstices and equinoxes,
*
the astronomical beginnings of the seasons. The other four ritual occasions are based on old folk festivals (and, to some extent, those of the ancient Middle East). The rituals give structure and order to the Wiccan year, and also remind us of the endless cycle that will continue long after we’re gone.
Four of the sabbats—perhaps those that have been observed for the longest time—were probably associated with agriculture and the bearing cycles of animals. These are
Imbolc
(February 2),
Beltane
(April 30),
Lughnasadh
(August 1), and
Samhain
(October 31). These names are Celtic and are quite common among Wiccans, though many others exist.
When careful observation of the skies led to common knowledge of the astronomical year, the solstices and equinoxes (circa March 21, June 21, September 21, and December 21; the actual dates vary from year to year) were brought into this religious structure.
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Who first began worshipping and raising energy at these times? That question can’t be answered. These sacred days and nights, however, are the origins of the twenty-one Wiccan ritual occasions.
Many of these survive today in both secular and religious forms. May Day celebrations,Halloween, Groundhog Day, and even Thanksgiving, to name some popular American holidays, are all connected with ancient pagan worship. Heavily Christianized versions of the sabbats have also been preserved within the Catholic Church.
The sabbats are solar rituals, marking the points of the sun’s yearly cycle, and are but half of the Wiccan ritual year. The esbats are the Wiccan full moon celebrations. At this time we gather to worship She Who Is. Not that Wiccans omit the God at esbats—both are usually revered on all ritual occasions.
There are twelve to thirteen full moons yearly, or one every twenty-eight days. The moon is a symbol of the Goddess as well as a source of energy. Thus, after the religious aspects of the esbats, Wiccans often practice magic, tapping into the larger amounts of energy that are thought to exist at these times.
Some of the old pagan festivals, stripped of their once sacred qualities by the dominance of Christianity, have degenerated. Samhain seems to have been taken over by candy manufacturers in the United States, while Yule has been transformed from one of the most holy pagan days to a time of gross commercialism. Even the later echoes of a Christian savior’s birth are hardly audible above the electronic hum of cash registers.
But the old magic remains on these days and nights, and the Wicca celebrate them. Rituals vary greatly, but all relate to the Goddess and God and to our home, the earth. Most rites are held at night for practical purposes as well as to lend a sense of mystery. The sabbats, being solar oriented, are more naturally celebrated at noon or at dawn, but this is rare today.
The sabbats tell us one of the stories of the Goddess and God, of their relationship and the effects this has on the fruitfulness of the earth. There are many variations on these myths, but here’s a fairly common one, woven into basic descriptions of the sabbats.
Yule
The Goddess gives birth to a son, the God, at Yule (circa December 21). This is in no way an adaptation of Christianity. The winter solstice has long been viewed as a time of divine births. Mithras was said to have been born at this time. The Christians simply adopted it for their use in 273
C.E.
(Common Era).
Yule is a time of the greatest darkness and is the shortest day of the year. Earlier peoples noticed such phenomena and supplicated the forces of nature to lengthen the days and shorten the nights. Wiccans sometimes celebrate Yule just before dawn, then watch the sunrise as a fitting finale to their efforts.
Since the God is also the sun, this marks the point of the year when the sun is reborn as well. Thus, the Wicca light fires or candles to welcome the sun’s returning light. The Goddess, slumbering through the winter of her labor, rests after her delivery.
Yule is the remnant of early rituals celebrated to hurry the end of winter and the bounty of spring, when food was once again readily available. To contemporary Wiccans it is a reminder that the ultimate product of death is rebirth, a comforting thought in these days of unrest. (See chapter 9, “The Spiral of Rebirth.”)
Imbolc
Imbolc (February 2) marks the recovery of the Goddess after giving birth to the God. The lengthening periods of light awaken her. The God is a young, lusty boy, but his power is felt in the longer days. The warmth fertilizes the earth (the Goddess), causing seeds to germinate and sprout. And so the earliest beginnings of spring occur.
This is a sabbat of purification after the shut-in life of winter, through the renewing power of the sun. It is also a festival of light and of fertility, once marked in Europe with huge blazes, torches, and fire in every form. Fire here represents our own illumination and inspiration as much as light and warmth.
Imbolc is also known as Feast of Torches, Oimelc, Lupercalia, Feast of Pan, Snowdrop Festival, Feast of the Waxing Light, Brigid’s Day, and probably by many other names. Some female Wiccans follow the old Scandinavian custom of wearing crowns of lit candles,
*
but many more carry tapers during their invocations.
This is one of the traditional times for initiations into covens, and so self-dedication rituals, such as the one outlined in chapter 12, can be performed or renewed at this time.
Ostara
Ostara (circa March 21), the spring equinox, also known as spring, Rites of Spring, and Eostra’s Day, marks the first day of true spring. The energies of nature subtly shift from the sluggishness of winter to the exuberant expansion of spring. The Goddess blankets the earth with fertility, bursting forth from her sleep, as the God stretches and grows to maturity. He walks the greening fields and delights in the abundance of nature.
On Ostara the hours of day and night are equal. Light is overtaking darkness; the Goddess and God impel the wild creatures of the earth to reproduce.
This is a time of beginnings, of action, of planting spells for future gains, and of tending ritual gardens.
Beltane
Beltane (April 30) marks the emergence of the young God into manhood. Stirred by the energies at work in nature, he desires the Goddess. They fall in love, lie among the grasses and blossoms, and unite. The Goddess becomes pregnant of the God. The Wiccans celebrate the symbol of her fertility in ritual.
Beltane (also known as May Day) has long been marked with feasts and rituals.May poles, supremely phallic symbols, were the focal point of old English village rituals. Many persons rose at dawn to gather flowers and green branches from the fields and gardens, using them to decorate the May pole, their homes, and themselves.
The flowers and greenery symbolize the Goddess; the May pole the God. Beltane marks the return of vitality, of passion and hopes consummated.
May poles are sometimes used by Wiccans today during Beltane rituals, but the cauldron is a more common focal point of ceremony. It represents, of course, the Goddess—the essence of womanhood, the end of all desire, the equal but opposite of the May pole, symbolic of the God.
Midsummer
Midsummer, the summer solstice (circa June 21), also known as Litha, arrives when the powers of nature reach their highest point. The earth is awash in the fertility of the Goddess and God.
In the past, bonfires were leapt to encourage fertility, purification, health, and love. The fire once again represents the sun, feted on this time of the longest daylight hours.
Midsummer is a classic time for magic of all kinds.
Lughnasadh
Lughnasadh (August 1) is the time of the first harvest, when the plants of spring wither and drop their fruits or seeds for our use as well as to ensure future crops.Mystically, so too does the God lose his strength as the sun rises farther in the south each day and the nights grow longer. The Goddess watches in sorrow and joy as she realizes that the God is dying, and yet lives on inside her as her child.
Lughnasadh, also known as August Eve, Feast of Bread, Harvest Home, and Lammas, wasn’t necessarily observed on this day. It originally coincided with the first reapings.
As summer passes, Wiccans remember its warmth and bounty in the food we eat. Every meal is an act of attunement with nature, and we are reminded that nothing in the universe is constant.
Mabon
Mabon (circa September 21), the autumn equinox, is the completion of the harvest begun at Lughnasadh. Once again day and night are equal, poised as the God prepares to leave his physical body and begin the great adventure into the unseen, toward renewal and rebirth of the Goddess.
Nature declines, draws back its bounty, readying for winter and its time of rest. The Goddess nods in the weakening sun, though fire burns within her womb. She feels the presence of the God even as he wanes.
Samhain
At Samhain (October 31), the Wicca say farewell to the God. This is a temporary farewell. He isn’t wrapped in eternal darkness, but readies to be reborn of the Goddess at Yule.
Samhain, also known as November Eve, Feast of the Dead, Feast of Apples, Hallows and All Hallows, once marked the time of sacrifice. In some places this was the time when animals were slaughtered to ensure food throughout the depths of winter. The God—identified with the animals—fell as well to ensure our continuing existence.
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Samhain is a time of reflection, of looking back over the last year, of coming to terms with the one phenomenon of life over which we have no control—death. The Wicca feel that on this night the separation between the physical and spiritual realities is thin. Wiccans remember their ancestors and all those who have gone before.
After Samhain,Wiccans celebrate Yule, and so the wheel of the year is complete.
Surely there are mysteries buried here. Why is the God the son, and then the lover of the Goddess? This isn’t incest, this is symbolism. In this agricultural story (one of many Wiccan myths) the ever-changing fertility of the earth is represented by the Goddess and God. This myth speaks of the mysteries of birth, death, and rebirth. It celebrates the wondrous aspects and beautiful effects of love, and honors women who perpetuate our species. It also points out the very real dependence that humans have on the earth, the sun, and the moon and of the effects of the seasons on our daily lives.
To agricultural peoples, the major thrust of this myth cycle is the production of food through the interplay between the Goddess and God. Food—without which we would all die—is intimately connected with the deities. Indeed, Wiccans see food as yet another manifestation of divine energy.
And so, by observing the sabbats,Wiccans attune themselves to the earth and to the deities. They reaffirm their earth roots. Performing rituals on the nights of the full moon also strengthens their connections with the Goddess in particular.
It is the wise Wiccan who celebrates on the sabbats and esbats, for these are times of real as well as symbolic power. Honoring them in some fashion—perhaps with rites similar to those suggested in
The
Standing Stones Book of Shadows
—is an integral part of Wicca.
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Traces of this old custom are even found in Christianity. Easter, for example, is placed on the Sunday following the first full moon after the spring equinox, a rather “pagan” way to organize religious rites.
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Solstices, equinoxes, and the sabbats are listed in
Llewellyn’s Astrological Calendar.
*
See pages 101–102 of
Buckland’s Complete Book ofWitchcraft
(Llewellyn, 1986 and 2002) for details.
*
Vegetarian Wiccans probably don’t like this part of Samhain symbolism, but it is traditional. We don’t, of course, sacrifice animals in ritual. This is symbolic of the God’s passing.
REINCARNATION SEEMS TO
be one of the most controversial spiritual topics of our time.Hundreds of books are being published on the subject as if the western world had only recently discovered this ancient doctrine.
Reincarnation is one of Wicca’s most valuable lessons. The knowledge that this life is but one of many, that when the physical body dies we do not cease to exist, but are reborn in another body, answers many questions, but raises a few more.
Why? Why are we reincarnated? In common with many other religions, Wicca teaches that reincarnation is the instrument through which our souls are perfected. One lifetime isn’t sufficient to attain this goal; hence, the consciousness (soul) is reborn many times, each life encompassing a different set of lessons, until perfection is achieved.
No one can say how many lives are required before this is accomplished. We are human and it’s easy to fall into non-evolutionary behavior. Greed, anger, jealousy, obsession, and all our negative emotions inhibit our growth.