In Roman times the
"Calends" were the first days of the month. Hence the saying 'on the
Greek Calends' which means 'never'. Although the Gregorian
Calendar is now in general use, its months and yearly cycle do not
reflect the importance of the Sun and Moon to the followers of the
Old Religion.
Equinoxes, Solstices & Cross Quarter Days
For the ancient Celts the days began with sunset, with a
period of rest. This is similar to their year, which began with Samhain,
at the onset of Winter. Most religious festivals which have roots going
back to pre-Christian times are celebrated on the eve before the
actual festive day - a remnant of this Celtic custom. The ancient Celts
only celebrated the Cross Quarter Days, and not, as is often thought
the Solstices and Equinoxes. Their religious importance is of a later
date, possibly introduced by the Druids and the Megalith Builders of
pre-Christian times.
Thirteen Moons & Celtic Moon Months
"But how many merry monthes be in the yeere?
There are thirteen, I say;
The Mid Summer Moone is the merryest of all,
Next to the merry month of May."
The time of Full Moon and the time of New Moon are very
important to the followers of the old Religion. But the Moon also
influences everything else on Mother Earth! For example, I have
found that the weather is particularly unstable around the times of
New and Full Moon, whilst during the weeks between these times it
won't change its general character. Similar effects can be discovered
in politics, farming, etcetera, if we are but willing to look for them!
The Lunar Months are again a Celtic custom. The Celts used 13
months of 28 days, totaling 364 days, hence our saying 'A Year and a
Day' which is of course 365 days. However, the time between two full
moons is more than 28 days (about 29.5 days) and this means that
there are usually only 12 lunar months in one year. This results in the
inclusion of a 13th moon every two or three years: the Ice Moon. The
Ice Moon is included whenever a Celtic Year (from Samhain to
Samhain) numbers 13 full moons. The Ice Moon full moon falls in early
January.
Many other names exist for the 13 moons, and indeed many other
systems exist to line up the moon's phases with the solar year. The
Celtic system has the advantage that the moons stay fairly close to
their 'own' season: the Blood Moon for example is always the Full
Moon leading up to Samhain, when the last animals are slaughtered
and the Harvest Home festival is celebrated. Each full moon has its
own character, even when the time of the full moon may shift a few
weeks every year, and patient observation will put you in touch with
these subtle forces.
The Wheel of Life
Birth? For many Christians and pagans alike, the birth of the
God is celebrated at Christmas, or Yule. Yule is a solar festival of
course, celebrating the longest night, the death and rebirth of the
sun. In ancient Rome the cult of Sol Invictus, on December 25,
celebrated the rebirth of the Sun, and this was in accordance with
the old Persian Sun religion. Later, Christianity moved the birthday of
Christ from January 6, if I'm not mistaken, to December 25 as well, to
fall in line with general Roman practice. It has been like this ever
since. It is not very surprising that pagans would assume, more or less
automatically, that the birth of our God would also fall on December
25, or to be more precise around December 22, the actual Winter
Solstice. The rebirth of the light, the birth of the Sun or Son, is such
an archetypal image by now that there doesn't seem to be any
reason to think any further and question this general practice.
However, there are two reasons to think again. Firstly, birth in
nature happens around Candlemas, at least at our latitude, and
secondly, it seems quaint that a 'lesser sabbat' such as the Winter
Solstice, would have such an important meaning: none of the other
lesser sabbats are in any way comparable to this!
The Solar Cycle
If one examines the cycle of eight festivals, it is immediately
clear that it consists of two distinct cycles. The solar cycle is fairly well
known: Midwinter, Spring Equinox; Midsummer and Autumn Equinox.
These are called the 'lesser sabbats'. They are strict astronomical
occurrences, governed by the yearly rhythm of the sun. They can be
calculated to the minute, and are the same for the whole earth. This
rhythm reflects the interplay between earth and sun, as it takes
place against the backdrop of the fixed stars.
In our cycle of eight festivals, the solar festivals are actually more
recent than the other sabbats: it is likely that the Druids introduced
the solar festivals.
The Cycle of Life
The second cycle of festivals is comprised of Samhain
(October 31), Imbolc (February 1), Beltane (April 30) and Lughnasadh
(August 1). These festivals are also called the 'greater sabbats' or
'cross quarter days'. This set of festivals is not related to any
astronomical occurrence, but instead celebrates the cycle of life as it
occurs in nature around us. Samhain celebrates death, and rebirth in
the spiritual realms; Imbolc celebrates the physical birth; Beltane
celebrates the time of mating; and Lughnasadh is the time of
marriage and sacrifice, the beginning of the harvest, leading up to
Samhain again.
This cycle of festivals is definitely a lot older than the solar cycle.
Also, it is quite likely that this set of four greater festivals was never
fixed to a solar calendar, but has always been movable and reflected
the actual processes as they occurred in nature. Thus, Imbolc would
be celebrated only when the first signs of life were actually visible:
the first lambs, the first flowers, etcetera. It is most likely that these
festivals were celebrated at the closest full moon.
The Eight Festivals
Thus the Eight Festivals actually are made up of two distinct
cycles: a solar one, which is by nature a cosmic cycle, linking the
earth and the sun and the stars; and a life-cycle, linking the earth
and nature and human existence. A 'cycle of the spirit' and a 'cycle
of life'.
The spiritual cycle represents the eternal side of things, the life cycle
represents the temporal, earthly and natural aspect of our existence.
The cosmic cycle is the same for the whole earth, it is a 'law' which is
way beyond human intervention. The life cycle is different for every
locality, and it is highly receptive to our efforts.
The solar cycle is very symmetrical. It has a high point, a low point,
and two points of equilibrium. These two points can be seen as the
points where life changes to death and death to life, or light changes
to dark and dark to light.
Cross Quarter Days
Contrary to the solar cycle, the cycle of the greater sabbats
or Cross Quarter Days is very individual. In terms of human existence
it starts with Imbolc, which celebrates birth. It is the time that the first
lambs are born, the first flowers can be seen, and even though it is
still winter, it is clear that life is returning.
Next, we celebrate Beltane, the festival of mating. This is the time
when most species mate and build their nest; it is also the most
blatantly sexual of all the festivals, in spite of the white purity of the
Hawthorn which the girls bring with them after their night of revelry!
In the old days many marriages (for a Celtic year and a day only!)
were celebrated shortly after this festival, and the 'Honey Moon' still
refers to the Moon of Honey which follows the Beltane Festival
(I haven't found any data, but I suspect the Honey Moon would be the
same as the Planting Moon: a time of tending young seeds, be they in
the Earth or in the Womb...)
Lughnasadh celebrates the beginning of the harvest. It is the festival
of the sacred marriage: the mating of the Goddess and the God, after
which the God is sacrificed to fertilize the land once again. If we take
this not too literally, the sacred marriage means that both partners
sacrifice some part of themselves in order to create something which
is greater than either of them: a child, fertility, responsibilities, etc.
This is not like the carefree mating at Beltane, but the conscious
joining of two individuals who want to become something more than
the sum of their parts. In this sense the word marriage may be a good
term to describe this festival: a marriage that entails the forging of a
link which has consequences, not only for the couple, but for the
people around them too.
And lastly, at Samhain, we celebrate death. It is the end of the
harvest, and in nature too everything has died. Now it is time to take
stock and prepare for the winter to come. Samhain is also a festival
of rebirth, because the seeds of life have already been sown, and
birth will take place at the beginning of Spring, at Imbolc. In terms of
human life it is a time of taking stock too: reevaluating one's
experiences, being more concerned with the spiritual - for example
through the telling of stories and legends and fairy tales during the
long winter evenings.
Blood Rituals
The four greater sabbats, or cross quarter days, in effect
celebrate the major turning points in life: birth, puberty, marriage and
death. These memorable days are often called 'blood rituals' because
they all involve blood, and through blood the life force itself. These
four experiences are so important that they warrant special attention.
Although puberty is not celebrated in our society as a 'public' festival,
it is definitely noted by the children themselves: they are very
conscious of what is going on and often have to find a new way of
dealing with the boys and girls around them, seeing them with new
eyes and realizing that a change in their own consciousness has
taken place.
These turning points in life have been celebrated from time
immemorial: from the dim pre-historic times to our own day, and it
doesn't make any difference if you are part of a so-called primitive
tribe in the jungle of the Amazon, or if you are part of today's
high-tech society: birth, puberty, marriage and death are still ~the~
ritual occasions in life!
Could it be that the four greater sabbats, the 'cycle of life', form the
ground plan of the Craft as a whole? Could it be that everything links
together, and more has survived the burning times than we
realize?
The Craft is a fertility religion, a tribal religion, and this is certainly
true in so far as we celebrate the seasons and the Wheel of the Year.
But is there more to this? What about the structure of the degrees
for example. Are they a logical part of this 'cycle of life' too? Let's
see how far we get.
The Three Degrees
The first degree is considered to be some kind of acceptance
into the Coven. One becomes part of a 'spiritual family'. The initiation
rituals in many tribes incorporate some sort of rebirth' procedure:
crawling through a hole in the ground, for example, or as in our case,
being blindfolded and then 'being brought into the light'. The first
degree ritual can thus be seen as a ritual signifying birth. The
candidate is being 'reborn' into the Coven, into his or her spiritual
family, s/he has 'come home' and will now go through a period of
training or 'upbringing': s/he will become familiar with how things are
done in that particular Coven.
The second degree in most Gardnerian groups is indicative of the
witch having 'grown up' to the point of potentially being able to lead
her own Coven (i.e. potentially becoming a parent in a spiritual
family!). However, the witch is not ready yet for a start there is no
practical experience with leading a group or conducting rituals. This
stage could be seen as the reaching of puberty: on the one hand the
person is physically mature, on the other hand the person is not
ready yet to take on all the responsibilities that go with having a
family of your own.
Traditionally, after reaching second degree, a lady might be invited
to become a Maiden, that is a High Priestess 'in training', thus
formalizing the intent to lead one's own Coven at some time in the
future.
The third degree ritual includes the Great Rite, but if we interpret
that as the consummation of marriage, than we can see that the
third degree would fall in line with the 'marriage' concept of
Lughnasadh. It is the time when the newly trained High Priestess
and High Priest are completely independent. They are 'adults', and
from now on should be able to be responsible for their own family, or
Coven. That this entails sacrifice too will be admitted by anyone who
is running their own Coven! But even if you are not, it is possible to
equate the third degree with being married and having all the
responsibilities - whether it is having children or a house or having to
take care of others. Although it is often joyful, sometimes it may be a
real burden!
A Fourth Degree?
So far the three degrees do correspond with Imbolc, Beltane
and Lughnasadh. But what about Samhain? There is no 'fourth
degree' that we can link with Hallowe'en. However, we can think
about this festival and see which stage in life would correspond with
it. Samhain celebrates death and rebirth, but as the first degree
doesn't signify physical birth, a fourth degree wouldn't celebrate
physical death either. In human life it would be the point when the
adult has left the family-phase behind, and is now free to become the
Wise Old Woman or the Wise Old Man. The person is no longer tied
down by earthly responsibilities. The children have left the home, the
job is no longer very important, money is not such a headache
anymore, in short: it is time to enter a new phase in one's life.
Within Craft settings this could designate the period when a former
High Priestess or High Priest is no longer involved in running a
Coven, maybe even has become more or less solitary, and is devoting
their main effort to helping the younger generation, and focusing on
the spiritual aspects of life, uncovering the meaning behind the
tapestry!
Whether an individual Coven wants to celebrate this point or not, at
least it is clear that the three degrees, as they exist, are not 'badges
of rank', to be acquired every year. The degrees are too meaningful
for that!
Conclusion
And so we arrive at a cycle of Eight Festivals, which is on the
surface made up of two very distinct rhythms. First the cosmic, solar
swing between light and dark, between spiritual and earthly
influences. Secondly, the highly movable cycle of major sabbats,
which celebrate life in general, and the major turning points in human
life in particular: birth, puberty, marriage and death. This cycle forms
the groundplan of the Craft as a whole. It ties in to the three degrees,
and to the major phases in a person's life. It may also give meaning to
the phase that many of us dread: that of old age. This shouldn't be a
phase of being society's liability, but instead one of increased value
on account of the accumulated wisdom of a lifetime.
Is the solar cycle of equal importance? It is too simple to say that the
solar cycle was a recent insertion into Craft practice, and that we
could quite easily do without. The constant change between a solar,
cosmic festival and a lunar, life festival in the course of the year
makes sure that the cosmic influences - even though they may be
rather impersonal - are constantly renewing life on earth, and thus
bringing new initiatives into being. The solar festivals could be seen
as celebrating the 'see of the season: they give the impulse. All life
begins with a seed, which needs nourishment and a period of rest
and quiet before the actual manifestation will occur. And the
following Cross Quarter Day celebrates the sprouting of that seed:
it is the culmination of the season as far as the aspect of life is
concerned. Maybe the meanings of the Cross Quarter Days were
transferred to the preceding solar festival, once the solstices and
equinoxes were celebrated and the Cross Quarter Days faded in
people's memory, leading to the celebration of 'birth' at Yule...
The Craft is also called a 'mystery religion', and maybe this article
has lifted another tip of the veil. The mysteries are accessible
through all genuine spiritual streams, and the Craft is certainly one
of them!
