Lammas/Lughnasa/Lughnassad Ceremony

August 1

Lammas celebrates the first fruits of the harvest. This is the time in Celtic traditions when marriages took place, legal proceedings were dealt with, and contests and sporting events occurred. This was a time of gratitude for the abundance of the season.

Preparation

Make or buy some biscuits or bread to represent the sun god Lugh. Supply paper cups with plastic tops, Magic Markers to decorate the cups, and a large amount of seeds to place in the cups. Gather an ear of corn and a stalk of grain.

Welcome and Greetings

Welcome to our Lammas ceremony. Introduce yourself and go around the circle having each participant share their name and why they came to the circle. Have them close their eyes and share a moment of silence to prepare for the ceremony.

Call the Directions

Call in the directions and the energies of Lammas.

Teachings

This celebration occurs on August Eve and it called Lammas, the Feast of the Bread, Lughnassad, or Lughnasa. This is a celebration of gratitude. We are grateful for the harvest, feasting, and general merriment. We celebrate agriculture. We celebrate the holy union of the Great Goddess and the Great God represented by Ker and Herne the Hunter (who becomes the great horned stag god Cernunnos—the son/stag/god/hunter). Whether we are talking about the sacrifice of the deer or the sacrifice of the god Lug or Lud or Lugh, the vegetation deity, we are giving gratitude for that which has been sacrificed (reaped) and buried (composted) to ensure life. Every part of that which was sacrificed was a gift to the mother to renew and replenish the soil—we are talking about death as a means of supporting life. We are grateful for the sacrifice. Gratitude is imperative.

This is also a time when we honor the sun god of light, Lugh. Thus, the fullness of summer and the zenith of the sun are celebrated, as represented by the astrological sign Leo. This light enters our body through the food that we consume. We honor all those that are involved in the planting, reaping, and production of our food, as well as the hunters and gatherers. We honor the food, we honor the animals, we honor the four elements and open to the power and vibration of spirit, light, and unity consciousness. We allow the love to fill us and remind us of our true nature, which is not of time or place but is everywhere and everything simultaneously.

The seeds that are gathered will be stored so that they can be planted in the spring, so that the vegetation god can rise again from the dead as a new crop cycle. Babies conceived on August 1 are born at Beltane, which is May 1, and they represent the light of hope and renewal that spring promises. And so, the cycle of life is ensured.

Sing

Choose songs that celebrate abundance, summer, and the harvest.

Chant

What is the teaching of Lammas? Gratitude.

Our lives depend upon her bounty.

Behold! The mother feeds us and she cares for us.

In turn we care for the flora and fauna that share our world.

We seek to be her worthy stewards and guardians.

What is the teaching of Lammas? The earth is sacred.

Guided Meditation

Close your eyes and go within. Take some time to rest here as you slow down and focus on your breath. Take some deep breaths. Let yourself relax. Sit in this quiet space for a brief time … (pause)

Allow yourself to travel beyond the borders of the world to outer space. Know that you are fully protected as you view the little spinning blue ball that we call Earth. See her in all her splendor and think about how perfect she is. See her absolute beauty. From this perspective, all your troubles and thoughts fade away, and you see the intense perfection of life on planet Earth.

As you return to your home planet you find yourself in a clearing within a forest. You see all kinds of trees and plant life, as well as the little creatures and birds that live here. You see a profusion of life. You see and smell the colorful flowers and you hear the buzzing bees as they gather their nectar. Above you, you see the sun, the blue sky, and the rolling clouds.

You begin to understand how all this profusion fits together to support life, and how the mystery reveals itself in this profusion. You experience how blessed you are to be part of this story. You feel a deep sense of responsibility for stewarding this life and for protecting it. You feel a deep gratitude for this life that sustains you. You know that it is your responsibility to honor life as sacred and protect your planet in her purity—her water, her soil, her air, and her great heart that shares so bountifully. You deeply feel gratitude. And she is happy to receive your gratitude. Take a moment to commune with Gaia and thank her …

When you feel complete you may slowly begin to return. You can return to this forest clearing anytime you want to. You will be reminded that you live in a paradise. When you are ready, open your eyes.

Sharing

Have your participants share experiences from the meditations.

Activity: A Bread Blessing

Pass around the bread that you have prepared and have each participant take a piece or pull off a small piece if the bread is whole.

Read

Bread is symbolically eaten as we internalize the light of the vegetation, the grain that feeds us. The grain or the corn symbolizes the holy mystery that as both seed and edible fruit, we feed our bodies and allow for a new season of growth and life. Thus, the virgin and maiden aspect of the Goddess represents the child of the earth, the fruits of the first harvest. The mother is the life-giving aspect and holy magic that manifests the fruit. The crone is the withered plant gone to seed ready to rest in the underworld to be resurrected in the spring.

Have them eat their bread and repeat after you: “We celebrate this nature magic today. We absorb this mystery and this renewal. By eating this bread, we eat the light of our sun and we acknowledge our own power. We give our gratitude to our Mother Earth for all she supplies us. We promise to create beauty just as she does. We promise to shine like our sun. We give our gratitude for this first harvest and for this life. And so it is.”

Activity: Making a Seed Rattle

Say: “This is a time of gratitude and so we honor the seeds that we gather that are provided so lovingly by Gaia, our Mother Earth. We will use these seeds to create our own power implements. We will make rattles to add to our ceremonies when we sing and drum. A rattle can call in the spirits. They are attracted to the sound. You can make the rattle part of your own music. And the rattles will remind us to be grateful every time we use them.”

Each person is given a cup, a handful of seeds, and a pop-on lid. They can decorate their cup with Magic Markers. Then they can place a handful of seeds within it and pop on the top. When everyone is finished, have your group make sounds together with their new rattles.

Sharing

Go around the circle and have each participant shake their rattle to their own beat. Have them share what they are grateful for and what has come to fruition in their lives.

Activity: Making a Corn and Grain Prayer

Pass around the ear of corn and a stalk of grain. Have each person contemplate the mystery here. As they hold the corn and grain have each person make a prayer for the earth.

Sing

Choose a song that honors the Great Goddess, summer, the mother aspect of the Goddess, gratitude, and thanksgiving.

Sharing

Share ideas of how we can care for the earth in our own lives.

Ending

Release the directions with gratitude and place people, situations, and events into the circle for healing. Open the circle.

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