The modern sabbat ritual (representing one of the eight High Holy Days) can be as intricate or as simple as you desire. The ceremony’s main function is to honor the season and the gods, and to ask for their harmonious intervention in our lives in the coming months. Each ritual celebrates one portion of the cycle of life:
• Yule and Candlemas are inception.
• Beltane and Ostara are birth and growth.
• Midsummer is maturity.
• Lammas and Mabon are harvest.
• Samhain is death and its subsequent spiritual transformation.
These holidays are both original and reconstructionist, depending upon the mythos (legends) you choose, which is sometimes confusing to the new student. Each sabbat can have several stories attached to it, some ancient and others relatively modern. In large Wiccan groups, ritual drama may be a significant portion of the ritual, where members act out characters or deities, much like in a play, complete with props and techno-marvels. I have witnessed sabbats where the sets, costumes, props, and other devices cost well into the thousands, and a Georgian group did so well when performing in Texas that many in the audience really thought that the death of the god included the demise of the actor (my husband and I can attest to the fact that he was alive and breathing an hour later, quite happy in the company of his wife). Conversely, I’ve been to celebrations where the only expense entailed a jug of apple juice, a box of cookies, and a few candles—the mind and imagination of the Witch being the primary focus. Neither type of ritual could be considered better than the other, as both were most fulfilling and both the rituals in some way or another focused on raising energy. You will also find differences in altar placement. Where some groups keep their altar in the same area all year long, others move the altar to match the holiday (as on the wheel pictured at the beginning of this section). There are those Witches who dispense with all that movement and simply place the altar in the center of the circle. Quarter calls may also differ. For example, a single group may always start at the north to open the quarters for esbats, but choose the quarter that most matches the season from which to begin their sabbat ceremonies.
Most sabbats are followed by a feast, where each member brings something to eat. This can be as extravagant as a full meal or as simple as a collection of munchies. Where esbats are performed primarily at night (lunar workings), many sabbat celebrations (solar holidays) are done during the daylight hours, if the group has the opportunity to meet at that time, save for Samhain, which is primarily done in the evening. Though, again, there is no “right” time to perform a sabbat celebration, unless you are following astrological correspondences and timing your ritual to the moment that the sun crosses over the fifteen-degree mark of the appropriate sign:
Samhain: Sun is at 15 degrees Scorpio (water)
Candlemas: Sun is at 15 degrees Aquarius (air)
Beltane: Sun is at 15 degrees Taurus (earth)
Lammas: Sun is at 15 degrees Leo (fire)
Notice that these are the four fixed signs of the zodiac, with each of the elements represented in the festival year. The idea here is to hold on to one’s fortune, happiness, and love, making it last as long as possible. These festivals are also known as the fire festivals, and some call them the cross-quarter festivals. They are best known in history for their association with people lighting bonfires atop hills in the hope of kindling the light of Spirit within people’s hearts and warding off any negativity through the purification of the fire. The other four holidays are definitely solar driven:
Winter Solstice (Yule): December 21 (or around that time) when the sun is at 1 degree Capricorn (earth)
Spring Equinox (Ostara): March 21 (or around that time) when the sun is at 1 degree Aries (fire)
Summer Solstice (Midsummer): June 21 (or around that time) when the sun is at 1 degree of Cancer (water)
Fall Equinox (Mabon): September 21 (or around that time) when the sun is at 1 degree Libra (air)
Notice that these are the cardinal signs of the zodiac, and are each (in their own way) considered festivals of beginnings, especially related to any work regarding their element (earth, air, water, fire). Again, there is one festival for each element. These celebrations are sometimes called the quarter festivals.
After you have worked with both types of High Holy Days (fire festivals and quarter festivals), you will begin to see unique differences in the categories. The fire festivals occur during midsign (in the middle of an astrological sign) and seem to demand that you make changes and adjustments in your life (work on the “old”), where the quarter festivals fall in sign transition (when the sun is leaving one astrological sign and entering another) and encourage changes toward the “new.” Quarter festivals bring their energy into your home environment approximately one full week before the astrological occurrence actually takes place. For example, you may buy a new computer when the sun is in Gemini (communication) and place it in your dining room for family use as the sun moves into Cancer (home environment) without even realizing it. The human condition is very much tuned to these eight High Holy Days, even though you may not recognize the influences.
Although there are a few groups in the Craft that use the same ceremony for every sabbat, most delight in researching history to discover what “neat new thing” they can incorporate into their ceremonies, lending variety to the seasonal celebrations as well as introducing historical trivia to coven members. Some groups require beginning students to take on this challenge. In cohesive groups that have many covens in one sect (such as the Black Forest), covens may actually compete to see who can come up with the most inventive sabbat of the year. Where esbats may be single-coven oriented, sabbats may become clan gatherings. The sabbats are also conducive to public rituals. Where you may not be invited to attend a local group’s esbat or moon rituals, they may open the doors for the High Holy Days. Check your local magickal or occult shop to see if they hold open celebrations.
The remainder of this section includes a basic solitary sabbat ritual format, and briefly covers the eight High Holy Days with minimal historical information that matches the ritual provided. There is such an abundance of lore that could be incorporated in any one ceremony, there just isn’t room enough here. At the end of this section is a suggested reading list, if you would like to investigate these holidays further. Please note that in some traditions the day “officially” celebrated may be different, and I’ve tried to make note of that under each holiday. In reality, many of the holiday celebrations historically spanned several days. In the Wheel of the Year, the Craft shows its agrarian roots by matching the seasons to agricultural practices and climate with teachings of inception, birth, growth, maturity, transformation, harvest, death, and rebirth. It is this cycle that I have tried to present here.
Basic Solitary Sabbat
Ritual Format
Supplies: Altar and setup (earth, air, fire, water, illuminator candles). Tools such as the athame or wand are up to you. Candles or other representations positioned at the four quarters (east, south, west, and north)—colors are your choice. Additional supplies will depend on the amount of time you have and how creative you wish to make your ceremony.
step one: Sweep area with a broom. Cleanse the ritual space by carrying a representation of the four elements around the area in a clockwise movement, working with one element at a time. Place any object of seasonal honor on the altar, along with the communion vessels and your Book of Shadows.
step two: Open altar energies by passing the four elements over the altar and intoning a personal blessing, then tap the altar five times—once for each element, and once for Spirit.
step three: Light the illuminator candles on the altar.
step four: Cast the magick circle (clockwise) using the following sabbat circlecasting or one of your choice.
Tides of the season, ebb and flow
(Tap the altar once, stating the name of the holiday energy to be invoked.)
From spring’s first light to autumn’s glow. (Hold your hands over the altar.)
Deosil around from birth to death
(Begin at the north and start to walk
clockwise around the circle.)
Legends, myths, and lore connect.
(You should be back at the north.)
Solar fire, sun’s bright burning
(Lift the red fire candle on the altar
and look skyward.)
Purify the Great Wheel turning.
(Return candle to altar.)
Winds of north to carry the flame
(Begin walking from the north
to the east.)
The mists of eons, call the name.
(Say the name of the holiday aloud.)
East and south, the west inspire
(Pause the wording at each direction as you continue around the circle.)
Energy spirals ever higher!
(Return to the north.)
The circle rises and marks rebirth
(Begin the third pass around the circle.)
As seasons change and kiss the earth.
(Return to the north.)
From seed and plough to harvest home
(Hold your hands over the altar.)
To starry vault and standing stone
(At the north, point upward.)
This sabbat circle thrice around
(Visualize the complete circle.)
I seal thee now from sky to ground!
(Bring your arm down and
stamp the floor with your foot.)
step five: Light the quarter candles and call the quarters.
Winds of the (name of holiday) north,
attend, acknowledge, and proclaim!
Winds of the (name of holiday) east,
attend, acknowledge, and proclaim!
Winds of the (name of holiday) south, attend, acknowledge, and proclaim!
Winds of the (name of holiday) west, attend, acknowledge, and proclaim!
Winds of the (name of holiday) Spirit,
fill this circle with thy love and protection!37
step six: Read the Charge of the Goddess (page 5).
step seven: Invoke your ancestors by reading their names and declaring your honor for them.
step eight: Read the sabbat invocations given under the individual sabbats in this section.
step nine: State intent of ritual aloud, along with your personal understanding of the holiday you are celebrating. This can be through poetry, a story, or even through meditation, and adds your own individual creativity to the ritual.
step ten: Draw down the sun (optional). However, do not stare directly into the sun. Lift your head with eyes closed.
step eleven: Perform any magickal work.
step twelve: Take communion (page 14).
step thirteen: Perform the offering to the gods. This is the sabbat fire offering:
Upon the wings of fiery flame
I give this offering in Goddess’ name.
(Pour offering into fire.)
step fourteen: Thank deity.
step fifteen: Thank and release the quarters, extinguish quarter candles at the release of each quarter—remember to begin in the west if you started in the north, moving widdershins (counterclockwise).
Winds of the Spirit of (name the holiday), blessings upon you! I release thee upon thy way till next we meet again! Winds of (name the holiday) west, blessings upon you! I release thee upon thy way till next we meet again! Winds of (name the holiday) south, blessings upon you! I release thee upon thy way till next we meet again! Winds of (name the holiday) east, blessings upon you! I release thee upon thy way till next we meet again! Winds of (name the holiday) north, blessings upon you! I release thee upon thy way till next we meet again!
step sixteen: Release magick circle (counterclockwise).
O Great Circle of Sabbat Art, attend me no more this day but be released into—(most likely into the objects made in the spellworking if they were designed to draw things to you. If you have no items, and you do not wish to put the energy into wand, rod, staff, or athame, then simply say “released back to Spirit”).
step seventeen: Seal altar energies by tapping once on the altar and extinguishing illuminator candles.
step eighteen: Clean up and offer libation bowl out-of-doors.
Samhain/Celtic New Year
Other names: Hallowmas, All Hallow’s Eve, Halloween, Samhuinn.
Date: October 31, November 2, November 4, or when the sun is at 15 degrees Scorpio.
Meaning of the word: Celtic, meaning “Summer’s End.” There is no historical record of a Celtic God called Samhain or Lord of the Dead—this was erroneously coined by researchers in the 1700s.
Primary focus: Transformation, regeneration, honoring the dead, divination, honoring the harvest, preparing for the winter.
Age of holiday: Second oldest unbroken holiday in the European world—approximate age is 6,000 years.38
Popular mythos: Cerridwen’s Cauldron of Transformation; Feeding the Morrigan; Sniggling the Cailleach; Festival of the Dark Goddess.
Astrological sign: 15 degrees Scorpio.
Planetary ruler: Pluto (modern) or Mars (classical).
No one has described Samhain better to the public than Ronald Hutton, professor at the University of Bristol. With his kind permission, the following is taken from his excellent book, The Stations of the Sun:
Hallowe’en developed from the Celtic feast of Samhain (pronounced “sow-in”), which marked the end of summer and the beginning of winter. For the Celts, Samhain was the beginning of the year and the cycle of the seasons. Samhain was a time when the Celts acknowledged the beginning and the ending of all things. As they looked to nature, they saw the falling of the leaves from the trees, the coming of winter and death. It was a time when they turned to their Gods and Goddesses seeking to understand the turning cycles of life and death. Here, on the threshold of the cold barren winter months, it was also a time of feasting and celebration as the weakest animals were culled to preserve valuable foodstuffs, and provide food to last until the following spring. . . . For the Celts, Samhain was a time when the gates between this world and the next were open. It was a time of communion with the spirits of the dead, who, like the wild autumnal winds, were free to roam the earth. At Samhain, the Celts called upon their ancestors, who might bring warnings and guidance to help in the year to come.39
samhain invocation
Forests misty, dark and deep
the door between the worlds release
loved ones, family, favored pets
to join me in this evening’s fest.
The birth of new, the death of old
I will this cycle to unfold.
Each leaf that drifts upon the ground
will bury all that is unsound
and in its place will rise anew
the gift of love the whole year through.
With harvest gold and autumn sun
I reap the best that I have done.
And as the days grow shorter still
with longer nights and winter’s chill
I’ll work to build a better place
for every soul and human race.
Wild autumn winds and crone’s dark voice
speak to me of wisdom’s choice
let me hear your words of fate
so I know which path to take!
Those of you who went before
speak to me from crossroad’s door
whisper words of love and care
let me know that you are there.
Insert divinatory work here, then continue with the remainder of the ritual.
magickal ideas for your
samhain sabbat ritual
• Carve a pumpkin and empower it to repel negativity.
• Build or erect a shrine to your ancestors.
• Add divination to your ritual.
• Fill a small plastic pumpkin with gold-wrapped candy and empower for prosperity.
• Research your family history and make a litany out of the names for your ritual.
• Make a family photo album or poster to place in your room. Bless during ritual for family harmony.
• Set a place at the dinner table for the recently deceased. If the lost one is a pet, place their favorite food on a plate and put where their bowls used to be.
• Place small jack-o’-lanterns at the four quarters.
• Place crossed brooms at the four quarters.
• Build your altar out of hay bales.
• Visit the cemetery and place flowers on the graves of deceased loved ones.
• Remember that Samhain is a fire festival that signals personal closures and occurs in Scorpio, a mutable, watery sign that has the ability to rebuild what is needed and toss what is not. Ruled by Pluto and Mars (modern and classical planetary rulers of the sign, respectively), there is much you can accomplish during this time period.
Yule/Winter Solstice
Other names: Mean Geimhridh, Alban Arthuan, Modranicht (Mother Night).
Date: December 20, 21, or 22, depending upon the calendar. Sun at 1 degree Capricorn.
Meaning of the word: Yule means “wheel” (Scandinavian derivation); solstice means “the sun stands still.”
Primary ritual focus: Rebirth and renewal, “saining” or “blessings” in ritual form, burning of the Yule log.
Age of holiday: Wooden pillars throughout Europe aligned with the rising sun of the winter solstice have been recently dated to 3200–3000 b.c. (Newgrange in Ireland, Maes Howe in Scotland, Stonehenge and the Dorset Cursus in Britain), enabling us to currently calculate this this holiday to be at least 5,000 years old.
Popular mythos: Battle of Oak and Holly King (Oak King wins), Divine King, the Stag and the Wolf; Festival of the Dark God as seen in the German Belsnickle.
Astrological sign: 1 degree Capricorn; earth; cardinal.
Planetary Ruler: Saturn.
It was a custom of the Pagans to celebrate on the same 25 December the birthday of the sun, at which they kindled lights in token of festivity. In these solemnities and revelries the Christians also took part. Accordingly, when the doctors of the Church perceived that the Christians had a leaning to this festival, they took counsel and resolved that the true Nativity should be solemnized on that day—Scriptor Syrus, fourth century a.d.40
Thus Christmas began, and the Dark God of the Pagans, represented by the first stranger to set foot in one’s house bearing gifts, is the surrogate for Cernunnos, Herne the Hunter, and Old Nick, who grew into the character of Santa Claus. Yet the celebration of winter solstice is far older than the fourth century.
The word “Yule” is of Scandinavian origin, and the Yule log is the domestic counterpart of the communal Yule bonfire.41 Normally made of oak (sometimes ash), the log was originally dedicated to the Teutonic Thor, god of courage and fire. It was his job to dispel the cold and dark of the harsh northern winters and bring the warmth of the sun back to the people. The Yule log, therefore, was burned in sympathetic magick, hoping to inspire the god to share his blessings and bring back the sun. Decorated with ivy, ribbons, and evergreens, the log was then blessed with holy water, ale, or wine (the blood of the mother) to bring manifestation. The log was lit with a piece of last year’s log to close the cycle of the season from one Yule to the next. Never allowed to burn completely, pieces were saved as a charm against misfortune over the coming months.
yule invocation
Morning light will flood the chamber
—winter solstice sun.
Energy unfolding,
Saturn’s rule has just begun.
Crystals formed of ice and frost
freeze field and forest green.
While Mighty Oak and Holly
fight for favors from our Queen.
The Great Wheel brings conception,
birth, and death as days of yore.
Each bonfire on a leyline
honors what has gone before.
Seven planets, seven spheres,
seven gates swing open.
I lift my arms and call the charge
the incantation spoken!
I conjure water spirits,
pour forth the sacred winds
come hither, O great fire!
The magick now begins!
Solar vapors, starry heavens
clouds and earth and waves
unite in your perfection
on this shortest solstice day!
I hold the key of secrets
and the phantoms will avail
the crossroads shimmer open
as the rod connects to grail.
Seven planets, seven spheres,
seven gates swing open.
I lift my arms and call the charge
the incantation spoken!
Beribboned Yule logs burning
each spark a blessing brings.
Red and green, the sacred blood
of past and future kings.
Mistletoe and bayberry,
winter’s leaves and resin.
Spice and myrrh and evergreen
connect the Earth to heaven.
Through scented smoke and sacred prayer
I manifest good will.
Bring peace and joy to hearth and home
and every wish fulfill.
Seven planets, seven spheres,
seven gates swing open.
I lift my arms and call the charge
the incantation spoken!
magickal ideas for your
yule sabbat ritual
• Make your own Yule log. (If you don’t have a fireplace, you can carve holes in a log and insert metal tea candle cups.) Decorate with evergreens, ribbons, and ivy.
• Empower mistletoe for healing and prosperity.
• Make puppets or statues to represent the Oak and Holly Kings. Place them on the altar or put on a skit for younger members of your household.
• Research the history of St. Nick (When Santa Was a Shaman by Joseph Cusamano is a good start) and the Christmas/Yule tree.
• Empower Yule and Christmas cards with loving energy.
• Empower Yule tree ornaments for prosperity.
• Empower all gifts you give this season with love and happiness.
• Build a Yule altar to honor the spirits of the wolf and the stag.
• Find out what the Belsnickle is and how he fits into the magickal German Yule.
• Recognize that Yule is a time of closure, especially in relation to solar-driven activities in your life—groups and organizations, major work projects, corporations, etc. Gracefully let go of those things that are no longer needed. Add meditation and prayer, tuned to the lowest ebb of solar energies, to your daily activities over this period.
• Begin or keep family traditions associated to the season.
• Yule occurs at the transition of Sagittarius to Capricorn—from a mutable fire sign to an earthy cardinal one. Capricorn, ruled by Saturn, gives us the authority, strength, and business acumen to make wise decisions about our future.
Imbolc
Other names: Candlemas, Oimealg, Imbolg, Brigantia, Lupercus, Disting, Lupercalia.
Date: February 2, or when the sun is at 15 degrees Aquarius.
Meaning of the word: Imbolc means “in milk.”
Primary ritual focus: New growth, end of winter, rituals of purification, offerings to deity, candle rituals.
Age of holiday: Unknown.
Popular mythos: Pouring milk on the ground, associated with the goddess Brigit; laying the Cailleach to rest; Lupercus (wolf god in Italian Witchcraft).
Astrological sign: 15 degrees Aquarius.
Planetary ruler: Saturn (classical astrology), Uranus (modern astrology).
In Celtic legend, the months from Hallowmas to Candlemas (called the “months of the little sun”) were ruled by the Cailleach or, as she is sometimes called, the Cailleach Bheur, a Scottish female deity that begins winter by washing her plaid in a whirlpool. The Cailleach is not a lady to tangle with, as she is depicted as a wild hag with a venomous temper who hurries about with a magick wand in her hand, switching the grass and blasting vegetation to unite the forces of sun, dew, and rain.42 Her rages are the spring storms. At Imbolc she leaves by raising the tempests in her wake. Bried, or Brigit, on the other hand, a far more sensible goddess of healing, poetry, and the forging of fire, extends her blessings on this day, and it is to her that most generic and traditional Wiccan groups pay homage.
imbolc/candlemas invocation
Coronet of candles, each flame a golden jewel
Saturn Lord withdraws his cloak
yet retains his rule.
Lambs bleat season’s greetings
spring’s essence on their breath
the sun pays homage to the sky
in Aquarius.
The Lord and Lady dance the waltz
within the magick round
to banish all that isn’t pure
and prime the sacred ground.
The Cailleach swirls her tempest skirts
to raise the season’s storms
that which lies within her wake
will surely be reborn.
The time has come for tilling
to arrange for harvest’s gain
the right amount of seed and skill
of wind and sacred rain
are needed to perform the task
of planning for my future
I conjure such by Breid’s bright word
and nothing will refute her.
The cat that leaps is not
the cat that lands upon the stair
I conjure things that others think
appear from thinnest air
yet superimposition reigns
my choice a pattern set.
(Insert what you wish for here.)
My power grows, the light ignites
desires manifest!
magickal ideas for your
imbolc sabbat ritual
• Add a circle of white candles to the altar setup, each one representing a goal you would like to achieve in the coming year. Empower, then light during ritual.
• Banish winter by burning paper snowflakes (carefully, of course).
• Empower ice to banish negativity. As the ice melts, so the negativity will drain away. Pour water off your property.
• Plant seeds to be cared for indoors, or buy an indoor plant and make friends!
• Bless your pet and give him or her a safe amulet for his or her collar, or place in a protected area on the cage (for smaller animals).
• Purify the house with a house blessing ritual incorporated into the sabbat, or do one separately.
• In ritual, offer milk to the gods, then pour outdoors on the ground, or leave in a bowl for the animals.
• Do a visionquest/meditation on the wolf totem.
• Imbolc is a fire festival falling in the fixed astrological air sign of Aquarius. The magick that you do during this time period will have long-lasting consequences. Uranus and Saturn (modern and classical planetary rulers, respectively) bring the ability to make sudden changes, reach for rewards, and learn how to interact with authority figures.
Ostara/Spring Equinox
Other names: Ostara, Ostre, Mean Earraigh, Alban Eiler, Pasch, Caisg, Pesse.
Date: March 20, 21, or 22, depending upon the calendar. When the sun reaches 1 degree Aries.
Meaning of the word: Germanic dawn deity meaning “the month of beginnings or the month of openings.”43
Primary ritual focus: Fertility, sunrise ceremonies, offerings to the goddess of spring.
Age of holiday: 3000 b.c. or older.
Popular mythos: Return of the goddess from the underworld (Persephone).
Astrological sign: 1 degree Aries; fire; fixed.
Planetary ruler: Mars.
The custom of giving eggs on Ostara was known to the early Egyptians, Persians, Greeks, Romans, and Gauls. The symbol of life, the egg stands for our cosmic universe. The practice of coloring these eggs also dates back to ancient civilizations. The Persians dyed theirs red, where folks in other countries chose a variety of colors obtained by boiling the eggs with flowers or vegetables to achieve unique coloring.44 From foodstuff and symbol of new life to courtly art object to household decoration to focus for juvenile games, the Easter egg has traveled a very long way.45
ostara invocation
Ouroborus tells us the beginning has no end
Alpha and Omega—all reside within.
Pisces swims beyond the veil
Aries on the rise.
Mars becomes the focal point
capturing the prize.
The moon slips through her mansions
dancing in the signs
stars are fixed yet activate
the treasures of the mind.
The air is filled with harmony
of plant and bloom and bud
each egg foretells the birthing
of peace, and joy, and love.
Persephone emerges as winter falls away
Mother Earth rejoices—
her daughter’s come to stay.
As days grow long and nights are warm
the Goddess reigns supreme
Her power rises in my blood
I command all things unseen!
Magick symbols, knots and cords
wand and staff and blade
earth and water, fire and air
become the Witch’s trade.
I am the ground, the sea, the sky
the breezes springtime sweet
gods and spirits dance the round
within this circle meet.
I conjure thee, O leaves of spring
hyacinth and myrtle
roses, lilacs, lavender
black earth, warm and fertile.
Gifts of Gaia, Green Man rule
my wishes come to form
good fortune roots within my world
prosperity is born!
magickal ideas for your
ostara sabbat ritual
• Color and empower Oestre eggs for health, wealth, and prosperity.
• Celebrate the return of the Goddess by conjuring potted plants and giving them to friends and loved ones.
• Incorporate chocolate into your Ostara ritual.
• Review the items in your magickal cabinet or box and replace what is needed. Empower the supplies during the Ostara ritual.
• Bless seeds for the garden.
• Hold your ritual at dawn.
• Ostara (spring equinox) is solar driven. The sun moves from mutable, watery Pisces to cardinal, fiery Aries. Aries is a great “starter” sign, but it manages to poop out along the way. Any magick done while the sun or moon is in Aries should be supplemented with other workings later on.
Beltane/May Day
Other names: Valpurga, Mean Earraigh, Bealteinne, Beltaine, Beltainne, Roodmas, Calin Mai.
Date: May 1 or when the sun is at 15 degrees Taurus.
Meaning of the word: Beltane means “bright fire” or “lucky fire.”
Primary ritual focus: Appearance of the matured Horned God, fertility, protection of animals and gardens, leaping the fire for a fortunate summer, love magicks.
Age of holiday: Said to be the oldest known holiday.
Popular mythos: Maypole dancing,46 tenuous link to the Celtic Belenus.
Astrological sign: 15 degrees Taurus; earth; fixed.
Planetary ruler: Venus.
Of the seasonal European festivals, Beltane and Samhain, the two great fire festivals, seem to have held the most cultural and religious focus. May Day observances are thought to be drawn from two sources: the fire rites from Celtic tradition, and the flower rites from the Roman Floralia.47 In Celtic tradition, the night before Beltane, all the fires in the land were doused. A little before dawn the people would gather the nine sacred woods and prepare them for the birthing of the new fire, which was thought to purify the air of all evil forces. In many areas, a predawn procession began that reached its culmination on the hilltops. As the people watched, the fires were kindled at the rising of the sun, and as the flames leapt, the people walked deosil around the bonfire three times. Farm animals were sometimes paraded between the fires to remove any curses or sickness and protect them over the summer season. In some areas of Europe, people would leap over the flames of a small fire so that they, too, could be purified. Torches lit from the Beltane fire were taken home to light the new fires of the year. Libations of milk, butter, eggs, and bread (bonnach Bealltain) were offered to the fire with incantations (pre-Christian) or prayers (during the Christian reign) in hopes that the growing season would be a good one.48
European practices included tying a wand of rowan and hanging it above the door, and collecting ashes from the Beltane fire and placing them on the forehead to purify the body and bring good luck. Water collected from wells or cupped stones to catch the morning dew, called May dew, was believed to be especially powerful for holy water, and was sprinkled about the home to ensure good fortune, health, and happiness. Today, in some group rituals, the sacred fire is made to dance in a deosil spiral in honor of the Beltane purification rite.
beltane invocation
Light a fire in a cauldron. Turn to the east, and say:
Out of the east the sun wells and whitens, the darkness trembles into light, and the stars are extinguished like the lamps of a human city. The whiteness brightens into silver, the silver warms into gold, the gold kindles into pure and living fire, and the face of the east is covered with elemental scarlet. The day draws its first breath, steady and chill, and for leagues around, the woods and valleys will sigh and shiver. From every side the shadows will leap from their ambush and fall prone. The day of prosperity has come!49 This I give to thee, O sacred fire, so that I and my family shall be spared from all evil.
Walk around the cauldron three times, then repeat the following invocation:
Maypole rises to the heavens
lengths of colored ribbon
flutter in the morning sunlight
tokens kept and given.
Costumed lords and ladies
step quick in deosil round
weaving love and harmony
as the sun goes down.
Circle in to touch the sky, and out to manifest
spiral dance around the ring
grant me my request!
Venus rules, her passions deep
in love and games of war
Taurus vows that he will keep
great riches at the door.
Cupid’s bow is pointed to shoot
right through the heart
Aphrodite’s scented lips breathe
“Romance is an art.”
Circle in to touch the sky, and out to manifest
spiral dance around the ring
grant me my request!
The maypole is the World Tree
Poteau Mitan of lore
that draws from ebony oceans
stars to earthen shore
and carries power to the dance
through streamers of each hue
the spark of life that is required
to make a Witch’s brew.
Circle in to touch the sky, and out to manifest
spiral dance around the ring
grant me my request!
The first dew of the morning
and rowan on the ledge
are secrets of the season
renewing each year’s pledge
of joy and peace within my home
prosperity and more
magick thunders from my palms
and penetrates the core.
Circle in to touch the sky, and out to manifest
spiral dance around the ring
grant me my request!
Deosil thrice around the bonfire
leap the roaring flame
cast off the old and birth the new
in God and Goddess’ name.
Protection for the animals
good fortune, healing too
Bonnach Bealltain, an offering
to make my dreams come true.
Circle in to touch the sky, and out to manifest
spiral dance around the ring
grant me my request!
magickal ideas for
your beltane ritual
• Erect your own maypole using a Christmas tree stand and a large pole. Decorate with ribbons.
• Hang prayer ribbons on the trees and bushes on your property.
• Sew ribbons onto a white handkerchief, then empower each ribbon for a different goal or wish. Keep the handkerchief safe until all the wishes are granted.
• Collect the morning dew for magickal use.
• Hang a branch of rowan tied with red thread above your bedroom door for protection.
• Add spells for self-esteem and self-love to your Beltane ritual.
• Bless your garden or the nearest field.
• Beltane occurs when the sun is in the earthy, fixed sign of Taurus. Any magick done now will last (and work hard) for a long time. This is an excellent time of the year for prosperity work, for adding to the stability of your lifestyle, and making those needed repairs around the home.
Midsummer/Summer Solstice
Other names: Litha, Alban Heruin, Mean Samhraidh.
Date: June 20, 21, or 22, depending upon the calendar. When the sun is at 1 degree Cancer.
Meaning of the word: Litha means “moon.”
Primary ritual focus: Love, marriage, divination.
Age of holiday: Counterpart of Yule; at least 10,000 years old.
Popular mythos: Primary festival of the Horned God, Battle of Oak and Holly King (Holly King wins), Scandinavian Baldur (god of light), the descent of the God or Goddess.
Astrological sign: 1 degree Cancer; cardinal; water.
Planetary ruler: Moon.
In Aberdeen in 1745, a reverend wrote, “I never saw so many bonfires . . .”50
At Midsummer the sun is at the height of its strength and, as with the other quarter festivals, the main element used in popular custom was fire, which has especially strong roots with the Teutonic peoples (German, Norse, Scandinavian, and so on). Reports of bonfires on the hilltops and even in the streets were prevalent during European medieval times, and the celebration gave a great excuse for a major party.
They wore splendid costumes and carried pails of fire hung from poles. By the early sixteenth century the local parades had grown into one grand consolidated procession 4,000 strong, including the corporation and the livery companies and featuring morris dancers, model giants, and pageants. They carried so many torches that, according to a later writer, they released “A thousand sparks dispersed throughout the sky/ Which like to wandering stars about did fly/ Whose wholesome heat purging the air/consumes the Earth’s unwholesome vapours, fogs, and fumes.”51
In keeping with Teutonic magicks, water also features prominently in the Midsummer festival (fire and ice = fire and water), and whether we are talking about the Greek Persephone descending into the underworld, Egyptian Isis going there to save Osiris, or Baldur’s descent into the lower worlds from Asgard, the theme of descent is extremely prominent in this festival. In the Craft, the descent is our journey into ourselves in an effort to see our inner being clearly and change the things about ourselves that we feel should be different or better. The second- degree ceremony in many traditional groups is primarily about this type of descent and our desire to be the best that we can be.
In keeping with the ritual given here, the wheel itself was a major focus of public ceremonies and was often set afire, as well as the practice of gathering the dew of the morning (as on Beltane) for health and continued happiness. Again, we see the elemental representations of fire and water. Branches of birch were also cut down and hung over doorways to ensure protection of the household. A mixture of yarrow, vervain, fern, and St. John’s Wort was dried, powdered, and thrown into the fire. The length, breadth, and color of the flames were considered before the future was foretold.
midsummer invocation
Gemini to Cancer
the moon becomes the Queen
mighty Herne pursues her
in the forests dark and green.
Summer’s bright enchantment
workings of my will
“I know” begins the power
that turns the magick mill.
Oceans glitter in the heat
as passions raise the tide
the Oak and Holly navigate
for the favors of the bride.
Summer’s bright enchantment
workings of my will
“I know” begins the power
that turns the magick mill.
Faeries dance upon the air
making circles round
luring humans to the earth
beneath the sacred mound.
Summer’s bright enchantment
workings of my will
“I know” begins the power
that turns the magick mill.
Roman Fanus plays the flute
the notes a binding spell
of love and healing conjured
from the waters of the well.
Summer’s bright enchantment
workings of my will
“I know” begins the power
that turns the magick mill.
Shakespeare’s night of potions
bright world of in between
where gnomes hide buried treasure
and devas dance unseen.
Summer’s bright enchantment
workings of my will
“I know” begins the power
that turns the magick mill.
Crossroads vibrate open
the dead no longer rest.
I am a Witch and I know how
to conjure up the best!
Summer’s bright enchantment
workings of my will
“I know” begins the power
that turns the magick mill!
magickal ideas for your
midsummer sabbat ritual
• Collect morning dew, use in Midsummer ritual, and empower for holy water.
• Begin your ritual at dawn.
• Work magicks for partnerships and unions.
• Incorporate the legend of descent into your ritual.
• Study hex signs and paint one, adding its empowerment in your ritual.
• Build your own circle of stones.
• Glue eight candle cups to a wheel and use as a centerpiece for your ritual. Empower each candle for special wishes or overall good fortune.
• Midsummer is a solar holiday that recognizes the passage of Gemini, a mutable air sign, into Cancer, a cardinal water sign. It is the one solar holiday that strives to meld the outside world in which you function to the workings inside your family environment.
Lammas
Other names: Lughnasadh, Lunasdal.
Date: August 1 or 2.
Meaning of the word: Lammas, or “Hlaf-mass,” is the Feast of the Bread; nasadh means “to give in marriage,” and Lugh is the name of a Celtic god; therefore, Lughnassadh means “to give in marriage to Lugh.”
Primary focus: Bread harvest, first harvest, grain harvest, games of sport, blessing and saining rites, payment of debts, weather magick.
Age of holiday: Unknown.
Popular mythos: Marriage of Lugh to the Goddess (goddess varies), sacrifice of fruits to the soil (depending on your area), season of handfasting.
Astrological sign: 15 degrees Leo; fire; fixed.
Planetary ruler: Sun.
Lammas is most associated with the first of the harvest celebrations encompassing hay, grain, and cereal yields, and appears to be best known for its festival atmosphere and temporary handfastings (marriages that lasted one year at the consent of both parties) in medieval documentation.
lammas invocation
The King and Queen are wed at last
while summer’s kiss turns fields and grass
to harvest gold, and garden gifts
find sacrifice on earthen lips.
Witches gather hand to hand
power raised along the band.
Vortex spiral in its quest
force to form I manifest!
Debts repaid and games of sport,
weather magick—Thor’s retort
blessing babies, baking bread
stocking up for winter’s stead.
Witches gather hand to hand
power raised along the band.
Vortex spiral in its quest
force to form I manifest!
Bonfires, dancing, circle round
fruits and produce from the ground
offer up a feast of praise
while shadows lengthen in the maze.
Witches gather hand to hand
power raised along the band.
Vortex spiral in its quest
force to form I manifest!
August sun turns all to bronze
golden children singing songs
fireflies flitter in the dusk
touching all with faery dust.
Witches gather hand to hand
power raised along the band.
Vortex spiral in its quest
force to form I manifest!
Dark Lord52 melts into the night
taking with him summer’s light
merging wishes, law, and might
removing evil from our sight.
Witches gather hand to hand
power raised along the band.
Vortex spiral in its quest
force to form I manifest!
magickal ideas for your
lammas sabbat ritual
• Bake bread or pretzels.
• Bless marriages, babies, and homes.
• Have an outdoor picnic.
• Make a wreath out of grain to honor the harvest.
• Go camping and perform your ritual in the woods.
• Use the photographs taken over the summer to honor harvest home, or spend the week before Lammas taking pictures in the country or mountains to make a magickal collage of thanksgiving.
• The sun in fixed, fiery Leo rules this season. Use your magicks to “set” patterns for the coming winter months.
• Design an outdoor scavenger hunt for younger family members. Each item can represent the celebration of the season. Use the things found to create a simple spell for ongoing prosperity and health through the winter months. Use the tables of correspondences in this book to assist your choices—for example, white clover for prosperity, and a creek stone for flow, purification, and stability.
Mabon/Fall Equinox
Other names: Harvest Home, Alban Elued, Mean Fomhair.
Date: September 20, 21, or 22 (depending upon calendar); sun is at 1 degree Libra
Meaning of the word: “Divine youth.”
Primary focus: Second Harvest, offering of vegetable and fruit harvest, corn festival
Age of holiday: 3000 b.c. or older
Popular mythos: Death of the Harvest Lord (although some attribute this to Samhain), King and Queen of the Harvest.
Astrological sign: 1 degree Libra; air; cardinal.
Planetary ruler: Venus.
Mabon is the second of the three harvest festivals concentrating on the fruits and vegetables (as opposed to the grains of the first harvest).
A seventeenth century poet, Robert Herrick, in “The Hock-cart, or Harvest Home,” depicts the cart carrying the last load from the fields, dressed up with all the country art, and followed by adults crowned with ears of corn and a whooping group of children accompanied by a piper playing a harvest-home song. “Some bless the cart, some kiss the sheaves; some prank them up with oaken leaves.”53
All the world over, great reverence has always been paid to the last sheaf of corn to be cut on the harvest field, which was believed to embody the spirit of the corn. To ensure good harvests it was necessary to keep this spirit alive, and thus the sheaf became the center of a remarkable ritual, which, in spite of its Pagan character, has persisted in many countries, notably in Scotland.54 Corn dollies55 and other talismans and amulets were fashioned at this time in the hope that the family would be blessed with good fortune. The last sheaf of corn was not necessarily made to look like a human being—braided or bound wreaths, brooms, and other handicraft objects were also made. There is one thing for certain in the mind of the modern Wiccan: the Corn Mother has always ruled Mabon, whether she is Demeter, Bried, the Cailleach, or Maighdean-Bhuana.
magickal ideas for your
mabon sabbat ritual
• Dip leaves in paraffin and use in your
ritual. Bless them and give as gifts.
• Make a corn dolly.
• Perform your ritual in a harvested field.
• Visit a local orchard to find deity offerings.
• Thank a field for rendering its harvest.
mabon invocation
Mabon brings the scent of autumn
Golden glow and sun’s soft kiss.
Magick swirls and eddies onward
Season’s end demands all this.
The wheel is turning, ever forward
Calling for your act of closure,
Fill the cauldron, light the fire
Cast the magick ever higher!
Find the laughter, make ye merry
Touch the heartbeat of our Mother.
Libra brings an air of beauty
Gracing all with harvest lore
Listen closely wisdom’s duty
Look within to find the door.
(repeat second stanza)
The fruits are heavy on the trees
Yellow, gold, and orange leaves
Nature’s show of alchemy
Ever clear to you and me.
(repeat second stanza)