Exploring Celtic
Spirituality
A Series of
Classes and Ceremonies Celebrating the Celtic Wheel of the Year
with Edie
Stone, MA
2027 Broadway, Suite H, Boulder,
Colorado 80302
303-415-3755
Learn more about the Exploring
Celtic
Spirituality Series
All photo credits
Celtic Equinox and Harvest
Traditions - September 22
Enjoy
the fruits of the maturing year, celebrate the Divine Masculine and
Divine Feminine
Bring
fruit or something you have baked, brewed, or harvested.
- Wednesday,
September 22.
- Edie Stone's Office, 2027 Broadway, Suite H, Boulder - detailed directions below
- RSVP, if possible. We
will have plenty of space, but I need to plan for the size of the
group.
- OR by phone, on or before Sept. 22 at 303-415-3755
- I won't be able to look at any emails sent after
midnight, Sept. 21, so on the day of an event please
phone.
- By donation
Join us in celebrating
the richness of Celtic harvest and autumn traditions on the Autumn
Equinox.
We will break bread together, create a
harvest altar, explore seasonal, mythic, and archetypal themes, and do a
group journey or simple ceremony.
Some or most of the themes we will
cover are:
1. The Celtic Wheel of the Year - Autumn
phase
- The Three Harvests - Grain, Fruit, Root
- Cutting
the last sheaf
The death, dismemberment, and rebirth of
John Barleycorn
2.
The balance of day and night, of dark and light, and of masculine and
feminine:
- The Divine Masculine
- The Celtic God Lugh in his solar,
protector, and healer aspects
- St. Michael in his aspect as prince of
light, protector, and healer
- Mabon and Lleu Llaw Gyffes in Welsh
tradition
- The life, death, and transmigration of
Lleu
- Leprechauns and the Shoemaker
- Lugh and Arthur?
Historic
image of Lugh as Celtic warrior-king is from Wilson's Almanac, one of
the most interesting websites in the world.
- The Divine Feminine
- The Goddess and the Grail
- The Goddess and the Harvest - Rosemerta,
Eithne, Tailtiu\
- Blodeuwedd and the Owl
- Fertility symbolism of the carrot harvest
- "Ireland, as you know, is a woman." Quote
from Michael Quirke, storyteller from Sligo.
- Balancing the polarities: A harvest of
archetypal images
- The dark and light sides of Lugh
- Crom Dubh & Lugh, Goronwy & Lleu
- St Michael and the dragon
- Michael and Mary Leylines
- Glastonbury, the balance of red and white
- Avalon - The Island of Apples
- The Corn Dolly and the Cailleach
- Equinox in the Hill of the Hag, Sliabh na
Caillí
Bring fruit or something you have baked, brewed, or harvested.
Other names for this time of year:
Autumnal Equinox, Alban Elfed
(modern Druid), Festival of Mabon (modern Wiccan)
Harvest Home, 2nd Harvest,
Midharvest, Fruit Harvest, Wine Harvest, Gŵyl Ganol yr Hydref (Welsh,
Feast of Middle of Autumn), Goeldheys (Cornish, feast of ricks), Foghar
(Scots Gaelic, harvest), Feast of the Ingathering (England),
Kirn(Scotland), Mell Supper (Northern England)
Michaelmas (Sept. 29),
Lá Fhéile Michil (Irish), Gwyl Fihangel (Welsh), Gouel
Sant-Mikael (Breton), Goel Myghal (Cornish), Goel Myghal (Manx)
Let us give thanks. Consider the hours of labor it used to take to
reap enough grain by hand to keep family and community alive through
the winter. Accounts of Irish harvest labourers employed in Scotland,
for 5 to 15 shillings per acre, could harvest 300 sheaves a day using a
sickle, and eat 10 pounds of porridge, 3 pounds of milk, and "2 gallons
of good ale" per day!
How
to put the cart before the bull! A reaping machine from 1st Century
Celtic Gaul, described by Pliney the Elder.
Harvest info from the 1888 Chambers’s Encyclopedia of Universal
Knowledge, excerpts quoted on
http://vickipedia.multipledigression.com/
Entry on August 9, 2007, Reaping.
Check out the article that appeared in the Boulder
Daily Camera, Saturday, January 23, 2010, about our Imbolc celebration!
http://www.dailycamera.com/archivesearch/ci_14248469
Text of the article is copied Here.
Exploring
Celtic Spirituality with Edie Stone, MA
Current Event DETAILS and DIRECTIONS
Celtic Equinox and Harvest
Traditions - September 22
DATE:
Wednesday, Sept. 22
Actual Equinox time is Sept 22, 2010
at 9:09 PM Mountain Daylight Time or Sept 23, 3:09 UTC (Coordinated
Universal Time). So we will be in ceremony on the exact equinox.
A good site for calendar and astronomical info is
http://www.timeanddate.com/calendar/september-equinox.html
TIME: 7:00 to 9:30 pm
LOCATION:
Edie
Stone's office, 2027 Broadway, Suite
H, Boulder, 80304. One-half block
north of the Pearl Street Mall, directly below OM Time Yoga.
DIRECTIONS:
My office is
1/2 block north of the Pearl Street Mall, between Pearl and Spruce, in
downtown Boulder. After
parking, come back to the sidewalk on the
west side of Broadway. At street level, look for OM Time Yoga, then
come downstairs. Parking is available on the street or in the
Spruce Street Garage. The southbound Skip bus stops right in
front of
my building.
COST: By donation. $10 to $25 appreciated, if
you have the ability to give. No one turned away for lack of funds.
Bring
fruit or something you have baked, brewed, or harvested.
Return to top
Edie's main page, www.ediestone.com
Exploring
Celtic
Spirituality
A Series of
Classes and Ceremonies Celebrating the Celtic Wheel of the Year
with Edie
Stone, MA
A
Hollow Hill on Angelsey
The Green Abbey of
Glastonbury
How
beautiful they are,
The
lordly ones
Who dwell in the hills,
The
hollow hills.
Fiona
MacLeod, The Immortal Hour, Act
1, Scene
3
About the Exploring Celtic
Spirituality series with Edie Stone, MA
An on-going series of monthly classes exploring Celtic
worldviews, spiritual traditions, ancestral connections, and
mythic
imagery.
Celtic spirituality bridges ancient traditions of the British Isles and
old Europe, early Celtic Christianity, revivals of written and
visionary knowledge, and a living flow of mystical awareness and love
of nature.
All classes will include information and time for questions. Each
session also will include a participitory or experiential activity such
as a shamanic
journey or a simple ritual. Often we will end with a prayer and
blessing circle.
I also offer individual sessions
to support you in exploring spiritual questions and paths of deeper
knowing. Call me at 303-415-3755 or email me.
Well of St. Brigid in Kildare, Ireland
Celtic Wheel of the Year
Solstice Sunrise at Stonehenge
Return to top
Photo Credits:
- Summer Solstice and Midsummer images:
- Stonehenge
diagram from Mr. Bilben's Spectacular Symphony of Science,
www.burlington.k12.il.us/staff/8blue/bilen.htm
- Captive
Robin by John Fitzgerald. Fairy
art from a great fairy site:
hubpages.com/hub/Midsummer-Nights-Dream--the-Tempest--and-other-Fairy-Illustrations-and-Fairies-in-Art
- Fire
wheel from a Spanish language review of a role play game named Burning
Wheel, basuraatomica.wordpress.com/2009/09/07/, but it relates to the
ancient Osterraeder tradition at Luegde, Germany. More fascinating info
at www.osterraederlauf.com/
- Midsummer Bonfire Dance from a great site about
calendars,
and special info for every day of the year:
www.wilsonsalmanac.com/images1/midsummer_bonfire.gif
- Fire Wheel for St. John's Day from
www.canadafirst.net/our_heritage/solstice/
- Stonehenge Summer Solstice from Photobucket, available
at
several sites
- Photos with Exploring Celtic Spirituality
- Green Abbey of Glastonbury © Edie Stone 2008
- A Hollow Hill on Anglesey © Edie Stone 2008
- The best Celtic Wheel of the Year that I found was
nimbinfestival.com/nmg/images/wheel_of_the_year.jpg, but I don't think
they drew it.
- Stonehenge Summer Solstice from Photobucket, available
at
several sites
- Lugh and Autum Equinox photos
- The Harvest, by Robert Zund, on several sites via Google
image search
- Barley Sheaf with Sickle, old image, found on
http://hindsfoot.org/barbudd.html in a discussion of Buddhism and AA,
by Jouh Barleycorn himself.
- John Barleycorn mug, a collectible by Royal Doulton, is
available for sale at several sites.
- The Mountains of Mourn at harvest time. Found by Google
image search on an Irish financial site, leeburnfinancial.com, of all
places. But acutally, Lugh was also the god of commerce, oaths, and
contracts, so that is very appropriate.
- Harvest Maiden, a style of Corn Dolly, by Gordon
(surname unknown) on www.strawcraftsmen.co.uk/cdolly.php
- Ancient Reaping machine sited with image and comments.
- Sun Circles on stone in Cairn T, Loughcrew. Image from
Wikipedia, Creative Commons.
- Cairn T at Loughcrew is on the Hill of the Hag, Sliabh
na Caillí. Image
from Knowth.com - go there to discover many exciting photos of the
cairns.
- Sun Circles on stone in Cairn T, Loughcrew.
The sun enters Cairn T at Loughcrew at dawn on the Equinoxes. Martin
Brennan, who wrote The Stones of Time, gathered volunteers to document
the movement of the sun across the figures on the interior stones of
many cairns near Newgrange. He suggests that the whole comples of
cairns in the Boyne Valley, Newgrange, and Knowth, could have been used
as a giant calendar of sun events around the year.
Martin Brennan also wrote The Hidden Maya, a fascinating exploration of
Mayan glyphs using his knowledge of Native sign language.
Martin spoke in Boulder with the Diné Anthropologist Charlie
Cambridge and the late Dr. Bob McFarlane about the stone circles next
to NIST, which caught the sunset shadow of the neck of Bear Mountain on
the Winter Solstice. That area may also have served as a large
prehistoric calender site, now it is home to the atomic clock!
Return to top
Edie's main page, www.ediestone.com
My background in Celtic
Studies
I have a lifelong interest in mythic imagery, dreams, and Welsh fairy
tales. I also have always been drawn to Native American spirituality. I
was delighted to discover in 1993 that much of the worldview, practices
and elements of Celtic spirituality had a deep resonance and affinity
to Native American spirituality.
While at Naropa University from 1994 to 1997, I was a core member of a
Celtic spirituality group, with Frank Owen MacEowen and others. We
co-created three years of seasonal Celtic ceremonies. This was a very
rich and
exciting time of research and spiritual development for all of us.
Since then, I have completed an in-depth apprenticeship with a Native
American teacher, Kayla Moonwatcher, to become a Certified
Shamanic Journey Guide. I also have studied shamanic traditions from
South America, especially the Pachakuti Mesa Tradition with Oscar
Miro-Quesada.
I continued to study with other Celtic teachers, including Frank, Tom
Cowan, Geo Cameron Trevarthan, Mara Freeman, and Caitlín
Matthews. I led three years of Celtic shamanic circles in the Boulder
area, and gave presentations and workshops in Colorado and Wales,
2000-2008.*
Most recently, I have participated in an extended series of
teachings with renowned author and teacher R J Stewart, on many aspects
of Celtic spirituality, British mystical traditions and inner work.
If you are interested in an on-going group or a workshop, or if you
would
like to schedule a presentation, please contact me at 303-415-3755 or EStone@ShamanicJourneys.net
I also offer individual sessions of Soul-Centered
Counseling and Heart
Vision Shamanic
Journeys.
Presentations
*I have taught the following seminars and courses in Wales, England, and Colorado:
- Medicine Wheels and
Celtic Crosses
- Peruvian Shamanism and
Celtic Traditions
- The Mystery of Eagle
and Owl
- 2012: Merlin's
Prophesies, Peruvian Shamanism, and The Mayan Calendar
For information on the UK tours, see
http://www.ediestone.com/PeruvianShamanismCelticTraditionsWales.html
and http://www.shamanstone.co.uk/
If you would like to schedule a presentation on these or other Celtic
topics, please contact me at 303-415-3755 or EStone@ShamanicJourneys.net
Return to top
Edie's main
page, www.ediestone.com
Articles
Links:
Celtic celebration honors spiritual
woman of mystery, history
Megan Quinn, For the Camera
Posted: 01/23/2010 12:04:44 AM MST
Celtic goddess and Catholic saint
Brigid carries a sense of mysticism in two seemingly different but
intimately connected traditions.
Edie Stone, who has been organizing
Celtic festivals in Boulder since the early 90's, hopes to shed light
on Brigid and Imbolc, her upcoming Celtic celebration. The holiday
honors Brigid, a woman with dual identities as a Catholic saint and a
pagan goddess of healing and poetry. The Imbolc celebration takes place
3 p.m. Sunday, Jan. 31 at the First United Methodist Church, 1421
Spruce Street.
Brigid is a dynamic symbol because of
her multiple identities, Stone said.
"The qualities and symbolism of
goddess and saint overlap and merge in a lovely way, making it
difficult to tell where the myth of one ends and the legends of the
other begins," she said.
The celebration, which is open to the
public, will feature stories, music, and poetry inspired by Brigid, and
participants will pass around candles that symbolize the fire that
continuously burns in Kildare, Ireland, where Saint Brigid established
an abbey around the year 470. In the Pagan tradition, Brigid's flame
symbolizes Spring's growing warmth.
"There's a lot of crossover when it
comes to Brigid in the historical sense and the mythical sense," she
said.
Stone became interested in Celtic
rituals as a graduate student at Naropa in the early 90's. At first,
she studied Native American traditions and their connections to the
earth. After meeting another student who described his spiritual
experiences with Celtic traditions, Stone threw herself into learning
everything about Celtic ceremonies and their similar ties to nature. A
group of students got together and organized celebrations for each of
the four major Celtic celebrations.
"We started really getting into it
and taught each other. It was a joyful process, and we were always
discussing how we could do it so it was interesting and exciting for
people," she said.
There are four "cross-quarter" holy
days that fall in between solstice days and equinox days. They also
include Samhain or Halloween, Beltane or May Day and Lughnasa or
Lammas. Stone often holds workshops that delve into the other three
celebrations.
Stone said the First United Methodist
Church was a good place to hold the event because of the church's large
indoor labyrinth. Another part of the ceremony will include a
contemplative walk through the labyrinth.
Labyrinths have also appeared in both
early pagan and Christian traditions, Stone said. The winding, circular
path is meant to help generate a meditative state where people can
reflect on their life and spirituality.
Julie Heins of First United Methodist
Church said the church has rented out the labyrinth room to many
organizations since it is one of the few indoor labyrinths in Boulder.
"It's a pretty popular spiritual
practice around here," she said.
The church's large basement labyrinth
was the brainchild of former pastor Trevor Potter, and a committee
helped maintain it and integrate it into spiritual events. In the past
few years, however, the most active users have moved away, gone back to
school or joined other churches, Heins said.
The labyrinth, open to the public 9
a.m. to 5 p.m. weekdays and 9 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. Wednesdays, it is
available to people of all faith traditions, she said.
Those interested can also walk a few
other labyrinths around Boulder. St. John's Episcopal Church, 1419 Pine
Street, has a stone labyrinth just outside the building. Those who are
looking for a nature-centered maze can walk the gravel labyrinth behind
the Boulder Public Library. The labyrinth sits right next to Boulder
Creek.
Megan Quinn writes a weekly faith
column for the Camera and can be reached at
bubblegumandbibles@gmail.com.
Return to top
Edie's main page, www.ediestone.com
Resources
(in progress)
Archive of Classes and Events
Past Times with Good Company
(prior classes in Exploring Celtic Spirituality)
Class 1:Evening
Introduction with Edie Stone
This is the first meeting of a series of monthly classes
exploring
Celtic worldviews, spiritual traditions, ancestral connections,
and mythic imagery. Each session will include an experiential activity
such as a shamanic journey. Often we will end with a prayer and
blessing circle.
- Tuesday,
September 29, 2009. 7 pm - Evening Introduction to
this series of classes.
- Wednesday, September 30, 2009, 7 pm
- Tuesday, October 20, 2009.
7:30 pm
- As both the September intros filled up, this your
opportunity
to get in on the foundation ideas of the class series. Not required,
but recommended. Bring your quesitons and curiosity.
Class 2: Ancestors, Samhain, and All
Hallow's Eve
- Tuesday, October 27,
7:30
pm. Theme: Ancestors and Samhuin.
- We will explore Celtic traditions associated with the
end of
the harvest and the old year, honoring the ancestors, Hallowe'en, All
Hallow's Eve, and Samhuin (pronounced sow-in).
- Bring photos of ancestors, or any loved ones who have
passed
over during the year.
- Bring a piece of cloth and/or an object that connects
you to your ancestors.
"Ancestors" can be in your blood line, your milk line - those who have
nourished you, or your spirit line - those who have inspired or
mentored you.
Class 3: Celtic
Solstice Traditions
- Above: Winter solstice sunrise floods Newgrange (Brugh na
Boinne) with
Light.
- http://astronomy2009.ie/news/live_webcast_of_the_winter_.html
- Image from above website, photo by Cyril Byrne, courtesy
of The
Irish Times
- Tuesday, December 1,
2009. 7
pm. Theme: Celtic Solstice Traditions.
- Why is the solstice called "Midwinter"?
- The ancient calendar of the land, and the Stones of
Time.
- Solstice trees, evergreen, mistletoe, holly and ivy, and
the
Green Man.
- Please
bring a bit of greenery for our altar.
- Rebirth of the Sun in myth, imagery, and customs.
- Birth of the Son, the Child of Light:
- Lugh and Llew
- Angus Og the Young God of Brugh na Boinne (Newgrange)
- Mabon ap Modron, Apollo Maponus, and Mary's Mabon the
Christ
Child
- All classes by donation, $10 to $25 range, for those
able to
give. No one turned away for lack of funds
Class 4:
Bringing
Light & Mirth to the Dark of the Year.
- Monday, January
4, 2010,
7 pm. Twelfth Night Traditions
- Yule, Twelfth Night, mummers and guisers.
- New Years, Hogmanay, Mari Llwyd, and wassailing
traditions
Class 5: Imbolc --
The Festival of Brigid, Goddess and Saint
- Sunday, January 31, 2010, 3
to 4:30 pm
- Labyrinth Room in the First United Methodist Church
- 1421 Spruce Street, Boulder, Colorado 80302
- A celebration of the beauty,
inspiration, and healing energy of Brigid -- Brigid who is an ancient
and timeless triune goddess of the Celtic spirit, and Brigid, who is
the beloved saint of Ireland and Scotland.
The qualities and symbolism of goddess and saint overlap and merge in a
lovely way, making it difficult to tell where the myth of one ends and
the legends of the other begins.
Check out the article that appeared in
the Boulder
Daily Camera, Saturday, January 23, 2010, about our Imbolc celebration!
http://www.dailycamera.com/archivesearch/ci_14248469
Class 6: A
Green Spring: Celtic Spring and Equinox Traditions
Sunday, March 14, 2010, 3 pm
Exploring Celtic Spirituality
class with Edie Stone,
MA
Alban Eilir
ALSO:
Flamekeepers of Brigid meeting at 2 pm. For anyone interested in
observing the 20-day cycle keeping the Flame of Brigid. You would tend
a candle once every 20 days to honor Brigid and the
spirit of peace.
A southerly sun
A
full belly
Prepare the Spring.
Cornish
saying
Join us in celebrating the return of
green energy, as daylight is
rapidly expanding, the Earth is warming, green shoots are emerging, and
life energy is stirring beneath the ground.
Some themes and traditions we might explore:
- The balancing of Day and Night, and of
Masculine and
Feminine
- Rebirth of Life and the God of Spring
- Equinox and the Game of Dark and Light
- Wakening of the Sleeping Lord
- Green shoots in Wales and Ireland- leeks,
daffodils, shamrocks, and sorrel
- The green saints, David and Patrick
- St. Piran and the Cross of Tin
- Goddess traditions, ancient and modern
- Easter rabbits and boxing hares
- Eostre or Ostara, the Goddess of Spring and
Dawn
- Easter eggs and the Cosmic Egg
- Saint Non and the Goddess of the Well
- Lady Day, Mothering Sunday, Cybele/Rhea,
Anna
Perenna
- The New Year Equinox
- Hot Cross Buns and the Wheel of the Year
The Equinox class starts at 3 pm. I will meet with people interested in
becoming Flamekeepers of Brigid at 2 pm. More information on
Flamekeeping to follow.
Class 7: May Day &
Bealtaine - Summer bursts forth in the Glory of Green Man and the Power
of the Queen
Organizational meeting Tuesday, April 27, 7 pm.
• Edie Stone's office, 2027 Broadway, Boulder
(below OM Time Yoga)
• RSVP to Edie: 303-415-3755 or
rsvp@shamanicjourneys.net
Celebration: Sunday, May 2, 2010
Private location
Some spellings: Bealtane, Beltane, Beltinne, Beltaine, Bealtaine,
Beltine, Bhealtaine, Lá Bealtaine, Latha Bealltainn, Calan Mai
Class 8:Summer Solstice
Traditions - June
15 and 24
Learn
about Summer Solstice traditions in the Celtic realm and old Europe.
Similar classes, same location, slightly different
themes:
June
15
- Why
is June 21st called Midsummer when it is the beginning of summer?
- The
Celtic cross-quarter seasons vs. the solar calendar
- Sunrise
over Stonehenge, dancing the stones in Calanish
- The
sun god and the hero of fire - Belenus, Apollo, Mithra, Prometheus,
Baldur
- The
hidden history of Mother Sun, Áine and Grían
- Fire
festivals, wheels of fire, bone fires, need fires, and the fire of St.
John
- Jack
be nimble, Jack be quick
- Midsummer
Night
- Parting
the veil between the worlds, seeing the faery realm
- Fairies,
great and small, hobgoblins, Queen Mab, Robin Goodfellow and Puck
- The
Lord and Lady of Summer, The Green Man, and the Lord of Misrule
- Streaking
at 3 am in Latvia, the Cerne Abbas Giant, and other fertility symbols
- Parades,
pageants, and parties
- Other names:
- Alban Heruin (Druid, Light of the Shore) or Alban Hefin
(light of midsummer), Litha (pagan) or Aerra Litha (Saxon for June),
Grianstad an tSamhraidh (summer solstice, Irish - Graín is Sun
and Samhradh is summer in Irish)
- Midsummer: Medio-saminos (Old Celtic/Gaulish), which in
modern languages became the name for June: Mehefin (Welsh), Metheven
(Cornish),
Mezheven (Breton), and Meitheamh (Irish, older versions:
Meadhshamh Middle Irish, from Old Irish med·sam “midsummer”).
June
24 -
Summer Solstice Traditions
CONTENT:
See
above
ADDITIONAL
THEMES ON JUNE 24: 
Why are we celebrating the Solstice on June 24?
Well, historically, most
European
Midsummer customs are celebrated on the evening of June 23 and the day
of June 24. Customs include May Poles and Green Crosses in
Scandinavia and Central Europe as well as Britain.
June 24 is the Feast of the
Nativity of Saint
John the Baptist. As usual (thanks to Gregory the Great), the Catholic
Church placed a saint's day on top of a traditional seasonal festival.
Then the Church spent centuries trying to stamp out the frivolities and
festivities, such as:
* Rolling wheels
of fire
* Naked midnight
swims
* Battles
between the Kings of Winter and Summer
Also, learn more about magical
ferns, invisibility, and St. John's Wort ... which is of course
associated with the happy, sunny days of the Feast of St. John the
Baptist.
Other names: Lá Fhéile Eoin (Irish), An
Fhéill-Eoin (Scottish Gaelic), Gwyl Ifan (Welsh), Golowan or
Gol-Jowan (Cornwall), Gouel SAnt-Yann (Breton), Laa l'Ean (Manx)
TIME: 7:00 to 9:30 pm
LOCATION:
Edie
Stone's office, 2027 Broadway, Suite H, Boulder, 80304. One-half block
north of the Pearl Street Mall, below OM Time Yoga.
DIRECTIONS:
My office is
1/2 block north of the Pearl Street Mall, between Pearl and Spruce, in
downtown Boulder. After parking, come back to the sidewalk on the
west side of Broadway. At street level, look for OM Time Yoga, then
come downstairs. Parking is available on the street or in the
Spruce Street Garage. The southbound Skip bus stops right in front of
my building.
COST: By donation. $10 to $25 appreciated, if
you have the ability to give. No one turned away for lack of funds.
And now for something
completely, Celtically obscure and wonderful:
On the Isle of Man, they celebrate Midsummer on July 5. Why? Because
the Manx pegged their national holiday, Tynwald Day, and its Midsummer
Court Ceremony, to St. John's Day, June 24. But when they converted
from the Julian Calendar to the Gregorian Calendar in 1753, they kept
Tynwald on the same natural
day, 11 days ahead of the Gregorian date, July 5.
And another bit on July 5th as Midsummer:
FEILL-SHEATHAIN, or
MIDSUMMER July 5th is the date of the Old
Midsummer [i.e. before the Gregorian calendar change]. Feill-Sheathain
means "Swithin's Eve." Swithin is the old form of John, the common form
being Iain, Eoin, and Eathin. Many ancient Pagan sites dedicated to
Baldur were rededicated, by the Christian Church, to St. John the
Baptist. Baldur was, of course, a radiant Sun god.
Throughout Scotland, and the rest of Britain, villagers would make
"cartwheels" of straw and dip them in pitch. On Midsummer's Eve these
would be set alight and bowled down the hillsides, to give power to the
sun god. It the flames went out before the wheel reached the bottom of
the hill, it presaged a bad harvest.
Quote from
http://www.brenna.co.uk/Seasons.html
Class 7: Lughnasa - The Festival of Lugh -
August 1, 2010
Come co-create and celebrate the Festival of Lugh - The Harvest, the
Arts, and the Divine Masculine.
- Sunday, August 1.
- Private location
- By donation
Lughnasa (LOO-nah-sah), August 1st, is
a celebration of the first harvest, the beginning of autumn, the season
of golden grain and golden sunlight.
In the ancient Celtic calendar, this feast day was dedicated to the
young god Lugh, master of all
the arts, embodiment of the Divine Masculine. In partnership with the
Goddess of Sovereignty, he confirms rightful Kingship and right
relationship to power.
In the Church calendar, Lammas Sunday,
the first Sunday of August, is celebrated with the Blessing of the
Loaves.
We will playfully celebrate the arts and skills in each of us, hear
Lugh's tale, then feast on berries, bread, and ale, and other potluck!
Bring: Potluck! Foods of all
kinds, including seasonal berries, ripe fruits, local produce, and
bread products. Protein and veg dishes also welcome so we don't carb
out. Red ale is ritually significant, and other drinks potent and plain
to quench our summer thirst.
Bring: Skills! arts,
crafts, poetry, song, dance, mime, mumming, padded swordplay,
magic
spells, jumping, racing hobby horses, joinery, smithcraft, music,
storytelling, jokes, festive costumes ... Lugh was skilled in all the
arts: builder, smith, champion, harper, warrior, poet, historian,
magician, physician, cupbearer, and brazier.
Other names for this festival: Lammas, August Eve, Feast of
Bread, Harvest Home, Dozynki, Luhnasa; Lunasda, Lunasdal; Laa Luanys
and Luanistyn; Gwl Awst, Thingtide, Garland Sunday, Bilberry Sunday,
Fraughan Sunday, Crom Dubh Sunday, Black Stoop Sunday, Lammas,
Cornucopia
Photo credits above,
after the Stonehenge photo.
Another past event with
Celtic themes:
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