Imbolc

Imbolc is the festival of the lactating sheep. It is derived from the Gaelic word "oimelc" which means "ewes milk". Herd animals have either given birth to the first offspring of the year or their wombs are swollen and the milk of life is flowing into their teats and udders. It is the time of Blessing of the seeds and consecration of agricultural tools. It marks the center point of the dark half of the year. It is the festival of the Maiden, for from this day to March 21, it is her season to prepare for growth and renewal. Brighid's snake emerges from the womb of the Earth Mother to test the weather, (the origin of Groundhog Day), and in many places the first Crocus flowers began to spring forth from the frozen earth.

The Maiden is honored as the Bride on this Sabbat. Straw corn dollies are created from oat or wheat straw and placed in baskets with white flower bedding. Young girls then carry them door to door, and gifts are bestowed upon the image from each household. Afterwards at the traditional feast, the older women make special acorn wands for the dollies to hold, and in the morning, the ashes in the hearth are examined to see if the magic wands left marks as a good omen. Brighid's Crosses are fashioned from wheat stalks and exchanged as symbols of protection and prosperity in the coming year. Home hearth fires are put out and re-lit, and a besom is place by the front door to symbolize sweeping out the old and welcoming the new. Candles are lit and placed in each room of the house to honor the re-birth of the Sun.


Another traditional symbol of Imbolc is the plough. In some areas, this is the first day of ploughing in preparation of the first planting of crops. A decorated plough is dragged from door to door, with costumed children following asking for food, drinks, or money. Should they be refused, the household is paid back by having its front garden ploughed up. In other areas, the plough is decorated and then Whiskey, the "water of life" is poured over it. Pieces of cheese and bread are left by the plough and in the newly turned furrows as offerings to the nature spirits. It is considered taboo to cut or pick plants during this time.


Imbolc is also known as Candlemas, Imbolg, Brigit's Day, Feast of Brighid, Lupercus, The Festival of Lights, and the Feast of the Virgin.

When Witchy Wasn't Cool...

I had the coolest thing happen this weekend, I got an invitation to the Black Hat Society Network! I had been quite envious of this site for a long time now as an invitation is needed to join but low and behold the web mistress put an invite in her blog that said just send an email and an invitation would be extended...."Way cool..!" I said and promptly emailed her.

There is a cookbook in the works at The Black Hat Society Network and I'm really excited to be able to submit an entry that has been in my family for many, many years. My grandmother, may the universe bless her lovely soul, was the grounding and driving force in my young life that was less than idealistic due to my father's alcoholism. Without my grandparents, I would not be the person I am today and I wish that I could hug them one more time.

As a child I didn't even realize that my grandparent's were earth based, to me it seemed as everyones family was that way.... looking back, I see that my grandma and grandpa were true pagans at a time when it was unacceptable and thought of as blasphemy at it's finest. Holidays were mixed with little nuances of paganism and there were occasions that they celebrated that other families didn't have and it wasn't until I grew up and the path found me, did I realize the legacy that they had given me.

My grandparents have been gone for many years now, and at times I can acutely feel my loss but other times I can hear my grandmother's words echoing in my head or think that I've caught a whiff of her perfume (she made her own rose water perfume) and realize her energy still surrounds and comforts me in my lonliest times.

Celtic Tree Calendar

Because my roots are Celtic in origin, I thought it would be fun to do some research on the Celtic Tree Calendar, which fascinates me to no end. I've always loved history and it's so cool when learning about the past leads you to realize that the past and present are not so removed from each other. Family's hand down stories and traditions from generation to generation and I just love seeing where a particular belief or custom originates from. I can still remember my grandfather teaching me all about the trees, he was a fire marshal for the local forest service in the town I grew up in and passed his love of nature to me.

The Celtic Tree Calendar calendar has thirteen lunar divisions. Most modern pagans use fixed dates for each month, rather than following the waxing and waning lunar cycle. Otherwise, eventually the calendar would fall out of sync with the Gregorian year that we all use today because some calendar years have 12 full moons and others have 13. The modern tree calendar is based on an idea that each letter in the ancient Celtic alphabet corresponded to a tree. Today marks the end of the tree month Rowan and tomorrow begins Ash.

The tree month of Ash (Feb. 18th -Mar 17) was a sacred chieftain tree and said to "court the flash" as it was prone to lightning strikes. Its wood was thought to be enchanted and was used for Druid wands and spears. Ash people are quick witted, spontaneous and gregarious. They have a lively curiosity and are intelligent, persuasive speakers, enthusiastic, curious and communicative. In Celtic mythology the ash is known as the tree of enchantment and it is said the Welsh magician Gwydion fashioned his wands from ash wood.

The Ogham (oh-wahm) or sacred Druidic alphabet contained hidden secrets for magic and divination and only the initiated could understand these meanings. The ancient Celts had a close bond with trees and we can see in their magical alphabet and in the tree calendar.They had a deep respect for their trees and it is reflected in the old Celtic word for oak (Duir), the word Derwydd or Duirwydd (oak-seer) was probably the origin of the word Druid.

Imbolc Is Coming...

Imbolc ( pronounced im-bolk or sometimes em-bulk) is a fire festival that marks the start of Spring, halfway between the winter solstice and the vernal equinox. It roughly corresponds to Groundhog Day, when tradition has it that if a groundhog sees its shadow outside the burrow at dawn, there will be six more weeks of winter. My daughter Meaghan was born on February 2nd and this day is always just a little bit more special to my family. Imbolc is one of the four principal festivals, and the celebration signals the middle of the season of long nights and anticipates the upcoming season of light. Some people make corn maidens from corn and wheat and the maidens are dressed up and placed in a cradle known as a "Bride's Bed". A wand, usually tipped with an acorn or other large seed, is placed in the bed with the maiden which is generally kept year round as a symbol of fertility. Depending on your particular path or tradition, there are many different ways you can celebrate Imbolc. Some people focus on the Celtic goddess Brighid, in her many aspects as a deity of fire and fertility, others focus their rituals more towards the cycles of the season, and agricultural events such as preparing the soil and planting times. I like to do my version of "spring cleaning" and give my house a blessing as well as a bit of scrubbing and involve my children in a few arts and crafts followed by a special dinner which is always a great time together as a family.