For this week I've chosen the topic of festivals, also called sabbats or fire festivals. There are eight major festivals in the Pagan year, two are solstices, two are equinoxes, and two others. They are, in order, Yule, Imbolc, Ostara, Beltaine, Litha, Lughnasdh, Mabon, and Samhain. Specifically, I'm going to talk about my favorite things to do on and around the festivals.
On Yule I love to spend time with my family, because Yule is the beginning of the Pagan year we frequently exchanged useful gifts and the greatest gift of all; wisdom. There's always good food and funny stories, and it is a great light in one of the darkest times of the year.
On Imbolc I also celebrate my birthday, because it's ridiculously close to Imbolc, separated by only six days. I also get together with those that I love and offer help to those who need it, because traditionally this was the make it or break it point. You either had enough food to make it through the winter, in which case you celebrated, or you didn't so you ate everything so as to die semi full and happy. Now it's more about preparing for the coming spring. It also tends to land right around midterms, so for me it's a big time to pray for focus and success in school!
On Ostara I love to paint eggs and have large family dinners celebrating the joy of life. It also tends to fall about a month before finals, so I tend to pray for help keeping my spirits high and studying.
On Beltaine we celebrate the marriage of the god and the goddess, and I love to dance the maypole dance and look forward to taking my honey out on a date. It's also a celebration for the end of the semester.
On Litha my family puts on a play representing the death of oak king and the rise of the holly king, symbolizing the switch from the light half to the dark half of the year, and I absolutely love to be involved in everything from props to parts.
On Lughnasdh I like to get together with the group and plan and prepare for the coming winter, especially the coming school semester!
On Mabon we give thanks for all we have and all we have gained over the last year. I like to write a letter for myself to read next year, all about my triumphs and challenges that year.
Finally I treat Samhain as a day of silence. I wake up at sunrise and hold a private ritual for my ancestors that have passed, giving them thanks for their lessons and help over the past year. I don't speak for the rest of the day in honor of my ancestors. That night I throw a wild party celebrating the Pagan new year.
So that's what I do for the eight major festivals, hopefully that gives my Pagan readers some ideas. For my non Pagan readers, what do you like to do on your special holidays?
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