Spring is on its way!

Over the weekend we celebrated Imbolc, or the coming of Spring. This is probably the sabbat which I anticipate the most, as by this time of the year I have well and truly had enough of the cold and am looking forward to some warm weather ahead!

Already we are starting to see signs of spring around here - the wattle is in bloom and the neighbor's mulberry tree has gone from stark to covered in luxuriant new growth in a matter of days. The spring birds are also starting to arrive and the magpies have been busy gathering twigs for their nests.

Imbolc is traditionally of new beginnings and holds the promise of renewed life after the barren winter months. As with many of the pagan sabbats, this is a time to reflect on our hopes for the year ahead and the "new life" we would like to breathe into our own lives. Now is the time to plant the seeds of our dreams and tend them carefully. It is also traditionally a time for a good spring clean! Time to lift the darkness and stillness of winter and energise and lighten your home for the warmer days ahead.

Image from: http://media.photobucket.com/image/imbolc/BOWIE3_2009/natur/Snowdrops.jpg?o=190

Winter Solstice 2009

Winter solstice

Festival of light

Bringing hope out of the darkness

Of the longest night

A pause within the year

A time of still reflection,

Of rest and growth.

Opening your Heart

I think a major part of the pagan journey is seeking a connection with nature and the desire to see or feel the divine manifest in the world around us. I find that by performing the following visualisation/meditation on a regular basis (every day, sometimes a couple of times a day) I have a lot more of those moments of true connection with all that is majestic in the world. You know, those moments when you see the moon rising on a chill timeless winter evening and you just think how perfect and wonderful this universe is and how lucky you are to be a part of it.

Open Heart Visualisation

Sit or lie still and focus on your breathing. Feel it flow in and out of your body, until you have reached a state of calm and centredness. Now imagine a pure white light shining in your heart. This light grows stronger and takes the form of a beautiful flower open in full bloom. I like to imagine a white oriental lily, but you can choose any flower you like. The open flower symbolises our open hearts. Each time you breathe in, breathe in deeply and feel your chest expanding and swelling with love for all things, as you do so, imagine your heart as that open flower, its petals opening ever wider with your swelling chest. I find after a few breaths I experience an almost euphoric feeling of joy. Continue until you have had enough!

Photo from http://www.smugmug.com/community/Worth1000/keyword/casa+blanca#324890852_ZmKMS

Taking Time to Exhale

There is a belief in wicca that when the moon is waxing it is a time for decision making, new projects and moving forward.

When the moon is waning it is a time for pause, reflection and completion.

Sometimes I think I live my life as if the moon is always waxing. Always busy chasing some new idea or starting some new project, without allowing due time for pause and reflection. And I don't think I'm the only one living like this!

So starting this month, I am going to take this old piece of wisdom and apply it literally to my life. No new sewing projects, no new knitting projects, no new books begun (Lucky I started "The Last American Man" today, even though I haven't finished Little Women yet...), no new ideas, no new hobbies, no new habits begun while the moon is waning.

Just steady work on projects already begun, careful tying up of ends, time to rest and reflect. And plenty of sweet, sweet idleness.

Aah I wish it were that time already.

Image from http://www.philhart.com/gallery2/d/11834-4/Epsilon_Moon_047_400-2.jpg

Happy Samhain 2009

Tonight is Samhain for us in the southern hemisphere. Samhain is a powerful night on the pagan calendar, when the veil that separates the world of the living from the spirit world is said to be thinnest (the same is true at Beltane, on the opposite side of the calendar).

Tonight we will light old pumpkin head (or Mr Soon-to-be-pumpkin-pie), to light the way for any lost souls that may be roaming the streets.

Although not considered a true pagan tradition, the bright orange glow of the menacing face and the flickering shadows of the candle light are perfect for this time of darkness. Umm... I think ours looks more comical than menacing...

Here is one interesting rendition of the Jack-o-lantern legend, from About.com:

Originating from Irish folklore, the Jack-o-lantern was used as a light for the lost soul of Jack, a notorious trickster, stuck between worlds. Jack is said to have tricked the devil into a truck of a tree and by carving an image of a cross in the tree's trunk, he trapped the devil there. His pranks denied him access to Heaven, and having angered the devil also to Hell, so Jack was a lost soul, trapped between worlds. As a consolation, the devil gave him a sole ember to light his way through the darkness between worlds.

Originally in Ireland turnips were carved out and candles placed inside as lanterns lit to help guide Jack’s lost spirit back home. Hence the term: Jack-o-lanterns. Later, when immigrants came to the new world, pumpkins were more readily available, and so the carved pumpkins carrying a lit candle served the same function.

Happy Samhain to all!

Observing Pagan Sabbats in the Southern Hemisphere

To me, the Pagan sabbats or festivals are about three things:

1) Observing and celebrating the changes taking place in nature, and recognising the cyclical nature of the seasons and life in general.

2) Reflecting on various aspects of my life and life in general. Because humans are part of the natural order, to a degree the changing seasons are reflected in our inner lives or psyche (or rather can be if we choose to live in tune with nature). Different times of the year prompt reflection on different aspects of life.

3) Engaging in activities to mark the occasion.

I think the greatest challenge in celebrating the sabbats in the southern hemisphere is that our culture is so dominated by the northern hemisphere that festivals such as Halloween, when they have been imported, are publicly celebrated on the same date as in the Northern Hemisphere (Oct 31), which is seasonally inappropriate for us and removes a lot of the original meaning of the occasion.

The same occurs with the Christianised festivals of Easter and Christmas. While I do observe Christmas in December etc, I mentally hold these celebrations in a separate category from my seasonal observations, and they are done more in the spirit of celebrating family life rather than as an occasion to reflect on the underlying seasonal/cyclical issues.

So What is Samhain Actually About?

Nature aspects:
Samhain marks the passage into the "dead" of winter. Summer greenery is diminishing and the leaves turn and begin to fall. We also experience the first frosts of winter.

Psychological aspects:
Samhain is the festival of celebrating and remembering the dead, of honouring our ancestors. It is also a time to recognise and reflect on the certainty of death and the fact of decay, old age and eventual demise. It is associated with the Crone aspect of the goddess who is revered for her wisdom and experience. Many pagans also believe in the continuous nature of existence - that life is a constant cycle of death and rebirth, so Samhain is still a celebration, not a bleak event!

Samhain is also the pagan "new year" as it marks the death of one year and the rebirth of the next.

A lot of the popular imagery of Halloween such as ghosts and monsters are related to human fears about darkness and our relationship with death.

How Will I Celebrate Samhain?
I will bake a pumpkin pie or an apple pie (or probably both!)
I will carve a jack o lantern (cos they are so damn cute)
I will take the time to reflect on all the stuff outlined above (though this is done over the course of a couple of weeks around Samhain rather than just on one set day)
I will put up a couple of seasonal decorations around the house, such as those in my last couple of posts.
I will get outside and spend some time in nature to feel the seasons turning
And that's it!

Disclaimer:
I have been a pagan in my heart for as long as I can remember, however I do not and never have belonged to any pagan groups, so these are solely my own personal musings.

Image from: http://media.photobucket.com/image/samhain/hennafoot/samhain.jpg?o=44

Mabon 2009

Last night I performed a candle boat ritual in celebration of Mabon. We lit the boats at dusk, in a wheelbarrow filled with water in the back yard. It was so tranquil sitting in the dark gazing at the little flames gliding over the water. They were mesmerizing. A perfect opportunity to reflect on what I have reaped in my life this year, and what I would like to sow for the following year.

One thought that did come to me as I was watching the flames, is that I don't have enough darkness in my life and that I should seek out the dark. I am taking this in a literal sense for now. It is true that it is hard to find darkness in modern life. Our homes are brightly lit from the moment we wake until the moment we switch out the lights to go to sleep. The light allows us to stay busy and distracts us from the sometimes uncomfortable experience of being idle and left alone with our thoughts. To become comfortable with the dark is to become one with the void.

Day and night in perfect balance,

the Wheel turns again, the seasons pass,

and the years give way to the next,

May I never forget, every beginning has an ending

And every ending is a new beginning.

Harvest Moon

Tonight's full moon, being the full moon closest to Mabon, is known as the Harvest Moon.

Traditionally, this is the time of the year when the last of the crops are being gathered, and farmers were able to take advantage of the bright light of the full moon to continue working in to the night. There is also a chill creeping into the air and it is time for our thoughts to turn towards hearth and home and preparations needed for the coming winter. Now is a good time to declutter the home and make it cozy and comfortable for cooler days spent indoors.

Our chances of seeing the beautiful harvest moon are fairly slim in Brisbane tonight with all the cloud from Cyclone Hamish still shrouding the sky. It is grey and drizzly here this morning and once again I find myself caught unprepared for the cold. I definitely need to take some time to plan what warm clothing and bedding my family needs for the winter.

How are you preparing for the coming winter?

Image from http://img.inkfrog.com/pix/nanalulu/harvest-moon_4.jpg

Autumn

I've always loved this time of the year. This between time. When you can feel the seasons turning. Summer scorched us with its heat again last weekend, reluctant to surrender its hold just yet. Now this morning watching the little one nap, I can feel coolness creeping in through the window. Bringing with it delicious anticipation of the coming cold, after the unrelenting heat of summer. Autumn a time to slow down, to turn inwards, to nourish and fortify ourselves in preparation for the winter

Mabon

The Autumn equinox falls on the 20th of March this year. Pagans celebrate this as Mabon or the second harvest festival. Although considered a lesser sabbat, the equinoxes are my favourite times of the year as they mark a time of transition, in this case a transition from the light summer months to the darker winter months. On the equinox the hours of light and darkness are in perfect balance. Following the autumn equinox, the balance tips in favour of night and we enter the dark half of the year. The day lit hours continue to wane and the night lengthens until the darkness reaches its peak on the winter solstice (around 21st June). For me the equinox is a time to farewell the dying light and welcome the darkness that is to come. One of my favourite Mabon rituals is the "viking funeral" in which a paper model boat is set alight as it drifts out over the water, symbolising the dying light. Image from http://www.mobygames.com/game/amiga/lost-vikings/screenshots/gameShotId,73530/