Disclaimer: Any medicinal benefits given here are a product of my own research and as such should not be taken over the advice of trained medical professionals. If you are ill, please go and see a doctor. Always make sure that anything you consume is 100% safe. If you are pregnant, consult your doctor or midwife before consuming something you haven’t tried before.  

I am very passionate about sharing what I’ve learned with others at no cost but the time it takes to read, learn and implement.  Research for yourself.  Use what you like.  Dispose of what you do not. It is up to you how you utilize this information.   I am not a doctor…I am a Witch!

The Wheel of the Year in Magic and Wicca

The Wheel of the Year is an important tool you will use throughout your spiritual journey into Wicca.  It isn’t easy when you have been brought up in a society where certain ways were deemed immoral or satanic.  I am heading into my 54th year and I have been practicing Wicca for approximately 18 years.  I had to change my mind set about myself and get rid of the things and PEOPLE that no longer served my plan for my life.  It was really hard, and I had to really work at getting rid of the BS I was taught over the years.  When I realized that I was finding my own path spiritually, my life started to change.

As you go through your transformation you find what works for you and what does not.  Across the globe, cultures everywhere are celebrating in different says.  Which is what is so unique about Wicca. You don’t have to follow something that does not necessarily make sense to you or feel right.

The Wheel of the Year is a tool you use throughout your journey, along with learning to dispose of what does not serve you and you gradually will live by the moon, stars, and the sun.  The Wheel of the Year is a guide of what festivals are celebrated for the season and will help you plan your rituals and celebrations.  I started by adding these 8 Sabbats to my cellphone calendar so I would get a reminder each time there was a Sabbat coming up.

There are 4 Solar Sabbats/Festivals or quarter days, and there are 4 Fire or Nature Sabbats/Festivals or cross quarter days. The Quarter Days—Imbolc or Candlemas (February 2), Beltane or May Day (May 1), Lammas (August 1), and Samhain or All Saints’ Day (November 1)—marked the four quarters of the calendar as observed in the British Isles and elsewhere in northern Europe. Imbolc is celebrated halfway between the winter solstice and the spring equinox, Beltane is halfway between the spring equinox and the summer solstice, Lughnasadh is halfway between the summer solstice and fall equinox, and Samhain is halfway between the fall equinox and winter solstice.

• Yule, Winter Solstice: December 20, 21, 22, or 23

  Yule is the longest night and the shortest day of the year. It marks the end of the planting seasons.  Some Wiccans consider Yule to be either the year’s beginning or the end. This is the time to celebrate the return of the light. Yule is the solar turning of the tides, and the newborn Sun offers a fresh start and, literally, a new day. It’s a time of renewal and hope.  As you know, traditions differ from culture to culture, and from coven to coven.

  • In some Wiccan traditions, the Goddess (in her Mother aspect) gives birth to the God on the longest night of the year and then she rests, just as the earth during its’ winter months. Yule celebrates the coming of longer days and the return of the sun.

  • Some celebrate the 12 Days of Yule, which begins on December 25th or Christmas Day to January 5th or Epiphany.

  • The Hopi Indians of northern Arizona, celebrate the Winter Solstice or Soyal with ceremonies and rituals that include purifications, dancing and some gift giving.  They welcome the kachinas, protective spirits from the mountains.  Prayer sticks are crafted and used for various blessings and other rituals.

  • The Persian festival is called Yalda or Shab-e Yalda.  It is a celebration of the victory of light over dark, and the birthday of the sun god Mithra. They celebrate with foods like nuts, pomegranates and some stay awake all night long to welcome the morning sun.

  • Scandinavia celebrates St Lucia’s Day. China celebrates Dong Zhi. Antarctica celebrate Midwinter. Rome celebrates with the festival of Saturnalia. In Peru, they celebrate Inti Raymi. The one thing they have in common is that they all celebrate the returning of the light.

  • I found this sabbat to be the easiest to incorporate in with the traditions that my family and I have already established.  Some of my family love the traditions we’ve created together so much that they do it with their families now.

• Brigid, Imbolc, Candlemas, Imbolg, or Brigid’s Day: February 1 or 2

  Brigid, or Imbolc, is a preparation for spring.  Imbolc celebrations took the form of a festival in honor of the pagan goddess Brigid, who was worshipped by the Filid, a class of poets and historians among the Celts of ancient Ireland and Britain.  Brigid was considered one of the most powerful Celtic gods, the daughter of Dagda, the oldest god in Celtic pantheon Tuatha du Danann.  She is a very interesting deity, and you can find her book on the website.

  • During Imbolc, Wiccans clean and organize their living environments, as well as their minds and hearts, in preparation for the upcoming season of growth. It’s a time to shake off the doldrums of late winter and light the fires of creativity and inspiration.

  • Imbolc is the halfway point between the Winter Solstice and the Spring Equinox.  It’s been speculated that the ritual stems from the breeding cycle of sheep and the beginning of lactation.  The holiday was traditionally aligned with the first day of spring and the idea of rebirth.

  • Candlemas is a Christian holiday celebrated on February 2nd that has the aspects in common with Imbolc, celebrated as a purification and cleansing holiday (adaption of the Roman holiday Februalia) and a celebration of the return of the light after winters darkness.

  • Groundhog Day is believed to be an adaptation of the German Candlemas tradition involving a badger.  Others believe that they have nothing to do with each other. No matter the tradition, it seems to all be for the same reason!

• Eostar, Spring Equinox, Ostara, or Oestarra: March 20, 21, 22, or 23

  Winter is now over. Light is increasing. The day and night are equal in length at the equinox. Spring has arrived or is coming soon.  Eostar is the time of fertility, birth, abundance, and renewal. The ice is thawing, and the growing season for plants and animals begins. Growth is the theme of the day.  Most take this time to figuratively and literally plant seeds for the future.  It’s a time to start taking action on those ideas and goals you came up with at Yule and Imbolc.

  • It’s curious about modern holiday beliefs and calendar customs are close to ancient customs of the pagan.  Like the origination of the bunny rabbit.  The tale is that Ostara, the ancient Germanic goddess of the spring, found a bird frozen in the snow and transformed the bird into a hare and the hare responded by laying colored eggs for her festival.

  • The goddess is in her Maiden aspect (the moon), and all is playful in her world, and the god (the sun) is getting stronger and stronger as he grows into a young man, celebrate the earths fertile spring.

  • The Spring Equinox is celebrated in all cultures.  In Lanark, Scotland, they celebrate Whuppity Scoriae, in Egypt it’s The Festival of Isis, in Iran it’s Festival of No Ruz, Irish is St Patrick’s Day, Italy the Feast of Cybele (mother goddess), Judaisum it is the Festival of Passover, and Russia celebrate Maslenitsa.  The common factor between them all is that they all celebrate spring.

• Beltane, May Eve, Beltaine, Bealtaine, or May Day: April 30 or May 1

  Beltane is a celebration of the goddess and the god coming together.  They are equal in power and the masculine and feminine energies are united. The holiday celebrates their union through traditions such as fertility rites, fire festivals, and dancing around the maypole. It’s the halfway point between the Spring Equinox and the Summer Solstice.

  • It is an ancient fertility festival marking the beginning of the planting cycle. The festival was to ensure a good growing season and a bountiful harvest. Beltane is light-hearted and joyful.  Beltane (pronounced Bel-tain) means “bright fire” in Celtic and refers to the god Belenus, who protected herds of cattle and offered healing and light to the ancient Celtic pagans.

  • In earlier times, the Celts lit a need-fire in Tara, Ireland. They used this to light all the other fires in the local community and eventually, the country. They believed the smoke of this fire was considered purifying and healing for both people and animals, so they drove cattle through the smoke as they moved to summer pastures.

• Litha, Summer Solstice, or Midsummer: June 20, 21, 22, or 23

  Litha is the longest day and the shortest night of the year. Light triumphs but will now begin to fade into darkness as autumn approaches. The crops are planted and growing. The woods and forests have reached their peak fullness. This is the time of abundance for wildlife, including people!  This is when the god is at his highest power.  We give thanks to all and ask for a rich harvest.  The holiday is joyous.  The season of Handfasting and Broom Jumping is here!  Make your blessing besom and create an elemental garden to celebrate.

  • Anna Franklin says in her book Midsummer: Magical Celebrations of the Summer Solstice, that in England, rural villagers built a big bonfire on Midsummer’s Eve. This was called “setting the watch,” and it was known that the fire would keep evil spirits out of the town. Some farmers would light a fire on their land, and people would wander about, holding torches and lanterns, from one bonfire to another. If you jumped over a bonfire, presumably without lighting your pants on fire, you were guaranteed to have good luck for the coming year. Franklin says that “Men and women danced around the fires, and often jumped through them for good luck; to be blackened by the fire was considered very fortuitous indeed.” After your Litha fire has burned out and the ashes gone cold, use them to make a protective amulet. You can do this by carrying them in a small pouch, or kneading them into some soft clay and forming a talisman.

  • In some traditions of Wicca, it is believed that the Midsummer ashes will protect you from misfortune. You can also sow the ashes from your bonfire into your garden, and your crops will be bountiful for the rest of the summer growing season.

• Lughnasad, Lughnasadh, or Lammas: August 1

  For the ancient Pagans, Lughnasadh was a time of both hope and fear. They held hope for a bountiful harvest and abundant food, but they feared that the harvest wouldn’t be large enough and that the cold months would be filled with struggle and deprivation. At Lughnasadh, modern Wiccans also face their fears, concentrate on developing their own abilities, and take steps to protect themselves and their homes.

  • Lammas, the conventional name of the Quarter Day which falls on August 1. In the early English church, it was kept as a harvest festival, when loaves of bread made from the new grain were consecrated. Its name was derived from the Anglo-Saxon word meaning “loaf-mass.” Gule is another name associated with August 1, which is also the date of the festival of St. Peter’s chains and the Celtic festival of Lugnasad.

• Mabon, Fall Equinox, or Harvest Home: September 20, 21, 22, or 23

  At Mabon, the day and the night are equal in length, in sublime balance. For many locations, Mabon coincides with the final harvest of grain, fruits, and vegetables. Mabon, also called Harvest Home, is the time of thanksgiving. The beauty and bounty of summer gives way to the desolation of winter, and the darkness overtakes the light.

  • Modern Pagans began celebrating Mabon as the last of the eight Sabbats in the 1970s, but its roots as a harvest festival go back to ancient times.  Named after the ancient Welsh hero named Mabon ap Modron, which means Son of Mother, Mabon is the second of three harvest festivals that take place in the Wheel of the Year (Lughnasadh is the first and Samhain is the third).  Similar to Apollo, the figure of Mabon was depicted as a handsome youth with a lyre. As a baby Mabon was said to have been held hostage as a baby in the underworld, similar to the story of Persephone and Demeter.   Indeed, the Greek goddess Demeter is much more closely associated with the Autumn harvest, as it was her grief at losing her daughter that turned the earth from lush abundance to barren cold.

  • As the Wheel of the year comes to an end, Mabon is a good time to set intentions that involve decrease and reduction such as ending bad relationships, unhealthy habits or self-destructive beliefs.

• Samhain, All Hallow’s Eve, Hallowmas: October 31 or November 1

  For many Wiccans, Samhain marks the New Year and is the most important Sabbat. It’s the time to remember the ancestors, and the time to celebrate the harvest and all that has been accomplished over the year.

  • Samhain (pronounced “SOW-in” or “SAH-win”), was a festival celebrated by the ancient Celts halfway between the autumn equinox and the winter solstice. It began at dusk around October 31st and likely lasted three days. Samhain marked the transition between the year’s lighter and darker halves and was celebrated throughout the ancient Celtic communities of Europe, including Ireland, Wales, and Scotland. Believed by the ancient Celts to be a liminal time when the veil between the human and spirit realms is lifted, Samhain is considered by many to be the precursor to contemporary Halloween celebrations.

  • Of these four sacred quarter times, Samhain was perhaps the most significant as it is thought to have represented the Celtic New Year. For the ancient Celts, time began in darkness, with each 24-hour day commencing at dusk. Ushering in the darker half of the year, Samhain represented the end of one year and the beginning of the next.

  • Samhain was considered an auspicious time for the druids to practice divination, since the connection to the spirit world was stronger than usual. The lifting of the veil between the Otherworld and the physical world meant that Samhain was also considered to be a perilous time for the ancient Celts. The Celtic Otherworld is often described as existing in tandem with, as opposed to completely separate from, the human world. During Samhain, these realms converged and passage between them was easier. Spirits, both kind and malevolent, could act with more powerful agency on the human world.

Hi Readers, Thanks for taking the time to read this blog.  This is a blog for those of you who are just starting out in Wicca. I hope it will be helpful to you in integrating Wicca practices into your life.  Watch for more blogs in the Wicca 101 category for more of what I’ve learned and followed over the many years of practicing.  The resources are endless.  Books, supplies and tools are accessible just about at your fingertips.  The support in the community is growing every day.  Knowledge is literally a superpower, and you must take advantage of it.  Alot of times it is free!  Explore different cultures & trends, different divination paths, and then record as you go, and you will find what fits you and your life. I hope you found this blog helpful.  Feel free to send me a message on the Contact Us page.  Stay creative, BB

I have to be honest that I have not read the Modern Witchcraft Guide to the Wheel of the Year by Judy Ann Nock.  It is the reason I did not categorize this blog as a book review.  Judy Ann Nock’s book gets high rating and is linked and is sold on my website.  In this book you’ll learn about the most celebrated days in the Wheel of the Year as you will read here in this blog.

Sources:

Britannica Online | Britannica

Spring Equinox Celebrations Around the World (learnreligions.com),

What Is Beltane? And, How Do You Celebrate It? | The Pagan Grimoire

Litha: The Midsummer Sabbat Solstice Celebration (learnreligions.com)

Litha Folklore, Legends and Mythology (learnreligions.com)

How to Celebrate Mabon 2022 — Mabon House 

Samhain – World History Encyclopedia