8.01.2008
A Blessed Lughnasadh
Today is Lughnasadh (also known as Lammas) the first of three harvest festivals celebrated in many modern Pagan traditions. Lughnasadh originated as one of the four main Celtic fire festivals and was dedicated to the Celtic god Lugh/Lugus the many-skilled (or, in the case of Ireland, Lugh's foster-mother Tailtiu). It is a time of thanksgiving, first-harvests, and the end of summer (though it doesn't feel like it here in the Midwest).
Lammas food altar (Photo: BBC)
Here are some quotes for the holiday.
"Although in the heat of a midwestern summer it might be difficult to discern, the festival of Lammas (August 1) marks the end of summer and the beginning of fall. The days now grow visibly shorter and by the time we’ve reached autumn’s end (October 31), we will have run the gamut of temperature from the heat of August to the cold and (sometimes) snow of November. And in the midst of it, a perfect midwestern autumn." - Mike Nichols, The Witches' Sabbats
"It may still feel distinctly like summer outside, but Aug. 1 has long been celebrated by some Europeans as the beginning of fall. Known to some as Lammas and others as Lughnasad, the festival of the harvest is most commonly celebrated by baking a loaf of bread from the season’s new grain supply. Although predating Christianity, the celebration has been incorporated into church traditions as well, as the first loaves of bread were brought to Mass on Aug. 1, from whence the name Lammas (loaf-mass) is derived. In addition to the celebration of the year’s bounty, some traditions also incorporate a farewell to the sun, as the days become shorter and the nights cooler. Whether the celebration is spiritual or merely symbolic, there’s something to be said for reconnecting with the seasons and with the sowing, growing and reaping of food in our community. Sitting in air-conditioned cubicles and commuting by car, we can so easily become separated from the natural world that we have little chance to recognize the rhythms of nature which were so essential to our ancestors." - Theresa Hogue, Corvallis Gazette Times
"The first ripe fruits in Ireland in August are the bilberries, a cousin of the North American blueberry. In Ireland, it became a tradition to gather the wild berries on the last Sunday in July (known, variously, as 'Bilberry Sunday,' or 'Lughnasa Sunday.'" - Cathleen Falsani, Chicago Sun Times
"In modern times this agricultural core of the festival is all that has survived, but formerly, when Celtic lands were under native rulers, Lúghnasadh was the occasion of major assemblies where legal matters were settled, political problems were discussed, craftsmen, artists and entertainers got a chance to show off their talents, and sporting events brought scattered communities together. All this was under the patronage of Lúgh (the 9th-century Sanas Cormaic explains 'Lúghnasadh' as "the assembly of Lúgh"), who was said to have instituted the games in memory of either his wives or of his foster-mother Tailtiu, whose name (from Old Celtic Talantiu, "The Great One of the Earth") and life-history give her a special affinity with the Harvest. But it is Lúgh alone who allows the Harvest to actually begin, by setting the right conditions for it and by combating the hostile elements in the Land that are trying to destroy the crops." - Alexei Kondratiev, Lugus: The Many-Gifted Lord
"Have a magical picnic and break bread with friends. Do a meditation in which you visualize yourself completing a project you have already begun. Make a corn dolly charm out of the first grain you harvest or acquire. Bake a sacred loaf bread and give a portion of it to Mother Earth with a prayer of appreciation. Make prayers for a good harvest season. Do prosperity magic. Harvest herbs in a sacred way for use in charms and rituals. Kindle a Lammas fire with sacred wood and dried herbs. If you live in or near a farming region, attend a public harvest festival, such as a corn or apple festival." - Selena Fox, Lammas
May you have a fruitful holiday!
Labels: Festival, Harvest, Lammas, Lugh, Lughnasadh, Paganism
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