Beltane - The Spring Festival


As I write on Thursday the 30th April in Oxfordshire at 12.40 it is absolutely slashing down with rain. We have had a week of unusually hot, dry weather which made everybody think Summer was on it's way - but no - it is April and it is Spring. The growing plants desperately needed the life giving rain.

If memory serves me well it nearly always pours with rain in the southern UK at this precise time of year. For some reason the Monday nearest to May 1st is always a "bank" holiday in the UK and people set about having Spring Fairs and Fetes - and they are always a washout because it pisses down. I guess people never learn.

But, joking apart, there is a genuine reason for the Spring Festival. It is more agricultural than hunter gatherer but it certainly pre-dates the Christian religion by many centuries. It is one of the 8 pre Christian festivals that Witches, Druids and Heathens celebrated when humanity was still (just about) in tune with nature and the natural cycles of life. Obviously this is related to Celtic or Northern European shamanism where the seasons were regular and the climate temperate.

The Way of The Buzzard - a Shamanic community based in the North West of England are having an online get together (because the UK government has banned all live gatherings due to the fake Covid-19 "pandemic") on May 2nd and 3rd. If you want to take part you can register here.

If you go to The Way of The Buzzard website and get on their mailing list, they will send you a lovely little free e-book called The Wheel of The Year. I have pinched a little bit of it here as it relates to Beltane:-

"Beltane. The hawthorn is blossoming, song birds are singing and most creatures are turning their attention to raising a family.

 Beltane is full of abundance, creativity, lust, fertility and freespiritedness. Can you see Pan running wild through his woodlands? This is the season of love and passion. The faeries, elves and other nature spirits are easier to connect with now, so take advantage by visiting known haunts such as old woodlands, hidden dells, secret waterfalls and sacred places. Take your drum or rattle out into nature and journey under the leaves of your local woodland. Sit by your stream and let the tinkle of the water wash through you. 

Step fully into your creative self too. Rise early whenever you can and immerse yourself in the energies that are coursing through our land. Continue to cultivate your plans, invest time in your dreams and watch as nature lends a helping hand. Set your intent and work mindfully towards your heart-centred goals knowing that, if it’s for your best, it will come to be.

At a glance...

✤Sunset 30th April to sunset 2nd May 
✤Cross quarter day 
✤A time of passion and abundance 
✤Continue to cultivate your dreams 
✤Spend time outdoors soaking up the energies 
✤Commune with the Sidhe realm 
✤Enjoy your freedom, play, embody Pan’s energy"

The May bank holiday won't mean much this year because a lot of people are off work anyway and there is nowhere we are allowed to go to enjoy ourselves (Covid-19) but try and get out into Nature and enjoy the PEACE.

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