When I said that the Part two of this series would come soon, by soon apparently meant the same day. When I first wrote this post my first thought "Was darn this is long, why is this so long? Am I really this wordy?" And my second thought was "Why isn't this already in my Book of Shadows?"
When I became a Goddessian I found that the mainstream Wiccan Wheel of the Year was no longer applicable to my path. In
addition, I end up discovering that I had issues with the traditional Neopagan Myth
of the Wheel of the Year. Although many
Pagans say that the Myth of the Wheel of Year is about the Dance of the God and
Goddess, honoring both equally, it became clear to me that the Wiccan Wheel is
very God Centric. The Wiccan Wheel of
the Year is about the God’s rebirth, his maturity, his peak of power, his
decline in power and eventually his death.
The only exception is Imbolc, which is often centered on the recovery of
the Goddess after the birth of the God and sometimes on the Goddess Bridget. Most
of the Sabbats are heavily centered on the God, with the Goddess mostly serving
a supporting role for his progress through the year.
When I became Goddess Centric I looked into many different
takes on the Goddess Year. I even
created my own myth based on the cycle of the Dark Goddess and the Light
Goddess, but that ended up being contrite and still didn’t quite fit well with
me. After a few years of practice and trying out different myths, I noticed I
really didn’t need a myth to accompany the Wheel of the Year. I was happy enough celebrating the cycles of
the Year, and the themes of the Sabbats alone.
I view the Wheel of the Year as the cycle the Earth goes
through as it revolves around the Sun. I have found in my years of practices
that there are certain themes that pop up at certain times of the year. Sometimes they respond to what’s happening seasonally
in the part of the world I’m in, and sometimes they simply complement the time of the year the Sabbat falls in. These are the themes I have come to embraced over the
years. Some are very similar to what most Neopagans celebrate and some are
somewhat unique to me and my group of friends I develop them with. I offer you my take on the Wheel of the Year not a a set of dogma, but as suggestion for your practice. As will all things pagan, take what you like and leave the rest.
I wouldn’t say the Wheel of the Year I follow is necessarily
a Goddessian Wheel, but more a myth-less year that could be used by anyone of
any Pagan Path. For the most part the
gender of the Deity isn’t important, my only exception is Imbolc. From my experience I have found that this version
of the Wheel works very well when I’m celebrating Sabbats with my friends and
family, most who follow a path where both God and Goddess are honored. My take on the Wheel doesn’t force the
God/Goddess binary on me, and at the same time doesn’t push a Goddess Centric
model on those who find worship of the God meaningful. In practice, I’ll sometimes center a ritual
on a myth of a Goddess that fits with the theme of the Sabbat I’m celebrating. Other times I only evoke the Spirit of Gaia
or the Universe if I’m feeling pantheistic.
There will even be a God along with a Goddess invoked other times, the major
different here being that there’s a theme being focused on other than simply what
the God and Goddess are doing this time of year.
Yule
I know it is common for many Pagans to observe Samhain as
the end and beginning of the year, but personally I view Yule as the beginning
and end of the Wheel of the Year. For me
it just makes more sense. In western society we observe New Years on January 1,
so the mainstream cultural conciseness centered on endings and beginnings already exists. As December nears its end people of all
faiths and of no faith are reviewing the pass year, making personal
inventories of the things they would like to continue and bring with them into
the new year, and which things they would like to leave behind in the old
year. On a mass scale this energy exists
in the December, where it doesn’t in October.
To me embracing Samhain as the New Year requires me to mentally fight
with my culture, and my western mind which tells me New Years is January. And this personally just doesn’t work with
me.
To me Yule is the rebirth of the Sun. It’s a time to banish the harmful and useless
so that it doesn’t follow us into the next year. At the same time Yule is a time to cast
spells, say prayers, and perform rituals to attract and aide in growth,
completion, and bounty in the coming year. Yule
is the time to reevaluate our life plans and goals. Another major theme of Yule for me is to
remember that the Earth is at peak of Her darkness. And while we are at the peak of coldness,
darkness, and infertility, the peak also promises that this is not a permanent
state, but that warmth, light and productivity will once again return to the
Earth.
Imbolc
Most of the themes in
my personal wheel of the year are genderless, but Imbolc is my one
exception. To me Imbolc, is the
Celebration of the Solar Maiden. Many
honor Bridget on this day, but I have a better connection to Bast, so I honor Her
on this day. One could also honor any
Hearth, Domestic, or Fire Goddess on this day.
In addition to honoring the Sun Maiden, Imbolc is the time
for Spring cleaning. While at Yule we
acknowledge and attempt to cleanse ourselves of the emotional and spiritual clutter
that hold us back, on Imbolc we cleanse our personal space. This is the time for reorganizing our
personal space, for cleaning the corners, cracks, and other spaces of our house
that normally get over looked, and to get rid of personal belongings that are
no longer of use to us.
This is also the time to ritually cleanse our house.
To me Imbolc is a holiday to be surrounded by family. If you have a family of your own spend time with them with a special meal. If you are separated from your biological family for whatever reason then take the time to hang out with your closest friends on this day.
To me Imbolc is the holiday that honors everything familiar
(meaning family based) and everything domestic.
In addition to this theme, Imbolc also reminds us even though the
surface of the earth appears baron and dead, the Earth is quickening. The days are lengthening, the soil is
warming and seeds are starting to sprout and are making their way to the
surface. Imbolc is the time to
strengthen our base, reconnect or build stronger ties with friends and family,
and to get our houses in order so that we can have a productive year.
Ostara
To me Ostara’s meaning is quite simple. It’s the first day of spring. Ostara marks the beginning of the dominance
of the Sun, Warmth and Light on earth.
In nature we are starting to see the first signs of life’s return. The Trees are starting to bud, and sprouts
are appearing on the earth’s surface. I
like to keep things simple on Ostara, so that I can be aware of the Earth’s
natural energies. In my opinion there us
enough going on there to keep me spiritually satisfied. Focusing on major themes, or myths take away
from this. From the way I see things,
the summer seems like a continuation of spring. By the time the first
day summer comes the weather is already quite warm, and the Earth’s fertility
has already come back in full swing. And winter
is just the continuation of autumn. By the time the first day of winter arrives it has already been
cold for quite awhile, the first snow storms might have already been
experience, and the Western World’s has been engulfed by the holiday season. But on the Equinoxes there seems like a major
shift of energies happens. The Spring
Equinox marks the end of the cold infertile season, and the Autumn marks the
end of warmth and fertility. If you
haven’t felt this shift before, just take a moment to be still when the year
nears these times and you will feel it.
I don’t like to plan big formal rituals or heavily focus on
myths on the Spring Equinox. My favorite
thing to do is to take a walk outside and gather the early spring flowers and
blossoms. I then take the flower I’ve
collected and to put them into a bowl full of water and meditate
outside. If I can’t be outside for any
reason, then I open all the windows in the house and let the spring breeze fill
my space. I do a simple free
meditation. I just focus on the sounds
of spring, the scent of new plant life, and feel the cool spring air touching
my skin.
Beltane
To me Beltane is about Sex and Fertility. This can either be about the physical fertility of
life returning to the Earth, or be about creating symbolic fertility in the
endeavors in our personal lives, such as in our careers, passions, or even
school. If you have a partner this is
the time to join with them in an embrace of sacred sexuality. If you do not have a partner, or even if you
do Beltane is a good time to reflect on the parts of your life which are
stagnate and either get rid of them, or focus on how to make these parts more
productive. Feel stuck in your job? Then maybe think about continuing your
education, expanding your expertise with more training or consider seeking out
new employment. Your social life feels
blah? Then maybe take the time to seek
out old friendship you have neglected due to your busy life, or seek out new
friendships. Take advantage of the fertility
of the season to bless new or old endeavors so that they will be fruitful, satisfactory
and productive.
Litha
To me Beltane is about Sex and Fertility, and Litha is about
Love and Magic. Love in all its forms, sexual
love, romantic love, familiar love, love of friends, love of community,
spiritual love, love of self, etc. I think
this association for me comes from the Shakespearian play A Midnight Summer’s
Dream. To me Litha is the perfect time
for Love Magick. If you don’t have a
lover and would like one, do a spell to attract one. If you feeling a lack of self esteem do a
love spell to grow your self-love. I
have even hosted a group ritual once where we sent out love to our local
community.
Litha is also a time to remember the power of the Sun on Earth is at its peak, and will soon be descending.
Lughnasadh
 | ||
| It's ironic that we Americans often try to deport the very people who harvest our food. |
Mabon
Like on Spring Equinox, I like to keep things simple on
Mabon. In the high desert of New Mexico
where I currently live it seems like the weather changes drastically after the
Autumn Equinox. I remember one year the
day before the Equinox was a bright warm sunny summer day, and the next day, sweater weather. It seems to happen that quickly here. To me Mabon is about embracing all that is
Fall. The harvest, the falling leaves,
the crisp autumn air. With the coming
of Mabon also comes the reminder that the dominance of the Sun on Earth is
over. The days will continue to grow
shorter, and the weather grows cooler.
This is the time to take inventory of what has been accomplished this
year, and to remember to tie up any loose ends before the year is over. My ritual for Mabon is similar to my Ostara
ritual, a simple meditation either outside or inside with windows open, just
sensing the energies, feelings, and scents of fall. Sometimes if I’m up to it I’ll inventory my
accomplishments of the year while in ritual.
Samhain
While other Neopagans observe the passing of the God, and
while other Goddessians honor the
Goddess in her Crone aspect, I take this opportunity to take my focus off of
the Divine and off of the cycles of the Earth and honor those people who have made my
path into this world posible, and those who have enriched my world, but are no longer
in it. To me and many others, Samhain is
the day to honor deceased ancestors and the beloved dead. I don’t tend to focus on any myths, or
Goddesses on this day, but choose to honor my family’s beloved dead this
day. I remove my religious symbols from
my family alter and leave offerings of alcohol, tobacco, water, bread, flowers
and candles in the memory of my dead. I
like to write down their names and recite them in ritual. I usually ask for that the Deities that they
honored when they were alive watch them and protect them wherever they may be, and
let them know that I haven’t forgotten them.
I don’t usually evoke the dead as many do on this day. I personally have mix feelings about this. I know I have beloved dead that wouldn’t have
condone this practice while they were living, so I don’t do it out of respect
for their religious beliefs. Plus I hold
the belief in reincarnation. So it’s
plausible that some of my dead have already moved on into the next life, so
what’s the point in trying to contact them?
To me Samhain is more about honoring and remember the dead than it is
about taking advantage of the thinning of the veil.
