As the festival of Lammas is upon us this weekend (1st of August), I thought it a good idea if today's blog post deals in general with the Wheel of the Year, as we are swiftly moving through it. So, here is a general description of the suspected origins and festivals it contains (many if you will be very familiar with the subject already, but it did not seem fair to assume everyone knows and jump straight to Lammas directly).
The idea of the wheel of the year as a representation of the changing seasonal and solar aspects of the year constitutes a very ancient common heritage of humanity, with its origins possibly reaching as far back as the neolithic era. Depictions of wheels in stone are quite common, and may as well represent the turning of the times (their intended meaning is not known to this day).
So, as part of an underlying earth-based spirituality, the idea of the wheel of the year has accompanied humanity for thousands of years.
In this context of earth-based spirituality, as in Wicca or paganism, the Wheel of the Year represents the major events in the natural year, such as the seasons, solstices and equinoxes, which are celebrated in eight Sabbats, the four Greater and four Lesser ones:
In general, the Wheel is divided in two main parts: summer/light and winter/darkness. The two major deities of paganism and Wicca, the Goddess and the God, rule superior at specific times, with the Goddess dominating the summer months (the growing season) as the goddess of fertility and abundance, while the God dominates the winter months as the god of hunting and death (with hunting having been the major source of fresh food during these times).
The eight Sabbats divide into two categories, the seasonal and solar festivals.
The four Greater Sabbats celebrate the natural shift of the seasons, with Beltaine and Samhain representing the main divisions between summer/winter, light/darkness. Imbolc and Lammas mark the midpoints in between, recognising specific occasions in the agricultural year, Lammas for example being a celebration of harvest.
The four Lesser Sabbats are solar festivals, marking the events in the solar calendar, the solstices (Litha and Yule) and equinoxes (Ostara and Mabon).
There is no singular way in which to emphasise or celebrate these Sabbats in the wiccan or pagan community. Some groups, for example, may concentrate on the seasonal (Greater) Sabbats, while others put their emphasis on the solar festivals.
As you progress on your spiritual journey, you may be intuitively drawn to certain Sabbats and decide to only celebrate those important to you, or you might choose to treat all eight with equal reverence - the choice is yours!
I hope you enjoyed this little introduction, and in tomorrow's post I will go deeper into the traditions especially linked to the festival of Lammas.
Warm Blessings,
Ilona
PS For more on the Wheel of the Year click here (Greater Sabbats) or here (all Sabbats and general info)
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