so beltane is one of the Celtic fire festivals it's also known as May day and it falls on 1 May in the northern hemisphere and on November 1 in the southern hemisphere and it's the midway point between the spring equinox and the summer solstice. and it is one of the most popular holidays to celebrate across the world. it is a primarily a fire festival but it's also a festival of abundance, fertility and regrowth and it's considered the dual of samahin, so therefore it's one of the days when the veil is thinnest between the spirit and the fae plane so it's a good time to work with them.
T: So beltane can vary, because it's halfway point, and it goes from sunset to sunset traditionally so generally at sunset we light the fires and it's just a big old party which is why it's probably one of the most popular holidays to celebrate worldwide. it's all about like you said being fruitful and it's an attempt to basically welcome in the spring, if you celebrate the different aspects of the goddess this is when the maid is no longer maid this is the end of her maidenhood, so it's a lot of sex rights. so this is also a very very traditional time to get married. this is where spring to summer weddings became so popular, because this is the time when weddings started. you get married around the fires of Beltane basically and then you go up and have a little honeymoon evening whenever you felt like it. There's tons of ways to celebrate, like I said it's really a really popular festival because of it's a big bonfire people drink a lot and then they go and they celebrate being fertile in all the ways that people celebrate that. so it is the main goddess she's reached her fullness, so I said that if you celebrate that aspect of the goddess this is the time of growth renewal it's the goddess of spring, the May bride is a very popular image of flowers in the hair, maypoles I love to a good may pole, so if you ever get a chance I highly recommend it's super fun you take ribbons and you twirl them around a pool a pole and you can make really beautiful patterns. and you can use ribbons you can also use thin branches of trees or vines. you can make some really awesome designs I love doing that. there's a big bonfire generally even if you do a small celebration I highly recommend flame because it is a fire festival. so there are different aspects that are celebrated in different ways because this is a British isle thing that tends to be where it was most heavily celebrated. and so a lot of those traditions follow it through in to different traditions like, wicca, paganism or however you choose to celebrate but this is a good time for handfasting like I said.
so traditionally instead of getting married which is as most people are aware at this point in time a religious recognition of your union. and hand fasting was also religious recognition of your union but you actually had a year and a day to see if it actually would work out so instead of being married forever never you got hand fasted for a year and a day and if you still like the person after a year and a day you got to stay together. you reaffirmed it. which I think is way more realistic. oh and this tradition actually follows through to today in a lot of ways. in Iowa you can be a common well all right you can have common law marriage and that's if you present yourself as man and wife for a year and a day. One of the tradtions was to jump The broomstick. they cannot do so if you cannot afford a church ceremony this was a really fast and easy way to say I love you sucker let's be together and you jump over and stick together this, but it's considered one of the ways you can hand fast. oh OK so I'm talking a lot about all the ways to celebrate more than the holidays itself. the May pole is actually supposed to show the potency of the God, the green horn man, however you choose to celebrate that so because there's a lot of fire and a lot of greenery cause ringers returning the colors are generally green and red in a silver white meant to represent the light at the fire in this, it's all about growth and abundance and fertility.
one of the things that a lot of people believed was that if you got hand fasted you would be fruitful and have a child before the end of the year. That was actually one of the things that they wanted to encourage. a lot of people celebrate with eggs they decorate eggs kind of like Easter, and I don't particularly do this but like I said may poles and fires are lots of fun I'm not sure what else to say
S: I think Tara touched on a lot of the different ways that you can possibly celebrate this. as always wearing the colors and setting up your altar is a great way to celebrate. another good thing to do is to leave offerings on your altar to the fae if you're interested in working with them, they like milk and honey and oats sweetness. Since Tara touched on all all of the other way to celebrate, I'll just fill you in on what the rest of the correspondences.
the colors are red and yellow for the fire and also green silver and white to represent the abundance and fertility in the beginning. the animals are swallows doves and cats. the crystals that are good to use are rose quartz Garnet emerald amber and carnelian, you can kind of see those same color tones in there. herbs are mint thyme and mugwort. the flowers and trees are birch Hawthorne daffodil foxglove and rose. and foxglove is poisonous so careful. food it is oats, oats are considered lucky, dairy spicy foods and may day wine and brandy is which is definitely one of the best way to celebrate.
T: you can actually make a Hawthorne brandy if you like. Take brandy, hawthorne flowers, And you add a little bit of sugar and you let them steep together and leave it in direct light for two weeks before and then strain it.
S: the incense and oils that are good to use our rose jasmine musk lilac patchouli and vanilla. and the best spells to work on on at this particular day or surrounding this day aref ertility of course love and happiness.
T: yes they're all about happiness that's why it's traditionally a time to get married and say your love it's also a good time to start projects if you've been putting them off because this is the time of being productive and making things happen.
S: and one thing to know we're going to talk about this more later in the year and also how to do it because we both associate it more with later in the year, home cleansing and learn how to protect your home and we will definitely be getting into that later but you already know how to do it this is a good time to also work on that.
T: and that's a part of where the idea of spring cleaning comes from
S: exactly and that is all that I have to say about Beltane anything else add Tara?
T: I have lots and lots of ideas on how to celebrate because this is one of my favorite holidays. this is one of the best ones if you're looking for a group activity if you don't wanna be a solitary practitioner or you just wanna see how you feel in a group setting, because this is so popular there are lots and lots of small groups that get together throughout the world to celebrate so this is a good one if you want to find a group and see how it works for you. this is an excellent one to try and find a group that's local to you.
S: I would agree that is lots of may day celebrations more so in Europe but even in the US.
T: Yes, may day, Beltane there's lotta different names for it and they have slightly different traditions so like I said it's a good time to find a group or just see if it's a good match for you. if you're looking at a group in particular because they'll celebrate in a particular way and maybe you like it maybe you don't, but then at least you've tried it. I celebrate this in a group and I am a solitary practitioner so this one I don't mind celebrating group it's a lot of fun and there's lotta good energy.
S: well that is all that we have for you this week we will see you next week
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