May Day and the Celtic Fire Festival of Spring Beltane are ancient traditions that celebrate the coming of the Light, new growth and seasonal beginnings. Not only did people joyfully dance around the May Pole, but couples jumped the fire as part of spring mating rituals.
Read MoreLast Wednesday was Imbolc or St. Brigid’s day, the celebration of winter reaching completion and the first signs of spring appearing. I say that as I look out and piles of snow and an outside thermometer reading of 10 F degrees. Perhaps it is because of the climate where I reside, but my primary sense of this holiday is that it symbolizes and celebrates Hope. The light gets noticeably brighter and the days longer. Spring is coming. New beginnings are on the horizon.
Read MoreThe Celts celebrate the Sun throughout the year as it moves through the sky and creates the seasons. And today we continue to celebrate the joy of long hours of light and lots of sunshine in summer. Luthnasa, the Celtic holiday of the first Harvest, is at the beginning of August.
Read MoreSomeday, I would like to explore why so many countries have their independence day celebrations in early July. For today though I would like to feature Tynwald Day, The Isle of Man celebration.
Read MoreI found myself in the middle of Bloomsday quite by accident; and what a lovely accident it was. I had an extra day in Dublin, was staying at Trinity College summer lodgings and came across a number of folks, young and old alike, dressed in Edwardian costumes. As I walked down Grafton Street, I realized that this was a city-wide celebration of some sort, not just collegiate and people were having a great time pub crawling literary row in their summer finery.
Read MoreI had never seen a bonfire built so elaborately. The huge mound of were for wooden doors, one in each direction, each with a beautifully painted animal representing that direction. While the fire was awesome, as soon as the painted creatures caught flame, there was a gasp from the crowd and a tear came to my eye- a tear not of sadness but of appreciation, appreciation for the seasons of our lives.
Read MoreThe thrill of seeing the first flower of the season pop up is at the heart of the Celtic Festival of Imbolc: that time midway between winter solstice and spring equinox. Thus, the snowdrop is its symbol and green and white are its colors. Here is the US, it is Groundhog Day. But to the Celtic people it was lambing time. Since the Goddess Brigid was responsible for birthing, she was celebrated on this day which later also became known as St. Brigid’s Day..
Read MoreSamhain is one of its four main Festival dates of the Celtic calendar. Samhain is the last of the harvest; thus, the end of the year in many ways for the ancient Celts as they prepared for the winter darkness. The end of the cycle of life was acknowledged at this time, too. Like the Mexican Day of the Dead, this holiday is a time to celebrate those who have passed on and to welcome the spirits of loved ones to visit on this day “when the veil is thinnest”.
Read MoreFrom the Puck Fair on Ireland’s Iveragh Peninsula to Edinburgh’s Fringe Festival, there are plenty of festivals celebrating Celtic culture. In differing ways, each stirs the imagination, revs up the spirit and loosens pent up winter blues.
Read MoreWriting about Beltane is a bit like writing about Christmas; the holiday has so many different traditions and its celebrations has many layers of meaning. Visiting Celtic cultures during May Day festivities also reminds me of U.S. Memorial Day when all take vacation and hold picnics and parades. Some think of the original meaning of the day; others just see a long weekend to unwind.
Read More
