Lughnasadh

Dear all

I must apologise for not keeping The Old Ways up to date. I have been wrapped up in writing, research and trying to learn how to play the guitar (which I might add is much more difficult than you would expect!). Little enough time has been spent online lately. I have missed Midsummer completely, wrapped in work and the warmth of the baking sun...sadly, not at the same time.

So, I am making up for my laxness by posting a bit about the First Harvesting.

Lughnasadh 2nd-4th August

Then let us toast John Barleycorn,
Each man a glass in hand;
And may his great posterity
Ne'er fail in old Scotland!

Lughnasadh (pronouced ‘loo’nass’ah’) comes at the beginning of August. It is one of the Pagan festivals of Celtic origin which split the year into four. Celts held the festival of the Irish god Lugh at this time and later, the Anglo-Saxons marked the festival of hlaefmass, loaf mass or Lammas at this time.For these agricultural communities this was the first day of the harvest, when the fields would be glowing with corn and reaping would begin. The harvest period would continue until Samhain when the last stores for the winter months would be put away. Lughnasadh is still seen as a harvest festival by Pagans and symbols connected with the reaping of corn predominate in its rites.

Set an orange candle on either side of the caldron.

On a piece of paper (small) write the things you have harvested over the past year,light the paper from one of the candles and let it burn in the cauldron.

After it is done put some corn (or squash) seeds in the cauldron.

“Stir” the seeds with your wand, visualizing white ligh tcoming from the tip of the wand, filling the cauldron and entering the seeds.

When you feel the seeds have absorbed their fill, stop, put the seeds into another container to be kept on the altar until next year’s planting.