Web hosting Custom Email SiteBuilder

The Wheel Of The Year is one of the principles of Paganism. Symbolizing as it does the never-ending round of life, death and re-birth where the underlying cycle remains the same but there are always small differences that make each cycle unique. It also embodies in it the nature orientation of Paganism with each major festival having its symbolic roots in the natural seasonal flows as well as representing a higher mytho-poetic viewpoint of the Cosmos, our place and the place of divinity within it.

All of creation is divine and by connecting to a seasonal appreciation of the natural world we come closer to connection with our divine selves, the divine in others and the divinity of the God and Goddess. It is perhaps even more important in an increasingly urbanized world, alienated from nature and surrounded by religions which themselves are world-negating, that we celebrate our religious festivals in the spirit of the natural world. We cannot help that our perception of the land, of Earth itself has diminished in proportion to our personal contact with it. As Pagans we believe that we can re-affirm this contact by observance of the passage of the seasons and see in them reflections of our own lives, the lives of the Gods and all that is sacred.

In Western culture, influenced as it has been by the Christian Church for the last two thousand years, the predominant holidays, determined centuries ago, are ostensibly Christian. Christmas and Easter, the two most well known celebrations of the year and celebrated alike by Christian and non-Christian in Western societies were instituted to celebrate the events of birth and resurrection of Christ respectively. Business interests make sure that we are not allowed to forget the other annual days of "social obligation" such as Valentine's Day, St Patrick's Day, All Saints Day (Halloween), Mother's Day, Father's Day etc. As a result a great deal of the festivity of these times has degenerated into pure commercialism. Every year, in the business pages, the most important news is how much consumerism has been indulged in by the general populace at Christmas time and success is measured by excessive consumerism.

However these festivals are of a deeper and nature orientated significance. Almost all the so-called Christian festivals are overlaid on older Pagan festivities and sacred observances. Christmas evolved from the earlier Pagan celebration of the Winter Solstice or Yule in the Northern hemisphere; Easter descended from the Spring Fertility Rites of the ancient religious faiths and the word itself comes from Eostre, a Germanic Pagan Goddess whose sacred animal was the hare (the Easter bunny) and the egg. St Valentine's Day is the heir to the earlier riotousness of the Roman Lupercalia; All Saint's Day (Halloween) was the successor to the widely spread Festival Of The Dead of Paleolithic and Neolithic religions. The real meanings and symbolism of these ancient observances are hidden in the teachings and insights, not of the Christian Church, but in the old Pagan religions and their modern revivals.

The modern Pagan seasonal progression is based on the Sabbats, seasonal festivals which mark key points in the natural year, which includes aspects of agriculture, pastoral life, wildlife, botanical, solar, lunar, planetary and psychic influences, the tides and cycles of which all affect or reflect each other.

There are eight major sacred days spaced somewhat equally from each other around the wheel of the year. They are usually divided into the four greater Sabbats (representing the beginning of each season viz: Imbolc - the beginning of Spring; Beltane - the beginning of Summer; Lughnassadh - the beginning of Autumn; and Samhain - the beginning of Winter) and the lesser Sabbats consisting of the equinoxes and solstices viz: Yule or mid-Winter, Ostara or the Spring Equinox, Litha or mid-Summer, and Mabon or the Autumn Equinox. The lesser Sabbats which are solar and astronomical in basis are older in that they dated from the mysterious Megalithic people who pre-dated Celts, Roman and Saxon and were responsible for the erection of the stone circles, the greatest of which is Stonehenge, and which are orientated around the Winter and Summer Solstices in particular. The greater Sabbats derived largely from Celtic tradition in their expression in the Pagan movement today. They are not solar oriented but represent the beginning of each season and are rooted in the agricultural and pastoral preoccupations of the people of the time. This is reflected in the fact that the Greater Sabbats have Gaelic names whereas the astronomical designations of mid-Winter, mid-Summer, Spring and Autumn equinox are equally used as titles for the lesser Sabbats as are the more Anglo Saxon names of Yule, Litha, Mabon and Ostara with Mabon and Litha being more of modern Pagan usage than having a historical basis.

Below is described the cycle of the Sabbats and their meaning in summarised form as outlined by The Temple Of The Spiralled Web. However there are differences in emphasis and differences in the mytho-poetic viewpoint in these festivals for many different Pagan groups. Where we perhaps differ from our Christian colleagues is that these differences are not viewed as being inconsistent with each other or preventing us from cross-fertilization of ideas.

It is also important to understand that by enacting the Festival Celebrations in a ritual and symbolic form we do avoid going through empty notions, merely repeating dramatic words from a book but which have no relevance in everyday life. It is only by acknowledging the forces of nature and the divine spark within ourselves and within all of creation and the Gods and Goddesses that these currents will be felt to flow continuously throughout our lives. Paganism means affirming the sanctity of Earth and acknowledging our dependence upon it. The ebb and flow may be hidden beneath a shell of tarmac and concrete and a psychic aura of human indifference, but they nevertheless exist and can be felt by those who wish to acknowledge them. Pagans do this by observing the changes in the seasons and feeling the changes reflected in our innermost selves and in our participation of everyday life. In the Ritual Celebration of the Sabbats we therefore focus upon different aspects of the God and Goddess and in the celebration of their mysteries.

As Julia Phillips, a British Gardnerian Wiccan who did much to aid the development of Wicca in Australia, has said in her book "The Witches Of Oz":

"The Wiccan Wheel has two great inspirations; it is both the wheel of celebration and the wheel of initiation. As a wheel of initiation it hopes to guide those who tread its pathway toward an understanding of the mysteries of life and the universe, expressed through the teachings of the old ones made manifest in the turnings of the seasons. For a Wiccan the Gods and nature are one. Exploring the mystery of the seasons we are seeking to penetrate more deeply the mysteries of the God and Goddess.

As a wheel of initiation the Wheel Of The Year is the path which leads us through the experiences of our Gods towards that point which Jungian psychologists call individuation and which Wiccans call Knowledge Of The Old Ones. As with all mystical experiences these mysteries are not communicated in an academic or intellectual manner; they are direct experiences which each individual shares with the old Gods. Different traditions have developed different ways of travelling the Wheel, but all ways have a common purpose and all are equally valid provided that the basic principles are sound".

Because the Sabbats are seasonal it is therefore necessary to celebrate them at the correct seasonal point. Christianity's holidays of Christmas and Easter which have their roots in seasonal celebrations, nevertheless separated their origins from the Earth cycle and transplanted them to a specific date in the year (even though the date for Easter is still worked out using a lunar calculation!) thus emphasizing the separation of their God from the Creation. However Pagans in the southern hemisphere should, therefore, have the celebrations of the Sabbats at the correct seasonal time for the southern hemisphere and not slavishly follow the dates for the northern hemisphere. Thus whereas Pagan authors talking about Beltane being equivalent to May Eve is correct for the northern hemisphere, in the southern hemisphere Beltane as the celebration of the commencement of summer is most inappropriately celebrated on May Eve and more appropriately celebrated on the 31 October and 1 November. Thus Yule, with many of its traditional "Christmas" paraphernalia is more appropriately celebrated by Pagans in the June Winter Solstice and not the traditional Christmas Day, 25 December, which is closer to the Summer Solstice in the southern hemisphere and not the Winter Solstice as in the northern hemisphere. In fact the growing popularity of the June Yule Fest in the Blue Mountains in New South Wales each year suggests an awareness of this, even if it is expressed in a commercial way. Note that in parts of Australia some of the seasonal aspects are a little different, but in general terms there is a change from Winter to Spring, Spring to Summer, Summer to Autumn and Autumn to Winter with one season leading to another.

Perhaps the most obvious difference between the seasonal cycle in the temperate northern hemisphere, as witnessed in Northern Europe and the northern part of the United States of America, is the season of "desolation". In the above mentioned areas Winter appears to be the most desolate. Snow covers the land, the cold is excessive, communication and travel, particularly in earlier times and still in rural areas, is limited. There is very little growth visible and wild animals enter upon a lean time as far as forage is concerned.

In contrast, in the vast part of Australia and particularly in Queensland where we live, and in the Mediterranean Littoral in the southern parts of the United States Of America, summer is the season of desolation. Here the heat saps the energy, the Season of Fire lives up to its name with bush fires some years taking a great toll of human and animal life and causing untold billions of dollars of damage, whereas Winter, particularly in Queensland, is a temperate and a pleasant season.

In addition, the rainy seasons in Northern Australia commence round about Lughnassadh i.e. the end of January, beginning of February, and herald the necessary ingredient for re-growth of the land. Rivers which have run dry now flow again, grasslands which have withered in Spring and Summer are now restored and the land returns to life. It is no wonder that the El Nino effect which has been increasing in frequency over the last century is regarded as such a peril to Australia causing, as it does, an inversion of the seasonal flow so that the rainy season never arrives and the Earth does not receive its life-restoring rain after the desolate Season Of Fire in Summer.

Nevertheless, these few examples notwithstanding, the seasonal flow is able to be observed in Australia, albeit with a six month difference from that of the Northern hemisphere. Thus the dates for the celebrations are generally recognised as being as follows:

Yule: June 20 or 21 (mid-Winter Solstice)
Imbolc: August 1 (beginning of Spring)
Ostara: September 21 or 22 (Spring Equinox)
Beltane: November 1 (beginning of Summer)
Litha: December 20 or 21 (mid-Summer Solstice)
Lughnassadh: February 1 (beginning of Autumn)
Mabon: March 20 or 21 (Autumn Equinox)
Samhain: May 1 (beginning of Winter)

Note that I have put the date of the beginning of Winter approximately one month earlier than the official beginning of Winter, Summer etc. This is because the Ancients recognised that the seasons began midway between the Solstice and Equinox and certainly, as far as the length of daylight is concerned, this is true. The more one gets closer to the Polar regions the later the manifestations of the warm seasons will be and the official beginning of Spring, for example, in England is not the 1st February but the 1st March. This has been translated in Australia as being 1st September rather than being 1st August. However as is obvious to any Queenslander, Spring is well and truly upon us by 1st August and the National Wattle Day is celebrated on this day with the Wattles being well and truly in bloom in Queensland by that day. We note that in the southern parts of Australia, particularly in Victoria, the seasons do commence later. However it would appear to be appropriate that the beginning of the season is represented, not merely by the manifestations of nature, but also by the increasing or decreasing length of light and therefore placed midway between the Solstices and Equinoxes. This can still be regarded as fitting in with a natural cycle.

The changing of the year's seasons is reflected in the various aspects of the Goddess in her manifestation as Maiden (Spring and early Summer), Mother (Summer and early Autumn) and Crone (Autumn and Winter). The Lady always reigns and is always the focus of the Sabbats (note that some Pagan Orders actually have a very firm emphasis on the Goddess in the Summer months and an emphasis on the God in the Winter months). In this system the role and rulership of Goddess and God never changes, only their aspects do, thus the Goddess reigns as either Spring Maiden, Mother Of The Harvest, Crone Of Winter's Death but her position is never abdicated.

Likewise the God who reigns with the Goddess as his consort does so in a dual aspect. From Spring to Autumn he reigns as the Sun God, the Satyr Lord, the Light Twin. He is born at Yule while the dark God is at his height; he defeats his rival, his other self - the Dark God, at the Spring Equinox; marries the Goddess in Summer and reigns as King with her as Queen at mid-Summer. He is then castrated by the crone at lughnassadh to give life to the new seed; and defeated by his Dark Twin, the Sacred Stag, the Dark Lord Of The Underworld, at the Autumn Equinox. The Dark Lord marries the Goddess who descends into the Underworld at the commencement of Winter as Persephone entered the Underworld to reign with Hades in the Greek Legend and as Innana did in the Sumerian Legend of The Descent Of The Goddess. The Dark Twin who is born at the Summer Solstice and who defeats the Sun God at the Autumn Solstice now reigns as King at Yule and so the year begins again. Note that at the height of each of the Dark and Light Twin's power, their 'other self' begins their cycle of manifestation thus, even in death there is life, even in life there is death and so the basis of life, death and re-birth is symbolized.

For our placing of the struggle between the Dark and the Light Twin at the Equinoxes rather than at the Solstices as in other Pagan religions we refer you to the excellent article by Mike Nichols on the Death Of Llew: A Seasonal Interpretation. In essence he states that 'the God of light is always born at the Winter Solstice and his strength waxes with the lengthening of the days until, at the moment of his greatest power, the Summer Solstice and likewise, his shadow self, The Lord Of Darkness is born at the Summer Solstice and his strength waxes with the lengthening nights until the moment of his greatest power, the Winter Solstice'. Nichols diverges from the opinions of Robert Graves and other writers who have followed him, who believe that at mid-Summer the Sun King is slain by his rival just as The God Of Darkness is in turn slain by The God Of Light at mid-Winter and yet in Christian folk tradition it is births, not deaths, that are associated with the Solstices. The birth of St John The Baptist at the Summer Solstice and of Christ at the Winter Solstice, (note that St John The Baptist is the only saint in the entire Catholic calendar whose feast day is a commemoration of birth rather than death); 'so', he asks, 'if births are associated with Solstices when do the symbolic deaths occur?' For this he turns to Celtic, and in particular Welsh, mythology with the battle between Goronwy and Llew. In other words - when does darkness conquer light or light conquer darkness? It appears obvious to him that this is at the Equinoxes where the hours of light in the day are equal to those of the hours of darkness and either the hours of light from this time are eclipsed by the hours of darkness at the Autumn Equinox or the reverse process at the Spring Equinox. To quote: "In Welsh mythology in particular there is startling vindication of the seasonal placement of the Sun God's death, the significance of which occurred to me in a recent dream and which I haven't seen elsewhere. Llew is the Welsh God Of Light and his name means lion (the lion is often the symbol of the Sun God). He is betrayed by his virgin wife, Blodewwedd, into standing with one foot on the rim of a cauldron and the other on the back of a goat. It is only in this way that Llew can be killed by Blodewwedd's lover, Goronwy, Llew's dark self, who is hiding nearby with a spear at the ready; but as Llew is struck with it he is not killed but is instead transformed into an eagle. Putting this into the form of a Bardic riddle it would go something like this: who can tell in what season the lion, Llew, betrayed the virgin, Blodewwedd, poised on the balance is transformed into an eagle? My readers who are astrologers are probably already gasping in recognition. The sequence is astrological and in proper order, Leo (lion), Virgo (virgin), Libra (balance) and Scorpio (for which the eagle is a well-known alternative symbol). Also the remaining icons, cauldron and goat, could arguably symbolize Cancer and Capricorn, representing Summer and Winter, the signs between the two Solstice points. So Llew is balanced between cauldron and goat, between Summer and Winter, on the balance Libra, point of the Autumnal Equinox, with one foot on the Summer Solstice and one foot on the Winter Solstice. This, of course is the answer to a related Bardic riddle. Repeatedly the Mabonogian tells us that Llew must be standing with one foot on the cauldron and one foot on the goats back in order to be killed, but nowhere does it tell us why. Why is this particular situation the only one in which Llew can be overcome? Because it represents the Equinox point and the Autumn Equinox is the only time of the entire year when light can be overcome with darkness. It should come as no surprise that, when it is time for Llew to kill Goronwy in his turn, Llew insists that Goronwy stands where he once stood while he, Llew, casts the spear. This is no mere vindictiveness on Llew's part for, though the Mabonogian does not say so it should be now obvious that this is the only time that Goronwy can be overcome. Light can overcome darkness only at the Equinox, this time the Spring Equinox. The Welsh myth concludes with Gwydion (Llew's father) pursuing the faithless Blodewwedd through the night sky and a path of white flowers springs up in the wake of her passing, which we today know as the Milky Way. When Gwydion catches her he transforms her into an owl, a fitting symbol of Autumn, just as her earlier association with flowers (she was made from them) equates her with Spring. Thus whilst Llew and Goronwy represent Summer and Winter, Blodewwedd herself represents both Spring and Autumn as Patron Goddess Of Flowers and Owls respectively".

Thus the key to the Sabbat Cycle in The Temple Of The Spiralled Web and in many other Pagan traditions is the Triple Goddess changing in aspect from Maiden to Mother to Crone and the God who, in both forms of the Dark Twin and the Light Twin, Sun God and God Of The Underworld, dies and is yet re-born and where the ultimate truth that the Dark is but part of the Light and vice-versa is realized. Thus this dual life, death and re-birth theme fits both the solar orientation of the minimum power of the sun at mid-Winter to its maximum at mid-Summer and the natural fertility cycle of the God Of The Waxing year and the God Of The Waning Year, the Light Twin and the Dark Twin, the Oak King and the Holly King, the Sun God and the God Of The Underworld. These are the light and dark twins each, the others "other self", eternal rivals, eternally conquering and succeeding each other. They compete eternally for the favour of the Great Mother and each is sacrificially mated with her, dies in her embrace and is re-born. Here Light and Dark do not mean Good and Evil, they mean the expansive and contractive phases of the Yearly Cycle, each as necessary as the other; from the creative tension between the two of them and between them on the one hand and the Goddess on the other, life is thus generated. Another way of looking at these and yet keeping it in terms of the Horned God is The Sacred Stag as the Dark Twin and the Satyr Lord as the Light Twin. An advantage of this is that the Natural Fertility Sabbats, the Greater Sabbats, of Imbolc, Beltane, Lughnassadh and Samhain can be viewed as the provinces of the Satyr Lord and the Sacred Stag where the solar astronomical Lesser Sabbats can be viewed as the competition between Day as represented by the Sun God and night as represented by the God Of The Underworld.

The cycle of the Sabbats, according to The Temple Of The Spiralled Web follows. Although a circle has no beginning and no ending, we have made, as an arbitrary beginning, Yule the birth of the Son God. Other Pagan groups take Samhain as their arbitrary beginning (and in fact it was celebrated as the commencement of the Celtic New Year, whereas mid-Winter was celebrated as the Roman and Mediterranean New Year - the reason for the 1st January no longer being mid-Winter is due to the addition of days in the calendar by Pope Gregory to make corrections for the slow drift of the old Julian calendar).

As a final observation: The Sabbats, like the Jewish Sabbath, begins on sunaset of the day before, and ends on the setting of the sun of the actual day.

Yule (mid-Winter - usually 20th or 21st June. Celebration of the monarch's birthday is also close to this day and, for Australia, appropriately so).

This represents in mytho-poetic terms the birth of the Sun God and yet at the same time the apogee of power, the coronation of the God Of The Underworld and the Crone, Hades and Persephone. The world is in a dormant phase, the seed is underground, the deciduous trees are bare, forage is no longer plentiful, the grass is brown, cattle are moved into areas of winter pasture and hand-feeding is often the order of the day, the dry season commences. In Southern Australia the cold winds are common and bring blustery thunderstorms, the nights are long and the days short.

The psychological aspects are those of coming completely to terms with our dark self and with the concept of death and re-birth. For even at the height of all despair, be it psychological, physical or that of death itself, there is the re-affirmation as seen in nature and on a more Cosmic level of re-birth. The cycle in essence remains the same but each manifestation of it is always unique with small differences making "all the difference".

Imbolc (the beginning of Spring - usually 1st August or 'Wattle Day').

This represents the lengthening of days, the re-birth of flowers and life in the Australian Bush and the commencement of many mating rituals between the sexes in the native Australian fauna. From a mytho-poetic point of view it represents the return of the Goddess from the Underworld. She is now transformed into the Maiden and begins her interest and courtship with the young Sun God. The aging reigning God Of The Underworld looks on with increasing frustrated envy as Winter gives way the re-birth that is Spring.

From a psychological point of view this represents new beginnings, new plans undertaken, new seekings commenced. We are on the journey once more, hopefully at a higher level than the previous year as we continue to spiral up in our own spiritual and psychological transformation.

Ostara (The Spring Equinox usually 20th or 21st September and corresponding closely to Labour Day in many States of Australia).

The Spring is now fully upon us. The blossom trees are now putting forward their most beautiful show and the greatest proliferation of flowers is seen, both in Australian suburban gardens and in the Native Bush. The weather is warmer, the cold winds have subsided, we have now left the Season Of Air and entered well and truly upon the Season Of Earth. There is often some Spring rain but we are still in the midst of the dry season as far as Northern Australia is concerned. However at this point the heat is not so severe as to cause hardship and life is seen at its most 'fun'.

From a mytho-poetic point of view this represents the victory of Light over Dark, the Sun God now slays his rival and sends the old God back to the Underworld. He mates with his lover, the Goddess Maiden and impregnates her with the seed that is to become himself re-born nine months later at Yule. Fertility Rites are important at this festival with the egg and the animals depicting fertility, such as the rabbit or hare in Northern Europe (and unfortunately the same animal regarded as a pest in Australia; perhaps the possum could be regarded as a more appropriate Australian example rather than the commercially induced bilby which is chosen not for its fertility aspects but for its similarity to that of a long-haired bunny rabbit and also for its political correctness of being an environmentally endangered animal!)

Psychologically this is the time that we revel in our conscious appreciation of life, where we become more outwards and connected with the world around (which includes, of course, other people, not just the natural world).

Beltane (The beginning of Summer, 1st November, close to "Schoolies Day" where those people leaving school indulge in an annual celebration of riotous fun).

From a seasonal point of view this represents the beginning of Summer. The blossom is turning into early fruit, the days are becoming noticeably warmer and even hot, the Season Of Fire has commenced and we are all looking forward to the commencement of the long Christmas Holidays where we can 'slack off' in our preoccupation with work.

From a mytho-poetic point of view the Goddess now marries the Sun God and undergoes a more formal ritual Mating Rite with him. The news of her pregnancy is now made public and celebrated by all creation. She is increasingly being transformed from Maid into Mother.

Psychologically this is where we celebrate the sexual and life-affirming areas of life, where we come to terms with the essential goodness and pleasure of good living, of "the good life", of fun, of sex for pleasure. It is interesting to note that of all creation it appears to be only humans which engage in sex for pleasure and not just for procreation. How ironic it is then that the Church Fathers adjure us to engage in sex only for the purposes of procreation and not for pleasure 'lest we become like the beasts of the world'.

Litha (mid-Summer, usually 20th or 21st December, Christmas time and in Australia a time for such great traditions as the Boxing Day Test, a marked orgy of consumerism, people spending time with their family and partying on at work with a round of office parties, the commencement of the Christmas Holidays for school children, the running of the Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race, and the running of the Woodford Folk Festival - the biggest folk festival in the Southern Hemisphere).

This is a time of great heat, of bush fires and its subsequent destruction of the bush but at the same time causing regeneration by allowing the seeds of many native plants to germinate as they require fire to do so. The wheat is now almost ready to be harvested, the fruit grows heavy on the trees, the days are long at the beaches and the sun and heat is on everybody's mind (protective sun-burn creams - Australia has the highest rate of skin cancer in the world), the general wilting and listlessness that excessive heat brings on, the drought season is at its most severe and the whole land seems to cry out for water.

From a mytho-poetic point of view this is the Sun Lord at his highest, this is the reign of the Lord Of Light and it is not seen to be all bliss. Thus we must come to terms with the fact that a life composed totally of light, of totally one extreme - even though it may be seen as "the good" - is not healthy, it is not balanced and it will lead to disruption of life if perpetuated. Unfortunately in Australia we are subjected to the perpetuation of the Sun God's rule with drought in many parts of the country going on for year after year, a phenomenon which is perhaps destined to become more frequent as the El Nino effect becomes more frequent occurring now not every seven years but every three to five years. Is this perhaps another manifestation of man's degradation of his environment in a global sense?

But at the same time, at the height of this merciless purity is born the Dark Twin to the Goddess and a reminder that even at the times of the greatest triumph there are sown the seeds of change.

Lughnassadh (the beginning of Autumn and the season of Water, usually 1st February, close to our Australian National Day and also the commencement of the Wet Season).

The rains arrive, the harvest is well under way particularly the wheat harvest and other cereal and grain harvests, and the excessive heat has begun to wane although humidity now takes its toll. This is often the season for flooding in Australia, one natural disaster following another. The God of Light's reign is nearing an end and we will all be thankful for it.

From the mytho-poetic point of view the Goddess, now Mother going onto Crone, is being wooed by the precocious God Of The Underworld and overtures being made to her for her to descend into the land of the Underworld, the Land Beyond The Shadow And Veil. She castrates Her aging consort, the Corn King, and so He gives his seed to enable the seed from the harvest to germinate in the coming winter months, requiring as it does life-giving rains.

From a psychological point of view we are being challenged with the idea of future considerations in the midst of the plenty of the early harvest and the commencement of the life-giving rain. We are being urged to come to terms with our Dark Self and if not we will be worried and tormented by that Dark Self as it will seek its manifestation in us one way or the other. We learn to make willing sacrifices for the greater good, and for our future growth.

Mabon (the Autumn Equinox, usually 20th or 21st March, associated most commonly with the Easter holiday period).

The hours of light are now overtaken by the hours of darkness for the first time. The Sun God is slain by his rival the God Of The Underworld, The God Of The Night, The God Of Mystery. The Dark God mates with the Mother Goddess and tempts her even more firmly to explore the theme of mortality and death.

This is the time of the year when almost all of the rest of the harvest is taken in, particularly fruit crops. The time of the year now turns to more serious intent, school has resumed, university has resumed, most businesses are working up to financial statements and the budget is being prepared. We are now counting the consequences of the last year and consolidating on our progress (or otherwise!) and seeking to make progress for the coming year.

Samhain (The beginning of Winter, May Day i.e. 1st May and associated with the Australian Feast Of The Honorable Dead i.e. Anzac Day).

This is the ancient Feast Of The Dead, the time when the Goddess descends into the Underworld to confront the Lord Of The Dead only to fall in love with him and to become his consort. This is the time that The Temple Of The Spiralled Web ritually enacts the Legend Of The Descent Of The Goddess based on the ancient Samarian legend of Innana and Erishkigal.

Psychologically it represents the inward exploration of our spirituality, of our unconscious, of awareness of psychic events and connection with our past both personal, cultural and archetypal. It is a time when we can make connections psychological or otherwise with our own revered dead and particularly honour those who gave their lives voluntarily in sacrifice to prevent tyranny or discriminations, not only those soldiers who died in war but also those men and women who died for their faith (not just the witches burned at the stake but those of any religion who died to uphold their freedom to worship freely), those who suffered in the cause of female equality and for female suffrage, those who died or were harmed in the cause for other human freedoms, the right to associate, the right to fair labour, the right to universal education, the right to political free speech etc.

And thus we can come to understand the nature of evil itself. That of greed, that of continuation of only one side - either the dark or the light, and so come to a better appreciation of the necessity for balance, not just in an ecological system but also cosmically, thus we behold the cycle of life, death and re-birth as an essential Pagan principal that underlies the affirmation of balance as a proper way of life.

Esbats.

Esbats are commonly regarding as working rituals or non-festival days. However in many groups they are also regarded as Rites associated with the moon and with the lunar manifestations. Some celebrate these weekly corresponding to the four cycles of the moon - new moon, waxing moon, full moon and waning moon - while others hold them according to the lunar month i.e. thirteen times a year is celebrated either a new moon or full moon, more usually full moon. It is here most commonly that the enactment of Drawing Down the Moon or invoking the Goddess on to a female member of the group is enacted and so it is in The Temple Of The Spiralled Web.

There are many systems of moon cycles in practice throughout the world and they can also have a seasonal representation. In fact in some traditions and cultures they have been given traditional names such as Wolf Moon, Snow Moon etc. However at The Temple Of The Spiralled Web we prefer to emphasize the phases of the moon itself rather than the seasonal connotations for each moon as we feel that the Sabbats appropriately represent the seasonal aspect of life as well as the more esoteric mytho-poetic and psychological aspects. Esbats are therefore seen as celebrations of the divinity within ourselves and within all creation as manifested upon the drawing down of the moon upon the priestess. In addition we can use these as an understanding of the ever-changing nature and yet ever-cycling nature of life, not just the seasonal aspect but in all aspects and thus we invoke the power of the waxing moon (the Maiden), the full moon (the Mother), and the waning moon (the Crone), as well as the new moon or the dark moon as the Goddess Beyond The Veil, the unspoken mysteries. [Note that the dark of the moon refers to those three days in which the moon is not visible in the night sky. This is approximately one and a half days on either side of the astronomical new moon. The new moon, according to the ancients, was actually the time of the first appearance of the moon in the night sky as a thin crescent and occurs approximately one and a half days after the astronomical new moon.]

A useful concept of the Wheel Of Archetypal Powers of spiritual and creative energies is given by Karin Weiss in her synthesis of the lunar cycle, archetypal psychology -particularly for women - and the eight Sabbats. As she states in her summary:

"In the first phase (Mother) the seed germinates and roots are established. In the second phase (Maiden) the first farmable green shoots push themselves above the ground. In the third phase (Wild Woman) the plant's stems, roots and leaves gather strength and resilience. In the fourth phase (Muse) buds form encapsulating and drawing forth the promised creative product of the plant. In the fifth phase (Lover) beautiful flowers bloom attracting pollinating birds and insects to the plant. In the sixth phase (Companion) the flowers give way to produce the right fruit of the plant which holds the seed for it's future generations. In the seventh phase (Warrior) the plant gives up some of it's fruits to be harvested and used strategically in the creation of other products for the world. In the eighth phase (Wise Woman) the plant goes back to seed and lies dormant in the ground as it stores energy for the re-birth of a new cycle to come. Our own growth and development can be seen to evolve in a similar pattern at many levels of our lives from our daily and monthly hormonal cycles that describe moods and energy output to the larger patterns of development in our relationships, careers, creative endeavors and family lives.

From the Mother and Child springs the Maiden who evokes the Wild Woman, who released the Muse, who inspires the Lover, who becomes the Companion, who arouses the Warrior, who discovers the Wise Woman, who heals the Mother and Child from whom again springs the Maiden."

New moon or Mother represents containment and nurturence. Crescent moon Maiden indicates assertion and innocence. First quarter moon Wild Woman indicates action and freedom. Gibbous moon, the Muse represents expression and creativity. Full moon represents Lover, fulfilment and romance. Disseminating moon represents the Companion, synthesis and mutuality. Last quarter moon represents the Warrior symbolizing reaction and passion. Balsamic moon for the Wise Woman represents release and mystery.

These archetypes can be balanced at the East point as the Maiden and Wild Woman sharing a knowledge of innocence and spontaneity, working to face the fear of our unexplored limits, testing boundaries and recognizing our need for guidance and guarding. We learn to join the forces of vulnerability and fierceness.

At the South point the Muse and the Mother share knowledge of intimacy and captivation. We learn to join affection, the excitement of new-found romance and meaningful self-expression with appreciation our inspired visions of fantasy, creative connection and the longing for beauty.

On the West the Companion and Warrior share a knowledge of cooperation and competition. They unite to find the courage of commitment to join our goals and aspiration with others. We learn to join the forces of courage with the attributes of pride and help connect with the passionate power of our emotions and maintain our autonomy even in relationships.

At the North the Wise Woman and Mother share the sacred life mysteries, uniting through our wisdom about the intimate connections between life and death, birth and regeneration, body and soul. Through these we learn to join the healing nurture with the wisdom of detachment.

Furthermore the Wheel divides into two hemispheres separating into a self-focus. On the right half (Mother, Maiden, Wild Woman and Muse) to promote growth and facilitate the discovery of our own meaning and a focus primarily outside of ourselves (Lover, Companion, Warrior and Wise Woman) to impact others and find our purpose in the larger world.

Thus the Mother balances the Lover on a continuum of possession and affection, this is the axis of emotion and corresponds with the Water element. The Maiden balances the Companion on a continuum of playfulness and responsibility. It is the axis of relation with self or other and corresponds to the Earth element. The Wild Woman balances the Warrior on a continuum of passion and courage and is the axis of action free, or directed, correlating with Fire. Finally the Muse balances the Wise Woman on a continuum of idealism and knowledge which is the axis of vision, personal or universal, and correlating with the element of Air.

References:

1. The Crafted Cup by Shadwynn.
2. The Witches of Oz by Julia Phillips and Matthew Sandow.
3. Eight Sabbats of Witchcraft by Mike Nichols.
4. The Goddess Circle by Karin Weiss.
5. Eight Sabbats for Witches by Janet and Stuart Farrar.

Appendix

Sunday 7 December 1997

The talk given was on the Cycle Of The Year and the Sabbats, various mythic cycles were looked at as well as the backgrounds to each Sabbat and its correlations in other religions, particularly modern Christianity.

The Cycle agreed upon by The Temple Of The Spiralled Web will commence at Yule (mid-winter) on the June Winter Solstice with the birth of the new Sun God and the Kinship of both the Lord Of The Underworld and the Dark Lady that even in death there is life and although the Earth seems bare, yet under the ground the seed is germinating.

The end of Winter is celebrated at Imbolc at the end of July and beginning of August with the return of the Goddess with her infant child to the Upper Regions.

Ostara is celebrated at the September Spring Equinox where the young Sun God slays his other self, the Dark Lord. At Beltane, the commencement of Summer at the end of October beginning of November the Sun God is married to the young Queen and their marriage consummated.

The Mid-Summer Equinox, called in modern Pagan circles Litha, is celebrated in December and represents the apogee of maturity, responsibility and leadership of the Sun God and the Summer Queen who now gives birth to the dark God of the Underworld, symbolic that even at its height life has its other side, its Shadow, which must be reckoned with.

At Lughnasadh the aging Sun God presides over the harvest, giving some of his vitality to fruits of the Earth.

At Mabon, the March Autumn Equinox, the young Lord of the Underworld rises and slays his other self, the aging Sun God, and wins the love of his rival's consort who now becomes Crone.

At Samhain, also known as The Feast Of The Dead, celebrated at the end of April beginning of May, a Crone Goddess descends into the Underworld where she is wed to its dread Lord. At this Sabbat the Legend Of The Descent Of The Goddess, derived from the Sumerian legend of Inanna and Erishkigal is played out.

Email us at kimandq@caliph.net.au

Home Page. About the Temple of the Sacred Spiral. About Us. Aboriginal lore. Articles. Bibliography. Corresp Tables. Crafts. Creeds. Crete. Crystals, Gems and Metals, etc. Divination, Tarot and Runes. Events. Herbs, etc. Links. Meditations. PaganFAQ. Pagan Humour. Pagans in Qld Media. Rituals. Sabbats. The Sanctuary. Songs. Spells. Syllabus. What's New. Witches' Kitchen. E-mail us.

You are visitor number since 15th July 1997.