Beltane the May-Eve Sabbat

Beltane marks the end of the dark half of year and the beginning of the light half of the year.

Beltane was traditionally the time to seek protection from both natural and supernatural threats. 

Protection for the home, the family, the crops, the livestock.

The original meaning of the name may be Bel-fire, after the Celtic God Bel or Balor - another name for Cernunnos.

In some traditions, Beltane (along with Lughnasadh) is a good time for handfasting (marriage).

Beltane is considered to be the second greatest of the four Greater Sabbats.

Beltane is traditionally celebrated on April 30th. 

The Beltane celebration actually begins on sundown of the preceding day, April 30, because the Celts always figured their days from sundown to sundown. Sundown was the proper time for Druids to kindle the great Bel-fires.

Frequently, cattle would be driven between two such bon-fires then they would be taken to their summer pastures the next day.

Other May Day activities included walking one's property ('beating the bounds'), repairing fences and boundary markers, processions of chimney-sweeps and milk maids, archery tournaments, morris dances, sword dances, feasting, music, drinking, and girls bathing their faces in the dew of May morning to retain their youthful beauty. 

But many popular customs associated with Beltane didn't exist in the Celtic pagan celebrations.

About the only thing that can be said about ancient Beltane is that it was a fire festival, and most likely not as adventitious as it is today. 

Cattle were routinely run between fires (and in the 9th Century that practice was said to involve Druids) to protect them as they moved from their winter quarters to their summer grazing-land. 

When you are dependent on cattle as a source of food, you want to do everything possible to ensure their survival, so instead of Beltaning in the woods it was more important to bless the livestock.

Fire as a source of control and good fortune wasn’t just limited to cattle, human beings jumped over fires for good luck as well. 

Up until the 1300’s history doesn't mention the Maypole, and when it eventually does get mentioned, it's not referred to as “phallic” or “ancient pagan.” 

The earliest function of the Maypole was to simply dance around it. There were no ribbons tied to the top of it, though it was sometimes decorated with flags. 

As time passed the May Pole was given a special dance with the ribbons going around it. 

And actually this is all kind of new, dating back to just the last few hundred years.

Anyway, today's Beltane traditions may not necessarily be the purest form of paganism, and just because ancient Pagans probably didn’t dance around the Maypole, it doesn’t make Beltane any less fun. 

This festival officially begins at moonrise on May Day Eve, and marks the beginning of the third quarter or second half of the ancient Celtic year. 

Beltane is a fire festival dedicated to the God of light called Bel or Balder. It marks the beginning of the Summer season. One custom of celebrating Beltane (literally Bel's fire) is the lighting of two bonfires. Its fun to do this and have a BBQ while your at it. 

If you aren’t able to have a bonfire, light a fire in a fireplace or BBQ grill. 

You can even light candles instead.

What ever you do, have fun and happy Beltane.

Connection, Balance and Patience

 

Her name is Miyoko Shida [Rigolo]. 

She is Japanese and presently lives in Paris, France. 

She has taken the last name of her mentor, Rigolo. 

Her art is called, The Sanddorn Balance.

Watching this will center you; it will anchor you into the moment, where the ego is lost to the wonder of this poetry in motion.

What else can this teach us? 

Everything  and everyone is connected in some way or another. 

We can see how fragile and yet how vitally important each of these connections really are or we will collapse. 

This point is illustrated clearly, at its conclusion.

Days of the Week

Why are 7 days in a week?

The seven-day week had its origin in the Babylonian ancient civilization. 

The culture of those who lived in Mesopotamia (modern Iraq) was one of the world’s most prominent around 1,000 and 2,000 BC before Greece and Rome dominion. 

As outstanding astronomers, Babylonians came up with a calendar intended to predict the movement of the moon as well as its transition between each phase: full, waning half, new and waxing half. 

Whereas Earth and Sun help us identify days and years, the whole moon cycle sheds light on months. 
That is because it takes approximately 28 days (plus 1 or 2-day arrangement) for the moon to go through the 4 phases. 
And how long each of them take? 

Yes: 7 days.

Furthermore, the number 7 had been tied down to a certain mysticism. 

As you already know, astronomy and astrology were considered enthusiastic fields of study by Babylonians. 
They then resorted to a sort of horoscope to assign each of the 7 days to the 7 planets visible to the naked eye:

The Sun, Moon, Mars, Mercury, Jupiter, Venus and Saturn.

WHAT IS THE ORIGIN OF THE SEVEN-DAY NAMES?

Following Ancient Mesopotamia example, both Greeks and Romans named the days of the week according to their Pagan gods.

The prominence of deep-rooted religious beliefs made these people believe that gods ruled the destiny of us mortals. 

In this sense, assigning days to their names was envisioned as a noble tribute in the hope of ensuring an immaculate life journey.

Those gods corresponded to the classical planets (Mars, Mercury, Jupiter, Venus, and Saturn) detected by night-time sky differences, plus the Moon and the Sun (which were rated pagan gods).

The Naming of the Days

The Greeks named the days week after the sun, the moon and the five known planets, which were in turn named after the gods Ares, Hermes, Zeus, Aphrodite, and Cronus. 
The Greeks called the days of the week the Theon hemerai "days of the Gods". 
The Romans substituted their equivalent gods for the Greek gods, Mars, Mercury, Jove (Jupiter), Venus, and Saturn. (The two pantheons are very similar.) The Germanic peoples generally substituted roughly similar gods for the Roman gods, Tiu (Twia), Woden, Thor, Freya (Fria), but did not substitute Saturn.

Sunday -- Sun's day

Middle English sone(n)day or sun(nen)day
Old English sunnandæg "day of the sun"
Germanic sunnon-dagaz "day of the sun"
Latin dies solis "day of the sun"
Ancient Greek hemera heli(o)u, "day of the sun"

Monday -- Moon's day

Middle English monday or mone(n)day
Old English mon(an)dæg "day of the moon"
Latin dies lunae "day of the moon"
Ancient Greek hemera selenes "day of the moon"

Tuesday -- Tiu's day

Middle English tiwesday or tewesday
Old English tiwesdæg "Tiw's (Tiu's) day"
Latin dies Martis "day of Mars"
Ancient Greek hemera Areos "day of Ares"

Tiu (Twia) is the English/Germanic god of war and the sky. He is identified with the Norse god Tyr.

Mars is the Roman god of war.

Ares is the Greek god of war.

Wednesday -- Woden's day

Middle English wodnesday, wednesday, or wednesdai
Old English wodnesdæg "Woden's day"
Latin dies Mercurii "day of Mercury"
Ancient Greek hemera Hermu "day of Hermes"

Woden is the chief Anglo-Saxon/Teutonic god. Woden is the leader of the Wild Hunt. Woden is from wod "violently insane" + -en "headship". He is identified with the Norse Odin.

Mercury is the Roman god of commerce, travel, theivery, eloquence and science. He is the messenger of the other gods.

Hermes is the Greek god of commerce, invention, cunning, and theft. He is the messenger and herald of the other gods. He serves as patron of travelers and rogues, and as the conductor of the dead to Hades.

Thursday -- Thor's day

Middle English thur(e)sday
Old English thursdæg
Old Norse thorsdagr "Thor's day"
Old English thunresdæg "thunder's day"
Latin dies Jovis "day of Jupiter"
Ancient Greek hemera Dios "day of Zeus".

Thor is the Norse god of thunder. He is represented as riding a chariot drawn by goats and wielding the hammer Miölnir. He is the defender of the Aesir, destined to kill and be killed by the Midgard Serpent.

Jupiter (Jove) is the supreme Roman god and patron of the Roman state. He is noted for creating thunder and lightning.

Zeus is Greek god of the heavens and the supreme Greek god.

Friday -- Freya's day

Middle English fridai
Old English frigedæg "Freya's day"
composed of Frige (genetive singular of Freo) + dæg "day" (most likely)
or composed of Frig "Frigg" + dæg "day" (least likely)
Germanic frije-dagaz "Freya's (or Frigg's) day"
Latin dies Veneris "Venus's day"
Ancient Greek hemera Aphrodites "day of Aphrodite"

Freo is identical with freo, meaning free. It is from the Germanic frijaz meaning "beloved, belonging to the loved ones, not in bondage, free".

Freya (Fria) is the Teutonic goddess of love, beauty, and fecundity (prolific procreation). She is identified with the Norse god Freya. She is leader of the Valkyries and one of the Vanir. She is confused in Germany with Frigg.

Frigg (Frigga) is the Teutonic goddess of clouds, the sky, and conjugal (married) love. She is identified with Frigg, the Norse goddess of love and the heavens and the wife of Odin. She is one of the Aesir. She is confused in Germany with Freya.

Venus is the Roman goddess of love and beauty.

Aphrodite (Cytherea) is the Greek goddess of love and beauty.

Saturday -- Saturn's day

Middle English saterday
Old English sæter(nes)dæg "Saturn's day"
Latin dies Saturni "day of Saturn"
Ancient Greek hemera Khronu "day of Cronus"

Saturn is the Roman and Italic god of agriculture and the consort of Ops. He is believed to have ruled the earth during an age of happiness and virtue.

Cronus (Kronos, Cronos) is the Greek god (Titan) who ruled the universe until dethroned by his son Zeus.

Happy Friday