Lammas

Aug 1st, time of the first reaping, this marks the end of summer and the beginning of fall. The Celts reckoned their days as starting at sundown the night before, so this Sabbat starts at sundown on July 31. The true astrological time for this Sabbat is 15 degrees Leo, which usually falls around the 6th of August. This is when days start to shorten and marks the time of less and less sunlight until fall equinox, when light and dark are equal.

This is one of cross quarter or Greater Sabbats for Pagans. It is a Power Point in astrology terms. It is the Lion in the Tarot card - Wheel of Fortune. This is the time of Leo the Lion, a fixed power sign along with Taurus, Scorpio and Aquarius.

In the highlands of Scotland and England all the Crossquarter Sabbats are considered times of being able to cross over to the "other world". But the last two week of July and the first two of august seem to be special and are called "iuchar" meaning Bordertime. This time was most likely to have been between the last new moon in July till the first new moon in August, the lun ar month. This might be because Lammas or Lughnassadh is considered the Gateway to the West and the direction to the Afterworld. There is a saying I found while researching for this article that the Gaels have to describe the Lughnassadh month is: "Tri laithean den iuchar san fhaoileach, agus tri laithean den fhaoileach san iuchar". It seems to translate as "there are three days of bordertime in the wolftime and three days of wolftime in the bordertime". 'Faoileach' falls in January and February, straddling the festival of La Feill Bride (Candlemas). The Celts and Druids loved polarities and opposites. There is clearly a play of opposites here, but I will leave it to the reader to discern the meaning.

At this point in the cycle of the year the force of growth or fertility leaves the God, tho he retains his life until Autumn Equinox when again Light battles Dark. That is when the rule of the Tanist or Dark Twin begins. Thru the eternal combat of Light and Dark, Yin and Yang, all is kept in balance. Thru the Dark Twin the seed of Light are sown and thru the Light the dark is sown. The world dances to the oldest song of all, the Song of Balance.

Why? you wonder that growth needs to be stop? For ripening to take place. To sort the grain from the weeds, so the seed of new growth can be planted next year. Without ripening there will be no grain, without grain, no food to eat during the winter months.

This is the festival of the first harvest. The early crops are being brought in and the start of winter storing. The grain stands high in the fields and the days are hot and lazy. This is the time of feasting on the first harvest and breads that are made from the early grains. It is a festival where sharing between all present of the harvest and its bounty forms a closeness or bond. It is a time of thankfulness to the God and Goddess for their help in the plenty of now and of prayers for a full harvest for the winter that lies ahead.

Now is the time for feasting, games and Handfasting. Lugnasadh means the "Commemoration of Lugh", not Lugh's death but in honor of his foster mother. And fair and gatherings were a large part of Lammas celebrations. This was a time of gathering together, the first harvest is done and there is more than enough to share. A time of rest before and joy before the final harvests of fall. Jugglers and clowns, feats of horsemanship, daring and skill, tales and stories were told, music and song, trading and selling was done and a good time for all. Big fairs were held at Leinster as told in the 12th century manuscript "the Book of Leinster".

This was also the time to make law and discuss affairs of the area. The importance of these fairs were shown by the belief that the abundance of the land was tied to it and the sayings of the Bards about the neglected of them:

"There comes for the neglect of it baldness, weakness, early grayness, kings without keenness or jollity, without hospitality or truth."

Thus we know that the Druids of old considered this a very important part of social order and religious importance. In Ireland there were different type of Fairs: The "feis" that was a national fair, the "dal" that was a tribal or area fair, and the "mor-dal" that was the great assembly - the Tailltenn Fair is the most famous example of this.

This was also the time of Tailltean marriages or handfasting for a year and a day. This was a common form of marriage until the 1500's, but one you didn't bother the priests about. Usually if was officiated over by a poet, bard or Druid or a priest/ess of the old religion.

The Christian religion adopted this theme and called it 'Lammas', meaning 'loaf-mass', a time when newly baked loaves of bread are placed on the altar. The highlight of this festival was the 'St. Catherine wheel'. A large wagon wheel was taken to the top of a hill, covered with tar, set aflame, and ceremoniously rolled down the hill.

A LAMMAS RITUAL

Being a solitary Druid with just a few friends of various traditions to celebrate with, I have designed my rituals on a informal basis.

You will need your usual altar setup, A red/orange/gold candle if indoors or a small fire if outdoors, candle holder or a small assortment of wood and sticks for the fire and a small loaf of new made bread - a whole grain roll will do if it has been fresh baked, try you local store bakery. The "wine" should be red or a golden color. Keep a few bite of bread and sips of wine for the end of the ritual. This is a solar/day ritual - Try for noon if you can, otherwise try to do it before the sun sets.

Cast your circle in the usually manner.

As you light your candle say:

Glory of the Sun - Father, Husband, 
Brother Guide me thru the coming twilight 
Show me understanding and compassion bright