Popular Holidays
Northern
Hemisphere
Yule Dec 22
Imbolc Feb 2
Ostara Mar 21
Beltaine May 1
Midsummer Jun 21
Lughnasadh Aug 1
Mabon Sep 21
Samhain Oct 31
Southern
Hemisphere
Yule Jun 21
Imbolc Aug 1
Ostara Sep 21
Beltaine Oct 31
Midsummer Dec 22
Lughnasadh Feb 2
Mabon Mar 21
Samhain May 1
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Witches' Sabbats
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O S T A R A (around March 21st but date may vary by more than two days )
also known as: Spring Equinox, Ostara, Alban Eiler, Esther, Eostre, Ostarun, ™startag', Eastre, Eoastrae, Oestre
The first true day of Springtide. The days and nights are now equal in length as the Young God continues to mature and grow. We begin to see shoots of new growth and swelling buds on the trees. Energy is building as the days become warmer with promise.
Ostara - Overview by Christina
by Christina Aubin
The Vernal Equinox is one of two times in the calendar year when the apparent path of the sun crosses the Celestial Equator. The Celestial Equator is the line which divides the celestial sphere into a northern and southern celestial hemispheres, much like the earth's equator dividing the earth into the northern and southern hemispheres. During the Vernal Equinox the sun moves northward and reaches a point known as the First Point of Aries (zero point of longitude) which was originally in the constellation of Aries, but is now in the constellation of Pisces due to precession. The other point of the year which the sun crosses the celestial equator is Autumnal Equinox, which occurs in September (northern hemisphere).
The Vernal Equinox is the festival of Eostre, Ostara. E‡stre, Ostara is the Teutonic and Eostre and E‡stre are the Anglo-Saxon Goddess of Spring, the Radiant Dawn and Up-springing Light (Grimm Teutonic Mythology). Eostre, E‡stre and Ostara are entomologically related to the Anglo-Saxon word for dawn and to Ostar, the Old High German adverb which expresses movement toward the rising sun --which would be East. Through time Eostre became Easter -- and its meaning changed to the time the rising "son" as opposed to the rising "sun".... (Full Article)
Enlightening Ostara Links by Christina (Click HERE)
You Call It Easter, We Call It Ostara
by Peg Aloi
Try this sometime with your children or a young niece, nephew or cousin: on the day of the Vernal or Autumnal Equinox, just a few moments before the exact moment of the equinox, go outside with a raw egg. Find a reasonably level place on the sidewalk or driveway. For a few moments just before and just after the equinox, you can balance the egg upright (wider end down) by simply setting it down on the ground. No kidding! It will stand up all by itself. Kids love this, and most adults are amazed and delighted, too.
This little "trick" brings together two of the most potent aspects of this holiday: the balancing of the earth's gravity midway between the extremes of light and dark at Winter and Summer Solstice; and the symbolism of the egg. The egg is one of the most notable symbols of Easter, but, as someone who was raised Catholic and who was never told exactly why we colored eggs at Easter, or why there was a bunny who delivered candy to us, or why it was traditional to buy new clothes to wear for church on Easter Sunday, I always wondered about this holiday. As with many of the seemingly unrelated secular symbols and traditions of Christmas (what do evergreen trees, mistletoe, reindeer and lights have to do with the birth of Christ? You might wanna read "You Call It Christmas, We Call It Yule" for an exploration of these connections), Easter too has adapted many ancient pagan symbols and customs in its observance... (Full Article)
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