* The Summer Solstice is the point in midsummer when everything in Nature is at its peak, there is abundance. * At Beltane, the Lord has grown to manhood and he falls in love with the Lady, the two unite, producing the bounty of Nature. The Lord is seen as a growing youth at this time. * Ostara marks the first day of spring and the awakening of the Earth. * At Imbolc, in February, the Lord is seen as a young boy, and the Lady recovers from giving birth. * At Yule, which occurs at the time of the winter solstice in December, the Lady gives birth to the Lord and then rests. Wiccans look at the year as the continuing and repeating story of the life, death and rebirth of the God and the fertility of the Goddess. The Solar Festivals and the Fire Festivals make up the Wheel Of The Year. The cross quarter days are marked by Fire Festivals and are usually celebrated as significant agricultural festivals. The Four Seasons are known as Solar Festivals because they mark a seasonal change caused by the Sun. The Wheel of the Year begins at Samhain, this is better known as Hallowe’en or All Hallows Eve, which is the Celtic New Year, this is when the veil between the worlds of life and death are the finest. Each of the spokes on this wheel represent one of the eight Sabbats. The year is viewed as a wheel that keeps turning, and once it has completed a rotation, the wheel keeps going and turns again and again. The Wheel of the Year is of Pagan heritage, and is the calendar for the cycle of the seasons. Each Sabbat is spaced at approximately even intervals throughout the year.īy celebrating the festivals you attune yourself to the cycles of nature creating an inner calm and oneness with all things. During the Winter Solstice we have the shortest day and longest night.Īll Sabbat ceremonies begin at sundown on the eve of the dates given and continue to sundown. Daylight hours are at their longest during the Summer Solstice, the hours of darkness are at their shortest. Halfway between each equinox there are two points on the earth’s path which mark the Solstices. “ There is also a day each fall when the hours of darkness and the hours of daylight are exactly in harmony, this is the “autumnal equinox.” The beginning of each season is when the minor Sabbats occur.Įach spring the day when the hours between sunrise and sunset are exactly equal to the hours between sunset and sunrise is called “vernal equinox. The midpoint of the four seasons is when the major Sabbats occur. The minor Sabbats include the solar festivals of the equinoxes and solstices, Yule, Ostara, Litha and Mabon. The Major Sabbats include the four major agricultural festivals, Samhain, Imbolc, Beltane and Lammasm. Sabbat is a French word taken from the Hebrew Sabbath, meaning “to rest.” The Sabbats take place eight times in the year, they have spiritual significance. The Sabbats are attuned to the natural rhythms and cycles of nature and the passing seasons. These seasonal holidays have been followed for many thousands of years by ancient cultures such as Nordic, Celtic and Greek. The Sabbats celebrate the eternal circle of life – birth, death and rebirth.