Lughnasadh (Loo-nah-sah) takes its name from the Celtic God Lugh, who dedicated this festival to his foster mother, Tailtu. Taliltu was the last Queen of Fir Boly, who died of exhaustion after clearing out a great forest so that the land could be cultivated. On her death bed, she told them to hold games in her honour, and as long as they did, she promied that the harvest would be great and they would not be withourt song.
This is the first of the harvest festivals as well as being one of the four greater fire festivals. The Goddess slowly tranforms from Mother into Crone. Traditionally celebrated on the Second day of February (Our Northen Friends, on the first day of August) , we also see the Sun God also slowly once again dissapearing.
As a fire festival we see bonfires lit in the hope they will add strength to the powers of the waning sun. Afterward, the fire brands can be kept in the home throughout Winter as protection against storms, lightning and fires that are caused by lightning.
The Christians gave this festival the name Lammas, which literally means "loaf mass" as this was the time that fresh bread was baked from the first harvest, and placed on the altar.
This is a time to come together, play games and test your skills. A time to settle arguments. If there is a Beltane baby, a Handfasting is celebrated. A time to bask in the sun's warmth and share in the bounty from the crops in a feast shared with friends. Sometimes cartwheels are set alight and rolled downhill.
Lughnasadh was a time for trial marriage. Young men and women lined up either side of a wooden gate, in which a hole was carved. One by one, girl and boy would grasp a habd in the hole, never knowing who was on the other side. They could now live together for the year to see if it worked out. If not, they could return the following year and separate by standing back to back and walking away.
Lughnasadh marks the beginning of the long awaited harvest. A time when spring plants wither ,and drop their fruit and seeds, seeds we collect for future crops. It is usually a tradition for the youngest child in the family to cut the last sheath and make a corn dolly from it. This figure, braided into a woman's represents the Harvest Spirit.
The doll would be saved until Spring, when it was ploughed into the field to consecrate the new planting to ensure a good harvest. In other traditions, the corn dolly was fed and watered throughout the Winter, then burned in the fires at Beltane to ensure the continuation of good growth.
Colours: Dark green, yellow, golden or Orange.
Herbes: Sandalwood, Frankincense, Heather, Yarrow, Hazelwood, Wheat, Oats, Willow
Foods: Apples, Seeds, Breads
Deities: Lugh, Adonis, Dionysus, Crone, Dark Mother, Demeter, Juno Augusta.
Symbols: Corn, wheat, wine, beer, cornshuck God figures, games and athletic competitions.
