In my earlier post, “I Am a Pagan,” I talked about some of the beliefs of the Pagan Path, as explained by Selena Fox. In this post, we explore the Pagan Wheel of the Year and the Eight Sabbats (holy days) which are celebrated by many Pagans – particularly those who follow the Wiccan or Witchcraft traditions.
I am a Pagan. I celebrate the changing seasons; the turning of the Wheel of the Year. I celebrate with music, feasting, rituals, and celebrations.
~ Samhain, or Halloween (October 31st) is a time for gazing into the future and for paying homage to my ancestors and other loved ones in the spirit world. I work magick for greater religious freedom for practitioners of earth-based faiths, and for humankind as a whole.
~ Yule, the Winter Solstice (December 21st) is a festival of peace, light, and celebration of the new Sun Child, the Great Mother Goddess, and the Gnome God. I decorate my home with lights and with holly, ivy, mistletone, evergreens, and other herbs sacred to this season.
~ At the beginning of February (February 2nd), I celebrate Candlemas, also known as Imbolc and Groundhog’s Day. During this festival of Brigid, I light candles and focus on spiritual purification and clearing away of blockages to prepare for the coming of Spring and new growth.
~ At the time of the Spring Equinox (March 21st), I welcome the renewal of Spring and celebrate the greening of the Earth by dressing in green myself. I honor the goddess Ostara and Her consort, the rabbit…and I share colored eggs with my friends.
~ Beltane (May 1st) at the beginning of May is a festival of fertility and creativity, and I decorate myself with bright colors and flowers. I dance around the maypole to bless the gardens and creative projects.
~ Summer Solstice (June 21st), also known as Midsummer and Litha, is a grand gathering time when I greet old friends and meet new ones. I dance with them around a sacred bonfire to the magic rhythms of drums.
~ As August arrives (August 1st), I celebrate Lughnassad, also known as Lammas. At this festival, I honor the height of growth and prosperity, and I not only give thanks for the wild and cultivated herbs and other blessings that are starting to come to fruition, but I also pray for continued abundance.
~ Fall Equinox (September 21st), also called Mabon, is the time of thanksgiving for all the harvests I have reaped during the growing time. I return to the earth offerings of the best of the fruit, vegetables, herbs, nuts, and other food stuffs I have gathered.
And at Samhain, this Pagan Yearly Cycle begins again.
This sculpture shows the sign for "connect"...and that is what Deaf Pagan Crossroads is all about - making connections. Connections between Deafhood and Paganism, connections between the Deaf Community and the Hearing Community, connections between myself as the writer and you as the reader. I hope you will take the time to read my various posts, some of which are listed below. Welcome to the Crossroads, and I hope you make some connections here!
I wish to clarify a bit here, because I think a lot of people do get confused…
What exactly IS the difference between Wicca and Paganism?
I will be writing about this in more detail in a future post, but here is a short and sweet answer:
Wicca is a BRANCH of Paganism. They are not two separate, different things.
In another words, you can be a Pagan without being Wiccan, but you CANNOT be Wiccan without being Pagan.
Paganism basically refers to that group of spiritual paths/religions that follow the same basic philosophy of worshipping Nature and seeing the Earth as divine. Wicca is just one of those paths/religions.
Still confused? Let me use this comparison:
Christianity really refers to a group of religions that all follow a basic philosophy of belief in the teachings of Jesus Christ.
But within Christianity you have many different religions; such as Catholicism, Baptist, Presbyterian, Lutheran, Methodist, etc.
So you can be a Christian without being Baptist, but you cannot be a Baptist without being Christian.
Hope this helps to explain the “difference” between Paganism and Wicca. Wicca is just one way (among many) of being Pagan.
yes i celebrate the cycles mostly as a solitary but i think i,m more wiccan than pagan, i tend to lean toward the structure of the wiccan yet i like the flexability of the pagans, am i pagan yes am i wiccan yes i am im just me
Very nicely done. I like the brevity of this. I always get so long-winded when trying to explain things (any things). You get right to the heart of it. 🙂
Believe me, I can get long-winded and rambling myself!
Once again, I am indebted to Selena Fox for these explanations, which come from her writings and teachings.
I agree that these explanations of the Sabbats do get right to the heart of the matter in explaining what each day is basically all about…
I still have so much to learn and I have to admit that I am curious about this since I haven’t found my “religion”. Like KM said, perhaps it struck me that I may be a closeted pagan as well.
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