Traditions // Current

Should the groom take the bride's surname?

Some modern-day nuptials are turning tradition on its head, as a growing number of men take on their bride's surname. David... more

Beta_Boy
added this

Religion in a communist country

When I was growing up in Romania, people were not entirely encouraged to practice religion, so their spirituality came out through... more

robosapien
added this

Top burial sites and traditions

There are two things we can be certain of in life - tax and death! So why not go out with a bang by being laid to rest at the most... more

sarahlou79
added this

Canadians defend clubbing 300,000 baby seals each year as part of their culture

Canadians should wear sealskin to celebrate the country's birthday on July 1, an Inuit leader said on Friday, in defiance of... more

jefftego
added this

The World's Hardest Working Shaman

Western Shoshone leader, Corbin Harney talks about his prophetic conversation with the water

waynesumstine
added this

Amazing Fantasy Garden - Get Lost in it

Bruno Torf is an artist that creates beautiful works of fantasy art in his sculpture garden. This garden resides in Marysville,... more

bluebirdsparrow
added this

Arundel's amazing carpet of flowers open to the public

MORE THAN 100 years of tradition, a sacred moment in time and around 1,500 flowers are on display in Arundel Cathedral from today... more

bluebirdsparrow
added this

Indian Culture For Sale

Indian culture is so popular in the West these days. Being South Asian myself, I find it interesting to see people embrace eastern... more

Spiral9
added this

May Day's Beltane: A Springtime Halloween

Blooming flowers and spring-time showers; this season really could not feel less like Halloween. And yet, according to Pagan... more

AndreaKnoll
added this

Ostara, The Pagan Equinox, And The Season To Shop

by Marisa
Our clocks are adjusted, and we're enjoying the perfectly balanced day and night of the spring equinox. Total coincidence that Easter is just around the corner, right? Well, not entirely...

While to Christians this weekend is most closely associated with Jesus' resurrection (well, that and chocolate-bearing rabbits, but more on them in a couple days), Easter traditions, like many contemporary religious holidays, have a rich Pagan history. Specifically, the struggles of various figures to return from the Underworld, be they Greek Mythology's Orpheus or Persephone, the Norse Odin, or Jesus Christ, have long been intertwined with the seasonal rebirth of trees and flowers at the Vernal Equinox, known to Pagans as Ostara.

Ostara gets its name from "Oestre" (which also morphs into "Easter"), the Teutonic Goddess of spring and dawn. Within the Pagan Wheel of the Year, in which the Goddess and God figures transition through the stages of life with each holiday, Ostara marks the Goddess in her maiden bloom, as she's courted by the now virile young God.

In ancient Greece and Rome, where seasonal lilies adorned the Ostara altar, young men mirrored their lusty springtime God by presenting the lilies to young women in courtship, which served as a symbol of commitment tantamount to an engagement ring today. Even the Easter bonnet is steeped in Ostara lore, as ancient Pagans considered it bad luck to wear new clothes before the Equinox. They therefore worked secretly through the winter months on the elegant finery they could parade on Ostara day.

Ostara isn't purely a springtime holiday, however, it is also inextricably tied with the Equinox, as represented by the Sun Wheel in its perfect balance of a cross within a circle. Having trouble drawing a mental image? Just think of the pattern atop a traditional Anglo hot cross bun, long a symbol of the Easter holiday.

So now that you have a sense of Ostara's history, how best to honor this year's Equinox? One ritual is to burn a list of Ostara aspirations, hopes you wish to birth in the coming season, by the light of a purple candle. Then bury the ashes in the ground with the springtime seeds, so your dreams may bloom with the flowers. Too much effort for your liking? There's always that proud tradition about new clothes and hats...

http://www.dailymantra.com
by Marisa Our clocks are adjusted, and we're enjoying the perfectly balanced day and night of the spring equinox. Total... more

AndreaKnoll
added this

0 responses

8 months ago

Easter, Eddie Izzard, And The Egg-Laying Rabbit

by Marisa Crucifixion, resurrection... chocolate-bearing bunny rabbits? In the immortal words of Eddie Izzard (from his... more

AndreaKnoll
added this

1 response

8 months ago

The Lesser Banishing Ritual of The Chocolate Rabbit

by Marisa From Ostara to Easter, the holiday weekend is upon us. For some, this means Easter services at their favorite church,... more

AndreaKnoll
added this

0 responses

8 months ago

Easter: Wabbit Season

Have you ever wondered where the tradition of Easter rabbits started --and where real Easter bunnies end?

Julie_Soller
added this

13 responses

8 months ago

Imbolc And The Pagan Groundhog

by Marisa Most of us know Imbolc by its more mainstream moniker, Groundhog Day, a day on which a prophetic Pennsylvanian... more

AndreaKnoll
added this

0 responses

10 months ago

Countdown To Halloween: Jack-o-Lanterns & Celtic Carvings

by Marisa
Whether messily scooping out your pumpkin at home, admiring this years carvings around the neighborhood or, ok, using your computers mouse to scrawl a pumpkin mask on Facebook, Jack-o-lantern season is upon us. But have you ever wondered how this unusual tradition began?

Jack-o-lanterns were brought to the United States by Irish immigrants during the potato famines of the mid-1800s. In keeping with the ancient Celtic belief that the veil between life and death is thinnest on Samhain, the earliest Jack-o-lanterns were designed both to welcome deceased loved ones and frighten away less welcome spirits. The carving of faces, as opposed to other symbols, stemmed from the Celtic belief that the head housed a persons immortal soul, and was therefore sacred. Hence, if you must venture out on Samhain night, a Jack-o-lantern (or kail-runt torch in Scotland) was intended to fool any spirits that might cross your path. In Ireland, Jack-o-lanterns were carved from hollowed turnips, but as pumpkins were more plentiful in America, the tradition quickly adapted.

So whos Jack? While the specifics of his legend vary wildly, in essence Jack was a lazy, yet shrewd, Irish farmer who had the poor judgment to try to trick the devil and by extension, death. (This legend likely arose after Christianitys arrival in Ireland, as earlier Pagan traditions would have been unlikely to include a devil figure or to see a harbinger of death as evil.) Of course, the devil, being quite crafty himself, knew that, as all living beings must die, Jack was actually denying himself an after-life. And so the devil threw Jack an ember from the flames of hell, and Jack placed it inside a carved-out turnip to light the path of his purgatory, as he wandered the earth in search of a resting place. (In fairness, theres also the less creative, mid-eighteenth century definition of a Jack-o-Lantern as simply a night watchman but what fun is that?)

So this year, as you bring knife to pumpkin (or cyber-knife to Facebook screen), consider the rich history behind your carving and maybe think twice before forfeiting the traditional protective face for a more contemporary scene or symbol. After all, poor Jack is still roaming!

http://www.dailymantra.com
http://www.myspace.com/thedailymantraby Marisa Whether messily scooping out your pumpkin at home, admiring this years carvings around the neighborhood or, ok, using... more

AndreaKnoll
added this

1 response

1 year ago

Countdown to Halloween: Campfires, Ghost Stories, And Hauntings

by Marisa
Haunted houses and horror films, zombies and ghouls, Halloween traditions are inseparable from images of the dead, even if the origins are sometimes a bit, well, masked.

To the ancient Celts, the fine Samhain veil between earthly and spiritual planes made for a long night of ghostly goings on from wandering spirits, to visitations from departed loved ones. In this context, our tradition of visiting haunted houses and telling ghost stories around the fire harks back both to the Pagan ritual reverence for the dead, and the ancient Celtic desire for protection from more menacing, soul-stealing ghouls.

Sprinkling salt into the hair of children, or burning dried sage (known as smudging) were just a couple of the protective measures favored across the British Isles. But how does this relate to fire? It may seem simply convenient, given the charm of a late October hearth, that campfires and ghost stories are so intertwined. Historically, however, Samhain balefires were an integral part of the nights celebration, lighting the dark sky, purifying the land, warding off evil, and containing the energy of the newly departed Sun God (whose passing symbolized both the end of the harvest and the slaughter of animals for winter).

The ancient Celts often burned several fires in close proximity, and would drive their cattle between the flames, or leap amongst the fires themselves, in a ritual purification. (The perception that fire could purge evil influences was later used to horrifying effect in the witch burnings of the mid-fifteenth through eighteenth centuries.) As cattle were a primary unit of currency to pre-Christian Celts, villagers would also cast the bones of slaughtered livestock upon the fire, along with other symbols of their hopes for the coming season. The term bonfire, from bone-fire, is said to have grown from this practice.

As the morning sun rose, portions of the dwindling fire were distributed to re-kindle individual hearths and protect the journey home. (The moan of the Bean Sidhe or banshee, foretelling a death in the family was, after all, a threat up until morning.) The Samhain ashes were then sprinkled over the fields for protection during the winter months.

So this year, as you light your fire or place a candle in your Jack-o-lantern, maybe take a moment to toss your own hopes for the coming season upon the flame. At a minimum, youll know your dreams are well-protected.

http://www.dailymantra.com
http://www.myspace.com/thedailymantraby Marisa Haunted houses and horror films, zombies and ghouls, Halloween traditions are inseparable from images of the dead, even... more

AndreaKnoll
added this

0 responses

1 year ago

Countdown to Halloween: Trick-Or-Treating Through Time

by Marisa Costumes, masks, and trick-or-treating. Fun stuff, associated with costume parties and the collection of candy, right?... more

AndreaKnoll
added this

0 responses

1 year ago

Countdown to Halloween: Bobbing Apples And The Dumb Supper

by Marisa
Halloween may not come to mind as readily as, say, Thanksgiving, for culinary enticements, but theres a great deal more to this ancient Celtic tradition than soul-cakes and bags of candy.

To begin, hospitality was historically a substantial Samhain component. In addition to the treats bestowed on visiting guisers in exchange for songs or prayers, dinners were prepared for the deceased, both to honor passed loved ones, and to appease less friendly spirits. In areas of Ireland and Scotland they still set a place for dead loved ones at the Samhain table, and pass the evening with nostalgic stories. The more menacing spirits, however, proved more of a trick. Not wishing to invite any threatening presence into the home, ancient Celts would place a dumb supper of traditional Samhain foods outside their door, or bury apples roadside for those spirits who were lost or without descendants.

Why the emphasis on apples? In keeping with the ongoing apple-bobbing tradition, ancient Celts believed that eating a slice of three different apples ensured a year of good luck, and that an apple before sleep on Samhain night would prevent illness for a year. The apple was also credited with magical abilities, due in part to the pentagram revealed at an apples core, when sliced width-wise.

One Pagan divination ritual instructs that you sit in front of a mirror, lit only by candlelight or the moon, and descend into a meditative silence, focusing on a particular question. Next, cut an apple into nine pieces, eating the first eight with your back to the mirror before throwing the ninth slice over your left shoulder, and following it with your gaze. If you allow your focus to soften, an image is said to form from the reflected moon or candlelight in the mirror, providing your answer.

In addition to apples, other Dumb Supper foods include traditional Irish colcannon and barmbrack - just chew carefully, as Samhain dishes often include buried objects, such as coins, rings, or cloth, from which the diner might glean divination. Hazelnuts are another customary Samhain treat, regarded by the Celts as a symbol of occult wisdom, as is chocolate, associated in Mexico with wishing the dead a sweet return in their next incarnation.

So this year, dont limit yourself to the candies of contemporary custom, but indulge instead in a full Samhain feast! After all, youre just protecting your home.

http://www.dailymantra.com
http://www.myspace.com/thedailymantraby Marisa Halloween may not come to mind as readily as, say, Thanksgiving, for culinary enticements, but theres a great deal... more

AndreaKnoll
added this

0 responses

1 year ago

Countdown to Halloween: Introducing Samhain

by Marisa
For most of us autumn is rife with Halloween images and traditions: Jack-o-lanterns, spider webs, haunted houses, and apple bobbing. The symbols are familiar, but many of their stories have been buried with time and commercialization. (I mean, its not quite Mothers Day or Valentines Day, but Im thinking Hallmark and company are pretty fond of this time of year.) Beneath all the eerie seasonal fun, however, lies an equally intriguing Celtic and pagan history.

In simplest terms, pagan holidays honor the seasons, encouraging us to look within ourselves and our world at the parallel cycles of birth and death, and planting and harvest. Each ancient sabbat coincides with a more familiar holiday, such as Yule at the Winter Solstice near Christmas, Mabon aligning roughly with Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, Ostara at Passover / Easter, and even Imbolc at Groundhogs Day. So whats the big deal with October 31st?

Halloween, known to the ancient Celts as Samhain (pronounced SOW-an) from the Irish-Gaelic word for summers end, was brought to the United States by Irish, Scottish and English immigrants in the 19th century. By the ancient Celtic calendar, Samhain marks the last of three harvest festivals, as well as the end of the Celtic year. All plantings, both figurative and literal, have been reaped, so as the leaves fall and the earth slumbers, we are encouraged to look within ourselves at our own recent closures in preparation for the new years rebirth.

In this sense, Halloweens emphasis on death is largely figurative, but Samhain is not without its literal hauntings. During the rickety "tween" hours of Samhain night, the ancient Celts believed the veil between the living and dead was at its finest, allowing for free communication between the earthly and spiritual planes. For some, Samhain was therefore an opportunity for communication or séance with a departed loved one - and for others it was a long evening of hauntings and supernatural pranksters.

Where do you fall on this spectrum? Count down with Daily Mantra to find out, as we explore the traditions, tricks, and treats of Samhain 2007 via seven daily installments. Happy Halloween!

http://www.dailymantra.com
http://www.myspace.com/thedailymantraby Marisa For most of us autumn is rife with Halloween images and traditions: Jack-o-lanterns, spider webs, haunted houses, and... more