Spring Pagan Festival: The spring pagan festival is a celebration that takes place during the spring season and is rooted in pagan traditions. It is a time to honor the rebirth and renewal of nature after the long winter months. This festival is typically celebrated by pagan communities and individuals who follow ancient pagan beliefs. One of the main themes of the spring pagan festival is fertility. It is believed that during this time, the earth is undergoing a reawakening, and new life is sprouting everywhere. Therefore, the festival often includes rituals and customs related to fertility rites.
Spring pagan festival
Ostara is the one of the eight pagan festivals throughout the Wheel of the Year. Each season is celebrated and regarded as equally important. It is also a way to understand the natural world and its changes and become more in-tune with the environment. This is one of my favourite times of the year – if I could choose!
The 21st March marks the Spring Equinox. The wondrous time of the year, parallel to Autumn Equinox. It is a time of balance – when the length of night and day are completely equal.
And it is the gateway into Spring! – the very first day of spring! The days will now get longer and the night shorter as we move into the summer season.
As well as the light and dark, other aspects come into balance – masculinity and femininity, inner and outer etc. But this festival marks the time of the year when light defeats the dark as we are coming out of the cold winter months. Where the world, which would have seemed like it was dying to our ancestors, begins to bloom again with life. It is a time of fertility, renewal and rebirth.
Ostara originally took its name from the Germanic goddess Eostre/Ostara, a representation of fertility and regrowth. And interestingly, the female fertility hormone has been influenced by the name of the goddess – “Eostrogen.” And this is where the Christian celebration of Easter evolved! – itself a celebration of rebirth.
And indeed, the things associated with modern day Easter are traditionally Ostara symbols – a Hare, Eggs and Hot cross buns!
The Goddess Ostara is most closely associated with a Hare – she is shown having the head and shoulders of a hare. The hare is particularly a symbol of fertility and abundance as in nature the hare is able to conceive even whilst pregnant! And over the centuries this hare symbol has become the Easter Bunny – who brings eggs to children on Easter morning, the Christian celebration.
Also, for many goddesses in Paganism, the Hare is a symbol of the moon. This also links to modern Easter celebrations as Christian Easter is determined by the phases of the moon.
The egg itself is very important! It represents potential and new life – symbolising fertility and all creation. It can optimise the masculine and feminine balance; light and dark in the yolk and egg white – the Sun God and White Goddess.
It is even seen by many traditions a symbol representing the entire universe.
It shows balance of all things for but a moment until the energy comes through bringing growth and rebirth to the world.
Finally, the hot cross bun too represents balance. The decoration of the cross on top can be seen as the Celtic Cross, the four armed cross within a circle. It represents the four seasons, the four directions of N, E, S, and W as well as the five sacred elements Earth, Air, Fire, Water and Spirit in the centre.
And the circumference is the cycle of the year – the circle of life. Pretty cool right?!
And if you did decide to add a little pagan celebration to your home there are some traditional items and colour associated with the festival:
Flowers: Daffodils, primroses, violets, crocuses, celendine, catkins, pussy willow in profusion
Colours (for use with candles or simple decorations): bright green, yellow and purple
Altar/table top ideas: coloured eggs, seeds, feathers, all spring flowers, colours above, all foliage that is sprouting into leaf.
Spring has sprung: A time for Pagan celebration
‘Pagans’ author Ethan Doyle White explores the rich Pagan festivals and rituals associated with Spring, from May Day to Wiccan celebrations.
For many communities across the Northern Hemisphere, the arrival of Spring is a cause for celebration, as the darker days of winter pass by, the hours of light lengthen, and the time for planting crops approaches.
Of all the world’s many springtime festivals, perhaps the best-known is Easter. Although ostensibly a Christian festival marking the death and resurrection of Christ, in today’s world Easter, like its counterpart at Christmas, has undergone considerable secularisation. Even if they do not embrace its theological message, millions of non-Christians around the world still celebrate Easter, taking time off work, gathering with their families, and tucking into such festive delicacies as chocolate eggs and hot-cross buns. Although lamented by some Christians, this mixing of the Christian and the secular is not unexpected. Such a blurring and blending of different perspectives has long been a feature of the Easter celebration. Indeed, according to the English monk Bede, writing in the eighth century, the name “Easter” was adopted among English Christians in reference to a non-Christian goddess, Eostre. Festival, like all facets of human culture, can be dynamic, religiously syncretic, and open to adaptation.
Spring was a time of celebration for many communities across Europe long before they converted to Christianity. From at least the fourth century, Christians typically referred to these non-Christian religions as “pagan.” In contrast to Christianity’s monotheistic belief in a single creator God, these “pagan” religions were typically polytheistic, believing in a wide range of deities, including both male gods and female goddesses. In parts of Ireland and Britain where Gaelic languages were spoken, one of the great spring festivals was Beltane, which by at least the Early Middle Ages was marked with the lighting of bonfires. Although very likely observed by pre-Christian communities, the celebration of Beltane persevered into the modern era, while in many English-speaking regions, it was “May Day” that was celebrated at this time of year. These were festivals with no overt Christian meaning, and yet were celebrated by generation upon generation of people who no doubt considered themselves to be good Christians.
The pre-Christian religions of Europe have exerted a considerable influence over a family of new religions that emerged in the twentieth century. These religions are collectively known as modern Paganism, an illustration of how their practitioners have reclaimed the historically negative term “pagan” and reappropriated it for contemporary use. Modern Pagans have established their own spring festivals, often modelled heavily on those from the past. By far the largest of the modern Pagan religions is Wicca, which typically involves the celebration of eight annual festivals, collectively termed the “Wheel of the Year.” These festivals, called “Sabbats,” include three celebrations of springtime. The first, Imbolc, marks the earliest stirrings of spring amid the cold winter of early February. The second, Ostara, observes the spring equinox, the mid-point between the winter and summer solstices. The third is Beltane, celebrating the emergence of May and the oncoming of summer. In this way, people living in our increasingly urbanised world still find ways of looking upon spring as a time of joy and celebration.
Walpurgis Night: the pagan festival of bonfires, witches and Celtic folk music
Walpurgis Night, also known as 'Walpurgisnacht' and 'Night of the Witches', is a pagan festival celebrated each year on 30 April.
The tradition involves lighting bonfires and singing traditional Celtic folk songs to mark the arrival of spring.
Local variants of Walpurgis Night are observed throughout Northern and Central Europe, in countries such as the Netherlands, Germany, the Czech Republic, Sweden, Finland, Estonia and Austria.
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Therefore, the festival often includes rituals and customs related to fertility rites. This may involve the planting of seeds or the symbolically decorating of eggs, which are considered to be sacred and represent the potential for new life. The spring pagan festival is also a time to honor and worship the various deities associated with nature and fertility.
What is the origin of Walpurgis Night?
People attend a ceremony as they celebrate Walpurgis Night near Plankenstein Castle, Austria JOE KLAMAR/AFP
The origins of the ritual date back to pagan celebrations of fertility rites and the coming of spring.
Traditionally speaking, the celebration is a night to pay tribute to the 8th century Saint Walpurga.
Walpurga, was an English-born nun who travelled to Germany to perform missionary work under her uncle, Saint Boniface.
She has been praised by Christians for successfully warding off pests, illness and witchcraft.
Walpurga is traditionally associated with 1 May because of a medieval account of her being canonised on that date in 870 AD.
Walpurgis Night is celebrated on the eve of the Christian feast day of Saint Walpurga.
Local variants of Walpurgis Night are observed throughout Northern and Central Europe in the Netherlands, Germany, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Slovenia, Sweden, Lithuania, Finland, Estonia and Austria.
In Austria, hundreds gathered this year at Plankenstein Castle in Austria for an evening of music, bonfires and dancing.
"It's a wonderful festival with fire, dance, music, witches, magicians, good food, just joy of life, and a lot of spirituality with card reading and palmistry," explained Sonja Faschingeder, the organiser of Walpurgis Night at Plankenstein Castle.
Check out the video above to see the celebrations on Walpurgis Night in Austria
Video editor • Theo Farrant
Depending on the specific pagan tradition, different gods and goddesses may be revered during this festival. Offerings and prayers are made to these deities to ensure a bountiful and prosperous season ahead. Another significant aspect of the spring pagan festival is the celebration of the changing seasons. As winter fades away, people gather together to celebrate the arrival of spring and bid farewell to the cold, dark months. This may involve bonfires, feasting, dancing, and music. It is a time for community bonding and to express gratitude for the abundance that nature provides. In addition to these core themes, the spring pagan festival may also incorporate other customs and traditions specific to different pagan traditions. These may include the performance of specific rituals, the wearing of certain symbols or amulets, and the use of herbs and flowers in ceremonies. Overall, the spring pagan festival is an ancient celebration that has survived through the ages and continues to be practiced by pagan communities around the world. It is a time to connect with nature, honor the cycles of life, and celebrate the arrival of spring and all its blessings..
Reviews for "Spring Pagan Festivals: Balancing Inner and Outer Worlds"
- John - 2 stars - I was really disappointed with the Spring pagan festival. I was expecting a vibrant and energetic celebration of pagan traditions but what I found was a disorganized and lackluster event. The performances were amateurish and the organizers seemed to have put minimal effort into the event. Overall, it fell short of my expectations and I wouldn't recommend it to others.
- Sarah - 2 stars - The Spring pagan festival was a major letdown for me. The atmosphere was dull and there were hardly any activities or workshops to participate in. The vendors were limited and the food options were mediocre. It felt more like a small local fair than a pagan festival. I left feeling uninspired and unsatisfied.
- Mark - 1 star - I regret going to the Spring pagan festival. It was a complete waste of my time and money. There was no sense of community or spirituality that I was expecting. The whole event lacked any kind of organization and it seemed like the organizers didn't put much thought into it. I was extremely disappointed and won't be attending again.