Beltane
By MoonRaven

Beltane (most commonly pronounced "BELL-tayn", but also can be "BEEL-teen", "BEEL-tawn-uh", or "B'YAL-tinn") is one of the Greater Wiccan Sabbats and is usually celebrated on May 1st, but can be on the night of April 30th, depending on your tradition or - if you are solitary - simply your personal choice. In the Celtic tradition it is celebrated on May 1st or the first Full Moon in Taurus. The Scottish tradition of PectiWita celebrate their Sabbat on May 15th.

Other names used for this Sabbat are Bealtaine (Irish Wittan), Whitsun or Old Bhealltainn (Scottish PectiWita), Bealtinne (Caledonii or the Druids), Samhradh and La Baal Tinne (Faery Wicca), Roodmas, Rudemas (Mexican Craft), Walburga (Teutonic), Walpurgisnacht (German), Walpurgis Eve, Celtic Summer, Giamonios, Tana's Day - La Giornata di Tana (Aridian Strega), Floralia, The Great Rite, May Day, and May Eve. It is also known as Cetshamain in Ireland, and is one of the few specifically Irish festivals.

This Sabbat is primarily a fertility festival, with Nature enchantments and offerings to wildlings and Elementals. The return of full-blown fertility is now very evident. The powers of elves and fairies are growing and will reach their height at Summer Solstice. Celebrants sometimes jump over broomsticks or dance around May Poles, both as symbols of fertility. Bonfire leaping and horn blowing are other forms of traditional celebration. Weaving and plaiting are traditional arts at this time of year, for the joining together of two substances to form a third is in keeping with the spirit of Beltane. This Sabbat represents the Union of the God and Goddess, the Sacred Marriage, all new life, and fertility for all living things.

Most Wiccans consider this Sabbat to be the start of the Light Half of the Year - the Summer - as opposed to the Dark Half of the Year - Winter - which begins on Samhain. Most Wiccans view this as the half of the year which is ruled by the Goddess, while the dark half is ruled by the God. As I stated above - this is a fertility Sabbat - and traditionally is considered to be the time that the God and Goddess are wed. It is also considered to be the time that He impregnates Her as they are "sexually connected" on this day. This is represented symbolically by the wrapping of the May Pole. In the olden days, the May Pole was made from a communal pine tree which had been decorated at Yule, with most of its branches removed at this time. A few of the uppermost branches could remain if desired. Traditionally, the ribbons attached around the top of the May Pole are red and white... this is to represent either one of these: the red as the Sun God and the white as the Virgin Goddess, or the white for the Maiden and the red for the Mother. The participants dance around the May Pole carrying the ribbons - the males holding the red and the females holding the white. As they dance, they weave and intertwine the ribbons to form a symbolic birth canal wrapped around the phallic pole, representing the union of the Goddess and God. Many Wiccans choose this time to perform their own Handfastings or Weddings. Another great choice would be the next Sabbat at the Summer Solstice.

Symbolically, many Pagans choose to represent Beltane with fresh flowers all around and the cauldron which is filled with flowers. All of the following flowers are symbolic of Beltane: roses, bluebells, marigolds, daisies, primroses and lilac. Mirrors are also appropriate. Altar decorations may also include a small May pole and/or a phallic-shaped candle (to represent fertility), and a daisy chain. Plaiting and weaving straw, creating things with wicker, making baskets and fabrics are traditional arts for this turn in the Wheel of the Year. Other symbols used to represent Beltane are the May Pole (the traditional full-size one is about 10 feet tall), May baskets, crossroads, eggs, butterchurns, and chalices.

Traditional activities include the already mentioned wrapping of the May Pole, the Great Rite, jumping the balefire, blowing horns, and gathering flowers. Solitary Practitioners might consider the weaving together of ribbons as an alternative to creating and dancing around the May Pole. It is considered taboo to give away fire or food on this day.

Appropriate Deities for Beltane include all Virgin-Mother Goddesses, all Young Father Gods, all Gods and Goddesses of the Hunt, of Love, and of Fertility. Some Beltane Goddesses to mention by name here include Aphrodite, Arianrhod, Artemis, Astarte, Venus, Diana, Ariel, Var, Skadi, Shiela-na-gig, Cybele, Xochiquetzal, Freya, and Rhiannon. Beltane Gods include Apollo, Bacchus, Bel/Belanos, Cernunnos, Pan, Herne, Faunus, Cupid/Eros, Odin, Orion, Frey, Robin Goodfellow, Puck, and The Great Horned God.

One key action to keep in mind during this time in the Wheel of the Year is to take action on the activities and projects you had planned and started on Ostara. Spellwork to consider include those for fertility, love, spiritual communion/closeness with deity, safety, prosperity, and conservation. This being a time of great magick, is a good time for divinations of all types, and for establishing a woodland or garden shrine. The household guardians should be honored at this time.

The most common colors associated with Beltane are white and dark green, but also appropriate are all the colors of the rainbow spectrum itself.

May the Lord and Lady bless you all with abundance and success!

MoonRaven

Angelica (Angelica archangelica)

Angelica (Angelica archangelica)

Gender: Masculine
Planet: Sun
Element: Fire
Deity: Venus
Tarot Card: The Sun
Powers: Exorcism, Protection, Healing, Visions

Spiritual or Magical Properties:

The plant is protective.
The root was carried in the pocket as a gambling talisman
Said to be the herb of the Angels

Affirmation to use:

My heart is one with the Infinite Sun. Compassion and love flow from me.

The path of the herbalist is to open ourselves to nature in an innocent and pure way. She in turn will open her bounty and reward us with many valuable secrets.

May the earth bless you.

Blessed Be!

Magikal Panther

The Goddess Branwen, Goddess of love and beauty
Submitted by Alana

Branwen is a Manx/Welsh goddess who corresponds with Aphrodite and Venus. Her name means "White Breasted" or "White Cow." Matholwch of Ireland sued for her hand, and gave horses to Bran. Efnisien mutilated the horses, nearly bringing on warfare, but Matholwch was satisfied by the gift of a cauldron that could resurrect the dead.

Branwen wed him, and went to Ireland, where she bore him a son, Gwern. But the Irish began to complain about their foreign queen, and she was banished to the kitchen, where she was a slave and boxed on the ears by the butcher daily. This lasted three years, during which Branwen trained a starling to speak and sent it to Wales, where it told Bran of her plight, and he sailed to rescue her. Matholwch was terrified at the sight of a forest approaching Ireland across the sea: no one could make it out, until he called for Branwen, who explained it as Bran's navy, and Bran himself waded through the water.

He sued for peace, they built a house big enough for Bran, and Matholwch agreed to settle the kingdom on Gwern. Some Irish lords objected, and hid themselves in flour bags to attack the Welsh. But Efnisien, scenting Irish treachery, cast them into the fire, and then cast Gwern himself in (avoiding the geas against shedding kinsmen's blood).

A war broke out, and the Irish replenished themselves through the cauldron. Efnisien, repenting, sacrificed himself by feigning death and being thrown into the cauldron, which he then broke, dying in the process. Only seven Welshmen survived, and Bran was fatally wounded. His head, which remained alive and talking, was returned to Wales and buried, and soon afterwards Branwen sailed to Aber Alaw and died. She is one of the three "matriarchs of Britain", along with Rhiannon and Arianrhod.

The Beltane Dance
By Stormhawk Evanmoon

Dancing around the Beltane fire
To the music of the flute and lyre
Drums, hands and stomping feet,
Thumping, clapping, keeping the beat
Spiral is the shape our dance will take
Chanting, raising power for the magick we’ll make
Drawing down the Moon – her soul, her power
Healing the Earth in this magickal hour
This is our right to manifest our desire
While dancing around the Beltane fire

Beltane Baskets
By MoonRaven

1. Start with a white paper cup. Have the children stick flower stickers all over the outside. Make a pipecleaner handle. Fill with tiny Spring flowers.

2. Start with a large paper plate. Let the children paint or color it. Fold it in half. Staple into place. Staple on a paper handle. Fill with flowers.

3. Start with a margerine or whipped topping tub. Cover with construction paper. Paint or color construction paper, or cover with stickers. Tape on a stiff paper handle. Fill with flowers.

After your baskets are done sneek over to a neighbors and place a basket on the door, ring the door bell and run. It will help pagan and non-pagans alike celebrate the coming of summer.

MoonRaven

The Dream of The Summerland
By Stormhawk & Teren Evanmoon

I had a dream where dragons fly
And faeries dance and play,
This is where I would choose to die
And want my spirit to stay.
It’s a place of beauty that knows no pain
It’s very real and true,
Where everyone can dance without shame
This is The Summerland, for me and you.

Beltane Bread
Submitted by MoonRaven

Recipe by Ann Moura (Aoumiel)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees, and combine:
4 cups sifted flour
1/2 cup ground almonds
2 cups sugar
1 tube almond paste
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon cinnamon
5 eggs

When dough is worked to medium soft, shape into flattened balls and place on ungreased cookie sheet. Bake until golden brown, about 20 minutes. Cool, ice with white Solar Cross. You could try this as a single loaf. I also like to make an almond biscuit with biscuit mix, almond extract, sugar, cinnamon, and eggs, but in smaller proportions.

(The above recipe for "Beltane Bread" is directly quoted from Ann Moura (Aoumiel)'s book "Green Witchcraft: Folk Magic, Fairy Lore & Herb Craft", page 218, Llewellyn Publications, 1996.)

Tourmaline “The Telling Stone”
By Zandrixia

Tourmaline is composed of a complex silicate of boron and aluminum. Tourmaline crystals are hexagonal, prismatic crystals that commonly have a rounded triangular cross section, striated lengthwise. Colors include blue, green, pink, red, yellow, brown, black, bi-colored, tri-colored, and colorless. Tourmaline may be found in Brazil, Russia, Burma, Afghanistan, Malagasy Republic, Maine and California.

“The telling stone" Provides insight during times of struggle and "telling" who and what is causing trouble. It is a gemstone that symbolizes vitality. Carry one in a mojo bag as an amulet to protect against illness, or wear a tourmaline as amuletic jewelry to attract a lover into your life. Black tourmaline deflects negativity, dispels fears, and balances the aura. It connects the physical with the spiritual, and reduces anger, jealousy, and feelings of insecurity. Green tourmaline, also known as “verdelite” possesses the power to attract money and success. Pink tourmaline, also known as “rubellite” calms, reduces fear, protects the aura against negativity, and induces peaceful sleep. Watermelon tourmaline heals the emotions, balances sexual energies, and stabilizes the yin/yang polarities. Yellow tourmaline stimulates the brain, strengthens the psychic powers, and increases both wisdom and understanding.

Here is a breakdown of several of the colors:

Black
Color: Black
Chakra: Earth Chakra
Astrological sign: Capricorn

• Protects against negativity.
• Encourages intellectual thought, vitality.
• Protects the aura and the incarnation, brings Earth energy into the root Chakra and kundalini channels.
• Acts as a protective shield, absorbs and transmutes negative energy and negative thought forms from oneself and others, offers protection from psychic attacks and spirit possessions.
• Heals fear and panic, brings a sense of safety and security.
• Activates the ability to ground and center.
• Creates a feeling of being welcome on the earth plane.
• Enhances the ability to stay in the body.
• Grounds and centers, enhances security, and stability.

Blue
Color: Blue, blue-green
Chakra: Thymus
Astrological signs: Libra and Taurus

• Communication, psychic awareness.
• Opens and clears the thymus Chakra, connecting the hara line/ emotional body to kundalini/etheric body channels.Cleanses and stabilizes the hara line and hara Chakras.
• Transforms emotional healing into physical healing of problem.
• Focuses one's life purpose on service to the planet and people, fosters desire and dedication to one's life path and purpose, protects the full aura and one's life purpose.
• Helps healers, promotes energy flow through the central nervous system.

Clear
Color: Clear, silver
Chakra: Transpersonal point

• Offers all-aura protection, all-aura clearing.
• Induces contact with positive extraterrestrial Beings, spirit guides, angels, ascended healers.
• Helps channeling, automatic writing.
• Clears and energizes the hara and kundalini channels, heals core soul damage.
• Helps in attaining karmic grace, fills all levels with information/light.

Green
Color: Green
Chakra: Diaphragm
Astrological sign: Capricorn

• Creativity, prosperity, abundance.
• Represents life energy of plants, excellent for people who work with herbs for healing.
• Enhances cooperation and healing.
• Opens the heart chakra.
• Opens and drains the diaphragm Chakra, purges and releases negative emotions from the hara line and one's life purpose.
• Clears the emotional body of past-life and this-life traumas and negative emotional patterns.
• Protects while one is going through the detoxification process; offers aura insulation, safety, and trust while detoxifying.
• Clears the gall bladder and liver at the emotional level.

Pink
Color: Pink
Chakra: Causal body
Astrological signs: Sagittarius and Scorpio

• Promotes creativity, love, devotion.
• Brings deeply comforting love energy, opens and heals the entire emotional body.
• Brings one's life purpose into all the hara Chakras and into earth plane conscious awareness.
• Balances energy flow in the hara and kundalini channels and Chakras.
• Removes blockages and negativity from the whole aura and Chakra system at all levels.
• Transforms negativity into positive emotional energy.
• Fills emotional body and etheric body channels and Chakras with light/information, peace, joy, universal love.
• Promotes compassion for oneself and others and promotes a lifetime of service, supports those on the bodhisattva path

Violet
Color: Purple
Chakra: Crown and Heart
Astrological sign: Libra

• Promotes love, spirituality, joy, peace, and understanding.
• Protects against, prevents, and clears spirit attachments, negative entities, spirit possession, and low-level entities.
• Protects and releases negative alien implants and interference.
• Clears the human energy system at etheric, emotional, mental, and light body levels of negative violations from this life.
• Fills the kundalini and hara channels and aura bodies with light

Watermelon
Color: Pink and green
Chakra: Heart and causal body
Astrological signs: Virgo and Gemini

• Stone of true love
• Activates the heart chakra
• Fosters trust of self, others, and the Goddess; enhances self-love and universal love.
• Encourages service to the planet, helps wounded healers and those who have suffered past abuse.
• Heals and removes heart scars
  
  
  
  

By SDCW

Question: My daughter is 9 years old. She was asked by one of her schoolmates to attend a local youth camp meeting at her church. My heart says yes, but my mind says no. What do you suggest?

Answer: Although I have raised my family to be wiccans, I too have crossed this bridge. In our area, pagans (wiccans) are looked down on. Initially, I had the same reaction, but in the end decided to discuss the situation with my child. I explained how others perceived our religion and how I would really like for her to see how others practiced their religion. I was afraid she was about to be plunged into a situation she was not ready for, however, it was a great experience. She had a great time, discussed Wicca and Christianity in just a couple of brief conversations and the remaining time was spent enjoying the company of her friends and their families. Today, her friends and their families have been to our church, they have had sleepovers at both homes and I feel it was a great opportunity to open minds and hearts on both sides. Before saying "yes", ensure this will be a safe environment for her and simply not a setup to take advantage of the situation and cause any hurtful memories.