Category: Lammas/Lughnasadh

Lughnassadh / Lammas

Lore and Rituals by Selena Fox

Lammas, or Lughnassadh, occurs in late July and early August. It is marks the middle of Summer and the beginning of the harvest. It is the first of three harvest festivals and is usually associated with ripening grain. It heralds the coming of Autumn. The Goddess manifests as Demeter, Ceres, Corn Mother, and other agricultural Goddesses. The God manifests as Lugh, John Barleycorn, and vegetation Gods. Colors are Golden Yellow, Orange, Green, and Light Brown. It is a festival of plenty and prosperity.

Have a magical picnic and break bread with friends. Do a meditation in which you visualize yourself completing a project you have already begun. Make a corn dolly charm out of the first grain you harvest or acquire. Bake a sacred loaf bread and give a portion of it to Mother Earth with a prayer of appreciation. Make prayers for a good harvest season. Do prosperity magic. Harvest herbs in a sacred way for use in charms and rituals. Kindle a Lammas fire with sacred wood and dried herbs. If you live in or near a farming region, attend a public harvest festival, such as a corn or apple festival.

CHANT

Lammas Round

Now is the time when the Harvest starts again,
So Sing & Dance until Night ends,
Praising the Powers on Whom we Depend.

Ritual Chant from 1970s by Selena Fox & Jim Alan

What Is Lughnasadh and How To Celebrate It

What Is Lughnasadh & How To Celebrate It

Lughnasadh is a Gaelic festival that occurs on August 1st each year, marking the dawn of the harvest season. This holiday marks the midpoint between the Summer Solstice and the Autumn Equinox. Lughnasadh traditions celebrate the first cutting of grain, the bountiful harvests of corn, and the Irish craftsman and warrior god, Lugh.

Traditionally, Lughnasadh is celebrated in Ireland, Scotland, and the Isle of Man. Historically, the occasion was marked with a festive competition testing skills of craft and athleticism in honor of Lugh and his foster mother Tailtiu. Offerings made to Lugh would include a sacred bull and a cutting of the first harvest of corn.

This holiday is considered a cross-quarter day on the neo-pagan Wheel of the Year. In some Wiccan traditions, this is the time of year in which the Horned God’s power begins to wane, and the Goddess prepares for his passing at the coming Samhain.

On the same day, some Christians celebrate the holiday of Lammas in an incredibly similar tradition. With the first harvest of grain a loaf of bread is baked and brought to the church to be blessed. Once its blessing is received, the baker takes the bread back home, breaks it into four pieces, and places them at the four corners of their barn or property to protect the grain in the coming months.

Lughnasadh or Lammas?

Though the two are often conflated in Neo-Pagan groups, Lughnasadh and Lammas are two separate celebrations. Lughnasadh is a holiday that is still celebrated by pagans and non-pagans alike in Ireland, Scotland, and The Isle of Man. Though it doesn’t look like what we think the ancient practices may have been, we do know that the traditions surrounding Lughnasadh have been syncretized and are still alive today.

Lammas is the name typically chosen for the Wiccan Wheel of the Year. It is celebrated as the first harvest festival of the year. As stated above, this is the time of year within Wiccan traditions when the Horned God prepares for his passing during Samhain. This holiday is celebrated with bread baking, frivolity, and feasting.

How to Celebrate Lughnasadh

There are many ways that you can celebrate Lughnasadh or Lammas. Here are a few ideas to help you build your own traditions!

Create a corn husk doll

Craft a besom or corn broom

Bake bread

Create a Lughnasadh altar

Craft something in Lugh’s honor

Engage in a competition

Pick apples and berries

Visit a local brewery

Hold a Lughnasadh or Lammas harvest ritual

Ready to celebrate?

Check out some of these spells and rituals to get some inspiration for Lughnasadh! Click on hyperlink above and scrool down for these spells.

Flashback 2022 – Lughnasadh/Lammas

Lughnasadh Bone Charm

Lughnasadh falls opposite of Imbolc on the Wheel of the Year. While Imbolc is widely considered a sabbat of the divine feminine, many consider Lughnasadh a celebration of the divine masculine. Being the first of three harvest festivals, we can mark the occasion with plentiful gratitude for not only the flora and fauna that feeds us physically on a daily basis, but also gratitude for the fact that the harvest allows us to survive and thrive, thereby increasing our positive spiritual influence in the world.

Simply acquire any bones to which your intuition leads. Yes, humanely and sustainably sourced chicken or cow bones are okay! Ensure that the bones are dry, and use a permanent marker to draw symbols and words related to the harvest, satisfaction, and sustenance onto them. Consider tying stalks of wheat or any grain to the bones once you are finished decorating. Hang these in your home (especially inside or outside the front door) to encourage a plentiful life and to honor the earth now and forever.

Raven Digitals Llewellyn’s Witches’ Datebook 2022 Page 107

An Invaluable Herbal Grimoire Reference Guide

By Graphia, The Wordsmith Witch

Image credit: ©️Dana Freeman

No matter what your spiritual path looks like, every Witch can benefit from possessing a thorough, comprehensive Herbal Grimoire. Many practitioners include such contents as a guide for the magical correspondences of different herbs, a list of various herbal substitutions for spellcrafting, and last, but not least – a reference section that lists commonly found baneful herbs and their toxicity levels.

Photo by Skitterphoto on Pexels.com
Photo by Julia Filirovska on Pexels.com

This herb correspondence chart is the culmination of years of research. We hope this reference guide will help you to understand the magical properties of herbs, roots, flowers, barks and resins. It is our goal to provide others with accurate sources of information to enrich their lives and their Craft. What are some ways you can implement the information in the following guide into your own practice?  Click on the link below to view the chart.

Herbal Grimoire