Wheel Of The Year
Wiccans believe all life is a circle; beginning, ending, only to begin again. Our lives and years reflect this belief. Most people of the Wiccan faith believe in reincarnation. Birth, then death, only to be born again. Our holidays and yearly celebrations also follow this pattern.
We call our yearly holidays The Wheel Of The Year. The cycle of a year is our wheel, and our 8 Sabbats are the spokes. We have four Major Sabbats, and four Lesser Sabbats. The Major Sabbats are Yule, Ostara, Litha, and Mabon. The Lesser Sabbats are Imbolc, Beltane, Lughnasadh, and Samhain. Below I list all 8 Sabbats, some of their correspondences, and some ways to celebrate each. I don't list actual rituals because I feel those are the personal choice of the person doing the celebrating. Also, the celebrations are different in all the different covens. Some do spell work at these times, and others save the spellwork for the Esbats. The choice, of course, is entirely up to you.
If you are a solitary who is just learning, there are many good books that give rituals you can perform at these times. Spiral Dance by Starhawk, To Ride A Silver Broomstick by Silver Ravenwolf, and Celtic Wicca by D. J. Conway are just a few I would recommend.
The Sabbats Samhain-October 31st (End of the Year).
This is the last of the Harvest festivals. This is the night when the veil between the worlds is weakest. It is believed that on this night the dead are free to roam. This is a wonderful time for Divinations. Feasts of remembrance for dead ancestors are held on this night. Time for settling problems, throwing out old ideas and influences.
Altar Decorations include large golden yellow Mums, fall leaves, apples and pomegranates
Hand sew costumes and decorations
Cider and Pumpkin Pies are holiday fair for this
Leave food on the porch for the deceased
Bury apples in the garden
After sunset, stand before a mirror and make a wish, picture it as fulfilled
Leave windows closed and burn a candle inside a pumpkin or gourd for each child in your home, and one for the home itself
Finish all Journeys by sunset
All clothing left on the line after sunset will be imbued with the power to bewitch all who see you in them
Pull a piece of shrubbery on this night and put away til Midsummer's Eve. If it is still green, you will have a prosperous year
If you build a fire try to burn flax, heather, or broom in its flames
Do not bake bread on this day; ghosts will eat it
A girl should pare an apple and throw the skin over her left shoulder, she will be able to read the initials of her future husband in the peel
Go to a crossroads and listen to the wind for all the important things that will happen that year
Look in a candlelit mirror at midnight, you will see the face of your true love (you should enter the room backwards taking a bite out of an apple when you do this)
Fortune Tell!!! Divination is heightened this night
Burn black candles to ward off negativitySamhain Incense:
1 1/2 tsp Frankincense
1 tsp Dragon's Blood
1/2 tsp Sandalwood
1/2 tsp Orange Peel
1/4 tsp Rosemary
a few drops Jasmine oil
Burn at Samhain for divination and protection.Back
Yule-Around December 21st. (This date varies by a day or so year after year).
This is the time of the death and rebirth of the Sun God. The Full Moon after Yule is considered the most powerful of the year. It's also a solar light festival. It celebrates the birth of the Oak King, and death of the Holly King.
Altars are decorated with Mistletoe and Holly.
Bayberry candles in red and green are burned.
Cutting and decorating the Yule Tree.
Exchanging gifts.
Baking and eating fancy cookies and breads.
Burn the Yule Log, but save a portion of it to light the next year's log. Keep the portion in the home throughout the year to protect the home.Yule Bath:
Pine
Bay
RosemaryYule Incense:
1 tsp Frankincense
1 tsp Pine Needles
1/2 tsp Cedar
1/2 tsp Juniper Berries
Burn to cleanse the home and attune with the forces of Nature.Back
Imbolc-February 1st
A time of cleansing. A festival of the Maiden in preparation for growth and renewal. This is a fertility festival. This is the 1st of the 3 Spring festivals and banishes the Winter Season. (Welcomes the change from old to new).
Altars are decorated with fresh flower petals.
Lavender and White candles are burned in every room of the house.
Change table clothes and curtains; clean and fix furniture.
Paint and wallpaper.
Stocking up on supplies that will be needed.Imbolc Incense:
1 1/2 tsp Frankincense
1 tsp Dragon's Blood
1/4 tsp Red Sandalwood
1/2 tsp Cinnamon
a few drops Red Wine
To this add a pinch of the 1st dried flower in your area at the time of Imbolc. Burn for the fading of Winter.Back
Ostara-Around March 21st (This changes from year to year).
This is a time when the balance of Light and Darkness are equal, but the light is growing stronger. This is the second Spring Festival and celebrates the fertility of the Earth. It is also the time of the warrior aspect of the God.
Altars are decorated with baskets of flowers and Eggs which have been colored and painted with magickal symbols. (Natural dyes to use for decorating are beet juice, onion skins, grape juice, and dandelions).
Bless seed for future planting
Light green, lemon yellow, and pale pink candles are burned.
Easter Bunny
Twisted breads and sweet cakes
Time to buy or create a new broom or staff. (Name your broom)
Guard your patches of garden with stones marked with pentagrams placed at strategic angles.
Drink cold water and eat a leaf of Sage.
Donate old clothingOstara Incense:
1 tsp Frankincense
1/2 tsp Benzoin
1/2 tsp Dragon's Blood
1/4 tsp Nutmeg
1/4 tsp Violet flowers
1/4 tsp Orange Peel
1/4 tsp Rose Petals
Burn to welcome the Spring.Back
Beltaine-May 1st
A fertility festival with Nature Enchantments and offerings to wildlings and elementals. A time of great Magick. This is the 3rd festival of the Spring and honors house guardians and family guardians, and celebrates love awakening in humans.
Altars are decorated with Lilacs and Hawthorne.
Honors the Goddess of the Flowers
Celebrate Love, Union, and the Maypole
Decorate a tree with ribbons of bright blue, lavender, warm pink, lemon yellow, white, and red
Place large bowls of flowers and floating white candles around the house
Pick baskets of fresh flowers picked right before dawn and hang on the door
Flower petals are strewn on the floor around the circle and later distributed around the perimeter of the house
Do not give away fire or salt on this day or you give your luck away
Sleep in your own home on this nightBeltaine Incense:
1 1/2 tsp Frankincense
1 tsp Sandalwood
1/2 tsp Woodruff
1/2 tsp Rose Petals
a few drops Jasmine oil
a few drops Neroli oil
Burn on Beltaine for fortune and favors and to attune to the changing seasons.Back
Litha-Around June 21st (This changes by a day or so every year).
This is a festival of passion and success. Herbs gathered on this day are extremely powerful. Faeries and Elves are out in great number. This is a day to celebrate the Sun King in all his glory.
For altar decorations use red, maize yellow, or gold flowers. Sunflowers are a good choice.
Money plants are harvested and hung above the mantle for money. They should be tied with a green ribbon.
Commune with field and forest sprites and faeries
Good for all situations needing male energy
Make a wreath with red and yellow feathers intertwined or braided with ivy
Pick 9 flowers and place beneath your pillow for prophetic dreams
Sleep with mistletoe under your head
Harvest herbs for magic
Cut St Johnswort and hang in your homeLitha Incense:
1 1/2 tsp Frankincense
1 tsp Benzoin
1/2 tsp Dragon's Blood
1/2 tsp Thyme
1/2 tsp Rosemary
1 pinch Vervain
a few drops Red Wine
Burn at Litha to attune with the sunBack
Lughnasadh-August 1st
A pre-harvest festival...the first of the 3 harvest festivals. This is also a festival of bread.
Pots of yellow and red Cockscomb are used to decorate the altar.
Corn Dollies are made on this day and kept for a year to guard the home. At the following years festival, you destroy the old one when you bring in the new
Berry Pies are made in honor of the harvest
To your bath, add a half cup or so of grape juice or wine
Do not buy a broom in August
Canning
Time to stock magickal cabinets
Time to replace curtains, tableclothes, rugs, etc.
Star-shaped cakes or cookies are baked and placed in baskets
Excellent time to meditateLughnasadh Incense:
1 tsp Frankincense
1/2 tsp Heather
1/2 tsp Apple Blossoms
1 pinch Blackberry Leaves
a few drops Ambergris oil
Burn at Lughnasadh to attune with the coming harvest.Back
Mabon-Around September 23rd (This varies from year to year).
This is a time of balance between the light and darkness, with darkness increasing. This is a festival which celebrates the Lord of Mysteries. This is the second harvest festival with canning and storing food for winter monthes in full swing. All preparations for the end of the year and the darkness to come are made now.
Altar decorations are indian corn (except for grey), gourds and dried sheaves of wheat
Consecrate tools of divination
Baskets of yarn, seed pods, shells, feathers, and small pine cones are placed around the home
Cornbread cakes and cider are served for the celebration
Leaves should be parafined now
Brown, orange, red, or gold candles are burned
Stone found in the summer should be empowered now
Harvest the last of the herbs and plants you will need for winter use now
Fall fruits, flowers, grains, sprouts, and cloth are gathered nowMabon Incense:
1 tsp Frankincense
1/2 tsp Sandalwood
1/2 tsp Cypress
1/2 tsp Juniper
1/2 tsp Pine
1/4 tsp Oak Moss
1 pinch pulverized Oak Leaf
Burn at Mabon to attune to the change in the seasons.Back
