Beltane

Beltane is a celebration of sexuality, purification and fertility. The planting of crops is finished, and many crops have grown to seedlings. Bees are very active pollinating flowers, and many creatures are in the height of their mating season. The God and Goddess join in a sacred union (sometimes called the Herios Gamos), and the Goddess becomes pregnant by the God. Also called Walpurgisnacht, Sheila-na-Gig, Tithe Day, the Festival of Pan, Floralia, Bacchanalia, Walburga, Rudemas, Mayday, Galan-Mai and Cetshamain, Beltane is most often celebrated April 30 or May 1, although some traditions use May 5.

Mayday is still celebrated in many parts of the world. Mayday traditions include May Poles, Morris Dancing, Bonfires and generally partying. Often a May Queen and King will be crowned with wreaths of flowers and be "Rulers for the Day". In pagan circles, it is the King and Queen of May who would perform the Great Rite.

The Celebration

The Great Rite is the most solemn part of a Beltane ritual. It is when the sacred marriage of God and Goddess in reenacted by the King and Queen of May. In most pagan ceremonies, this is a symbolic union. The athame (sacred or magical knife) in placed by the King of May into the Chalice (Scared Cup) held by the Queen of May. Some traditions also perform a more private and direct version of the Great Rite. The most important part is the union of male and female energies. Other ways of doing this are by having two people light the sacred fire (using flints) or by performing a Maypole Dance.

Aside form this ritual, Beltane is about celebrating. Far from being solemn rite, Beltane is more akin to a party. Bonfires are often lit, and dancing is very nearly a requirement. This is a day to look forward to the future and to express your passions. It's a celebration of life! The energy and joy of the celebration help to increase the abundance of the year: when the fires have burned out, it is traditional to scatter the ashes over growing fields.

Traditional Practices, Decorations and Foods

Bonfires

Fire is one of the primal forces. It should be no surprise that a festival dedicated to passion often occurs around fire. Besides dancing and celebration, the fires of Beltane are used for purification. Passing between two fires or leaping over the dying ashes of a smaller fire is believed to be purifying. Cattle were often driven between two low fires to remove the last vestiges of winter from them. In pagan tradition, Brooms made in winter were consecrated over the bonfire, and old brooms were burned.

Morris Dances and The Maypole

The May Pole is probably the most easily recognized symbol of the holiday. Long ribbons are wrapped around a tall pole in what is called a Morris Dance. Traditionally, the ribbons are red and white and the dancers wear bells on their ankles as they weave the ribbons around the pole. In some traditions, a wreath is placed at the top of the ribbons and slowly descends as the ribbon is wrapped around the pole.

The May Pole itself is a symbol of the union of God and Goddess. The red ribbons represent the fertility of the Goddess; the white represent the fertility of the God. The pole represents the genitalia of the God. The wreath represents the Goddess. The deeper meaning of the maypole is often neglected, but the tradition is still very much alive.

May King and May Queen

Like the May Pole, the May Queen (or Queen of May) and May King (or King of May) are traditions that have survived through the years. The May Queen is sometimes chosen in a pageant-style event, or she may be chosen by the group that organizes the Mayday festival. The King of May is usually chosen by the Queen of May. In Pagan groups, these are often the people that will perform the Great Rite. It is not uncommon for the Queen and King of May to be a newly engaged couple.

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