Beltane- week 3 letter B PBP

Celebrating the Fertility of Spring


   Held on May 1st Beltane is also known as May Day, on this day
many hold a ritual to celebrate the coming of spring and fertility. Most festivities begin the night before on the last night of April, this is a time to welcome the abundance of the fertile earth, and a day that has a long (and sometimes scandalous) history.
   There are many ways to celebrate this sabbat  and I will link them here at the end but first lets learn a little more...
    Beltane nearly always focuses  on fertility, It is the time when the earth mother opens up to the fertility god, and their union brings about healthy live stock, strong crops, and new life all around.
    There are a lot of Different Influences behind Beltane....
     You have....

• The Roman Influence
• The Fires of Tara
• A Pagan Martyr
• The Greek and Pynteria
• The Green Man Emerges
• Jack-in-the-Green

     Also you have the Symbols and Modern Rites

     Today we celebrate Beltane much like our ancestors did. The ritual usually involves lots of fertility symbols, including the obviously-phallic Maypole dance. In some Wiccan traditions it is a day which the May Queen and the Queen of Winter battle one another for. There are some who believe Beltane is a time for the faeries and for many contemporary Pagans, Beltane is a time for planting and sowing of seeds.

     Certain trees are also associated with May Day such as the Ash, Oak and Hawthorn.

      If you have been wanting to bring abundance and fertility of any sort into your life Beltane is the perfect time for magical workings related to any type of prosperity.

    Here are some Rituals and Ceremonies you may want to think about trying and remember any of them may be adapted to your needs.

• Maypole Dance
• Beltane Bonfire Ritual
• Family Abundance Rite
• Goddess Ritual- to honor the Sacred Feminine
• Planting Ritual
• Hand fasting and Weddings 
• Beltane Prayers

Some Crafts and Creations that can be done are:

• Floral Crown
• Maypole Alter Centerpiece
• Faerie Chair
• May Day Cone Basket
• Magical  W
• Weaving and Braiding
• Beltane Fire Incense

Now for the food! You can have:

• Scottish Bannocks
• Early Summer Salad
• Southern Style Peppery Green Beans
• Fertility Bread 
• Green Man Cake

And last but certainly not least here are your Fertility Deities of Beltane and their orgians

• Artemis (Greek)
• Bes (Egyptian)
• Bacchus (Roman)
• Flora (Roman)
• Hera ( Greek)
• Kokopelli (Hopi)
• Pan (Greek)
• Priapus (Greek)
• Shiela-na-Gig (Celtic)
• Xochiquetzal (Aztec)

http://paganwiccan.about.com/od/beltanemayday/a/AllAboutBeltane.htm

http://paganwiccan.about.com/od/beltanemayday/p/Beltane_History.htm

http://paganwiccan.about.com/od/beltanemayday/a/BeltaneDeities.htm