Lughnasadh

(/Loo-nus-uh/ is how the booklet says to pronounce it)

This is the first festival/celebration/ritual booklet I've gotten. It's the one I was planning to join the local group for. Instead, I will be making my own version. 

Lughnasadh is one of the cross-quarter days, also known as the Celtic Fire Festivals. The booklet starts with a brief description of the focus, and the Irish mythology that is the origin of the festival. 

p. 2

Lughnasadh marks the time of the beginning of harvesting which is then completed by... the Autumnal Equinox. It is a time of joy, but also a time to begin preparing for the Autumn. It is now that we begin to reap what we have sown, and it is now that we understand the wisdom of careful preparation, and of the sowing of good seeds in our lives and the lives of others.

Joy of the harvest... Reaping what we've sown (remind you of a bible passage?)... 

p. 6

In the Christian era, the festival on August 1st became Lammas.

According to Wikipedia, "Lammas, also known as Loaf Mass Day, is a Christian holiday celebrated in some English-speaking countries in the Northern Hemisphere on 1 August. The name originates from the word "loaf" in reference to bread and "Mass" in reference to the Eucharist." I had no idea this holiday existed, although my Catholic in-laws likely do. An example of Christians changing a "pagan" holiday into a Christian one.

p. 7

Since Lughnasadh is a time of the beginning of the harvest and an awareness that Summer will not last for ever, you may like to spend some time becoming aware of the fact that this represents a turning point in the year - a point of culmination when you begin to reap the fruits of your actions as you move into the six week harvest period between now and (Autumnal equinox). Here we come to know the paradoxical nature of sacrifice: that in letting go, we receive - that the harvest is both a time of death, but also a time of reaping of rewards, of achievement. Sacrifice, understood in this way, is seen as a letting go or giving up of something in order to move to a higher, deeper, more creative level... Lughnasadh becomes a Festival of Transformation.

As an educator, this is definitely a turning point in the year. Staff starts the school year here on or right after August 1st. This year I am reaping the fruits of multiple job applications that have been sent out the last few months. "In letting go, we receive." This has definitely been true in my life! What can I "sacrifice" to move to a "higher, deeper, more creative level" at this point in my life? Of course the phoenix in me loves the wording of Festival of Transformation! 😀

p. 7

Associations to Lughnasadh

Harvest, Completion, Achievement, Reaping, Transformation, Contentment, Letting Go

Gold, Orange, Red-Brown, Purple

Wheat, Bread

The rest of the book is the solo and group rituals. In reading through them yesterday, I found elements of both that resonate with me. Today is Monday. I plan to work this week on combining both rituals into something that is meaningful to me. 

This is my last post of the day. Next time, I will start journaling my thoughts on the first gwersi, and its correlation to what we're studying in small group at church.

Feeling accomplished,

LilacPhoenixCMB 💜

The Book of Ritual

When you read the title, did you picture a bunch of old men in dark, hooded cloaks chanting? Or a Halloween-type witch at a cauldron? Read on to see how OBOD defines it. 

p. 1 

At the heart of  Druid spiritual practice lies the celebration of eight special times of the year: the solstices and equinoxes, and the four "Cross Quarter" day ceremonies - which have often been called the Celtic Fire Festivals... The solstices and equinoxes are astronomical events that occur at specific times during the year... The cross-quarter festivals are different - they derive from the pastoral calendar.

Rituals at these times of year (more about this below)

p. 1-2

The main thing to remember is that it is the spirit of each of these eight special times, their key themes, that are important, not the details or the exact wording of the rituals. 

In this paragraph, it emphasizes there is no wrong way to do them, from using objects and spoken words, to solely contemplation.

p. 2-3

Our understanding of ritual is that it fulfills the following functions, when performed with the right intent:

    1. It helps us to change consciousness, and in particular it creates the conditions in which we can contact sources of insight, wisdom, and strength.

    2. It helps us to become aware of the sacred nature of the time and space we are in, and gives us the opportunity to acknowledge, celebrate and fully enjoy this time.

    3. It creates a time and space which becomes "special" and from which can radiate beneficent forces, including healing energies which affect ourselves and others.

    4. It creates a way for us to express the deeper interconnectedness between us all, and between other realms, beings and forces. This can occur whether we are practicing ritual alone, with others in a group, or at the same time as others in different parts of the world. During a ritual, our sacred circle becomes a microcosm of the Universe.

I like that it's spelled out so well here. You're not just doing the rituals because you're supposed to, they serve a purpose. I want to print these out and keep them with my ritual booklets as reminders.

p. 3

If you feel strongly that you do not wish to perform any rituals, try simply visualising them in your mind's eye as you read them.

An example of All members are encouraged to believe and practice only those things which they feel are true and right for themselves from their website, which I quoted in my first post.

p. 4-5

As well as being spiritual, mystical, or magical celebrations, it is important to remember that these festivals are also artistic and social events... When celebrating the festivals remember they are designed to help you let go for a while the demands of your busy everyday life - to open instead to the magic and mystery of the moment - to the power of a particular time at a particular place. They are designed to help you enjoy and celebrate the Here and Now. 

Who doesn't need more of this in their lives?! I know I do...

The rest of the booklet is in two sections. The first gives the recommended structure for opening and closing the ceremonies. The concept makes me think of the Olympics 😄 The second section gives the script from three past ceremonies, from beginning to end. 

The eight celebrations form what is known as the "wheel of the year." Most think of it as a modern  pagan invention, but it has its roots in ancient Celtic, Germanic, and other pre-Christian European traditions. In its current form, it was developed by the founder of OBOD and a father of modern Wicca, who brought the solstices/equinoxes together with the cross-quarter day ceremonies as a way to mark the cycle of the year and of life. Each ceremony has a particular focus that is relevant to that time of year. 

There is a wheel of the year on the first page of the booklet, and the last has two wheels with the heading Qualities, Ideas and Dynamics Related to the Festivals. I should make copies of those two pages as well.

Hey, the way I'm ending each of these is turning into its own type of ritual 😄

Riding the cycles of life,

LilacPhoenixCMB 💜

The Sacred Grove - "Planting Programme"

I guess I need to get used to seeing the UK English spelling of words in this course 😄

I skimmed this booklet. The opening paragraph sums it up pretty well:

p. 5 - In ancient times, Sacred Groves were places of sanctuary and worship for the Druids. Like a temple or chapel set within the natural world, they were places of spiritual refuge: places to calm the mind, refresh the spirit, and give comfort in times of distress. Druids today continue this tradition of seeking tranquil clearings in woods and forests, in which to meditate and hold ceremonies. And in addition, many contemporary Druids are creating new sacred groves - in their gardens, on their farms or on public land.

Most of the booklet has to do with the practicalities of accomplishing this. Because of the limitations of my current living and health circumstances, I can't do it. But I will keep an eye and ear out for opportunities to have a small part in helping a group who is planting trees.

One thing did stick out to me in reading the above quoted paragraph. In Fall 2020, I was going through a tough time in my life. I didn't have access to a vehicle most days. I felt like if I could get out in nature on a regular basis, it would help me cope. Long story short, we ended up getting a Quest 2 VR headset and the Nature Treks app. It has multiple nature locations that you can immerse yourself in. I thought my favorite would be the beach. Although I spent a lot of time there, I found myself drawn to a heavily forested area with a creek. At that time in my life, it was my Sacred Grove. I would "walk" through the forest, watch the wild animals, and "sit" in the creek. It had a similar calming effect to me actually being out in nature. I didn't have the terminology for it, but the effect on me was the same as described. I need to get back in the habit of visiting those places again!

Next up, the beginning of my posts about the ritual celebrations... But first, I have a delivery to grab from outside, and peanuts to toss into the yard 😉

Thinking green,

LilacPhoenixCMB 💜

Wild Wisdom - OBOD introduction booklet

I was given access to the online version of WW when my membership was processed. So much of what I read in it fit me really well! 

I think I'm going to make my notes by page number. Anything in italics is directly from the book. I will add my own thoughts in this typeface. (I plan to use this format from now on)

The page numbering is a bit weird to me. Although there are no numbers on the first three pages, they are the cover, inside cover (title page), and the title of the book with a small illustration. 

p. 5 - from the opening letter by the former OBOD leader: 

It is a spirituality that unites our love of the Earth with our love of creativity and the Arts. For this reason, much of the modern Druid movement is concerned with innovation and celebration in new ways of living, of community, of ritual, poetry, story-telling and the visual arts. And flowing through all these exciting new developments is the power of an ancient tradition - the love of land, sea and sky - the love of Earth our home.

The first sentence above is so me! Nature + creativity and the arts? Oh yeah! I like how Druidry (at least OBOD) isn't stuck in the past, but it keeps the past as the foundation that newness is built on.  

p. 5 

"There are three candles that illumine every darkness: truth, nature, and knowledge" Ancient Irish triad

I love that these three are put together here. I may come back another time and expand on this.

p. 7-8

The biggest mistake we can make when trying to understand Druidry is to see it as a museum-piece, as something in a glass case that we can walk around and study objectively. It certainly has a history that we can explore, but to fully appreciate it, we have to understand that it is living, growing and constantly changing... And to fully appreciate it, (it has to be experienced).

This parallels the premise of the book we are studying in my church's small group right now (John Shelby Spong's "A New Christianity for a New World"). Spirituality has to grow with us, both personally and as a society. The experiential ties into my current leanings toward Christian Mysticism.

p. 8-9 discusses the etymology of the word Druid, and how we get the qualities of Wildness and Wisdom from it. It also discusses how we need the wildness of nature to balance modern life. 

p. 9

The Druid is both wild and wise, at one with the powers of Nature, but also the archetypal sage, the wise philosopher studying the stars and natural law, drawing conclusions and attempting to fathom the mysteries of Life and Death. Wild and Wise, Natural and Civilised, "Primitive" and "Sophisticated," the Druid combines all these qualities: she is seer by the fire, healer with herbs, crouching low on the earth, at one with the world of plants and animals. But she is also astronomer and sage, counsellor, philosopher and teacher.

This is the section that when I read it the first time, I almost cried. This is ME!!! The seemingly opposite dichotomies, the varied interests and positions, all of it! If I needed confirmation that this path is where I need to be, this is it.

The rest of the booklet is a description of the Bardic course, information about OBOD's organization and activities, and FAQs.

The inside of the back cover has this quote:

"Bees of small strength carry the flower-harvest with their feet; the cattle bring to the mountain a rich-pouring abundance" Irish ninth century

The interconnectedness of life... Bees don't purposely carry pollen to pollinate, cattle don't purposely poop to fertilize. But these things happen without their intention, just by them doing what they do. If those things happen without motive, what can we do with purpose, with intention, with motive?

Time for a break... 

See ya in a few,

LilacPhoenixCMB 💜

First shipment is here!!!

It came exactly three weeks after I joined/ordered. I signed up on a Friday, and it was mailed the following Monday. So it took 18 days to get here from the UK.

I opened it the day it came in, and skimmed through the ritual book and the one for the next celebration ritual, in addition to the first introductory gwersi. On the road trip yesterday, I read through the two ritual books from cover to cover, in addition to the intro book I had read online already. 

Here's what was in the package...

Druidry poster

Wild Wisdom booklet (introduction to OBOD)

The Sacred Grove booklet (tree planting program)

The Book of Ritual (introduction to druid rituals with suggestions for modification/personalization)

Lughnasadh ceremony booklet 

Gwersi - two introductory + first four of the paid course

Today I'm hoping to start journaling some notes about what I read through yesterday. I also need to figure out how I want to do the next celebration ritual, since the local group changed the day and I won't be able to go. 

I'm also starting to think about ideas for organizing and storing my materials as I get them. As of right now, I'm considering a hanging file box with a lid. One section for the intro booklets, one for the rituals/ceremonies, and a section (or sections) for the gwersi. I can also put printouts in there. I haven't decided definitively yet, but I will probably go with this idea.

Until later,

LilacPhoenixCMB 💜

Let's Start at the Very Beginning...

I've always loved nature. I grew up with my grandparents having a garden when I was little, and their huge oak tree was so majestic. They had a ton of beautiful plants outside. I would sit in their living room and watch the squirrels, and later hummingbirds after they put up feeders. 

I've always been an animal magnet, especially for dogs. Big dogs are my favorite!

In my later adult years, I would sit outside on my patio next to my prolific succulents and green anoles would come hang out with me. One I saw had *beautiful* blue around their eyes. I asked it if I could take a picture, and it actually posed and let me get 6 inches away with my phone to snap the photo! Brown anoles also started coming to say hello.

About a year and a half ago, I decided to try to befriend the neighborhood crows. I started throwing out unshelled peanuts for them. It went so well that last summer, the set of parents (who I've named Eric and Shelly) brought their fledgling to my yard to learn to forage! I've formed a special bond with "Baby" in particular. I used to work about half a mile from my house. They learned when I would be outside there, and would fly over to say hi. This mating season, Baby would get lonely with the parents busy with their new hatchlings, and s/he would come to the electric wire above my front yard and call for me. Not wanting peanuts, just lonesome and wanting a friend 😊 Baby will also call if the squirrels are looking for peanuts in my yard and there aren't any to let me know to throw some out. Of course they occasionally leave gifts for me! Pretty leaves, pine needles, once I even got a small "bouquet" - a tiny branch of leaves with a natural curly ribbon wrapped around it! This is my most treasured gift from them!

Other birds have been hanging around me lately, no matter where I am. Two hours away, I was in a parking lot eating and a mockingbird perched in a tree next to me and sang its heart out! It was so loud, I could hear it from inside the car! A kite was perched on a sign on the highway and watched our car intently as we passed. Etc. 

Changing focus a bit to Druidry specifically...

After Hurricane Ida in August 2021, we stayed with a friend 2+ hours away for a few weeks since we didn't have electricity or water. He has been a D&D DM for many many years. I had never played, and it had been a long time since hubby had. So we started a campaign and played a few sessions over the next few months. I knew nothing about building a character, so hubby helped. Knowing my affinity for plants and animals, plus my Scotch-Irish heritage, hubby suggested my character be a Druid. 

Later that year, looking for a Halloween costume, I decided on a dark green and brown renaissance style dress. I even made a circlet of (artificial) leaves to go with it. Hubby said it was very "Druid-y". 

Last fall, a Christian friend started calling me a Druid because of the crows. She would see them waiting for me when she brought me home after work. When she found out about my Irish heritage, she said, "See?! You really are!"

My family started going to a different church Easter of last year. Shortly after starting, I met with our pastor one on one about some questions and concerns I had about Christianity in general. One of the things I told her was that I felt drawn to Celtic Christianity. She encouraged me to pursue it, but I didn't have much of a chance between my new autoimmune diagnosis and hubby's stage 4 cancer diagnosis less than two months later. 

After I lost my job this spring, I started looking into Celtic Christianity and the path it led me down ended up with Druidry. The more I read about it, the more it fit. I was hesitant though, because of its seemingly inherent pagan nature. 

I started researching various Druid orders and what they believed. And that's how I came upon OBOD. From their website:

All members are encouraged to believe and practice only those things which they feel are true and right for themselves. There is no dogma in Druidry, which instead is characterised by the qualities of tolerance and an appreciation of diversity. For this reason people with widely differing approaches are members, from Pagans and Wiccans to Christians and Buddhists, and to those with no particular philosophy or religion.

There are, however, a few beliefs which most members probably hold in common:

In Spirit, or God/dess – in something more than just matter

In the Otherworld – in something more than just the world of appearances

In Rebirth – in life after death in some form

In the Web of Life – in the interconnectedness of all life

In the Law of the Harvest – in the law of cause and effect, that we harvest the result of what we have sown.

And, above all, in the sacredness of Nature and of Life, and that we should work to preserve and protect the Natural world, helping to restore its diversity and eliminate pollution and environmental destruction.

They even have a whole section on incorporating Christianity and Druidry, with numerous resources! How exciting!

I spent about a month looking into it. Praying about it. Discussing with hubby. Everything kept confirming that this was a path I needed to start. I modified the summer solstice solo ritual as suggested and did it myself sitting on my bed. It was about thankfulness and the blessings in your life. I have pulled it out numerous times the past few weeks to reflect on.

A week ago, hubby and I decided that I should join! I got access to the members-only forums the next day. Because I'm in the US and they're UK-based, I haven't gotten my first shipment of course materials yet. But I've been spending time on the website and forums, and reading more about Druidry in general. I will start with the Bard course, as all new members do. I'll get 4 lessons a month for 12 months, and a mentor. I can take as long as I want to complete it. No pressure, no tests. 

I found out that there is an OBOD seed group in my area, and have already been in touch with them. I plan on attending my first ritual with them in August to see if I would like to become a member. 

Regardless of whether I join them or not, this is a journey I'm looking forward to! I'm excited and nervous and expectant, waiting to see what God will show me! I'm also starting the small group study at church this week, which is about deconstructing and reconstructing your faith. I told my pastor last weekend about this path I've started. She was excited and said she's looking forward to me sharing what I learn with the group!

I've seen suggestions to keep a journal of some sort while going through the gwersi, especially if you want to continue with the Ovate course after, as there's a requirement to write a paper about your Bard studies in order to do so. So this is my journal. I can access it from my phone or laptop, and if I want to handwrite notes, it will be easy to add them. I can print entries to discuss at small group if I want. And I can share this blog with friends who are interested in following my journey. 

So here goes! I will post again when I get my first set of materials, anytime in the next month. And if I haven't gotten them by the ritual, I will post about how that went.

In love,

LilacPhoenixCMB 💜