If you were born in a time before now, then you might well be at a big oul hooley perhaps?! Or maybe you'd be getting married? Or perhaps you'd be showing off your skills and prowess in races or games? Or would you'd be dancing around a fire in praise of Lugh the Sun God?! Either way, you'd be celebrating the festival of Lughnasadh, feast of Lugh the Sun God and the start of the Harvest season!
Lughnasadh is celebration of the grain harvest and a time for gathering, sharing, feasting, play and reflection. Traditionally the last sheaf of the cereal crop and the first fruits were offered to the Earth Mother. It was a time of fairs (eg) Puck Fair still running in Co. Kerry, fairs for trading, horse fairs and horse racing.
Lughnasadh festival was traditionally two weeks long and a time for the meeting of tribes to test their skills across different disciplines. They challenged each other to contests and games during the annual fairs in Lugh’s honor. The rituals at this festival included the acknowledgement of the triumph of Lugh, the harvesting and enjoyment of the first fruits and the acknowledgement of the end of Summer. Marriages were often held during the celebrations of old. High places in the land, were considered the places to honor Lugh. Many of the practices have since faded but there is still an annual pilgrimage to Croagh Patrick in Co. Mayo on the last Sunday of July and Puck Fair lives on.
August may also represent time off, especially for those of us who are business owners. A time to pause, breath and rest before new projects and new plans launch once again in Autumn. The culmination of a year’s work. I often feel as though I work along school terms too – pausing intermittently during holidays like Easter, Christmas, mid-terms and in years gone by I would have taken July & August off. This year has been different, I’m working longer into Summer and planning my break a little differently this year due to commitments such as Molly (my old dog) and the house renovations. I am really looking forward to a break, a pause to rest up before autumn breezes in.
Although still summer time, autumn is visible now on the horizon. The sun is gradually waning and losing its power, the days are getting a little shorter. The change is subtle yet, as we ease from yang towards yin, outer to inner. The shift is gradual and if we can flow with this change and gentle move from outward pursuits to inner focus of contemplation then it will be wonderful way to keep our lives and selves in balance.
Whether you are a garden or a farmer or not, it is a good time to consider what you are harvesting in your life, what you have in abundance and what there is to celebrate. To acknowledge your effort over the year and what you have achieved.
It is hopeful to remember too that contained in the harvest are the seeds of next year’s crop.
I invite you to consider, what do you wish to preserve from your harvest? What seeds do you wish to store over the autumn and winter, ready for planting next spring?
In my business, I'm harvesting the learnings and fruits of over 5 years of Ebb & Flow, I'm gathering and nuturing the seeds for some new programmes, courses and plans. I'm celebrating that my very first Wild & Simple Retreat taking place this August (27th & 28th Aug 2022) has sold over half the spaces in just a few days! Thank you, thank you :) And in an aside and as a wee heads up, there are just 6 spaces left if you'd like to come celebrate with us, check out the details and book your spot here
I'm also honouring getting through a really tough year, heavy, painful stuff that will never make it to a blog or email but that's been so hard. I'm acknowledging that I'm still here with my head above water. A little bit wiser, more cautious and with insight that I wish I didn't have, but I will be grateful for in time. I'm celebrating my new home and hopefully moving in soon! I'm celebrating that Molly's test results have found nothing sinister but I now have to accept that this is it, this is were she is and I have to adapt to that and stop wishing and hoping for something different. A difficult pill to swallow for the fixer and doer that I am. I am on uncomfortable ground having to accept that there is nothing more I can do now except keep her comfortable and spend as much precious time with her as possible. I'm nurturing seeds of ideas and plans for the next chapters in my life and how I would like my work to support me as I traverse these and I am giving myself the gift of time and space to figure that out.
So what are you harvesting? (feel free to drop a comment in below the blog or hit me up on social media if you fancy a chat)
Sometimes these ancient festivals may feel like relics of the past, something disconnected from us, that took place long before our time. But there are still many ways we can connect to these wheel of the year Celtic Festivals to bring a sense of occassion and ceremony into our modern day lives. Here are some of my ideas and suggetions, are they are just that - suggestions, no doubt you’ll have your own ideas too. Enjoy exploring!
Bake bread and break it together – share with others
Have a Lughnasadh or harvest festival celebration with friends / family – light a fire, play games, sing, dance and be merry!
Harvest fruits, veggies and berries from your garden and hedgerows (eg) blackberry season is coming up!
Notice the beauty of this season, appreciate the natural world around you, thank the earth for her bounty, without her there is no life and no harvest
Gather with others in community – attend a festival, arrange to go for walk with friends, join a beach yoga class, share a picnic, volunteer in your community, arrange a park or beach clean up
Swim or dance under the moon and rise with the dawn, or more fun yet – stay up until dawn!
Journal – reflect on the abundance in your life
Slow down, match the pace of the season, notice the subtle changes, flow with it rather than fight against it, for it is the natural way, the wheel of the year is always turning
And so I leave you with this– the harvest is for celebrating, gathering and storing, so how will you mark this special festival time of the year?
Thank you for reading! This is an extract from a longer piece I wrote and recorded for my Slow & Seasonal membership programme. If these ideas intrigue you, pop over the Slow & Seasonal tab of this website to learn more here
Lughansadh shona duit!
Maeve x