This article was written by The Zillennial Zine’s spring editorial intern Ky Tanella. Find them on Instagram at @ky.tanella. If you would like to share an article with The Zillennial, send us an email at thezillennialzine@gmail.com.
You may have heard of or even casually celebrated witchy holidays like the Summer Solscite, Yule or Samhain (Halloween)! But what is the wheel of the year? If you were like me a few years ago, researching the holidays can seem overwhelming and difficult. But fear not, let me guide you through all 8 Witchy Sabbats, and how to celebrate them!
The Wheel of the Year describes the pagan observation of an annual cycle of seasonal festivals, usually celebrating Solstices and Equinoxes (beginning of seasons), and the halfway points! Usually, the dates they fall on depend on the geographical hemisphere (this article will mostly be touching on the dates as they fall on the northern hemisphere). Each festival has different meanings and roots across many cultures, such as the Anglo-Saxons, The Gaels, and the Welsh. They were usually associated with harvest seasons, and they would celebrate these holidays to bring good fortune and abundance to their seasonal harvests, and allow them to show gratitude to and connect with nature!
Yule – December
The wheel begins with Yule (the “Winter Solstice,” and the longest night of the year). This ancient festival originated with Norse and Scandinavian peoples, and is one of the oldest winter festivals. It marks the start of winter and the re-birth of the Sun, slowly but surely promising longer days and shorter nights. It’s a time for renewal and reflection, and a time to cleanse your space, ground your mind and body, and keep up with your shadow work.
Yule is traditionally associated with red, green, white, and gold. It’s common to decorate your altar with these colors, associated herbs like mistletoe, ivy, pine, and cedar, and even beautiful crystals like amber, bloodstone, red jasper, and moonstone. If you’re planning on hosting a feast, cook with cinnamon, clove, and root vegetables, served with mulled wine and ciders! Don’t forget the Yule Log as the centerpiece to a feast or your altar (you can bake one, or find a large log in the woods) – but, you could also make a wreath with traditional herbs.
Imbolc – February
Imbolc just passed, and normally falls between late January and early February! This is the halfway point between the Winter Solstice and the Spring Equinox, and its origins lie in the Celtic holiday “Imbolg,” which marks the beginning of the “lambing season.” It’s also closely associated with the Celtic Goddess Brigid, who represents creativity, fire, healing, and fertility.
This is a perfect time for a “spring cleaning,” as Imbolc sets the stage for re-birth and growth, and is a celebration of life and cleansing! Make sure to cleanse your altar, and decorate it with “Brigid’s Cross”, acorns, brooms, living plants, and nature-colored candles – you can even add some crystals like amethyst, clear quartz, and onyx. If you’re looking for some subtle ways to celebrate, clean your space, and allow new energy in for a happy home, start a new project, or plant some seeds (in your garden, or a pot). Since this holiday usually falls around the 1st of February, I recommend blowing cinnamon through your doorway, to welcome in abundance and prosperity!
Ostara – March
Ostara is also known as the “Spring Equinox” where we celebrate the Sun’s warmth and light, and Earth’s fertility and growth. This celebration hails from Germanic origins, named after a Goddess (Ostara) who has close associations with springtime and new beginnings! It represents equality between the day and the night, as they are finally at similar lengths around mid-March.
This sabbat is associated with pretty, soft pastel colors, and beautiful flowers like tulips, daffodils, honeysuckle, lilies, and hibiscus. You can decorate your altar with seeds, fresh flowers and plants, harvested dandelions, and crystals like rose quartz, sunstone, moss agate, and aquamarine! Celebrate by painting hard-boiled eggs, planning your garden, and eating lots of leafy greens and spring seasonal fruits. I like to celebrate by buying some wildflower seeds from a local shop, and spreading them in barren places, setting intentions as I do!
Beltane – May
Beltane is the halfway point between the Spring Equinox and the Summer Solstice and is originally a Celtic celebration of fire, fertility, and growth. Traditionally, bonfires are lit (and jumped over), and communities come together to dance around the Maypole, celebrating the vitality of nature. It’s believed that the veil between the living and the dead grows thinner around Beltane, so it’s important to ward off spirits and protect your space!
Celebrate the fertile abundance of Mother Nature with fresh fruits like strawberries and cherries, drink wine, plant flowers, and give back to the butterflies, bees, rabbits, and livestock that the sabbat is associated with. Decorate your alter with flowers, pink or yellow candles, fire symbolism, and protection stones like black tourmaline and obsidian. I love to make flower crowns and have a picnic with fresh foods, celebrating with my closest friends in the park or a nature reserve. If you can, host a bonfire with friends or family, and take up the space to dance and have fun!
Litha – June
Litha (aka the “Summer Solstice” or “Midsummer”) celebrates the peak of the summer Sun and the longest day of the year! It’s a festival full of light, abundance, and prosperity, and we celebrate by honoring the Sun’s illuminance and being grateful for the fertile abundance that Spring gave to us. It falls on June 21st this year!
If you happened to make a Yule wreath during December, (and are hosting a bonfire for Litha) burn it to celebrate the halfway cycle! Since Litha is so closely associated with the Sun, you can decorate with yellow, orange, or red-colored items – such as dandelions, chamomile, sunflowers, sunstone, citrine, amber, and sun catchers. Or really anything special to you that involves Sun symbolism. Making Sun Tea is also a fantastic way to welcome the love and prosperity from the universe that you deserve!
Lughnasadh (or Lammas) – August
Lughnasadh (pronounced LOO·nah·sah) or Lammas marks the halfway point between the Summer Solstice and Autumn Equinox. It claims its origins in the Celtic celebration to honor the God Lugh, the god of sun and light. Lughnasadh is the first of three harvest festivals and celebrates the bounty that the summer season brought to us – it also marks the beginning of the fall harvest season, and the beginning of the slowly shortening days. It usually falls around early August!
A traditional harvest season, Lughnasadh has it’s strongest associations with bread, wheat, grains, corn, cheese, beer, and wine. To celebrate, you can try baking homemade bread, eating fruits like blueberries and blackberries, harvesting from your garden, and making corn dollies. Personally, I like to decorate my fall altar with bloodstone and citrine for balance and immunity, some yellow candles, and small sunflowers. This is also a fantastic time to practice gratitude rituals, such as gratitude journaling, outdoor yoga, and grounding exercises!
Mabon – September
Mabon is also known as the Autumn Equinox, and was named after the Welsh God of youth “Mabon ap Modron,” who is the son of the Goddess Modron, and represents the light of the autumn Sun. This second harvest festival is for celebrating the harvest and abundance that Summer brought to us, and to begin preparation for the winter months. Once again, the night and day are at equal length, and we celebrate the balance that this cycle brings us!
Go out and harvest pinecones, the changing leaves, dried herbs, and autumnal flowers to decorate your space with, and be sure to store/dry seeds for next spring! If you’re feeling super crafty, you can make your own witch’s broom! This sabbat is traditionally associated with foods like pomegranates, corn, squash, stew, beans, and grapes, so reap these seasonal benefits from your local grocery store or farmers market. Lastly, I usually keep some garnet and obsidian on hand for some extra protection and creative flow!
Samhain – October
Lastly, we celebrate Samhain (pronounced Saa·wn), which is derived from the Celtic celebration, and marks the halfway point between Mabon and Yule. It arrives in conjunction with the traditional holiday Halloween – similarly to Beltane, the veil between the living and the dead is at its thinnest, causing spirits to interact with the physical world. This is why “dressing up” is a tradition across multiple cultures, to trick the spirits into thinking we are one of them, so they don’t cause too much mischief. This sabbat is usually associated with fire, as the days begin to get shorter and darkness overshadows the light from the Sun.
Decorate your altar, your home, or other sacred space with pumpkins, gourds, symbols with bats, spiders, owls, or ravens, and you can even include some skulls/bones (ethically sourced, or fake of course). Make sure to set up some protective measures around both your home and yourself, and take this time to honor your ancestors and the unknown spirits around you. Keep protective stones like obsidian, tourmaline, and smokey quartz on-hand, and herbs like sage, mugwort, and rosemary for divination and protection!
Did you enjoy learning about the Wheel of The Year? What’s your favorite witchy Sabbat/celebration? And what will you do to celebrate the Earth and its abundance this year? Let us know in the comments down below!! Blessed be!
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