So, as a Wiccan, what do I think about Easter --Ostara -- Spring or The Vernal Equinox
Also known as: Lady Day or Alban Eiler (Druidic)?
Well, considering that most Easter traditions actually began as pagan rituals, I think Easter is okay. Obviously, I’m not celebrating the death and resurrection of Jesus. However, did you ever wonder why we have bunnies and eggs at Easter? They don’t exactly have a whole lot to do with a crucifixation.
When early Christians began spreading their new religion to the local dwellers, the best way to do this was to incorporate local customs into the new religion. Each spring, locals would have a goddess festival. The actual goddess varied from town to town - some places used Aphrodite, some Astarte, some Ostara, some Eostre… you get the idea. Usually it was the goddess of fertility and rebirth. Her symbols usually included a rabbit (fertility) and brightly colored eggs (rebirth).
When Christians began incorporating these things into their new religion, they also used the name Eostre or Eastre, which has become Easter over time. I sometimes laugh inside when I see the so-called “devout” Christians buying pagan symbols for their children, but what can you do?
How do you incorporate Easter into your life?
Blessed be
~Dream~
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Ostara
by Herne
March 21 -- Ostara -- Spring or The Vernal Equinox
Also known as: Lady Day or Alban Eiler (Druidic)
As Spring reaches its midpoint, night and day stand in perfect balance, with light on the increase. The young Sun God now celebrates a hierogamy (sacred marriage) with the young Maiden Goddess, who conceives. In nine months, she will again become the Great Mother. It is a time of great fertility, new growth, and newborn animals.
The next full moon (a time of increased births) is called the Ostara and is sacred to Eostre the Saxon Lunar Goddess of fertility (from whence we get the word estrogen, whose two symbols were the egg and the rabbit.
The Christian religion adopted these emblems for Easter which is celebrated on the first Sunday after the first full moon following the vernal equinox. The theme of the conception of the Goddess was adapted as the Feast of the Annunciation, occurring on the alternative fixed calendar date of March 25 Old Lady Day, the earlier date of the equinox. Lady Day may also refer to other goddesses (such as Venus and Aphrodite), many of whom have festivals celebrated at this time.
Traditional Foods:
Leafy green vegetables, Dairy foods, Nuts such as Pumpkin, Sunflower and Pine. Flower Dishes and Sprouts.
Herbs and Flowers:
Daffodil, Jonquils, Woodruff, Violet, Gorse, Olive, Peony, Iris, Narcissus and all spring flowers.
Incense:
Jasmine, Rose, Strawberry, Floral of any type.
Sacred Gemstone:
Jasper
Special Activities:
Planting seeds or starting a Magickal Herb Garden. Taking a long walk in nature with no intent other than reflecting on the Magick of nature and our Great Mother and her bounty.
