Lughnasadh 2018

Lughnasadh, also known as Lúnasa, Lùnastal, Luanistyn or Lammas, is a Gaelic festival of the first harvest, which also corresponds with other European early harvest festivals. It is held on the 1st of August, halfway between the Summer Solstice (Litha) and the Autumn Equinox (Mabon).

The festival is named after the Celtic god Lugh, and part of the festival is often offering some of the first harvest’s bounty in gratitude, and feasting or athletic competitions. Historically, journeys to sacred wells or holy shrines, or climbing mountains or hills have been popular, and in some places are still observed. Lugh is often seen as a personification of the first harvest, or the corn itself, and he is sometimes recast as folkloric figures such as John Barleycorn.

 Lughnasadh colours: gold, orange, yellow, green, light brown

Today´s outfit:

All thrifted except the knee socks, they are from H&M

Everything here is my actual favorites at the moment.

This Lughnasadh was super special to me. Week early I planned what to eat and we cook together, it was so homey. I also wanted to have special outfit, make my altar, clean the whole house and do stuff that I planned. I also read a lot of info that I even didn´t know and now I want to share them with you. Some reason, in many years I haven´t celebrated this Sabbath but I guess, now I am taking it back, and more! I am planning to celebrate the whole month and until Mabon. I have baked 3 breads, cleaned everyday (this still seems endless because I have so much stuff) and I have obsession about my closet, I need to declutter it this autumn so I can have piece of mind.. and I can make a closet tour. Finally.

Lughnasadh foods: Bread, corn, soup, root vegetables, berries, mead, rice, barely, nuts, seasonal fruits, roasted meats, honey, beer

Blueberry pie

"Similar to the Roman god Mercury, Lugh is known as a god of both skill and the distribution of talent.  He is a patron of the arts and a skilled warrior.

The Book of Invasions tells us that Lugh came to be associated with grain in Celtic mythology after he held a harvest fair in honor of his foster mother, Tailtiu. This day became August 1, and that date ties in with the first grain harvest in agricultural societies in the Northern Hemisphere. In fact, in Irish Gaelic, the word for August is lunasa. Lugh is honored with corn, grains, bread, and other symbols of the harvest. This holiday was called Lughnasadh (pronounced Loo-NA-sah). Later, in Christian England the date was called Lammas, after the Saxon phrase hlaf maesse, or “loaf mass.“"

"Lughnasadh is a festival called by many names as it is celebrated throughout the Pan-Celtic cultures. One of the names that has been documented in Ireland is Brón Trogaill, from Tochmarc Emire. Máire MacNeill in her book The Festival of Lughnasa tells us that  Brón Trogaill is understood to mean “Earth’s sorrows” giving the strong implication of a woman in childbirth.  Brón is a word with the meaning of “sorrow, grief, grieving, lamentation; distress, burden” and is also used in phrases like ro and brónbríg, “ weakened sorrows’ force” and brón déisi ag dathaghadh,  “harvest’s gloom.”  In  Tochmarc Emire Trogam is said to mean “earth” and on eDIL it is defined as “body” and the root of the word Trog is defined as “parturition or offspring”"

"The most well known story associated with the festival is that of Lugh’s foster mother Tailtiu. We’re told in Lebor Gabála Érenn, “the Book of the Taking of Ireland,” that Tailtiu was the daughter of a king of Spain and the wife of Eochaidh mac Eric, who was the last Fir Bolg king in Ireland. After the battles between the Fir Bolg and Tuatha Dé Danann she survived and went on to foster Lugh. We know very little about her as a person but she was honored by her foster son with the funeral games, Áenach Tailteann, after she died in a noble sacrifice to clear the plains of Ireland for agricultural purposes.

These funeral games are what we enjoy now. People would come together for everything from; horse racing, feats of strength, reciting poetry, marriage ceremonies, trading, feasting, judgments, divorces, etc. The whole community would be under a truce while the festival was carried out, it likely lasted about a week."

"By Lughnasadh, The Sun God has already begun his downward journey, facing now toward the dark frosts of Winter. The Goddess, however, never wanes. She simply changes appearance. At Lughnasadh, She wears a face of exquisite abundance.

During the season of high Summer the bounty of our planet is in full swing. We reap the benefits of fresh fruits, vegetables, and herbs. This is a time when most of us experience exceptionally good health and robust living.

Lughnasadh marks the last heyday of the Sun God. Beneath the Barley Moon and Summer stars we, too, enjoy the expiring passions of the season. Marriages are often entered into at Lughnasadh as well as at Midsummer, and as Robert Burns tells us, it is a “happy night” that he spends among the cornfields with his lover. Lughnasadh is a tome when the symbolic aspects of the life-sustaining elements of grain spill over into every part of life."

Magical Herbs 

"Lughnasadh marks a turning point in the Earth’s life cycle. Although Summer is hot and bountiful, more visible signs of the Sun’s waning strength lie just around the corner in Autumn’s fallen leaves. During this time of year, Witches use herbs to bring good fortune and abundance in their cooking, healing, potions, and spellwork. All grains, seeds, herbs, and flowers gathered now can be dried for later use during Winter or for decorating the altars of future Sabbats. Like herbs, grains are considered sacred and should be harvested with a magically charged “golden” sickle."

"In many regions in the northern hemisphere, Lughnasadh is berry-picking time. In the British Isles, bilberries are particularly plentiful. Gathering bilberries at Lughnasadh is an ancient ritual that has bearing upon the Summertime harvest as a whole. If the bilberries are bountiful, the crops will be plentiful. Just about every herb, flower, and grain reaches its peak of color, flavor, and magical potency in Summer. Garlic is a particularly versatile herb that is used for protection against negative energy and to cleanse and purify the body. Marigold helps us to communicate with Faeries and increase psychic ability. Moss is for financial gain, and at Lughnasadh vervain is used for wealth as well as protection.

During this season of marriages, yarrow is a common ingredient in wedding gift philtres and oils for love and union. Hops, used in flavoring beer and ale, favorite Lughnasadh beverages, are also good for sleeping and healing. Witches make healing compresses and teas from comfrey to enhance the healing of broken bones, scrapes, and bruises."

Following is a list of herbs to use in your magic during the Lughnasadh season:

Golden rod, nasturtium, clover blossom, yarrow, heliotrope, boneset, vervain, Queen Anne’s Lace, myrtle, rose, peony, sunflower, poppy, milkweed, Irish moss, mushroom, wheat, corn, rye, oat, barley, rice, garlic, onion, basil, mint, aloe, acacia, meadowsweet, apple leaf, raspberry leaf, strawberry leaf, bilberry leaf, blueberry leaf, mugwort, hops, holly, comfrey, marigold, grape vine, ivy, hazelnut, black thorn, elder, bee pollen, Magical Stones

"Our imaginations can easily be taken in by the magical charms of stones. They are simple enough in themselves, yet we watch and touch and remember, sometimes brooding upon their eternal composition. Witches believe that stones, despite their seeming lack of animation, are objects of wisdom and great positive energy and, like water, are one of the purest of all of Nature’s forms. For untold centuries we have paid attention to the effect of light on form. The geometric forms of crystals reveal fresh new perspectives that aid us in preparing for the future.

At Lughnasadh, as at all the Sabbats, we affirm the time-honored importance of stones as our friends. In addition to prosperity and growth, we seek confidence to face what lies ahead and a strengthening of our bond with Nature. The constancy of each individual stone on Earth centers on a mystical kind of compressed raw energy. Stones contain dynamic qualities and to us they exhibit a magical sensibility seemingly at odds with their concreteness. Within the core of each lies imprisoned, like the Young God himself, the concentrated, exquisite spirit of energy and light. Realizing these truths about about the magic of stones is particularly helpful during this turning point on the Wheel of the Year, when we straddle Lughnasadh’s amazing paradox of abundance and loss."

Following is a list of stones to use in your Lughnasadh magic:

Cat’s-eye, golden topaz, obsidian, moss agate, rhodochrosite, clearquartz, marble, slate, granite, lodestone, amber, citrine, aventurine, peridot

Ideas for Lughnasadh celebrations:

-Bake bread! Baking bread is one of the most traditional ways of celebrating this festival, and the first of the grains have been harvested. Consider baking different types of loaves, experiment with plaiting the dough or drawing designs on the top. Add seasonal berries, nuts or seeds to the dough to add flavour and interest. I make different kind of bread every time, I am trying to find the perfect way to make bread.

-Have a picnic with friends and family – with lots of bread! I went a picnic with Anna, it was awesome.

-Just go outside and enjoy the nature.

-Play games with friends or family

-Make a donation of food to your local food bank or donate money to a charity

-Hold your own Lughnasnadh ritual, light a fire and offer some food to the god Lugh and thank him for your harvest, and feel gratitude in knowing that all your efforts are coming to fruition

-Make corn dollies, instructions for lots of interesting designs can be found online, or make sculptures and decorations out of salt dough

-Light a candle and make a list of all that you are thankful for, and meditate upon this

-Go on a foraging trip, look for early apples, plums, berries and edible fungi (ensure you are certain of what you are harvesting before you eat it!)
-Dress to impress!

-As summer winds to a close and autumn approaches, make crafts and decorations for your home that celebrate the outdoors and the gifts of nature.

-A unique wearable craft would be a harvested wheat crown!

-The season from late summer to the middle of fall is often a season of heightened energy for those who identify with the warrior soul.  Meditations focusing on courage, physical strength, dexterity, and valor would be a great way to honor your inner warrior.

-Clean and change your bed sheets. It´s amazing feeling to sleep and smell clean sheets.

For all the info: I found from Tumblr from here here and here

Blessed be!