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chakkraa
High Priestess
Joined: 22 Jun 2007
Posts: 245
Location: Portland, Oregon
Thu Jul 12, 2007 2:34 am |
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 The Green Traditions - The Basics
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The Basics
This chapter is much more extensive filled with a lot of information on the basics of Green Witchcraft. I will just be focusing on the areas of this chapter that different in the Verbena Tradition.
The Verbena Sabbats
The modern Witch needs to reconcile the mythic presentation of frolicking deities with the realities of the cycles of the earth. People know today that the seasons will change and the order of nature will proceed whether or not someone celebrates a Sabbat, so the individual must decide what relevancy the Sabbats have in their lives. In the Verbena tradition they are the same as most pagan celebrations. We recognize the esbats for magic & spiritual rituals. The only difference is we see it reversed the 4 lesser Sabbats are the major holidays in the Verbena Tradition.
Major Sabbat - Samhain - Halloween
Samhain, popularly known as Halloween, occurs in late October and early November. For most Witches this is the New Year, and a time for letting go of the old and looking ahead to the new. It marks the end of the harvest season. Since ancient times, Pagans have paid their respects to departed loved ones, ancestors, and guides in the Spirit World at Samhain. Colors are Black and Orange.
Major Sabbat - Winter Solstice
Winter Solstice also known as Yule or Christmas, occurs in mid December. It celebrates the birth of the new solar year and the beginning of Winter. This is a festival of inner renewal. Strengthen bonds with family and friends by visiting and/or exchanging gifts and greetings. Decorate your home with lights, greens, and holiday colors. Bless your home with a Yule wreath on your front door and sprigs of mistletoe inside. Colors are Red, Green, and White.
Minor Sabbat - Imbolc
Imbolc, also known as Groundhog's Day or Valentine’s Day, occurs at the beginning of February. It marks the middle of Winter and holds the promise of Spring. It is a festival of spiritual purification and dedication. Colors are White, and sometimes Red.
Major Sabbat - Spring Equinox
Spring Equinox, also known as Ostara, occurs in the middle of March. It marks the beginning of Spring and the time when days and nights are of equal length. Green has been sacred to this Sabbat since ancient times, because it represents the greening of the land with vegetation. This is a festival of new growth. Organize egg games, such as egg hunts. Decorate your home with spring flowers and sprouting greens.
Minor Sabbat - Beltane
Also known as May Day, happens at the beginning of May. It celebrates the height of Spring and the flowering of life and is a festival of flowers, fertility, sensuality, and delight. . Colors are the Rainbow spectrum.
Major Sabbat - Summer Solstice
Summer Solstice, sometimes known as Midsummer, occurs in the middle of June. It is a celebration of the longest day of the year and the beginning of Summer. It is a festival of community sharing and planetary service. Celebrate this time with other Pagans -- take part in the Pagan Spirit Gathering or some other Pagan festival happening during June. Colors are Yellow, Green, and Blue.
Minor Sabbat - Lammas
Lammas, or Lughnassad, occurs in late July and early August. It is marks the middle of Summer and the beginning of the harvest. It heralds the coming of Autumn and it is a festival of plenty and prosperity. Colors are Golden Yellow, Orange, Green, and Light Brown.
Major Sabbat - Fall Equinox
Fall Equinox, also known as Mabon, occurs in the middle of September. It marks the beginning of Autumn and it is the festival of thanksgiving. Colors are Orange, Dark Red, Yellow, Indigo, and Brown.
Different Ways To Celebrate the Sabbats
Throughout all religions, recognition of Green events are well-known and serve as focal points in their particular litany. By any name and with any mythology, the solstices and equinoxes are celebrated worldwide. The only difficulty with this is that some religions have become strident in demanding that their particular litany is the only “true” one. Witchcraft, however, involves much more than the sum of its Sabbat mythology - it is a way of life that can exist perfectly well without the formal celebration of a single Sabbat, and perhaps that is why some covens limit themselves to the four great Sabbats. Common celebrations include Yule as Christmas or Hanukkah; Spring Equinox as Easter or Passover; Summer Solstice as the time for weddings; and Fall Equinox as Harvest Home, Fall Festivals, or Thanksgiving. The other four Sabbats are still incorporated into the Christian and secular calendars by other names as well. Imbolic becomes Groundhog Day, Beltane is May Day or Mothers Day, Lughnassadh is summer picnics , fairs, and festivals; and then there is Samhain - Halloween of course. Growing up the Sabbats were not celebrated as rituals to the Divine life story events. Instead they were earth-centered, forming a special feeling for the time of the year and for the sensations of the earth as we moved through the yearly cycle. Without a formal ritual, robes, and tools, the Sabbats are honored by doing and by living them. Through experiencing the Sabbats, we invoke the elements and become united with the earth and the Divine within.
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Lady Chakkraa Morningstar
High Priestess, Coven of the Shadows of Midnight
Elder, Elder Kindred of the Nordic Shadows
Elder, Brotherhood of the Wolf
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