L A M M A S
The First Harvest
by Mike Nichols
Once upon a Lammas Night
When corn rigs are bonny,
Beneath the Moon's unclouded light,
I held awhile to Annie...
Although in the heat of a Mid-western summer it might be difficult
to discern, the festival of Lammas (Aug 1st) marks the end of summer and
the beginning of fall. The days now grow visibly shorter and by the time
we've reached autumn's end (Oct 31st), we will have run the gamut of
temperature from the heat of August to the cold and (sometimes) snow of
November. And in the midst of it, a perfect Mid-western autumn.
The history of Lammas is as convoluted as all the rest of the old folk
holidays. It is of course a cross-quarter day, one of the four High
Holidays or Greater Sabbats of Witchcraft, occurring 1/4 of a year after
Beltane. It's true astrological point is 15 degrees Leo, which occurs at
1:18 am CDT, Aug 6th this year (1988), but tradition has set August 1st as
the day Lammas is typically celebrat¬ed. The celebration proper would begin
on sundown of the previous evening, our July 31st, since the Celts reckon
their days from sundown to sundown.
However, British Witches often refer to the astrological date of Aug
6th as Old Lammas, and folklorists call it Lammas O.S. ('Old Style'). This
date has long been considered a 'power point' of the Zodiac, and is
symbolized by the Lion, one of the 'tetramorph' figures found on the Tarot
cards, the World and the Wheel of Fortune (the other three figures being
the Bull, the Eagle, and the Spirit). Astrologers know these four figures
as the symbols of the four 'fixed' signs of the Zodiac, and these naturally
align with the four Great Sabbats of Witchcraft. Christians have adopted
the same iconography to represent the four gos¬pel-writers.
'Lammas' was the medieval Christian name for the holiday and it means
'loaf-mass', for this was the day on which loaves of bread were baked from
the first grain harvest and laid on the church altars as offerings. It was
a day representative of 'first fruits' and early harvest.
In Irish Gaelic, the feast was referred to as 'Lugnasadh', a feast to
commemorate the funeral games of the Irish sun-god Lugh. However, there is
some confusion on this point. Although at first glance, it may seem that
we are cel¬ebrating the death of the Lugh, the god of light does not really
die (mythically) until the autumnal equinox. And indeed, if we read the
Irish myths closer, we discover that it is not Lugh's death that is being
celebrated, but the funeral games which Lugh hosted to commemorate the
death of his foster- mother, Taillte. That is why the Lugnasadh celebrations in Ireland are often called the 'Tailltean Games'.
The time went by with careless heed
Between the late and early,
With small persuasion she agreed
To see me through the barley...
One common feature of the Games were the 'Tailltean marriages, a
rather informal marriage that lasted for only 'a year and a day' or until
next Lammas. At that time, the couple could decide to continue the
arrangement if it pleased them, or to stand back to back and walk away from
one another, thus bringing the Tailltean marriage to a formal close. Such
trial marriages (obviously related to the Wiccan 'Handfasting') were quite
common even into the 1500's, although it was something one 'didn't bother
the parish priest about'. Indeed, such ceremonies were usually solemnized
by a poet, bard, or shanachie (or, it may be guessed, by a priest or
priestess of the Old Religion).
Lammastide was also the traditional time of year for craft festivals.
The medieval guilds would create elaborate displays of their wares,
decorating their shops and themselves in bright colors and ribbons,
marching in parades, and performing strange, ceremonial plays and dances
for the entranced onlookers. The atmosphere must have been quite similar
to our modern-day Renaissance Festivals, such as the one celebrated in
near-by Bonner Springs, Kansas, each fall.
A ceremonial highlight of such festivals was the 'Catherine wheel'.
Although the Roman Church moved St. Catherine's feast day all around the
calender with bewildering frequency, it's most popular date was Lammas.
(They also kept trying to expel this much-loved saint from the ranks of the
blessed because she was mythical rather than historical, and because her
worship gave rise to the heretical sect known as the Cathari.) At any
rate, a large wagon wheel was taken to the top of a near-by hill, covered
with tar, set aflame, and ceremoniously rolled down the hill. Some
mythologists see in this ritual the remnants of a Pagan rite symbolizing
the end of summer, the flaming disk representing the sun-god in his
decline. And just as the sun king has now reached the autumn of his years,
his rival or dark self has just reached puberty.
Many commentators have bewailed the fact that traditional Gardne¬rian
and Alexandrian Books of Shadows say very little about the holiday of
Lammas, stating only that poles should be ridden and a circle dance
performed. This seems strange, for Lammas is a holiday of rich mythic and
cultural associations, providing endless resources for liturgical
celebration.
Corn rigs and barley rigs,
Corn rigs are bonny!
I'll not forget that happy night
Among the rigs with Annie!
[Verse quotations by Robert Burns, as handed down through several Books of
Shadows.]
[ Welcome ]
[ Books ]
[ Sabbats ]
[ Links ]
[ Paths ]
[ Where ]
[ Guidelines ]
[ Weaving ]
[ Dwellers ]
[ Why? ]
[ Writings ]
[ Sign the Guestbook ]
[ Read the Guestbook ]
[ Contact List ]
[ Pagan Postcards ]
[ Pagan Babes ]
Last Update: 27th November, 1997
|
|---|
|
Created: 1995
|
|---|