BELTANE: Bright Fire & Hawthorn Ceremony

Welcoming you into a sacred circle of women to explore abundance, blossoming, sacred union and the igniting of the sacred fires within as the great wheel of the year turns again.

We will gather as a unique constellation of sisters on eve of true Beltane to celebrate this moment, travelling on a deep, inward voyage to journey with the heart-opening medicine of Hawthorn, attuning to the frequency of this bright and auspicious moment within the year. 

WHAT IS BELTANE?

Beltane is one of the 4 Celtic fire festivals in the Wheel of the Year, or Wheel of Life that rest between the Solstices & Equinoxes ~ marking the midway point between the Spring Equinox & Summer Solstice in the Northern Hemisphere. Meaning "bright fire" Beltane is moment in celebration of the igniting energies of spring; conception, abundance, life, love, passion, vitality, joy and fertility. 

In the olden days it was most often celebrated on the full moon, as this is when the fertile energies in the Earth (& in women) are at their fullest ~ these days it is usually the night from the 30th of April to the 1st of May.

In the Wheel of the Year ~ Beltane is right opposite its Autumnal equivalent  ~ Samhain. And like Samhain (sometimes known as Halloween) it is the second night of the year where the veils between the worlds are at their thinnest. Magic and mystery abound on this night.

In the Celtic tradition ~ this was seen as the marriage between the Green Man (the Sun) and the May Queen (the awakening Earth)  ~ who would join together in sacred celebration ~ honouring the rising fertility of the Earth after the long Winter. On this night couples would enact the ritual marriage of the God and Goddess ~ of the Earth & Sky.

WHY HAWTHORN?

Hawthorn is a beautiful and magical tree, sacred to ancient practices of the British Isles. Potent at Beltane, the Hawthorn tree has many magical and healing properties including the expansion of our ability to hold self-love and compassion. It is often harvested and used at Beltane as an elixir of vitality, love, joy and heart-expansion, being adorned by the May Queen and King in abundant garlands to demonstrate the fertile blossoming of the Earth.

Hawthorn is a magical plant protected by the Fae Folk, offering us the opportunity to enter other realms of magic and myth. She guides us gently within the realms of the heart and offers us her sweet medicine of love and compassion. Her flowers and leaves are all edible and teach us a lightness, a sense of magic and a heart brimming with love and joy. 

WHAT WILL I NEED?

• Crystals, incense, cushions, pillows... anything to set your sacred space
• Headphones, internet connection + quiet, undisturbed space
• Elixir of wild harvested hawthorn blossom tea
• Candle & lighter
• Burning dish
• Journal + pen

HOW TO WILD-HARVEST HAWTHORN

If you live on the British Isles, Hawthorn is abundantly springing from every hedgerow during Beltane season! When you are harvesting make sure to ask permission from the tree first and wait for a full body YES before taking. Always take less than 1/5 of what you can see and leave plenty for the birds and pollinators. Give thanks in abudance to the Hawthorn after taking and maybe leave an offering of some kind.

The flowers are better for tea than the leaves, and have a strong aroma. Brew them in hot water for 10-20 minutes and then strain and serve. 

Click the link below for a reference of how to identify Hawthorn.

(Note: be sure to check you are not taking BLACKTHORN as they are easily mixed. Blackthorn is darker in colour and in spirit and will not be as happy to lend you his blossoms). 

https://treegrowing.tcv.org.uk/identify/hawthorn

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This space is open and welcoming for anyone to all who identity as women, non-binary folk, femme queer folk, trans women and those who vibrate with the experience of the embodied feminine.

This call will be recorded & available for 7 days after the live.