HooRay HooRay it's the first of May!
I am a Beltane baby, so as far back as i can remember my birthday was full of Beltane tradition. We always built a huge bonfire in the backyard and played lots of outdoor games. The party favors were often little May baskets full of treats. I had more than a few birthday cakes decorated with little may poles.
Beltane has always been a joyous time for me (and not just because it's my birthday), but it's the time of year that Mother Nature fully awakens. Birds are chirping mating calls in the trees, and plants are in full blossom. this is the last of the three spring fertility festivals, but Beltane was considered by earlier people to be the start of Summer.
My sisters and i would go out early May morning and sip honeysuckle blossoms covered in dew. Yes, all of nature is coming alive, and fertility is in the air. Traditionally young maidens would go out early on May morning and roll themselves in the early morning dew. The dew was considered to be magical on this morning, sacred to the Goddess, and blessed by fairy folk. It was believed that by rubbing your face with the Beltane morning dew, you would look younger and more beautiful. (early beauty secret) Many an old Irish tune mentions rolling in the dew.
Beltane is the celebration of the sexual union between the God and the Goddess. The Maypole has always been central to the Beltane celebration. The May Pole is a phallic symbol of the God's fertility, and the ribbons are a symbol of the Goddess. In ancient times, only un-married men went out to chop down the tree for the pole, and they would take turns standing watch over the pole until the festivities on May Day. Traditionally the ribbons were red and white. The red ribbons were held by the boys and the white ribbons were held by the girls, and as the two were intertwined, this symbolized the union and balance of the masculine and the feminine aspects of the God and Goddess. large bonfires were built and the people would jump across the fire for luck and blessing. Some farmers drove thier cattle or other livestock through the fires (between two fires close together) for purification or fertility. It is thought today that the heat of the fire killed off the fleas or ticks living on the cattle, and so served a dual purpose. There was much celebration and dancing on Beltane night, and it was not unusual to engage in sex with someone other than your partner. Children conceived during Beltane were referred to as "Merry-be-Gots", and were thought to be a gift from the God and Goddess.
