Category:Wheel of the Year

From Association of Independent Readers and Rootworkers

The Pagan Wheel of the Year, encompassing the eight major seasonal festivals

The Wheel of the Year is a system of marking eight calendar-points, derived from the Solar calendar, for special festivals and commemorative rituals within the Pagan and Neo-Pagan Tradition, especially among those groups which descend from or are reviving Celtic, Gaelic, Anglo-Saxon, or Germanic religious practices of the past. Some contemporary Pagan and Neo-Pagan groups call the eight seasonal festivals Sabbats; others do not use that term.

The concept of a Wheel of the Year, in which eight seasonal festivals are placed equidistantly throughout the year, was unknown in older Pagan religions, and actually originated in the modern Wiccan religion. Despite its relatively recent development, the Wheel of The Year system of marking eight holidays has found wide acceptance among a variety of non-Wiccan Modern Pagan and Neo-Pagan groups.

Four of the eight holidays are loosely based on or named after ancient Germanic festivals and fall on the solstices and equinoxes; these are known as the Quarter Days or the Lesser Sabbats. The other four holidays are similarly inspired by ancient Gaelic fire festivals and fall approximately midway between the solstices and equinoxes; they are commonly known as the Cross-Quarter Days, the Fire Festivals, or the Greater Sabbats.

Contemporary interpretations and observations of these ancient Germanic and Gaelic holidays vary a great deal from region to region and also within different Pagan and Neo-Pagan groups. Some may emphasize the historical nature of the festivals, while others celebrate them according to recently-created concepts.

The Quarterly and Cross-Quarterly Festivals

Each Pagan Festival has its own page:

• Samhain, All Hallow's Eve, Hallowe'en
• Yule, Midwinter,Winter Solstice
• Imbolc, Candlemas, Brigid's Day
• Ostara, Easter, Vernal Equinox
• Beltane, Beltaine, May Day
• Litha, Midsummer, Summer Solstice
• Lammas, Loafmass, Lughnasadh
• Mabon, Autumnal Equinox, Fall Equinox

How to Date the Eight Festivals by Calendar and Zodiac

The dates of the eight Pagan festivals can be calculated by using a secular calendar or, more accurately, by means of the astrological signs of the zodiac:

The eight major Solar festivals or Sabbats are also distinct from the Wiccan Esbats, which are additional, usually smaller, celebrations or coven meetings that are held according to the Lunar calendar, on Full Moons or New Moon dates.

Credits

This page is brought to you by the AIRR Tech Team:

• Author: catherine yronwode
• Images: Unknown Sculptor; photo-edited by catherine yronwode

See Also

• Religious Traditions
• Magical Traditions
• Divination, Fortune Telling, and Oracles
• Hoodoo, Conjure, Witchcraft, and Rootwork
• Working with Spirits