Beltane takes place every year around May 1 in the Northern Hemisphere and November 1 in the Southern Hemisphere. It marks the midpoint between the Vernal Equinox celebration of Ostara (the official beginning of spring) and the Summer Solstice celebration of Litha (the longest day and shortest night of the year).
You might also be familiar with Beltane’s other name—May Day. If you are, then you’re likely familiar with the idea of celebrating spring, dancing and wrapping ribbons around the May Pole.
Beltane was celebrated by pagans in the British Isles, and marked the midpoint of spring when life was emerging, days were getting longer and warmer, and the time for growing and cultivating crops would soon come. Livestock were taken out to pasture during this time.
This holiday has evolved and changed over time, especially with the emergence of Wicca and Neo-paganism. Finding a celebration near you can be tricky, but there are ways to celebrate this event or incorporate it into your everyday life.
Celebration of Spring
Beltane is unique because it’s a celebration of spring officially arriving and noting that the days are about to get warmer and longer. Crops are growing, animals are grazing in their pastures, and life is emerging after the doldrums of winter.
Every holiday is both literal and symbolic: what parts of you have fully emerged? Are you feeling rejuvenated, knowing that summer will be approaching soon? Do you feel a newfound excitement in your life?
Fertility
Beltane is about sensuality, sex, and fertility. If you’ve heard about the holiday of May Day, you’re most likely familiar with the May Pole. The maypole is a phallic representation of the masculine while the ribbons wrapped around it represent the feminine.
Some traditions mention people running around the woods at Beltane and the Summer Solstice, possibly naked, possibly to go have sex in the woods.
However you want to celebrate this aspect of Beltane is up to you. You can incorporate some of the foods and herbs mentioned below beforehand, either feeding them to yourself or your partner(s).
This event is not about shame or guilt, but it’s not exactly hedonistic either. I view it as a purely sensual event, which can be enjoyed solo or with others. But it’s about enjoying nature, the bounty of life, warmth, heat, and love.
The fertility aspect can relate to multiple things, such as conceiving a child or nurturing creative ideas. Both stem from the sacral chakra, which is right below the belly button, and is the birthplace of the spark that leads to creation. This can be a project, a new business, or artistic endeavor—it can be anything you want it to be. You can use the energy of Beltane to help bring fertile ideas to the fore and ask for them to be made real in your life.
Protection
Since animals were taken out to pasture during this time, and people would spend more time outdoors, one common theme of Beltane is protecting people and animals. In some traditions, a large bonfire would be made and people would walk their animals around the smoke to invoke protection. People would jump over the fire for various reasons; to get protection for themselves, couples would jump for luck or in help conceiving a child, and single women would jump to grant them luck in love.
During this time it’s believed that the veil between the living and the dead is thin, so it’s a good time to communicate with spirits. This includes nature spirits, such as fairies, which are a mixed bag when it comes to good or ill intentions.
If you’re interested in working with fairies, I recommend either inviting in ones that mean to help only for your highest good, or for a specific purpose. For example, you can ask for your protection fairies to look after you and your family, or for nature spirits to tend to the plants in your yard or in your home.
Essential Oils
Birch & Dill
Herbs
Apple - Belladonna - Birch - Celandine - Cinquefoil - Clover - Cuckoo Pint - Daisy - Dandelion - Dill - Dog Rose - Elder - Fir - Hawthorn - Honeysuckle - Horse Chestnut - Lily of the Valley - Mallow - Oak - Primrose - Rose - Sorrel - Sweet Cicely - Willow - Woodruff
Colors
Green, which symbolizes fertility, growth, wealth, money, love, creativity, attraction, compassion, heart chakra, vegetation deities, and the Earth element.
Red, which symbolizes passion, life, vitality, sex drive, the root chakra, warrior and mother deities, and the Fire element.
You can also use any colors that seem to be calling you. If they’re completely different, look up the meaning behind that color—there’s most likely a message for you in there. For example, I associate Beltane with the color pink, which relates to love, romance, and beauty.
Food
You can incorporate these however you like, and incorporate any foods that are in season where you live.
Cabbage - Rhubarb - Broad Beans - Early Lettuce - Spring Onions - Radishes - New Potatoes - Herbs - Hawthorn - Violet - Primrose - Cowslip - Dandelion - Dill - Sorrel - Chickweed - Nettle - Honey - Red & Pink Wine - Honey Cakes
For more ideas, check out my Beltane board on Pinterest. You’ll also find tarot reading ideas, spells, recipes, traditions, and information about the holiday.
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