The first 2 days in February have been very special to our ancestors for more
than a thousand years. A wide range of Pagan and Christian traditions in these
islands have recognised this moment in the wheel of the year as an important
opportunity for harnessing the energetic/spiritual quality of RENEWAL.

Our Celtic ancestors celebrated the Festival of Imbolc (pronounced im'olk) at
this time, as the beginning of Spring. The name "Imbolc" came from the Old Irish
"i mbolg" meaning "in the belly" referring to the final phase of pregnancy in
sheep and the Gaelic "oi-melc" meaning "ewe's milk". Imbolc was a "fire-energy"
time to re-align with the concept of NEW LIFE/NEW BEGINNINGS which also
translates into PURIFICATION. The renewal/purification aspect of this Festival
lent itself to a fairly easy shift towards renaming it "Candlemas" during the
Christianisation of indigenous British pagan culture.

Candlemas celebrates the moment that Jesus was first presented to God at the
Temple in conjunction with the end of the
Jewish 40-day period of post-birth purification [discharge of lochia] for his
Mother. This event became labelled Candlemas because Simeon held the baby Yeshua
[Jesus] and said that he would LIGHT THE WAY TO GOD. Snowdrops were known as
Candlemas Bells because they heralded the coming of this Feast Day [February
2nd] and a superstition grew up that they should not be brought into the house
prior to Candlemas.

Rituals
-------
Imbolc/Candlemas rituals allow us to focus, re-align and uplift our energy in
resonance with the energies of nature [lengthening daylight, Spring plant
growth, onset of bird & animal breeding] and tradition [ancestral connections].

Common practices involve the lighting of white or pale blue candles to symbolise
spiritual en-light-enment and the coming return of the warmth of the Sun. If an
outdoor bonfire is possible, it can be used to cleanse the garden of dead
vegetation in preparation for Spring growth - aided by ash from the fire, and
also to burn written notes of any personal "dead wood" we wish to clear in order
to make way for our own new growth. An outdoor fire is are always possible, so
this year I have acquired a small indoor bioethanol fire for my own "Spring
cleaning" ceremony.

Dreams, plans and intentions for the coming warm months can be written down and
buried in the ground or they can be spoken out while lighting a candle or
planting seeds. Our ancestors linked Imbolc to Brighid [Bríde, Brigit], the
Gaelic Goddess of poetry, healing, holy wells, sacred flames and smithcraft, who
became Christianised into "St. Brigid". So the reading of inspiring poetry or
healing purifcation practices which include ritual washing or baptism, accord
well with her legacy. In Shamanism, Imbolc gives us yet another excuse to get
into a bit of fire-energy drumming! - spontaneously and co-creatively drumming
away the energy of the old dark winter months and "drumming in" the energy of
the new, brighter and warmer times to come. Shamanic journeying allows us to
connect to our guides and to find a personal "power animal" archetypal quality
that we can usefully cultivate to empower our purification and new growth.

Celebrate Imbolc/Candlemas in Cambridge with Sacred Circle Dances and Songs:
http://www.lovehealth.org/dances/index.htm

Shamanism Foundation Course encompassing Imbolc rituals:
http://www.sunflower-health.com/shamanicworkshops.htm1

MORE ABOUT Imbolc, Candlemas & Groundhog Day:
http://www.CHEAL.org/message/232

-----oOo-----