On May 1st, we celebrate Beltane, the beginning of summer. Beltane is a time when we try to increase the fertility of the land and our community. If the land is fertile, then it will grow more crops and there will be enough food for everyone to eat.

In the past, when villages grew all their own food, having enough for everyone was very important. If the crops died, then people would starve.

Today, it is also important for the land to be fertile. Many people go hungry everyday and we want to make sure there is enough for everyone to eat.

Beltane is named after the god Bel. Bel has many names depending on the country his story comes from. In Ireland, he may have gone by the name Bile or possible Balor. Bel is a god of firelight, the sun (or sunlight), healing and cattle. Many of the customs and rituals of Beltane are tied to these characteristics of Bel.

For example, Beltane is a fire festival. In ancient times, giant fires were built on Beltane. Special herbs were put into the fires and all of the cattle in the village were forced to walk in between two fires. As they walked between the fires, the villagers believed the cows were purified. After they were purified, the cattle were moved to a new pasture for the summer. Historians think that the smoke from the herbs helped get rid of parasites. This would have made the cows healthier and more fertile.

These special Beltane fires were built from nine different types of wood by nine men. Nine is an important number because it is 3 x 3. The number three was sacred to the ancient Irish. They split many things into three parts. The world was made up of three parts: the land, the sea and the sky. There were three different groups of people: the druids, the warriors and the farmers. Having nine people use nine different woods to build the Beltane fire shows how important this fire was. It required the use of the sacred number “3,” three times.

In addition to making the cattle healthier, some Beltane customs try to make people healthier. At dawn on Beltane, some people go out and collect the dew off of the grass. They believe that Bel’s healing powers are capture by the water when the sun rises. If the water is collected after it absorbs the healing energy, then it can be used to help people later in the year. The healing water can also be collected from other bodies of water. It just has to be taken right after the sun’s light hits it.

The most well know Beltane custom is the Maypole. The Maypole can be tree or it can be a pole that sticks straight up out of the ground. Many long ribbons are attached to the top of the tree or pole. Everyone at the celebration gets to hold the bottom end of one ribbon during the Maypole dance. Once the dance starts, one group dances clockwise and a second group dances counter-clockwise. The dancers weave back and forth between each other. As they move, the ribbons weave themselves around the pole.

The dancers believe that weaving the ribbons around the tree or pole will help make the land more fertile.

During Beltane rituals, we often call to a Flower Goddess and her suitor. In Irish rituals, this goddess is often called Bláthnat. Her name means “little flower”. Different people will pair Bláthnat with different suitors. Among the most common are Aonghus Mac Óg, the god of love and youth or the mighty heroes Diarmaid or Cúchulainn. As part of the ritual, Bláthnat and her suitor are married. Their marriage brings fertility and productivity back to the land and the community.

Beltane is a time when we do things to increase the fertility of the land as well as our own productivity. We all have things in our lives that keep up from producing our best work. Maybe we don’t plan our time well or maybe we are trying to do too many things at once. What is keeping you from doing the best you can do? Think of one thing you can do to be more productive and write it down.

Write a prayer to either Bláthnat, Aonghus Mac Óg, Diarmaid or Cúchulainn explaining what you would like to do to become more productive. Ask for his/her help with bringing more fertility into your life. Then, say your prayer on Beltane. You can say it during your grove’s or family’s ritual or at a quiet time during the day when you can talk to him or her.

How I Can Be More Productive

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My Beltane Prayer

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