Lammas: Celebrating the Fruits of the First Harvest

Celebrate the Fruits of the First Harvest Once a prominent Celtic festival known as Lughnasa (from the Gaelic násad, games or assembly, of Lugh, a Celtic deity and hero), Lammas is a joyful celebration of the first harvest. In an age when crops can be imported all year round, we tend to forget just how important this time was to our ancestors-the failure of the harvest meant starvation and death. Early August was a time to celebrate the fruits of the first harvest and work positive magic for prosperity and protection. Explore the origins, customs, and lore of Lughnasa and learn about similar festivals around the world, including Celtic, Norse, Roman, Egyptian, Russian, English, and Native American celebrations. Lammas includes a host of ideas for celebrating the bounty of the earth: • Prepare mouth-watering recipes for seasonal food, wine, and incense • Perform Lughnasa spells, songs, games, and rituals, including a traditional Witch ritual never before published • Make traditional crafts including corn dollies, sacred masks, totem shields, and more Compared to well-known Celtic holidays such as May Day (Beltane) and Halloween (Samhain), few people are familiar with the lore of Lughnasa. Even modern Wiccan books rarely devote more than a few pages to the Lammas celebration. Whether you're just starting on the path or are an experienced Witch looking for a new perspective on this ancient festival, you'll find that Lammas is a cornucopia of history, folklore, recipes, spells, and rituals. Lughnasa survived the rise of Christianity by becoming Lammas (from the Anglo-Saxon hlaef-mass, meaning loaf-mass). Lammas marks the first harvest when the first grain is gathered, ground, and baked into a bread known as the Lammas loaf, a practice still popular in many parts of the British Isles. The following spells excerpted from Lammas offer ways for the modern kitchen witch to make magic. LAMMAS BREAD WISH SPELL Make a loaf of bread at Lammas and before you put the loaf into the oven, dip a paintbrush in milk and write on the crust what you most desire. Bake the bread, then eat it while still warm. LAMMAS BREAD PROTECTION SPELL A book of Anglo-Saxon charms advised the crumbling of the Lammas loaf into four pieces and the burying of them in the four corners of the barn to make it safe for all the grain that would be stored there. You can use this old spellcraft in a protection spell for your home. Bake a Lammas loaf, and when it is cool break it into four pieces-don't cut it with a knife-and take one to each corner of your property with the words: I call on the spirits Of north, and south, east and west Protect this place Now, at the time of the Blessing. Leave the bread for the birds to eat or bury the pieces.… (more)