Between midsummer (21 June) and the autumnal equinox (21 September) the Celtic culture celebrates the harvest festival, also known as Lammas or Lughnasadh. The ancient Germanic, Slavic and Scandinavian peoples had a similar celebration. It’s still marked on 1 August (or thereabouts) in many regions, and focuses on the abundance of the first harvest, golden grain and ripe fruit.
Partnership
Nature-worshippers view Lammas as a moment of calm for appreciating what nature (and the labours of farmers and gardeners) have produced. It’s also celebration of the partnership between the divine and the human. The former creates life in every seed and pip, the latter makes it bloom. Together with Nature they create a circle of germination, growth, harvest and gathering new seeds to sow.
Life force
If accessories like corn dollies and wheat sheaves don’t really work in your interior, you can also create a spiritual circle with Aloë as a domestic altar or centrepiece. The plant has been around since prehistoric times, and is known as the ‘plant of immortality’ on several continents because it survives everything. So it’s very suitable for creating your own ‘circle of life’. Write on the stones what you’re happy about, and think about everything that Nature means to you to enjoy a lovely moment of peace.
