An historical look at this ancient fire festival, its traditions and some common misconceptions.
Beltane is one of the major sabbats in the Pagan/Wiccan year and is an ancient Celtic fire festival. It is the time to celebrate the union of the young Goddess and the Sun God, a time when the darkness of winter fully retreats and life returns to the earth. As with Samhain, Beltane is a time when the veil between this world and the next is at its thinnest and in long ago this was seen as a time of potential danger or mischief from troublemaking spirits. Thus, Beltane was a time to appease these spirits and to prepare for the harvest that would occur later in the year.
The ancient Celts were a pastoral people and Beltane was a time when the herds were brought out to summer grazing lands and pastures. It’s traditionally known that the Druids would light two fires for the livestock to be driven through for purification and also as a fertility rite. Since the people of the community greatly depended on the meat of the livestock, this fire ritual was performed as a way for the gods to bless the herd with continued fertility.
In our modern times, Beltane is often perceived as a time of overflowing sexuality, but in fact for the ancient Celts this was more of a practical, busy time filled with preparations for the maintaining of the herd and the sowing of crops. Marriages and intimate encounters were sure to take place during this time but the fertility aspect was more likely to apply toward the cattle and game animals. The ancient Celts were very dependent upon cattle and game as a food source and these animals would have been giving birth to their offspring around this time of year.
Although some say that the word Beltane means “Son of Bel”, in connection with the Sun God Belenus, there is actually some dispute over this. Belenus was not recognized in Ireland and Britain until their occupation by the Romans, who brought with them their gods and goddesses from the region of Gaul and historically it is unclear whether the festival of Beltane was even celebrated in Gaul. So, more than likely, it is believed that the word Beltane has the meaning of “new fire” or “bright fire”. This would make sense especially since the ancient Celts traditionally extinguished their hearth fires at the time of Beltane and then relit them from the embers of the sacred bonfires lit by the Druids.
The well-known Maypole was in fact of possible Germanic origin and wasn’t part of ancient Irish tradition. Instead they had the tradition of May bushes, which were small deciduous trees that symbolized the renewal of life. These trees were cut down and placed in front each person’s home in the days before Beltane. They were decorated with ribbons, flowers and egg shells and then on the evening of Beltane they were placed into the ritual bonfires.
Many modern traditions have merged with the rituals of the ancient Celts and to this day Beltane is celebrated as both a sacred and a joyously festive occasion that is laced with a rich and colorful history.
