The Wheel of the Year

The gods of the old religion become the devils of the new religion.  But, new religions, in an effort to gain membership and foster smooth social transitions, appropriate the old festivals with new names.

The year is divided into four quadrants.

Ascending:  The time between March 21 and September 21 is the feminine half of the wheel.  This is the light half of the year.

Descending: The time between September 21 and March 21 is the masculine half of the wheel. This is the dark half of the year.

You may know March 21st as the Spring Equinox.  This means that the light and dark half of the day is equal.  From this point, the days will get lighter and lighter.

September 21st marks when light will begin to diminish.

June 21st is the longest day of the year, and is celebrated by Wiccans as "Midsummer."


The shortest day of the year is December 21.  This is the holiday known as "Yule."  The Christmas holiday is sprout from Yule, notice the yule log.  Christmas also celebrates the Holly and the Ivy, both pagan references.  In Ancient Rome, this time of year was celebrated as "Saturnalius," a male deity.



The Wheel's High Holidays, Sabbats, and low holidays

December 21  Yule       This is the shortest day of the year.
February 2      Imbolc   This is when the lambs first give milk.  It is also known as "Groundhog Day."
March 22        Ostara      Spring begins.  This is where Easter comes from, and fertility symbols such as Easter Eggs and Bunny Rabbits
May 1             Beltane
June 21           Midsummer
August 2         Lughsahna      This is the first of the three Harvest Festivals
September 21   Mabon           This is the second of the Harvest Festivals
October 31       Samhain         This is the most important holiday of the year.  It is also known as "Halloween" and all of the Halloween symbols come from Samhain