This article was first used as part of the Craft 101 Mailing List articles. It
is used here with permission.
The "Feast of Lights" is one of the four pagan Greater Sabbats. It is also
known as Candlemas or Imbolc. It is dedicated to the Goddess Brigid, the goddess
of fire and inspiration.
Brigid ( Bride, Brigantia, Brighid and other variations of the name pronounced 'Breed')
and the other goddesses including Dana, Anu, Arianrhod, Cerridwen, Modron, Epona,
and others, all were originally one Great Mother. This is particularly the case in
Celtic cultures. Incidentally there is much similarity between Brigid and Dana in
Celtic mythology.
In Britain, Brigantia was a supreme, all embracing deity of the North Kingdom. She
most closely kept her Great Mother form, that of earth, fertility, love, and war
among other things. On the continent she was known as Brigindo or Berecyntia. In
Gaelic areas she was the Goddess of fire, inspiration, healing, craftsmanship and
childbirth. She was the patron of poets, smiths, doctors, of the heath, and of priest
(both Druid and later Christian). Brigid was a expert in poetry, divination and prophecy.
Brigid was the daughter of Daghdha (Dagda) "The Good God" of the Tuatha.
She was born at sunrise and fed by a supernatural cow. She was married to Bres of
the Fomors and bore him one son Ruadam. When her son was killed in battle "Was
the first time Ireland heard crying & shrieking. She was one of the few Goddesses
who was a very outspoken critic of war. She had two sisters both named Brigid and
from their common name a single goddess to be called Brigid. This is an excellent
example of the three fold goddess.
Despite her firm pagan roots, it is the Christian "St. Brighid" that is
remembered the best. This is due to the lack of written word during the early Celtic
Culture and may be also due to the Church of later days. However it is assumed that
there is no clear cut distinction between the goddess and the saint as the two have
been completely merged over the years.
The saints life infers a close contact with nature. Her feast day February 1, Candlemas,
coincides with Imbolg, the pagan festival of spring. Legend has it that nineteen
of her nuns and herself guarded a sacred fire, surrounded by hedges so that no man
could enter. St. Bridget was said to have died about 525. Historical fact about her
life consist mainly of anecdotes and miracle stories deeply rooted in pagan folklore.
The fire goddess aspect appears in one story when a man accuse her of not being holy.
To prove a point she puts a burning coal on her breast and walks from Ardagh to Killen
without being burnt. One version also says that were she dropped the coal a spring
appeared. She also had the power to multiply food and drink and could change her
bath water into ale. These stories show a definite command over the elements. Its
also not surprising that Bridget's cross is the swastika or fire wheel which is a
central piece used at many Imbolg Sabbats.
Brigid is a excellent example of a goddess that cannot be banished from the dreams
of men and women. An aspect of the Great Mother in which we can turn to in need or
for inspiration. You may wonder why, in an article on Imbolg, I have included so
much material on Brigid. The reason is, that it is her festival and in order to understand
the significance of Imbolg we must have a better understanding of the Goddess involved.
To continue, Imbolg is the quickening of the year. The first stirrings inside the
womb of the Earth Mother. The emphasis is on light as it begins to pierce the dark
gloom of winter. It is a fire ritual too, but mainly a light ritual as it is the
midpoint in the dark half of the year (the halfway point in the God's predominance).
Although it is in this the God's segment of the year's cycle, it is still very much
a festival of the Goddess. A time of fertility of the earth and it's creatures, a
time of inspiration, and of the quickening of spirit that Spring brings. All these
are features of the Goddess Brigid.
Today St. Brigid crosses are made of rushes or straw, a ceremony connected with the
preparation of the seed grain for the growing season. This is a time to prepare for
the new crops and to do the first plowing. In Scotland on St.Brigid's Day, the women
dress up a sheaf of oats in women's clothing and place it in a basket, called "Brigid's
Bed", beside a phallic club. The symbolism being, to create a proper place for
the Goddess to be welcomed and an invitation for the fertilizing God to come and
impregnate her. In Irish homes a person gathers rushes and upon entering the house
is greeted "Welcome Brigid". Holy water is sprinkled on the rushes and
crosses are made. The remains are buried and the crosses from the previous year are
burned. Ireland is also noted for its thousands of Brigid's wells, near each, cloth
can be seen tied to trees to invoke Brid's help.
In ancient Rome, a fertility rite was also held in February (the month of ritual
purification). At the beginning came Lupercalia when the priests of Pan, The Luperci,
ran naked through the streets striking everyone with goatskin thongs. Those struck
were believed to be made fertile.
The tradition of cleansing is still strong when it comes to Imbolg. It is a time
of cleansing. A time to burn all holly, ivy, mistletoe, bay, and rosemary from the
Yule season. It is a time to look to the future and clean up the past. A good time
to burn all remains of previous work such as leftover wax and such.. In Ireland the
Christmas tree was kept until Candlemas to be burnt. If the needles were still green
it was a sign of good luck in the year ahead. Another belief in Britain, Spain, France
and Germany is that if the weather is good on Candlemas then more winter is yet to
come. If it is a bad day then winter is over. Imbolg is the turning point between
winter and spring and to be impatient is unlucky.
During most Imbolg rituals, the High Priestess invokes the God into the High Priest,
instead of the High Priest invoking the Goddess into the High Priestess. This too,
like Bride's Bed, is symbolic of the seasonal invitation to the God to impregnate
the Goddess. In Christian traditions a young girl wears a crown of lights to symbolize
the extreme youth of the season. In many pagan circles it is the High Priestess who
wears the crown because she represents the fertility of the Great Earth Mother.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
1. A Witches Bible Compleat (Magickal Childe - 1981), Janet & Stewart Farrar
2. The Witches Goddess (Phoenix Publishing Co. - 1987), Janet & Stewart Farrar
3. The Spiral Dance (Harper & Row - 1979), Starhawk
