29 April 2018

Happy Beltaine and May Day!!



 May Day (May 1st)—and May Day Eve (April 30th) with the bonfires on high tor—is an ancient celebration in Scotland and Europe.  Great balefires on Beltaine Eve still take place today in the Highlands.  In my novel, A Restless Knight, Book 1 of the Dragons of Challon, you will see many of these customs portrayed.

The holiday is considered one of four great fire festivals and was the halfway point between Spring Equinox and Midsummer Eve.  It was a time of joy, as the crops had been planted and you could see the coming harvest.  This is a time of fertility, of the ripening of the earth. 



May was considered the month of the Auld Gods, so no marriages took place.  However, there was a big rush as June came to marry, a custom we still honor to this day little understanding why.

The name Beltaine literally means Bel's fire.  All hearth fires and lights are extinguished at dark of Beltaine Eve, and will be relit from the sacred bonfires to see blessings to the domain.



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