May dew was indeed considered to be holy water. This
day was one which saw visits to the holy well. A visitor would walk three
times around the well, then they would throw in a silver coin, after which
while thinking of their wish they would drink from the well using their
hands. When those things were done, they would then tie a bit of colored
cloth or a piece of clothing to a branch of a nearby tree. The above had
to be done in complete silence as well as when the sun wasn t in sight.
The final part of the procedure had the visiting person well out of sight
of the well before sunrise. In many places, a May Queen was elected. She
was crowned by an elder lady of notoriety, after the new queen and her
court had arrived at a predetermined place. Some believe that in the older
times, it was the May Queen who lead the hymns to the rising sun, as all
the people congregated on the appropriate hill at Beltaine. She is also
believe to have led some of the marches in the older times.
Alban Heruin or Summer
Solstice
21
June
Lughnasadh or Festival of
Light
1
August
August 1 brought the feast of Lugh, the sun god;
the feast was called Lughnasadh. The Celtic religion, like that of ancient
Egypt, was basically solar-oriented; hence, this festival was an important
one. It was primarily an agrarian occasion, mainly concerned with harvest
time; it was a relatively happy period in the lives of the Celts, when the
most benevolent aspects of the gods were in evidence. We can trace Lugh
back to the Pretanic Celts. Here He is the son of Arianrhod and Gwydion.
While Arianrhod gave birth to him, Lugh was taken away by his father, who
was also his uncle, and raised by him. However, by the old traditions
there are certain things that can only be given by the mother. One of
these is the name and Arianrhod refused to do so when Gwydion brought him
to her. She said, "Why do you prolong my shame? He shall have no name
until I give it to him." The next day Lugh was practicing when
Arianrhod remarked, "The fair one has a skillful hand." Which is
the meaning of his name,
skillful hand , amongst the Pretani. She
was absolutely livid at having been tricked so she swore that he would
have no weapons lest they came from her hand, as this is the next thing to
come from the mother. Gwydion proceeded to determine how to circumvent
this problem and after having done so presented Lugh as a champion in need
of weapons. It was only after she had presented them that she realized who
he was. She then swore Lugh would have no wife, for this was the last
blessing to come from the mother. However, by the work of Math, Gwydion
created a woman made of the blossoms of oak, broom and meadowsweet. She
was named Blodeuwydd which means
flower face . But that is a whole
story unto itself and we ll leave it for our Pretani cousins to take those
up.
Lugh came to the Gaelic peoples just prior to the Second Battle of
Maige Tuired (moy tura). In the lore is told how He came to the
Tuatha de Danaan who were being led by the Dagda. He presented himself to
be a help in the coming fight against the Fomore. He was asked several
times what his skill was. Each time he told of a skill he was told that
one of the Tuatha already possessed that skill. Finally he broke the
stalemate by asking who amongst the Tuatha had all of the skills, as did
he. None did, and so he was not only admitted into the company of the
Tuatha but also given the title Il Danach which showed that he possessed
all of the skills. When the mighty battle finally roared and Tuatha
warrior met Fomore warrior on the field of honor, Lugh had been kept far
away from the scene. Finally, going against the wishes of the Dagda, he
went out to the scene of battle himself. The battle had gone hard for the
Tuatha even though the weapons of Goiban repaired themselves and the
healing of Dianecht brought back those who had fallen. Lugh certainly
saved that day. For he put out the evil eye of Balor before it could do
more damage. Yet even with the help of Lugh, the Tuatha suffered loses
with the death of Nuada and others. Lugh became permanent in the company
of the Tuatha. Lugh, the God of Light, was eventually wounded himself on
the day that is named after him, Lughnasadh. His death, however, comes in
the three days preceding the Samhain, when He dies at the hand of his
Tanist (his other self) who is the Lord of mis-rule. This is said to be
the festival of Lugh. However, this harvest festival usually dedicated to
Lugh was very often dedicated to his foster mother Tailltu. There is quite
a bit of evidence that Lugh stepped into the shoes once worn by Trograinn,
the son of Griann.
This is the time when the warriors returned from the fields of battle
to begin harvesting the crops. At this time fairs were held.
Traditionally, this was also the time when marriages were contracted.
There were many games and races. A great number of records still exist
which show that this date held importance across all of the Gaelic lands.
One of these, the 12th century manuscript of 'The Book of Leinster'
tells of a fair, an 'aenach', held at Carmun in Leinster (probably
south of Kildare).
