Yule is about celebrating the Sun’s long journey back towards the Earth. During the time leading up to Yule, it’s a good idea to do some deep cleaning and de-cluttering, followed by a cleansing ritual so you have a fresh space to celebrate.
Before Yule – A time for preparation
Knit or sew new clothes
Prepare for winter
Store food and herbs for winter use
Take in potted plants and harvest the last of your herbs
Arts & Crafts
Make stove top potpourri
Make witch balls and hang them around your home or on a tree
Make a wreath using herbs that correspond with your intent (peace, happiness, prosperity, etc)
Use birch branches to craft a besom
Cleaning & Cleansing
As you do any cleaning, visualize removing all of the negative energy from your life
Clean your bathroom – scrub toilets, wipe down counters, clean out the bathtub
Clean your mirrors
Clean your windows
Finish all your cleaning with a good smoke cleanse using sage, sweetgrass, pine needles or mistletoe, along with your other favorite herbs. Start at the front door and move the incense around the doors and windows of every room, following the lines of the walls.
Get rid of all the extra clutter in your house
Replace your home’s air filter
Sprinkle carpets and rugs with baking soda and vacuum, making sure you move all your furniture to get underneath. Vacuum walls, baseboards, ceiling fans and all the other hard-to-reach places
Use a broom to sweep up dirt
Cooking
Bake and cook with family and friends, blessing the food with intent of prosperity and happiness
Brew cider infused with herbs and fruit that correspond with prosperity and happiness
Cook a feast of wintery foods
Decorating
Add comfy white pillows filled with herbs to your sofa for a sacred space to meditate
Decorate your tree and bless all of your ornaments
Hang golden suns around your house to welcome back the sun
Hang mistletoe for love and protection
Hang a sprig of holly in the house for good luck and safety
Leave out birdseed ornaments
Light lots of candles to symbolize bringing light back into your life
Spell-casting & Divination
Cast spells for peace, introspection, wishes and new beginnings.
Do a winter solstice tarot spread for yourself
Cast spells for light, purification, renewal and rebirth
Divination centered around messages and omens
Other Activities
Burn a Yule log in honor of the sun, and toss in a sprig of holly to burn away the troubles of the past year. note: use only a small amount of holly if burning indoors, as the fumes are toxic
Give gifts
Go carolling
Make holly water by soaking the leaves overnight in spring water under the full moon
Play in the snow and collect some to use in spells
Take a walk under the full moon and record any important thoughts or visions you receive
Tie up any loose ends in your life
Volunteer in your community or donate old belongings
Write about your reflections of the past year and what your goals are that you’d like to achieve by the end of the coming year. Bless the page with motivation and love.
Lughnasadh, pronounced “LOO-nah-sah” and known also as Lammas, is a Celtic festival that occurs from the 31st of July through into the 1st of August. It was observed fervently throughout Ireland, Scotland and the Isle of Man and marks the beginning of the harvest season.
Lughnasadh is the celebration and ritual of the first harvest of fruit, wheat, and grain. This festival both acknowledges and celebrates the waning of light – Lughnasadh is the initiation of Winter preparation.
It is named for Lugh Lámhfada. and is in honour of his step-mother, Tailtiu who perished of exhaustion after clearing the fields of Ireland ready to be planted, sowed and seeded. Lughnasadh was originally a set of rituals, gatherings and funerary games (named Tailteann Games, or
Áenach Tailteann) in honour of Tailtiu’s death and sacrifice.
Some Symbols of Lughnasadh:
Wheat
Corn
Barely
Oats
Onions
Grapes
Straw dolls/straw bales
Corn dolls
Wood
Tarot (strength)
Runes (Eihwaz)
The Colours of Lughnasadh:
Yellow
Orange
Red
Violet
Dark green
Brown
The Stones & Crystals of Lughnasadh:
Carnelian
Cat’s Eye
Citrine
Marble
Sale
Granite
Lodestone
The Herbs of Lughnasadh:
Heather
Blackberry
Rose
Sandalwood
Goldenrod
Important/Celebrated Foods of Lughnasadh:
Bread
Apples
Corn
Beer/Ale/Mead
Grapes
Onions
Apricot
Pear
Activities to be done during Lughnasadh:
Baking/Cooking: Sharing food is a good thing to do with each sabbat, especially those with agricultural ties. If you incorporate seasonal foods, and foods associated with the sabbat itself, it can be seen as an offering or as being done in honour of what you’re celebrating.
Take some time to enjoy nature: Lughnasadh is a time when the seasons are changing, so take this time to walk and enjoy the last that summer has to offer. Collect things whilst you walk to put on your altar if you have one.
Construct an altar: if this is something you do, decorate your altar with some of the items mentioned in the list above. If you’re pagan and have a deity who corresponds with this holiday, leave an offering on your altar. In Lugh’s case, he is a god known for his skills in craftmanship and His ability to turn His hand to anything. He is also known for playing the harp, so anything you have crafted or that has taken skill to create will be well received by Him.
Decorate your home: if you like, small decor changes can really get you in the mood and act as a celebratory act.
Bonfires: Invite friends and/or family to a bonfire. Not only is Lughnasadh a celebration of waning light and of the god Lugh, it is a celebration of fire. Share plans to remove negative habits or influences from your life with your loved ones, burn representatives of negativity, drink to future prosperity and toast to Lugh. Light a candle and do the same, if you are not yet an outed witch.
Craft: as mentioned before, Lugh is a god of craft and skill. Make something! Finish a project you’ve been putting off! If you don’t want to do something in Lugh’s name, you can make dolls out of corn (a very traditional activity) and they can be left on an altar if you have one, used as decoration or turned into a poppet.
Acts of athelticism: The funerary games of Lughnasadh were its primary reason for creation. To honour this, you can do something on a small scale, such as jogging or yoga, or going to the gym, if you are able.
Trading: Bake some bread and give it to your friends/family/coven in exchange for herbs, or some canldes! That’s just an idea. but you get the gist of it. Lots of trading took place at historic Lughnasadh celebrations, as they assembly for this season festival was always large.
Feasting: Ties into the baking/cooking aspect, but using things that come from the first harvest is a good way to honour Lughnasadh and Tailtiu.
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