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The Wheel of the Year is an annual cycle of seasonal festivals, observed by a range of modern pagans, marking the year's chief solar events (solstices and equinoxes) and the midpoints between them. Modern pagan observances are based to varying degrees on folk traditions , regardless of the historical practices of world civilizations . [ 1 ]
However, in some of the newer traditions of Wicca, and especially those influenced by feminist ideology, there is more emphasis on the Goddess, and consequently the symbolism of the Horned God is less developed than that of the Goddess. [9]: 154 In Wicca the cycle of the seasons is celebrated during eight sabbats called The Wheel of the Year.
Wiccans and Neo-Druids celebrate Imbolc as one of the eight Sabbats in their Wheel of the Year, following Midwinter and preceding Ostara. In Wicca, Imbolc is commonly associated with the goddess Brigid; as such, it is sometimes seen as a "women's holiday" with specific rites only for female members of a coven. [68]
An illustration of Witches' Sabbath by Martin van Maële, from the 1911 edition of the book La Sorcière, by Jules Michelet. A Witches' Sabbath is a purported gathering of those believed to practice witchcraft and other rituals. The phrase became especially popular in the 20th century.
Circle Sanctuary sponsors gatherings year-round, but its largest festival is the Pagan Spirit Gathering (PSG), held annually to coincide with the Summer Solstice. At first, the festivals were held at Eagle Cave in Grant County Wisconsin, but it outgrew the facilities and in 1997 moved to a location near Athens, Ohio , at Wisteria.
Stewart and Janet Farrar characterize the Oak King ruling the waxing year and the Holly King ruling the waning year, and apply the interpretation to Wiccan seasonal rituals. [6] According to Joanne Pearson, the Holly King is represented by holly and other evergreens, and personifies the dark half of the Wheel of the Year. [7]
An esbat / ˈ ɛ s b æ t / is a coven meeting or ritual at a time other than one of the Sabbats [1] within Wicca and other Wiccan-influenced forms of contemporary Paganism.. Esbats can span a wide range of purposes from coven business meetings and initiation ceremonies [2] to social gatherings, times of merriment, and opportunities to commune with the divine. [3]
The Magic Circle by John William Waterhouse (1886) A Solomonic circle with a triangle of conjuration in the East. A magic circle is a circle of space marked out by practitioners of some branches of ritual magic, which they generally believe will contain energy and form a sacred space, or will provide them a form of magical protection, or both.