Today, August 1, is Lammas Day. I mention this for two reasons: one — because it’s August 1 and two — I have always been curious about witches. The first time I heard about Lammas Day was some time ago when I was doing some extensive research about witches…. so I thought this might be a good way to kick off August.
Lammas is a pagan holiday and one of eight Wiccan sabbaths during the year. Each sabbath marks a seasonal turning point. This sabbath occurs on August 1, which is about halfway between the summer solstice and the fall equinox. The holiday celebrates the grain harvest. (In more recent times, it’s become a wheat harvest festival — and also become known as Loaf Mass Day.)
Grain was, and is, a very important crop for most civilizations. If the grain was left in the fields too long, or if the bread made from the grain wasn’t baked in time, families might have starved.
In early Ireland, it wasn’t good to harvest grain before Lammas. If you did harvest early, that meant that the harvest from the previous year ran out before the next harvest was ready. And that meant that the farmers would have failed in providing for the community. On Lammas, the first sheaves of grain were cut, and by that night, the first loaves of bread for the season would have been baked.
The word Lammas comes from an Old English phrase that translates to “loaf mass.” In early Christianity, the first loaves of the season were blessed by the church during Mass.
Modern day pagans bake breads and cakes to celebrate the historical grain harvest (and bread making.) Some observers celebrate with a harvest ritual. The ritual typically involves decorating an alter with symbols of the season. Some rituals involve casting a circle, and saying some words that symbolize their thanks to the Earth for the harvest — usually, everyone eats some bread and probably drinks some wine to wash it down.
Like a lot of these type days, there is a lot of traditions and folklore associated with it, like the proverb: “After Lammas Day, corn ripens as much by night as by day.”
Happy Lammas Day.
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