A Family Guide to Celebrating the Pagan Sabbat Beltaine

Beltane, a fertility festival, is the halfway point of spring, corresponding to the passage from puberty to adolescence. Derived from the Gaelic word for May – Bealtaine pronounced “b’YOLL-tinnuh”. It is the last of the spring fertility festivals and the time when all life plans for the warmer summer months.

Amber K stated in her book Covencraft: Witchcraft for Three or More:

It is one of the Great Sabbats, perhaps the most ancient,
recognized by the early pastoral peoples of Europe. In
celebrating the waxing of life, it stands directly opposite
the more somber sabbat of Samhain in the Wheel of the
Year, which explores the theme of death and beyond.

Beltane is a festival to celebrate with lots of people. Have a party, invite family and friends – Pagan or not. Spring is in full swing, colors are alive everywhere, and for many places it’s time to put in gardens and crops. Handfastings (marriages) often take place on Beltane.

The May Pole is erected and dances take place as participants weave brightly colored ribbons around the pole.
Dew is also collected from the grass and leaves on the morning of Beltane to be used in a blessing by wetting the hair and head with it.

At this time the Young Lord and the Maiden consummate their relationship with the Great Rite.

Although Beltane is mainly a fertility festival, families can include their children in their celebrations by focusing on the fertility of the land aspect instead of on sexual aspects.

Any gardening that hasn’t been started yet should be done on this day. Gardens and crops should be blessed with offerings to ensure a good crop placed around the garden.

The Roman holiday was known as Florialia a celebration for the flowers that would bare fruit.

Nature Spirits
Spring Fairies are out in full abundance and care should be taken to make sure they are treated with respect and not provoked into doing harm. Make sure to refill the offerings you have left for the fairies. Also check the shelters you have built for them to make sure they are sturdy and in good shape, make any necessary repairs.
Elves are also in abundance in the spring and take this time to explore the world around them. Small yet great Magickal beings, they are kind and beneficial to humans. Elves can be solitary creatures and they hate cats.

Colors
Green imparts abundance, growth, healing, prosperity, fertility, employment, luck, controls jealousy, increases the sense of your personal appearance, neutralizes difficult situations, calms, deals with finances, security and career.

Brown represents stability, integrity, justice, endurance, animals, concentration, grounding, Earth, neutrality, strength, grace, decision making, pets and family issues.

Pink suggests compassion, tenderness, harmony, affection, love, romance, spiritual healing, spring, household peace, honor, virtue, morality, success and contentment.

Red stands for love, Passion, fire, willpower, courage, energy, strength, blood, desire and the life cycle.

White signifies cleansing, peace, protection, healing, truth, divination, tranquility, purification, childhood and innocence.

Yellow celebrates joy, vitality, intelligence, study, persuasion, charm, creativity, communication, mind power, the sun, psychic ability, and attraction.

Flowers
Lily of the Valley gives mental powers, and happiness.

Fox Glove offers protection.

Rose grants love psychic powers, healing, love, divination, luck and protection.

Broom aids in purification, protection, wind spells, and divination.

Scents
Rose summons love, psychic powers, healing, love, divination, luck and protection.

Sandalwood encourages protection, healing and spirituality.

Stones
Emerald corresponds to prosperity, mental and psychic abilities, dreams, meditation, visual acuity, love, peace and balance.

Malachite embodies power, energy, protection, love, peace, success in business, vision quests and gardening.

Amber indicates stability, self confidence, and peace.

Carnelian promotes courage, verbal skills, peace, stops jealousy, stops apathy, stops fear and rage.

Incense, Herbs, Trees and Woods
Angelica represents protection, healing, visions, removes hexes, cleansing and purification.

Bluebell signifies constancy, strength, luck and truth.

Daisies attract love.

Dittany of Crete aids in creating manifestations and astral projection.

Elder is used for Fairy contact, healing, and summoning spirits.

Frankincense is used for spirituality, protection, banishing of negative entities, consecration and meditation.

Hawthorn attracts fairies, aids in protection, and is used to invoke a psychic shield.

Lilac is for protection, beauty, love, to help reveal past lives and purification.

Lily of the Valley offers happiness, mental powers, aids in decisions of the conscious mind, peace and memory.

Mint aids in obtaining money, love, good health, travel and protection.

Mugwort encourages divination, clairvoyance, psychic powers, dreams, protection, strength and astral projection.

Oak summons protection, divination and spiritual contact.

Patchouli assists with fertility, money problems, protection, divination and physical energy.

Rose draws love, beauty, luck, psychic powers, protection, and peace.

Thyme represents courage, the conscious mind and good health.

Vanilla increases mental powers, physical and magickal energy while drawing close love.

Woodruff is for success and purification.

Yarrow imparts courage, protection, love and psychic powers.

Animals and Birds
The Cat symbolizes mystery, magic and independence.

The Lynx represents secrets and visions of the hidden and unseen

The Leopard signifies overcoming demons, renewal of vision and vitality

The Swallow implies protection and warmth for the home and proper perspective.

The Dove represents feminine energies of peace, maternity and prophecy.

The Swan stands for awakening the true beauty and power of the self.

Other Symbols
The May Pole which people dance joyfully around, is a phallic symbol representing the God.

Bonfires are built to honor the Sun God and people leap over them in a purify ritual. Leaping the bonfire cleanses the person and leaves unwanted things behind in the flames to be consumed.

A May Queen and May King are chosen to represent the Goddess and God. They preside over all of the activities.

Flowers and Flower Crowns includes nature in your festivities and celebrates the first signs of life in early spring. After the festivities are over, the flowers may be given in an offering to the Goddess.

Energy and Power Flows
Energy is now in its full creating mode. Propagation of gardens and ideas are churning away. Intuition reaches a high point.
Contact with faeries, and other supernatural beings becomes easier at this time of year but caution should be used at all times. Because contact it easier, it is now possible to strengthen your connection with supernatural protectors and beings around you. You can do this by making sure the fairies and other magickal beings such as elves have what they need – and what they want! Provide well for them and they will return the favor and provide well for you.

Traditions

May Pole Dancing
A tall pole is inserted into the ground with colored ribbons attached to the top of the pole. Two circles of people are formed, an inner circle and an outer circle. The group on the outside dances counterclockwise while the inner circle dances clockwise. Each group weaves in and out raising and lowering the ribbons alternately to pass the other dancers. This tradition weaves together blessings and happiness for the coming year.
There are several types of dances that can be performed with a May Pole, do some research and experimentation to find what works best for your celebrations!

Collecting of May Day Waters
May Day waters should be collected as soon after dawn as possible to prevent them from evaporating and having their magickal properties go to waste. Collect dew from tree leaves and grass to use in your celebration and rituals through out the day when asking for blessings from the Goddess.
Deliver a small glass bowl filled with May Day water to your fairy garden to share with them.

Garden Blessings
This is the most important time to bless your garden. Seeds and plants should all be by now. Hold a special ritual in your garden and ask for the Goddess’s blessing upon your crops. You can sprinkle May Day waters throughout your garden while asking the Goddess for her blessing on the fertility of the land. Leave offerings of flowers and seeds for the Goddess when asking for her help. You may also wish to ask the fairies and elves for their help with the garden, as they may decide to help keep weeds and insects away from your growing crops.

Beating the Bounds
Beating the bounds means you walk along your property lines appreciating and taking care of what you have. While doing this you should repair any fences that need repair, clean out any trash you may find, and all around take pride in the land that the Goddess has blessed you with.

Flower Garlands
Make a crown from a flower garland (see how to make evergreen garlands in the Yule craft section). Females of all ages can adorn themselves with this natural piece of a jewelry to celebrate the Goddess within each of them.

Dancing, feasting, playing musical instruments, and overall having fun is the perfect way to celebrate Beltane.

Crafts

Dried Flower Notecards
This is a great project to do at the end of Beltane as you can use some of the flowers used as decorations and in flower crowns to make these with.

What you need:
Fresh flowers
A few heavy books
Blank note cards or card stock
Scissors
Glue
A small paint brush
Contact paper (optional)
Wax paper or coffee filters

What you do:
Fold wax paper or coffee filters around each flower and press in a thick telephone book or catalog. It takes at least a week or two to completely dry out and press a flower.
When the plants are dry, carefully remove them from the book.
Arrange them on your paper in an artistic manner. You may have to trim some stems with a scissors.
Remove the plants, remembering where the plants were so you can put them back later. Brush a thin layer of glue on the paper where the dried plants were and carefully put the plants back in place. This can be difficult and using a tweezers to place them on the glue can be helpful (adult help may be needed at this stage). Make sure all the plant material is touching the glue and lying flat on the paper. Let the glue dry completely.
At this point you may want to cover them with clear contact paper to hold them on better and protect them longer.
You now have beautiful stationery or cards.

Butterfly Wand
For each butterfly you will need:
A popsicle stick
A pipe cleaner
A circular coffee filter
Markers, paints or crayons
Small piece of thread
Glue (or glue sticks and a hot glue gun)

What to do:
Paint or color the popsicle stick black to make the body of the butterfly.
Holding the popsicle stick long ways, fold a pipe cleaner in half and glue to the underside of the popsicle. Twist the pipe cleaner a few times to form the butterfly body and then bend the ends outward to form an antennae in the shape of a “V”.
Using crayons, markers or paints decorate the coffee filter, this will make the wings of the butterfly.
Scrunch up the middle and tie with the thread. Tie the thread to the pipe cleaner body and use a little bit of glue to hold in place. Fan out the coffee filter “wings”.
You can make several different butterflies and use them as decorations, play with them in the wind, or even use them as puppets to put on a nature play.

Stained Glass Hanging Ornaments/Decorations
What you need:
Wax paper
Crayon shavings (either from a crayon sharpener, or have an adult use a knife to scrape crayons to make shavings)
Scissors
Flat items such as flowers, leaves, glitter, seeds – 2 dimensional items work best for this project.
An iron (to be used by an adult)
A towel
Paper punch
Yard or string

What you do:
Fold a piece of wax paper in half and cut two identical pieces out of it in any size and shape you wish.
Lay one piece of wax paper flat and cover with flat items and crayon shavings. Arrange them as you see fit. Lay the second piece of wax paper over the items making sure to line the edges up correctly. Lay a towel over the top taking care not to move any of the contents. Have an adult use the iron to melt the two pieces together. This will also melt the crayon shavings creating pretty patterns. Using the iron in a circular motion will help to create swirls with the melted crayon wax.
Use the paper punch to punch a hole at the top. Thread a piece of yarn or string through the hole to make a hangar. Hang in front of windows so the sun will shine on and through your ornamental decorations.

Paper Plate Suns
What you need:
Paper plates
Yellow construction paper
Scissors
Glue
Yellow or orange paint
Black paint or black marker

What you do:
Paint both sides of a paper plate either orange or yellow.
Trace hands on yellow construction paper and cut them out enough to totally encircle the plate with the fingers sticking out as rays of light. Glue the hands to the back of the paper plate. You can use the black paint or marker to draw a smiley face on the sun.
You may also use a paper punch and string to hang the suns throughout your home.

Decorated Flower Pots
What you need:
Terra Cotta clay flower pots (these are available in many sizes and can usually be found very inexpensive at clearance sales in the fall)
Outdoor waterproof paints
Pencil
Paint brushes of different sizes

What you do:
Using a pencil draw a design on your flower part to paint. Try spring or summer related themes, or even draw pictures of the plants you want to put into the pots. Paint the pots using outdoor waterproof paints so the pictures won’t run or fade. After painting you can plant seeds or plants in them and decorate windowsills, decks, or porches. These also make great gifts to give to people. You can start painting pots now and place packets of seeds inside them, saving them to give as gifts at Yule. These also make great gifts for springtime weddings.