Not all will have noticed but up and down the length of the United Kingdom there is activity! Farmers have started the first harvest. Some pretty impressive July storms have brought torrential rain across most of the country and with them a sense of frustration for farmers who have been watching and waiting for the right moment to begin.

I have also noticed some frenzied activity on the large bramble thicket opposite my bedroom window; there is a currently a battle to get the best early ripened blackberries, who will win, the walkers with their tupperware tubs or the blackbird who lives there? 

For the ancestors of this land this time was known as Lughnasadh and was one of the four important Celtic fire festivals. For people whose lives rotated around and depended upon the agricultural year, the festivals almost certainly offered a wonderful opportunity for celebration and merriment but were also likely to have been a time to give thanks to their Gods for the abundance which nature had provided since the spring. 

Lughnasadh is important to Pagans today and makes up one of the eight wheel of the year festivals or sabbats, the others being the remaining three ancient Celtic fire festivals, Beltane, Samhain and Imbolc along with those relating to the movement of the sun, summer and winter solstice and spring and autumn equinox.

In Anglo Saxon times with the coming of Christianity Lughnasadh became Lammas or 'loaf mass' due to the tradition of baking a loaf from the first grain and taking it to a church to be blessed.

The name Lughnasadh originates from the Celtic God Lugh and the word nasad meaning assembly. So essentially 'gathering for the God Lugh'. Legend has it that Lugh started the festival himself in honour of his foster mother Tailtiu, an earth Goddess who died from exhaustion after clearing the land in Ireland to allow for agriculture.

​Lugh is seen as a God of the sun, of the light. It is symbolic that at this time of first harvest the light is starting to wane as we head towards the darker days of autumn and winter. The heat of the sun has entered the corn and in combination with the richness of Mother Earth, allowed it to grow. It is as if Lugh himself has entered the corn. He must now be cut down and so that people may eat through through the winter, sacrificing himself for others, but sure in the knowledge that come spring he will return and his strength will be restored. Traces of this ancient symbolism, most likely familiar to our ancient ancestors, can still be seen today in folklore stories such as John Barleycorn, who gave his name to many a public house, reflecting the echoes of the past that are all around for those who see.

Perhaps Lughnasadh is a good moment to pause and be thankful for what nature provides, to wonder at the abundant result of the powerful sun and the nourishing earth, to reflect on seeds we planted in spring and how they may be coming to fruition and to consider how we will prepare and sustain ourselves for the darker months ahead.

​Lughnasad Blessings to you all! 
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For many people speaking about death remains a taboo, however as my interview with Sarah Weller shows, it doesn't have to be scary and feeling empowered to make better choices around end of life care and funerals can be a deeply moving, healing and even spiritual experience.

You can listen to my interview with Sarah here;

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I started Windhover Ceremonies to provide a Celebrant service to all regardless of their spirituality or beliefs. I do however find myself well placed to serve those of nature based or other Pagan paths and enjoy creating something meaningful for people, rather than them having to 'make do'. Firmly reestablished in the UK is Heathenry and its various paths such as Asatru. It is important to recognise this is a serious faith path today with a growing number of followers. There are also however many who are inspired by the Viking age, helped in no small part by the wonderful series Vikings on the History Chanel. So if you are a Viking fan or Viking reenactor you too may be on the look out for something, well, a little more Norse. 

For someone like me who is first and foremost a student of a path with its origins in the 'Celtic' period of the Bronze and Iron Age, pre history, I find the Viking period especially fascinating as there is such a rich array of historic accounts of the periods and of rites of passage that we simply don't have for the ancient 'Celts'. The oral tradition of the 'Celtic' peoples was cut short when the guardians of their knowledge, The Druids, were slain by the Romans in circa 60 AD on the Welsh island of Anglesey. However the reach of Rome did not make it as far as Scandinavia and therefore the oral tradition continued until it was written down in the sagas. 

I have researched and written a three part article 'Viking Rites' to help provide ideas and inspiration for those desiring Viking / Heathen ceremonies. I hope you find the following interesting, beginning with part 1 - baby naming.
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Throughout history and across cultures, naming a newborn child has always been held as an important rite and it was no different for the Norse. For followers of Heathenry today, including Asatru, we can draw on historical sources for inspiration to mark this most important of occasions. ​

The sagas make a number of mentions of a ceremony to name a new born, referring to it as 'Vatni Ausa' meaning to pour or sprinkle water over. 

The ceremonies were undertaken for both girls and boys.

"Then in the summer when Þórsteinn was twenty-five years old, Þóra gave birth to another son, who was sprinkled with water and given the name Grímr. Þórsteinn dedicated this boy to Þórr, calling him Þórgrímr." (Eyrbyggja saga, chapter 11)

"In the summer Þóra gave birth to a girl, who was sprinkled with water and given the name Ásgerðr." (Egils saga Skallagrímssonar, chapter 35)

I note that both accounts I quote mention the baby being born in summer, perhaps an indication of how the Vikings passed those long Scandinavian winters nights...;)

The ceremony would begin with the baby being picked up, usually by the father, from the ground. This is thought to be an act of acceptance. The naming rite was seen as the official moment the baby became part of the family and when they became protected under Viking law.

​Water would then be sprinkled on the child. This practice pre-dates the Christianisation of the region and is subtly yet distinctly different from baptism. In baptism the water is to 'purify' the child, referred to in old Norse during the later Christian period as 'skirn' meaning purification. In the pre Christian Vatni Ausa ceremony the water was to 'hallow' meaning to bless or make sacred, essentially, a blessing from the Gods.

The 'hallowing' or blessing was completed with the sign of the hammer being made over the child, referencing or invoking the protection of the God Thor. Thor, despite his mighty hammer wielding image, is also the protector and blesser of all humankind. 

The act of giving the child their name is referred to as 'nafnfesti' meaning name fastening, the same derivative as 'hand fasting'. At nafnfesti it was customary to give gifts to the child. In the sagas of Ragnar Lothbrok, Ragnar is said to have placed his son in his cloak, named him Sigurd and given him a gold ring. A child would then be given gifts again when they cut their first tooth, believed to be the origin of the 'tooth fairy'. 

To add authenticity and for those for whom Heathenry is their faith I offer a choice of water for the blessing from Iceland or Norway. Both originating deep within the earth of these ancient lands, my hope is that the waters carry the spirit of these places and their Old Gods.

I hope that I have informed and inspired you, please feel free to get in touch via the contact button above if you would like me to assist with a ceremony.

Read 'Viking Rites' Part 2 here - Viking Marriage. 

Whilst in the wonderfully bohemian East Sussex seaside town of Brighton this week, I headed down to the North Laine and Cultural Quarter and met up with Brighton resident Robin Taylor, who is the current President of the Pagan Federation. Listen to my interview here;

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