THE WHEEL OF THE YEAR.
The Wheel of The Year is a structural diagram on which to place all the phenomena of Nature, such as weather, tides, light, life of plants and animals etc. The Wheel described below is The Wheel of The Native British Tradition. Each continent has its own Wheel which describes the elements, weather, and life forms inherent to that particular Land. The Native American Tradition has The Medicine Wheel, while the Chinese Taoist Tradition has The Wheel of The Eight Trigrams etc.
THE FOUR SEASONS.
In Britain we live in a culture which has lost connection with the Four Seasons of Winter, Spring, Summer and Autumn. So much so that the London Met Office now starts seasons at the beginning of December, March, June, and September – in the middle month of the season; and recently the BBC1 programme ‘Autumn Watch’ announced that Autumn starts in October, and lasts for two months !!!
Midsummer’s Day is officially on 24th June in Britain, (not to be confused with the Summer Solstice). As a season is three months long, and in line with historical tradition, the British Summer begins on May Day, when we are surrounded by the beauty of flowers. May Day is also known as Beltaine -from bel/goodly, and aine from tinne/fire. This is a time when all hearths (the sacred centre of the home) were cleansed, and newly lit from beacon/temple fires. May is the time of fertility and rapid growth. As the flowers fall, the fruits swell, watered by the torrential rains of June, and ripen in the heat and electric storms of July.
Autumn, the season of harvests, begins on August 1st, known as Lammas, or Lunasa in Ireland. In Thomas Hardy novels we can read about the hiring fairs at Lammas, for the first grain harvest – from which the seed corn is saved for the following year. Fruit and vegetable harvesting also occurs throughout this season, and by the Autumn Equinox we celebrate the Harvest being safely gathered in for the Winter. Then, at Martenmas (marten = oxen) the final meat harvest takes place. In October, the last month of Autumn, the leaves begin to fall and compost down into the earth.
The beginning of Winter has always been celebrated at the Festival of Samhain on 31st October (eve) and 1st November. The fruit has rotted away and the seed is left – containing the cycle of next year’s growth and harvest. Now divided into three parts – Hallowe’en, Bonfire Night, and All Soul’s Day – Samhain (pronounced sow-aine) was originally the Native British New Year’s Festival. Winter is a time of rest and regeneration, and for many animals a time of gestation in the dark womb, and for many seeds a time of transformation deep in the dark earth.
Then, at the beginning of February the earth begins to awaken, and shoots push up from the dark, protective depths. Life begins to stir once again, as Spring begins. The early lambs are born, and we celebrate the Festival of Imbolc (meaning ‘ewe’s milk’). The increase of light is noticeable, snow waters begin to melt, animals come out of hibernation. We begin to plant seeds indoors or in our greenhouses. The Hazel tree is in catkin, and as the season progresses, buds begin to burst, leaves begin to shoot, animals are born, hens begin to lay, and the mating season of birds begins.
THE EIGHT POINTS OF POWER
While the Year can be divided into Four Seasons, it can also be divided into Eight Points of Power – which have traditionally been celebrated with Eight Festivals. While the diagonal cross, or Cross Quarter Days mark the very beginning of the Four Seasons as outlined above, the upright cross – vertical line marking the Solstices, and horizontal lines the Equinoxes - delineate the passage of the Sun around the Wheel. The Sun which gives us changing light throughout the year, and warmth, and fire – so essential to all life on Planet Earth.
The Solstices and Equinoxes are often mistakenly attributed to the moment that the Sun enters the Cardinal Signs of the Zodiac. In fact, the Solstices mark the Turning Point of the Sun when it moves into the Tropic of Capricorn and the Tropic of Cancer in a spiral movement. When the Sun reaches the centre of the spiral movement, it turns – and this is the moment of the Solstice. The Sun can take three or four days to turn and this creates a sense of time standing still. The Spring/Vernal, and Autumn Equinox fall when the Sun crosses the Elliptic – an imaginary line above the Equator. At this point in time, day and night are of equal length.
Yearly path of the Sun as mapped by artist, Charles Ross, by using a lens on his New York studio roof to burn a mark on wood every day at noon.
I also created the following calendar last year after keeping a chart on the wall during the previous year, and marking things that seemed important to me. It is a calendar that relates to living in Southwest Britain, so if you create one you need to centre it where you live, and choose things that are important to you.
As for the choice of trees – remember that trees have a number of power stations throughout the year. Also remember that Robert Graves - who many people follow unquestioningly about trees – was a poet who was into the moon – so he cut a 25 tree calendar down to a 13 tree calendar, and put evergreens at Midsummer, and deciduous trees at Midwinter – which ought to tell us something……..mainly that this was his personal poetic choice. I became very interested in Kaledon Naddair’s group exploration of an ancient Ogham Wheel diagram they found and worked with. Basically you have to work with trees and find out for yourself – and put your findings on the Wheel of the Year. Or come to my workshops where we work experientially as a group with trees.
SEASONS ON THE WHEEL OF THE YEAR
S P R I N G | FEBRUARY Imbolc the earth awakens sacred springs Apple tree mind, body, spirit new shoots seed coverings crack | MARCH winds…. germination Hazel tree / wisdom Spring Equinox sun over elliptic equal night & day dawn & its powers buds bursting | APRIL icy snap…. showers unfolding & growing Oak tree / doorway greening of the May Beltane Eve clean the hearth |
S U M M E R | MAY beltane light new sacred fire dew / essence Hawthorn tree / love thank the sea flowering rapid growth | JUNE Swelling…..heavy rain Ash tree / Fates Summer solstice sun turns in the Tropic of Capricorn 24th midsummer’s day | JULY Ripening…..sun Rowan tree / wheel hot, close thundery showers lammas eve what do you harvest? |
A U T U M N | AUGUST Lammas first harvest thank the earth keep seed corn for next year’s growth Yew tree eternal life | SEPTEMBER Gooseberry / incarnation Autumn equinox sun over elliptic harvest home dusk & its powers seas & mists heron / Sheelagh na Gig | OCTOBER clearing composting Elder tree / sight dark moon Samhain eve honour the beloved dead |
W I N T E R | NOVEMBER Samhain new moon / new year celebrations resolutions Blackthorn tree tests integrity endings & beginnings | DECEMBER rest & renewal 13th midwinter’s day Winter solstice sun turns in the Tropic of Cancer. Yule 26th Dec. – 6thJan. Holly tree / sanctuary | JANUARY deep transformation seed coverings change Ivy tenacity & fertility Imbolc eve Initiation, dedication |
