Blessed Imbolc
Brigid carried by angels as she wakes from her slumber, Image Source Unknown. Originally shared by Gabriele Gutierrez from Under a Fig Tree substack.
Blessed Imbolc; St. Brigids Day; Year of The Snake; New Moon
Dear reader,
This week has been a feast of celebration, transition, myth, and magick.
I wonder how you're doing with it all?
It's been a bit crunchy for me in some parts and mystical and reaffirming in others (tis' the nature of this wild aliveness).
I've been reminded lately how medicinal myth and ritual can be and how deeply they are woven into our bones and that of the Earth.
Because myth and ritual give us a channel for connecting our lived experience to the sacred; for being reminded that every experience is touched by the stars and drenched in benevolence.
In ancient Celtic spirituality and ideology, this time of year (around February 1st) marked the threshold of Imbolc (the halfway point between the Winter Solstice and Spring Equinox).
It is a time governed by two goddesses or one in the same depending on your vantage point- the Cailleach and Brigid.
The Cailleach is an ancient goddess of death and darkness and presides over this time until the Spring Equinox. It is said that when new life is born she touches it so that it may be prolonged in its growth- a reminder that some seasons of life cannot be rushed and miracles find fertile ground in the territory of the Cailleach when we are able to be with her; when we are able to be with our own death-birth cycles.
Around the beginning of February new life stirs amidst these conditions and the Cailleach shape shifts into her counterpart, Brigid. The goddess Brigid brings hope, inspiration, healing, and strength in relationships. Her name translates to exalted one and she stirs from her slumber now.
The archetype of Brigid is an affirmation of the life yet to come; warmer times; longer days; fertility; possibility; inspiration; new life.
But not yet, not quite yet.
The scraggly fingers of the old hag, the Cailleach, still hang on, waiting to take any remaining layers of skin that need to be shed to make way for Brigid's fertility.
It is a time of dreaming the dream; of nurturing possibility before it can even be imagined; of caring for what lives in the depth and darkness.
So, invitation to take sustenance in whatever way is available to you, connect with hope, give yourself grace, and become curious about the pace of nature; slow growth; patience.
In honor of this time and the power of gathering, I'll be hosting a virtual ceremony next Saturday 2/8/25, 10-11:30 am ET. I'd be stoked to have you join <3.
It'll be a bit mythical, magickal, and embodied to bring the wisdom of what's here now to the forefront so that it may be blessed by the Cailleach and Brigid; so that sustenance, hope, and patience may find you and nurture your sense of connection, confidence, clarity, and creativity.
Some of the things we'll be exploring through yoga, meditation, ritual, and somatic healing are:
self-forgiveness (Native American author Jamie Sams states: "Forgiveness and the release of the past open the creative flow of life, supporting all levels of mind, heart, body, emotion, and spirit. This energy flow determines the state of our health, our desire to create and procreate, our willingness to develop our gifts, and how we use or deny the life force that we are given as human beings. . . . by choosing to let go of the past, our fears, and our negative patterns or reactions to life, we are suddenly funded with a resurgence of life force, which propels us into a newfound way of being and a very different way of understanding the world."
merging the wisdom of past and future into presence through reflection, compassionate curiosity, and dreaming for guidance on what seeds are taking shape
the pace of nature to support the germination of your intentions and goals
fire divination (bring an unscented, undyed natural candle; if you don't have one you can visualize this practice using your creative imagination)
connecting with the intelligence of your animal body, beginning to gently unravel knots that are ready to experience new life, and tasting the source of it all
"Ritual is how we braid ourselves back into the animate world. It calls the soul into participation, restores the old bone knowing and reminds us there is nothing that is not holy." -Gabriela Gutierrez