Ch.15 The Sabbats (WMB 15.e)

Extract from: Wicca: Magical Beginnings written by d’Este & Rankine, 2008 (Avalonia.) PB / Kindle @ https://amzn.to/3Ay4HJr.

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Chapter 15 - The Sabbats - part e

The origins of the Sabbats are one of the most debated issues in the Wiccan tradition. Based on the evidence, we feel the cycle of the four Greater Sabbats of Imbolc, Beltane, Lammas and Samhain, are derived from the precedent of the practices of the Irish druids as mentioned in the tenth century Psalter of Cashel. The later inclusion of the solar cycle of the equinoxes and solstices may be derived from more contemporary sources such as the writings of Frazer or Murray, but we have no conclusive evidence for this.

The Sabbats are, as stated in the beginning of this chapter, the central axis of Wicca, providing the basis for the celebrations in a natural, mythical and magickal manner. It is the Sabbats which differentiate Wicca from other contemporary magickal traditions by linking it into the seasonal cycle. By so doing they emphasise the interconnectedness of the Wiccan with nature, a fact that is all too easy to forget in the modern world.

Extract from: Wicca: Magical Beginnings written by d’Este & Rankine, 2008 (Avalonia.) PB / Kindle @ https://amzn.to/3Ay4HJr. Shared here with the intention to inspire and inform the now and future generations interested in Wicca and other Pagan traditions inspired by it.