Wheel of the Year: Ritual Ceremony Initiation into the elements and deities of the Third Sabbat

This year we will be cycling through the wheel of the year very intentionally. Not only will we be diving into the teachings of each turning and the accompanying deities that we can draw on for deeper understanding of the Sabbat, but we will also embark upon an elemental initiation as we pass through air, fire, water earth & spirit. The initiation into the elements will consist of a series of guided journeys to meet the elemental spirits guiding us through this incarnation whilst celebrating and observing the Wheel of the Year and traditional Sabbats in our circle. We will experience a personal spiritual connection to the fundamental forces of creation and as we focus in turn on each element, exploring individual pathways whilst being supported by the group. New and/or existing practices will reveal themselves and help us transform into fully developed beings grounded in Earth, passionate as Fire, light as Air and free flowing as Water, in harmony with the Spirit of all. In the Third session, at Beltane, we will be moving on to exploring our journeys with the elemental spirit of Fire . In addition we will be looking at **The Name of the Sabbat itself** **Beltane** **Beltane** (often spelled _Beltain_ or _Bealtaine_) comes from Old Irish and is usually understood as **“bright fire”** or **“Bel’s fire.”** - **“Bel”** is linked to the ancient Celtic deity Belenus, associated with light, healing, and the sun. - **“teine” (or “tene”)** means **fire**. Beltane is one of the cross quarter Sabbats which are all fire festivals. But of all of them Beltane is the **festival of sacred fire** —a time when people lit great bonfires to mark the turning into summer, to bless the land, and to honour life’s fertility and vitality. Traditionally, communities would: - Light twin fires and pass between them for **protection and purification** - Drive cattle between the flames to **bless and safeguard them** - Celebrate **fertility, union, and the rising life force** in the land Beltane sits opposite Samhain on the wheel of the year—where Samhain opens the dark half, Beltane throws open the gates to the **light, fertile half of the year**. If you strip it right back, Beltane means: **the fire that brings life back into full bloom.** Deities of this time are: - **Belenus — sun, vitality, bright fire** - **Green Man — nature, growth, wild life** - **Cernunnos — fertility, instinct, abundance** - **May Queen — bloom, beauty, flowering** - **Aphrodite — love, sensuality, attraction** - **Venus — desire, magnetism, pleasure** - **Hathor — joy, dance, fertility** - **Isis — creation, devotion, sacred union** - **Persephone — return, bloom, renewal** - **Dionysus — ecstasy, freedom, wildness** The overarching theme across all these figures is the **full expression of life, desire, sensuality, and creation** as the earth comes into bloom. * * * We really hope you will journey with us through all the elements and Sabbats however life is life and not everyone will be able to make every ritual. But for the best chance of managing this here are the dates for the whole year: 7th February **Imbolc Air Journey** 21st March Ostara 2nd May **Beltane Fire Journey** 27th June Litha 1st August **Lammas Water Journey** 26th September Mabon 7th November Samhain **Earth Journey** TBC Yule & the 12 nights TBC Jan/Feb 2027 **Spirit Journey** TBC March celebration and completion of the initiation This is going to be a beautiful journey and we hope to see you there Much love Kim and Deli