Description

What is Ostara?

It is the second of eight special holidays in the pagan calendar, or Wheel of the Year.

This is the time of year when night and day stand in perfect balance! For modern Witches, Ostara or Lady Day is one of the Lesser Sabbats of the year, one of the four quarter-days. And what date do Witches choose to celebrate? Some may choose the traditional folk “fixed” date of March 25th, starting on its Eve. Or they may choose the actual equinox point, when the Sun crosses the Equator and enters the astrological sign of Aries. Due to leap years, ocassionally the date can change and will be on the 20th, 21st or the 22nd.

Ostara, the spring equinox, is a time of renewal and growth. As the days get longer and the world awakens from its winter slumber, we are reminded of the cycles of birth, death, and rebirth at the heart of this ancient holiday.

Usually we invoke the Goddess Eostre (pronounced Ester) who was the Anglo-Saxon goddess of the dawn, from whom “East” (where the sun rises) and “Easter” got its name. This time of year presents an opportunity to embrace her passion for new life and let our own lives take the new direction we have wanted for so long. She is also known as the Goddess Ostara in German mythology. Interestingly, the word “estrus” (referring to an animal in heat) is also derived from Eostra as her consort was a rabbit with an extraordinarily high libido!