Marcie Telander :: DANCING AT LUGHNASA

DANCING AT LUGHNASA

DANCING AT LUGHNASA,
the Celebration of the Golden, Maturing Masculine

How fine it is to feel the yearning of Summer for Fall, the Feminine for the Masculine!

Now is the time to call in the Mountain Folks' weather-eye as the seasons begin to change. Those of you who live above 8,000 feet know what I am referring to! Just this week, that exquisitely bittersweet moment occurred. Call it Intuition, call it Old Wives' awareness, call it First Animal Nature sniffing the air, reading the signs—the Summer has turned and Leaf-Fall is approaching.

Today, there is an undeniable power in the morning mist. The lightning-charged clouds which wrap the mountains hold a mysterious secret in their thrall. My Welsh Druid friend, Cordley Coit, calls this moment “a cryin' sort of beauty!.” It is the inchoate awareness that Leaf-Fall is approaching.

This is the birth of a new season, just quickening, which draws us down the shortening days to Autumn.

I love this season. It is the transformational, desperately lovely time of poetic creativity and bardic profession. And so, very appropriately, it is the Celtic Celebration of Lughnasa, the Festival of the legendary Lugh The Golden One, known also as the “Son of the Sun.” To the Irish, Scots and Welsh, Lugh is the archetype of the wounded artist and warrior, the Master of all Arts. In that mythical role he is a powerful reminder of the dual energy of the preservation of Nature and poetic expression of life-change. He is the instiller of both strength and resilience in our bodies and brains, aiding us in mindful self-awareness and accountability.

Lugh is the tribal son who risks himself for the healing of our planet. He is also the Breaker of the First Harvest Loaves, leading us in a joyful communion in gratitude for the Earth's abundance.

As the Master of Music, Poetry and Tribal Protection, Lugh reminds us to share the food of story, power and justice so that all of our Relations may live. He leads the seasonal dance toward Fall and celebrates the future blessing and releasing of the passing year on the Autumn Equinox.

So. In the spirit of art, tribe and summer thanks giving we will gather around the bonfire, make music, jam, sing and break the first harvest loaves. Although these will probably be in the form of pizza and bruschetta, we will lift a tankard of ancient brew to Lugh of the Golden Face. Let us celebrate our losses, our loves and our long-term relationships. May we be courageous, creative and profoundly conscious. Here is to the Wheel of the Year winding down toward the inward realm of the Soul.
HOPE YOU TOO WILL BE DANCING AT LUGHNASA!

In the spirit of Lughnasa please enjoy the following poetry from Belfast poet and bard, Mark Madden, Minneapolis poet and storyteller, Maren Hinderlie, and a garden poem from me.

La Chiem. Le Beannach dhan. Metake 'oe oasin. Blessed be!~ Marcie

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