Beltane: When and What Is the Gaelic May Day Festival?

May Day is finally here — or, for the Neopagans and the Celts, the Day of Beltane. After what felt like another endless winter, the sun is finally starting to peek through the clouds — the skies are looking a little more blue and the days are feeling a little less bitter. Could summer finally be around the corner? The ancient festival of Beltane marks the start of summer. Dating back to ancient pagan rituals of the Iron Age, Beltane is a Celtic May Day celebration of fertility and rebirth.

How is Beltane celebrated? In ancient traditions, Beltane was celebrated with a giant, ritualistic bonfire that was thought to protect livestock and crops with its spiritual powers. Household fires were also put out and relit using the embers of the community's Beltane fire. People were also known to decorate their homes with flowers, branches and earth in celebration of the upcoming period of growth and fertility. Over the years, a number of other Beltane traditions have evolved.

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