Lúnasa is a seasonal threshold that initiates you into the RIPENING phase of Nature's Arc of Change, the maturation stage of the seasonal cycle. This Lunasa ritual invites you to embody the gifts of your spirit and share your sacred craft with the world.
In this blog post you will find:
Share Your Gifts of Inner Abundance
Lúnasa arrives right in the middle of Summer Solstice and Autumn Equinox and is the first of the harvest festivals to celebrate the bounty of this time and also to bear witness to Summer's yang energy in decline. For this reason, Lúnasa is an occasion to give thanks and to celebrate all that is abundant, nourishing and beautiful.
It's important that we create space in our lives to intentionally mark abundance and to practice really seeing it in our lives. Living under dead weight of capitalism can feel very heavy, and is designed to keep us on the hamster wheel of productivity, to grind us so hard that all the life juice is squeezed out of our lives. When we are depleted by the scarcity that individualism generates, it's hard to recognize what feels good, what fills us with life and what nourishes our soul.
Taking time to pause, to bring people together, to celebrate and share harvest is what is desperately needed in these times. That is why these seasonal markers are so necessary. They imbue our lives with meaning, remind us of what is good, and support us to orient our attention to the abundance that's always available to us. When we live in fear and scarcity - which is what individualism feeds on - we live in a way that cuts us off from one another, from communal practices, sharing and generosity.
Lúnasa falls in the month of August in the sign of Leo who is the big-hearted lion. Abundance is the manifestation of love. Lúnasa invites us to share the light of our inner abundance, to expand our sense of self to include our neighbors, and to give what little (or a lot) you have and share with others. When we practice leaning into love, we counter narratives of fear that keep us isolated and separate. We build bridges instead of walls. We have surprising conversations with people who appear to be different from us and we begin to see how fear gets in the way of giving in generous ways that unite us.
Lúnasa is the seasonal threshold that corresponds developmentally to the mature adult when a certain steadiness and sense of responsibility has been integrated. The energy of Lúnasa takes us beyond individual notions of self and reminds us of our ecological belonging in an interconnected world, where who we are and what we become is placed on the altar of life for all kin and kind.
Themes, Symbols & Elements
Themes: Abundance, Gratitude, Sharing & Giving, Communion
Symbols: Grain, Corn
Colors: Still Green with every shade of Harvest from Golden, Yellow to Deep Orange!
Tree: Oak - good for stability and protection
Plants & Herbs: Blooming flowers, Corn, Grains of all kinds, Mint
Element: Fire
God/dess(es): Celtic God Lugh, Grain Mother
Ways to Celebrate Lúnasa with Friends & Family
Enjoy a large feast with a bonfire, music & dancing
Make Corn Husk Dollies or Harvest Knots
Make bread and jams using local wheats/grains and fruits and berries
Share stories of the challenges and triumphs of the growing season
Lunasa Ritual Part 1
To be done on the eve of Lúnasa
1. Right Relationship
Being in right relationship with your spiritual practice means approaching each aspect with humility, curiosity and reverence. This includes checking yourself on the nature of how you relate to "objects" as things and the process itself.
For example, if you feel called to stones as part of your ritual, consider WHY first. Then contemplate the impact of whatever action comes next. For example, instead of mindlessly purchasing cheap precious stones from somewhere like amazon (which have more than likely been harmfully mined/extracted and then shipped across the world as part of the consumer machine that's destroying our planet), perhaps part of your spiritual practice is to resist that impulse, and instead take the time to go for a mindful walk in your backyard, or a nearby stream and see if the right stone presents itself to you.
2. Cleanse your Body-Heart-Mind-Space
Cleansing is the practice of clearing out and releasing negative energy from your space, as well as energy that’s just old, stale, stagnant, or no longer serving you.
Here are a few different methods:
Physical cleaning: dusting, vacuuming, opening windows for fresh air
Salt: a common element used for purification and protection in many different cultures. To use, simply sprinkle salt along doorways and windowsills to protect them from negative energy entering or just keep a small bowl of salt on your altar or nearby surface.
Smoke Cleansing: light incense or burn a bundle of dried herbs such as rosemary, cedar, or mugwort. Choose plants that you have grown yourself or that grow abundantly wild nearby, plants that you have ancestral tied to or just those that have been grown and harvested ethically.
Bathe: Take a shower our bath; visualize any negative energy that has accumulated in your auric field to be washed away as the water goes down the drain.
Meditate: take some time to center, still your mind and ground into presence.
A NOTE ON SMOKE CLEANSING:
If you do not have meaningful/authentic relationships to Indigenous culture and customs, "smudging" with white sage cultural appropriation and is dishonoring to Indigenous nations across Turtle island. It is important to understand that smudging is not just about burning sage to purify the negative energy from your space but is a sacred ritual that is culturally specific to tribes such as the Lakota Sioux, Comanche, Cheyenne, Arapaho, and Navajo. If you have been gifted sage by an Indigenous friend, use to your discretion in how to engage with this medicine. This sacred plant is being abused, exploited and mass-harvested for commercial and consumer use which perpetuates the violence of white supremacy and settler colonialism. Take some time to locate yourself within a settler-colonial context interwoven with the land you currently occupy. Check out Native Land to learn the name and more about the territories you occupy.
3. Create a Lúnasa Altar
Your altar is a portal of spiritual communion; a doorway to your own sacred heart.
Altar tending is optional though it is a powerful practice, especially if you have a designated area in your home that you can tend over the course of the year to honor lunar and seasonal thresholds.
Altar tending grounds your spiritual practice and holds your prayers and intentions.
To create an altar, start simple. There is absolutely no need to "buy" altar items. Everything we need is within us and can also be found around us. Here are some examples:
Flowers, herbs, corn husks and beautiful grasses that are abundant where you live. Candles. Oak leaves. Any meaningful items or objects of importance that reflect your current phase of life.
Let your altar reflect the place you live and weave in any ancestral talismans that might be related to this season.
NOTE ON CULTURAL APPROPRIATION:
There is no right or wrong way to go about creating, tending or being with your altar, however we do not condone cultural appropriation or theft of any kind.
4. Lúnasa Invocation
To be said at the front door on the eve of Lúnasa.
Lady of the land, open the door,
Lord of the Forest, come you in.
Let there be welcome to the bountiful compassion,
Let there be welcome to the Autumn of the Year.
In fruit and grain you are traveling,
In ferment and bread you will arrive.
May the blessed time of Lúnasa
Nourish the soul of all beings,
From the heights to the depths,
From the depths to the heights,
To the wounds of every soul.
- Caitlin Matthews
Lúnasa Ritual Part 2
To be done on the day of Lúnasa
Time Commitment: 2 hours (if you are following this template)
Overview
Opening - 10 minutes
Clarify your intention - 5 in
Invocation Blessing - 5 min
Middle - 1.5 hours
Gestures of Gratitude: 15 minutes
Eco-Somatic Practice: 1 hour
Journaling - 15 min
Closing - 15 minutes
Integration - 10 min
Offer Gratitude - 5 min
Opening
1. Clarify Your Intention
An intention is a way to bring heart and mind into alignment. There is power in naming that which you are calling in.
When we speak to God/Spirit/Source/Allah, gods & goddesses, deities, ancestors, and the field of Love, we acknowledge that we are not alone and that support and guidance is available to us.
When we give voice to our intentions, we are speaking to the larger Self that encompasses the intelligence of the universe.
The intentions we give voice to now will stay with us and ripple through the unfolding of the seasons.
Example:
May this ritual deepen my devotion to the path of interbeing rooted in the wisdom of non-duality where notions of self dissolve into the many. May I give generously the gifts of my spirit knowing that in giving, I too receive. May I continue to empty myself in service to all kin and kind.
2. Lúnasa Blessing or Prayer
A blessing or prayer can be done in silence, but there is power in speaking words that come from your hearts deepest longing.
A prayer is spoken to the animating, loving force of the universe - that which gives us life and is the source of love.
How you call this permeating, loving presence is unique to each of us, but here are some words that you may have resonance with: Spirit, God/Goddess, Allah, Source, Buddha, Creator, Tao etc.
It's important to remember that Spirit is not outside of you, but also within you... so when you pray, you're also praying to the deepest, divine aspect of your nature.
Lúnasa Prayer
The Wheel has turned once more
The first Harvest is at our door,
Giving us abundance of plenty,
We share them with our own and many,
Our dying Sun begins to fade,
As the Goddess bears the fruit they made,
The Sun will journey back to Earth,
In the endless cycle of life, death and rebirth.
- Source unknown
Lúnasa Prayer
For creativity in its many forms we give you thanks For the skill of weaver potter, artist, sculptor needle worker all who take that which you have given and make with it something of beauty
For fruitfulness in its many forms we give you thanks For selfless love grace, wisdom, knowledge sacrifice all who take that which you have given and make with it something of beauty
- Author Unknown
Middle
1. Gestures of Gratitude
This is a powerful yet simple practice that happens deep within your own interior. It's important to make it your own since I am sharing with you what has worked for me. The most important part of this is getting to the feeling of gratitude. I find that speaking out loud helps, but this is not necessary.
Find a comfortable position (somewhere outside our in front of your altar) either standing, sitting or kneeling. Place your hands on your heart and begin to contemplate what or whom you are most grateful for. Really allow yourself to bring an image to your minds eye along with a sensation/feeling. Sense WHY you are grateful. Consider the preciousness of what you are grateful for with awareness that all things change and eventually fade.
Speak words and/or offer a gesture of gratitude. Sense into it and let it flow. Here are two examples:
Let your hands gentle fall into the shape of a cup in front of you. Imagine what you are grateful for cradled in your hands. Offer a breath by blowing over your hands and you then spread your hands out in front of you.
Come into a kneeling position and bring your forehead down to the ground. This is called prostration. It is the placement of the body in a reverentially prone position as a gesture. Sense what it means to bring your head down to the earth where your feet reside.
Contemplate at least 5 aspects of your life that you are most grateful for or do this until you feel complete.
2. Eco-Somatic Practice: Earth Mandala Offering
The practice of making an earth mandala is a simple yet creative way to share the gift of your inner spirit with a love offering to the land. This is an opportunity to enact your gratitude for all that is abundant in your life by interacting with the landscape in a creative and mindful way.
Benefits of Making an Earth Mandala:
Creates beauty, harmony, and balance
Nurtures mind-body-heart presence
Cultivates creativity and a sense of the sacred
Promotes earth intimacy & place-based relationality
STEPS:
Find a quiet place in nature
This could be your backyard, a local trail, an open field, or nearby woods.
Begin by finding a comfortable place to kneel or sit and settle into stillness.
Open and connect with the energy of the land by anchoring into the support of the ground beneath you, softening into your breath, sensing life all around you, listening to the soundscape and maintaining stillness. No need to overthink it.
Ask the land for consent to connect & name your desire to offer the land a gift from your heart.
Sense for a response before continuing.
Explore the Landscape
With no particular direction or end goal in mind, allow yourself to wander intuitively, paying attention to the places and beings that speak to you.
Use all of your senses to explore the landscape, enjoying the colors, lines, textures, aromas and sounds.
Receive gifts from nature that call to you
Notice what nature treasure and elements call out to you. This will be felt intuitively, but it's helpful to understand it as a mutual attraction. What catches your eye? What are you drawn to?
Sense if they want to be a part of your earth offering.
With reverence and without causing harm to any being, receive your treasure and place it in your basket or whatever it is you are using to collect your treasures.
Find a sacred spot & assemble your Earth Mandala
Take a moment to touch this place and infuse it with your intention once again.
With gentle presence, lay down your nature treasures one by one and infuse them with your prayers.
There is no right or wrong way to do this part. Have fun with it!
When you are finished, sit with your mandala and notice how it feels to be with your creation.
3. Lúnasa Journal Prompts
For this next part, find a comfortable place where you can write and reflect on any or all of the following journal prompts. Alternatively, you might simply wish to allow yourself to write without filters. What's most important is that you follow your own inner promptings and allow creative inspiration to flow.
Contemplate the previous activities:
What did I learn about myself from these activities?
What feels different now compared to before?
Additionally...
Where was I 6 months ago in early Spring? What were my hopes and intentions then?
What am I harvesting in my life right now? What is coming to fruition?
What have I learned? How have I been challenged?
What does generosity look like for me right now?
Where is there abundance in my life? How can I share and release some of that into the world?
In what ways can I offer my gifts in service to and love for my community at this time?
Closing
1. Integration
Find a comfortable place to sit or lie down so that you can relax and sink into the gravity of earth's embrace. Notice how you feel and what it’s like to be in your body now. Dwell here in the vibration of inner abundance and gratitude. Soak in whatever sensations are present for as long as feels right to you.
2. Offer Gratitude
Offer gratitude to your body and heart, to the source of love within your, and to your ancestors Gratitude to the land and all of the benevolent beings who have joined you in your ritual.
Take one final moment to pause...
Inhale, appreciating all of the gifts you've received.
Exhale, giving it all back from where it came.
References
Freeman, Mara. Rekindling the Celtic Spirit. 2000
Matthews, Caitlin. "Celtic Devotional: Daily Prayers & Blessings." 1996
Did you like this post?
We'd love to hear from you!
How are you celebrating Bealtaine or May Day?
What miracles are you bearing witness to?
How is nature teaching you?
Leave a comment below :)
Comments