Kate Braun : Vernal Equinox Seasonal Message

By Kate Braun / The Rag Blog / March 11, 2010

Every day’s another dawning/
Give the morning winds a chance/
Always catch your thunder yawning/
Lift your mind into the dance.

Saturday. March 20, 2010, is the Vernal Equinox/Ostara/Lady Day. Lady Moon is in her first quarter, in Taurus, the fixed Earth sign.

The name Ostara comes from the Indo-European root “aus” which gives us Eos (the maiden aspect of the Goddess, also the name of a Greek goddess of the dawn) and Aurora (Roman dawn goddess, also the name of Sleeping Beauty). Taurus’ energy bonds us with the earth, enforces our connection to the earth, reminds us we are dependent on the earth. I recommend that your Ostara celebration acknowledge this deep, stubborn, earthy aspect of the season.

We are still welcoming Lord Sun and encouraging his continuing growth, so burning candles and/or a fire is appropriate. However, since Ostara honors Eoster the goddess of Spring, a balance of masculine and feminine energies is required in your celebration. Using a solar cross (one with arms of equal length) in your decorations will do nicely in this respect.

Pink, light yellow, and light green are your first color choices for your dress and decoration, with all pastel shades being appropriate as accent colors. Other decorations may include living plants, eggs (both real and artificial), and rabbit images.

Eggs are an important part of this celebration as the Earth continues to be reborn and the egg is a symbol of rebirth.

An activity you and your guests may care to pursue involves egg imagery. Let each guest pick a hard-boiled egg from a basket serving as a centerpiece at your table and share this lore with them: the yolk and white of a hard-boiled egg represents the Sun hidden in the worm of the White Goddess.

We crack the shell (all crack shells), symbolizing the cracking of winter’s ice. We peel the white (all peel away the white), symbolizing the melting of the snow, freeing the golden yolk that represents Lord Sun emerging from his wintry seclusion. We share bits of egg (each guest gives a bit of egg to his neighbors at the table), sharing in Lord Sun’s rebirth as we eat (all eat the bits of egg).

Another ritual associated with this celebration is to bury a real egg, cooked or raw, in the east corner of your garden. This is said to bring fertility to the garden.

Put eggs at the center of your menu. Serve quiches, custards, egg salad, deviled eggs; accompany them with ham, cheeses, toasted pumpkin seeds and/or pine nuts, sprouts, leafy green vegetables, and hot cross buns. And don’t forget some chocolate for dessert. Eoster is fond of chocolate; eating some honors her.

[Kate Braun’s website is www.tarotbykatebraun.com. She can be reached at kate_braun2000@yahoo.com.]

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