Oestara is a wonderful time of year, the spring equinox when we celebrate the fertility of our Mother Earth and new beginnings. As our earth springs to life, so may our lives reflect that new growth and anticipation.
Below are associations with Oestara for your information. You may like to use this information to think about ways to decorate your home or your altar, food to prepare for this feast or ways to celebrate with family and friends. Enjoy.
Oestara Symbolic associations: rabbit and the egg , the element air,
the direction east, the morning star and the time of dawn, new moon butterflies
and cocoons
Oestara Colours: Green, white and silver. Lemon yellow, pale
green and pale pink, all pastels. These are wonderful colours to decorate your
home and your Oestara altar with at this time of year, welcome in the Spring!
Ostara
Foods: Eggs, honey cakes, first fruits of the season.
Dairy foods like cheese and ice-cream, if you are Vegan substitute these for
soya varieties. Also include foods made of seeds, such as sunflower, pumpkin
and sesame seeds. Sprouts are wonderful as they symbolize the new growth of
Oestara and spring. Leafy salad greens are great, include some dandelion leaves
for variety and de-toxification.
This is from Scott Cunningham:
“Foods
in tune with this day (linking your meals with the seasons is a fine method of
attuning with nature) include those made of seeds, such as sunflower, pumpkin
and sesame seeds, as well as pine nuts. Sprouts are equally appropriate, as are
leafy, green vegetables. Flower dishes such as stuffed naturtiums or carnation
cupcakes also find their place here.” Scott Cunningham
Oestre
Flowers:
Daffodil, Violet, Iris,
Narcissus, Crocus, Anemone.
The flowers of the anemone were said to bloom
either from the blood of Adonis or the tears shed by Aphrodite, his beloved. The Romans picked the first anemone of the year
as a health protectant, saying "I gather this against all
diseases". They wore the flowers around the neck in garlands. You could do the same, wearing flowers in your hair or as
a necklace.
~Magickal Graphics~
Crocus is a flower often grown in the home to
attract love. Giving a Crocus plant to someone as a house blessing would be a
wonderful Oestara activity.
Any spring flowers that
grow in your local area would be appropriate for Oestara. Bring the spring into
your home with some locally grown cut flowers. Do remember to ask the flower’s
permission for any blooms that you cut down to bring indoors.
Oestara,
Ostara Gemstones: Aquamarine, agate, amazonite, amethyst, aquamarine, bloodstone rose quartz, jasper and moonstone.
Ostara Gods
and goddesses: Goddesses: Persephone, Blodeuwedd,
Eostre, Aphrodite, Athena, Cybele, Gaia, Hera, Isis, Ishtar, Minerva and Venus.
Gods: Green Man, Cernunnos, the Dagda, Attis, Mithras, Odin, Thoth, Osiris and
Pan.
Persephone is particularly appropriate
as she represents spring, being the time that she comes back to her mother
Demeter after spending winter in the underworld with Hades.
The full story of Persephone may be
found here:
http://www.astartemoonblog.com/search?q=persephone
Any maiden Goddesses and youthful Gods
are appropriate for this spring festival of Eostre or Ostara, welcome the Gods and Goddesses of Spring into your
life.
Symbolism
of Ostara: Oestara is seen as the Pagan
celebration of fertility, re-birth and new life.
The Union of the Goddess and the God,
and dispensing of the old and making way for the new are common themes.
Oestre
Herbs: lavender,
marjoram, thyme, tarragon, lovage, vervain. A blend of lovely Oestara herbs is
detailed at the bottom of this post. Planting a herb garden is a wonderful way
to celebrate Oestara and then you will have fabulous spring herbs to hand
whenever you need them.
Oestara Ostara Incense: jasmine, frankincense, myrrh,
dragon's blood, cinnamon, nutmeg, aloes wood, benzoin, musk, African violet,
sage, strawberry, lotus, violet flowers, orange peel, or rose petals. Any
floral incense is lovely at this time of year to remind you of Springtime and
the returning of the light.
Animals and
Mythical Beasts to represent Oestara: rabbits, snakes,
unicorns, merpeople, and pegasus
Oestara Trees: The Alder, a tree sacred to the God Bran, who is said to protect the
British Isles. The buds of the alder are set in a
spiral, which symbolizes reincarnation, and new growth that we see at
springtime. According to the poet Robert Graves, alder is
called Fearn, and represents the letter F in the Beth-Luis-Nion tree
calendar. The Greek deity Cronos was also represented by an alder tree. Also young oak trees are significant at Oestara.
I hope you have enjoyed this post and found it useful. Please feel free to share/comment.
Further Eostre information:
This is their description “Ostara Spring Blossoms Casting Herbs are a proprietary blessed
mix of beautifully freshly dried flowers, herbs and woods including organic
Hibiscus, Heather, Hemp, Linden Flowers, Dandelion Flowers and Root, Jasmine,
Rose, Lavender, Garden Sage, Willow, Oak, Marigold, Vervain and Hops Flowers
and more, topped with magickal Crystal Quartz gemstones. This blend is so
naturally aromatic and pretty, what a wonderful way to celebrate the season and
the coming of spring!~
Created to empower your Ostara
Bonfire, simply cast a handful of this blessed blend right into your bonfire!~
There is plenty at hand! You can also use as an Ostara potpourri and place in a
bowl upon the altar as an offering or to simply add an all natural essence
within your sacred space. Sprinkle around the base of candles or cast a bit
into the garden or forest as a sacred offering to the earth in celebration and
honor of the coming of spring.
Burn as a loose incense in your sacred
burning vessel. This magickal blend will intoxicate and fill the air, inside or
out of doors, with a pure organic and fragrant all natural fragrance. This
authentic aroma is so powerful that just about a half a teaspoon full burned on
a disk will fill up your sacred space with a mood transforming all natural
wintery scent.
”
Sources: Glennie Kindred, Sacred Celebrations, http://paganwiccan.about.com/od/ostarathespringequinox/Ostara_the_Spring_Equinox.htm; http://gemsong.hubpages.com/hub/Solitary-Witchcraft-Ostara
various webpages.
Graphics from http://www.magickalgraphics.com/ostara4.htm
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