TYPE 4

BONFIRES

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BONFIRES

The most likely derivation of the word bonfire is that of Boonfire, that is,

a fire for which the materials have been begged as a boon or gift to the

Gods. Today modern wiccans expect each one attending a Sabbat rite to bring a

piece of wood or a pin e cone as a gift or offering to the Gods.

A ritual bonfire was a favourite Pagan method of celebrating a festival. The

4 Great Fire Festivals of the Celtic year are occasions for large ritual or

boonfires, they are Imbolc, Beltane, Lughnasadh & Samhaine, lesser fires

were lit for the other 4 festivals.

The name Beltane means bright fire & sometimes two fires were lit at this

time. In later years these ancient festivals were renamed by the church [who

could not stamp out the Pagan festivals ]

as Candlemas, May day, Lammas, & All hallows / All saints day & in America it

became known as Halloween. Many Pagan writers still refer to our festivals by

their Christian names, this is incorrect, please use the ancient ones which

are our Pagan heri tage.

There is something very magical about a bonfire, which seems to invite people

to dance around it. The flickering of flames, the crackling of blazing twigs,

the showers of golden sparks, the pungent scent of wood smoke all invoke an

atmosphere of chee rfulness & excitement. Also the glowing fires in times

past served for practical purposes of warmth, light & facilities for cooking

& roasting. The latter were necessary & doubtless welcoming when people had

come a long way to celebrate the Sabbat br inging provisions with them. In

thinly populated country sides of olden times, big fires could be built in

remote places that could provide enough heat for the traditionally naked

dances of the Sabbat, which so scandalised the newly formed Christian church.

Old place names often recall the sites of Pagan bonfires. There are quite a

number of Tan hills or Tain hills in Britain deriving their name from the old

Celtic teinne, meaning fire. Sometimes these sites as in the case of the one

near Avebury have b een Christianised as ST Anne's Hill, but the fair that

was held on this hill was still called Tan Hill Fair, thus preserving the

older name, in passing the modern name Ann comes from the ancient Anu. Anna

,Dana, Dannu etc an ancient Goddess of earth. Scottish place names yield

such examples as Ard-an-teine, the field of the fire, Tille-bet-teine, the

knoll of the fire & so on. In Cornwall we find Lantinney, meaning the

enclosure of the fire. Fires were lit from one end of the Duchy of Cornwall

to the other & the country people, old & young, danced merrily round them.

Midsummer Eve was called Witches Night but the Pagan nature of the

celebration which lasted 2 to 3 days over Litha's Sabbat was disguised by

saying that the fires were built to protect against evil.

For a time , the old ways & the bonfire celebrations were allowed to fall

into disuse due to church pressure groups. However, in modern days people &

societies interested in preserving old Cornish customs & the Cornish language

have revived them, Mid summer & Beltane fires blaze from hill to hill, a

wondrous sight for any Pagan heart. The Cornish word is goluan which

signifies both light & rejoicing.

The custom of midsummer bonfires were formally kept up all over Britain &

recognised as having its origin in Pagan fertility rites. In Europe the

midsummer bonfire is now known as ST John's Eve, first on the 21st then

later moved to the 23rd of June, & although the church managed to change the

date & move the ancient festival forward, they could never stamp out the

peoples yearning for an age & time when the old Gods walked on earth. The

purpose of many bonfire rituals was distinctly magical ap art from the

religious rejoicing. Thus in Somerset & Hereford the midsummer bonfires were

lit to bless apple trees. Old country folk feared their crops might fail if

they omitted this ceremony which dated back to Pagan Fertility Rites. The

church t urned a blind eye at these times, later with the Reformation the

farmers were forbidden to light the festive fires but many farmers defied

the church & it is still common practise today in Britain & Europe. In many

places, the smoke from a bonfire kindled in the ancient way, by the friction

of two pieces of wood, was a remedy against sickness among cattle, which

were driven through the smoke for this purpose. Ritual fire produced in this

way was called need- fire, that is the old Saxon nied- f yr, meaning forced

fire, that is, fire produced by friction. The ashes of ritual bonfires were

lucky & protected against evil & ill wishing. They were gathered up & mixed

with seed when it was sown, or scattered over fields where young plants were

b eginning to appear. The ashes were also brought into the home for good

fortune, placed in shoes for protection & carried in bags for fertility.

The essential meaning of these old bonfire rites derives from fire as a

symbol of life & the Horned God in His Sun aspect being honoured.

BLESSED BE.