Once again, the sun is telling us we are in a time of transition.
A transition from the quiet reflective winter into the quickening energy of spring. The soil is warming, new shoots are bursting through and buds are starting to bloom.
This past Monday (the 20th of March), we in the northern hemisphere crossed over the equinox – where both day and night are equal – into Spring.
Spring is a time of childlike wonder – when neither harsh winter or the merciless summer is present. It’s about new life and hope, the planting of seeds and the activation of the fertility cycle.
Ostara is her Celtic name. Eostre is her Saxon name. This is where the word for the Christian celebration “Easter” came from.
East-er referring to the sun rising in the east – warming of the earth to plant crops and sustain yourself another year.
You can see more depictions of the springtime goddess here.
The Egg Tradition
The coming of spring after the quiet sleep of winter is traditionally associated with fertility and creation of new life. This is physically represented through flowers, seeds, rabbits, and eggs.
Ancient traditions of working with eggs include farmers keeping them in their pockets as they planted new seeds. The tradition of the egg hunt has roots in a playful game of hiding chicken eggs all around the village. If you found one, it was good luck for an abundant year with a bountiful harvest.
Rituals for Transitioning into Spring
Transitioning into spring can feel emotionally heavy as well. When you are moving from the innerworld of winter towards the outerworld of the new season, so much needs to be shed and honored before the energy and life-force of spring can feel really good in your body.
This is where ritual comes in.
Ritual helps you ground into what you’re feeling (the shedding of thick sadness, increased energy that feels overwhelming, etc) to move you into the new energy with grace and sustained energy.
A springtime ritual can be anything that honors your emotions and helps to gently move you through the transition to spring.
A ritual I’ve done in the past has been a springtime cleanse of my body – moving to more greens and bitter vegetables to cleanse my liver and move my blood after the stagnancy of winter.
Another ritual I love doing during the spring is naturally dying eggs with elements from nature. I show you how I do it here.
I place these dyed and decorated eggs in baskets around the house and on my altar space to welcome in the energy of new life and rebirth in my own life and in the soil beneath me.
This year, I’ve been getting really into making egg candles out of beeswax. If you want the candles without having to make them, this etsy seller has beautiful eggs straight from the beekeeper in Ohio.
Once I have my egg candle, I follow the ancestral tradition of carving intentions into the candle before burning. This can be actual words or images. These intentions serve as the metaphorical seeds I’m planting for this season of growth. I place the egg on my altar (or kitchen table at meal time) and burn it with love and hope in my heart.
Spring Herbal Floor Wash
A new ritual I’ve come to love to welcome in the newness of spring to your home space is giving my floors an herbal floor wash.
Rather than tune into the perfectionism focused cleanliness that can come up around “spring cleaning”, this herb infused floor wash is about bringing intention to clearing out the stagnant energy of winter in your space and welcoming in the freshness of spring.
You’ll need:
- Fresh rosemary
- Lemon essential oil (optional)
- Quartz crystal (optional)
- Large bucket
- Mop
Heat water on the stove until it’s just boiling. Fill your bucket with torn pieces of rosemary (tearing it releases the oils) and pour the hot water over it. Add in a few drops of the essential oil if you so desire and drop in the crystal if you have it on hand.
Cover the bucket with a cloth and let the herbs steep and marry for at least 30 minutes. Once steeped, remove the cloth and carefully (with gloves if it’s still really hot!) remove the herbs and crystal.
Carry your bucket and mop into a room and, before beginning, take a moment to breathe deep, close your eyes, and think about what you want to feel when you step into this room once you’ve completed washing the floors. Examples could be: fresh, sparkling, peaceful, joyous, excited, crisp, and inspired.
When you’re ready, dip your mop into bucket and thoughtfully wash your floor.
Once complete, walk way to let the floor dry naturally and enjoy the new spring energy of your room.
I’d love to hear from you!
How do you plan to welcome in spring over these next few weeks? Have you tried a magical floor wash or plan to now?
Share in the comments below.
I want to credit and thank my teacher, Liz Migliorelli, whose class The Folk Medicine & Magic of Old Europe was incredibly helpful in my research and understanding of this vast topic. This work is inspired by that class.
