Mystery and Mythological Cycle of the Wheel of the Year

The Wiccan Wheel of the Year is just that, a Wheel. It is cyclical in nature and as such has no beginning and no end. There are points that mark renewals of phases but all of the mythology flows back into itself.

This can cause confusion as there can seem to be conflicting issues or Sabbats that have similar themes. Most events in the wheel are paired but the focus tends to shift to one main occurrence and one lesser occurrence. Again, this can cause some confusion. There is also the blending of different stories, mythologies and mysteries to cope with.

I am going to outline one mythological cycle. This may not highlight some of the more well known themes of the Sabbats but will serve to show the cyclical nature of the Sabbats as reflected by what is happening around us. Remember, this is only one of many mythological cycles and does not really tie in to a specific pantheon. It is more an eclectic and generic blending of many ideas into a cohesive whole.

The Sun is seen as representing the male aspect of the God / Horned One / King / Lord of Death and Resurrection. The potential fertility of all things is represented by the Earth who is also the Goddess of many faces. She is eternal no matter what aspect she shows to us. Her aspects can also be seen to change as the seasons change. She is also the Moon who controls the tides. She may hide her face in darkness but she is always there.

As we began with Yule in the overview, so we will start our mythic journey there as well.

At the time of greatest darkness, the light is reborn into the world in the form of the Child of Promise. This child is born from the union of Goddess and God in the otherworld. The Child brings the promise of Light returning with his birth.

At Imbolc we see the face of the Maiden, of spring and the renewing of life energies within the Land. The Child born at Yule is also effected by the coming spring. He is growing into the Young Stag and starts to feel the tides of Moon, Sun and Season running in his blood. This is highlighted when he sees the maiden for the first time. His mate and his other half. Yet now is not the time for union with the Maiden as he has not yet reached his maturity. 

The frisky Young Stag will have to wait a little longer for his rite of passage into manhood. It is time for the Maiden to undergo her own initiation and become a woman. The Young Stag is attracted to the Maiden and the chase is on. The footsteps of the Young Stag and the Maiden wake the energies of life within the Land.

Time passes and we come to the Spring Equinox - a time of balanced day and night. Now is the time for the Young Stag to become the Horned One, his time of initiation to bring his power into balance with that of the Maiden. She who carries within herself the potential of the Mother / Queen as the Horned One now carries the potential of the Father / King. The chase continues.

We arrive now at Beltane - Spring’s turning and the chase is now over. The Horned One chases the Maiden to find that she has caught him instead. They lay down amongst the trees and with their union the Land is made fertile once more. They are as King and Queen in the Green Wood.

By the time of the Midsummer Solstice the Horned One has come into his Sovereign power. He is stronger than he has ever been and the long hot days of summer are upon us. But suddenly a shadow appears on the longest day. A dark stranger who claims the Land and the Queen both. The King is strong and battles the Challenger for his right to rule. He will not accept the loss of his love, his Queen and their unborn child.

During the battle the King takes a wound in the thigh. He is still strong though and the wound does not kill him. The Dark Stranger is defeated but the shadow still remains in the Land and the days become shorter as the King’s power wanes.

At the first harvest the child conceived at Beltane is born, child of the sacred union. But what of the King Stag when the Young Stag is grown? The King is now aging and he has never fully recovered from his wound taken in battle with the Dark Stranger. Will his power hold? Will he be cut down like the grain?

The child is growing into a Youth and when Day and Night are equal once more the Youth challenges his Father for the right to rule. They encounter each other in the forest and once again the King is forced to defend himself - this time against the Child of his own seed.

But day and night are equal so the King and his Son are equally matched. During the battle the King realises that he is fighting an aspect of himself, both deal fatal blows at the same time. With their deaths, Father and Son descend to the Otherworld where they are transformed into the Lord of Death and Resurrection.

The Queen witnesses the fatal moment and the Goddess keens for her lost Husband / Lover / Son.

The time of equal day and night passes - darkness descends upon the Land. The Queen in her grief has become the Crone, yet she is still powerful and she has the knowledge of ages behind her. She sees her Husband / Lover / Son lead the Wild Hunt and she seeks to follow him on his return to the Otherworld. At the time when the veil between the Worlds is thinnest she descends to the Otherworld to be with her Lord. She enacts the mysteries of Death and is joined with Him once more.

From this union the Child of Promise is born from darkness, and light again returns to the world on the longest night.

Alignments and Correspondences:

When performing Sabbat rituals the altar can be repositioned around the circumference of the circle to  align with the Sabbats as they occur on the Wheel of the Year. If you do choose to move the altar around the wheel then it is a good idea to be  consistent and move it for each Sabbat. It is also important to stick to one  direction of movement, such as anti-clockwise for the Southern Hemisphere or  clockwise for the Northern Hemisphere.  In the Southern Hemisphere we would have the altar for Litha in the North as  this is the Sabbat of greatest light, being the Midsummer Solstice, the  longest day. North represents Midday and the Place of greatest light. 
  
Moving deosil (anti-clockwise in the Southern Hemisphere) we would see Lughnasadh in the cross-quarter of the North-West. This is the first harvest  and a time when the light has only just begun to wane. It is the period  between Midday and Sunset. Moving to the West we come to Mabon, the Autum  Equinox. The time of Sunset and the second harvest. The time when the God  descends to the Otherworld. Samhain would then be placed in the South-West. The time between Sunset and  Midnight, the time between the Worlds. The nights are growing longer as we  approach winter. Yule is the Midwinter Soltice, the longest night. It is  appropriate then that this festival would fall in the place of greatest  darkness, the South. The time of midnight. Note how the Solstices fall  opposite each other on the wheel. 

Continuing in our anti-clockwise movement around the wheel we come to the  South-East and Imbolc. A cross-quarter again. A time of emerging light. The  false dawn between Midnight and Sunrise. A festival celebrating the first light after the long dark of Winter. This brings us to Ostara, where day and  night are equal once more. The East, Sunrise and the place of new beginnings. Dawning of a new season of light and birth.   Beltane is then placed in the North-East. The time between Sunrise and  Midday. The celebration of Spring moving into Summer and the fertility of the Land. The time when passions are at their height, moving to the heady  Summer of the North once again.   

The same applies for altar placement in the Northern Hemisphere when you  plot it on an eight spoked wheel.. The alignment, moving clockwise around the wheel is as follows: North - Yule, North East -  Imbolc, East - Ostara, South East - Beltane, South - Litha, South West - Lughnasadh, West - Mabon,  North West - Samhain,  and back to Yule in the North.  It is interesting to note that the positions of Mabon and Ostara do not change for either  Hemisphere. Yet even though they stay at West and East they still fit in the  cycle as in the Southern Hemisphere we move around the wheel in an  anti-clockwise direction and in the Northern Hemisphere in a clockwise  direction. This quirk of plotting occurs because Mabon and Ostara are the Equinoxes, both Day and Night are equal.   

Placing the altar around the Circle at different points on the Wheel can be a useful tool in helping us to understand the relationships of the Sabbats  and how the journey of the Wheel of Life impacts on our lives and the world  around us. Decorating the altar for each Sabbat is a wonderful experience  and serves to keep us in touch with each celebration. 

The alignments for each Sabbat are as follows:

Yule:		South & Midnight
Imbolc:		South East & between Midnight and Sunrise
Ostara: 	East & Sunrise
Beltane:	NorthEast & Between Sunrise and Midday.
Litha:		North & Midday
Lughnasadh:	NorthWest & Between Midday and Sunset
Mabon:		West & Sunset
Samhain:	SouthWest & Between Sunset & Midnight

Bibliography:
Phillips, Julia & Matthew. The Witches of Oz , CapallBann Publishing
Meyers, Stuart. Between the Worlds. Llewellyn Publications
Cunningham, Scott. Wicca, A guide for the solitary practioner. Llewellyn Publications
K, Amber. True Magick, Llewellyn Publications.
Material adapted from Applegrove & Circle of the Hearth Teaching Notes by Gabrielle Cleary.
All artwork is by Gabrielle Cleary.