Christians embraced the egg symbol and likened it to the tomb from which Christ rose. Shadow is in awe of Ostara and escorts her around the grounds of her estate. She is the goddess who symbolized the dawn, the warm Spring sun, the resurrection of Spirit in Earth, and much more. “The Egg of Babylon, which hatched Ishtar, and was said to have fallen from heaven into the Euphrates. Ishtar, Inanna, Venus, Aphrodite, Ostara and Freyja are all the same fertillity goddess. The equinox was recognized world wide as a time for renewal, rebirth, and revivification. Many symbols of the old sun worship survived and were adapted to represent Easter and Christ’s Resurrection. The Maiden is young and pure, growing and blossoming in her youth and therefore represents birth and beauty. Her story begins with Eostre, an Anglo-Saxon goddess who is not documented from pagan sources at all, and turns up in only one early Christian source, the writings of the English churchman Bede. Wednesday leads Shadow inside a Kentucky mansion where a banquet is laid out for Easter Sunday. Ostara is both the name of the seasonal celebration on 21st March each year, as well the name of the Spring Goddess. Also known as Eostre, the Christian festival of Easter was named for Her, and the Easter Bunny, baskets, and colored eggs that are part of Springtime and Easter celebrations in America, Europe, and other parts of … The Easter Lesson, p. 251. Ostara is the Old High German name for the Easter festival. They run for miles and can even become aggressive and appear quite mad, hence the English and French expressions—“As mad as a March hare.”. One thing is for certain; the equilateral cross reaches back through time to the many ages before Christianity. Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email. As in many ancient cultures, Ukrainians worshipped a sun god (Dazhboh). 24 Farnsworth Street | Boston, MA 02210 from out the bough, The name Easter is a derivative of Ostara (Eostre—just change the ‘o’ to an ‘a’ and invert the ‘er’ at the end). Contemporary Pagans of many paths honor Her at Spring Equinox time. With the advent of Christianity, via a process of religious syncretism, the symbolism of the egg was changed to represent, not nature’s rebirth, but the rebirth of man. Some suggest that the equilateral cross symbolizes the four quarters of the moon, other suggest that it expresses the uniformity of the seasonal year, and still others suggest that it expresses the equilibrium of the equinox day—equal day and equal night. She is a goddess of the dawn and the spring, and her name derives from words for dawn, the shining light arising from the east. THERE would be no glorious bursting forth of nature at Easter-time without the cyclic journey of the Sun. Later on, the holiday commemorated the Exodus from Egypt in the thirteenth century B.C. The guests are decked out in holiday costumes and Shadow sees a Madonna nursing a baby Jesus. Fill in your details below or click an icon to log in: You are commenting using your WordPress.com account. “The backstone of the chamber with its engraved sun symbols is bathed in a blaze of golden light during the 50 minute illumination. , Indeed we hold, “To mirror in our eyes the gleam”! Although born into a Christian (Congregationalist Protestant) family, Acharya does not subscribe to any particular religion, nor is she a hardcore atheist. “Life laughs in bud and bloom The Sun his golden journey makes ( Log Out / ________________________________________________. “The backstone of the chamber with its engraved sun symbols is bathed in a blaze of golden light during the 50 minute illumination. 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P. Blavatsky, The Wonder of Life: The Great Inscrutable Mystery, Laws of Karma and the Sin of Separateness, Nature’s Human Magnets: the Electric Universe, Easter: An Ancient Tradition To Celebrate Rebirth, Life on Spaceship Earth and the Overview Effect, Our Queen Sister, the Morning and Evening Star, Evidence of an Immortal Mind in Man and Nature, The Mystery of Consciousness and the Soul of Things, Life Atoms — the Mysteries of Mind, Matter and Energy, Space is Not Empty: The Invisible Omnipresent, Omnipotent Proteus, Dream Prophecy, Precognition and Telepathy, Just Being Yourself: Proof of Reincarnation, Wings of the Soul: the Light and Spirit of Divinity, Where Are We Going? Why is Easter called Easter? Change ), You are commenting using your Google account. She’s known for giving her name to the Christian Easter, and her feast day was held on the full moon following the vernal equinox. With Easter we celebrate the rising of the death of Jesus Christ. So today Maxi-, Midiman, Dad and I talked about Ostara and Easter. (Wikimedia Commons)Pascha, Easter and the goddess of spring The first manifestation of the Cosmos in the form of an egg was the most widely diffused belief of antiquity. It is only in English speaking countries that the Goddess’ name has been appropriated by the Christians. You've probably yourself wondered why eggs, rabbits are symbols of Easter and the origin of Easter itself. Environmental and social justice activist Julia Butterfly Hill explains that when we act from a consciousness of oneness we make mindful decisions that consider the whole rather than just ourselves. How do I know what are the right choices to make? 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(The origin of the word east, the direction of the rising sun, comes from various Germanic, Austro-Hungarian words for dawn that share the root for the word aurora, which means “to shine”) Modern pagans have generally accepted the spelling Ostara (Oh-star-ah), which honors this goddess as the word for the Vernal Equinox. “At the 5000 year old Loughcrew megalithic cairn T in Ireland, the rising sun on the mornings around the equinoxes (March and September) illuminate the passage and chamber. A more recent and complex explanation comes from the Christian background of Easter rather than the pagan. It is apparently quite a spectacle in the European countryside. There was the “Mundane Egg”, in which Brahmâ gestated, with the Hindus the Hiranya-Gharba, and the Mundane Egg of the Egyptians, which proceeds from the mouth of the ‘unmade and eternal deity,’ Kneph, and which is the emblem of generative power. Acharya was a scholar classically educated in archaeology, history, mythology and languages. Ostara (1901) by Johannes Gehrts. Whether Eostre herself is hare-headed or her attendants are hares, she is strongly associated with the hare—and later its cousin the rabbit for obvious reasons. Oestre is the Teutonic goddess of spring and dawn who is very closely associated with the Vernal Equinox. To let shine forth the Light we dream Ostara is essentially the pagan incarnation of the traditional Christian Easter. She was the symbol of the resurrection of all nature and was worshipped in early spring. The ancients regarded this as the re-incarnation season of the year. The name “Easter” was derived from “Eostre,” “originally a Saxon word (Eostre), denoting a goddess of the Saxons, in honour of whom sacrifices were offered about the time of the Passover.” The origins of Easter are wrapped up in a celebration of seasonal renewal that has taken place in numerous cultures for thousands of years around the time of the Spring Equinox. Unlike rabbits, hare babies are born fully furred, with their eyes open. Ostara (1901) by Johannes Gehrts. While Ostara's story explains how the Easter Bunny tale originated in Europe, a more recent narrative explains how this story traveled to America. Ostara is an ancient festival of Germanic origin celebrating the Goddess of the dawn. Change ), You are commenting using your Facebook account. The pysanky have been found in many sites, and fragments have been discovered in the graves of both children and adults. Ostara is the goddess of the dawn and awakening earth, and she embodies growing light and fertility. With the Greeks the “Orphic Egg” is described by Aristophanes, and was part of the Dionysiac and other mysteries. Ostara & Easter Hand Painted Wooden Peacock Eggs for renewal and self-expression $ 14.00. [false!] While dying the eggs, women and children would think carefully on their hopes and wishes for the coming year. Spring feasts were held to honour the Anglo-Saxon goddess Eostre/Ostara. End-of-pandemic hopes rise, just in time for pagan holiday Ostara Buzz on social media is forecasting a more robust celebration this year for Ostara, the pagan holiday adapted as Easter … ( Log Out / “From a latent ‘nothing’ was produced an active something, needing only heat,” she says. Adrianne Ross served the Unitarian Universalist Association as Project Manager during the development and launch of the Tapestry of Faith curriculum project. 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Venus. “It is said that when Ostara first came to earth, at the very beginning of the world, she wondered what it was that she had been given to do as part of the world’s work. Origins and Genealogy: Very little is known about the origins of this Germanic Goddess. As she wondered, she noticed how dark and cold and dead everything seemed, though she knew, of course, that the Life in all things was only sleeping for awhile till it was time to waken again. Ostara (1884) by Johannes Gehrts. As I detailed in the first Easter Bunny post, Ostara herself is a shadowy figure in Germanic folklore. This Easter now.”, The Eternal Verities, Therefore coloured eggs were used yearly during spring in almost every country. She was the symbol of the resurrection of all nature and was worshipped in early spring. ( Log Out / Its consecration and significance was explained by Porphyry who called it a representation of the world. Ostara is Oestre, Easter which is the Eastern star. The goddess lent her name to the month of Easter almost two thousand years ago. Thus, the eggs were magical objects, a source of life. She continues to learn many life lessons as a race car driver and as a member of several charitable boards, while pursuing her hobby of... For more information contact worshipweb@uua.org. And of course, we’re all familiar with the Easter Bunny and Easter egg activities. Acharya specializes in religion and mythology, critiquing and comparing them, and providing unique insights into their origins. It has been reported that when Christianity came to the northern isles, the priests and bishops, not approving of such a “pagan” practice, would encourage children to seek out, and dig up the eggs. Pysanky have been found in many sites, and Hathor ( of Egypt ) name... And climb on top of it to the eastern star other eggs as gifts, for all.. Archaeology, history, mythology and languages Easter egg activities rabbits and birds form part of spring Ostara both! 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