Lammas: What is it & 10+ Ways to Celebrate Lammas

Lammas is a Christian celebration of Anglo Saxon origin that is common within many modern Pagan communities as well. It is celebrated on or near August 1st.

What is Lammas?

Lammas, or loaf mass from (hlaf-mas) is a First Fruits celebration involving the blessing of loaves of bread produced from the first cuttings of grain. In Anglican Christian tradition, the loaves are prepared at Lammastide, halfway between the summer solstice and the autumn equinox, and brought to the church to be blessed by the clergy on the following Sunday, Loaf Mass day.

The blessed loaf may be used as a charm, placing four pieces in the four corners of the home for protection or in four corners of the barn to protect the rest of the harvest.

In Medieval times, Lammas seems to have been a celebratory event involving raucous games and contests among the common folk as the haying season ended and the sheep were brought in. In Scotland, it marked, and indeed still marks, a quarter day, when accounts are settled.

Several modern Pagan traditions celebrate Lammas. Often bread is baked in remembrance and reverence for ancestors who harvested their own grain and baked their own bread as a matter of survival. Sometimes a specific type of bread is prescribed, such as a bannock or a hoecake or the loaf may be braided or shaped in some other way to make it special.

Some traditions specify that the loaf must be created outdoors over the ritual fire and/or that it be created with energy and intention. The Lammas loaf may then be used as an offering to the ancestors and/or Gods or used as a charm as previously mentioned.

It is generally believed that Lammas is a Pagan tradition that was absorbed into the church liturgical calendar as part of the efforts to convert the Anglo-Saxon people and the British Isles. It is mentioned within early Wiccan documents as one of the four major Sabbats of the year.

The Witches Creed mentions Lammas

Four times in the year the Great Sabbat Returns, and the witches are seen At Lammas and Candlemas dancing, On May Eve and old Hallowe’en.((https://www.sacred-texts.com/bos/bos083.htm))

Within the Pagan community and varying by tradition, Lammas may be considered equivalent to Lughnassadh or First Harvest.

Similar and related festivals: Gŵyl Awst, Lughnassadh, First Harvest, Freyfaxi

Contemporary Ways to Celebrate Lammas

The best traditions are able to shift and flex with changing times, without losing any of their meaning. Try these modern ways of celebrating Lammas, to both connect with the past and create a magickal thread to the future.

Throw a Lammas Party

It’s a wonderful time of year to throw an outdoor Lammas party for friends and loved ones, to celebrate and offer gratitude for the year’s first harvest. If you can, purchase foodstuffs from local growers and sellers, and use ingredients that are in season. Alternatively, hold a potluck, and request that attendees bring a dish of seasonal fare.

If you’re going to put time into creating one item on the menu from scratch, make it the bread. With its close association with Lammas, a homemade loaf is a beautiful thing to display in the center of the table- and enjoy eating!

Decorate the table with fresh flowers, candles, and sheaves of wheat, string up outdoor lights, and prepare to feast and welcome Lammas with those dear to you.

Learn Something New

Lammas is linked to the god Lugh who is associated with craftsmanship and art. So if there’s a new hobby you’ve always wanted to take up, now is a perfect time! Honor this sabbat by, for example, taking an evening art course, learning to throw pottery, or re-taking up an instrument that you used to play.

Build this new skill into your Lammas celebrations by framing and hanging a picture you’ve painted, using your newly-thrown pottery vase to hold your Lammas flowers – or even playing a tune or two at the Lammas party we mentioned above!

10 Practical Ways to Celebrate Lammas

Celebrate Lammas this year with one of these festive, inspiring ideas!  From making beeswax candles to picking sunflowers, check a few of these off your pagan bucket list this Lughnasadh.

The harvest has begun, the weather is warm and fall is just on the horizon.  Soak up what remains of summer and make the most of the waning light.

Here are just a few ideas to make this year’s Lammas spectacular.

1.  Have a popcorn party.  

Lammas is all about the grain harvest, and popcorn is an easy way to highlight this.

Make it from scratch and make loads of it.  This is a great theme for a Lammas party if you’re involving kids.  There’s all kinds of nifty crafts you can make with it.  

Bonus points for incorporating seasonal herbs, like this gourmet herbal popcorn recipe.

2.  Make beeswax candles.  

The bees have been working furiously all summer long.  Celebrate their glory!  Beeswax candles are easy to make, even for someone who has never made candles before.   Get some wax from a craft store or (even better) a local beekeeper and make a bunch for the coming fall season.

3.  Pick your own sunflowers.  

I did this last year with some friends.  This is also a really nice activity if you have kids involved.  They can each pick their own sunflower and even if you have ten, it’s still really cheap to make them all happy.  Go home and enjoy your bliss.

4. Bake bread from scratch.  

The art of bread baking connects you with an ancient tradition that dates back thousands of years.  If you’re new to bread making, try a simple recipe, and if you’re an old hand, up your game by getting really creative.  Try one of our many, many Lammas bread recipes, and don’t forget to make a small offering loaf for the altar!

5.  Do up your Lammas altar all pretty.  

You have to have something going on there until Mabon.  

Use any of the above items—sunflowers, popcorn, beeswax candles, baked bread.  Make it a whole event thing.  Go to the craft store, pick out some lovely gold fabric.  Add hard harvest vegetables and shimmering tea lights.  Stand back to admire your work.

6.  Try canning.  

Preserving the harvest (if you do it right!) is something you will really appreciate three months from now when fresh local produce is hard to come by.  Did your grandmother pass along a recipe for jam?  Try it!  Love them local pears?  Can them and use them in a Yule dish later this year.

7.  Do a solitary Lammas ritual.  

Going solitary this Lammas?  Try our Lammas ritual for solitaries and make it magical!  

8.  Make blackberry pancakes for dinner.  

Use whole wheat flour.  Both blackberries and whole wheat have special significance for Lammas.  Add a natural maple syrup, some spicy candlelight and bowl full of freshly harvested berries.

9.  Toast the sunset.  

As the Wheel of the Year turns, and the light begins to recede, take some time to honor the sunset.  Grab a bottle of champagne or harvest wine, some smudge sticks, and a picnic blanket.  Find a quiet, natural setting to enjoy the sun as it slides over the horizon.

10.  Set off leftover firecrackers.  All of them. 

What better way to celebrate the summer than to (safely) blow things up?   If you can drive far enough away that your neighbors won’t phone the police, blow off some steam with this spectacular summer send-off.

Lammas Rituals to Try

If you’d like to incorporate a ritual into your Lammas celebrations, these easy ideas are a good place to start.

A Gorgeous Gratitude Ritual

Lammas is a time for gratitude – for expressing thanks for the many gifts the natural world and Universe have given us. This makes it the perfect sabbat for performing a gratitude ritual. Try this simple way to offer thanks:

1. Find a quiet place and sit or lie comfortably. Relax, take a few deep breaths, and feel the tension leave your body.
   
2. Reflect on your personal harvest of the year gone by. Consider your blessings, the things you have achieved, and the people who have helped you on your journey.
   
3. Move on to thinking about the challenges you have faced, the personal growth experienced, and the lessons you have learned.
   
4. When you’re ready, open your eyes and write down in your journal or on a piece of paper the things you are grateful for.
   
5. Leave this written record on your altar, or bedside table, and add to it every morning upon waking, or just before you sleep at night.

A Yummy Roasted Corn Ritual

Celebrate the first harvest with this yummy corn ritual. Why not try cooking the corn outside and sharing it with friends (perhaps accompanied by a slice or two of Lammas bread) as the sun begins to set?

Be sure to savor the lovely flavors, and give thanks for the nutritious gift your body is receiving.

Ingredients:

• Unschucked corn cobs
• A pot of water
• Butter
• Crushed garlic
• Salt, pepper, and paprika

1. Soak the corn cobs in the pot of water (unshucked) for an hour or two.
   
2. Place the corn cobs (still dressed in their husks) onto the grill. Let them cook for around half an hour, turning occasionally. When the husk is dry and slightly burnt, they’re ready.
   
3. Carefully remove the cobs from the grill and let them cool for a few minutes. Taking care not to burn yourself, peel each husk all the way back, so that it can be used as a handle  – alternatively use a wooden skewer.
   
   Brush the cobs with butter and sprinkle with the crushed garlic, salt, pepper, and paprika.

A Lammas Handfasting Ritual

Handfasting is a marriage ritual that is traditionally held on Lammas or Beltane. This symbolic celebration is a beautiful way to mark the commitment made by two people to each other and, if you have a partner, you may wish to incorporate a handfasting into your Lammas plans.

Handfastings can take many different forms, so use the below as inspiration.

1. Each member of the couple should write vows that are personal and meaningful to them.
2. Create a sacred space and decorate it in a way that reflects the sabbat: use fresh flowers, leaves, grains, and other things that represent the harvest.
3. During the ceremony, witnessed by friends and family members, each partner should say their vows while holding hands.
4. Once this is done, an officiant should bind the couple’s hands together using a ribbon or cord, in a figure-eight shape that represents the infinite nature of their unity and love. While this is done, the couple may wish to recite words of blessings or unity or a prayer.

A handfasting ceremony should be filled with loving intention, and suffused with a deep connection to the natural world.

Once the handfasting itself is complete, enjoy a wonderful celebration with your loved ones by dancing, laughing, and relishing a feast of traditional Lammas fare.

Lammas: Celebrating and Giving Gratitude on this Special Harvest Sabbat 

Lammas is a beautiful sabbat that marks the first harvest, offering the opportunity to give thanks, reflect on the year gone by, and prepare for the cold winter months ahead.

Whether you’ll be marking this sabbat solo or are considering planning a big Lammas feast, use the above guide as inspiration to plan your own Lammas celebrations and rituals, to honor the turning wheel of the year.

Lammas in Literature

• Juliet was to turn 14 on Lammas Eve in Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet
• The Battle of Otterburn is set “about the Lammastide”
• Young Ronald is set “upon the Lammas time”

More Online

• You say Lammas, I Say Lughnassadh: Christians, Pagans Embrace Harvest at readthespirit.com Religious Holidays & Festivals
• Lammastide from The Church of England
• Watch 3 Things You May Not Know About Lammas by Scarlet Ravenswood on Youtube

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