{"id":4656,"date":"2016-02-07T16:00:54","date_gmt":"2016-02-07T22:00:54","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/admin.patheos.com\/blogs\/johnbeckett\/?p=4656"},"modified":"2016-02-02T19:50:16","modified_gmt":"2016-02-03T01:50:16","slug":"ostara-the-season-of-preparation","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/johnbeckett\/2016\/02\/ostara-the-season-of-preparation.html","title":{"rendered":"Ostara: The Season of Preparation"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>

\"Druid<\/a>
Druid Wheel of the Year by Dana Wiyninger<\/a><\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>

The Wheel of the Year is not universally beloved in polytheist and reconstructionist circles. Some of the festivals are problematic from a historical standpoint, plus most ethnic traditions have their own holidays and holy days that get washed out in the erroneous assumption that \u201call Pagans\u201d celebrate the same eight holy days.<\/p>\n

If you follow a tradition that has its own set of high days, by all means observe them. But even if you do, there\u2019s still value in the Wheel of the Year<\/a>. It keeps us attuned to the changing seasons and cycles of Nature, and it brings us together every six weeks or so.<\/p>\n

I\u2019ve found it very helpful to observe the Wheel of the Year not just as eight points in time, but as eight seasons in the cycle of the year. From year to year, each season has similar weather, hours of daylight, animal activity, and vegetation growth. We participate in the same events and pass the same markers in the secular world at the same time each year. Each season has a similar look and feel from year to year. This is true in the Natural world, in the secular world, and in our spiritual lives.<\/p>\n

At the beginning of the year \u2013 at the end of our secular intercalendary period \u2013 I encouraged everyone use the season of Imbolc to lay the foundations for a deeper Pagan practice<\/a>. The return to normal life after the rush of the holidays and the short, cold days make Imbolc perfect for contemplation and reflections.<\/p>\n

If Imbolc is the season of contemplation, Ostara is the season of preparation. The days are lengthening \u2013 I need sunglasses on my drive home, at least on the days when I leave work on time. We\u2019re still in the dead of Winter (such as it is here in Texas) but we know it will be over soon. Football is done (or will be after today) and we\u2019re less than two weeks away from those magical words \u201cpitchers and catchers report.\u201d<\/p>\n

During Imbolc we decided where we want to go. As we sit here in early February it\u2019s not time to get moving (not just yet) but it is time to start getting ready to move.<\/p>\n

Continue your devotions<\/strong>. What did you start doing during Imbolc? Prayer? Meditation? Regular offerings to the land spirits? Whatever you started, keep it up. Expand your spiritual practices if you\u2019re ready, but mainly, continue what you started. This is part of the spiritual foundation that will support you in the coming months.<\/p>\n

Study<\/strong>. What is it that calls to you? What needs to be done that you can do? What needs to be done that you can\u2019t do \u2013 yet? Whatever that is, whatever your relevant skills or lack thereof, now\u2019s the time to dig a little deeper into it.<\/p>\n

Read \u2013 Google is your friend. Start with blogs and websites, but move on to books. Attend workshops and seminars, take classes if they\u2019re available.<\/p>\n

Who\u2019s already doing what you want to do? Talk to them, and when you do, listen to what they have to say. Whether your goals are spiritual, religious, physical, financial, or something else, learn all you can learn about the subject.<\/p>\n

Take stock of your resources<\/strong>. What are your skills? What are your physical resources? What are your financial resources? Who are your allies? What do you have to work with? You may find you have more resources than you think. You may find you\u2019re missing something critical \u2013 how are you going to get it?<\/p>\n

More importantly, how can you use what you have? Our ancient ancestors didn\u2019t have cars, computers, or the latest books. That didn\u2019t stop them from becoming first-class Druids, priests, warriors, and philosophers. Now, mind you, if they had all that stuff they would have used it \u2013 there\u2019s nothing wrong with modern technology. But adaptability and versatility are virtues that don\u2019t get used enough these days.<\/p>\n

Make a plan<\/strong>. You\u2019ve decided what you want to do, or what you want to become. You\u2019ve done your homework and you\u2019ve got a good idea what\u2019s involved. You know what you\u2019ve got to work with. Now it\u2019s time to figure out how you\u2019re going to get from here to there.<\/p>\n

\"map<\/a>In the pre-GPS days, when we wanted to go somewhere we\u2019d never been, we\u2019d look at a map and see which route looked best.\u00a0 You can get from New York to Chicago by going through Atlanta, but unless you have to go through Atlanta, I-80 is a better choice. Likewise, there are many different ways to get from where you are to where you want to be religiously and spiritually, but some are more direct than others.<\/p>\n

If there\u2019s a \u201cmap\u201d available (course of study, initiatory path, etc.) then use it. If there\u2019s not, you\u2019re going to have to make your own. If I-80 wasn\u2019t there, getting from New York to Chicago would be more complicated, but you could still see that you\u2019d need to get out of the city, over the Appalachians, across the plains of Ohio and Indiana, and don\u2019t forget to go around Lake Michigan. You can make a good guess as to how long it will take, which will be a lot different if you\u2019re traveling by Prius than if you\u2019re traveling by pony.<\/p>\n

A plan helps set your expectations so you don\u2019t get discouraged when things don\u2019t come together right away, and it makes sure you don\u2019t forget necessary steps and turns.<\/p>\n

The season of preparation<\/strong>. If we plant too deep or too shallow, our crops will fail. If we plant in the wrong soil or in an area with too little sunlight, our crops will fail. If we plant before the ground is ready, or if we fail to make the ground ready because we lack the proper tools, our crops will fail.<\/p>\n

The time of contemplation is over, but the time for beginning is not yet here. Let\u2019s use this season between now and the Spring Equinox to prepare for the work we will begin in the coming months.<\/p>\n

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If Imbolc is the season of contemplation, Ostara is the season of preparation. As we sit here in early February it\u2019s not time to get moving (not just yet) but it is time to start getting ready to move.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1129,"featured_media":4662,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[11],"tags":[639,4,5,641,492],"class_list":["post-4656","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-practice","tag-ostara","tag-pagan","tag-paganism","tag-spring-equinox","tag-wheel-of-the-year"],"yoast_head":"\nOstara: The Season of Preparation<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"If Imbolc is the season of contemplation, Ostara is the season of preparation. 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