Matching the Seasons

Last 2009, my BFF Marcel Milliam and I were talking about the adaptation of the Western Wiccan practice to the culture and magickal practices of the Ilonggo people. One of the topics that we discussed were the Sabbats. Marz is not really into practicing them, he said that there are only 2 celebration that he really takes time on practicing- Samhain and Imbolc.

Anyway, We started brainstorming on the Sabbats. We coined names for them and match them with the existing climate and cultural celebrations of Iloilo City. We came up with the following...

Tigtulugnaw (Yule)- December is the start of our "Tigtulugnaw" (Tag-lamig) and true to its name, this is the time that the wind starts to become really chilly and cold.

Pangalayo (Imbolc)- as this festival coincides with the feast of Candelaria "Nuestra Senora dela Candelaria" (Our Lady of Candles), patroness of Jaro, we find this necessary to include this on the list. We named it "Pangalayo", derived from the vernacular word "Kalayo" which means fire.

Tigpanalingsing (Ostara)- This time is where seedlings starts to grow... I really can't explain why, but during this time there are a lot of obvious changes in the world... the seeds and plants grow faster and in numbers. You could feel the energy of the world bursting out, that's why we call "Tigpanalingsing", which means sprouting in the Hiligaynon Language.

Tigbalangaw (Litha)- Litha is a very confusing festival, anyway, since we are trying to adapt the celebration for Iloilo, we named it "Tigbalangaw"- from the word "Balangaw" or rainbow. It's translated as the "time of rainbows".

Panubason (Lammas)- the time of harvest. "Patubas" means harvest and we can really observe this during this time. The crops are harvested and storage is full.

Tigkalanay (Mabon)- From the work "Makanay" or calm. So this translates to the "time of Calm".

Paghanduraw (Samhain)- "Paghanduraw" means "to remember" from the Hiligaynon word Handuraw or "remember".

As a Wiccan, the Sabbats are not just applicable to the Western countries where there are four seasons. I respect friends and fellow practitioners who are not observing them. My practice, however, dictates that I need to celebrate all since it is the Earth's natural cycle, we are in one way or another affected by the energies that these changes bring. I am not looking at this in a geographical way (Directional Elements/Correspondences will be discussed soon) since the Sabbats (especially the Solstices and Equinoxes) are global phenomenon and it affects all. It does not mean that we wont be affected by the Summer Solstice or the Vernal Equinox because we too are a part of the Earth. We need to talk about energies here, and thus look at the larger picture. We need to remember that Solstices and Equinoxes that we celebrate are not really bound to any location, right? These are part of the cycle that the world is constantly experiencing- Summer and Winter Solstice, for example happens when the sun reaches its northernmost and southernmost extremes and these movements still affects us whether it's summer here or not.

I would still love to integrate the Sabbats with the cultural and magickal practices of an Ilonggo. =)

Just my opinion...

pic from http://www.complete-herbal.com