Vernal Equinox 2015

Today, March 20, 2015 is the Vernal Equinox; that day in Spring when the daylight hours and the night-time hours are equal. In the United States, and other places, this is the official start of Spring. What does it mean to an Asatru person? That varies.

We know full well that Spring starts at different times in different places. Some places already have plenty of new growth with green everywhere. Other places are still buried in snow and may be for a while. To figure out what to do with the Equinox, we have to think about what it symbolizes rather than what it is delivering to our locale.

There is a Goddess of the Spring. The Northerners call her Ostara and the Saxons call her Eostre. She is the Goddess of the East and of the returning warmth that fills in as Winter recedes. She is the origin of the name of the Christian holiday Easter. This is her time, so you probably want to send some thanks Her way.

In the time of our ancestors, we didn’t have astronomers around to give precise calculations of the exact moment of balance between day and night. If you want to follow the footsteps of those who came before, you can choose to celebrate on the next full moon. As with all things involving worship of the Gods, it is the respect that counts more than the precision.

A proper offering for Ostara at this time would be a cake made by you. This should be a simple cake, possibly with seeds of some type. Something you make yourself is best. Take the cake to an open place and set it out as an offering either as part of your ceremony or afterward. For this one, a daytime ceremony is OK. Be sure to include Sunne in your thanks; She has a part in the warmth as well.

If you are having difficulty with the words, here are some that you can use.

Hail Ostara, Goddess of Spring!
We welcome Your return and the warmth You bring
Long have we sat in the grayness of Winter
Where the cold seeped into our bones
With Your return, joy and life returns to the surface
Hail Sunne, Glory of Elves!
We thank You for Your journey
Each day, rising from Delling’s Door
You nourish the greenery and bring the cycle of food.
Hail Ostara! Hail Sunne! Hail the Elves!
Hail the Spring Time!

For those not familiar, Delling is the Elf that maintains the eastern-most pillar of the sky. Delling’s Door is a reference to the East. If you tell a friend to meet you near Delling’s Door, you are saying to meet in an easterly place.

Go out now and try to enjoy the growing warmth, in the Northern Hemisphere at least.