The footsteps of Brigid

The beginning of February is when three interconnected holidays are celebrated, Imbolc, Candlemas and Groundhog Day, and I know very little about any of them, so I shall be brushing up on my religious studies and history and delving into the meaning of these festivals.

Imbolc is a celtic pagan holiday that takes place on the first day of February, at is what considered to be the time halfway between the winter solstice and the spring equinox to celebrate the awakening of the land and the growing power of the sun. The word Imbolc means literally 'in the belly'  and the Irish Oimelc; 'ewe's milk'. This holiday is also known as St Bride's Day. These names indicate that the end of winter is nigh, and the bounty that Mother Earth has been storing within her 'womb' for months will now begin to grow again. Lambs signify the coming of warmer weather and snowdrops, the first bloom of the new year, are known as the footsteps of Brigid. The Latin for snowdrop is Galanthus, or milk flower, which is perfectly fitting :)  I have always admired snowdrops for both their lovely flower and their sheer tenacity in arriving months before daffodils show up, and in such numbers! In some places snowdrops carpet the floor entirely and it's a wonderful thing to see so early in the year.

This is also the holy day of Brighid, (Otherwise known as Bride and many other names) the Irish pagan Tuatha Dé Danann goddess of fire and fertility, home and hearth, and so candles are traditionally made and lit  in every window of the house to honour her, then left to burn until the dawn. Brighid was said in some mythology to have two sisters, each also called Brighid, and together they are taken as three representations of the same goddess, similarly to the Holy Trinity of the Father, the Son and the Holy Ghost in Christianity and the Trimurti of Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva in Hinduism.

The famous Scottish folklorist Alexander Carmichael (I had never heard of him before now either), sums up the meaning of Imbolc beautifully;

Bride with her white wand is said to breathe life into the mouth of the dead Winter and to bring him to open his eyes to the tears and the smiles, the sighs and the laughter of Spring. The venom of the cold is said to tremble for its safety on Bride’s Day, and to flee for its life on Patrick’s Day.

The coming of Bride by John Duncan

The Roman Catholic Church, when trying to convert the pagan Celts to Christianity, could not dent the people's faith in their beloved Brigid, and so instead they chose to canonise her, and thus she became St Brigid, and a new Christian holiday of Candlemas - or, the Feast of the Purification of the Blessed Virgin Mary - was brought in on 2nd of February to eclipse the pagan celebration of Imbolc. The Roman Catholic Church decided not to stray too far from the traditional celebrations of Imbolc by making Candlemas a festival of light, wherein each Christian is given a candle to walk around the church in procession with before being blessed. This is because;

Forty days after childbirth, Mary was supposed to have gone to the Temple at Jerusalem to make the traditional offering to purify herself. As she entered the temple, an old man named Simeon recognized the baby as the Messiah of Israel, and a “light to lighten the Gentiles.” 

Candlemas today is strongly connected to the weather. There is a very old British saying that states 'if Candlemas Day be bright and clear, there’ll be two winters in the year,' which brings us neatly around to the American holiday of Groundhog Day (or Marmot Day, if you're Alaskan). Most people are aware of the film Groundhog Day(1993), starring everybody's favourite actor, Bill Murray, but this film has caused the meaning of Groundhog Day in popular culture to warp into having a situation repeat itself over and over until you get it right.

This is incorrect. Groundhog Day is based wholly on Candlemas, and specifically derives from this poem;

As the light grows longer 

The cold grows stronger 

If Candlemas be fair and bright 

Winter will have another light 

If Candlemas be cloud and snow 

Winter will be gone and not come again 

A farmer should on Candlemas day 

Have half his corn and half his hay

It is said that February 2nd is the day that a Groundhog will first come out of his burrow to assess the weather. If he can see his shadow, he will go back into his burrow and winter will continue for another 6 weeks. If the day is overcast, and the groundhog cannot see his shadow, he will stay out of his burrow, and this signifies an early spring. In zoos across America Groundhogs make their predictions on this day, including the World's Most Famous Groundhog (allegedly, but probably accurate, can't think of a more famous one off the top of my head) Punxsutawney Phil, seen below celebrating Groundhog Day 2012 with the local mayor.

So there you have it. A parade of different holidays born from one another and bastardised to suit the place, people or religion of the time. You could celebrate this holiday by visiting a zoo to see some groundhogs make their predictions, or alternatively visit a snowdrop garden. If you don't fancy leaving the house in this cold weather, simply lighting a few candles and sitting surrounded by them should do the trick ;)

References
Imbolc & Brighid  http://paganwiccan.about.com/
Imbolc and Candlemas 1. bbc.co.uk/religions
2. http://www.twpt.com/imbolc.htm

Carmichael Quote http://www.chalicecentre.net/imbolc.htm

Candlemas http://projectbritain.com/year/candlemas.html
Brighid image http://www.orderwhitemoon.org/goddess/Brighid.html
Snowdrops http://www.bbc.co.uk/essex/content/image_galleries/snowdrops_easton_gallery.shtml
The coming of Bride http://www.earthrites.org/turfing/?p=6723
Candlemas http://seanrobsville.blogspot.co.uk/2010/01/buddhist-candlemas.html
Groundhog Day film poster http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0107048/
Punxsutawney Phil & mayor http://blog.zap2it.com/pop2it/2012/02/groundhog-day-punxsutawney-phils-ready-for-his-big-moment.html