The Myth of the Year:
Returning to the Origin of the Druid Calendar
Chapter One
The Sequani Calendar and the Sacred Calendar of Eleusis
Page 2
The male consort of the daughter is
the underground keeper of wealth and a spiritual priest, the
transgressor of souls. He is portrayed as a harvest aspect
of the Vegetation Year God with "a crook across his shoulder
or attached to his belt." Although we have lost the priest's
name, he is depicted on Minoan seals rising from the
bucrania, or sacred horns, with a winged goat and a "daemon"
with an animal head who holds a pitcher; he is often
portrayed on these seals as the "master of animals"
(Gimbutas 145). In the stars of Elembivious, he is Auriga,
The Charioteer, holding a goat and three kids on his left
shoulder and a bridle and whip in his right hand.
In the west room of the east-west temple complexes of the
Minoan religion, the rituals preparing people for winter or
death took place. The name of the month of these rituals on
Crete and Thera is "Eleusinios" (Nilsson 521). The rituals
were performed in rooms that contained cult objects with
traces of grain and animal offerings. The main symbol in the
artwork of these rooms is the horns or the consecrated
bucrania which suggest rites of renewal and rites of passage
where the initiate would be re-vitalized by a ceremony of
death and resurrection. Marija Gimbutas states: "I believe
that rituals that occurred in the dark crypts of the Knossos
temple complex relate, on the one hand, to those performed
one or two thousand years earlier in the large tomb shrines
of Old Europe: Newgrange and Knowth in Ireland, and the Hal
Saflieni in Malta. On the other hand, they mirrored those
ceremonies enacted in classical times, such as the mysteries
of Eleusis, accompanied by music and dance, symbolically
imitated death and resurrection" ( 136).
The rituals that Gimbutas speaks of are marked on the
ancient calendars of the Greeks and the Celts. On The
Sequani Calendar, the dark half of the month, or the last
half of the lunar cycle is marked for the Holy Nights of
Elembivious. In the first half of the cycle, the people have
celebrated their Oenach on the full moon and after feasting
and settling their commercial affairs, the Holy Nights of
the second half of the lunar cycle are a time for spiritual
balancing before the winter. The first nine nights of the
cycle are marked as time to cross the River, Eridanus, in a
spiritual quest. The sixth and seventh nights of those days
are specifically marked with crosses.
On the Sacred Calendar of Eleusis, the same nine nights,
mentioned earlier in the Hymn to Demeter, the Holy Nights of
the Eleusinian Mysteries, are preceded by a claim time or
taking of the tithes for Eleusis. Official delegations
proclaiming a holy truce for the first harvest were sent in
the name of the grain goddess (Mylonas 244). Again, the
sixth and seventh nights of the dark half of the lunar month
of Boedromion are the nights in the Telesterion where the
Hiera is shown to the people and the life-in-death vision is
complete.
The last nights of the dark moon on both calendars are
marked for rest, libations, and rites for the dead. The
Winter Constellations appear in the night sky on the tenth
day of the dark half of the lunar cycle and winter begins.
On The Sequani Calendar, these nights are marked by the
mysteries of Mars and Mercury; they are marked with three
crosses. On the Sacred Calendar of Eleusis, the rites for
the dead are called the Plemochoai. Here, a sacred vessel of
liquid is poured from a pitcher to the east and west
respectively in a cleft in the earth or chthonic chasm
(Kerenyi 141). The mystic formula quite possibly ensures
that the stored grain contained in the earth will be
fertilized in order that it may resurrect in spring. The
east-west directions and the pitcher correspond to the
Neolithic details of the myth mentioned
above.
The Neolithic rituals and the portrait of the stars in
Elembivious are also paralleled in Celtic and Greek
mythology. In Celtic mythology, the figure of the Pregnant
Vegetation Goddess finds her parallels in the Matrona or the
Three Mothers of the Celts found in Gaul and Northern
Britain. The Matrona are often depicted as three women
seated on a stone bench holding cornucopias, fruits, bread,
or an infant. The mother figures, as well as other Celtic
goddesses, are part of a sacred triskele which represent the
daughter, the mother and the crone, three phases of the
feminine archetype. In Gaul, the Matrona are often
accompanied by Mercury, Mars, or Epona. Single mother
goddesses or goddesses with children playing about their
feet are variations of the sacred mother found in abundance
in Britain and Gaul.
In Irish mythology, Anu is the mother of the tribes called
the Tuatha De Danaan and in Welsh mythology, Modron, mother
of Mabon, is clearly the divine lineage of the hero. In
these stories, it is evident that the matriarchy is an
important element in the Iron Age myths. According to Anne
Ross: "It is clear then from the literary contexts that, not
only were the Celts concerned with the concept of a mother
goddess who presided over mortals, but they also visualized
the gods themselves as belonging to and being controlled by
a great divine mother, nurturer of the gods and of the land
with which, like all the Celtic goddesses, she was most
particularly concerned" ( 271).
The Celts inherited a particularly strong Indo-European
tradition of portraying the pig and the boar in their Iron
Age mythology as a harbinger of death, decay and burial. The
boar was adopted as a clan symbol because of its ferocity to
protect its own. It is associated with heroes and mortality
and the battle against death as well as being associated
with the vegetation goddesses and the cycle of crops.
Instead of a daughter figure that must be revealed to the
mother as a sign of the continuity of the vegetation cycle,
the hero must hunt and kill the pig or boar as a posture of
defense against mortality and death or hunt the animal to
the Otherworld and return in triumph.
In the Irish tales of Magh Mucrime, the pig has underworld
connections ravaging the land for seven years creating a
winter of desolation, and in the Fenian cycle of Irish
mythology, Finn and his men are often in pursuit of an
Otherworldly pig or boar. The Gaulish pig god "Moccus" is
identified with Mercury and in the Welsh Triads there are
three powerful swineherds, Pryderi, Drystan, and Coll who
must follow mysterious pigs from the Otherworld across Wales
or Britain. Coll's pig gives birth to wheat and barley in
the journey thus associating him with the grain mother. The
Welsh son of Modron, Mabon, must journey to the Otherworld
or Caer Loyw and battle the magic boar Twrch Trwyth to marry
his lover, Olwen.
The third presence that appears in The Sequani Calendar and
in the Sacred Calendar of Eleusis is The Horned God of
mythology. As the harvest aspect of the Vegetation Year God
in Neolithic culture, he is first seen associated with the
bucrania as the master of horned animals and as a protector
of the goddesses. However, in Indo-European culture, he is
given a more dominant role than that of consort. In
Indo-European culture, he is named as high priest. The
figure of the priest as "one who evoked the deities of the
underworld to assist in protecting the fertility of the
crops and similar agricultural pursuits" is one of three
defined roles of the priesthood. His name "Pont-dheh-ker"
means a high priest who makes a path or bridge to the gods
(Mallory and Adams 452).
In Celtic mythology, Cernunnos is the antlered stag-god, a
dispenser of prosperity who offers his wisdom and prowess,
his strength and masculine powers, fecund and immortalizing
as a guide through the onset of winter. Like Mercury and
Auriga, he brings the vision of immortality, renewal and
resurrection to the peoples of the earth. In his horned,
animal aspect, he controls the animals. Beasts bow their
heads in obeisance to his horned, black image and humans
look to him for guidance in controlling their amassed wealth
and stored grains for the winter.
Portrayed on the Gundestrup Cauldron in a Buddhic sitting
position, antlered and solemn, Cernunnos in his warrior
aspect, is able to conquer the darkness in the form of a
serpent, a symbol of the chthonic regions of the Otherworld.
In one hand, Cernunnos firmly grasps the ram-headed serpent
and in the other, he holds a torc, symbol of immortality:
Twrch Trwyth. Men who are not able, like Cernunnos, to
control their wealth are at the mercy of the serpent. This
is most likely an Indo-European tradition of conquering the
serpent as the goddess of the year, Hera. Cernunnos, divine
ancestor, conquering god of the chthonic worlds, balances,
like the balanced light of the Equinox, the power between
this world and the Otherworld.
In Gaul, Cernunnos is the great ancestor deity of the Gauls
and in Britain, he is The Horned God of the Brigantes. Like
the Gaulish Cernunnos, a stone image in Britain of Cernunnos
depicts him as a horned god associated with Mercury; he is
holding a purse in one hand and accompanied by snakes.
According to Ross, many of the British stone figures are
significantly different from their Gaulish counterparts
because they are markedly phallic. Ross states that there
are four basic ways he is depicted in Britain. He is seen as
a naked phallic deity, as a warrior, as Mercury, and as a
horned head (201).
The Irish iconographic sources attest to a cult of The
Horned God and the Irish mythology of the Iron Age reveals a
certain tale in the Tain Bo Cualnge concerning Conall
Cernach that accurately identifies Conall as Cernunnos.
According to Ross, the tale is "of a very early and genuine
Celtic tradition" (196). In the tale, Conall Cernach, like
Cernunnos, is an ancestor deity of the Irish. Conall sets
out to rescue the Fraech's wife, sons and cattle who have
been carried off by a fierce and terrible tribe. Conall
meets a crone who tells him to speak to a herdswoman because
she cannot help them. The herdswoman, a diviner, tells
Conall that she has heard that he is the chosen one who will
save Fraech's family and kill the awful serpent that guards
them. Conall attacks the fort of the serpent and the serpent
slides into his belt without a struggle.
The detail of the serpent in Conall's belt recalls the belt
of the Vegetation Year God in Neolithic culture, and the
image of Conall controlling or having the serpent encircle
his waist recalls a recurrent image in Celtic mythology. The
relationship between the great horned-god of the Celts and
the serpent symbolizes the control Cernunnos has of the
underworld powers. He is the path-maker and protector for
the people.
In Greek mythology, the figure of the path-maker is Hermes
or Mercury. In the "Hymn to Demeter," Hermes' task is to
bring Persephone back to Demeter in his chariot. Although he
is a less ominous figure than Cernunnos, Hermes serves a
similar purpose as messenger and path-maker between the
forces of the Underworld, Hades, and the Earth, Demeter.
Most importantly, he carries the vision of immortality that
Demeter is shown in order that she may know that her
daughter will be kept safely through the winter months and
returned in spring. Likewise, the people of the earth are
secure because their seeds will be safely stored for the
winter to be used again in the spring.
Hermes is a pre-Olympian god associated with the phallus and
the snake. He is said to have stimulated plant growth, and
he is the keeper of the flocks. Hermes carries a kerykeion
or magic staff that has snakes twisted around it. With his
kerykeion, he is able to summon souls from the Underworld.
In the mysteries of Eleusis, the kykeon is a drink offered
to the initiates before they witness the Hiera or vision of
Persephone brought to them in Herme's chariot. According to
Gimbutas, Hermes is a psychopomp whose function is concerned
with hibernating and regenerating (163). As high priest of
the Eleusinian mysteries, his function is to transform and
alleviate the people of their fear of winter and
death.
The myth of Demeter and Persephone is one of the central
myths in Greek mythology that has definite roots in
Neolithic culture. Demeter is the aspect of the Pregnant
Vegetation Goddess that is associated with the fruits of the
earth, the grain and the harvest, and her daughter is the
grain maiden and queen of the dead. Demeter's sacred animal,
the sow, has Neolithic roots and her daughter's association
with sprouts, seeds, and the piglet is also Neolithic.
According to Gimbutas, the Neolithic myth of Demeter and
Persephone involves the daughter of the grain mother
descending to the Underworld to hibernate and live in the
Underworld as Queen. Persephone's "torch light quickens the
grain: the seed does not die, but continues to live in the
underworld" (160). She is portrayed as a queen enthroned,
holding a dove, a pomegranate, a torch, and ears of
corn.
In the mythology of the Indo-Europeans and the Bronze and
Iron Age peoples, the Underworld becomes a place of gloom
and the seed or maiden is extinguished instead of
hibernating. The mother and daughter are both abducted by
gods and mourn their separation. The new moon of Equos in
The Sequani Calendar and the new moon of Metageitnion in the
Sacred Calendar of Eleusis both mark this event as the
Sacred Marriage of the horse to the king. Demeter as Demeter
Erinys, the angry one, is abducted by Poseidon, and
Persephone is abducted by Hades. Demeter must wander the
earth in search of her daughter, and the earth experiences
winter because of her grief. The Sacred Marriage is in the
first 15 nights of a 55 night cycle marked on the Sacred
Calendar of Eleusis.
The search and discovery of Persephone is the next 30 nights
of the 55 night cycle covering the light and dark halves of
the tenth lunar cycles on both calendars. The entire lunar
cycle, entitled Elembivious or Boedromion, is dedicated to
the search for and discovery of the seed as it sleeps in the
earth. In a spiritual sense, we are searching for
life-in-death. The final 10 nights of the 55 night cycle is
the light half of the month of Edrinios on The Sequani
Calendar and the light half of Pyanopsion on the Sacred
Calendar of Eleusis. This last part of the 55 night cycle is
to cross into death or winter to the Otherworld or
Underworld.
Both calendars seem to keep 5 year cycles in order that the
solar and lunar cycles are in sync. The Sequani Calendar
starts every 55 years on one of the four major phases of the
moon for the same reason. The Aubrey Holes at Stonehenge and
the lunar calendar stone at Knowth mark those 55 year lunar
cycles. On The Sacred Calendar of Eleusis, these cycles are
also marked. Obviously, these cycles are marked to keep
accurate time with the sun, moon and the stars. The creation
of the 55 nights on the Sacred Calendar of Eleusis might
then be seen as a microcosm for these larger cycles of time.
In this way, the ancients celebrated the season of one year
and the season of life simultaneously. The metaphors expand
and the meaning enhances as the natural events, both cosmic
and definite, are connected.
For this reason, the entire month of Boedromion is devoted
to the rituals of Demeter and Persephone, the symbols of
"spring-summer and fall-winter in a cycle of constant
renewal" (Gimbutas 161). The rituals begin on the first four
nights of the dark half of the lunar cycle when the
initiates walk fourteen miles from Athens to Eleusis to
cross the bridge over the river to the temple of Demeter
where they wait at the sacred well or kallichoron outside
the temple. Dancing and the sacrifice of a piglet are part
of the ceremonies as well as the ritual cleansing of the
body and the soul in fasting and prayer.
In the mythology, Demeter must wander the earth and then
come to the omphalos or entrance to the Underworld to mourn.
Demeter assumes the guise of a crone and Hecate, the actual
goddess who is the crone, attends her. Maidens from the
house of Metaneira help Demeter by sheltering her for days,
but all is to no avail until Hecate brings Hermes. Hermes,
the transgressor of souls, then enters the Underworld to
retrieve Persephone and bring her to Demeter. On the Sacred
Calendar of Eleusis this day, the fifth day of the dark half
of Boedromion is called "Pompe." Torches and a procession of
priests approach the Sacred Gate where the initiates, posing
as Demeter, wait. They cross the bridge between this world
and the Otherworld and the veil is lifted.
In The Sequani Calendar and the mythology of the Celts, this
is marked as crossing the River on the sixth and seventh
nights of the dark half of Elembivious. On the Sacred
Calendar of Eleusis, the initiates enter the temple to
experience the Hiera on the same nights of Boedromion. A
yellow ribbon is tied on the leg and hand of each initiate
to symbolize his or her illumination or vision and each
drinks the kykeon. The tying of one leg and one hand is
reminiscent of the powerful stance of the Druids where they
raise one hand and one foot and close one eye to summon the
powers of the Otherworld. Having experienced what Carl
Kerenyi calls a "vision beatifica," the people understand
the powers of life and death.
Unfortunately, Persephone has tasted of the pomegranate, or
the fruits of the dead and must return to the Underworld to
remain underground for the winter. The celebrations on The
Sequani Calendar are marked by three crosses and the
appearance of the Winter Constellations. The Sacred Calendar
of Eleusis marks them as the Plemochoai or rites for the
dead. In the "Hymn to Demeter," Hecate becomes the minister
and companion of Persephone, and Rhea, the goddess of the
earth, becomes the companion to Demeter and asks Demeter to
join the families of the gods. On earth, the people are
given a sacred calendar in order that they may eternally
celebrate the mysteries of life and death in accordance with
the stars, the moon, the sun and the cycles of the earth's
fruits.
The lunar cycle of Edrinios, the last lunar cycle of the
celebration of the 55 night cycle, is named for the
constellation of Eridanus which appears on the Eastern
Horizon at the beginning of the month. Eridanus, the River,
is our spiritual guide through the celebration of this lunar
cycle. Here, the moon is celebrated in two distinct phases.
The first phase is celebrated in the powerful light of the
nights of the full moon itself. On the tenth night of the
month, when the full moon passes the Hyades, known as the
piglets, the second phase of the celebration begins and
lasts until the moon is waning in its third quarter. These
are the contemplative and sacred nights of the celebration
performed by the priestesses of Persephone who are
represented by the constellation of the
Hyades.
In the 55 night celebration of the grain harvest, Edrinios
is the last part of that celebration. The 55 night cycle
begins with the Sacred Marriage of the people to the land as
a symbol of our commitment to the harvest; it takes place in
the dark half of the lunar cycle of Equos. The second part
of the 55 night cycle is the entire month of Elembivious and
it is devoted to embracing the oncoming winter through a
spiritual awakening to life-in-death and a realization of
our human potential. The culmination of that cycle reaches
its peak in the Holy Nights of Elembivious where we are
given spiritual peace to face death and make it through the
oncoming months of winter. The last phase of the 55 night
cycle is to ensure that the seeds of our labor are safely
stored for the winter; this essential month is
Edrinios.
On The Sequani Calendar, Edrinios is marked as Tiocobrextio,
a celebration of the tribes. The three days around the full
moon are the time of the first phase of the Oenach. The
second phase of the Oenach is marked on The Sequani Calendar
with three crosses before the moon begins its third quarter;
this is when the full moon passes the Hyades. On the Sacred
Calendar of Eleusis, the celebration is in the month of
Pyanopsion, the eleventh lunar cycle of the Greek calendar.
The first phase of celebration is called the Proerosia and
the Pyanopsia of the Thesmophoria. The second phase of the
celebration on the Greek calendar is the festival of the
Thesmophoria itself; it too takes place on the nights before
the third quarter.
Both celebrations have their roots in the Neolithic culture
of Europe and the Mediterranean. They were the times for the
storage and the blessing of the seeds, a sacred activity
carried out by the women of the tribes. The Hyades are an
apt representation of these festivals as they are the
piglets of Persephone, most likely represented by her
priestesses. In the night sky, they appear as a cluster or
group and their rising signifies the beginning of winter.
They are often immersed in a cloud of streamers, as if
protected by a veil. They are protected as the seeds of our
labors must be protected. Before they had a name in the
myths and legends of the Celts and the Greeks, they appeared
as a sign in the sky that it was time for the winter seeds
to be carefully protected and stored.
Marija Gimbutas describes three types Neolithic temples, one
of which she calls the temples dedicated to the Pregnant
Vegetation Goddess. In the temples were found masks of pigs,
clay figurines of young, mature and crone women, and
figurines with grain stuffed inside. The temples housed
seeds in underground pits, in offering pits in the corners
of the temple courtyard, or in "pithoi" jars. Stored grains
were blessed and cared for during the winter months and the
women who cared for the temples were part of a Neolithic
matriarchy. According to Gimbutas, the care and maintenance
of the Neolithic temples was organized by councils of women
with several levels including that of priestess and
attendants (Gimbutas 120).
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