Blessed Ostara

I just wanted to wish every one a very blessed ostara. Spring has arrived, time to renew things…
I hope spring will make your dreams come true…

Brightest Blessings
Thaleia

Ostara Spell

Ostara, otherwise known as the Vernal Equinox, marks the date when
day overcomes night. Plants re-emerge from the earth, the air is
filled with birdsong, and animals mate and bear young. Humans feel
an overpowering urge to build now, to plant and to fall in love.
This powerful time is when winter dreams need to be acted upon. The
most potent talisman we have this time of the year is the egg,
symbol of rebirth, new beginnings, and growth. Here are some old and
new ways to use eggs in your spellwork. For a new love, take a raw
egg and dye it red. Poke holes on either end of the egg with a
needle or a small nail. Make the hole on the small end of the egg
large enough so that you can insert a crystal and herbs. Blow the
contents of the egg out the holes and thoroughly clean out the
inside. Insert into the egg a the small rose quartz crystal, rose
petals, and a sprinkle of catnip. Visualize a new love entering your
life. Glue over the hole with pink tissue paper. You can modify this
spell for abundance or any new venture with a change of color,
crystal, and herb. To keep a family together, the eldest member of
the clan divides a hard-boiled egg so that each member gets a piece
to eat. Throughout one’s life, if any member of the family gets lost
one must think about those he or she shared the egg with. This will
cause the others to think of him or her. The combined physic
energies will guide the lost one home. To ensure the safety and well-
being of your household, bury a magically charged egg in each of the
four directions. Charge an egg with visions of an abundant harvest
and bury it in your garden before you plant. Hang decorated eggs
from the trees around your property on Ostara to bring prosperity to
your family for the year.

Lily Gardner-Butts

Egg-Coloring Spell

As Ostara approaches, a bit of egg magic gains potency. T0 do some
egg-coloring magic, hard-boil some white eggs. Draw symbols on them
using a white crayon or wax pencil. These symbols—runes, hearts,
dollar signs, or words—should represent what you want to manifest in
your life. Mix food colors to dye the eggs, and add a bit of salt
and vinegar to some boiling water. Let the water cool slightly, and
add the food coloring to the water. Dip the eggs in the dye with a
spoon. If you wish, you may repeat the dipping in order to create
more vivid colors. The symbols you drew on the eggs in white crayon
will stand out against the vivid colors. Dry the eggs on paper
towels, then refrigerate them. Each day thereafter, peel and eat an
egg and reflect on the wishes that you hope to manifest. As you feed
yourself this nutritious, high-protein food, an ancient symbol of
sacred fertility, spend a few moments imagining its good and magical
qualities giving you the power and will to achieve your desired
goals.

Ruby Lavender

The Colors of Ostara

Yellow – The color of communication, creativity, mid power,
intellectual pursuits, and the solar plexus region of the body.
Also associated with the Sun and with egg yolks.

Orange – a Solar color, used in spells for attraction and
friendship. The navel-area and energy center, called chakra,
governing personal desire and drive.

Red – the color of blood, linked with the cycles of life, death, and
rebirth. The color of desire, courage, lust, sexuality, war, and
strength. Represents the womb blood of the Mother Goddess from
which all thigs are born.

Green – the color of the Earth Mother in Spring and Summer,
representing abundance, prosperity, personal appearance, and
fertility. Linked to the energy center around the heart.

Blue – color representing sleep and dreams, peace and healing,
fidelity and unity, and used in astral projection. Associated with
the coming of Spring and with the Virgin Goddesses.

Violet – color of intense spirituality, metaphysical mysteries, deep
sleep, healing of serious illness, uncovering of past lives, and of
communication with higher-level beings. Color of the crown chakra,
which is activated when we seek a connection with the Divine.

White – used in healing and purification spells and rituals.

Brown – represents Earth and its animals, and is often used in
connection with stone magick to help the inner self connect to the
rhythyms and energies of the Earth.

Black – represents mysteries, voids, and the Crone Goddess, and is
used in spells to absorb and dispel negative influences. Not a
popular Ostara color.

Pink – associated with Spring like all pastels. Used in spells and
rituals for household peace and romantic love.

Silver – represents the Moon, the Goddess, psychicism, and inner
self.

Gold – represents the Solar Deities, both male and female. Used in
Summer festivals to honor the Sun, and in spells for wealth and
employment.

Source: Edain McCoy’s Ostara book

Solitary Ostara Ritual

Preparations
For decorations use dyed eggs and pink and green streamers. Include a
soil-filled cauldron, sword (or athame) a small shovel (trowel), a small pot
a few of your favorite seeds and all your altar tools.

Ritual
Cast the circle.
After casting the circle, say:
“Here I am on this day, Ostara, Lady day, Rite of Eoster, The Vernal Equinox
and the first day of the planting season. I am here to understand life,
death, and rebirth, and to give reverence to those who have endured each.”
Bow your head to think about how Ostara fits into the three groups above and
how it fits into the wheel of the year. Say:
“I stand at the gate between the living and the dead on this night where
both light and dark are equal. I am here to witness the union of the Goddess
Mother Earth, the Waning Lady of the Moon, Of My God, Green Man, the Waxing
Lord of the Sun. Conception…a necessary transition on the wheel of the
year.”

Steps to Naturally Dying Eggs

Here are the steps to natural dying
1. Place raw eggs in the bottom of a large pan
2. Cover with tepid water
3. Add about a teaspoon of white vinegar
4. Add the natural dye ingredients
5. Bring the contents in the pan to a boil
6. Reduce heat and simmer for 15 to 30 minutes depending on the
shade you wish to achieve. The longer it boils, the darker the
shade. Of course, the longer the boil, the more inedible the egg
will be.
7. Remove any solid dye substance and pour water and eggs carefully
into a bowl. If you wish them to be a darker color, leave them in
the bowl and refrigerate over night. Never leave eggs out of
refrigeration for more than one hour. If you do, don’t eat them. You
could get food poisoning from them.
8. Remove the eggs from the water and let them dry in egg cartons.

Seed Blessing and Indoor Planting Ritual for Ostara

Seeds that were gathered at Mabon or that you have purchased in
packets can be blessed and started indoors at Ostara. This ritual
should be conducted in the dark, as we are asking the Mother to
bring the seed’s light from the darkness of the warming earth.

Seeds
Flower pots
Soil
A green marker
Popsicle sticks (optional)
Four candles, one for each of the four quarters
Priapic Wand (an oak wand with an acorn or pine cone tip)

Place your supplies on the altar. Cast a circle by walking
clockwise, with index finger pointing down, saying:

Creation flows from the arms of our Mother Goddess.
Creation flows from the strength and light of our God.
Creation is the mission of the human spirit.
>From my lips the oath was sworn, from my hand the circle is born.
The earth, the air, the fire, the water return, return, return.
And the gifts of the land return. Behold the circle is cast.

Ask special blessings from each Quarter as you call them.

(Lighting candle at North) Elements of the North; rich earth,
comforting soil, bless this ritual with your gifts.

(Lighting candle at East) Elements of the East; sweet breath,
carrier of gentle spring rain, bless this ritual with your gifts.

(Lighting candle at South) Elements of the South; caressing sun,
warming creation, bless this ritual with your gifts.

(Lighting candle at West) Elements of the West; pure water,
transformation energy, bless this ritual with your gifts.

Using the priapic wand, tap each seed packet three times, saying:

Now is the dark half of the year passing
Now do the days grow light, and the Earth grows warm
I summon the spirit of these seeds
Which have slept in darkness
Awaken, stir, and swell
As you are planted in the Earth
To grow and bring forth new fruit.
Blessed be!

As each seed is blessed, visualize that particular plant in full
bloom or full fruit. At this point, you may charge the seeds with
blessings you hope to “sow” in the year ahead — things like wisdom,
prosperity, understanding, or certain magickal skills.

Next, draw the Birkana rune (a B with points instead of curves), the
rune of new beginnings, on the popsicle sticks or on the flower
pots. Add soil. Plant the seeds and water.

Thank the Goddess and God. Dismiss the Quarters and close the
circle. Tend your seeds carefully in the coming weeks. If desired,
plant the seedlings outdoors when the danger of frost has past.

adapted from rituals in Silver RavenWolf’s To Light a Sacred Flame &
Pauline Campanelli’s Wheel of the Year

Stones, Herbs and Altar for Ostara

Ostara, or the Spring Equinox, is an enchanted borderland time
outside of time where a magickal seam joins dark and light. From
this moment on, the Sun God begins his seminal journey across the
sky. His light and warmth overtake the darkness of Winter until his
power peaks at Summer Solstice in June.

Ostara is a time of new fire. The light and dark are in perfect
balance, but the light is growing and the Sun is about to burst
forth with new energy. It is a season of fertility and growth.

Eostre or Ostara is the Anglo-Saxon goddess of spring to whom
offerings of cakes and colored eggs were made at the Vernal Equinox.
Rabbits were sacred to her, especially white rabbits, and she was
believed to take the form of a rabbit.

ALTAR: For the Ostara altar:

– Candles should be light green.

– Incense may be jasmine.

– Decorate the circle with spring wildflowers.

– Place an earthenware or wooden bowl containing soil or a large
seed of some kind on the altar.

HERBS to use in your magic at Ostara: lily of the valley, tansy,
lavender, marjoram, thyme, tarragon, lovage, lilac, violets, lemon
balm, dogwood, honeysuckle, oakmoss, orrisroot, sunflower seeds,
rose hips, oak, elder, willow, crocus, daffodil, jonquil, tulip,
broom (Scotch or Iris), meadowsweet, acorn, trefoil (purple clover),
vervain.

STONES: Clear quartz crystal, rose quartz, agate, lapis lazuli,
amazonite, garnet.

Ostara Tea

What you need:
150g black Ceylon or English breakfast tea
15g shredded dried lemon peel
10g shredded dried orange peel
9g jasmine flowers

Instructions:
Remember to use boiling water and use a strainer in the pot for only 5
minutes then remove completely. Add honey for a sweet warm drink when
you need a fruitful cup of cheer!

Ostara Activities

Clear a space for a garden, or start flowers, herbs or vegetables
indoors. It’s too early in this climate to plant fruits and
vegetables; frosts can happen as late as April in the North.

You can clear weeds, grass and rubbish from the spot where you plan
a garden, or you can start seeds indoors.

Pick up litter at your favorite park or beach. Help the earth
rejuvenate by getting rid of the mess.

Ritually color hard-boiled or blown eggs

Perform oomancy (divination by eggs).

Meditate on the imagery of the seed.

Meditate on the season’s flowers. Flowers are the sexual organs of
plants, consider what this says to you.

Perform magick to give back to the earth. Raise and send energy to
return to the Earth, our mother, some of the bounteous energy and
fertility She gives to us.

Meditate on the Moon-Hare, rabbits provide an obvious symbol of
animal fertility and see what comes to you about literal or creative
fertility in your own life.

Honor the spring or Earth goddess or god of your choice, or a
goddess or god of balance.

Light a bonfire at dawn on the Equinox to honor the light half of
the year.

Meditate or perform ritual at dawn or sunset.

Meditate or perform ritual for balance in your life and in the
earth’s life.

Do a ritual denoting the passing of the year’s dark half.

Use the energy of the time of year as you would the first quarter of
the moon. You can use the energy of this time of year to fuel any
new project or goal.

Meditate on beginnings, on the East, on air, on dawn. In meditation,
note how these symbols connect organically and how you relate
personally to them.

Taking a long walk in nature with no intent other than reflecting on
the Magick of nature and our Great Mother and her bounty.

If you don’t do your spring cleaning at Imbolc it is an ideal time
to clean your home to welcome the new season.

Offerings of food and milk are left for the fairies and other
spirits who live in and around rocks and are responsible for the
fertility of the land. Leave a few fruits from the last harvest for
the nature spirits.