FIRE FESTIVALS
[Stained glass art from a group of historical magician windows originally designed for "Merlin McFly's", and now on exhibit at "Magicopolis" in Santa Monica, CA.] |
Dates & locations of annual fire ceremonies
last Tuesday of January
Up-Helly-Aa Lerwick, Shetland Islands.
Norse ancestors welcomed the return of the sun god with Yule,
a 24-day period of feasting, storytilling, and bonfires. The last night
of the festival was caalled up-Helly-Aa or ÒEnd of the Holy Days.Ó
A 30Õ+ model Viking boat is carried in night procession and burned with torches.
Jan 27
Birthday of Zoroaster, 6th cent. BC Persian fire-prophet
Jan 31
Celtic - Traditional Eve of Imbolc (Brigid's Day)
Feb 1
Ireland - Feast day of Gaelic Christian Saint Bridget
Feb 5
Malta - the Feast of St. Agatha
patron saint of fire-fighters, nurses and bellringers
Feb 26
Armenia - Day of Mihr (Mithra), the fire god
Feb 28
Luxembourg - Burg Sonndeg
Bonfires invoke returning power of the sun
March 19-20
Spring Equinox - ancient fire feast of Oestre
Fire-walking is held in conjunction with Vernal observances
in China, India and Southeast Asia.
Apr 2
Yorkshire, England - Eve of St. Mark
Apr 30
Europe - Walpurgis Night
May 1
May Day, the ancient Beltane
May 19-21
Bulgaria & northern Greece - Ayia Eleni, Langada Mavrolefki
Anastenarides Christian sect celebrate the Orthodox feast of
Sts. Constantine & Helen.
Jun 6
England - annual chain of bonfires begun on Snow Hill
by the Queen of England
Jun 20-21
Europe - Midsummer's Eve / summer solstice
bonfires & torch processions
Jun 24
Peru - the Incas annually kindled a new fire with a concave mirror
at the golden Temple of the Sun
on this day of winter solstice (Southern Hemisphere)
Jul 2
Celtic - Feast of Cerridwen
firegoddess who stirs up transcendant awareness in her cauldron
Jul 17
China - Birth of the Fire God
Jul 26
Mayan New Year
the priests ritually created new fire with a fire drill
Jul 29
Norway - Olsok Eve - bonfires lit for Saint Olav, a Viking king
Aug 10
Christian - Saint Lawrence, invoked for protection from fire
Aug 16-17
Japan - Daimonji - mountaintop bonfires for ancestor festival
Aug 17-20
FIRE DANCE 2000
An intimate gathering of serious Fire Workers
in the coastal range near Santa Cruz, CA
Aug 23
Ancient Rome - Vulcanalia
Aug 28-Sept 4
BURNING MAN
[Photo by Amole]
The gargantuan gathering of fire-friendly folks
in the toasty, dusty, windy Nevada desertlands
where a small temporary city (15,000 + ) is built and burned
Sep 7
Ancient Egypt - Day of the Going Forth of the Great Flame
in honor of the fire-spitting cobra goddess
Sep 13
Persia - Farvardian - Zoroastrian day of recalling the fiery spirits
of the departed at the Towers of Silence
Egypt - Lighting of the Fire Ceremony
statues & images of gods & ancestors illuminated at night
Sep 17
Japan - the ancient Shinto fire-ordeal is called Hi-watari
Sept 21-22
Autumn Equinox - ancient harvest fire festival
Sep 27
Ethiopia - Maskal Festival - torch parade & all-night bonfire
Nov 5
England - Guy Fawkes Day
Nov 8
Japan - Fuigo Matsuri - Shinto Feast of the Bellows
honors the goddess of the hearth fire
Nov 11
Martinmas
Nov 15
Rome - Day of Etruscan fire-goddess Feronia
Dec 2
Hopi - Wuwuchim - new fire ceremony (8 days)
December 21
Winter Solstice
Dec 31
West Samoa - annual fire dance
Zuni - New Fire Ceremony, culmination of Solstice celebrations
Data researched and compiled by Phoenix & Arabeth
for the One-World Global Calendar
© 2000 Phoenix & Arabeth
Phoenix & Arabeth
will be performing a
tattoo ritual at
FireDance 2000 (See You There)
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