The Fire Festival of Summer
The festival of Lughnasadh, later known as Lammas, is one of the four grand sabbats of witchcraft traditions, and one of the four sacred fire festivals of the Celtic peoples also celebrated by modern Pagans. The four festivals all have fire playing a central role in some way. Beltane and Samhain, the high holy days of modern witchcraft were traditionally centered around large bonfires or balefires of a sacrificial or celebratory nature. During Imbolc, or Candlemas one of the only festivals frequently celebrated indoors we see the great fire and coming sun represented by candle flame. Lughnasadh is directly across the wheel from Imbolc and during the hot-dry summer the fire of the Sun is already manifest in the sky above. Sun disks or fire wheels were also used to symbolize the solar rays of the sun, often rolled downhill in representation of the Sun’s descent over the horizon.
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