Many modern Pagans and neo-Pagans follow "The Wheel of the Year," a cycle of eight Sabbats or Holy Days, in observance of the cycles of life, death, rebirth, transformation, change, balance, and order in a context based loosely on agricultural seasons. The origin and cultural/historical accuracy of many of these holidays and their neo-traditional meanings, ways of celebrating, and correspondences are quite often questionable at best, downright amalgamated and invented at the extreme, but I still use the Wheel, to a large extent with my own interpretations, because its cyclical nature and alignment with astronomical movements appeal to my sensibilities.

There is often much confusion when it comes to understanding these holidays in terms of their placement throughout the year, so here’s a quick primer to help you get your footing, so to speak. First of all, these eight Holy Days (or Sabbats, if you prefer) are associated with eight astronomical phenomenon: the two equinoxes, two solstices, and four "cross quarter" days.

The equinoxes, literally "equal night," are the two days of the year on which the number of hours of daylight is equal to the number of hours of darkness. These occur in March, when the Sun enters Aries (usually between the 20th and the 22nd; due to the "wobble" in the Earth’s rotation, these dates vary a little from year to year,) and in September, when the Sun enters Libra (again, usually between the 20th and 22nd.) Obviously, spring and fall are reversed, if you’re in the Southern Hemisphere. The Spring Equinox is often observed as Ostara or some equivalent, the Fall Equinox as Mabon.

The Solstices occur once in the summer and once in winter, when the Sun enters Cancer and Capricorn, respectively. They also usually fall between the 20th and 22nd of Une and December, and are celebrated as Midsummer/Litha, etc. and Yule. Again, these will flip-flop if you’re in the Southern Hemisphere.

A little more confusing for some are the Cross-Quarter days; these each fall exactly between a solstice and an equinox, as the Sun reaches 15 degrees Aquarius (for Imbolc,) 15 degrees Taurus (for Beltane/May Day,) 15 degrees Leo (for Lammas/Lughnasadh, etc.,) or 15 degrees Scorpio (for Samhain/Halloween.)

Many, if not most, people set a specific date and celebrate then, rather than trying to calculate the astronomical dates. Honestly, the chances that our forebears had the ability and/or equipment to pinpoint the exact moment of a solstice or equinox are pretty slim, so it’s not even so much a matter of authenticity (besides which, there are plenty of questions about how many of these so-called “ancient” festivals have true historical roots!) but I like to have my own celebrations on or as close to the actual dates as possible, perhaps because of some odd OCD tendency.

All that being said, let’s take a look at these eight holidays, and I’ll share a little of what they signify for me and how I celebrate them.