Beltane is NOT about Sex!

It is that time of year, Beltane is at the gate and the blogs and memes are a plague all about us on the meaning, practice, and traditions of this holy day. This blog is no different in the respect that it is about Beltane. It is different in that it is not about all that stuff. Instead it is about a common mistake that is made in that regards. I am not saying that you make that mistake or that all of the various articles do, but it is made often enough that there is the danger of falling into that trap. So this is my way of saying, “Hey, there is a large pit over there. Don’t fall in it.”

Our Craft at the core of its essence is about experiencing the mysteries of existence that cannot be easily communicated. That is the point of all of our rituals, mythos, and practices—communicating the incommunicable. However, modern Western society is awash with a habit of concrete and or literal thinking and often we also get into that habit. Mystery traditions don’t work that way though. So, with that said, we are brought to the whole point of this post.

Beltane is not about sex. You see, sex is the symbol, not the point. As the symbol it makes the reference to the point. It infers towards the mystery— connotation as opposed to denotation. Saying that Beltane is about sex, without recognition of the role of sex as a symbol, is like mistaking the finger for the object it points towards. Nor can anyone tell you what the symbol points to in any concrete term, that’s why we call it a mystery.

So this Beltane when you are delving into the inner spiritual terrain of life and experiencing all it has to offer, make sure to celebrate, rejoice, love, have mirth, enjoy sex, and take pleasure in doing so, but keep in mind that the symbols of the holy day are not the reference.

Boidh Se!

-SM

“Lost in a thicket, bare-foot upon a thorn path.”