Celebrating Lammas / Lughnasadh: History, Herbs, and Rituals for the First Harvest

Lammas (or Hlæfæst ) is an Anglo-Saxon holiday rooted in ancient celebrations of the first harvest of the agricultural year. It is a festival of first fruits, brewing, commitment, and community gathering. Its Gaelic counterpart, Lughnasadh, additionally honors the god Lugh and the great feats of himself and his family. The holiday as we know it today is a combination of Celtic, Germanic, and to some extent, Norse traditions surrounding the celebration of the first harvest of the grain and the abundance of food the Earth provides this time of year.

Together we will explore the history of Lammas & Lughnasadh, traditional herbs associated with the celebrations, and simple ceremonies we can do today in our modern context while respecting the heart and roots of the holiday. You’ll even get two Lammastime tea recipes for your seasonal sipping pleasure!

A (Not So Brief) History of Lammas/Lughnasadh

To properly understand the European pagan holidays, it is important to trace back the history of these ancient holidays, as many aspects that we consider to be ancient were actually created by modern neo-pagans and wiccans in the 20th century.

In the 1950s, Wiccan Gerald Gardner and High Priestess Doreen Valiente created the Pagan Wheel of the Year. They blended together the Celtic, Germanic, and Norse traditions surrounding the celebrations of the solstices, equinoxes, and the cross -quarter holidays (the points in between each solstice and equinox).

When it comes to celebrating the first harvest in August, we are actually looking at two distinct traditions that would have been celebrated uniquely depending on the region and the point in time in which we are looking. It is also important to remember that these holidays were never tied to a specific date, but rather followed to patterns of the land that particular year. First Harvest festivals took place when the grain was good and ready! I find this to be a potent re-frame for those of use seeking to re-connect with the land-honoring traditions of our ancestors.

The Ancient History of Lammas/ Hlæfæst

Lammas translates to “Loaf Mass”, and is actually the title of the Christianized holiday overposed on the pagan celebrations that were already in place. Hlæfæst is an Old English word which means “Loaf Feast”, and is preferred by some who wish to honor the pre-christian roots of Lammas more distinctly.

We know that the pre-christian anglo-saxons in England celebrated Hlæfæst , or Loaf-Feast, by ritualistically cutting the first sheaf of wheat, grinding it down, and baking it into a loaf of bread. This bread was then used in land-protection magic. It was also a time of festivals, markets, and hard work! The community came together to collectively bring in the grain harvest and thus secure their survival in the future.

Once Europe was Christianized, we know that the first loaf would be brought to the church to be blessed, and then still used in land-protection magic, though of course at that time it would not have been considered so. But the beauty of these strong traditions is that they never die, for they live in the marrow of our bones.

One specific ceremony we know of involves taking the bread to the church to be consecrated, and then splitting the bread into four parts, and placing a piece into each corner of the barn to protect the grain harvest from pests or spoilage.

Another key aspect of Lammas was the idea of handfasting (from the old Norse handfasta), and is an Anglo-Saxon tradition centered around binding oneself to a legal oath or contract by the ceremonial joining of hands. The Germanic migration into the British isle brought this word into the lexicon, and became conflated with the harvest marriages that would often take place at Lughnasad (more on this below). Lammas was a time of putting down all disagreements, settling debts, and making commitments as the community came together to pull in the harvest and prepare for the long, dark winter ahead.

Understanding Lughnasadh

A cursory google search will describe Lughnasadh as an ancient celtic holiday celebrated throughout the British Isles honoring the god Lugh. However, if we dig a little deeper, we find an incredible diversity of harvest festivals celebrated throughout the Celtic world. Each region would have highly specific traditions and ceremonies, and not every group necessarily celebrated the same holidays.

In 1942, Irish folklorist and historian Maire MacNeill conducted a massive survey of rural Irish communities regarding their late summer festivals, including specific customs, names, and legends associated with this time. Over the course of twenty years she analyzed 1,073 pages of data with historical medieval literature on the subject. The result was her book “The Festival of Lughnasa”, detailing her discovery of Pre-Christian traditions embedded in the lore she extensively researched.

From her work, we have several themes that may have been pervasive throughout pre-Christian Ireland, and can help us understand the values and worldview of these ancestors.

Legends of a skilled, brilliant newcomer — often called Lugh “oath-binder” who dares to challenge the old, greedy, chthonic ruler (called Crom Dubh - “the dark bent one”) who is with-holding the harvest from the people. In winning, Lugh forces the old god to give up the harvest for the sustenance of all.
Macneill’s thesis names the god Lugh of the old stories as the one honored in Ireland, though an older Irish name for him is Idlanach “many-skilled one” and this would have been true for many groups, as the Romans encountered veneration of this god in many forms not only on the British Isles but throughout mainland Europe. However, we can celebrate the archetype of a brave, brilliant, highly skilled and daring young god in good keeping with the traditions.
A land-based offering done by the whole community together. These ceremonies would have taken place primarily on either a hilltop or near a sacred well, though a river or lake was used sometimes as well.
The general pattern would be the first cutting of the grain, done by the village or family leader, and then everyone would follow, likely in a festive procession to the sacred landmark. There the sheath would be buried, offering the first fruits back to the land in gratitude.
Ritual sacrifice of a bull. Cows were the center of survival for thousands of years in the various Celtic tribes, and oftentimes a bull would be killed and the meat eaten in a communal feast. Some groups would do a succession ceremony with the hide in which a young bull would be chosen to take the place of the sacrificed bull in the herd.
Another feasting ritual celebrated a great bilberry harvest, and everyone would gather to eat fresh foods, new grain, and berries harvested from the land.
Many groups would reveal or bring out a large stone carved into a head. The significance of this is lost, but some theorize it is a remnant of a time when human sacrifice was commonplace.
The “cult of the head” was a strong theme throughout Celtic lore. What we do know is that at some point, it was held that the head was the seat of the essence of a person. In the warrior culture of the Celts, to cut off an enemy’s head was to capture their strength and spiritual power.

We also know that Lughansadh was a traditional time for marriages to take place. In celtic society couples would commit to a Tailtin, or trial marriage, for a year and a day. The following harvest they could continue or leave the marriage with no cultural or legal ramifications.

This was a practical solution that followed the many “greenwood marriages” that may have taken place during the fertility celebrations of Beltaine. Couples who went romping through the woods would be discovering by Lughnasadh if a baby was on the way, and this provided stability for the mothers without full commitment if the match turned out not to be a sustainable partnership.

Many neo-pagans take up this tradition, and commit to their partners at Lughnasadh/Lammas first for a year and a day, and then the following year make a commitment for as many years as they wish, or part ways. In long-term relationships, it is an auspicious time to assess the relationship, celebrating its strengths and shoring up its weaknesses, or parting ways if it seems to have run its course.

In Summary

For those of us with European ancestry but disconnected from the traditions of our land-honoring ancestors, this time of a year is a beautiful movement towards reclaiming the heart of these traditions. Though much has been lost, and the modern interpretation of ancient beliefs is quite convoluted, we can respectfully draw on what we do know to create contemporary celebrations for our families and communities.

I myself have ancestry from both the Celtic and Germanic traditions, and I know I am not alone in that here in the United States. The two holidays have been conflated into one in an effort by neo-pagans of the 20th century to create a cohesive pantheon and holiday calendar for those of us who wish to celebrate as our Pre-Christian ancestors did. While this effort is appreciated, over time it has led to much confusion over what is actually ancient and what is modern. Many purported “ancient” ideas, rituals, and associations are actually from more recent times, and it is important to understand the origins of rituals and ceremonies when we do them.

I think of our modern celebrations as a patchwork quilt, gathering scraps here and there from the great basket of history, and crafting together a beautiful blanket of tradition to cover us and comfort us, grounding us always in honor of our Earth and the deities inspired by the sacred land.

Celebrating Lammas/Lughnasadh in Modern Times

Through my research and observance of the patterns in the forest, meadows, and my garden, I now think of this time of year as the First Harvest Time. I personally prefer to call it Lammas, as this name is more intimately tied to the agricultural year. We can draw from the cohesive themes and unique expressions of celebrating the sustenance of our Earth, the Great Mother who feeds us all.

At its heart, Lammas is a time of offering the first fruits of the season firstly to the land, a simple gesture that is deeply profound in its meaning. It is a time of gathering in both work and play, and strengthening the community bonds that hold us in our everyday lives. It is a time of abundance, of giving freely, and planning for the future. Centered around the plants of the season, we can begin here, noticing what is fruiting and flowering and, with gratitude, eating these offerings in celebration of our precious web of life here on Earth.

As most of us no longer live in farming communities and close-knit tribes, here are some simple traditions suitable for modern life rooted in the ancient lore of the ancestors. I have also included some sacred plants traditionally centered in this harvest celebration.

The Sacred Herbs of Lammas

We make much of the word “sacred”, but really what was sacred to most ancient people was simply what was seasonally available. This of course varied widely region by region, and so to truly follow the tradition, notice what grows and fruits in your local ecology, and celebrate that!

Aside from the magical and ceremonial uses of the herbs, the heart of honoring these plants is harvesting them at their late-summer peak and making medicine with them! The field and forest was the apothecary of the ancients, so wise women and medicine makers would have been gathering and preparing enough medicine with the herbs to last a year, and this tradition still runs strong among the herbalists and wildcrafters of our society. If you do gather, be sure to do so respectfully and only from abundant plants so that when you are done, there is no noticeable impact on the plant community.

Notwithstanding, here are some traditional plants from the Celtic and Germanic traditions centered in the First Harvest Celebrations.

Grains

In the agricultural tradition, grains were imperative to the survival of both livestock and the people of the tribe/village. These days, conversations about grains are largely centered around intolerance, and I will digress a moment to address this.

Intolerance to certain grains like wheat are due to the onslaught of chemicals used in large-scale farming, as well as GMO seeds now prevalent in the food supply. Additionally, the effect of antibiotics and chemically made processed foods on our gut, which holds a large part of our immune system, creates a hyperreactivity to the proteins in some grains.

My point being, it is not the fault of the grain, but an unfortunate consequence of dishonoring the land and our own bodies with poisonous, for-profit agricultural practices completely unheard of for most of human history.

The story of grains is a potent entry-point for diving deep into reclaiming land-honoring practices and the nourishing traditions of our ancestors. Seeking organic, unrefined grain products and exploring baking with them can lead you a little closer to home in this regard.

Whole grains provide incredible nourishment, containing prebiotics, fiber, B-Vitamins,protein, and many other nutrients. As we learned from our history lesson earlier, the grain was at the center of the first harvest celebrations. An abundant grain harvest was imperative to survival for ancient European agriculturists, feeding both the people the livestock they depended on. Noticing the wild grains fruiting and giving them an offering or baking a loaf with whatever grains you love best is a lovely way to celebrate the season.

For the herbally minded, Oatstraw can center in any teas or altars made to celebrate the First Harvest.

Meadowsweet

Known as “Queen of the Meadow", this tall flowering herb is resplendent in her lacy white blooms that grace the roadsides and open fields in mid-summer. A wonderfully gentle yet effective herb for reducing inflammation, meadowsweet can help reduce pain and general inflammatory states in the body, as well as promoting good digestion.

Traditions around Meadowsweet come to us primarily from the Celtic lore. It was one of the three primary sacred herbs of the Druids. It was worn as a garland or headdress during ceremonies. Another common name for it is Bridewort, echoing its use as a wedding day ornament for marriage altars and as a strewing herb on the floor of the festival hall.

Infusions of meadowsweet were often used by the athletes competing in the Lughnasad field games after the fact, alleviating their sore muscles.

Yarrow

I think of Yarrow as the shieldmaidens herb, as it both staunches wound bleeding and regulates women’s monthly bleed into health. It is also the farmers great ally, as occasional nicks and cuts from harvesting are inevitable, and the field herb of yarrow is there to stop the bleeding and help disinfect the wound in the moment.

Yarrow was used as a protective charm for the field, the harvest, and the livestock. Being a field herb, yarrow would be honored in the field as a companion plant for the grain, not only for its ecological benefits but its energetic protection as well. Farmers would gather fresh yarrow, tie it into four bundles, and bury one bundle in each corner of the field to bless and protect the plants.

In Scottish tradition, bundles of yarrow would be burned around the field in a practice called saining, loosely translated as “to make sacred”. The intention was to bless the field and in doing so, protect it from all harmful influences, such as hexes, curses, or naughty fairies and such.

People would also wear bundles of yarrow on their persons to deter evil influences from affecting their health or their crops. The udders of the family's cows would be washed in a tea of yarrow, to protect from summer heat sickness and fairies spoiling the milk. This is fitting, as yarrow has potent anti-bacterial properties so the protection was quite literal.

In the Druidic tradition, there are some reports of Druids gathering yarrow stalks and using them for divination of the Autumn weather. Grain is particularly vulnerable to storms, so ensuring that the harvest was brought in at the correct time was critical.

Mugwort

Another potent protective herb, Mugwort works in the unseen magnificently. It would have been used in a similar way as yarrow, particularly in burning rituals because of its sweet scent. Lughnasad especially featured large bonfires, and Mugwort would have been cast into the fire to give a sweet scent.

Mugwort was scattered on the threshing floor as a blessing for the harvest, as well as burned in bundles in the four corners of the storage facility for the grain, driving away dampness and all ill influences. Sprigs would be hung at the doorway of homes and barns for blessing and protection.

Berries

One of the most prevalent patterns Ms. Macneill noted in her research was a great gathering and feasting of bilberries at Lammastime. Bilberries were the local berry in season, where I live we have delicacies Blackberries and Salal Berries coming on.

Nothing says summer more than an afternoon picking wild, sun-ripened berries in abundance. Berries are one of our most precious gifts from the Earth, so nutritious and delicious to boot! Every season provides us with the nutrients we need to face the upcoming season, and Berries are no exception. Full of antioxidants, fiber, and phytochemicals that regulate our metabolic process, berries strengthen our immune systems, our hearts, and circulatory system.

The traditions are pretty simple- gather and eat! Baking and preserving the berries are also traditional ways to celebrate the First Harvest as a community. Jam-making party anyone?

Simple Rituals for Lammas

As discussed, the winding path of seeking the Old Ways of European culture cannot be easily traveled. There is no written record to reference, so we are left pulling threads here and there from the accounts of the conquerors, and the wisdom and lore preserved in the rural traditions throughout the ages.

In our modern context, I find the heart of celebrating the traditional holidays of my Celtic and Germanic ancestors is to follow a simple and practical path. Their spirituality was not about fanfare, or escapism, or fantasy. It was deeply rooted in the practical needs of the season, and honoring their total dependence on the Earth and its cycles. It is easy now to forget that we are still entirely sustained by the seasons of the Earth, and rooting into this truth brings peace, belonging, and a vital energy to our lives.

With this in mind, here are some simple rituals gleaned from the rich and varied traditions of Lammas and Lughnasad, fitting for contemporary times.

First Fruits Altar

Make a simple altar in your garden kitchen, or dining room. If you have a garden, gather the first fruits and arrange them in a pleasing way, with whatever components feel good to you. If you don’t have a garden, visit your favorite farmer’s market or grocery store and gather the most beautiful veggies and fruits you can find!

Herbal Burning Bundle

Protective herbs can be gathered and tied into a burning bundle, or thrown into a bonfire. Aromatic herbs are wonderful for this, and in the spirit of the season, the best herb for your bundle is whatever you have available! Particular favorites of mine are Mugwort, Yarrow, Rosemary, Lavender, and Garden Sage.

To cast blessings upon your living space and garden, light your bundle and walk sunwise (clockwise) three times around the space. Or take the bundle and blow the smoke into the four corners of the space, starting with the northmost corner, sending deep intentions of love, care, and protection.

Note: Smudging is a very specific tradition of many First Nations people, and should not be appropriated by those of other cultures. Many cultures have their own herb burning traditions, including the ones mentioned here, and these should be sought out and not considered interchangeable with smudging out of respect for our First Nations kin.

Bake Bread or Pie

Get your grain on and bake a homemade loaf of bread! Or gather local berries and bake a pie, crumble, or cobbler! Then share with loved ones in a toast to the sustenance of our precious Earth. Check out my article on Summer Berry Recipes here.

Brew Mead or Beer

Another excellent way to use an excess of berries is to brew a simple mead. This can be done with regular kitchen equipment, and few ingredients. Or, if you have the setup and the know-how, brew some herbal beer! To learn more about making your own herbal brews, check out this fantastic book by Stephen Harrod Buhner, Sacred and Herbal Healing Beers: The Secrets of Ancient Fermentation.

Lammastime Tea Ritual

Craft your own special tea to enjoy in a solo ritual or with friends. Brew the tea, and sit in a beautiful, peaceful place, ideally outdoors. Hold the warm cup on your hands, and notice all the natural beauty around you. Give thanks inwardly or out loud for the gifts of the season. If in a group, a fun prompt is “What gifts of the Earth are you most thankful for right now?”. Sip the tea with total attention, enjoying at least 2-3 minutes of silence. When you are complete, thank the herbs and continue on with your day.

Lammas Tea Recipes:
Recipe 1:
2 parts Oatstraw
1 part Lemonbalm
1/2 part Calendula
1/2 part Lemon Verbena
A pinch of Mugwort

Recipe 2:
1 part dried Berries (bilberries or blueberries are great!)
1/2 part Oatstraw
1/2 part Hibiscus
1/4 part Ginger
1/4 part Cinnamon Chips

Last Words

Wowee! You made it to the end of this article! Thank you for reading, and if you are interested in books related to magical herbs, Wheel of the Year Holidays, and Celtic or Germanic culture, check out my favorites down below!

Blessed First Harvest Time!
Susan Marie