by Tamera Coble

Created on: March 02, 2010

What is Ostara? 

Ostara is the time of the Spring Equinox and is on around March 21st. Day and night are equal in length and the sun begins to win over the dark. It is the coming of spring, growth and fertility. It is the celebration of the abundance of nature.  When Ostara arrives, it is the season for those things that have gone dormant to come back alive and reborn. 

The origin of the word Ostara comes from Eostre, a Germanic goddess of spring. Ostara is around the same time as the Christian Easter celebration and the Jewish faith of Passover. 

Fir early Pagans in Germanic countries this was a time to celebrate planting and the new crop season. The Celtic peoples typically didn’t celebrate Ostara as a holiday but were in tune to the changing seasons. The spring Equinox is a time for fertility and sowing seeds. In Medieval societies of Europe, the March Hare was viewed as a major fertility symbol. This reminds people that Ostara is in the middle of mating season. 

There are many ways to celebrate Ostara and the coming of spring. Colors of Ostara include; light green, lemon yellow, and pale pink. Coloring eggs is a popular Ostara activity. They are colored and placed on the altar as magical talismans.  Baskets are filled with grasses, eggs, and new spring flowers. Foods of Ostara include; lemon bread, marshmallow peep ambrosia, deviled eggs and mint chutney. Another good activity at Ostara is to make yourself a set of runes. 

Spells and Rituals

Ostara Creation Spell

To empower a  goal, write it on a hard boiled egg with a wax crayon. The egg is a powerful symbol representing the universe in an embryo. Your goal lives in you like creation lives within the egg. Draw two interlocking triangles to form a six pointed star. What you can create in your mind, you can manifest on the physical plane. Dye the egg in deep red. In the days ahead, achieve your goal through imagination and physical striving. 

Ostara Seed Spell

You will need:

Small Plant Pot

Coin

Seed

Soil

Paper and Ink

Write your goals and ambitions for the year on a piece of paper. Place the paper at the bottom of the pot and lay the coin on top of it. Fill pot with soil. Plant the seed and water. Hold pot and visualize your dreams and wishes growing as the plant does. 

Blessing Your Garden Tools

Say to the tools:

Little shovel, little rake,

Tend the garden I make.

Little trowel, little hoe,

You will help my garden grow.

I will use you carefully

And great abundance we shall see!

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