Ostara Traditions & Meanings+ Rituals 2023

The Spring Equinox is knocking on our dew-stained windows, beckoning us to remember its beauty and release.  During this time, the trees are about to burst, the last frost will pass, and the earth will begin to soften again in its own magic, prepared for the rains of spring.

What a time to be alive, My Darkling’s!

It’s difficult to keep track of the days, let alone holidays and changing of the seasons, but these are our touchstones. These are our points of peace and place. These markers are our anchors, and no matter what is happening in the world, these transitions transpire, and we must follow suit.  As the promise of life and growth coincides with isolation and social distancing, our charge here is to strike a balance within so that we may alchemize this energy, without. We are living in days of the strangest contrasts, which lends us the power to tap into the deepest wells of healing and magick within ourselves. As we strive to be more a part of nature rather than apart from, perhaps the nature that we’re truly seeking and are more disconnected from are the silenced voices within ourselves.

Nature is calling us to unearth our hushed treasures and discover ourselves.

Ostara symbolizes balance and harmony, two energies we’re being called to embody in the face of the starkest adversities. This is the duality of life – death, birth, un-learning, rediscovering. These are the gifts of the simultaneous seasonal shift and call to sequester ourselves for the greater good. We’re being called back into the safety of our domestic hearths as the external world continues to birth and bloom around us.

Life finds the way. Shining Light for you, always, Mia

The Spring Equinox, also known as Ostara, falls somewhere around March 21st on the calendar each year.  This is the time when (theoretically) there are equal amounts of light and dark in a single day. Just like with New Year’s, this is a time when we are able to start again! Take this time to plant the seeds of the future, both literally and figuratively.  Ostara is a time of fertility and new life.  Plant the seeds for those things now!

Ostara and Easter’s Similar Origins

The word Ostara originates from a Spring Goddess’s name—Eostre. The symbols of Ostara are uncannily similar to the traditions of the Christian holiday Easter. Why is this? To find Jesus’ Resurrection Day on the calendar – look at the first full moon following the Spring Equinox, and Easter will be on the first Sunday following the full moon. If it happens the first full moon of Spring falls on a Sunday, then Easter will be on the following Sunday.

Easter & Fertility

The word Easter looks a lot like the Spring Goddess’s name Eostre, doesn’t it?That’s no coincidence! Ostara was celebrated by Germanic people and by the Anglo-Saxons. Fertility and rebirth of the earth were the two main reasons for Ostara festivities. The earth is returning to its abundant greenness and the sun is returning to the high skies. Flowers are budding, lambs are bleating in the fields, and the whole of nature is singing.

Ostara Symbols

• The Rabbit:  The Easter Bunny is an image on a pedestal with the likes of Santa Clause and The Tooth Fairy. But where does the Easter Bunny come from? Just like so many other historical Holiday icons and traditions, the Easter Bunny was born from Pagan customs. Bunnies are cute, fluffy, and hippety-hoppety. But they’re also known for mating. LOTS of it. It should come as no surprise the rabbit is one of Ostara’s original symbols of fertility.  The rabbit is also  symbol of the moon and closely related to the goddess. 

• Easter Eggs:  The egg is a symbol of the whole universe in many traditions.  The egg is in perfect balance much like Ostara. Easter Eggs are symbolic of fertility and rebirth. Christians claim Easter eggs represent Christ’s Resurrection – an egg inevitably means new life or birth into a new life. The “dying of eggs” tradition may have its roots in the ancient Zoroastrians’ painting egg ritual on the Spring Equinox. Painting eggs is a common activity at various times of the year for many countries, including Ukraine, Poland, Russia, and Bulgaria.

• Flowers: Another image that is widely associated with Ostara and Easter…the flower. The symbol of the flower is new life. Flowers have an uplifting effect on us. Their bright colors prove even though there is a time for death, there will always be a time for rebirth. This Ostara, pick some wildflowers and place them in a vase on your table or altar. It will remind you of the beauty of Spring and of the true meaning of Ostara (and Easter, for that matter) which is new life.

Who are the Goddesses? Honor the Goddesses: with offerings of maple syrup or honey and flowers during this time! Do the same if you are looking to bring some fairy energy into your life during the changeover from dark to light.

Persephone: Persephone was required to spend the dark (winter) months in the underworld and was allowed to spend the light months with the Gods.  She left the underworld as spring arrived each year.

Aphrodite: Aphrodite is associated with love, beauty, procreation, and pleasure. As Ostara is a time of fertility and newness, Aphrodite is a great Goddess to look to at this time.   

Flora:  Flora takes delight turning buds into blossoms. To her, nothing is as beautiful as the ever-changing human form. Her free spirit encourages humans to explore earthly and bodily pleasures. Although some historians claim that she was a minor goddess, a six-day festival called Floralia was named after this Roman Queen of Flowers.

Hara Ke: Like all goddesses, Hara Ke is available any time of the year, her arrival coincides with the springtime rains that gently wake the seeds and prepare the soil for sowing. As a goddess of freshwater, growth, and bountiful harvests, her gifts are crucial to survival.

Eostre: Eostre (Ostara) is a Goddess of questionable origin but is often celebrated at Ostara because she is the namesake of the holiday and is a Goddess of fertility.

Freya: Freya is associated with things of passion including: love, fertility, sex, passion, war, and death. Spring is a time of awakening, and with a great awakening often comes great passion!

Gaia: Gaia is the Earth Mother and is honored during this time as she reawakens our planet and brings our dark world back to life.

Ways to thrive during Ostara

• Get to know your local plant life. Study herbalism and best foraging practice. 
• Go outside. Learn what’s edible and how to harvest it. (I have the Pdf. book , “The Lost Ways.” Send me your email and I will send a copy to you.)  *
• Read ALL the books. Keep your mind limber and open. Who knows – this could provide the sparks for a creative project you didn’t even realize was percolating within your spirit and psyche.  
• Keep moving. Whether it’s for 15 minutes or an hour, schedule a movement plan in your daily life to keep your body and mind on a fluid, expansive, healthy track.  
• Create a schedule based in vitality: Journaling, daily tarot readings, exercise, meditation, healthy cooking, virtual communication with loved ones.  
• Subscribe to a meditation app. 
• Brew healthy foods for you and your loved ones, adding as much love to each meal as you can.
• Reach out to those you love, near and far.

We get through crisis together, not alone. The time to reconnect to ourselves and nature is now. The energy right now is so supportive, even in our physical restriction. 

• Set your intentions.  *Meditate on your plans and actions. Sink into your sacred space. Share whatever wisdom comes to you during these tumultuous times.

We all need it. And we’re all waiting for each other to show up, shine, and step into ourselves and our power in ways we never have before. As Above, So Below. We WILL become the medicine of this time. We WILL heal ourselves, each others, and this relentlessly beautiful, miraculous planet we call home. 

•  Plant seeds to grow your own herb garden.  
• Create a fairy garden outside.  
• Wash your front door to welcome in the light and remove stagnant energy.  
• Take something old and make it new again. 
• Create a nature mandala.  
• Color eggs! Use a white crayon to create sigils or write wishes on them first.  
• Paint garden stones. 
• Bake a honey cake.  
• Go on a nature hike and look for signs of spring.  
• Create a terrarium.   
• Sweep off your front step and all of the corners in your house.  
• Organize your magical book and notes!  
• Prepare a great meal and sit down with friends or family to enjoy it free from technology.  
• Watch the sunrise and sunset.  
• Get outside and talk to the tree spirits.  
• Host an Ostara egg hunt!  
• Perform a spell or ritual.

Here is a few of my favorite ritual’s to perform during Ostara, Enjoy my Darkling’s.

Stand outside somewhere private. Breathe in the air and remind yourself why Spring is special and magical. Let old memories of the Springtime and Ostara arise in your mind. Holding the joyful memories of spring in your mind: (this is one of my favorites to do, anytime I need a quick grounding)

1. Turn and face the direction of the sun. Thank the sun for its grand return to the sky and ask for its blessings upon the land.
2. Thank Mother Nature for her nourishment and love.
3. If you have shoes on, remove them and allow the earth’s energy to rise into your feet and gradually up your legs and then through the rest of your body.
4. Choose the nearest tree and walk over to it, still feeling the earth’s energy undulating in waves throughout your body. Hold your hand out to the tree, fingers up and place your palm against the tree, as if saying hello.
5. Let the tree’s energy flow into your fingers and palm and then into your arm, slowly meeting and mixing with the energy still rising from your feet. Place your other palm against the tree to greet the tree’s spirit.
6. Let the tree’s energy fill the top portion of your body, including your mind and heart. At this point, you will feel the earth and tree’s energy meeting and combining. If you cannot feel it physically, feel it with your mind and spirit.
7. Visualize the energies mixing and filling your body fluidly. This is the spirit of Spring and the soul of nature.
8. To end your Ostara ritual, be sure that both of your feet are flat upon the ground and both palms are flat against the same tree. Imagine some of your energy and spirit flowing out from your heart chakra and into the tree.
9. Think of your solar plexus as sending waves of your energy down through your legs, through your feet and into the earth. This is to give some of yourself to the earth, as you have taken some of its energy in this rite.
10. Once more, face the sun (don’t stare directly at it), and thank the sun for its warmth and thank the earth for its upcoming gifts to us this Spring.

After you have performed this simple Ostara ritual, remember the exchange of energies for the rest of the day. Remember why we love Spring and be grateful for all of the fruitfulness of the earth. If we take, we must give something in return.

Create a spell bottle to celebrate your own personal renewal:  You will need:

• Small bottle
• Soil/Moss from your yard or someplace special to you
• Citrine chips
• Flower petals

Here’s what to do:
Place the soil in the bottle, followed by the flower petal, followed by the citrine chips.  As you fill the bottle say, “With soil for life, a flower petal for renewal, and citrine to create all that I desire, may all that is and all that will be guide me as I step out of the dark and into the sun”.  Complete this on its own or as part of a larger spell or ritual calling upon a specific deity or setting intentions for the warm months ahead.

A Ritual Bath: This doesn’t have to be fancy, in fact, the fanciest addition to this bath can be your beautiful self. Use salts, oils, flowers, your favorite bubble bath – whatever imbues your spirit with the deepest sense of relaxation and ecstasy. This is your daydream bath. Give yourself permission to soak, to search, to visualize. As the water drains, see all that stands in the way of these new dreams swirling down the drain. See your body fresh, renewed and unencumbered. Above all, taking time for ourselves during this window of restorative, transformative energy is the most divine power move we can make.

Check out some of my other Blogs,  Art of Scrying,  Numerology, Sigils & How to Make Them, Conjuring Magick, Grounding and so many others.

 Join The Witches Lighthouse Group on Facebook.

Divine Direction by Mia is an online service dedicated to providing simple and profound guidance to those looking for clarity and direction on their life journey; and others who are interested in learning about the practical applications of Astrology.