Candlelight
The transitional month of February opens
with winter ice or springtime sunshine, and each day proceeds as a conveyance between
the two. Perhaps as a present in recognition of weathering the post-holiday recovery period of January, February days bring palliative brightness to lingering winter gray. There are periods of snow or drizzle, but there are also hours of
slanting sunlight. Even though the hours of daylight have been lengthening
since Yule, the change is now noticeable. And it is not just we who notice –
just ask any cantankerous groundhog roused from true hibernation, any docile cow
who finds her milk cresting, any hopeful crocus poking its colorful head from
the earth.
Illumination through darkness is the core of the ancient holiday of Candlemas. On this holiday which marks the halfway point to the spring equinox, light is welcomed back into the home after the dark days of winter. Though it’s also known as Imbolc or Brigid’s Day, I honor this holiday as Candlemas, for that’s the name that references candles. Candlemas is a magical day, and candles themselves are magic. In the ancient world, wax was a precious commodity, and that preciousness made candles treasures themselves. In candlelight’s contemplative glow, ancient peoples perceived that candlelight itself is sacred.
On Candlemas, homes and the paths that led to them were illuminated with candles and lamps. Though in some ways this paralleled the community visitation celebrations of the autumn holiday of Harvest Home, the practice at Candlemas was primarily one of welcoming that which was already present in seed form and growing more present with each passing turn of the day. This could be the daylight that was warm and bright during the strengthening of the sun, the spring lambs that were growing in the wombs of the ewes, the tentative feelers unfurling from long-cultivated vines. The celebration of Candlemas welcomed springtime by using light to attract itself.
Illuminating the homestead has been a homekeeper’s skill since we first sought shelter. We have used every light source from campfire to hearth, from wall torch to oil lamp, from window to incandescent bulb. Nothing symbolizes home more than family gathered around a fireplace, nothing welcomes us to that home like the glow of lamplight in the window. But the most special light of all is candlelight. Tapers grace our dinner table from holiday feast to romantic dinner. A coffee- or console table looks just right with a chunky pillar in a sexy holder, while votives not only illuminate bed and bath but perfume the air. Many crafters make candles, and though it is a cliché, a stash of no-nonsense block candles is good to have in the emergency kit alongside the flashlight.
Lighting the home with candles instantly provides atmosphere, and it is easy to do so safely if you exercise common sense. Always house a lit candle in a holder and always use a holder suitable to the candle: votive cup for votive, candlestick for taper, holder or plate for pillar, etc. The candle should rest securely in the holder: if it rocks, the holder is too large, and if the wax starts to peel, the holder is too small. Be sure the wick isn’t longer than ¼” long; if so, trim it. Don’t leave lit candles unattended, and don’t leave lit candles within reach of anyone who shouldn’t handle them.
Candlelight is an important element in how we keep our urban homes. Candlelight not only creates a lovely glow, it sacredizes the space it fills with its gentility. Candlelight adds much to the evening, but it is at its most special as evening approaches. Transitions are powerful daily as well as seasonally, so we often light our candles just at dusk. As we illuminate our home while circulating through it, we connect not only with our home but with the ancient impulses that led our ancestors to seek shelter against the elements. One form of that protection was the hopefulness of brightness through the dark. Candlemas illuminates the way for Groundhog Day, Valentine’s Day, President’s Day, Mardi Gras, Lent and the Equinox. The uptake in activity mirrors that of the earth herself, but those stirrings are evoked by the strengthening sun. Every time we light a candle, we respect that just as life stirs within the earth, light travels from the stars.
Illumination through darkness is the core of the ancient holiday of Candlemas. On this holiday which marks the halfway point to the spring equinox, light is welcomed back into the home after the dark days of winter. Though it’s also known as Imbolc or Brigid’s Day, I honor this holiday as Candlemas, for that’s the name that references candles. Candlemas is a magical day, and candles themselves are magic. In the ancient world, wax was a precious commodity, and that preciousness made candles treasures themselves. In candlelight’s contemplative glow, ancient peoples perceived that candlelight itself is sacred.
On Candlemas, homes and the paths that led to them were illuminated with candles and lamps. Though in some ways this paralleled the community visitation celebrations of the autumn holiday of Harvest Home, the practice at Candlemas was primarily one of welcoming that which was already present in seed form and growing more present with each passing turn of the day. This could be the daylight that was warm and bright during the strengthening of the sun, the spring lambs that were growing in the wombs of the ewes, the tentative feelers unfurling from long-cultivated vines. The celebration of Candlemas welcomed springtime by using light to attract itself.
Illuminating the homestead has been a homekeeper’s skill since we first sought shelter. We have used every light source from campfire to hearth, from wall torch to oil lamp, from window to incandescent bulb. Nothing symbolizes home more than family gathered around a fireplace, nothing welcomes us to that home like the glow of lamplight in the window. But the most special light of all is candlelight. Tapers grace our dinner table from holiday feast to romantic dinner. A coffee- or console table looks just right with a chunky pillar in a sexy holder, while votives not only illuminate bed and bath but perfume the air. Many crafters make candles, and though it is a cliché, a stash of no-nonsense block candles is good to have in the emergency kit alongside the flashlight.
Lighting the home with candles instantly provides atmosphere, and it is easy to do so safely if you exercise common sense. Always house a lit candle in a holder and always use a holder suitable to the candle: votive cup for votive, candlestick for taper, holder or plate for pillar, etc. The candle should rest securely in the holder: if it rocks, the holder is too large, and if the wax starts to peel, the holder is too small. Be sure the wick isn’t longer than ¼” long; if so, trim it. Don’t leave lit candles unattended, and don’t leave lit candles within reach of anyone who shouldn’t handle them.
Candlelight is an important element in how we keep our urban homes. Candlelight not only creates a lovely glow, it sacredizes the space it fills with its gentility. Candlelight adds much to the evening, but it is at its most special as evening approaches. Transitions are powerful daily as well as seasonally, so we often light our candles just at dusk. As we illuminate our home while circulating through it, we connect not only with our home but with the ancient impulses that led our ancestors to seek shelter against the elements. One form of that protection was the hopefulness of brightness through the dark. Candlemas illuminates the way for Groundhog Day, Valentine’s Day, President’s Day, Mardi Gras, Lent and the Equinox. The uptake in activity mirrors that of the earth herself, but those stirrings are evoked by the strengthening sun. Every time we light a candle, we respect that just as life stirs within the earth, light travels from the stars.
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