Lammas, or Lughnasadh, is a celebration of the first harvest, particularly of grain products. The word "Lammas" is Old English for "loaf mass", and even today breads play a central role in the Lammas feast. This festival marks the waning of summer, in which the first fruits of the harvest are ready. Also know as Lughnasadh, after the Celtic God sun God Lugh, Lughnasadh has beentranslated to mean "Lugh's wedding". In Celtic terms, this means that Lugh became wedded to the land, the Goddess, in a sacred marriage. As the grain is cut down, so is Lugh, symbolically sacrificed so that his people may continue to live.
~Edain McCoy
At this festival of the year, the first corn is cut, baked into a loaf, and offered to the Goddess in thanksgiving. This is a time of gathering fruitfulness, figuratively in the use of words and divination, giving us creative power and energy.
~Nigel Pennick
