Lunastal, the Scottish Gaelic spelling of the more well-known Irish "Lughnasa," is one of the four great "cross-quarter days of the Gaelic pagan calendar. What I hope to provide in this post is an overview of the day, and how we can celebrate, wherever we live.
Lugh and Lughnasa in Ireland – Lugh is a major figure in Irish paganism, and perhaps one of the oldest Celtic deities, taking the form of Lugus among Continental celts and Lleu in Wales. He was a member of the race of gods known as the Tuatha de Danaan, and reigned as High King in Ireland for 40 years after King Nuada. He is a complicated deity, and much of the lore lacks detail and is (as Irish lore often is) somewhat contradictory. What we do know is that he was often referred to as “Lugh Lamhfada” (Lugh-of-the-long-arm) due to his spear, which never failed to hit its mark, and Lugh Ildanach (Lugh-the-many-skilled) because of his wide range of capabilities. The original “Renaissance Man,” he appears at the gates of Tara to be admitted (in the Second Battle of Maige Tuired), and declares that he has more skills than the other gods: he is a builder, smith, harper, warrior, poet, historian, sorcerer, physician, and brazier. He is credited with inventing a chess-like game called Fidchell. His name is derived from the word “Oath.” Some sources have erroneously passed on the notion that his name comes from the word ‘sun,’ and that Lugh was a “sun god;’ Though popular in modern circles, Lugh was never seen historically as a sun god or associated in any way with the sun.
He is best known, perhaps, for lending his name to the festival of Lughnasa (Irish) or Lunastal (Scottish Gaelic.) In Part IV of The Dindshenchas he is mentioned as the originator of the festival that bears his name. The day was to be marked by games and contests in honor of Lugh’s foster-mother Tailtiu (pronounced TALL-chew), who died while clearing Ireland of forests to make way for agriculture. On her deathbed, as recorded in the Gabala Erenn, she requested that these memorial games be played to honor her.
Lugh, and this festival, also is associated with the beginning of summer harvests. Not unsurprisingly, when Lugh defeats the half-Formorian, half-Tuatha De Dannan King Bres, he spares his life only when Bres promises to reveal the secrets of planting and agriculture on the island.
Lugh and Lunastal in Scotland – As an Irish Deity-King, there is little lore associating Lugh directly with Scotland; on the other hand, as a figure in Irish lore, the Gaelic settlements of western Scotland brought his name – and festival - to Alba’s west coast. Interestingly, he is also associated with the opposite corner of Scotland, the southeast. Lothian – the location of Edinburgh itself – is though to derived from a word meaning “Country of the Fortress of Lugus,” Lugh’s continental name. The Votadini tribe, which lived in the area until at least the 5th century, were a Brittonic people, who most likely immigrated from the south and spoke a language similar to Welsh.
The Tairis website offers this interesting write-up on Lothian custom:
“Writing in 1792 of a custom practised just six miles west of Edinburgh more than 30 years beforehand, James Anderson gives an account of what took place in order to preserve it for posterity: Here the herds would spend weeks preparing for the festival by building large towers (known as Lammas towers) at meeting places near the centre of the district. Opposing factions would concentrate on building their tower, starting as much as a month in advance but only really putting the work in to finish it a few days beforehand. They were made out of stones and sods of earth, and could reach as high as eight feet tall – sometimes more – before the day, at which point they were topped with a flag made from a table cloth decorated with ribbon. Since opposing factions would sometimes try to sabotage their rivals’ tower, great care was taken to guard the tower once it was started; defacement or destruction of the tower was considered to be a great shame and disgrace on the district. At Lùnastal the herds of the district would gather at the tower, and after a breakfast of bread and cheese the rival factions would march to meet each other (assuming the group wasn’t surprised by the rivals mid-breakfast, that is…). Horns and pipes were played, and colours were flown as the herds marched, headed by a Captain. Upon meeting, both sides would demand that the other should lower their colours. Unless one side was clearly outnumbered, this usually ended up with both sides refusing and resorting to blows. The losers would march for a time behind the victors, and then the two groups would go their separate ways and head to the main town or village.
By noon, if no attack seemed likely the group would take down their colours and move on to the nearest town or large village, where everyone would come out to meet them and games would take place. Races were held and prizes were won – ribbons, garters or a knife – and eventually it would all wind down before sunset.”
Additional customs, including saining dairy vessels and bonfires, are recounted at http://www.tairis.co.uk/festivals/lunastal/#scotland
CuChulainn and Scathach – Lugh’s interaction with Scotland is perhaps best memorialized through his son, the Irish hero CuChulainn, in the Tain bo Cuailgne (Cattle Raid of Cooley). CuChulainn, the famous demi-god warrior of Ulster, is (through a complicated conception) Lugh’s son. In The Tain, CuChulainn travels to the Isle of Skye in Scotland to improve his skills as a warrior, where he is trained by the legendary warrior Scathach. The remains of her fortress can still be visited at Dun Scaith (Fortress of Shadows) on Skye. Scathach’s fortress was only accessible through super-human feats, and her skills as a ‘martial artist’ suggest she was more than super-human herself.
Celebrating Lunastal – In reading the lore and examining ancient and current practices, Lunastal is strongly associated with athletic feats, games, and contests, as well as agriculture and bonfires. Adding elements of honoring and remembering Lugh, Tailtiu, CuChulainn, and Scathach are all appropriate, as would be honoring the hard-working mothers in our lives. It is a joyful time of celebration.
But when to celebrate? Well….in current Gregorian calendars, that date would be August 1. But using the historical celtic lunar calendar, that could also be the closest new moon (Aug 8 in 2021) or Full Moon (July 23 in 2021). Or any time in between. Or the whole period. Morgan Daimler, in “Lugh – Meeting the Many-skilled God”(Moon Books, 2021), writes,
“The older texts reference Lunasa being celebrated for two weeks on either side of the 1st of august. Evidence suggests that the actual celebration could vary between 25 July and 12 August, prompting one anthropologist to suggest that the timing of the event was based on a combined luni-solar system. (Hicks 2012)”
