| The Greater Sabbats are religious festivals celebrated | | | | could be celebrating Samhain when someone in |
| at more or less equally spaced intervals throughout | | | | England is observing the Beltane festival. Those that |
| the year. The term Sabbat originates from the | | | | live on the equator are in something of a |
| Abrahamic faiths with Hebrew origin and has been | | | | predicament and can choose either direction. |
| adapted by followers of modern Wicca to describe | | | | The four Greater Sabbats are: |
| the festivals of the year. There are a total of eight | | | | Samhain, also known as Halloween or All Hallow's Eve, |
| Sabbats in the Wiccan calender, four of which are | | | | which is celebrated on October 31st; Candlemas, also |
| greater Sabbats, and four lesser. | | | | referred to as Imbolc or Brigit's Day, celebrated on |
| The four greater Sabbats are linked to the four | | | | February 2nd; Beltane, also known as May Day or |
| seasons and are celebrated at times when the | | | | Cetsamhain, celebrated on May 1st; and Lammas, also |
| seasons change. They are also referred to as | | | | called Lughnasadh, celebrated on August 1st. |
| cross-quarter days, moon Sabbats or Fire festivals | | | | These festivals have been followed in one form or |
| and are most closely associated with ancient Gaelic | | | | another for centuries by many Pagan societies and |
| feasts. They are celebrated today on set days of | | | | they have all picked up other names as time has |
| the year by most of the western world but Pagan | | | | passed. They are known by many other names in |
| and Neopagan religious groups often conduct their | | | | other cultures and the alternatives here are the more |
| own religious practices on the actual day of the | | | | common western alternatives. Not all Pagan or |
| festival each year. The feasts follow lunar and solar | | | | Neopagan religions celebrate all of the Sabbats, |
| cycles which means that the actual day varies from | | | | greater or lesser, but those that do tend to observe |
| year to year but for most of us a set date is more | | | | the greater Sabbats. |
| convenient. | | | | The followers of the Abrahamic religions are probably |
| The dates of the Sabbats follow the calendar in the | | | | familiar with Halloween and follow the 'trick or treat' |
| Northern Hemisphere which causes some problems | | | | theme but few will celebrate any of the other |
| when those in the Southern Hemisphere wish to | | | | greater Sabbats, although there are exceptions. |
| celebrate them. The most common solution is to add | | | | Candlemas is very popular in Ireland as Brigit is the |
| six months for the Southern Hemisphere to bring the | | | | Irish Goddess of poetry, crafts, prophecy, and |
| celebrations into line which means that Neopagans are | | | | divination. The Gaelic origin of these festivals makes |
| often celebrating an opposite festival at any given | | | | them more widely followed in the British Isles than in |
| time of year. Someone in Australia, for example, | | | | other countries. |