Goddesses: Virgin Goddesses, Moon Goddesses, Goddesses of Love, Androgynous Deities, some Fertility Goddesses. Some Ostara Goddesses are Aphrodite (Greek), Eostre (Teutonic), Ma-Ku (Chinese), Lady of the Lake (Welsh-Cornish), Minerva (Roman), Isis (Egyptian), Rheda (Anglo-Saxon), Coatlicue (Aztec).

Gods: Gods of Love, Moon Gods, Gods of Song & Dance, some Fertility Gods. Some Ostara Gods are Adonis (Greek), Lord of the Greenwood (English), Ovis (Roman Etruscan), Dylan (Welsh), Odin (Norse), Osiris (Egyptian), Attis (Persian), Mithras (Greco Persian). 

Altar decorations: Colored eggs, seeds, earth, flowers and herbs 

Traditions:  Planting seeds, working on magickal or herbal gardens, herbal work, taking walks through gardens, parks, woodlands, decorating and colouring eggs.

Foods: Eggs, honey, bread, seeds, sprouts and green leafy vegetables 

Drinks: Eggnog, wines, dandelion, Lindon teas, hyssop

Flowers And Herbs: all spring flowers. Irish moss, crocus flowers, daffodils, Easter lilies,  roses, strawberry,  acorn, celandine, dandelion, dogwood, honeysuckle, iris, jasmine, rose, tansy, violet

Incense: Floral of any type. Jasmine, African violet, rose, sage, strawberry, violet flowers, orange peel, rose petals, lotus, magnolia, ginger.

Oils: Magnolia, ginger, lotus.

Colours: All pastels, yellow, pink, green, blue

Stones: Rose quartz, aquamarine, amethyst, jasper and moonstone.

Animal: Hares, rabbits, snakes, unicorn, Pegasus

 

 

 Ostara Chant

Ostara Egg Charm 

 

 

Colouring Eggs

 

Grass Green - Fertility, Eco-magick, Rituals to honour the Earth Goddess and Woodland God, Good Fortune, Personal Beauty

Robin's Egg Blue - Purification, Chastity

Yellow - Wealth, Health, Intellect, Communication, Astral Travel

Lavender - Love and Romance, Healing

Pink - Romantic Love, Household Peace

Blood Red - New Life Rituals, Goddess Rituals, Vigor and Vitality, Lust and Passion, Strength, Courage

Ostara - Edain McCoy

 

Natural Easter Egg Dyes

 

It's fun and easy to use foods and flowers to make your own natural egg dyes. The two main ways to use your own dyes are to add dyes to the eggs when boiling them or to dye the eggs after they have been hard-boiled. It's a lot faster to boil the dyes and eggs together, but you will use several pans if you want to make multiple colours. Dyeing the eggs after they have been cooked takes as many dishes and more time, but may be more practical (after all, most stoves only have four burners!).

Try both fresh and frozen produce. Canned produce will produce much paler colours. Boiling the colours with vinegar will result in deeper colours. Some materials need to be boiled to impart their colour (name followed by 'boiled' in the table). Some of the fruits, vegetables, and spices can be used cold. To use a cold material, cover the boiled eggs with water, add dyeing materials, a teaspoon or less of vinegar, and let the eggs remain in the refrigerator until the desired colour is achieved. In most cases, the longer you leave Easter eggs in the dye, the more deeply coloured they will become.

Here is the preferred method for using natural dyes:

 

1. Place the eggs in a single layer in a pan. Add water until the eggs are covered.
2. Add approximately one teaspoon of vinegar.
3. Add the natural dye. Use more dye material for more eggs or for more intense colour.
4. Bring water to a boil.
5. Reduce heat and simmer for 15 minutes.
6. If you are pleased with the colour, remove the eggs from the liquid.
7. If you want more intensely coloured eggs, temporarily remove the eggs from the liquid. Strain the dye through a coffee filter (unless you want speckled eggs). Cover the eggs with the filtered dye and let them remain in the refrigerator overnight.
8. Naturally-coloured eggs will not be glossy, but if you want a shiny appearance you can rub a bit of cooking oil onto the eggs once they are dry.

You can use fresh and frozen berries as 'paints', too. Simply crush the berries against dry boiled eggs. Try colouring on the eggs with crayons or wax pencils before boiling and dyeing them. 

 

Colour	Ingredients
Lavender	Small Quantity of Purple Grape Juice Violet Blossoms plus 2 tsp Lemon Juice Red Zinger Tea
Violet Blue	Violet Blossoms Small Quantity of Red Onions Skins (boiled) Hibiscus Tea Red Wine
Blue	Canned Blueberries Red Cabbage Leaves (boiled) Purple Grape Juice
Green	Spinach Leaves (boiled) Liquid Chlorophyll
Greenish Yellow	Yellow Delicious Apple Peels (boiled)
Yellow	Orange or Lemon Peels (boiled) Carrot Tops (boiled) Celery Seed (boiled) Ground Cumin (boiled) Ground Turmeric (boiled) Chamomile Tea Green Tea
Golden Brown	Dill Seeds
Brown	Strong Coffee Instant Coffee Black Walnut Shells (boiled) Black Tea
Orange	Yellow Onion Skins (boiled) Cooked Carrots Chili Powder Paprika
Pink	Beets Cranberries or Juice Raspberries Red Grape Juice Juice from Pickled Beets
Red	Lots of Red Onions Skins (boiled) Canned Cherries with Juice Pomegranate Juice Raspberries

By Anne Marie Helmenstine, Ph.D., About.com Guide

 

 

The Easter Egg Hunt

 

Hunting eggs began at least 2000 years ago.  In Asia and India, spring egg hunting symbolized personal responsibility (karma) and reincarnation.

In Germany and Scandinavia, it was traditional in the Spring to offer eggs to the Goddess in return for blessings and favours.  When Europe became predominantly Christian, egg offerings along with all other Pagan traditions were outlawed, subsequently, the offerings to the Goddess had to be "hidden".  The original Ostara Egg hunt was probably begun by the Christian authorities, and later became a child's game.

Anglo Saxons buried eggs under barns and in gardens to increase fertility and abundance.

 

 

Ostara Garden Egg Blessing

 

Hard boil an egg, then with a felt-tipped pen, or water-based paint mark appropriate symbols to promote growth, fertility, Mother Earth etc.  Dig a small hole in the middle of your garden while saying a heartfelt prayer to the Goddess.  Ask her for blessings upon your garden and growing season.  Place the egg in the hole and as you're covering it with earth chant:

 

Goddess of Earth, Goddess of Spring,

I offer this egg,  Your Blessings to bring.   

Please Bless this garden and  help it to grow,

May abundance for all begin to flow.

©Rowan

 

 

 Goddess Ostara

The Goddess Ostara is the Norse Goddess of fertility.  At the Spring Equinox, we honor her, for she is the Goddess of Spring and renewal.  Her symbols are the egg and the New Moon. Her animals are the rabbit and the butterfly.

 

 

Spring Goddess Anointing Oil

Edain McCoy

 

1 drop cedar oil

6 drops lavender oil

3 drops rosemary oil

3 drops cypress oil

4 drops vanilla oil

1 drop patchouli oil

2 tbsp. olive oil

Mix all ingredients together and store in a tightly sealed dark glass vial.

 

Bunny Love

 

 

Why do we honour the Rabbit at Ostara?  Rabbits and hares are associated with Goddess energy and it was long believed that witches could turn themselves into rabbits and travel the world undetected

                          Hares have long been the symbol of the Earth Goddess, in her aspect of fecundity, after all, what is more fertile than a rabbit? 

 

Observe the movement of rabbits and hares in the wild as a form of divination.  Movements to the right are positive answers to your question, movements to the left are negative.  Random or jerky                                  movements means that the answer is unclear at this time.

                      Use hair from a rabbit to assist in all acts of divination.

                     Add rabbit hair to potions of invisibility, secrecy or astral projection to enhance their potency.

                      Rabbits and hares bring the blessings of the Goddess to land on which they live.

                      Rabbit energy is quick, tricky, good for helping you to change course and escape bad situations quickly.  

                      Like Alice in Wonderland, you can follow the rabbit down the hole into the  Underworld.