The month of April gains its name for the Roman word 'Aprilis', this comes from the word 'Aperire' meaning, ‘to open.’ This is because April is the time when birds hatch their chicks, animals join in the eternal mating cycles, buds swell into young leaves and new life opens-up on all natural fronts.
The first day of the month is of course well known as April Fool's Day.
In France a gullible person caught by a prankster's trick was called un poisson d' Avril (an April Fish.) It is interesting to note here that the ancients held this day (the Veneralia) sacred to Venus, a celebrated deity of love. During her feast, adherents would completely wash the statue of this goddess and hang beautiful flowers around it. Tricks were also played on the unwary in veneration of her.
Venus was originally a patron of seeds, flowers and spring. Her later association with love occurred around 217BC when she was equated with the Greek Aphrodite.
As water is necessary to make the seeds become flowers, Venus held the fish as a holy symbol. Modern Pagans smile when they see a Christian owned vehicle displaying the old fish sign as is now the popular fashion. The Christian taboo of not eating fish on a Friday is also adopted from much older Pagan traditions sacred to Venus.
The Northern equivalent of Venus is
Frejya/Freya, who gives her name to Friday. This was of course the day for
abstaining from devouring the sacred food of Venus.
History testifies that the early Christian Church subverted then adopted virtually every Pagan tradition, custom and holy-day to make them its own. The sacred traditions of the great Goddess are no exception to this sad rule!
On Saint George's Day we see another adoption of Pagan tradition, blatantly inserted with the intention of winning converts for the new monotheistic religion.
There is a slight gap in the calendar between them but St. George's Day (on the 23rd April) lands at the same period as the Parilia (21st April.)
The Parilia (or Palilia) was sacred to Pales, a renowned goddess (regarded as a god by some authorities) of shepherds and herders.
During the feast farmers would drive their flocks and herds between blazing fires and subject them to fumes of rosemary, laurel and sulphur in a rite of purification to ensure strong future offspring. The participants would also leap over small fires of straw and dance around fires throughout the night, making merry all the while.
Offerings to Pales consisted of milk and millet wafers were given in the hope of keeping dangerous wolves away from the flocks and the avert disease.
The new fire of spring light which will give us summer's growth, is something primordial yet essential.
Man, from the earliest times in our pre-history, has always sought to link up with the awesome, natural, psychic energies present here, for the benefit of all on a deeply spiritual level. The actual day which marks the Palilia is also the day when Romulus (the legendary, son of Mars,) first built his great city of Rome.
It is interesting to note here that Romulus observed Tuscany to discover what sort of ceremonies he should use for his new city. Thus Romulus gained vital ritual knowledge from the older peoples of that place which they had in turn received from Janus, the great god of new beginnings.
The first wine of the new season was always offered to Janus. Venus shared a feast on two separate days with Jupiter called the Vinalia. Her day occurred on the same date originally as the later St. George's Day, Jupiter's took place in August.
https://pat-regan.blogspot.com/2016/04/dragons-and-snakes-have-you-fallen-for.html
During these events wine was freely distributed to the local people from the temple of the deities in question. Prior to this rite, a wine libation was given to the earth in honour of Venus.
Contemporary Pagans/Witches still give sincere veneration to the God and Goddess (the Lord and Lady) by remembering this ancient libation first to the old gods during their celebrations.
Venus was also offered expensive gifts of roses, myrtle and sweet scented incense at the Vinalia. This goddess was perceived as travelling in an ivory chariot drawn by swans.
Swans are often associated with love deities such as in Angus (the Celtic god of love) who once turned into a this proud creature. The gentle dove too is another sacred symbol of the great Goddess that has since been insidiously adopted the early church and made into its own.
The beautiful April festivals of the Love Goddess, in all her many forms, gives us a rare insight into the depth of spiritual wisdom held by our antediluvian Pagan Forefathers.
Each celebration whether Norse, Saxon, Roman, Celtic or otherwise always parallels with the wholesome destructive and creative seasonal forces of nature that impinge upon our being.
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