Marei - book one. Part three: Shadow. Chapter 20

Claudius moved into the bedroom that had been mine before I became a shadow. The storm and his arrival had both fallen near the new moon before Beltane so the days were getting longer and the yard was greening and blossoming as we all got to know the newest addition to the House on the Hill.

Claudius was usually polite and well spoken, but was quick to anger, though when he did anger it was usually in frustration at him self for not being able to immediately accomplish a task, or master a new task properly on his first try. His anger was quick to fade, and apologies were sincere and quick to come. He had an excellent sense of humor and we laughed often at his dry, satirical wit.

He became an integral part of our collective family on the House, pitching in with the preparations for the planting season by helping to spade and weed the garden into a bigger area than it had ever covered before. There was much work to do before the full moon of Beltane that meant there would be no more frosts to kill our tiny plants and because of the addition of both Gurek and the baby growing in Grandmother’s belly we had to plan on far more yield from our crop this year. We all dug and turned the earth for most of the day, shaking the bits of accumulated sod from the newest clumps of exposed dirt and removing the remnants of last year’s garden from sections that had already been tilled.

Grandmother consulted some form of augury every night to determine how best to assist Claudius but the God’s messengers remained stubbornly silent. On several brisk blue mornings we ventured into the misty field below the Hill to present gifts to the Feykin king and queen in exchange for their auguries. Though we learned of a marauding Owl threatening our baby chicks and that the baby Grandmother carried was a girl, the Feykin had no news of his treatment for her either.

As the moon grew towards Beltane, Claudius’ comfort level with our make shift family increased and he began to question both Grandmother and Gurek about their beliefs and the magickal practices that they put into use. One blissfully warm afternoon, Claudius asked Grandmother about Beltane; since we had been talking about the upcoming ritual and planning for the changes it marked in our daily routine for the entirety of his stay with us he was exceptionally curious.

Grandmother sat back on the grass around the freshly dug section of garden she had been weeding and rubbed her hands against the small of her back to relieve some of the pressure from the weight of the baby. “Beltane, for us, is a time to celebrate the most beautiful portions of high spring and a way to mark when the last chill night of winter will be gone. We have our celebrations at the full moon half way between the vernal equinox and mid summer when the daylight is longest. At this time of year, the flowers are in full bloom and the mud has receded; the gardens are warm and moist, ready to be planted.

“For us, all gods and goddesses are one, though they wear many faces and can be called by many names. At Beltane we celebrate the holy marriage of the Goddess and the God who has finally reached the age of maturity. For our boys and men, this holiday is a time to prove their virility, a time to partner with a woman, perhaps for the first time. This holiday is, for us, similar to taking the Toga Virilis; a boy is known as a man to his clan when first he celebrates Beltane as an adult. For women, this holiday is a time to celebrate our life’s cycles and to offer our bodies as the garden to be planted. It is a time also for the women to partner with the men of their choice, again perhaps for the first time.”

“You do not guard your women’s virginity and hold it as part of a marriage contract? You allow them to give it away to anyone they choose?” Claudius had a look on his face that meant he had already made up his mind about his opinion and was waiting to hear Grandmother’s.

Grandmother laughed, knowing that he was teasing her, but still answered seriously. “Whether they are sons or daughters, we do not own our children or treat them as commodities to be bought and sold depending on their level of purity. Instead, we celebrate our bodies and the joy that comes of sharing a commonly consensual night of pleasure. Our children are taught the same respect for their bodies as we have for ours. It is not shameful or disgraceful for a woman to feel desire and answer its call. But it is disgraceful for a man to disrespect another person by coupling with an unwilling woman. In our culture, rape is disgraceful to the perpetrator, not the victim and can be punishable by death.

Claudius nodded, satisfied with her answer, then leaned forward towards her again. “Yet what of marriage? Are both men and women expected to remain faithful only to each other for the entirety of their lives? Or is it common practice to take many lovers, as whimsy takes you?”

“I think I know the unasked question that lives between the others you have already asked. Yes, we hold the vows of marriage to be sacred and holy; however we do not believe that a woman’s value is due to her status as a married woman. Therefore, women here are free to marry or not marry as they please; whether or not they have had children. We also believe that a woman has the right to choose whether or not she births a child from a union. We educate our young women to understand how to avoid pregnancy if they need to, or how to stop a pregnancy before it advances.

“We encourage our youth to associate, both as friends and as lovers, and have a custom called handfasting which is encouraged before marriage is undertaken. For a handfasting, the man and woman live together for a year and a day, making the promise to each other, before their families and the gods, to behave as a married couple for the duration of that year. If, at the end of that year, they still desire to be married they know that they are compatible and will be able to live together for years as husband and wife. However, if after the year and a day either person is unsatisfied, they can relinquish the temporary vows with no social repercussions.

“Some couples participate yearly in the Beltane celebrations with the express purpose of spending one night outside of their marriage vows. For them it reminds them why they are married and provides a socially sanctioned means of satisfying a curiosity that could devastate the marriage.

“For the Beltane celebration, we first enact our associations with the God and Goddess by weaving ribbons around a tall pole while dancing; this allows the couples to meet each other and represents the intricate pattern which weaves us all together, sometimes closely and sometimes distantly. Later, couples who have spent their handfasting period successfully are married and those that want the vows dissolved, do so publicly. Any couple that wants to begin a handfasting period is allowed to state the temporary bonds. Lastly, after dark falls and the full moon rises in the sky, those of age will pair off as their desires lead them and join their bodies together in the fields, offering to the furrowed earth the sensations of pleasure they will share there.

“We mirror both the divine above us and the earth beneath us when we couple in the fields; enacting the God and Goddess as they celebrate their honeymoon night, and as the waiting earth welcomes the seeds and nurtures them to fruition.”

Claudius nodded thoughtfully and seemed to consider his words before he spoke. “In Rome we have a celebration that sounds similar to this, but it is considered a holiday devoted not only to please Flora, the Goddess of flowers, but as a day that celebrates prostitution as a profession. In Rome, we wear brightly colored robes instead of our usual white and we do not pay attention to the waxing or waning of the moon to dictate the celebration; ours is from April 28th to May 3rd.

“I’ve never paid much attention to the festival, except that it was yet another celebration that I would not be permitted to attend.” He returned to running the dirt through his fingers and picking out the small rocks and bits of grass that remained.

“The three of us, Gurek, Marei and I, will be going down the hill to celebrate on the beach. You’re welcome to join us, and participate in as much of the celebrations as you wish. I also know your proclivity for research and alternative customs; you are also welcome to observe if you are not comfortable participating in the festivities.”

Claudius did not look up, or indicate his assent but he did nod thoughtfully as he continued to ready the soil for seeds.