Ostara _ rituals, recipes, & lore for the spring equinox ( PDFDrive )

you can see how the rest fall into place and go in the numerical order their name
actually means.
Nowruz, which translates into “new day,” was the ancient Persian celebration
of the new year on the Vernal Equinox up to 3,000 years before the current era.
This day was so important that the King of Babylon was only seen as the
legitimate king after participating in the Nowruz festival. (Trotter, 108)
Zoroastrianism was the religion of ancient Persia before the advent of Islam and
this kept Nowruz alive as a holiday. While only celebrated as a holy day for Sufi
Muslims, Bektashis, Ismailis, Alawites, Alevis, Babis, and followers of the
Bahá’í Faith, others in areas such as Afghanistan, Turkey, and Iran still celebrate
it as a secular holiday. In 2010, the General Assembly of the United Nations
recognized the International Day of Nowruz, stating it is a spring festival of
Persian origin that has been celebrated for centuries. (United Nations)
Ostara also gives us the chance to begin working on our internal selves anew,
just like New Year’s Day. We till our own internal fields and plant our own
emotional, mental, spiritual, or even physical crops that we hope to harvest by
the end of the light half of the year so we can use the dark half of the year to rest
and to make plans again for the next light half of the year. These plans can be
about virtually anything, whether it is learning a new skill, starting a new
exercise program, building an addition onto your home, or anything at all. Now
is the time to start projects, especially anything that is new to you. It is a time of
hope, growth, and anticipation, fitting for the sign of Aries. Anything is possible,
and optimism is at an all-time high. Set your goals high; if you don’t reach them
all this year, you can carry some over to the next year, but be optimistic that you
can attain whatever it is you set your heart and mind to.
Chicks, eggs, and bunnies have been thought of as symbols of Ostara because
of their connection to rebirth, renewal, and fertility. Rabbits multiply rapidly and
in great numbers. Every month a rabbit can give birth since the gestation period
runs from twenty-eight to thirty-two days, with litters ranging from six to twelve
babies. A chicken can lay an egg just about every day, and though they may not
all be fertilized, those that are will become a chick in just twenty-one days. In
about six months, the chick is a full-grown hen and will start laying eggs of her