Introduction

'Which came first, the chicken or the egg?
Did the universe have a beginning,
and if so, what happened before then?
Where did the universe come from, and where is it going?'

Stephen Hawking, A Brief History of Time.

This section of Mystical-WWW examines the global concept of Time, Days, Months and Seasons, covering festivals, myths, legends and much more. You are advised to check through the whole of the 'Mystical Time Grid' to obtain a clearer overview of what this section of site is exploring.

Much of the information has been researched over the years.This was a massive task to undertake and feel that it is another very comprehensive section within Mystical-WWW. Our aim is to offer a resource for everyone, a chance to exchange information, to save traditional practices. So don't forget to use the e-mail!

It has been suggested that many of the current calendars and diaries used seem to arbitrarily fix the date of festivals of various cultures mainly referring to the Gregorian calendar dates as a guide. It should be highlighted that people living in different cultures around the world, who actually observe some of these festivals, have their own unique system for determining a date. In many instances, the date, rituals and traditions are traceable to the ancient practices of their ancestors, for events not influenced by Gregorian time, but celebrated from year to year linked with the journey of the Sun and Lunar cycles. Some people may say that this practice is arcane with convoluted 'rules', but it should be pointed out that although science can measure time to fractions of a second, it does not automatically mean that this is the right time for a festival. Taking such influences into account, days of celebration may have altered over the centuries despite the knowledge that our forefathers managed 'very well, thank you very much' purely by watching the stars, not needing to glance at a quartz wrist watch, an atomic clock, or even a sun dial to know the season, date and time. Although some sects within the same religion may have different methods of determining the dates for what appears to be the same Holy Day, it is important to consider the development of their specific ideology. The pathway of each sect may place emphasis on the importance of differing aspects of the philosophy which may perhaps be due to geographical and natural influences, or at times, persecution.

It would be condescending to say that they are applying the wrong dates as no-one ultimately can prove, or even know, EXACTLY when an ancient custom or ritual started or changed, as they have all used different calendars until a standardised time was introduced, but even then evidence shows that ancient methods were not superseded, hence some confusion. What is of more importance, is the continuance of a ritual and the underlying reasons for why a celebration occurs, than the quibbling over a couple of days. Today we can see that many festivals have either opted or been forced to move due to the effect of commercial or governmental legislation. Calendars today, it would seem, are mainly produced purely from a commercial perspective, so remember finding an exact day may involve complicated formulae to ascertain the EXACT time, even when based on a lunar progress or the sun rise, as these change slightly from year-to-year due to planetary movement (there are many computer programmes available that can work these out). Personally I would suggest you use a smidgen of common sense along with a little intuition.