Episode 97: The history and lore of Imbolc: a stirring of the seeds

Imbolc arrives as a whisper between worlds — a quiet hinge between the deepest dark of winter and the first subtle return of light. Though the land may still be covered in snow, life is stirring beneath the surface. In this episode of the podcast, we explore the ancient roots of Imbolc, the layered meanings of ewe’s milk and “in the belly of the Mother,” the mythology of Brigid, and how this season invites us into gentle preparation, purification, and tending the seeds we’ve planted. If you’ve been feeling something quietly shifting inside you, this episode is for you.

Click the graphic above to listen on Spotify or listen on the blog below.

Imbolc Reading

Enjoy this Collective Imbolc Reading for February 1. And you can try it yourself with this layout from my book the Complete Tarot Layouts:

imbolc tarot layout

You know how I love creating tarot layouts for the Wheel of the Year. I have something in the works for those of you who also work with the pagan Wheel of the Year—the equinoxes, solstices and cross-quarter holidays, plus all the moon cycles. I cannot wait to share it with y’all.

Of course, Imbolc is coming up, so I thought I would design a layout for the seeds beginning to stir within you. Imbolc is basically the halfway point between Yule (Winter Solstice) and Ostara (Vernal Equinox). This is the traditional time that candles are made, and the sheep begin birthing lambs (hence the name Imbolc, pronounced Im-olc, meaning ewe’s milk). The gift of the first milk might help sustain a family in the dark winter. Speaking of darkness, we begin to see the sun rising earlier and setting later. I mean, we hear that Yule is when the sun begins coming out earlier, but now is when we can really see it in action.

It is also traditionally the feast day of St. Brigid, or the Goddess Brigid. Her snake would rise from the soil to test the weather and tell us whether the winter would last for another 6 weeks or longer. (Sound familiar?) But the idea here is under the snow, the grass, the soil, the seeds planted deep in the autumn are beginning to stir. It looks calm and serene above, but the seeds are stirring into action and beginning to make their way toward the sun.

And the same for us. What seeds are beginning to make their way towards the light for you? This tarot layout seeks to understand what is happening below your surface. Let me know if you use this tarot layout and what you think of it.