Walpurgis Tarot Spread

What is Walpurgis?

On April 30th we celebrate Walpurgis, or May Eve, as a great time in terms of crossroads, divination, protection, agriculture and witchcraft. It’s globally known by many names, such as Victory Blot, Segerblot, Vappu and Valborgsmässoafton. The main name is taken from Saint Walpurga, a Christian saint, but celebrated through mischief, protection and fire-themed events has us enjoy a little Trick or Treat vibe. Making noise, causing outrage in some circumstances, and being bold in having a good time are all encouraged. From Berlin to Malmo to England and Wales, it’s encouraged to blow off steam and speak up. To speak out against which what scares you, and frighten away “the devils and demons”. This is why we often see folks dressing up across the globe to celebrate Walpurgisnacht. 

Pre-Christian celebrations would be revering the Spring to Summer transition, and scaring away anything that would impact crop development or good fortune to come. This was naturally amended to fit a Christian patriarchal agenda. During the witchcraft trials frenzy, it was a time to burn effigies and create large bonfires to protect against witches during the hysteria (specifically the closer you got to Mount Brocken, the alleged meeting place of devils and witches for orgy-based rituals – and where Odin & Freyja cemented their partnership between Aesir & Vanir tribes through a sort of marriage). In a more modern setting however, witches now use this time as a support for warding in our homes. For speaking up and making noise against injustices happening in the world. The Satanic Temple celebrates this holiday as a time to honor those who were victimized by superstition or injustice, so it’s not just the Christian Catholic communities who religiously look at this holiday.

We know with the thin veil between realms, protecting our spiritual energy whilst enjoying divination, protecting our physical bodies whilst engaging in equitable (and enjoyable) sex, and protecting our lineage by learning about different cultures and different perspectives. This is how we can grow as witches, and a yearly reminder that it doesn’t always have to be such rigid, quiet research.

There’s nothing scarier in history than a woman making noise, less we forget.

Who is Walpurga?

Saint Walpurga was an educated woman from Devon, UK and who travelled with her brothers on pilgrim to evangelise pagan Germans, whose journey was across the Netherlands, Belgium, Germany, Norway, Sweden and Italy. As an Abbess she was praised for battling against rabies and “protecting against witches”. If you’ve read my article on witch bottles, you’ll see that the acts of protection spiritually align deeply with witchcraft themselves. On her canonization feast day May 1st, she was celebrated with bonfires, with medicine and with sheaves of grain. All of this is feeder towards pre-Walpurga Gaelic festivals for May 1st.

When she’d died, her bones were placed amongst rocks in a shrine at Eichstatt, and an oil excreting from them were said to effectively cure certain diseases according to the 1911 Encyclopædia Britannica. Benedictine nuns still manage this flow of access to the oil now, and there was an uptick in “miracle cure all” oils around this time. If you’re open to herbalism in your practice, creating your own Flying Ointment for Walpurgisnacht is a great option.

Walpurgisnacht, Hexxennacht or Witches Night?

Hexxennacht is different to Walpurgis night only in that it’s the night after, May 1st. The word Hexxen is a Germanic reference to “witches” and Nacht means “night”. Between Walpurgisnacht (May Eve) and Beltane (May Day), our rituals are all about clearing away negative energy from the previous year and setting intentions for growth, abundance and pleasure in the days to come. If Samhain is welcoming the dark aspects of the year, then Hexxennacht is a welcoming of the light, in true witchcraft style. You know the scene in Practical Magic where they jump off the roof on their brooms? Well, Witches Night is the halfway point to Samhain, and it’s been recorded that this is where the witches would ride off to join the Wild Hunt. Generally speaking, it’s a night to connect instinctively with your intuition and your emotions. It’s looking at things through the lens of “What is happening right now? And how do I feel about it? What does it bring up for me?”

Ways to celebrate this date can include divination where you’d contact the Norns, or by creating blessings for the plants you are cultivating in your garden/land. You could create dishes and drinks from elder, juniper, anise, flax, fennel, dill, garden sage and chamomile. Create your own mystical mead that will feed not only your soul and your spirit, but your plants and ground around you too, and it’d make an excellent offering to a deity like Holle who is revered at this time.