Wisdom Quarterly: American Buddhist Journal: Start of Celtic Spring: St. Brigid's Day (Ireland)

Maireid Sullivan (irishcentral.com); Pat Macpherson, Dhr. Seven, Wisdom Quarterly

Tara-Lia Fail, Ireland, save the lingam phallus henge stone (celticartscenter.com)

The Feast of Brigid celebrates the arrival of longer, warmer days of spring (Wikicommons).

36 million Irish-Americans in 2013

Imbolc, also known as the Feast of Brigid, celebrates the arrival of longer, warmer days and the early signs of spring on February 1.

It is one of the four major "fire" festivals (quarter days), referred to in Irish mythology from medieval Irish texts. The other three festivals on the old Irish calendar are Beltane, Lughnasadh, and Samhain (Halloween).

The word Imbolc literally means "in the belly" in the old Irish Neolithic language, referring to the pregnancy of ewes.

In ancient Irish mythology, Brigid was a fire goddess. Nowadays, her canonization is celebrated with a perpetual flame at her shrine in Kildare.

PHOTOS: Travel Ireland in footsteps of Irish saints

Goddess Danu and the wee people (AD)

St. Brigid represents the Irish aspect of divine femininity in her role as patron of babies, blacksmiths, boatmen, cattle farmers, children whose parents are not married, children whose mothers are mistreated by the children's fathers, Clan Douglas, dairymaids, dairy workers, fugitives, Ireland, Leinster, mariners, midwives, milkmaids, nuns, poets, the poor, poultry farmers, poultry raisers, printing presses, sailors, scholars, travelers, and watermen. Here’s a busy saint!

One folk tradition that continues in some homes on St. Brigid's Day is that of the Brigid's Bed.

The girls and young unmarried women of the household or village create a corn dolly to represent Brigid, called the Brideog ("little Brigid" or "young Brigid"), adorning it with ribbons and baubles like shells or stones. They make a bed for the Brideog to lie in.

Irish swimwear in flag colors

On St. Brigid's Eve (Jan. 31), the girls and young women gather together in one house to stay up all night with the Brideog and are later visited by all the young men of the community, who must ask permission to enter the home and then treat them and the corn dolly with respect.

Brigid is said to walk the earth on Imbolc Eve. Before going to bed, each member of the household may leave a piece of clothing or strip of cloth outside for Brigid to bless. The head of the household will smother (or "smoor") the fire and rake the ashes smooth.

In the morning, they look for some kind of mark on the ashes, a sign that Brigid has passed that way in the night or morning. The clothes or strips of cloth are brought inside, and believed to now have powers of healing and protection.

If traveling to Ireland from the USA, it might cost only $549.00 on Aer Lingus.

On the following day, the girls carry the Brideog through the village or neighborhood, from house to house, where this representation of the saint/goddess is welcomed with great honor.

Adult women -- those who are married or who run a household -- stay home to welcome the Brigid procession, perhaps with an offering of coins or a snack. Since Brigid represents the light half of the year, and the power that will bring people from the dark season of winter into spring, her presence is very important at this time of year.

Neopagans of diverse traditions observe this holiday in a variety of ways. More

How the CIA deliberately misleads its employees, spreading false information with internal memos (Daily Mail)

Inside the Company (Agee)

The CIA uses a tiered memo system to hide its activities among its own staff. Known as "eyewash," with it bosses pass on misinformation in an initial memo. They then send a second memo to a select few with the correct information. It was discovered by a Senate probe and described in a classified report. (Feb. 1, 2016) The CIA misleads its own staff by sending its employees false memos that deliberately mask details about killings, drone strikes, and other clandestine activities, it is claimed. The practice begins when a regular internal memo is distributed to wider groups of staff containing false advice about operations or agency sources. A second memo is then sent to a much smaller, select group, explicitly telling them to disregard the previous instructions and passing on the real information.