Beltane is thought by Wiccans to be derived from a word meaning "balefire". It is traditional to take home a smoldering piece of the Beltane bonfire to bring blessings to your home during the coming summer months. It is also believed that the smoke from a Beltane bonfire is the best to use for ritual purification of tools, jewelry, etc. 

The rituals may be quite erotic in nature, symbolizing the union of diety and of the newly impregnated Goddess. It is another fertility Sabbat, and the Great Rite may also be a part of the ritual. Dancing around the Maypole may be a part of the festivities. The original Maypole was a pine tree which had been previously decorated for Yule. It was then stripped of all but its uppermost branches, creating a phallic symbol. It was strung with white ribbons (symbolizing the Goddess) and red ribbons (symbolizing the God). 

Maypole
The best known symbol of Beltane is the phallic Maypole which is planted deep in the fertile and receptive earth. The young, unwed men would go to the forest and return with the tree that would be fashioned into the pole. The pole was brought to the center of the village to be guardedthrough the night until the first day of May. One of the most important parts of the maypole tradition is the dance that takes place after it has been errected. Dancers hold the ends of the ribbons attached to the top of the Maypole and dance around the pole in both directions. Boys going one way, girls the other, symbolizing the balance of masculine and feminine energies and the duality of life. As the ribbons become shorter the dance becomes a spiral dance and an expression of death and ressurrection. . The ribbons would then be removed and kept in a safe place to be burned in the Beltane fires of next year. Thus again representing the old dying to give birth to the new.
          One of the tallest Mypoles now standing is in the appropriately named village of Paganhill in Stroud, England. It is painted red, white and blue and though very patriotic colours they are also the colours of the Triple Goddess. White is for the Maiden, red for the Mother and blue( though more usually black) for the Crone. This is yet another example of the hidden pagan meanings. The Puritans were very aware of the sexual symbolism of the Maypole and it was banned but was reintroduced during the reformation of Charles the Second.

Herbs
Hawthorn, also called maybush because it flowers at this time of year, is sacred to the Goddess. Its pinkish white flowers called "the may" were gathered for their purification powers and hung about the house and on doorways as protection. The custom of going 'A-Mayin' meant staying out all night to gather the hawthorn and making love out in the greenwood - the so called 'greenwood marriage'. The beginning of a Pagan marriage usually began on Beltane. On this day, a couple agreed to live with one another for a year and a day. When that time was up, they could then choose to marry. If the union was unsatisfying to both, they could part with no regrets or hassle.. To Pagans, any child born of the union before formal marriage was not considered a bastard. Any child born of an un-wed union retained his mother's name as a middle name and took the father's name as a surname. This way, the lineage of the parents was not lost. 

   The month of May is considered to be the 'sacred marriage ' of the God and Goddess and for this reason it is considered unlucky to get married during this month. The following month of June became the traditional month for marriage between ordinary mortals. 

The Queen and King of the May
The Marriage of the God and Goddess was celebrated by the appointment of a May Queen and a May King. Today many areas still appoint a May Queen but sadly the God seems to have been forgotten. The King and Queen of the May may well have been the village priest and priestess and the wellbeing of the community depended on their performance of ritual which included sexual union.  Many believe that the May Queen has links with Maid Marion of folk legend. Maid Marion is really the maiden herself and her consort - Robin Hood- was the Green Man or Pan the spirit of lawless nature. 

Stones
Malachite, garnet, rose quartz, emerald, beryl, tourmaline.

Magick
Spells to ensure prosperity, conservation, safety, and love.

Food
Chicken Barley Stew With Herbs

Campanelli, Pauline, Wheel of the Year, Llewellyn Publications 1997
Moorey, Theresa, Paganism, A Beginners Guide, Hodder and Stoughton 1996
Kightly, Carlo, The Perpetual Almanac of Folklore, Thames & Hudson 1987