The Surprisingly Pagan Roots of Valentine's Day
by Joan Robinson-Blumit
"Oh, My Luve's like a red, red rose," penned Scottish poet Robert Burns in 1788. Today red roses represent the ultimate, "I love you" and a dozen on St. Valentine's Day is the standard sweetheart gesture - to the sum of 100 million roses annually.

Next to flowers, the gift of chocolate ranks high on lovers' holiday. We should disregard the calories and go right ahead and indulge, too - chocolate contains traces of phenylethylamine (PEA), a stimulant also found in the brain, which some scientists claim acts as an aphrodisiac.Dinner at a fine restaurant for just the two of you actually may mean an extended wait for a meal along with a crush of other couples, but it's part of our expectation of the Valentine package. Make your reservations early! Roses, chocolate, dinner for two, a day for lovers - Well, like so many modern traditions attached to the Christian church, Valentine's Day actually began as an ancient Roman - and thoroughly Pagan - celebration. The traditional tale of the origin of Valentine's Day goes like this: Valentine, a priest, lived in 3rd century Rome during the reign of Claudius II, a particularly aggressive ruler in need of a steady supply of warriors. The Emperor outlawed marriage for young men, reasoning that a single man made a better soldier and would be more willing to serve, lacking the encumbrance of a family. Valentine, feeling sympathetic to the plight of the young couples parted by this decree, continued to marry them in secret; when he was discovered, Claudius had him put to death. Thus, the patron saint of star-crossed (or any other kind) of lovers was born. Or so the story goes.

A less romantic possibility is that Valentine was caught assisting Christians escaping from Roman prisons. Some historians hypothesize that Valentine's death may have occurred on February 14, which also happened to be the festival of Juno, queen of the Roman gods and goddesses. She was the goddess of women and marriage, too, and the association could have ledto the association of Valentine with love and marriage.

Yet another legend reports that Valentine fell in love, while in prison, with a young woman who might have been the jailer's daughter. He is alleged to have signed his loving letters to her, "from your Valentine," a closing still in use today. But whatever manner of life he led or martyrdom he achieved, the date of February 14 became associated with his name. But dates in the middle of February were consecrated to love - and its less canonical sister, sex - long before Valentine entered the picture. The month of February takes its name from the instruments of purification (februa) used in such rites, the best known of which is the Lupercalia. Held on February 15, this holiday marked the beginning of the fertility festival dedicated jointly to Faunus, the Roman god of agriculture, and to Romulus and Remus, the legendary founders of Rome. The feast was no tame affair. Contemporaneous accounts report that members of the Luperci, an order of Roman priests, would gather at the sacred cave where the infants Romulus and Remus were believed to have been raised by a she-wolf or lupa.

The priests then sacrificed a goat for fertility and a dog for purification. They then gave the goat's hide to the Luperci, (a set of younger men) to cut into strips, dipping them in the sacrificial blood. The Luperci (who were naked except for the goatskins) ran from the Lupercal around the Palatine Hill to purify it. Along the way, they struck the women they met with strips of goat skin. Women welcomed being touched with the hides because it was believed the strips would make them more fertile in the coming year. "Neither potent herbs, nor prayers, nor magic spells shall make of thee a mother," writes Ovid, "submit with patience to the blows dealt by a fruitful hand."

Later in the day, young single women in the city placed their names in jars. The city's single men then chose a young woman's name from a jar. Couples matched in this way remained sexual companions during the balance of the year and often subsequently married. In 498 C.E., Pope Gelasius ordered a change in the lottery - instead of drawing names of potential lovers, men and women were directed to draw from the jars the names of saints. The saint drawn was supposed to be one's role model for the balance of the year. However, the idea of lovers pairing on the 14th or 15th of February was not easily forgotten. Roman men continued to mark the 14th as a day to win women's affection by sending love notes. By the Middle Ages, French and English folklore stated that birds began their mating season on February 14th, further reinforcing the romantic associations of the day. The oldest valentine in existence was written in 1415 by a duke imprisoned in the Tower of London.

By the 17th century, Valentine's Day as we know it began to grow in popularity in Great Britain, and by the middle of the 18th century, every social class exchanged romantic letters or mementos on the 14th. Valentines in America were probably exchanged as early as the 1700s, and in 1840 Esther A. Howland was the first American to mass-produce valentines. And let's not forget Cupid, the second most popular symbol of Valentine's Day. The son of Venus, the Roman goddess of love and beauty, Cupid shot his bittersweet arrows at humans, gods and goddesses alike, causing them to fall deeply in love. How much more Pagan can you get?

7 Pagan Ways to Celebrate with Valentine (whoever he was!)
Now that the Pagan origins of St. Valentine's Day are clear, why not expand on the usual ways of celebrating and create a few traditions of your own?

1. A sexy fantasy. Use the story of the Lupercalia lottery to create a luscious lover's fantasy. Imagine that you have been chosen by lot to be together today - and need to get to know each other for the first time.
   
   
2. Honor Venus - Cupid's mother - with roses. Design a pentacle in the middle of the bed with rose petals; burn rose incense; place rose bath crystals on your partner's pillow with a note suggesting that you bathe together.
   
   
3. There's nothing like flowers. It's difficult to get away from roses for expressing the most direct sentiment but it can be fun to choose other flowers for a change. (Or if your florist is sold out!) If you look up the romantic Victorian age significance of each flower, you can capture just the right message you wish to convey. With your offering, include a copy of by Kate Greenway, an illustrator and leading maker of valentines in the 19th century. Some floral meanings include:
   
   . Iris - affection, warmth
   . Carnations - joy or fascination
   . Lily-of-the-valley - happiness
   . Lemon Blossom - fidelity
   
   To promote a lusty atmosphere try daisies, violets and hibiscus.
   
   
4. Hide and go seek. Hide a bottle of wine, a sentimental CD, a new piece of sexy night wear or a vanilla or jasmine-scented candle where your lover will find it.
   
   
5. High-tech romance. Don't forget email - as racy as you want, but cool it on the office computers!
   
   
6. Dark, sweet, and juicy. Watch the movie and feed each other hot fudge sundaes. Don't forget the whipped cream and cherry. (I'm not going to tell you exactly what to do with them.)
   
   
7. The apple of my eye. The apple tree is considered the tree of love; share a candied apple.

However you celebrate Valentine's Day do so by recalling that it was a Pagan rite first. Playful, sexy, full of affection - it is a special day definitely in keeping with our witchy selves.

Joan Robinson-Blumit is a writer and leader/teacher of a women's spirituality circle in Phoenix, Arizona. She volunteers at a domestic abuse organization and is a graduate student in women's studies.
Website: www.rowanpress.com.