SOLITAIRE IMBOLC RITUAL
by Micheal Hall

Note - by Matrika - this ritual was written by someone I knew from the Boston 
MA. area a couple of years back. It is based on a combination of the lore of the 
Wicca and some of the afro-caribbean diaspora traditions of Paganism and Magick.
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On your altar should be placed a circle of 13 stones and, within the circle of 
stones, a circle of 13 candles.  Within the circle of candles should be spread 
some maize - i.e. corn meal - and in that a waxen female candle to symbolize the 
Goddess on your altar. On the eastern side of the altar should be placed a small 
sheaf of grain with a candle inserted inside it.

You should dress in your usual ceremonial garb for Magickal rites or skyclad, as 
you prefer.

Retire to bathe in salt-water (use sea salt) before the ritual. As you do so 
picture the water cleansing the soul and spirit, just as it cleanses the body.  
When you have dressed, anoint yourself with a holy oil.  When you have prepared 
yourself, sit in a dim quiet place and light a candle - ONE THAT IS NOT BEING 
USED IN THE RITES - and meditate on how at this time of year the Goddess in her 
fiery aspect AS LIGHT was welcomed back into the Temples and the Homes of the 
land.

Take this candle and walk slowly to your altar.  Place it in the circle of the 
13 candles.   Then light the two altar candles, which are separate from the 
circle of lights also, and the incense.  (Incense should be stick or powdered 
incense on charcoal in a swinging burner.)  Then light all the quarter candles 
in the 4 directions, starting in the east and going clockwise.

Cast your circle in the usual manner, but Invoke the Goddess with the following:

"Sacred womb, giver of the secrets of Life, Mother of all that exists in the 
Universe, I ask your guardianship of this gathering and your assistance in my 
work. I am gathered in celebration of your gifts and my work is most holy. SO 
MOTE IT BE"

Invoke the God in the following manner:

"Fire of the sky, guardian of all that exists in the Universe, I ask your 
guardianship of this gathering and your assistance in my work.  I am gathered in 
celebration of your gifts and my work is most holy.  SO MOTE IT BE"

(continue with the circle casting if it is not already finished)

Light the 13 candles and then the Goddess candle in the center and say:
"Warm and quickening Light
awaken and bring forth beauty
for thou art my pleasure and my bounty
LORD and LADY
OSiRIS AND ISIS"  (or you may substitute whatever names your circle uses for the 
God and the Goddess - or those you personally prefer)Reflect a moment on the 
coming of the light and offer up the incense.

Say
     "O ancient Ones
     Timeless Goddess and Sacred King who art
     the heralds of springtime and it's bounties
     be with me now in celebration
     Hail to Osiris and Isis
     Harvest giver and blessed Lady
     Let this be a time and a place sacred to your power and your beauty
     SO MOTE IT BE"

Light the candle in the sheaf of grain and hold it up with the loaf of bread in 
the other hand and say (or the cakes - whatever you or your tradition uses for 
the cakes and     wine/juice ceremony)

"My Lord and Lady, as the seed becomes the grain, so the grain becomes the 
bread, Mark the everlasting value of our seasons and their changes. "

Break a piece of the bread or cakes off and burn it as an offering in the 
central candle.

Then say

"In the deepest Icy Winter the seed of the Earth lies deep within the womb of 
the Great Mother. The Spring brings the heat of the Father and with their 
joining comes new life.  The completion of the cycle brings food to the children 
of the world.  As I taste the food I shall know the wisdom of the cycles and be 
blessed with the food of wisdom throughout my life"

Consecrate cakes and wine/juice in the usual manner and partake of them, but 
first raise your chalice or drinking horn and say

     "Hail to thee ISIS
      Hail to thee Osiris
      For thou art blessed"

After this commune in meditation with the Lord and lady for a while, then close 
the circle in your usual manner.

     GOOD IMBOLC

‘THINK on THESE THINGS’
By Joyce Sequichie Hifler

Everyone is a collector of something. And everyone’s collection looks peculiar to someone else. And yet, who knows why an item may have a certain appeal to one particular person. The shape, the color, the whole idea may have a hidden background, but it is most definitely there!

It may be old books, or magazines. Perhaps it is pill bottles, fishing hooks, or something “I may need someday when…” Who knows the reason old calendars continue to hang, and scraps of this and that may someday be just what I need.

But more dear than any of these are the happy thoughts we collect to use along the way. We can use them to cheer someone, to pass along a word of courage, a simple prayer, a smile. And when someone has time to share with us an experience that we may profit by the pain they felt – yes, these are collector’s items. These priceless bits of life’s fabric, woven by someone’s cares and offered to us in hopes that it will help.

Whatever it is that we collect, we must never forget the dearest collections are the kindnesses, the thoughtful acts, the smiling faces that can be ours by giving the same.

What could be so priceless as true friendship? Friends for which time and space do not exist! It is written, “What a great blessing is a friend with breast so trusty that thou mayest safely bury all thy secrets in it, whose conscience thou mayest fear less than thy own; who can relieve thy cares by his counsels, thy sadness by his good humor, and whose very looks give thee comfort.”

All of us have had many friends, but the special ones remain forever in our memories. The dearest are those who believe in us and are willing to trust us with their friendship.

We cannot force friendship. It is something mutually understood and silently accepted. It is our opportunity to demonstrate our very best selves – to as no questions and to pass no criticisms.

“Before us is a future all unknown, a path untrod;
Beside us a friend well loved and known -
That friend is God.”

Elder’s Meditation of the Day – January 31

“In sharing, in loving all and everything, one people naturally found a due portion of the thing they sought, while in fearing, the other found need of conquest.”

–Chief Luther Standing Bear, SIOUX

There are two systems of thought that are available for us to choose from. One is the love-thought system and the other is the fear- thought system. If we choose love, we will see the laws, principles and values of the Creator. If we choose fear, the results will be so paralyzing that it will cause us to take over and not rely on the Great Spirit. The fear-thought system will automatically cause attack, conflict, need to control over others. The love-thought system seeks peace of mind, unity and causes us to be love seekers.

Great Spirit, today let me see only love.

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January 31 – Daily Feast

Sensible people do not get ruffled easily and are known to be reliable in a crisis. We want these stable people with us as friends and team members when the game is terribly important. We have heard the calm voice and felt the strong hand when our knees wobbled and our hands shook. It is easy to recall those who sustained us with their words, their caring. And sadly, we remember those who did not. Whatever common sense is, the heart has it, not the head. It is having the right priorities, knowing what is important, and giving as much as, or more than, we have received. Indians of old has this stalwart strength to stand like straight arrows to give support. They reached out to lift someone before they stopped to think whether he deserved it. The price is the same now as then – patience, love, loyalty – those things that seem so scarce.

~ I learned many English words….could recite some of the Ten Commandments….I knew how to sleep in a bed, pray to Jesus, comb my hair, use a toilet….I learned that a person thinks with his head instead of his heart. ~

SUN CHIEF, 1890

‘A Cherokee Feast of Days’, by Joyce Sequichie Hifler

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How shall I begin my song in the blue night that is setting? In the great night my heart will go out; toward me the darkness comes, rattling; in the great night my heart will go out. –Papago Medicine Woman Chant
Soul Message: The wheel of life moves me toward expanded horizons. The sky appears wider, the mountains stand taller, and the space around me is vibrant with possibility. In the midst of life’s wild and quickly flowering currents, I remain centered, allowing the rainbow bridge of opportunity to connect me with my destiny.

Alchemy and Transformation: At this stage of initiation, the spiritual seeker confronts more and more subtle growth opportunities and challenges, in order that a more permeable and transparent ego identity can be forged beyond the confines of attachment and fear. This stage of life heralds a deep and abiding inner freedom

Awakening to the Archetype – The Rainbow Goddess: The Rainbow Goddess carries the potential to manifest in all spheres and in all circumstances. You are invited into the Womb of Potential where, like the Rainbow Goddess, you gestate your dreams. Hidden treasures within you are waiting to blossom.

Everyday Encounters: You are asked to open your heart and soul to the many opportunities that surround you each day. The wheel of fate is shifting and new values, concepts, and ideas are forming within. You may wish to take a class, rearrange your daily schedule, or branch out and do things you have been thinking about but have not taken the time for. It is not to your advantage to remain stuck in the same routines, fearing the significant changes looming on your horizon. Meet this wonderful opportunity with an open mind.

Nature’s Healers: Madia

Your card is…

Buttercup

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Oh, Buddha Buttercup,
Your Sunshine Love bathes me
With golden light.
Innocence is restored,
My True Self shines bright.

Latin: Raminculus bulbosus

Color(s): Yellow Gold

Archetype: Divine Child. The genius Child Self who holds the key to enlightened creativity, understanding that all such activity is ultimately divine play. The Divine Child waits patiently for a time of reunion with the Mother Luminosity, or pure consciousness. This integration of Divine Mother and Child is essential as you embark on the healing quest of Self Love and maturation.

Signature: One of the first flowers to herald the beginning of spring with its dazzling yellow blossoms. Its soft and buttery petals are somewhat shiny and its upper leaves are long and narrow while the lower ones are broader.

Healing Properties: Buttercup carries a blessing of quiet surrender, helping to restore and heal the inner child and helping us remember the creative gifts we carry into this world. The spirit of the sacred child arises within the human heart when this remedy is taken, helping us to see the Truth of who we really are.

Healing: The Divine Child, known in Tibetan Buddhism as the Child Luminosity, will never abandon you; instead the child waits patiently for a time of reunion with the Mother Luminosity, or pure consciousness. In this way, the heart of the child meets the wisdom inherent in all of Life. This integration of Divine Mother and Child is essential as you embark on the healing quest of Self Love and maturation. The process of discovering the golden cup of love within is nothing short of enlightening, for the holiest of holies resides in the Buttercup meadow or your heart.

Just as the child angel in this card holds a Buttercup over the heart of the Buddha, so too is your heart being offered a precious gift of Nature. It is time to accept the luminous child which is your birthright, and to hold dear the treasure of your Originally Enlightened Self. The Buttercup behind the Buddha reflects an aura of golden light, symbolizing your own luminous Child Self which guides you at all times. Its radiant light penetrates your solar body, or solar plexus – the area below your heart where emotion and feeling are stored. The Buttercup’s enlightened energy field bestows many blessings upon you and offers you clarity, so that you may see the Truth of who you really are.

Be Love Today

Today, our focus is on love.  Today, I wish you to realize that the love you give to others is also a gift you are giving yourself.  When you fill your heart with love, even toward those who have hurt you, then you have the healing benefits of a heart full of love, pumping love to all parts of your body.  And love is a soothing and healing nutrient, stronger than any other.

And so, today, give yourself the gift of forgiving and loving others.  Release yourself from the prison of resentment, anger and judgment.  Let yourself walk free into the place of love and light.

Just let it go.  All of the old thoughts, all of the bitterness, just let it go.  Release everything that is not love.  Let it float off you like a heavy, heavy burden you have carried for too long.  And in its place, let love fill you.  Fill yourself with a deep love of yourself, of life itself, of all people in all of their struggles, no matter where they may stand on their path. 

Fill yourself with a warm embracing love which contains complete forgiveness. Let that flow within you.  Feel the warmth and healing power of love as it heals you and connects you to all that is good and wonderful in this world.