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How To Hold a Rebirthing Ritual for Ostara

Posted on March 20, 2012 by ladyoftheabyss

How To Hold a Rebirthing Ritual for Ostara

By Patti Wigington, About.com Guide

 

Spring is the time of year when the cycle of life, death, and rebirth is complete. As plants bloom and new life returns, the theme of resurrection is ever present. As Ostara, the spring equinox, arrives, it’s the season for that which has gone dormant to become revitalized, alive, and reborn. This ritual includes a symbolic rebirthing — you can perform this rite either as a solitary, or as a part of a group ceremony.

Difficulty: Average
Time Required: Varied
Here’s How:
  1. In addition to setting up your Ostara altar, you’ll need the following supplies: a black sheet for each participant, a bowl of dirt, water, a white candle, and incense. For this rite, the High Priestess (HPs) or High Priest (HP) should be the only person at the altar. Other participants should wait in another room until called. If you’re doing the rite outside, the group can wait some distance away from the altar. If your tradition calls for you to cast a circle, do this now.
  2. The first person in the group waits outside the circle, covered from head to toe in the black sheet. If your group is comfortable with skyclad rituals, you can be nude under the sheet — otherwise, wear your ritual robe. Once the HPs is ready to begin, she calls the first participant into the altar area, cutting an opening in the circle as the person enters and then closing it behind them.
  3. The participant, still covered in the black sheet, kneels on the floor before the altar.

    The HPs greets the participant, and says:

    Today is the time of the Spring equinox.
    Ostara is a time of equal parts light and dark.
    Spring has arrived, and it is a time of rebirth.
    The planting season will soon begin, and
    life will form once more within the earth.
    As the earth welcomes new life and new beginnings,
    so can we be reborn in the light and love of the gods*.
    Do you, (name), wish to experience the rebirth of spring, and
    step out of the darkness into the light?

  4. The participant replies with an affirmative answer. The HPs takes the salt from the altar, and sprinkles it over the sheet-clad participant, saying:

    With the blessings of the earth, and the life within the soil,
    you are reborn in the eyes of the gods.

    Next, the HPs takes the lit incense and passes it over the participant, saying:

    With the blessings of air, may knowledge and wisdom
    be brought to you upon the winds.

     

    The HPs takes the burning candle and (carefully!) passes it over the participant, saying:

    May the fire of the spring sun bring growth and harmony
    into your life.

     

  5. Finally, the HPs sprinkles water around the participant, and says:

    With the blessings of water, may the chill and darkness of winter,
    be swept away by the warm spring rains.

    Rise! Step forth out of the darkness, and climb into the light.
    Awaken once more in the arms of the gods.     

  6. At this point, the participant slowly emerges from the black sheet. Remember, this is a symbolic rebirth. Take your time if you feel you need to. As you pull the sheet back away from you, remember that you are not only stepping into the light, but putting behind you the darkness of the past six months. Winter is over, and spring has arrived, so take a few moments, as you emerge, to think about the magic of this time of year.

    The High Priestess then welcomes the participant, saying:

    You have stepped once more into the light,
    and the gods welcome you.     

  7. Repeat the ceremony until all members of the group have been “reborn”. If you are performing this rite as a solitary, obviously you would speak the lines of the HPs yourself, and bless the area around yourself with the dirt, incense, candle and water. Once everyone in the group has gone through the rebirthing, take some time to meditate on the balancing energy of Ostara. Light and dark are equal, as are positive and negative. Consider, for a while, the polarity of this season. Think about the balance you wish to find in your life, and consider how you may work harder to find harmony within yourself.
  8. When you are ready, end the ritual, or move on to a Cakes and Ale ceremony or other healing magic**.
Tips:
  1. * Feel free to substitute the name of your tradition’s deity here.
  2. ** If you’ve ever thought about rededicating yourself to the gods of your tradition, Ostara is an excellent time to do this.
What You Need:
  • A bowl of earth
  • Incense
  • A white candle
  • Water
  • A black sheet for each participant
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Imbolc Ritual #2

Posted on January 27, 2012 by ladyoftheabyss

Imbolc Ritual
Adapted from Edain McCoy’s The Sabbats


Cleanse and cast the circle. Then call the elements in the manner with which you are most comfortable. We used the corner callings from Spiral Dance, by Starhawk.

The high priestess takes the chalice from the alter and holds it up to the sky.

HPS: Blessed Lady Goddess, we humbly ask your presence at our circle tonight as we honor you at this season.

Coveners: Blessed be the Lady.

The high priest takes the athame from the altar and holds it up to the sky.

HP: Blessed Lord God, we humbly ask your presence at our circle tonight as we honor you at this season.

Coveners: Blessed be the Lord.

The Virgin Goddess leaves the circle. She comes to the edge of the circle with her candle wheel in her hands. She should stand at the West quarter (the doorway to the Land of the Dead). The high priestess will cut a doorway in the circle and allow the Goddess to enter. Everyone should greet her in their own way (verbal, motion, etc). The Goddess should walk three times clockwise around the inside of the circle, and come to a stop before the alter and kneel before it, facing North.

The coveners should walk in single file to the altar starting with the person to the altar’s right. This will make the procession head clockwise. When everyone is back in their places holding their lighted candles, the ritual can continue.

HP: Behold the light. The God has returned for his bride.

Coveners:

Blessed be the light which warms. Blessed be the God.
Blessed be the Wheel which turns. Blessed be the Goddess.

The child God steps out from among the rest and stands before the bride, who is still kneeling. The God bows to the goddess and she to him. Then they do a few flowing dance steps around the circle without touching each other, but conveying the idea of awakening sexuality. When they are finished, they lift the besom from its resting place on the altar. The Goddess should hold the straw part and the God the stick. They should make sure they do not physically come in contact with each other while they do this. The high priestess stands in front of the besom and takes it from them by grasping it firmly with both hands. The Goddess and God step back to take their places with the rest of the coven.

HPS: With Imbolc we sweep away the last vestiges of winter.

The Coveners turn and face outward from the circle. The Priestess moves counterclockwise around the circle behind the covenors, sweeping from the center outward. As the High Priestess passes each covenor he or she should voice either aloud or silently all the things that he or she wishes to have swept from their lives. When this is finished, the Virgin Goddess and the child God step forward again and take the besom fromt he High Priestess in the same manner in which it was given. Then the High Priestess steps back and the Virgin Goddess and child God place the besom back onto the altar, and again take their positions among the covenors around the circle.

HPS: The God has claimed the Goddess bride and the Wheel of the Year turns on. Who is Goddess?

All women: I am Goddess.

HP: Who is God?

All men: I am God.

HP and HPS: Who is Goddess and God?

Coveners: All living beings are Goddess and God.

HP and HPS: And who are we?

Coveners: We are the children of deity. And we are deity. We are part of the creative life forces which move the universe. we are microcosm and macrocosm. We are part of all that is.
Cakes and Ale

HPS: Though we are apart, we are ever together – for we are one in the spirit of our goddess and God. Merry meet. Merry part.

Coveners: And merry meet again.

All: Blessed be!

Ground, take down the circle.

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MABON – THE AUTUMNAL EQUINOX

Posted on September 21, 2011 by ladyoftheabyss

MABON – THE AUTUMNAL EQUINOX

This is the Harvest Home and falls in a busy season. Agricultural work all
through the harvest season, from Lughnassadh to Samhain, should be done
communally and with simple rites, keeping the presence of the Gods in mind, and
accompanied by games and amusements where they can be fitted in. The Harvest
Queen with her chosen Lord preside at all these occasions, leading the work, the
dances and the feasting. Wagons coming in from the fields at Mabon form a
parade. There are garlands around the necks of the draft animals, and the
Harvest Queen rides in rustic splendor on the last wagon.

THEMES

Many fruits and nuts full-ripe. Leaves turning. Harvest in full swing. Bird
migrations begin. Chill of winter anticipated. Farewell to Summer. Friendship
and family ties remembered.

Thesmophoria, the Eleusianian Mysteries and the Cerelia, all in honor of Demeter
or the Roman Ceres. Feast of Cernunnos and of Bacchus.

The myth of Dionysos: the young god is sacrificed or abducted as Winter begins.
Hy is restored to his mother in the spring. Dionysos (vegetable life) if the
offspring of Persephone (the seed corn) and Hades (the underworld, beneath the
surface of the earth).

PURPOSE OF THE RITES

Thanksgiving to the gods for the harvest. Magic for good weather and protection
of the winter food supply. Blessing the harvest fruits.

FOLK CUSTOMS

Gala processions to bring home the harvest. One or two fruits left on each tree,
no doubt originally meant as an offering to the spirit of the trees. Harvest
customs are too numerous to list here. Refer to The Golden Bough. They include
relics of purification rites and sacrifice of the God-King.

SYMBOLIC DECORATIONS

Colors: gold and sky-blue
Autumn leaves and berries
Fruits of harvest
Nuts
Acorns
Pine cones
Autumn flowers

SOCIAL ACTIVITIES

Husing bees
Harvest parade
Barn dances
Harvest ball
Country fair
Canning and preserving parties

THE RITE

Takes place late afternoon of Mabon Day, in a field or garden, not in wild
woods. The Circle may be marked out with autumn braches. Altar in the west. A
sky-blue altar cloth makes a beautiful background for harvest-gold candles and
decorations of autumn foliage.

Make an image of the Goddess from a sheaf of grain, so that the ripe ears form a
crown. Place this image, decorated with seasonal flowers (chrysanthemums are
sacred to Her, being really marigolds) above the altar. It is a barbaric-looking
figure – no Praxiteles goddess. Have a jug of cider and a supply of cups or
glasses near the altar.

Build the central fire in the cauldron and wreathe the cauldron with autumn
branches.

Coveners may wear work clothes or white robes, or dress in ordinary clothing in
autumn colors. HPS and HP should wear crowns of autumn leaves and berries.
Everyone walks in a procession to the Circle, each carrying a sheaf of grain or
a basket or tray of apples, squashes, melons, nuts, etc. as they continue to
walk deosil within the Circle, HP and HPS take their burdens from them and stack
them around the altar.

Banish the Circle with sat water. In the prayer of intention, refer to absent
friends and relatives who are present in spirit and to the harvest offering. Bid
Summer farewell.

HP kindles the fire. HPS invokes the Goddess and charges the fire. Communion
materials are cider and Sabbat cakes.

The Ritual of Harvesting:

Have a fruit-bearing potted plant at the North. Reap the fruit and carry it
slowly, elevated at about eye-level on the Pentacle, on a tour of the Circle.
The fruit represents the benefits and results of our efforts during the year.
The elevation, with all eyes fixed on the fruit, represents our assessment and
evaluation of our results. The coveners’ individual messages, burned in the
fire, briefly detail these. The fruit itself is divided with the knife and eaten
by the coveners as a token that they accept the consequences of their actions.

Have a platter prepared for the Goddess, bearing some of each kind of food
provided for the feast. Using the knife, HPS buries this food before the altar,
inviting the Goddess to share in and bless the feast. HP pours a libation. Then
he pours cider all around and proposes a toast to the harvest.

HPS gives thanks to all the gods for the harvest. HPS asks the blessing. The
usual divinations and similar business follow, then feasting, dancing and games
and the rite ends as usual.

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A Mabon rite outline

Posted on September 7, 2011 by ladyoftheabyss

A Mabon rite outline

(soon to be a major Mabon Ritual, at a terminal near you.)

General Mabon info to start with, set the mood &c…

What is Mabon?

Mabon, sometimes known as the Harvest/Thanksgiving ritual of the Autumn Equinox, is one of the Spokes of the Wheel of the Year. In the many Earth or Pagan Religions, a special kinship with the passing of the seasons is felt… this is usually due to the history of said traditions, most of which stem from agrarian cultures where the seasons marked the way of life. From planting to reaping to winter to summer… the seasons were of great importance to our ancestors, for their very existence depended upon good harvests, mild winters, enough rainfall, and the like.

So… having shown the importance of the seasons, we shall turn to Mabon itself. Autumn… harvest time… the reaping of what was sown and cared thru during the year. A time of thankfulness and rejoicing. So, of course, someone at some point in time must have said… “Now that the work is over… LET’S PARTY!!!”

This is the essence of Mabon. Rejoicing in a bountiful harvest, thanking the Gods for being so kind during the year, and, hopefully, helping in winning over the Gods’ favor for the coming year.

About the Mabon rite itself:

Now, this will be a very Discordian ritual in that each participant will be (more or less) writing his/her own part. This outline is provided to sorta nudge (nudge, wink, wink, say no more, sir, say no more!) people into making their individual pieces able to fit into the whole thing… (I feel like the Green Ball outta “Heavy Metal”, the movie, something which ties things together).
Back to the rite itself.

Basically, 6 personages will be represented: Callers or Watchers of the East, South, West and North, High Priest (HP) and High Priestess (HPS).

Of course, since this is a generic rite, the terms “Lord” and “Lady” will be used when referring to the Male and Female aspects of divinity/godhood/whatever… individuals may use which ever names they wish, for a Rose, by any other name, would still smell as sweet.

Outline:

  1. Invocation… once everybody has arrived, a Circle shall be cast, more or less, and the 4 Watchers/Callers each get to do their thing invoking that which that direction symbolizes to come and attend the festivities. After which, either the HPS, HP or both would consecrate the circle… in our case… the circle will be around each person at their ‘puter… with a sense of being connected to each other via the others’ ‘puters. So… what we’ll do is… after the circle is cast, and the four Corners have done their things, then the HP will call upon the Lord to attend, and the HPS shall call upon the Lady, (or, if we want to be different, we can have the HP call the Lady, and the HPS call the Lord… it’s not as traditional, but I know of some Ladies who are more likely to pay attention to a young, handsome HP than any HPS, if you get my meaning [wink]). 
  2. Once invoked… it’s time for the thanksgiving part… we all got things we’re thankful for… now’s the chance.
  3. After the thanks are over, a customary requesting of blessing for the coming year is asked.
  4. That done with, it’s time to dismiss the summoned ones… first, around the circle… each corner doing it’s thing… the dismissal consists of a Hail to the being summoned, a flattery (as I call it), and then a structured dismissal (eg. “Air of the East… blah, blah, blah,… Go if thou must, but stay if thou wilt”). The HP and HPS dismiss the Lord and Lady last with similar words.
  5. PARTY TIME!!!! Get out the Beer, munchies, what have you… celebrate… you’ve earned it. 
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