Find Your Personal Goddess
For The Solitary Witch
If you walk your path alone, here is a ritual you can use to try and find the name of your personal Goddess. Of course, it can also be used by Witches who usually practice in a group; just pick a night when you will be by yourself instead of with your coven or circle. Since you are in search of the Goddess, the best night to do this ritual is on a Full Moon – outside, if you can manage it. But inside works too, if you can’t be out under the moonlight.
You will need: a quiet, dimly lit space (if you are outside, a bonfire is nice, but completely optional); rhythmic music (preferably without words) or a drum; a large white or silver candle to represent the Goddess ( a candle in a woman’s shape is nice, but any good-sized candle will do); a large bowl filled with pure water; a slip of blank paper or parchment; a pen; and a sage smudge stick or any purifying incense.
Prepare you space by setting the bowl on a level surface (the ground, an altar, or a low table). Place the candle behind the bowl and inscribe it with your name if you wish; if you have a magickal name, use that. If you are using prerecorded music, start it now. Place the slip of paper in front of the bowl along with the pen.
Light the sage or incense and waft it around the space and around yourself to clear and cleanse your energy. Then sit or stand in front of the bowl and light the candle. Breathe slowly and deeply, feeling the light of the Moon coming down from the sky and into your body. If you will be drumming, start now. As you drum or listen to the beat of the music, think about the thythm of your heart. Feel that rhythm expand to fill the area around you, just as it did whe you were in your mother’s womb. Then, you could feel her heartbeat, too. As you listen to the drum beats, hear the beating of the Great Mother’s heart surrounding you.
You may enter into a light trance state, or you may just be relaxed and tuned in to the energy around you; either one is fine. Go with the beat as long as you want, and send out your desire to learn the identity of your personal Goddess. Close your eyes and send that yearning out with all your heart, opening yourself to an answer.
When you are ready, open your eyes and look into the bowl. Can you see her? Do you see the form of a maiden, a mother, or a crone? Do you see birds or animals or symbols? You may even see her face or hear her name echoing in the music. If you need quiet now, turn off the music. Pick up the pen and paper and write down her name without thinking about it. You might be surprised what will come to you.
If you don’t get a clear answer right away, try putting the blank piece of paper under your pillow that night, with the intention of dreaming of her. In the morning, pull out the paper and write down whichever name pops into your mind first, while you are still half asleep. (Be sure to leave the pen by your bed.)
Don’t be discourage if the ritual doesn’t work. Perhaps the time isn’t right for you to know, or you are torn between two paths and the Goddess is waiting for you to make the choice that will lead to her.
Excerpt from
Llewellyn’s 2012 Magical Almanac,
Practical Magic for Everyday Living
Find Your Personal Goddess
For The Solitary Witch
By Deborah Blake
Witches Of The Craft® 