Tag: Hesperis

Calendar of the Moon for November 29th

Calendar of the Moon

 

Full Moon Night

Color: Black
Element: Air
Altar: Upon a black cloth set a single black candle, incense, an iron sickle laid to mimic the direction of the waning moon, a cup of water, a lock of silver hair, and a white bone.
Offerings: Bones. Stones. Menstrual blood. Give something up.
Daily Meal: Soup of some sort, cooked in a cauldron, eaten in silence.

Full Moon Invocation

At this time, in the full of the moon,
When the Silver Lady ages
To an old woman in the dark,
Haunting crossroads, working magic,
Stirring her cauldron
Of poison that heals,
Grandmother Moon of sorcery
And wisdom, who sees all
And reveals little to our searching eyes.
Moon of Death, Moon of mystery,
Moon of silence who hides her face,
Let us learn silence from your averted gaze
Let us learn patience from your aging face
Let us feel for the dark places within us
And find our way down your path in the darkness
Which is utter and complete
But not impenetrable.
As darkness wraps us,
So silence heals us.
As darkness finds us,
So silence guides us.
As darkness speaks,
So silence falls.

(The candle is blown out, and all leave in silence. From the beginning of this rite at Hesperis until the dawn, silence will rule in the house. Talking must be done only in whispers, and between no more than two people, and only for that which is necessary. Long meditation is encouraged, and all work must be done quietly if possible. The evening meal should be eaten by candlelight, and only candles may light the house, except for the sake of certain important work.)

[Pagan Book of Hours]

Calendar of the Sun for November 1

Calendar of the Sun

1 Blutmonath

Rite of Hela: All Souls’ Day

Colors: Black and White
Elements: Earth and Air
Altar: Upon black cloth to the right place four black candles, a skull, bones, a pot of earth, a pile of withered leaves, and a gravestone. Upon white cloth to the left place four white candles, incense, an ivory chalice of mead, a crystal sphere, and a plate of food. Veil the windows.
Offerings: Food, drink, and music given to the Dead.
Daily Meal: Today’s ritual starts at the beginning of Mousika, and continues through until the end of Sponde. Elete and Akte are spent in silent meditation before the altar. No food will be eaten nor work nor washing done until the Dead have their entertainment. Fasting until Dysis.

Invocation to Hela

Hail to Hel
Queen of Helheim
Wisest of Wights
Keeper of Secrets
Keeper of the hopes for tomorrow
Guardian of Souls
Implacable one of the frozen realm
Half the face of beauty
Half the face of Death
You who feed the dead
At your meager table
Where everyone gets their fair share,
Lady who takes away
Yet holds always promise,
Teach us to praise loss and death
And the passing of all things,
For from this flux
We know your blessings flow.

Song/Chant: Rite to Open the Door of Helheim

(Singing then commences, throughout the next several hours. Group singing and soloing alternate. It is acceptable to bring in guest performers from outside, so long as they understand that they are performing for the Dead and not the living, and that they must join the fasting. There will be no applause. Water may be provided. At the end of Sponde, the Dead are thanked and their food put to the side; Hesperis continues as usual, although there will be no food until afterwards.)

 

[Pagan Book of Hours]

Calendar of the Sun for October 4

Calendar of the Sun

 

4 Winterfyllith

Jejunium Cereris: Fast for Demeter

Color: Brown
Element: Earth
Altar: Upon cloth of brown place a clay cup of water, empty bowls, plates, and an empty cornucopia.
Offerings: Give food to the hungry.
Daily Meal: Fasting today, from the night before until Hesperis.

Jejunium Cereris Invocation

Demeter weeps.
She mourns all losses,
All that passes from our hands
Into the gaping earth of the Mother’s womb.
Across the land, there are places
Where the Earth is barren, and no mouths
Shall be fed from Her soil.
The people starve, they cry out, they fall,
But there is no mercy for them
Until the Wheel turns yet again.
So if we cannot feed them all,
If we cannot be Demeter Herself,
For our hands are too few,
Our work is too little,
Our efforts fall like a drop into a wasteland,
Let us still be that drop of hope
And let us, for one day, mourn with them.
For all that we have not, there are others
Who have less, and on this day
We give out some of what we have,
For true wealth is counted only
By how much you can give away.
For today, we shall fast with them
And we shall remember.
Blessed be Demeter in Her weeping,
Blessed be Demeter in Her mourning,
May we be blessed with Her tears.

Chant: By the dust of the Earth we live
By the work of our hands we give
By the work of our hearts we open the world.

[Pagan Book of Hours]

Calendar of the Moon for September 29

Calendar of the Moon

Dark Moon Night

Color: Black
Element: Air
Altar: Upon a black cloth set a single black candle, incense, an iron sickle laid to mimic the direction of the waning moon, a cup of water, a lock of silver hair, and a white bone.
Offerings: Bones. Stones. Menstrual blood. Give something up.
Daily Meal: Soup of some sort, cooked in a cauldron, eaten in silence.

Dark Moon Invocation

At this time, in the dark of the moon,
When the Silver Lady ages
To an old woman in the dark,
Haunting crossroads, working magic,
Stirring her cauldron
Of poison that heals,
Grandmother Moon of sorcery
And wisdom, who sees all
And reveals little to our searching eyes.
Moon of Death, Moon of mystery,
Moon of silence who hides her face,
Let us learn silence from your averted gaze
Let us learn patience from your aging face
Let us feel for the dark places within us
And find our way down your path in the darkness
Which is utter and complete
But not impenetrable.
As darkness wraps us,
So silence heals us.
As darkness finds us,
So silence guides us.
As darkness speaks,
So silence falls.

(The candle is blown out, and all leave in silence. From the beginning of this rite at Hesperis until the dawn, silence will rule in the house. Talking must be done only in whispers, and between no more than two people, and only for that which is necessary. Long meditation is encouraged, and all work must be done quietly if possible. The evening meal should be eaten by candlelight, and only candles may light the house, except for the sake of certain important work.)

[Pagan Book of Hours]

Calendar of the Sun for September 29

Calendar of the Sun

29 Halegmonath

Day of Hestia Tamia

Color: Brown
Element: Fire
Altar: Like all rituals to Hestia, this ritual takes place in the kitchen and not the altar room. A fire should be lit at the main hearth, and fresh-baked bread spread upon the table. The tables should be laid with the preserved jars and cans and bottles of the harvest.
Offerings: Have in visitors, and feed them. Feed the hungry.
Daily Meal: Any correct food, eaten with outsiders.

Invocation to Hestia Tamia

Call: Hail, Hestia Tamia, Lady of the Pantry!
Response: Hail, Keeper of the Storehouse!
Call: Hail, Lady who counts each grain
That each of your charges may eat,
That there be no waste and no greed,
That there be no inequality in hunger.
Response: We must sacrifice to Hestia!
Call: This is the saying of our ancestors,
But they did not mean food thrown
Into flames, or rivers; this is not the way
Of the Lady of the Storehouse.
To sacrifice to Hestia is to put that food
In the bellies of others than yourselves.
To sacrifice to Hestia is to bring in strangers
From the cold and the wet, and offer them food
And drink, no matter how little you have.
To sacrifice to Hestia is to remember the Law
Of Hospitality, and how the Gods all love that Law,
And that the stranger most soiled and tattered
May be a vessel of the Gods in disguise.
Response: We must sacrifice to Hestia!
Call: For the counting of one’s resources
Is a holy act, sacred to Hestia Tamia
And her never-emptying pantry.
May our own pantry be as generous, Lady
Whose face is never shown
As she would rather be known by her deeds
And her gentle presence. Hail Hestia Tamia!
Response: Hail Hestia Tamia!
(The rest of the afternoon until Hesperis is spent tallying the stores in honor of Hestia.)

[Pagan Book of Hours]

Calendar of the Moon for September 21

Calendar of the Moon

21 Muin/Boedromion

Greater Mysteries Day 7: Plemokhoai

Colors: Gold and black
Element: Earth
Altar: Upon cloth of black and gold set a single white candle to burn, with incense of myrrh, and two round-bottomed jugs of water. Before the altar lay the Kistai, the round box of holy objects.
Offerings: Pork and grains.
Daily Meal: Pork and grains.

Mysteries Invocation VII: Plemokhoai Invocation

Hail to those who have come through the dark!
Blessed art thou on Earth who have seen
These mysteries with their own eyes!
Hail to those who have come forth with wisdom
And who no longer fear death and losses!
Let us return the sacred objects to their hiding place,
As Persephone is hidden underground for the next year,
But will always return!
Hail to that which falls, and rises again.
Hail to that which will always give us hope.
Hail to that which is the proof of sacredness.
Hail to the Gods;
May we see them in all things!

(All respond, “Hail to the Gods! May we see them in all things!” At least one new sacred item is added to the box, and it is held high and its story told. Then all seal up the Kistae again, process out of the room, and return it to its hiding place. Two carry the jugs of water, and they are taken outside and placed on the earth, and let fall so that one falls to the east and one to the west, and the flowing out of the water is read as an omen of the coming year and the losses to be had. Then other divination may be done, by any method, for the rest of Hesperis.)

[Pagan Book of Hours]

Calendar of the Moon for August 30

Calendar of the Moon

Dark Moon Night

Color: Black
Element: Air
Altar: Upon a black cloth set a single black candle, incense, an iron sickle laid to mimic the direction of the waning moon, a cup of water, a lock of silver hair, and a white bone.
Offerings: Bones. Stones. Menstrual blood. Give something up.
Daily Meal: Soup of some sort, cooked in a cauldron, eaten in silence.

Dark Moon Invocation

At this time, in the dark of the moon,
When the Silver Lady ages
To an old woman in the dark,
Haunting crossroads, working magic,
Stirring her cauldron
Of poison that heals,
Grandmother Moon of sorcery
And wisdom, who sees all
And reveals little to our searching eyes.
Moon of Death, Moon of mystery,
Moon of silence who hides her face,
Let us learn silence from your averted gaze
Let us learn patience from your aging face
Let us feel for the dark places within us
And find our way down your path in the darkness
Which is utter and complete
But not impenetrable.
As darkness wraps us,
So silence heals us.
As darkness finds us,
So silence guides us.
As darkness speaks,
So silence falls.

(The candle is blown out, and all leave in silence. From the beginning of this rite at Hesperis until the dawn, silence will rule in the house. Talking must be done only in whispers, and between no more than two people, and only for that which is necessary. Long meditation is encouraged, and all work must be done quietly if possible. The evening meal should be eaten by candlelight, and only candles may light the house, except for the sake of certain important work.)

[Pagan Book of Hours]

Calendar of the Sun for August 30

Calendar of the Sun

30 Weodmonath

Charistheria

Color: White
Element: Water
Altar: Upon a white cloth set two white candles, a chalice of milk, white bread, and a dish shaped like open hands.
Offering: Work for a charity.
Daily Meal: Except for what is shared in ritual, fasting today until Hesperis.

Charistheria Invocation

We open our hands to others
And we do not judge their deserving,
For none of us, hard though we try,
Are always deserving ourselves.
To seek the path of grace
Begins with graciousness.
To learn the dance of graciousness
Requires learning grace
In the giving and the taking.
Holy Charis, embodiment of grace
And graciousness, you whose hands
Are always open to all,
Help us to step beyond our feelings
Of who is deserving, who is worthy,
Who commands our compassion,
Who is pitiable, who is loved.
Help us to step beyond our emotions
Of who should receive your gifts, and ours,
Yet do not ever let us cease feeling,
For your gifts are not given out of cold duty
But out of universal love.
We open our hands to others
And we do not judge their deserving,
For none of us, hard though we try,
Are always deserving ourselves.

(One who has been chosen to do the work of the ritual, and who should be dressed in white, brings the bread and milk to each person, and says, “You take, but you do not now give, for this is charity.” Each person replies, “Now I take, but later I give, for charity is grace,” and partakes of the bread and milk. Any remaining is poured out as a libation.)

[Pagan Book of Hours]

Calendar of the Moon for August 29

Calendar of the Moon

Dark Moon Night

Color: Black
Element: Air
Altar: Upon a black cloth set a single black candle, incense, an iron sickle laid to mimic the direction of the waning moon, a cup of water, a lock of silver hair, and a white bone.
Offerings: Bones. Stones. Menstrual blood. Give something up.
Daily Meal: Soup of some sort, cooked in a cauldron, eaten in silence.

Dark Moon Invocation

At this time, in the dark of the moon,
When the Silver Lady ages
To an old woman in the dark,
Haunting crossroads, working magic,
Stirring her cauldron
Of poison that heals,
Grandmother Moon of sorcery
And wisdom, who sees all
And reveals little to our searching eyes.
Moon of Death, Moon of mystery,
Moon of silence who hides her face,
Let us learn silence from your averted gaze
Let us learn patience from your aging face
Let us feel for the dark places within us
And find our way down your path in the darkness
Which is utter and complete
But not impenetrable.
As darkness wraps us,
So silence heals us.
As darkness finds us,
So silence guides us.
As darkness speaks,
So silence falls.

(The candle is blown out, and all leave in silence. From the beginning of this rite at Hesperis until the dawn, silence will rule in the house. Talking must be done only in whispers, and between no more than two people, and only for that which is necessary. Long meditation is encouraged, and all work must be done quietly if possible. The evening meal should be eaten by candlelight, and only candles may light the house, except for the sake of certain important work.)

[Pagan Book of Hours]

Calendar of the Moon for July 20

Calendar of the Moon

12 Tinne/Hekatombaion

Kronia

Color: Golden
Element: Earth
Altar: The Kronia celebrates the Golden Age when Kronos and Rhea ruled, when there was no order, so nothing is done ordinarily this day. The altar is laid with whatever cloths those present may bring, and set with whatever things they may think appropriate to the celebration of a mythical utopian anarchy.
Offerings: Do nothing in its order today. Invite in those not of the House and let them order the activities. The newest novice should replace the House Elder for the afternoon. Order is restored by Hesperis.
Daily Meal: Let those not of the house bring potluck. No one cooks today, and all fend for themselves.

Kronia Invocation
(With random shouting throughout)

Long ago, before there was Law,
Kronos inherited the throne
(Hail Kronos!)
From his mother, Gaea, who recognizes only
(Hail Gaea!)
The laws of nature, and his father Uranus,
(Hail Uranus!)
Who was capricious as the wind and the sky.
For hundreds of years he ruled their way,
Until he realized the value of Rules
(Hail Eunomia!)
And became their strongest servant.
When his son Zeus overthrew him,
(Hail Zeus!)
And with his thrice-blessed wife Hera
(Hail Hera!)
Ascended the throne, he kept the Rules.
Yet today we remember that time,
Like unto the childhood of the world,
Where there were no rules,
(Hail Chaos!)
Nor were any needed. Go now,
And spend one day without them,
That you may appreciate them the more in the end.
(All exit in a rush, snatching things from the altar, and have a drumming and dancing circle.)

[Pagan Book of Hours]

Calendar of the Sun for July 18

Calendar of the Sun

18 Haymonath

Nephthys’s Day

Colors: Black and Tan
Element: Earth
Altar: Upon cloth of black and desert-tan place a winnowing-basket, a clay cup of beer, and incense of myrrh.
Offerings: Give to the poor.
Daily Meal: Whole grains and lentils, very plain. Only water to drink until Hesperis.

Invocation to Nephthys

Lady of the House, Dweller Within Senu,
Holy Neb-Thet, keeper of mystery,
Dark sister of the blessed Isis,
Mother of Anubis, guide of the Dead,
Lady of the Winnowing Basket
Who takes the suffering souls
Of the great mass of the lowly,
Let the tombs of the wealthy
Glorify your sister whose arms
Cradle only the high and noble;
Your winged span enwraps the nameless ones,
Those who were bound in what rags
Could be spared from a menial life.
Those whose bodies were soaked in salt,
Bound to the shape of an unborn child,
And buried in the endless sands of the desert.
You are the Dark One of decay and corruption.
You are the Lady of the barren sand’s edge
That in the time of greatest flooding
Springs suddenly green and alive.
Friend and counselor of the newly dead,
Comforter of the forgotten bereaved,
You who give courage to the birthing mother,
Mourning kite who wails through the sky,
You who understand what it is
To be bound to tyranny against your will
And to have the courage to flee,
Aid those of us whom the world does not honor
With riches and glory; remember us
When our time comes to pass through again.
(All kneel silently before the altar, then the libation is poured and all exit in silence.)

[Pagan Book of Hours]

Calendar of the Sun for Monday, June 4th

4 Lithemonath

Iris’s Day

Colors: All the spectrum of the rainbow.
Element: Air
Altar: Upon a cloth of rainbows set a vase of irises, several flags of rainbow colors, and colored pinwheels.
Offerings: Sing into the wind.
Daily Meal: Brightly colored vegetarian food.

Invocation to Iris

Hail the Many-Colored Messenger!
Hail the Maiden that follows the rain!
Hail the goddess on bright wings
Whose appearance is hope in the future.
All hail lightness of heart
And a smile flung into the oncoming wind.
Winged one,
Rainbow’s child,
Spreading your colors
Across the sky,
Bring us hope
Bring us joy
Carry our wishes
Far onto the winds.
Winged one,
Smile upon us
With your many-colored eyes.

(Each takes up a flag or a pinwheel, and a procession is formed to the outside of the house, in the yard or garden. As each hangs their flag or plants their pinwheel, they say to the sky, “Hear me, Iris; I sing my message to you. Take it where it needs to go.” Then they sing a series of notes, or a short song, which contains the message they would like to go to the Powers That Be. Then one member who has the skill should play a tune on pipes or flute, and all should join hands and dance in a circle to honor the Rainbow Maiden. For the rest of the day until Hesperis at least, all should dress in brightly colored clothing, if possible.)

[Pagan Book of Hours]

Calendar of the Moon for May 30th

Dark Moon Night

Color: Black
Element: Air
Altar: Upon a black cloth set a single black candle, incense, an iron sickle laid to mimic the direction of the waning moon, a cup of water, a lock of silver hair, and a white bone.
Offerings: Bones. Stones. Menstrual blood. Give something up.
Daily Meal: Soup of some sort, cooked in a cauldron, eaten in silence.

Dark Moon Invocation

At this time, in the dark of the moon,
When the Silver Lady ages
To an old woman in the dark,
Haunting crossroads, working magic,
Stirring her cauldron
Of poison that heals,
Grandmother Moon of sorcery
And wisdom, who sees all
And reveals little to our searching eyes.
Moon of Death, Moon of mystery,
Moon of silence who hides her face,
Let us learn silence from your averted gaze
Let us learn patience from your aging face
Let us feel for the dark places within us
And find our way down your path in the darkness
Which is utter and complete
But not impenetrable.
As darkness wraps us,
So silence heals us.
As darkness finds us,
So silence guides us.
As darkness speaks,
So silence falls.

(The candle is blown out, and all leave in silence. From the beginning of this rite at Hesperis until the dawn, silence will rule in the house. Talking must be done only in whispers, and between no more than two people, and only for that which is necessary. Long meditation is encouraged, and all work must be done quietly if possible. The evening meal should be eaten by candlelight, and only candles may light the house, except for the sake of certain important work.)

[Pagan Book of Hours]

Calendar of the Moon for May 29th

Dark Moon Night

Color: Black
Element: Air
Altar: Upon a black cloth set a single black candle, incense, an iron sickle laid to mimic the direction of the waning moon, a cup of water, a lock of silver hair, and a white bone.
Offerings: Bones. Stones. Menstrual blood. Give something up.
Daily Meal: Soup of some sort, cooked in a cauldron, eaten in silence.

Dark Moon Invocation

At this time, in the dark of the moon,
When the Silver Lady ages
To an old woman in the dark,
Haunting crossroads, working magic,
Stirring her cauldron
Of poison that heals,
Grandmother Moon of sorcery
And wisdom, who sees all
And reveals little to our searching eyes.
Moon of Death, Moon of mystery,
Moon of silence who hides her face,
Let us learn silence from your averted gaze
Let us learn patience from your aging face
Let us feel for the dark places within us
And find our way down your path in the darkness
Which is utter and complete
But not impenetrable.
As darkness wraps us,
So silence heals us.
As darkness finds us,
So silence guides us.
As darkness speaks,
So silence falls.

(The candle is blown out, and all leave in silence. From the beginning of this rite at Hesperis until the dawn, silence will rule in the house. Talking must be done only in whispers, and between no more than two people, and only for that which is necessary. Long meditation is encouraged, and all work must be done quietly if possible. The evening meal should be eaten by candlelight, and only candles may light the house, except for the sake of certain important work.)

[Pagan Book of Hours]

Calendar of the Sun for May 15th

Calendar of the Sun
15 Thrimilchimonath

Huldra’s Blot

Colors: White and blue
Element: Air
Altar: Upon cloth of white and blue set twelve white candles, one sky-blue candle, a great jug of mead, and a cow’s horn. Throughout the next four days, the altar stays the same, and one more candle is lit. On this day, light the blue candle and eight white candles.
Offering: Hard work, inside and outside, throughout the day until sleeping. Do things correctly.
Daily Meal: Bread with cheese, meat, or jam, packed and eaten during work.

Invocation to Frigga’s Handmaidens

Call: Twelve maidens hold the halls of Asgard!
Response: Twelve virgins hold the pillars of heaven!
Call: Twelve mysteries hold the luck of Asgard!
Response: Twelve virtues hold the Law of heaven!
Call: Twelve words of power resound through Asgard!
Response: Twelve stars light up the dome of heaven!
Call: We call upon the power of Virtue!
Response: We call upon the mysteries of heaven!

Invocation to Huldra

Hail, Maiden of Industry!
As the shovel goes into the earth,
As the hoe goes into the soil,
As the seed goes into the garden,
As the grain goes into the field,
As the water is carried from the well,
As the home is cleaned and purified,
As the thread is woven on the loom,
So you teach us that nothing comes
Without great labor and terrible work.
For industry is more than merely toil,
It is the means by which the world is changed.

Chant:
Cloth of honor from the thread of truth
Weave your heart into all you offer

(A libation of mead is poured out for Huldra, and the jug replaced for the next day’s ritual. The entire community will take on hard labor today, from after breakfast to Hesperis, to practice the virtue of Industry.)

[Pagan Book of Hours]

Calendar of the Sun for Monday, April 30

Calendar of the Sun
30 Eostremonath

Walpurgisnacht Day VIII – May Eve

Color: Black
Element: Air
Altar: Upon a black cloth lay eight candles, with a ninth one for Odhinn’s nine days, a figure of the World Tree, two nails, sterile needles, a sterile blade, a marker, and all the runes.
Offerings: Pain. Blood.
Daily Meal: Fasting again, from the night before to this day’s Hesperis.

Walpurgisnacht Invocation VIII

Great Odhinn, half-blind and limping,
Worn through by his travels,
Came before the Norns, the three Fates,
Urd the elder, grey and wrinkled as stone,
Pulling the threads of life from her long white hair
And spinning them fine and strong,
Verdandi the weaver, fair and brilliant,
On her loom of many colors,
And Skuld the dark maiden in armor
On her great black horse,
With her blade that slashes life away.
And Odhinn said to them, Give me magic,
That I may have understanding of all things,
That I may work great wights of power,
That my knowledge shall grow.
The Norns said unto him, What price
Shall you pay for this knowledge, O Odhinn,
Once King of Asgard, once keeper of Valhalla,
Once Lord of the Aesir, All-Father of the Gods,
Now a one-eyed, limping beggar on the road
With no home before you and no home behind you,
With dirt on your hands and dust in your mouth,
And the birds of ill omen flying about you,
What price will you pay for this wisdom?
Would you be wounded even unto the death?
And Odhinn said, I will pay any price you ask,
O givers of Fate whom all must obey.
I do surrender myself into your hands.
And so the Norns took Odhinn’s body,
And brought it to the great World Tree,
Yggdrasil, on which lie all the Nine Worlds,
And they nailed him to the tree,
Crucified him onto the great ash
And left him there to live or die.
And Odhinn’s blood ran down the tree
In rivers, and they gathered it
Like fine red thread, and spun his Wyrd,
And wove it into tapestry, and stood ready to cut it
Should he fail in his quest.
Odhinn hung on that windswept tree
For nine days and nine nights,
And the worlds whirled by him
And the blood ran down him
And the hail pelted him like knives.
And in the moment before he died,
His vision cleared, and he saw before him
All the runes, their magic, their wisdom,
And he seized them, crying out,
And fell from Yggdrasil’s arms
Back onto Midgard’s hands,
And opened his eyes into a new dawn,
And it was Spring in the world,
And the time of renewal was upon it,
So Odhinn rose to his weary feet
And found that the path before him
Led him in only one direction,
And that was home.

Chant:
Cauldron of Changes
Blossom of Bone
Arc of Eternity
Hole in the Stone

(Each member comes forth one at a time, and one who has been chosen to do the work of the ritual takes a sterile needle and pricks their finger, and each leaves blood upon the figure of the World Tree as a sacrifice. Then each closes their eyes and takes blindly a rune from the altar, and a message from Odhinn shall be seen therein. That rune should be then drawn upon their flesh, in marker for those who have not the courage to bleed more, and cut lightly with a blade for those who would know more of Odhinn’s sacrifice. Great care should be taken that the cuts do not get infected, as that would be a poor omen. There should be silence until Hesperis, and then release from silence, as the time of Beltane will begin.)

[Pagan Book of Hours]

Calendar of the Moon for Sunday, April 29th

Calendar of the Moon

Dark Moon Night

Color: Black
Element: Air
Altar: Upon a black cloth set a single black candle, incense, an iron sickle laid to mimic the direction of the waning moon, a cup of water, a lock of silver hair, and a white bone.
Offerings: Bones. Stones. Menstrual blood. Give something up.
Daily Meal: Soup of some sort, cooked in a cauldron, eaten in silence.

Dark Moon Invocation

At this time, in the dark of the moon,
When the Silver Lady ages
To an old woman in the dark,
Haunting crossroads, working magic,
Stirring her cauldron
Of poison that heals,
Grandmother Moon of sorcery
And wisdom, who sees all
And reveals little to our searching eyes.
Moon of Death, Moon of mystery,
Moon of silence who hides her face,
Let us learn silence from your averted gaze
Let us learn patience from your aging face
Let us feel for the dark places within us
And find our way down your path in the darkness
Which is utter and complete
But not impenetrable.
As darkness wraps us,
So silence heals us.
As darkness finds us,
So silence guides us.
As darkness speaks,
So silence falls.

(The candle is blown out, and all leave in silence. From the beginning of this rite at Hesperis until the dawn, silence will rule in the house. Talking must be done only in whispers, and between no more than two people, and only for that which is necessary. Long meditation is encouraged, and all work must be done quietly if possible. The evening meal should be eaten by candlelight, and only candles may light the house, except for the sake of certain important work.)

[Pagan Book of Hours]

Calendar of the Sun for Sunday, April 29

Calendar of the Sun
29 Eostremonath

Walpurgisnacht Day VII

Color: Dark Blue
Element: Water
Altar: Upon a cloth of dark blue place a great vessel of water like a well, with stones and other sacred things at the bottom, two figures of ravens, the runes Nyth and Laguz, and seven candles.
Offerings: Each member present should have a coin to throw into the well, which will be added to a charity fund.
Daily Meal: Cold raw food. Only spring or well water to drink all day until Hesperis.

Walpurgisnacht Invocation VII

Behold the Well of Mimir!
Here lies the severed head of the god of wisdom
Who would not speak what he knew,
And here great Odhinn, much lessened by his travels,
Came to seek out Mimir’s wisdom.
He saw the severed head floating deep into the well,
And he asked Mimir to tell him all he knew,
The secrets of the underground,
The things unseen beneath the earth,
Beneath the surface thoughts of men,
Beneath his own surface.
And Mimir laughed, and asked what price
Great Odhinn would pay for this knowledge.
And Odhinn said that he would pay any price.
So Mimir asked for the price of one of his eyes,
That he who was trapped in the well
Might have vision in the upper world.
And Odhinn agreed, and gave one of his eyes
To Mimir in exchange for wisdom,
Although the bargain was hard, and painful.
Half-blind, he continued on his way,
But two ravens settled on his shoulders,
The gift of Mimir and the Norns,
Named Huginn and Muninn, Thought and Memory,
That he might have more eyes in the world
Who would tell him all that they saw.
And we honor Odhinn for his fourth sacrifice,
The giving up of worldly vision for greater sight.
(All shall approach the well, and throw in their coin, and look, and say nothing about what they have seen. Divination can be done on this day, if there are any with the skill.)

[Pagan Book of Hours]

Calendar of the Sun for Thursday, April 26th

Calendar of the Sun
26 Eostremonath

Walpurgisnacht Day IV

Color: Brown
Element: Earth
Altar: Upon a brown cloth set shovels and hoes and other tools, four candles, and the rune Jera.
Offering: Do manual labor, especially of a sort that is difficult or unfamiliar for you.
Daily Meal: Coarse bread. Cheese. Raw vegetables. Root tea. An ancient workman’s lunch, served individually to each one, to be eaten alone on workshift during Mesembria, which is a work-hour today.

Walpurgisnacht Invocation IV

The earth breaks beneath our hoes,
And she receives our sweat and toil
As we work her for our survival.
Long, long ago, Odhinn the All-Father,
Lord of Asgard and Keeper of Valhalla,
Put on the ragged cloak of a peasant,
Wandered down the road alone,
And worked among the peasants
For his daily bread. Day after day,
He who had been enthroned in the sky
Learned the toil of the lowest on earth,
Learned the count of the drops of sweat
That fall like salt rain upon the soil,
Learned the blistered hands and the aching back,
The heat of the sun on bare skin,
The satisfaction of a single turnip
Pulled from the soil on an empty belly.
He who had ordered the life and death of so many
Learned what it was to work for his bread,
And to fear death without it.
On this day we honor his second sacrifice,
The giving up of privilege,
And we put our hands into the earth,
Never forgetting that to be low is to close to Her,
And therefore to be sacred.

(All step forward and take tools from the altar, and then dispense to their various jobs. All work should be done in silence, and alone, today, until Hesperis when the energy changes.)

[Pagan Book of Hours]

Calendar of the Sun for April 1

Calendar of the Sun
1 Eostremonath

Veneralia: Day of Venus

Color: Sea green, golden, and pink
Element: Water
Altar: Upon cloth of sea green, golden and pink, set many shells, flowers, beautiful ornaments, pink candles, hearts, doves, incense of rose and violets, and a great chalice of white wine.
Offerings: Hearts and flowers. Giving a gift of love to someone.
Daily Meal: Seafood. Angel hair pasta. Sweet breads, cakes, and desserts.

Invocation to Venus

Hail, Lady of the Morning Star!
You who rose form the sea foam,
Born of the impersonal severed phallus of the sky
Immersed in the impersonal womb of the sea,
You who rode to shore on a shell of pearl
And whose powers no one can resist
Save the virgin goddesses,
You who bring the glow of gold
Into the lives of all whom you touch,
Lady, we revere you as the avatar
Of the love between equals
Who look each other in the eye,
The attraction and pursuit
Between every particle in the universe.
Hail, Lady of the Evening Star!
You who rule the night
With its darker passions,
You who tempt the wistful heart,
You whose hands reach out
To all the world and more,
Lady, we revere you as a force of nature
Far greater than merely the human heart,
For you are the force that binds together
All that dances with another of its kind
In the endless dance of creation.

(The wine is passed around, and poured as a libation to Venus. Each takes a flower and wears it until Hesperis, in honor of Venus.)

Chant: Venus Veritas Amor Amor

[Pagan Book of Hours]