Samhuinn Rituals

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Cerredwen	Re: Samhuinn Rituals	#41	[-]
Walks an Earthbased Path Posts: 11474 (09/24/07 08:27 PM) ~~Priestess of the Goddess~~ Reply Quote More My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Blocking Invite Ignore User's Posts Report Post	Halloween Spell By Gerina Dunwich For many witches throughout the world, Halloween is an ideal time to magically do away with weaknesses. The Celts of old, for instance, on Samhain slaughtered all livestock that were too weak to live through the coming winter. Using a quill pen and dragons blood ink, write upon a piece of parchment the weaknesses you wish to be rid of. As you concentrate on your intent, crumple up the paper in your power hand and toss it into a fire or set it ablaze by holding it above the flame of a black candle. Place it into a fireproof container such as a cast iron cauldron, and as the parchment burns away into ashes, so too shall your weaknesses be consumed by the flames of magic. "May the fruit of our lives be bound and sealed to Thee, O Mother, O Woman Eternal who holdest the inmost life of each of Thy daughters between the hands upon Her Heart" ~~~~~~~~~~~ We swear by Peace and Love to stand, Heart to Heart and Hand to Hand. Mark, O Spirit, and hear us now, confirming this, our Sacred Vow. ~Druidic Prayer of Unity~
Cerredwen	Re: Samhuinn Rituals	#42	[-]
Walks an Earthbased Path Posts: 11474 (09/24/07 08:29 PM) ~~Priestess of the Goddess~~ Reply Quote More My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Blocking Invite Ignore User's Posts Report Post	Spell for Isis and Nephthys By Israel Regardie Take black crepe streamers, available for Halloween decorations, and reverently loop them together to form a rough human shape. Place this on a table or altar, and think on your own sorrows and those of others. Say these or similar words: Osiris is dead; nothing remains in this world but his wrappings. My dead, my Osiris, the sorrows of my world, all that remains are the empty wrappings which tie my heart. What they once contained has gone on to another dimension, where they cannot be seen. May the sorrow they leave behind no longer bind my heart. May only the light of their lives remain to be remembered. Burn the wrappings in the sink or in a heat-proof container. Watch the flames as they burn. When you at last look away, you will see only the afterimage of the light of the flames. Hold this in your heart. "May the fruit of our lives be bound and sealed to Thee, O Mother, O Woman Eternal who holdest the inmost life of each of Thy daughters between the hands upon Her Heart" ~~~~~~~~~~~ We swear by Peace and Love to stand, Heart to Heart and Hand to Hand. Mark, O Spirit, and hear us now, confirming this, our Sacred Vow. ~Druidic Prayer of Unity~
Cerredwen	Re: Samhuinn Rituals	#43	[-]
Walks an Earthbased Path Posts: 11474 (10/01/07 10:24 AM) ~~Priestess of the Goddess~~ Reply Quote More My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Blocking Invite Ignore User's Posts Report Post	Hallows Blessing Author Unknown To those whose feet are stilled And those who laugh with us no more To you we say, our love was with you here And goes with you hence To that place where you rest and revel. May the dark Lord and sweet Lady Guide your feet along the rocky paths To the place where all is fresh and green And lover, friends and ancestors wait With open arms to greet you. Go in peace, and with our blessing Be rested and return when the Lady deems it fit With the countless turns of the Great Wheel We shall miss you We shall meet you again in the green places of Her domain. "May the fruit of our lives be bound and sealed to Thee, O Mother, O Woman Eternal who holdest the inmost life of each of Thy daughters between the hands upon Her Heart" ~~~~~~~~~~~ We swear by Peace and Love to stand, Heart to Heart and Hand to Hand. Mark, O Spirit, and hear us now, confirming this, our Sacred Vow. ~Druidic Prayer of Unity~
Cerredwen	Re: Samhuinn Rituals	#44	[-]
Walks an Earthbased Path Posts: 11474 (10/01/07 10:26 AM) ~~Priestess of the Goddess~~ Reply Quote More My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Blocking Invite Ignore User's Posts Report Post	Halloween Pleasant Dreams Sachets By Silver Ravenwolf Halloween-design material to make small sachet bags (or you can buy pre made sachet bags from a craft store and decorate) 4 tablespoons dried lavender buds (love, protection, restful sleep) 20 whole cloves (love and protection) 4 tablespoons dried rosemary (protection and love) 1/2 teaspoon dried orange peel (love) 1 sunflower seed for each sachet (wisdom) Mix lavender, cloves, rosemary, and orange peel together in a small bowl. Hold your hands over the bowl of herbs and say: "From Mother Moon and Father Sun, from autumn breezes carrying angel prayers I empower these herbs to bring protection and love to whoever holds them between clasped hands and prays for a restful sleep." Hold your hands over the herbs until your hands grow warm. Fill the sachet bags, then empower the sunflower seeds, saying: "From Mother Moon and Father Sun, from autumn breezes carrying angel prayers I empower these herbs to bring protection and love to whoever holds them between clasped hands and prays for restful sleep." Tie up sachets, reaffirming with each sachet: "From Mother Moon and Father Sun, from autumn breezes carrying angel prayers I empower these herbs to bring protection and love to whoever hold them between clasped hands and prays for restful sleep." The recipe will make approximately 7 to 10 small sachets "May the fruit of our lives be bound and sealed to Thee, O Mother, O Woman Eternal who holdest the inmost life of each of Thy daughters between the hands upon Her Heart" ~~~~~~~~~~~ We swear by Peace and Love to stand, Heart to Heart and Hand to Hand. Mark, O Spirit, and hear us now, confirming this, our Sacred Vow. ~Druidic Prayer of Unity~
Cerredwen	Re: Samhuinn Rituals	#45	[-]
Walks an Earthbased Path Posts: 11474 (10/01/07 10:27 AM) ~~Priestess of the Goddess~~ Reply Quote More My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Blocking Invite Ignore User's Posts Report Post	Hazelnut Good Luck Charm Author Unknown 9 hazelnuts (or filberts as they are also called) Black colored twine (hemp is best for the energy) Nut pick Using the nut pick, bore holes in the nuts. Use whole nuts, don't shell them. String them on the twine, making it just long enough to hold the nine nuts with a little bit of space, then tie off in a circle. On the night of Samhain, consecrate it in the fire, passing it back and forth 3 times, and chanting: "Hazelnuts nine in a ring by the smoke of the Samhain Fire bring to those within our humble home form over this a protective cone Guard for a year, I charge thee and as I will, so mote it be!" Then hang it up in your home somewhere as an amulet of protection for the coming year. If you want, make several, and after consecrating them give them to other pagan family and friends as a gift, or hang one in every room if you wish. Nine is the sacred number of the Hazelnut in the Celtic Tree Calendar. Save some of the nuts to bury during the Spring Equinox, to attune yourself with the cycle of birth and death. "May the fruit of our lives be bound and sealed to Thee, O Mother, O Woman Eternal who holdest the inmost life of each of Thy daughters between the hands upon Her Heart" ~~~~~~~~~~~ We swear by Peace and Love to stand, Heart to Heart and Hand to Hand. Mark, O Spirit, and hear us now, confirming this, our Sacred Vow. ~Druidic Prayer of Unity~
Cerredwen	Re: Samhuinn Rituals	#46	[-]
Walks an Earthbased Path Posts: 11474 (10/02/07 09:18 PM) ~~Priestess of the Goddess~~ Reply Quote More My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Blocking Invite Ignore User's Posts Report Post	Halloween Moon Omens Author Unknown If the moon is new on Samhain, this indicates that the coming year will be fertile ground for new beginnings to take place, such as the start of a new project, a new career, or even a new way of thinking. For those desiring children, a new moon at Samhain is a lucky omen, indicating a new birth within a year's time. If the moon is waxing on Samhain, this indicates good luck throughout the coming year. It also indicates growth and an increase of all things that are positive nature. If the moon is full on Samhain, this ensures that the powers of all forms of magick and divination practiced on this night will be at their greatest. A secret wish made at midnight will be realized within the coming year. Do not be surprised if an experienced of a psychic nature awaits you in the very near future. If the moon is waning on Samhain, this can be an omen of either good or bad consequences. It can indicate the elimination of such things as bad habits, unhealthy relationships and obstacles within the coming year. Or it can point to a decrease (such as in one's health) or a loss of some kind soon to take place. If the moon is in the dark phase on Samhain, this is believed to be a very negative omen. Exercise extreme caution in all of your endeavors within the next twelve months, and it wouldn't hurt to protect yourself by wearing or carrying any type of amulet or talisman designed to ward off bad luck and misfortune. "May the fruit of our lives be bound and sealed to Thee, O Mother, O Woman Eternal who holdest the inmost life of each of Thy daughters between the hands upon Her Heart" ~~~~~~~~~~~ We swear by Peace and Love to stand, Heart to Heart and Hand to Hand. Mark, O Spirit, and hear us now, confirming this, our Sacred Vow. ~Druidic Prayer of Unity~
Cerredwen	Re: Samhuinn Rituals	#47	[-]
Walks an Earthbased Path Posts: 11474 (10/05/07 09:40 PM) ~~Priestess of the Goddess~~ Reply Quote More My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Blocking Invite Ignore User's Posts Report Post	The Samhain Rite By Ian Corrigan A: The Statement of Purpose and Precedent We gather here on the Feast of Samhain, the End and Beginning of the Sacred Year, the Time of Turning when the Dark Time begins. This is the Last Harvest. The fields lie empty, sinking into Winter's Sleep and our larders hold what gain we have reaped from our labors. As our forbearers did, so do we do now, and so may our descendants do in time to come. We are here to offer worship to the Lord of the House of the Dead and to the Queen of Phantoms; to the Gods, the Dead and the Sidhe; and especially to our honored dead here on the Feast of the Dead. We offer to Donn the Dark One, the Antlered God who offers hospitality and peace to those bound for the Ancestors' Country. We offer to Morrigan, the Great Queen of Battle and Sorcery; the Old Woman of Death and the Cauldron of Rebirth. In this Season of Death we honor the Holy Dead as the ancients did, and we seek the Seed that will wait in the Womb of Winter. Now let us open the Ways Between... B: Honoring the Patron Deities To the Gods, the Dead and the Sidhe we offer welcome. All you Spirits who gather here with us, join now to honor the Patrons of our rite. On the Night of the Scythe and the Skull, the honor-feast of Summer's End, let us worship the Dark One and the Great Queen. The Invocation of Donn In the season of darkening, the Lord of the House of Death receives the Spirits in his Hall. He is Donn the Dark One, called Cernunnos the Horned One. He is the First Ancestor, the Torc Bearer, The Guardian of the Cauldron of Plenty. Hear us now, Horned One, Dark one, Receiver of the Dead, Granter of Rest, Patron of the Feast in the Land of the Dead. We your children pray you to come in, to let your gaze fall upon this Sacred Ground, to indwell our rite and give us your blessing. We make due offering to you. We give you... (offering made into shaft or offering bowl.) Silver, that you grant the wealth of the Underworld, Source of All Potential. (offering made to the Fire) Oil, that the richness of the Land be renewed as our own lives are renewed. (offering placed at the foot of the Tree) Horn, that the beings who know you may bless us in the Season of Hunting. Be welcome among us, Donn; Dark One, accept our sacrifice! The Invocation of Morrigan As the Earth falls into sleep the Queen of Spirits is choosing those who will go to the Cauldron of Rebirth. She is Morrigan, the Great Queen of Phantoms, the Chooser of the Slain. She is the Battle Raven, the Red Woman, Mistress of the Cauldron. Hear us now, Red One, Great Queen, Lady of the Reaping, Cauldron-Witch of Sorcery and Prophecy. We your children pray that you be with us, that you look kindly upon our holy rite, that you come into our Grove and give us your blessing. We give due offering to you. We give you... (Shaft) Precious stone, that the Bones of the Earth may be clothed again in life. (Fire) Whiskey, that the Waters of Life May flow in us and Spirit indwell flesh. (Tree) Feathers, that your raven Eye watch over us in the Season of Sleep. Be welcome among us Morrigan; Great Queen, accept our sacrifice! C: Honoring the Ancestors On the feast of Samhain the veils between the worlds are thin. We call to our Beloved Dead, the blessed Ancestors, to join our feast and receive due offering. Come to the Gates, honored ones; hear our call, we your children who remember. We offer you our worship, our reverence and our love. You who fill the empty womb, you who cause the seed to spring to spring, you who fill the breast with milk, receive now these offerings, made in your honor: Apples, the Fruit of Life and Death. Pork, the flesh of the Sacred Sow. Hazel nuts, concentrated meat of wisdom. We offer these... (some of each offering made to the shaft) To the ancient heroes of the Pagan World; those men and women who did the bidding of the Gods for the good of the folk. (offering made) To the honored Dead of the passed year; those women and men of our folk who inspired and guided our whole world. (offerings made) To our own Beloved Dead, Grandmothers-and-Fathers, family and friends who have gone ahead, we honor you and grieve for you. (offering made) To all of you we give these fruits and meats that you may feast in joy in the Land of the Dead. D: During the Praise Offerings While the Praise Offerings are made, a wreath is passed among the people and all who wish tie a black ribbon onto the wreath in commemoration of their own dead. This wreath is then given to the fire at the Prayer of Sacrifice. E: The Blessing The Ale of Blessing flows in us, filling us with the magic of Morrigan and Donn. As the year turns, let us welcome the quiet of the Dark. Let the stillness of the land calm and satisfy our spirits, allowing us to receive the Harvest's Bounty. Let the gain of the passing year be ours, to fill our lives with contentment. Let us welcome the Dead who wish to return to the living world, even as we remember those who depart. May we rest content as we pass the threshold of new beginnings. The Death Song (Repaganized from the Carmina Gadelica) You go home this night to your home of winter, To your home of fall, of spring, of summer, You go home this night to the Turning House, To your pleasant rest in the Land of Joy. Rest you, rest, and away with sorrow, Rest this night in the Mother's Breast, Rest you, rest, and away with sorrow, Rest, O beloved, with the Mother's Kiss. In the Many Colored Land; In the Land of the Dead; In the Plain of Joy; In the Land Beneath the Wave; In the Land of Youth; In the Land of the Ever-Living; In the Revolving Castle, the House of Donn. Rest in seven lights, beloved, Rest in seven joys, beloved, Rest in seven sleeps, beloved, In the Grove of the Cauldron, Morrigan's Shrine. The shadow of death is on your face, beloved But the Cauldron of Rebirth awaits you, The threefold turning of your Fate, When your rest has given you your peace. So rest in the calm of all calms, Rest in the wisdom of all wisdoms, Rest in the love of all loves, Rest in the Lord of Life and Death, Rest in the Lady of Life and Death, Till the Season of Turning Till the Time of Returning Till the Mystery of the Cauldron "May the fruit of our lives be bound and sealed to Thee, O Mother, O Woman Eternal who holdest the inmost life of each of Thy daughters between the hands upon Her Heart" ~~~~~~~~~~~ We swear by Peace and Love to stand, Heart to Heart and Hand to Hand. Mark, O Spirit, and hear us now, confirming this, our Sacred Vow. ~Druidic Prayer of Unity~
Cerredwen	Re: Samhuinn Rituals	#48	[-]
Walks an Earthbased Path Posts: 11474 (10/09/07 05:28 PM) ~~Priestess of the Goddess~~ Reply Quote More My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Blocking Invite Ignore User's Posts Report Post	Harvest Knotwork By Sharynne NicMhacha Throughout the month of October, farmers worked hard to bring in the grain harvest during the good weather (and before the end of the year at Samhain). In Ireland, as part of the harvest celebration, small ornamental twists or knots of braided straw were created and worn as a sign that the harvest was completed. These were made throughout the harvest season, and were also worn at the "Harvest Home" supper. Women wore elaborately created knots with the grain ears still attached, and men wore simpler knots without the ears. Patterns for harvest knot-making are easy to find online. After soaking the straw, think about what prayers or magical work you would like to weave into the harvest knot. Repeat your charm or prayer as you make your magical autumn weaving. "May the fruit of our lives be bound and sealed to Thee, O Mother, O Woman Eternal who holdest the inmost life of each of Thy daughters between the hands upon Her Heart" ~~~~~~~~~~~ We swear by Peace and Love to stand, Heart to Heart and Hand to Hand. Mark, O Spirit, and hear us now, confirming this, our Sacred Vow. ~Druidic Prayer of Unity~
Cerredwen	Re: Samhuinn Rituals	#49	[-]
Walks an Earthbased Path Posts: 11474 (10/09/07 09:55 PM) ~~Priestess of the Goddess~~ Reply Quote More My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Blocking Invite Ignore User's Posts Report Post	Guided Meditation For Samhain 2003 Frances Donovan Contrary to popular belief, Halloween is not just about costumes and candy. Samhain, as this holiday is known to pagans, is a time for remembering our loved ones who have passed over into the Summerlandsa peaceful place where souls can meet long-lost acquaintances, and recharge before returning to the world in another form. This is a scary time of year: Summer has ended, the days are getting shorter and the nights longer. We are afraid of the things that go bump in the night. So dressing up as them is a cathartic way to face those fears, and move onward. Samhain is also the pagan New Year. The old year dies, and the new year begins. It's a good time for working magic, whether by yourself or with a coven, and also a good time for divination. Break out those runes, Tarot cards, and scrying bowls, and see what you will see. Here is a guided meditation used during a virtual ritual I conducted when I was the About.com Guide to Pagan/Wiccan Religion. Find a quiet space where you can be undisturbed before you begin. I want to leave you with a meditation that you can perform at home, in a quiet space. If you have an altar, I suggest you do it there. First, relax your body. Do this by first concentrating on your breath, and then on a line of relaxation that moves up your body and spills over, until you are completely relaxed. Go back to your breath. Go inside your breathing. Inside, you will find a dark wood, with most of the leaves already fallen from the trees. It is a dark, moonless night. You can hardly see. It is cold, and you do not have a coat. You move through the trees shivering, frightened of the dark, until you come to a clearing. In it is a cheery house, and a garden that has just been cleared of the last fruits of the summer. You knock on the door, and a woman answers. She is not ancient, but her face has begun to sag. She brightens when she sees you, and invites you in. She is the Crone, and she has something to tell you, something about the year that has passed and the year that is before you. Listen to her. What does she say to you? "May the fruit of our lives be bound and sealed to Thee, O Mother, O Woman Eternal who holdest the inmost life of each of Thy daughters between the hands upon Her Heart" ~~~~~~~~~~~ We swear by Peace and Love to stand, Heart to Heart and Hand to Hand. Mark, O Spirit, and hear us now, confirming this, our Sacred Vow. ~Druidic Prayer of Unity~
Cerredwen	Re: Samhuinn Rituals	#50	[-]
Walks an Earthbased Path Posts: 11474 (10/12/07 09:49 PM) ~~Priestess of the Goddess~~ Reply Quote More My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Blocking Invite Ignore User's Posts Report Post	HALLOWEEN AND THE VEIL BETWEEN THE WORLDS Halloween arrives with the brisk autumn wind, when our sensibilities are undergoing the same subtle but profound changes as Nature herself. The energy in the air is ambivalent, prickling with unease but alive with the promise of connecting us to life in a new way, a deeper way. Halloween reminds us of the existence of powers we cannot see, and yet still somehow understand. The keen sense of nostalgia many of us feel at this time of year may be due to cellular memory, which keeps us in touch with Halloween's long, rich history. Archaic collective imagery of a very special kind re-awakens every year when the sun is in Scorpio, sweeping us under its spell. The last secular festival remaining in the Western calendar, only Halloween has cleaved to its magical, primordial roots. It is a holiday that fascinates without requiring us to believe anything. Its allure is not intellectual, but visceral, dating back to a time when people explored the non-physical realms -- the Other Worlds -- as a natural and normal function of human experience. For untold millennia before the Julian Calendar, Halloween, or Samhain (pron. SOW-wen) to the ancient Celts, marked that poignant moment at the golden end of the warm season when the veils between the worlds are thinnest. Back in the days when people timed their lives by the birthing of their herds and the ripening of their harvests, Halloween served as a solemn gateway to winter, the Dark Time ([Dark] meaning, not [bad], but [hidden]). This was the point in the wheel of the year when ancient Europeans slowed down their activity, gathered up what they had sown literally and figuratively during the long days of summer, and turned their attentions within. Before the modern era, the unseen worlds were considered very real. Ancient practitioners of Halloween believed in the afterlife as a matter of course; they would have found incomprehensible the idea that cultivating a relationship with the dead was wrong or evil. Nor did they think they had to go through high priests to do it. Ordinary people sought wisdom through exploring the dimensions beyond death, before death, and between lives; an exploration which had not yet been declared taboo. Nor had the cult of rationalism yet come along to condemn intuition as being inferior to mental logic, a development which was henceforth to embarrass into silence those who believed in ghosts. For our ancestors, the souls of the departed were felt to be as worthy of respect as any other souls, and Halloween was when people communicated with them. Old Samhain has suffered centuries of ignoble trivialization. Too powerful for the Church of Rome to vanquish entirely, the profound rites of All Hallow's Eve have been reduced to a candy blow-out for children, and increasingly, an ever-more-commercialized party for adults. Popular culture has held onto the iconography of witches (originally, tribal wise women) and bats (thought to embody souls of the departed), but without any understanding of what they signify. Our estrangement as a culture from the deeper meaning of Halloween is especially unfortunate from the point of view of those individuals in whose charts Scorpio or Pluto is highlighted. In the zodiac, the power of Halloween is represented by the sign Scorpio. People with strong showings of Scorpio in their charts 1 are the descendents of the keepers of the Samhain rites held sacred by the ancient world. Making this connection will open up our understanding of why Scorpio has been called the sign of secrets. Mystical scholarship has been conducted in secret for most of recorded history. First, because it was thought that these inquiries were too subtle for the uninitiated mind to comprehend without distortion; and second, because as alchemy and other esoteric arts became outlawed by the Church, they were pursued at great risk. Scorpionic people come from a noble lineage of clandestine activity. The modern world, too, can be a difficult place for people with these sensibilities. Our literalistic culture is skeptical of Scorpio's subtle intuitions, with the result that many Westerners -- astrologers among them -- regard the sign with suspicion. Most contemporary philosophies fear and spurn the Dark Mysteries (among them, death, sexuality, and the psychic realms), having no framework of understanding for them. This can lead Scorpionic types to distrust their own essential nature. Individuals with this signature in their charts would do well to question our society's continued demonization of the occult (the word simply means hidden), a form of spiritual inquiry which is its pure form has nothing to do with self-aggrandizement. The true occult power of Scorpio power lies in its ability to connect with the invisible dimensions of life, celebrated so long ago at Samhain. All astrological symbols have layers of meaning, from the metaphorical to the prosaic. Scorpio and its planetary ruler, Pluto, govern all kinds of secrets: classified information, detective novels, lost objects. Those with Moon in Scorpio can pick up on hidden motives or unexpressed emotions. People with Venus in Scorpio excel (when they want to) at keeping confidences. Mercury-in-Scorpio individuals can communicate more by what they do not say than by what they do say. In a natal chart with no planets in Scorpio, the house which has Scorpio on its cusp shows us where the person is most privy to the mysteries of life. Even more telling is the house occupied by the planet Pluto, which indicates what types of situations bring out a person's sixth sense. Pluto, ruler of the sign Scorpio, represents the power we all have to pierce beneath the surface of something in order to know its truth. Because this kind of perception is rarely validated by the culture we live in, most of us have grown up either minimizing our psychic proclivities or dismissing them entirely. But for those who are driven to make connections our intellects alone cannot fathom, Pluto has much to teach us. Pluto's house placement shows where we feel a profound drive to understand Natural Law, which exists beyond personal likes and dislikes, and beyond value judgments. When approached with the proper understanding, Pluto opens up even the most everyday experiences to deeper reaches of meaning, satisfying a hunger in the soul. People with Pluto in the sixth house, for example, are often extraordinarily insightful in diagnosing an illness, going beneath the level of symptom into the psycho-spiritual root of the malaise. The season that is now upon us opens up cracks in the wall dividing the mortal sphere from the sphere of the Mysteries. There is no better time to celebrate, with humility and respect, the things in life that we know not from knowledge but from [knowing]. This Halloween, take a moment to light a candle to souls that have departed the physical plane. Take note of the placement of Pluto in your chart, and use the information to begin reclaiming your psychic ability. Identify which house of your chart has Scorpio on its cusp, and work your X-ray vision accordingly. In personal relationships, resolve to listen between the lines. There are worlds out there -- and within us as well -- which are and always will be outside of the realm of our conscious comprehension. This may strike the proud Western mind as an affront, but our deep psyches accept it with equanimity and relief. Let us express gratitude this Halloween that the Mysteries exist, and take advantage of the perfect moment to honor them. The relative strength of the Scorpio archetype is gauged by its appearance among the ten planets, by the aspects to and house placement of Pluto, by the activity in the eighth house, and by the activity in that house where Scorpio is on the cusp. Articles by Jessica "May the fruit of our lives be bound and sealed to Thee, O Mother, O Woman Eternal who holdest the inmost life of each of Thy daughters between the hands upon Her Heart" ~~~~~~~~~~~ We swear by Peace and Love to stand, Heart to Heart and Hand to Hand. Mark, O Spirit, and hear us now, confirming this, our Sacred Vow. ~Druidic Prayer of Unity~
Cerredwen	Re: Samhuinn Rituals	#51	[-]
Walks an Earthbased Path Posts: 11474 (10/19/07 04:45 PM) ~~Priestess of the Goddess~~ Reply Quote More My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Blocking Invite Ignore User's Posts Report Post	Honoring the Resting Places of Loved Ones By Edain McCoy, copyright 1996 Adorning the final resting places of loved ones is a custom that has been practiced since ancient times, and in many cultures it is still done at designated points in the year, when the spirits of the dead are deemed to be roaming in the world of the living. Most traditional grave offerings have roots in a Pagan past, and are symbolic of the eternal cycle of life, death, and rebirth. Many speak of ancient reincarnation beliefs. The wreath, sometimes adorned with flowers, is one such item. A perfect circle with no beginning and no end, it represents the wheel of life; the ever-turning cycle of birth, death, and regeneration on which we all spin. Lanterns, candles, or other light sources are sometimes offered. These symbolize illumination of truth, and a wish to light the pathway of the spirits as they travel between worlds. Bowls and urns, which likely held food or wine, have been found in ancient burial sites. Providing sustenance for the deceased is still practiced in Paganism today, when feasts or libations are offered to spirits on certain holidays or during specific rituals. Modern food offerings usually include apples or eggs. The apple is the symbol of eternal life in the Celtic traditions, and the egg is an ancient token of new life or of life renewed. Items of protection are also offered to the dead by way of grave offerings. This may be something as simple as a protective stone or pentacle, or a flower or oil. Over time, folklore has taken these items, once meant to offer protection to the soul as it journeyed to new adventures, and turned them into items of protection for the living, to guard them from the marauding spirit of the one who is buried. Modern Pagans might occasionally offer mirrors, which can be used magically as portals between worlds. Mirrors express their desire that the soul escape the grave, or any other earthly bonds which tie it to the physical world, so that it may move onward. Fresh flowers are the most frequently seen grave offerings today, and are used in many religions and cultures. Archaeologists have found many neolithic gravesites containing fossilized flowers, which they believe to symbolize the spring and rebirth. Masks make excellent grave offerings, and death masks, either cast from the face of the deceased or crafted as a representation of a wish for the departed, are still used in many cultures, including Africa, South America, and Polynesia. These are best made from substances like wood, or food which will decompose and become part of the Earth again. Avoid plastics, which will be around longer than the grave itself. The anointing of graves with perfumes or precious oils is a very, very old practice whose precise meaning is unclear today. It may have been done to offer homage to the deceased spirit, to protect or purify the gravesite, or in preparation for a death ritual. Olive oil was commonly used for this task in the ancient Middle East, and perfumes made of native oils were, and in some cases still are, used in Africa and the Caribbean. Modern Pagans can choose from a wide variety of essential oils with a long history of use in death rituals and spirit contact, such as olive, jasmine, patchouli, rosemary, or tuberose. Whatever way you choose to honor the resting place of your loved ones, paying tribute to their graves links us with magical people of generations past, who saw their burial grounds as halfway points between the worlds of the living and the dead. By remembering them we forge our bonds with our Pagan past, and light our own pathways to the Otherworld. "May the fruit of our lives be bound and sealed to Thee, O Mother, O Woman Eternal who holdest the inmost life of each of Thy daughters between the hands upon Her Heart" ~~~~~~~~~~~ We swear by Peace and Love to stand, Heart to Heart and Hand to Hand. Mark, O Spirit, and hear us now, confirming this, our Sacred Vow. ~Druidic Prayer of Unity~
Cerredwen	Re: Samhuinn Rituals	#52	[-]
Walks an Earthbased Path Posts: 11474 (10/25/07 09:22 PM) ~~Priestess of the Goddess~~ Reply Quote More My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Blocking Invite Ignore User's Posts Report Post	Samhain Rite to Honor Animals From Patti Wigington This ceremony is designed to honor the spirits of the animals - both wild and domestic. Man's relationship with animals goes back thousands and thousands of years. They have been a source of food and clothing. They have protected us from the things that lurk in the darkness. They have provided comfort and warmth. In some cases, they have even raised and nurtured our discarded children, as in the case of Romulus and Remus. If you have animals in your home -- pets or livestock -- this is their night. Feed them before you feed the humans in your family. Put some food out for any wild animals that may happen by as well. If you have a pet that has passed away during this last year, you may want to include a photo or keepsake of them on your table during this rite. What You Need: An altar table A pot of stew Some hearty dark bread Prepare a stew for your family that includes small amounts of as many different meats as you may have available -- beef, pork, game, chicken, etc. If your family is vegetarian or vegan, designate a non-meat ingredient to represent each animal and adapt the ritual as needed, eliminating lines that reference the eating of animals. When your stew is ready, gather the family around the altar table you prepared during the previous night's Harvest End Ritual. Place the stew pot in the center of the table, with a large serving spoon or ladle. Make sure you have some good dark bread to eat as well. Each member of the family should have a bowl and spoon handy. Say: "Samhain has come, and it is the end of the Harvest. The crops are in from the fields, and the animals are preparing for the coming winter. Tonight, we honor the animals in our lives. Some have died that we may eat. Some have provided us with love. Some have protected us from that which would do us harm. Tonight, we thank them all." Go around the family in a circle. Each person should take a scoop of stew from the pot and place it in their bowl. Younger children may need an adult's help with this. As each person gets their helping, say: "Blessed are the animals, those who die that we may eat. Blessed are the animals, those we love and who love us in return." When every family member has their stew, each takes a piece of bread. As they do, say: "As the Wheel of the Year continues to turn, the harvest has ended, and the grain has been threshed. The animals sleep for the winter. We thank them for their gifts." Take your time finishing your meal. If you have pets, don't be surprised if they come to visit while you're eating your stew tonight -- animals tend to be very aware of the spiritual plane! If there is any stew left over, leave some out for the spirits. Any extra bread can be thrown outside for the wild animals and birds. If you want to mix a bit of stew in with your pet's everyday food, it's a good idea to check with your veterinarian first. "May the fruit of our lives be bound and sealed to Thee, O Mother, O Woman Eternal who holdest the inmost life of each of Thy daughters between the hands upon Her Heart" ~~~~~~~~~~~ We swear by Peace and Love to stand, Heart to Heart and Hand to Hand. Mark, O Spirit, and hear us now, confirming this, our Sacred Vow. ~Druidic Prayer of Unity~
Cerredwen	Re: Samhuinn Rituals	#53	[-]
Walks an Earthbased Path Posts: 11474 (10/25/07 09:23 PM) ~~Priestess of the Goddess~~ Reply Quote More My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Blocking Invite Ignore User's Posts Report Post	Honor the Harvest's End - A Samhain Ritual Samhain represents, among other things, the end of the harvest season. If you haven't picked it by Samhain, you probably won't be eating it! The gardens have died off by now, and where we once saw lush green plants, there is nothing left but dry and dead stalks. The perennials have shut down for the season too, going dormant so that they may return to us in the spring. Animals are brought in from the fields for the winter -- and if you've ever had a spider come wandering into your living room one chilly October night, you know that even the insects are trying to find a place to stay warm. If we had lived a few hundreds of years ago, we would not only have brought our cows and sheep in from the pastures. Most likely we'd slaughter a few of them, as well as some pigs and goats, smoking the meat so it would last through the cold months. Our grain that we picked back at Lughnasadh has been baked into bread, and all of our herbs have been gathered, and hang from the rafters in the kitchen. The harvest is over, and now it's time to settle in for winter with the coziness of a warm fireplace, heavy blankets, and big pots of comfort food on the stovetop. What You Need: A table to use as your Samhain altar Decorations that represent the late autumn season A meal with lots of veggies, fruit, and bread A cup of wine or cider If you want to celebrate Samhain as the time of harvest's end, you can do so as a single ritual, or as the first of three days of ceremony. If you don't have a permanent altar in place, set up a table to leave in place for the three days prior to Samhain. This will act as a your family's temporary altar for the Sabbat. Decorate the altar with symbols of late fall, such as: Skulls, skeletons, grave rubbings, ghosts Harvest food such as pumpkins, squash, root vegetables Nuts and berries, dark breads Dried leaves and acorns A cornucopia filled with an abundance of fruit and veggies Mulled cider, wine, or mead To begin your ceremony, prepare a meal for the family -- and this is something that everyone can get involved in. Put emphasis on fruits and vegetables, and wild game meat if available. Also make sure you have a loaf of a dark bread like rye or pumpernickel and a cup of apple cider or wine. Set the dinner table with candles and a fall centerpiece, and put all the food on the table at once. Consider the dinner table a sacred space. Gather everyone around the table, and say: "Tonight is the first of three nights, on which we celebrate Samhain. It is the end of the harvest, the last days of summer, and the cold nights wait on the other side for us. The bounty of our labor, the abundance of the harvest, the success of the hunt, all lies before us. We thank the Earth for all it has given us this season, and yet we look forward to winter, a time of Sacred Darkness." Take the cup of cider or wine, and lead everyone outside. Make this a ceremonial and formal occasion. If you have a vegetable garden, great! Go there now -- otherwise, just find a nice grassy spot in your yard. Each person in the family takes the cup in turn and sprinkles a little bit of cider onto the earth, saying: "Summer is gone, winter is coming. We have planted and we have watched the garden grow, we have weeded, and we have gathered the harvest. Now it is at its end." If you have any late-fall plants still waiting to be picked, gather them up now. Collect a bundle of dead plants and use them to make a straw man or woman. If you follow a more masculine path, he may be your King of Winter, and rule your home until spring returns. If you follow the Goddess in her many forms, make a female figure to represent the Goddess as hag or crone in winter. Once that is done, go back inside and bring your King of Winter into your home with much pomp and circumstance. Place him on your table and prop him up with a plate of his own, and when you sit down to eat, serve him first. Begin your meal with the breaking of the dark bread, and make sure you toss a few crumbs outside for the birds afterwards. Keep the King of Winter in a place of honor all season long -- you can put him back outside in your garden on a pole to watch over next spring's seedlings, and eventually burn him at your Beltane celebration. When you are finished with your meal, put the leftovers out in the garden. Wrap up the evening by playing games, such as bobbing for apples or telling spooky stories before a bonfire. "May the fruit of our lives be bound and sealed to Thee, O Mother, O Woman Eternal who holdest the inmost life of each of Thy daughters between the hands upon Her Heart" ~~~~~~~~~~~ We swear by Peace and Love to stand, Heart to Heart and Hand to Hand. Mark, O Spirit, and hear us now, confirming this, our Sacred Vow. ~Druidic Prayer of Unity~
Cerredwen	Re: Samhuinn Rituals	#54	[-]
Walks an Earthbased Path Posts: 11474 (10/29/07 09:05 PM) ~~Priestess of the Goddess~~ Reply Quote More My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Blocking Invite Ignore User's Posts Report Post	Self-Dedication Ritual Author Unknown Many people do dedications and re-dedications at Samhain as it is the New Year. Prepare yourself by doing the Ritual Bath and Self Blessing. If you are performing this ritual at the sea or a river, bathe there if you so desire. As you bathe, prepare for the coming rite. Open your consciousness to higher levels of awareness. Breath deep. Cleanse your mind as well as your body. After bathing, dry and dress for the journey. Go to a place in the wild where you feel safe. It should be a comfortable spot where you won't be disturbed by others, an area where the powers of the Earth and the Elements are evident. It may be a mountain top, a desert canyon or cave, perhaps a dense forest, a rocky outcropping over the sea, a quiet island in the center of a lake. Even a lonely part of a park or garden can be used. Draw on your imagination to find the place. You need take nothing with you but a vial of richly scented oil. Sandalwood, frankincense, cinnamon or any other scent is fine. When you arrive at the place of dedication, remove your shoes and sit quietly for a few moments. Calm your heart if you've exerted yourself during your travel. Breathe deeply to return to normal, and keep your mind free of cluttered thoughts. Open yourself to the natural energies around you. When you're calm, rise and pivot slowly on one foot, surveying the land around you. You're seeking the ideal spot. Don't try to find it; open your awareness to the place. When you've discovered it (and you'll know when), sit, kneel or lie flat on your back. Place the oil on the Earth beside you, Don't stand - contact the Earth. Continue deep breathing. Feel the energies around you. Call the Goddess and God in any words you like, or use the following invocation. Memorize these words before the rite so that they'll spill effortlessly from you, or improvise: "O Mother Goddess, O Father God, answers to all mysteries and yet mysteries unanswered; in this place of power I open myself to Your Essence. In this place and in this time I am changed; from hence forth I walk the Paths of the Craft. I dedicate myself to you, Mother Goddess and Father God." Rest for a moment, silent, still. Then continue; "I breathe your energies into my body, commingling, blending, mixing them with mine, that I may see the divine in nature, nature in the divine, and divinity within myself and all else. O Great Goddess, O Great God, make me one with your essence, make me one with your essence, make me one with your essence." You may feel bursting with power and energy, or calm and at peace. Your mind might be in a whirl. The Earth beneath you may throb and undulate with energy. Wild animals, attracted by the psychic occurrence, might grace you with their presence. Whatever occurs, know that you have opened yourself and that the Goddess and God have heard you. You should feel different inside, at peace or simply powerful. After the invocation, wet a finger with the oil and mark the symbols of the Goddess and God somewhere on your body. It doesn't matter where; you can do this on your chest, forehead, arms, legs, anywhere. As you anoint, visualize these symbols sinking into your flesh, glowing as they enter your body and then dispersing into millions of tiny points of light. The formal self-dedication is ended. Thank the Goddess and God for Their attention. Sit and meditate before leaving the place of dedication. Once home, celebrate in some special way. "May the fruit of our lives be bound and sealed to Thee, O Mother, O Woman Eternal who holdest the inmost life of each of Thy daughters between the hands upon Her Heart" ~~~~~~~~~~~ We swear by Peace and Love to stand, Heart to Heart and Hand to Hand. Mark, O Spirit, and hear us now, confirming this, our Sacred Vow. ~Druidic Prayer of Unity~
Cerredwen	Re: Samhuinn Rituals	#55	[-]
Walks an Earthbased Path Posts: 11474 (10/29/07 09:17 PM) ~~Priestess of the Goddess~~ Reply Quote More My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Blocking Invite Ignore User's Posts Report Post	Samhain Ritual for Divination and New Beginnings Author Unknown Materials: Orange and black candles (optional) One white candle Patchouli or cedar incense Patchouli oil Small cauldron containing black candle Salt Blessed water Sage smudging stick (Note: May use Deity or Elemental Altar setup.) Begin by smudging deosil (clockwise) around the circle from North, to East, to South, to West: "May this smoke banish all negativity from within this circle that it may be cleared and ready for our work." Sprinkle salt deosil around the circle: "May this salt purify and bless this circle. Through the Power of the Goddess and the God is this circle cleansed." Sprinkle blessed water deosil around the circle: "With this blessed water do I consecrate this Circle by the Lady and the Lord. This circle is conjured a circle of power that is purified and sealed, where love is the law and love is the bond." Light incense and altar candles (if using): [North] "I call upon you, Elemental Earth, to attend this rite and guard this circle, for as I have body and strength like the Great Buffalo, we are kith and kin." [East] "I call upon you, Elemental Air, to attend this rite and guard this circle, for as I breathe and think like the Soaring Eagle, we are kith and kin." [South] "I call upon you, Elemental Fire, to attend this rite and guard this circle, for as I have energy and drive like the Wise Serpent, we are kith and kin." [West] "I call upon you, Elemental Water, to attend this rite and guard this circle, for as I have emotions and my heart beats like the Gentle Dolphin, we are kith and kin." "Hail and welcome to the Elementals at the Four Quarters! We celebrate the dance of life to death to new life. The last harvest is gathered and stored for the dark months ahead, and the wheel has turned to the time of the Hunter. At this time is the veil between the worlds thin, and the gates are thrown open, so do we welcome spirits who have gone before and the Others who pass between two worlds. This is the Crone's time and with the Hunter, Lord of Shadows, She is the passage from life to life that all must take. Together they give restful peace in the continuous turning of the spiral dance that goes forth and returns, yet ever moves on. With the Ancient Ones, we move with the dance." Light the black candle in the cauldron: "Here is the cauldron of endings and new beginnings. Into this burning flame do we cast our weaknesses and the habits that keep us from attaining our potential. By the death of these things will we live better lives. So Mote It Be!" Burn the papers. Anoint the white candle with patchouli oil and light: "With this candle and by its light, we welcome you spirits this Samhain night." Sprinkle some lavender into the cauldron/candle flame: "I call upon the power of this herb, Lavender, to bless this house and the spirits that come to visit. Blessed Be!" Perform Divination Activities + (See Optional Spirit Conjuration) Open the Circle: [North] "Depart in Peace, Elemental Earth. Our blessings take with you." [East] "Depart in Peace, Elemental Air. Our blessings take with you." [South] "Depart in Peace, Elemental Fire. Our blessings take with you." [West] "Depart in Peace, Elemental Water. Our blessings take with you." "Beings and powers of the visible and invisible depart in peace. You aid in our work, whisper in our minds, and bless us from the Otherworld. Let there ever be harmony between us. Our blessings take with you." "Blessings have been given and Blessings have been received. The circle is cleared. The circle is now open, yet it is never broken. Merry did we meet, merry do we part, and merry will we meet again." Optional Spirit Conjuration: "On this sacred night of darkness, when the veil is thinnest and the Crone reigns as Queen, to the Spirit of (Name of Deceased) and to (repeat Name) alone do we open the door that separates our world from yours and your world from ours. I summon thee now. Welcome (Name) into this circle of light. Come now with haste and harming none. Blessed Be!" Note: If using this conjuration, remember to bid farewell to the summoned spirit. "May the fruit of our lives be bound and sealed to Thee, O Mother, O Woman Eternal who holdest the inmost life of each of Thy daughters between the hands upon Her Heart" ~~~~~~~~~~~ We swear by Peace and Love to stand, Heart to Heart and Hand to Hand. Mark, O Spirit, and hear us now, confirming this, our Sacred Vow. ~Druidic Prayer of Unity~
Cerredwen	Communicate Beyond The Veil	#56	[-]
Walks an Earthbased Path Posts: 11474 (11/12/07 12:44 AM) ~~Priestess of the Goddess~~ Reply Quote More My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Blocking Invite Ignore User's Posts Report Post	Author Unknown As the seasons turn and the earth begins to go into hibernation, the veil between the worlds thins and those who have gone before are closer to us than any other time of the year. While many of us can feel this thinning of the veil, and can sense the stillness of death and the world beyond, sometimes we aren't really sure how to make that contact with the ancestors or deity on the other side. There are a couple of approaches that I feel are effective at reaching out for this wisdom and connection. These techniques can be used anytime of the year of course, but the thinning of the veil makes it easier for the messages to get through. Meditation is one of the simplest ways to make yourself open to those you honor at this time. While there are books that have some guided meditations available to facilitate this, even simply putting on some soft music and setting out an offering of their favorite things, can set the right tone as you sit quietly and think of them. Automatic writing is a more direct form of communication. At its heart, automatic writing is a simple process. However, some may find it challenging on an intellectual level. Using clean sheet of paper or journal page, begin by writing a letter to the one you are trying to contact. If this is an ancestor, you might begin as if you would write any letter, telling them things that you have accomplished or things you would want them to know. When you have finished, take another piece of paper or turn to a fresh page and begin to write the answer without thinking about it. Just start writing without stopping. If you find that you stop or feel that you are stuck, start writing the persons name or the word that you got stuck on, over and over until other words come out. If it is a question that you wish to ask of Deity, you might begin by writing that question on the page over and over until you are guided to write other words. Don't stop to think about what they say or if they are spelled correctly or what they mean. Just write. When you feel it is time to stop, thank the one you have been writing to and go back to read what you have written. Often you will find a message there that is very relevant to you, that you can't remember writing at all. Finally, divination, in any form can help you decipher the messages you are seeking. Tarot, runes, pendulums, and scrying are just a few methods you might use. Pendulum divination is one of the oldest and easiest forms to work with. They are great for yes or no type questions. Pendulums can be purchased fairly inexpensively at most metaphysical stores, or online. You can also use a ring, or a pendant, on a chain as a pendulum. Begin by holding the chain between your thumb and middle finger with the ring or point hanging down. You might want to place your elbow on the table for stability. When the chain is still, start by asking which direction the pendulum will swing to indicate Yes and which way to indicate No. Hold your arm very still and the pendulum will begin to move. Most often the pendulum will swing either forward and back, or side to side. If it begins to circle, the answer is Maybe or I don't know. (This is individual to the pendulum which is why you need to ask first. For example, I have seen pendulums that go clockwise for one answer and back and forth for the other. Next, ask if your name is Sam (or Mark or Lucy or whatever you pick) and see if it answers correctly. Once you know you're getting a correct reading you can go on to other questions. If you are getting an incorrect answer you may wish to use a different pendulum. "May the fruit of our lives be bound and sealed to Thee, O Mother, O Woman Eternal who holdest the inmost life of each of Thy daughters between the hands upon Her Heart" ~~~~~~~~~~~ We swear by Peace and Love to stand, Heart to Heart and Hand to Hand. Mark, O Spirit, and hear us now, confirming this, our Sacred Vow. ~Druidic Prayer of Unity~ Last Edited By: Cerredwen 09/23/09 09:52 PM. Edited 1 times.
Cerredwen		#57	[-]
Walks an Earthbased Path Posts: 11474 (10/05/08 06:05 PM) ~~Priestess of the Goddess~~ Reply Quote More My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Blocking Invite Ignore User's Posts Report Post	Samhain Night: Opening The Door To Ancestor Work By Rev. Crystal Blanton As the last harvest of the year approaches, the leaves fall to the ground, the chill in the air becomes crisp, and the energy of the year slowly creeps towards closure. The excitement of the season is shown with the decorated houses and candies stocking every shelf of the grocery store. Children prepare for the adventures of pillowcases filled with candy, frightening sights, costumes, and late-night tooth aches. For Wiccans, Witches, and Pagans it is a day of somber celebration as we turn another leaf in the wheel of the year, leaving the old behind and opening another doorway to the new. We know all of the traditions of silent dinners and altars of our relatives who have passed, but why would someone want to work with those who have passed on? How is ancestor work relevant to our spiritual practice today? As Samhain approaches these are the questions that run through many minds. Stigmas and fears of the spirit world have been a roadblock for many in imagining working with those whom are no longer on this side. Fear is always a strong motivator, and I personally run from the things that go bump in the night. I have found ancestor work, on the other hand, to be a crucial piece in the continued development of understanding the things that are unseen and gaining wisdom that goes beyond the earthly plane. Many cultures and religions have honored and worked with ancestors as far back as history will take us. We hear of ancestor work used commonly in practices with the Native American/Shaman, Tribal, or Voodoo/Voudon cultures. What we don't always relate to is the existing ancestor culture within the common family practices throughout everyday homes today. From a Pagan or Wiccan perspective, ancestor work can be a natural progression of our beliefs and practices. Most in our community believe in the ever after and different forms of reincarnation, acknowledging the existence of the spirit or essence of a person after crossing over from this plane. There are many different ideas of where the spirit or essence may go after leaving, but the common belief of the actual spirit is not as questioned. The Merriam-Webster dictionary states that an ancestor is "one from whom a person is descended and who is usually more remote in the line of descent than a grandparent." It also states that ancestor worship is "the custom of venerating deceased ancestors who are considered still a part of the family and whose spirits are believed to have the power to intervene in the affairs of the living". It is reasonable to see how our regular worship practices could go under the category of ancestor worship. Being that in Wicca the concept of deity is both transcendent and immanent; we connect to the human form as forms of the God and Goddess reincarnate. In turn this would make all forms of deity worship ancestor worship as we are all born of deity even though the true essence of the God and Goddess is beyond our capacity to understand. This concept would also mean that each and every person is an ancestor to each other for we are all connected through the ultimate parentage: that of the Gods. Just as honoring the trees is a form of honoring the Gods, so is ancestor worship, for we are all just different faces of the multiple creations that make up the totality of Deity. We are one and the same. As Robert Heinlein so beautifully put in his book Stranger in a Strange Land, "Thou art God, and I am God and all that grows is God." Does this shed a different hue on the light of ancestor worship? In actuality we are worshiping our ancestors every time we pray or invoke deity. With the veil at its thinnest we have an opportunity to access the other aspects of deity, the ancestors of our family, for further guidance and light. It is an important part of the building of our futures to remember where we have come from. Whether it was good or not so good, we are an extension of those who have come before us, and we have had the opportunity to learn from our ancestors to make better choices and decisions on our lives. None of this means we have to do anything specific with the ancestors or spirits. It does mean we have an opportunity to divine and commune with them, or just honor them if that is what we desire. Any form of divination is a method of connection, from tarot reading to scrying or channeling. Honoring the ancestors is not as complicated as it might seem. Every year my family builds an ancestor altar several days prior to Samhain. We adorn the altar with pictures of lost loved ones, notes, items of remembrance, and offerings of food. Every day through Samhain we light the candle on the altar and send love and open hearts to the ancestors. This is our tribute to those who have paved the way for us and gave of themselves to help us create the life we have today. How will you remember those who were vital to your life this Samhain? Will you have a silent supper, build an ancestor altar, bake their favorite foods, or sit around the table telling stories of their lives? Take the opportunity to celebrate the contribution each spirit has made to our lives. Celebrate death, for it is the foundation for which rebirth and renewal is fostered. May your Samhain be full of smiling kids, hearty foods, cozy fires, and the whispers of wisdom from the ancestors to your ears. Blessed Be. Crystal Blanton is a trained and experienced Registered Addictions Specialist in the field of drug and alcohol counseling, which enhances her understanding of spiritual balance and how behavior and perceptions affect our everyday lives. Blanton is a High Priestess and ordained minister with Family Wiccan Traditions International (FWTI) and Dance of the Spirit Moon Tradition, is on the Executive Board of Directors for FWTI and is a student mentor. She lives in the San Francisco Bay Area with her husband and children and tries to read as much as possible. You can email Crystal Blanton at blanton.phoenix@yahoo.com or go to her website at www.crystalblanton.com or http://www.touchofamethyst.com Source: Celtic Whispers E-zine May the fruit of our lives be bound and sealed to Thee, O Mother, O Woman Eternal who holdest the inmost life of each of Thy daughters between the hands upon Her Heart ~~~~~~~~~~~ We swear by Peace and Love to stand, Heart to Heart and Hand to Hand. Mark, O Spirit, and hear us now, confirming this, our Sacred Vow. ~Druidic Prayer of Unity~
Cerredwen		#58	[-]
Walks an Earthbased Path Posts: 11474 (10/19/08 03:17 PM) ~~Priestess of the Goddess~~ Reply Quote More My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Blocking Invite Ignore User's Posts Report Post	Halloween And The Veil Between The Worlds By Jessica Murray Halloween arrives with the brisk autumn wind, when our sensibilities are undergoing the same subtle but profound changes as Nature herself. The energy in the air is ambivalent, prickling with unease but alive with the promise of connecting us to life in a new way, a deeper way. Halloween reminds us of the existence of powers we cannot see, and yet still somehow understand. The keen sense of nostalgia many of us feel at this time of year may be due to cellular memory, which keeps us in touch with Halloween's long, rich history. Archaic collective imagery of a very special kind re-awakens every year when the sun is in Scorpio, sweeping us under its spell. The last secular festival remaining in the Western calendar, only Halloween has cleaved to its magical, primordial roots. It is a holiday that fascinates without requiring us to believe anything. Its allure is not intellectual, but visceral, dating back to a time when people explored the non-physical realms -- the Other Worlds -- as a natural and normal function of human experience. For untold millennia before the Julian Calendar, Halloween, or Samhain (pron. SOW-wen) to the ancient Celts, marked that poignant moment at the golden end of the warm season when the veils between the worlds are thinnest. Back in the days when people timed their lives by the birthing of their herds and the ripening of their harvests, Halloween served as a solemn gateway to winter, the Dark Time ([Dark] meaning, not [bad], but [hidden]). This was the point in the wheel of the year when ancient Europeans slowed down their activity, gathered up what they had sown literally and figuratively during the long days of summer, and turned their attentions within. Before the modern era, the unseen worlds were considered very real. Ancient practitioners of Halloween believed in the afterlife as a matter of course; they would have found incomprehensible the idea that cultivating a relationship with the dead was wrong or evil. Nor did they think they had to go through high priests to do it. Ordinary people sought wisdom through exploring the dimensions beyond death, before death, and between lives; an exploration which had not yet been declared taboo. Nor had the cult of rationalism yet come along to condemn intuition as being inferior to mental logic, a development which was henceforth to embarrass into silence those who believed in ghosts. For our ancestors, the souls of the departed were felt to be as worthy of respect as any other souls, and Halloween was when people communicated with them. Old Samhain has suffered centuries of ignoble trivialization. Too powerful for the Church of Rome to vanquish entirely, the profound rites of All Hallow's Eve have been reduced to a candy blow-out for children, and increasingly, an ever-more-commercialized party for adults. Popular culture has held onto the iconography of witches (originally, tribal wise women) and bats (thought to embody souls of the departed), but without any understanding of what they signify. Our estrangement as a culture from the deeper meaning of Halloween is especially unfortunate from the point of view of those individuals in whose charts Scorpio or Pluto is highlighted. In the zodiac, the power of Halloween is represented by the sign Scorpio. People with strong showings of Scorpio in their charts (1) are the descendents of the keepers of the Samhain rites held sacred by the ancient world. Making this connection will open up our understanding of why Scorpio has been called the sign of secrets. Mystical scholarship has been conducted in secret for most of recorded history. First, because it was thought that these inquiries were too subtle for the uninitiated mind to comprehend without distortion; and second, because as alchemy and other esoteric arts became outlawed by the Church, they were pursued at great risk. Scorpionic people come from a noble lineage of clandestine activity. The modern world, too, can be a difficult place for people with these sensibilities. Our literalistic culture is skeptical of Scorpio's subtle intuitions, with the result that many Westerners -- astrologers among them -- regard the sign with suspicion. Most contemporary philosophies fear and spurn the Dark Mysteries (among them, death, sexuality, and the psychic realms), having no framework of understanding for them. This can lead Scorpionic types to distrust their own essential nature. Individuals with this signature in their charts would do well to question our society's continued demonization of the occult (the word simply means hidden), a form of spiritual inquiry which is its pure form has nothing to do with self- aggrandizement. The true occult power of Scorpio power lies in its ability to connect with the invisible dimensions of life, celebrated so long ago at Samhain. All astrological symbols have layers of meaning, from the metaphorical to the prosaic. Scorpio and its planetary ruler, Pluto, govern all kinds of secrets: classified information, detective novels, lost objects. Those with Moon in Scorpio can pick up on hidden motives or unexpressed emotions. People with Venus in Scorpio excel (when they want to) at keeping confidences. Mercury-in-Scorpio individuals can communicate more by what they do not say than by what they do say. In a natal chart with no planets in Scorpio, the house which has Scorpio on its cusp shows us where the person is most privy to the mysteries of life. Even more telling is the house occupied by the planet Pluto, which indicates what types of situations bring out a person's sixth sense. Pluto, ruler of the sign Scorpio, represents the power we all have to pierce beneath the surface of something in order to know its truth. Because this kind of perception is rarely validated by the culture we live in, most of us have grown up either minimizing our psychic proclivities or dismissing them entirely. But for those who are driven to make connections our intellects alone cannot fathom, Pluto has much to teach us. Pluto's house placement shows where we feel a profound drive to understand Natural Law, which exists beyond personal likes and dislikes, and beyond value judgments. When approached with the proper understanding, Pluto opens up even the most everyday experiences to deeper reaches of meaning, satisfying a hunger in the soul. People with Pluto in the sixth house, for example, are often extraordinarily insightful in diagnosing an illness, going beneath the level of symptom into the psycho-spiritual root of the malaise. The season that is now upon us opens up cracks in the wall dividing the mortal sphere from the sphere of the Mysteries. There is no better time to celebrate, with humility and respect, the things in life that we know not from knowledge but from [knowing]. This Halloween, take a moment to light a candle to souls that have departed the physical plane. Take note of the placement of Pluto in your chart, and use the information to begin reclaiming your psychic ability. Identify which house of your chart has Scorpio on its cusp, and work your X-ray vision accordingly. In personal relationships, resolve to listen between the lines. There are worlds out there -- and within us as well -- which are and always will be outside of the realm of our conscious comprehension. This may strike the proud Western mind as an affront, but our deep psyches accept it with equanimity and relief. Let us express gratitude this Halloween that the Mysteries exist, and take advantage of the perfect moment to honor them. 1 The relative strength of the Scorpio archetype is gauged by its appearance among the ten planets, by the aspects to and house placement of Pluto, by the activity in the eighth house, and by the activity in that house where Scorpio is on the cusp. http://www.12house.com/ho...chives.cfm?articleID=2089 May the fruit of our lives be bound and sealed to Thee, O Mother, O Woman Eternal who holdest the inmost life of each of Thy daughters between the hands upon Her Heart ~~~~~~~~~~~ We swear by Peace and Love to stand, Heart to Heart and Hand to Hand. Mark, O Spirit, and hear us now, confirming this, our Sacred Vow. ~Druidic Prayer of Unity~
Cerredwen		#59	[-]
Walks an Earthbased Path Posts: 11474 (09/29/09 07:53 PM) ~~Priestess of the Goddess~~ Reply Quote More My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Blocking Invite Ignore User's Posts Report Post	*One persons experience with Ritual...What a beautiful experience to share!!!!!* Discovering my Ancestors By Donald Michael Kraig Have you ever watched a little child who is just learning to walk? The child will stagger around, but parents and other adults make sure that the child doesn't get hurt. Very quickly the child learns to be fearless. The expression on the child's face is one of trust and joy as if nobody or nothing could possibly be a threat. The child knows that this will last forever. Somewhere, there are some home movies of me with that expression. As with all children, as I got older, I learned that this innocence does not last forever. My father died when I was five. My mother had a breakdown and I was shipped off to relatives. Within a few months, my mother got her act together and my older brother and I moved back home. I was very close to my immediate family, including my grandparents, aunts and uncles. When my mother remarried, I became close to my step-father's family, too. But the years have not been kind. My grandparents have all gone on, so have most of my aunts and uncles. A few years ago my mother suddenly died. I was too young to know my great-grandparents, although my brother, older by five years, knew them well. My parents moved from our home in Chicago to Los Angeles when I was six months old, so I really didn't know most of my family. A few years ago, I was teaching computers for a special, government-funded program at U.S.C. Because of the nature of the program, even though I was working forty hours a week, I was technically a "part-time" employee, meaning I had no benefits, although I was being paid quite well. About two years ago, while in between teaching sessions, I died. Paramedics brought me back to life, but I was in the hospital for two weeks. When I finally returned home, my life had dramatically changed. A NEW DESIRE I was certainly no longer that small babe. I was now faced with the fact of my own mortality and the realization that, indeed, one day I would die and be with my ancestors. While recovering, I made peace with the inevitability of my eventual death. But I realized that I had little first-hand experiences with my personal ancestors. All I had were some stories that my brother would tell and that my mother had shared before she died. Over the next several months, a strong desire came up within me, a desire to know my ancestors. Not know about them, but actually experience them. I just had no way to do this. I was familiar with many rituals for getting in touch with ancestors or attuning with them, but that is not exactly what I wanted. In fact, I don't think I was even sure what I wanted. I am very lucky to have met and been around some of the most important people in the occult and metaphysical communities. For over two decades I have been able to call Raven Grimassi both a teacher and a friend. A few months ago, I was reading his book, The Wiccan Mysteries, when I came upon a section which seemed to fit exactly what I needed. The section is called "An Ancestral Rite." The book says that "the purpose of this basic rite is to connect you with the spiritual currents that have been carried in your genetic makeup, aligning you with the ancestral memories sleeping within you." (p. 261) It almost seemed that Raven had written this for me, although there was no way he could have known that this is what I needed. I immediately went about getting the items he suggested for the ritual: 1. An oil (the book suggests pennyroyal oil, which is what I used). 2. A candle. The book suggests a color associated with my ancestors, and I choose one that I had made. It was blue on one side and white on the other. This is to honor the Judaism of my ancestors. 3. Incense. I used sandalwood. Raven writes, "The smoke of the incense should rise into the ether, 'carrying' your words into the astral plane." (p. 262) 4. A myth or legend. This was the hardest for me to come up with since I only had bits and pieces of stories. I finally pieced something together. 5. The book calls for an object "reflective of the culture with which you desire to awaken memories." (p. 262) However, I didn't want to attune to cultural ancestors so much as personal ancestors. I used pictures of my mother and father. 6. The last item was an offering. The book suggests red wine and honey, a mixture which I made and put into a sealable container. THE RITUAL BEGINS I currently live one block from the world-famous Venice Beach in Southern California. I took everything out to the sand several hours after sunset. I put out the items and began the ritual according to the book: "Sit in a quiet place, state that your purpose is to align yourself with the ancestral memories within, and then light the candle." [I put a hurricane jar around the candle so that the ocean breezes wouldn't snuff out the flame.] Next, anoint yourself with the oil in the pentagram pattern: * forehead * right breast * left shoulder * right shoulder * left breast * forehead." (p. 262) The next step in the ritual according to The Wiccan Mysteries was to "visualize a time period with which you seek to connect. See the type of clothing that was worn then within your mind's eye. Bring any other images into your mind that will help 'fine-tune' the alignment." (p. 262) I visualized the way my great-grandfather looked. He was a wealthy tobacco farmer in Eastern Europe in the late 19th century. I had obtained some pictures of the clothes and hats worn at that time and focused on them. I didn't have a picture of him -- I didn't even know his name -- but I visualized it to the best of my ability. To continue the ritual, the book said to "read out loud from your myth or legend." (p. 263) I only had notes, but I began to tell the story as best I knew it. The book says: "Read to the flame of the candle as though it were a person, looking up into the flame as you finish a sentence here and there. The flame is the portal, the animating etheric substance of this rite. Fire is symbolic of passion and energy; passion and energy are terms we associate with blood, the link, the portal to the past, within you and outside of you." (p. 263) THE STORY IS TOLD The story of my family is certainly mythic in nature. My great-grandfather was persecuted because of his religion. As a result of the violent attacks, his family sold their farm and valuables for next to nothing, married him off to a temperamental woman, and put them both on a boat to the freedom of the U.S.A. I don't know what happened to his parents, but I assume they were killed by the violent pogroms against the Jewish community. The boat voyage took a long time. My great-grandmother took sick and stayed in her room. My great-grandfather found an intelligent woman from his homeland to talk with. She was a doctor and she was beautiful. My great-grandfather had never met the woman his parents had married him to, so although he respected her, he was not in love with her. He and the doctor fell in love. Their romance was passionate and sweet. But he honored his marriage vow and would not divorce his wife. They had a daughter. She had a beautiful singing voice and was trained for the opera. At the turn of the 19th century, there were almost no women doctors in the U.S., and certainly none with East European training. This elegant, highly-skilled and trained woman was forced into a relatively low-paying job as a nurse. But on the weekends, the woman my mother only knew as "Auntie Doctor" and a friend would go into poor communities and rent a room in a cheap hotel. They would scrub down the room and sterilize it. Then they would provide the women of the community with inexpensive medical services which they couldn't afford or obtain elsewhere. I have no idea how many hundreds or thousands of lives she saved. She never asked my great-grandfather to divorce his wife. She never got in the way. But my great-grandmother was no fool and she realized what was happening. It drove her insane. She was committed to an asylum. For the rest of her life, my great-grandfather visited her every week. He brought up his daughter and she married a young man with potential. Very quickly they had a daughter, Aline. As a result, she (my grandmother) gave up her singing career to take care of her child. She grew bitter at the loss of her career. But her husband loved her and tried to do his best for her. He became a stock broker. This was certainly a great job because the market was booming. He even got a seat on the stock exchange. He took the seat at the beginning of October, 1929. A month later, the market crashed. Friends committed suicide. He was out of a job. While seeking a job, he walked behind coal trucks with a wagon. When pieces of coal bounced out of the truck, he would grab them and put them in his wagon. Later, he would sell the coal to those who needed warmth. It wasn't much money, but they were surviving. Still, he knew that something had to change. He took his family to Chicago. He had a license to be a pharmacist, but there were no jobs. Looking in the paper, he saw a job opening as an estimator for an insurance company. He interviewed for the job, describing all of the experience he had in New York. They asked him when he could begin. He asked for two weeks. When he went in for the interview he barely knew what an estimator was. For the next two weeks he was at the library from opening to closing, studying up on the subject. By the time he retired, his work in the field was well respected. Museums would send him art work for authentication. MODERN TIMES My grandmother's bitterness made her daughter's life difficult. She envied what she saw as her daughter's beauty and talent. She had Aline do every chore and set strict rules which could result in vicious punishments if they were not promptly obeyed. When my grandmother had another daughter, Aline had to raise her. Aline worked hard, and got accepted to Northwestern University. There, she did a radio show, and put on the first interracial dance at the school. At one party she met a football player, who took one look at her and said, "That's the woman I'm going to marry." Much to the dismay of her parents, they were married shortly after. It was finally Aline's chance to get out of the house. It took several decades for her parents to forgive her for marrying without their consent. But soon an event took place which would interrupt their schooling and their marriage: "a day that will live in infamy." World War II came and Aline's new husband, Marv, was stationed in Georgia. Aline joined him there. She got a job as a secretary at the base. Once, she missed a ride and had to take a bus to work. The bus was very full, but she saw an empty seat...at the back of the bus. She walked there and saw a bunch of men who were soldiers. She felt very safe. Unfortunately, at this time it was not appropriate for a white woman to sit in the back of a bus in the South.. The bus driver insisted that she move forward, but Aline refused. The driver finally told her that the back of the bus was for the "colored folk" and that if she didn't move forward he would have to put her off the bus. Aline stood and looked at the soldiers around her. She said, "These men are good enough to fight and die for our country. I'd rather sit with them or be off the bus than be with you!" The bus driver opened the rear door and she left. All of the soldiers on the bus followed. After the war, Marv and Aline went back to Chicago. With his military experience in distribution, he obtained a job as a representative of an importing firm. As soon as they became settled (her parents still wouldn't see her), they had their first son, Steve. But Marv started to have lots of pain with asthma and arthritis. Aline was pregnant again, but they decided to move to a place Marv's doctor recommended as being better for Marv's health, a place where it was warmer and the air was clear: Los Angeles, California. Their second son was born. Trying to appease her parents before the move, Aline told her father that they wanted to honor him by giving the new baby the same name as her father, William. Her father gasped. In Jewish tradition, a child was never named after a living relative. So, instead of William, the baby boy was named after a deceased female relative, Dora, and he became Donald - me. Six months later, we moved to L.A. FINISHING THE RITUAL The rest of the story (which I have told briefly above) I knew and didn't need to add it to my family myth. The instructions for the ritual in the book continue: "When you have finished your tale, hold the libation in your hands, close your eyes and take three deep, slow breaths, exhaling fully between each breath (into the libation). Open your eyes and then pour half of the libation out on the ground as an offering and leave half in the bowl for the 'Fairy Folk.'" (p. 263) I completed this and sat under the stars for some time. I honestly think that nobody could have made up the stories of my family as they are way beyond any novel. The book continues, saying: "The rite is now completed, and all you need do now is allow the memories to come to you, on their own." (p. 263) I let the candle continue to burn while I closed my eyes. I have always loved doing what I call "listening to the ocean." At night, when the birds are quiet and the number of people at the beach is nil, you can hear the sounds of the ocean. The waves make a sound, the water running down the beach makes a sound, the foam makes a sound, and even the silence between waves makes a soundless sound. You will discover that the waves come at irregular intervals, giving highs and lows of volume and pitch at varying times. This is very much like speech. And if you listen closely to the ocean, she will talk to you. As I sat and listened, the ocean came alive. I heard her saying two things. "We are here..." and "Sleeeeeeep." Sometimes the words came fast, other times they came slowly and were drawn out. But the message was clear. Although the ritual as described in The Wiccan Mysteries was technically over, the final and perhaps most important part was yet to come. I blew out the candle, gathered my things, and went home. Normally, I take showers, but because I felt that I was still "in ritual," I took a bath. The only light in the room was the same candle I had used at the beach. As I soaked in the warm water, I let my mind gently wander over the images of my ancestors. After my bath, I went to bed. After a quick banishing ritual, I closed my eyes and allowed my consciousness to visit my astral temple, a "place" on the astral plane I have spent years creating. While here, my body goes to sleep and I am free to wander the astral plane in my dreams. Tonight, though, I was not in charge. One by one, my ancestors seemed to come to me. Each would embrace me and then, for a moment, merge with me. In that instant, I felt all that they felt, experienced all that they had experienced. I truly became one with my ancestors. TODAY One of my teachers once told me, "Learn from the past. Live in the present. Create your future." I take my ancestors' experiences, feelings, emotions, fears, joys, and lives with me wherever I go. I feel it makes me a better, more well-rounded, more complete person. I find I "know things" even though I have never read about them or studied them. I chalk that up to the merging of experiences - a true blessing - given to me by my relatives. Perhaps more importantly, I no longer feel alone. My ancestors - my family - are always here. I have a continuity with the past which I did not have before. And this has brought great joy to my life. For the small amount of time spent preparing for and performing this "Ancestral Rite," the rewards have been enormous. I know that this may not have been the original intent Raven had for the ritual, but it certainly worked for me. I would respectfully suggest that if anyone reading this feels alone, isolated, or not part of their own past, that this simple ritual might be of benefit for you, too. www.llewellyn.com/journal/article/326 May the fruit of our lives be bound and sealed to Thee, O Mother, O Woman Eternal who holdest the inmost life of each of Thy daughters between the hands upon Her Heart ~~~~~~~~~~~
Cerredwen		#60	[-]
Walks an Earthbased Path Posts: 11474 (10/28/09 10:30 PM) ~~Priestess of the Goddess~~ Reply Quote More My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Blocking Invite Ignore User's Posts Report Post	A Dark Altar By Barbara Ardinger Although our Muggle neighbors often have no idea that their Halloween is our Hallowed Evening, we celebrate the dark side of the year with our friends and (perhaps) the spirits of our dear departed. Acknowledge the darkness this year with a dark altar. Arrange your altar as usual with elemental symbols and add dried flowers or herbs. If you've planned ahead, you can also add real bones to the altar; chicken wishbones painted with glitter are beautiful. But keep it a dark altar--no candles, no incense, no fire of any kind. The dark altar is a place where we look between the veils to see shadows that are invisible in the light of day. Put a dark mirror on the dark altar and scry with it. What do you see in the light of the Moon? Most of the goddesses we buy are copies of white Greek and Roman statues that may have been painted originally, but are now pure white marble. If it's true that the earliest people walked out of Africa and into Asia and Europe carrying their mother goddess with them, then the first goddess was black. This is a good time to paint a goddess black. Buy a little statue of your favorite goddess--no matter where she's from, no matter what pantheon--and a dollar bottle of black model paint. Set your white goddess on a paper towel on your altar and cast your circle. As you paint the goddess, consider what you're doing. Are you connecting her with the black African mother of all mothers? Are you dressing her in the shadows of the dark side of the year? How does it feel to be painting a goddess? Do you feel that painting a goddess is sacred or sacrilegious? If you have, say, a white Athena or Freya and a black Athena or Freya, set the dark goddess on your altar during fall and winter and the white one during spring and summer. Create a ritual for the changing of the goddess. Build this altar a day or two before Samhain and leave it up until November 3. Build it on a table where you'll have space enough for everything you'll want to put on it. First pile dictionaries or other large books toward the back of the altar to make two or three hills and valleys. Next, drape the entire altar with a beautiful tablecloth. Now get out your treasures--your very best candles and holders, your black goddesses. Get out the photos of your beloved dead--grandparents, friends whose passing left a hole in your universe, animal companions you've lost. If you don't have photos of your ancestors, create a family tree that goes as far back as you can name family members. Perhaps you have mementos--the collar of your cat, a piece of jewelry that's been handed down in your family, a postcard showing a vacation you took with a friend who has now passed on, something silly that only you and a dead friend or relative will understand. Write the names of other people who died this year (including famous people you admire) on paper skulls and add them to your altar. Finally, add the names of a few Witches and other symbols of the year's dark night. Your Samhain altar should be crowded. It should be glorious. It should be filled with love and the memories of those you've loved through the years. Sit with your altar and think about your ancestors, about friends who have died of cancer or some other awful disease, who did not survive a car crash, who reached the natural ends of their lives. Talk to these people and tell them how your life is going, what you've been doing lately. Sit with your altar and, as you sit there, be open to visits. Maybe you'll hear them whispering back to you of their lives in a new, unknown place. May the fruit of our lives be bound and sealed to Thee, O Mother, O Woman Eternal who holdest the inmost life of each of Thy daughters between the hands upon Her Heart ~~~~~~~~~~~

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