Ritual Themes and Ideas for Mabon

Below are a few themes and ideas for your Mabon rituals. :)



Balance


In circle:

• Do a guided meditation in regards to balance

• Honor Ma'at, an Egyptian goddess of justice and balance

• Figure out what is causing you imbalance, and do a bit of petition magic, burning it away



Outside of circle:

• Take some time out in nature to really feel the energy of the earth as She comes back into balance.





Thanksgiving/ Fruit Harvest

In circle:

• Have everyone bring a fruit and ask the god/dess for blessing, then make fruit salad and eat!

• Put a bunch of grapes on a plate. Pass it around, taking turns- state something that you are thankful for, eat a grape, and them place on in the offering dish

• Face each direction and give thanks to each direction, using the correspondences to guide your thanks- Finances and job (north), Passion, hobbies (south), knowledge or travel (east) and relationships or psychism (west). Come to the center, and thank the god/dess.

• Honor Abundantia- a Roman goddess of abundance and prosperity



Outside of circle:

• Actually harvest your (or neighbors) garden

• Volunteer at a soup kitchen or do a food drive

• Make mead or fruit wine

• Go apple picking





Goodbye to Summer/ Wheel Turning

In circle:

• Raise energy to aid the gods in the turning of the wheel

• Bless collected pinecones to place on the altar until Yule

• Cut open an apple to find the pentacle inside

• Honor Demeter, a mother goddess of the harvest



Outside circle:

• Do fall crafts: create a harvest wreath, make pinecone birdfeeders, apple dolls

• Shoot off any leftover 4th of July fireworks (if in America :)

• Do the last of your summer activities

• Do some canning of your harvest bounty so you'll have it in winter

• Gather leaves, seed pods, sticks- whatever calls to you





Crone/ Approaching Darkness

In circle:
• "Shadow side" work

• Work on facing your fears

• Honor Hecate- a Greek crone goddess

• Anything that you feel is dark and mysterious

• Have a croning ritual, for any crone witches in your circle



Outside of circle:

• Spend some time in the dark, getting to know it

• Honor actual crones in your life

• Volunteer at a nursing home, some of those ladies love to talk, and their stories impart wisdom

Connecting with the Four Elements Ritual

Earth, air, fire and water- these make up the four most widely known elements of life. Rarely passive, these elements are dynamic- always energetic. We can tap into these energies and use them to balance ourselves, and to connect with the world around us. The four elements are almost always moving, their energy manifesting in their physical being. Rarely do you see a body of water very still- it's usually full of ripples, a babbling brook, the ebb and flow of the tides. Fire leaps and crackles as it gives off heat. The air moves with breezes and currents, and the earth is ever moving- not just the plates- but the soil being worked beneath our feet. Here is a short and easy ritual you can do to connect (or reconnect) with these building blocks of life.

Set up your area with a colored candle at each of the four compass points. Red in the south, blue in the west, green in the north, and yellow at the east. At each point, also place a physical representation of the element. I suggest a bowl of water in the west, incense at the east, a separate candle in the south, and a bowl of salt in the north.

Cast a circle if you wish- this isn't everyone's cup of tea, but if you are comfortable doing so, do it.

Approach the east side of the circle and light your yellow candle. Hold it and envision everything that represents air to you, how you have experienced air in the past. Has it been windmills, a warm breeze in the desert, a cool chill of the winter air? Envision this with all of your senses. Taste it on your tongue, feel it on your skin. Say out loud: "Air." While you are envisioning these manifestations, say words that you correlate to this air element. For example, breeze, communication, Mercury, knowledge. This is your personal connection to air, so don't feel as though you have to be "traditional." When you feel like you are finished, light the incense and walk it around the perimeter of your circle (even if you didn't cast circle, still trace it). Envision a yellow line of energy demarcating your circle. Replace it next to the yellow candle and move south to your fire candle.

Pick up the fire candle and envision fire. How have you experienced fire in the past? Bonfires, candles sunshine? Envision it with all of your senses. State words that you associate with the element of fire, like passion, will, candle, flame. When you feel as though you are finished, light the other candle and walk it around the circle. "See" a line of fire energy around the circle, overlapping and weaving in with the yellow energy placed there by your incense. Replace your fire candle and move to your west quarter.

Light your blue, water candle. Envision water as you have experienced it. Have you swam in the ocean, a pool, a river? Have you felt the water move around you as you swam? Feel this and imagine waterfalls, brooks, or a serene pond. Speak aloud words you associate with water- intuition, dreams, serenity, peace. When you are finished, pick up the bowl of water, and sprinkle it around the edge of your circle, adding a blue thread of energy intertwined with your red and yellow energy. Place your bowl back near your water candle and move to the north.

Pick up your earth candle and light it. How do you see earth? Do you see it as the trees and the plants? Do you see it as the soil, warmed on a summer day? Feel your connection to the earth as you have experienced it in the past. As you are feeling this, state words that you feel connect with earth: green, new beginnings, security, life. Take up the bowl of salt, and like the water, sprinkle it upon the perimeter of the circle, seeing a green strand of energy among the yellow, red, and blue already there. Once you return to the north, put down your bowl of salt.

Take a few moments inside your circle. See in your minds eye, the four colors that make up your circle edge. Feel the constant movement of the elements at all four quarters. Really take the time to feel your connection to it all.

Once you are finished, return to the east. Say aloud, "blessed be, air," and blow out your yellow candle. Envision the yellow energy making up your circle to dissolve. Move to the south, and say, "blessed be, fire." As you blow out the candle, "see" the red thread of energy release and dissolve. Repeat with the water, and the earth candles.

If you cast a circle, uncast or open it. Take a few deep breaths and ground, if necessary.

Samhain!

Samhain night was wonderful! Here are a few photos of our altar!

And what Sabbat blog post would be complete without a recipe! And as Samhain is the third harvest festival, the meat harvest, a traditional food to eat is pork. Below is my recipe for Pork pastries.

Pork Empanada/Pasty Things
Makes 16-20

Ingredients:
1 pound ground pork
pork chop seasoning packet
small can of sliced new potatos
dried chopped onions
garlic powder
salt/ pepper to taste
olive oil
Package of 2 refrigerated pie shells

Directions:
1. Take out the pie shells to thaw a bit.

2. Get out a medium sized skillet with raised sides. Drizzle the bottom with olive oil, and turn the burner on medium heat. Put the ground pork in the skillet, and break up with a spoon or spatula. Brown the pork, about halfway through sprinkle half the seasoning packet over the meat, as well as some of the dried chopped onion (to your taste).

3. Open the can of potatoes and dice them. Once the pork is pretty much cooked through, add the potatoes, and shake some garlic powder over the whole pan, stir lightly to get everything seasoned. If it looks a little dry, add more olive oil. Turn off heat.

4. Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees.

5. Roll out a pie crust on parchment paper. Use a wide mouth glass or circle cookie cutter to cut circles (at least 4") out of the pie crust. Repeat with other pie crust. Ball up the rest of it, and roll out to get as many circles as you can.

6. Take each circle and use a rolling pin to flatten into an oval. Spoon a bit of the pork mixture onto the pastry and fold over. Crimp edges with a fork.

7. Place on a baking sheet and cook for 15-20 minutes at 400 degrees.

This is good for potlucks, just refridgerate afterwards, and then warm up in an oven before serving.

Consecrating a New Tool or Magickal Item

Well, I wanted to do something like I’ve seen in other blogs, and have a Magickal Monday or a Witchy Wednesday. Does that mean that I need to wait until one of these days if I get inspiration, or a bug up my butt to share something? I don’t think structured blogging would work out for me. Today I decided to share a very simple consecration, and I can’t think of anything witchy (besides tarot) that would go with Tuesday. Oh, well. Twitchy Tuesday?

Anyway, Once a witch gets a new tool or object to use in magick- it’s a good idea to consecrate it before your first magickal use, as it might have leftover energy or ethereal gunk on it from other people who may have touched it. To consecrate means to make sacred, and here is the formula that I use.

To create a consecration, I use the three Cs. Cleansing, Consecrating, and Charging. When cleansing, you are ridding the object of all old energy so that you can make it yours in this simple ritual. Some people like to get rid of all harmful and destructive energy, rather than all energy- the choice is up to you. I like a clean palette usually, unless I know or can “feel” where the object came from. Your second step is consecration- the actual act of making it sacred. I do this with the aid of the four elements. I’ve found this to be particularly helpful within a ritual frame where one might evoke the elements at the beginning of a ritual. Your third and final step is to charge it with your energy. The trick is to not push all of your energy into the object- you don’t want to get tired… think of it more like sharing your energy with the object. At this point you can also add any directives- examples are in the consecration below. Basically any ‘job’ or intent you want to imbue in your object can be stated at this point. Many people close their consecration with a “So mote it be” or “Blessed be.”

Below is a simple consecration that’s pretty easy to memorize.


Envision all negative and harmful energy dispersing from the object, back into the universe to be recycled- as energy naturally does.
Say: I cast from this [object] all energy, that it shall be a pure vessel for my intent.

Move object through each of the elements- consecrating and blessing your object with each of the four elements.

Move object through incense smoke.
Say: By (or with or in) the power of Air, this [object] is sacred.

Sprinkle object with water.
Say: By (or with or in) the power of Water, this [object] is sacred.

Carefully wave the object in or above the candle flame.
Say: By (or with or in) the power of Fire, this [object] is sacred.

Sprinkle object with salt.
Say: By (or with or in) the power of Earth, this [object] is sacred.

Hold object in your hands, or hold hands above the object. Envision some of your energy flowing into the object.
Say: I charge this [object] with the divine energy that flows through me. This [object] is cleansed, blessed by the four elements, and charged by me is a sacred [object].
(can add any other directive here, such as: and shall be used in only the most positive of ways, OR will belong to me as long as I desire, etc.)


It’s a pretty simple and easy ritual- and all you need are four physical representations of the elements. Let me know your thoughts, if you like.

Litha Circle 2009

This Litha, we partnered with another circle for ritual, and it went fabulous. Our circle centered around self-love, and it was a great experience. After the circle, sangria was consumed, our potluck feast was eaten, and we had a little bit of drumming. Aislin taught us all a wonderful chant she learned on a Midsummers evening long ago.

Elemental Chant

Chorus:
Behold, there is magic all around you
Behold, there is magic all around you
Behold, there is magic all around you
Awaken, rejoice and sing.

I am the air within you,
I am the breath of life within you,
I am the breeze blowing through you
I am all that I am

*chorus*

I am the fire within you,
I am the spark of life within you,
I am the flame burning through you,
I am all that I am.

*chorus*

I am the water within you,
I am the well of life within you,
I am the wave moving through you,
I am all that I am.

*chorus*

I am the earth within you,
I am the force of life within you,
I am the ground beneath you,
I am all that I am.

*chorus*

Dark Moon Ritual

This is all my own writing, so please don't repost without my permission.

As this is April, and the full moon is sometimes referred to as Raven's Moon, I decided to create a Dark Moon esbat focusing on honoring the Raven, and divination. This circle is a little different than my regular Wiccan rituals, as it honors Raven rather than a God/dess. This circle is meant to be performed on a Dark Moon- the time when the moon is completely dark, before any sliver of moonlight begins to show. The dark moon lends itself to many introspective activities- this one is focused on divination. If possible, I also suggest the room be mostly dark if at all possible. Make sure that you have your divination tool(s) and a notebook or your BOS on the altar before you start.

Cast Circle
Seal Circle
Call Quarters

Evocation to Raven
Raven,
Creature of the black feathers,
Sacred bird of Bran,
Messenger of Odin,
Attendant to Lugh.
You who symbolize transformation and the great mysteries,
We praise and honor You.
We ask that You might share Your wisdom with us tonight, magickal one,
As we seek messages from the divine,
On this moonless night.

Statement of Purpose
Tonight we gather here to celebrate the dark moon. Divination is called for this night, and We have called upon Raven’s aid. In many cultures, Raven is known as the messenger, often carrying messages from the divine. Tonight, as we divine using our tools, we will ask Raven for her help in acquiring and interpreting the messages we receive.

Offering to Raven
Raven, we offer to you this gift of ______________ that you know that we hold you in the highest honor. (Can be grain, berries, or even eggs)

Blessing of Divinatory Tools
Dark Mother,
Wise Crone Goddess
Bless our circle and all within.
Aid us in tapping into our personal conduit to You, the divine.
Raven, ancient one,
aid us in interpreting the messages we receive on this dark moon.

Center of Ritual
Divination-make sure you note anything of import in your notebook or BOS.

Meditation
It’s nighttime. You find yourself standing outside of a very small cottage, in a garden of sweet smelling flowers. It’s so dark, it’s nearly impossible to see, as there is no moon in the sky- only a thousand twinkling stars. You gather yourself up and step close to the wooden door of the cottage. Open the door to the cottage and step into a warm, furnished room, lit by a small in the hearth. The room is small and takes up the entire floorplan of the cottage. You see what looks to be stairs going to a sort of basement toward the back of the room, and you cautiously approach them. There is no door, but you can see a brick room lit up beyond the stairs. Take the stairs down, and once you clear the floor of the cottage above, the stairs begin to curve around and traverse the perimeter of a round room. The walls are made of stone, and flickering candlelight washes over the brick. The sound of the footsteps echo around the circular room. Continue down the staircase until you can see a small circular pool of water on the floor of the room. As you step off of the last stair, you notice that the walls have candles placed here and there upon natural shelves carved from the rock. The pool of water in the floor looks almost like a mirror, and in it seems to be a white or pale blue light emanating from within its depths. Placed in front of the mirrored pool is a large luxurious looking cushion. Settle yourself on this cushion. Now, peer into the reflective pool. Focus on the symbols or words you received while you consulted your oracle and the pool may tell you their mystical relationship to you.

When you are through, take a few deep breaths, and remove yourself from the large pillow. Stand up and find the bottom of the steps where you came in. Begin climbing the stairs ahead of you. The candlelight still flickers over the bumpy texture of the walls and you can reach out and touch it as you climb the stairs one by one. Soon you reach the doorway into the cottage. The cottage is warm, making you realize how cool the previous room was. You see the front door and walk out of it, into the warm night. You are once again in the sweet-smelling garden, surrounded by comforting darkness, with the stars above as companions. You feel relaxed, renewed and know that you can return to the round room whenever you might need guidance during the darkness.

Cakes and Ale

Release of Raven
Majestic Raven!
You who inspire transformation and change
Messenger of the Gods
We thank you for your presence in our circle tonight
Blessed Be!

Quarter Releases
Open Circle

Invocation

So, for some reason lately (new moon a'risin'?), I've been really wanting to write. Which is cool and all, but I just wish that it didn't come upon me while I was at work. This morning, an aspecting sort of invocation came to me. I use 'aspecting sort of invocation' rather than the overused term "invocation" when people really mean evocation. This invo would come *after* a regular sort of invocation, like the four part invo's I teach in class, based off of Lipp's model in her books. So, I needed to throw this up on my blog so that I didn't lose it in the whirlwind that is my worklife.

Speak!
So that your voice falls from my lips, so that I feel as you feel.
For a time no longer than ____ minutes, let my ears hear as yours, let my eyes see as you see.
As I breathe deeply of your essence, let us be one.

Hearkening to the Dark Moon

The coming of dark and new moons always allow my creativity to flow free. And so today, I wrote this short poem. Its a rough draft of an invocation.

I invoke the energy of the dark moon.

Shine your shadow upon this daughter.
Soothe my mind and soul.
Your energy is unlike any other, you are flowing emotion like water.
You allow your children to see between worlds, letting us move through the rippling mirror of the Veil.
You allow our abilities, hidden deep within our Selves, to surface, if only for a brief moment.

Let me learn to bring your energy forth as I need it-- to make clear my desires and to let the manifestation of them germinate like a seed within the dark mothers womb.