Script:
(For the purposes of this script, a pause lasts approximately 3 seconds and a long pause will be approximately 6 seconds. A very long pause may vary in time, but needs to be at least one minute long.) Take a moment to make yourself comfortable. Sit on the ground and adjust until you feel content and relax. Take a deep breath in (pause) and exhale as you close your eyes. Take a slow breath in (pause) and exhale slowly (pause). While you continue to breath deeply, allow your body to relax, releasing the tension from your head and shoulders (pause), from your arms and hands (pause), from your chest and torso, and finally from your legs and feet (long pause). Allow that tension to flow away from your body as you relax into your position as you continue to breath slowly and evenly. (pause) In your mind’s eye begin to see a dark mist filling the space around you. Watch it grow and expand around you, until the fog surrounds you completely (pause). Now, through the mist, see a small yellow light shining in the distance. Watch it approach, growing larger and brighter. (pause) Now, see the light break through the mists, revealing a shining lantern glowing through the darkness. You now stand at a crossroad, with many directions ahead. (pause) As you look back toward the lantern, you see a robed figure holding the lantern and silently watching from the shadows. She begins to approach you and meets your gaze. This is Hecate, glorious goddess of the crossroads and guide to those who are lost on their path (pause). Hecate continues to approach you, her brilliant lantern bringing light to the otherwise dark path (pause). Ask her to show you which fork to take, and to help you understand which path is right (pause). Ask to see the signs so you may know the ways again when you next find yourself here (pause). The goddess looks at you and extends her hand with a smile. Take her hand and follow her through the darkness toward the place where many paths meet (pause). Listen to her words in the darkness, and let her show you the ways and how to find them (long pause). Looking down each road, see the many possibilities and fates that lie ahead (pause). Understand the potential of each path, and the opportunities that each one may hold (pause). As you near the juncture of the roads, Hecate leans close and begins to whisper her guidance to help you find the path that is right for you. Listen to her message, meant for your ears only, and follow her words (very long pause). It is now time to return to our realm and return from the crossroads. (pause) Let Hecate guide you back to home, watching the signs along the way so you can return (pause). Thank Hecate for meeting you at this place, and for providing you guidance along this path and listen to any parting message she has for you (long pause). As she turns to walk away, the mist begins to roll back in and fill the darkness (pause). The light from her lantern grows smaller and dimmer in the distance (pause) until it fades away completely. Find yourself again sitting, relaxed and comfortable (pause). Begin to wiggle your toes and fingers (pause). Take a moment to settle back into your body (pause) and open your eyes. (pause) Welcome home! Response: I was honestly quite skeptical about using self-hypnosis, or guided trance with my own voice. I’m the type of person who really dislikes hearing my recorded voice, so I expected to have a level of discomfort throughout the experience. I was pleasantly surprised that after the first few seconds of annoyance, I quickly found myself lost in the words and forgot it was me saying them at all. In addition to this meditation, I also did a full ritual with Hecate as my being of occasion to better my relationship with her, and I think the results overall have been positive. I began the work, sitting on the floor in front of my altar in a darkened room. I listened to the words as I relaxed my body and focused on my breath. I could soon see the light coming from the fog coming toward me. Hecate’s appearance wasn’t shocking to me, because I’ve always been decent with visualization, but the other sensory experiences were intriguing. I could smell the dew-like fog in the air, and the slight burning sent of the lantern. I could hear the footsteps we took along the road. The many different pathways I saw also took me off-guard. Some of them are paths that are dark and frightening, potential people I could become in the future, while others were joyous and light. Hecate told me that all of these paths were possible from where I currently stand, and that only I have the power to chose and control which one I go down. She told me she was there for guidance, and to help light the paths along the way, but ultimately she couldn’t tell me which path was “right”. Returning from the journey, I felt relaxed and successful, knowing the potential of the future and understanding that I’ve reached a good place. I also feel like I built a bond with a deity that I hadn’t worked with in the past, and that alone is a beautiful feeling. Greek Oracle Omen: Beta -- With the help of fortune you will have an assistant, Apollo. Xu – There is no good to be gained from an angry young man or woman Lambda -- Blessing in disguise
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I’m continuing with my weekly exploration of the Greek pantheon. I’ve been really enjoying these rituals and building relationships with deities that I haven’t connected with before. This week, my ritual is being done to Helios, to welcome the light of the sun back into the world. Doing this ritual this week also seemed to reignite the flame of my sun devotional, helping me remember how important it is to my practice, and reaffirming the idea that the simplicity of it is awesome and beneficial for my practice. Calling to Helios seemed like a fitting ritual to do during the time of the winter solstice since he is the one who drives the sun across the sky. I performed my solo rite again, and used this invocation:
“Helios, god of the bright sun, and guardian of oaths, You who drive the sun across the sky and bring light to the world. With your name, I look for the light in the world around me, Come forth and dwell in this space. (Offer mead) “Helios, great god of sight, all-seeing chariot driver, You who help the sun traverse across the sky which brings hope to the world with each dawn. With your name, I look forward to longer days. Come forth and dwell in this place.” (Offer mead) Your journey across the sky reminds me to bring my own light to the world, to channel the warmth of the sun. I wish you safe travels throughout the year, and hope to have the same throughout my journey. Helios, magnificent god, Come forth and encounter this rite.” Greek Alphabet Oracle -- Theta -- You have the helping Gods of this path Alpha -- You will have good luck in all your activities Upsilon -- The affair holds a noble undertaking This week I attended and performed the Prairie Shadow Protogrove Yule rite. We did a beautiful Norse ritual to Sunna to welcome the light back into the world and help us all find the light in the darkness. However, this was the first time that our omen indicated that we had not yet sacrificed enough to the Kindreds. When the omen was returned, I gathered up extra offerings and as I gave them shared the idea that the omen reminds us that even in these darkest times, when things seem to be the hardest, we need to be able to look for the light and often that means being able to give more of ourselves than we thought possible. The words were sporadic, but came from my heart, and the message was well received by those participating. It also lead to us receiving a much more favorable omen, and which allowed us to proceed with the remainder of the ritual. During the workings part of the rite, we installed our first set of officers, with myself as the Senior Druid. It’s phenomenal to see how much our little group has grown, and it makes me incredibly proud to be a part of it.
This week, my ritual was done for Hermes. Hermes is a god that I have used as my Gatekeeper repeatedly since I joined ADF, but I have not ever take the time to honor him as the deity of occasion, so I thought it would be appropriate to honor him next. Also, the Gatekeeper is a very important part of clergy discipline, so I want to continue to foster that relationship. Building this ritual allowed me to see just how important the gatekeeper is to ADf practices. The gatekeeper is the one that we use to open the doors between the worlds, and it is through those doors that we are better able to communicate with the Kindreds and build relationships with them. From my experiences, the gatekeeper also works to keep the way down the path clear and safe, making the journey between the realms a much more positive experience that it could be if we tried to undertake the journey on our own. I performed my solo rite again, and used this invocation:
“Hermes, god of boundaries, and great messenger of the Gods. You are the protector of travelers and the patron to writers and poets. With your name, I make transitions, Come forth and dwell in this space. (Offer mead) “Hermes, skilled bringer of luck guide to our ancestors, You who guide and guard our travels And share our words with all worlds. With your name, travel between the realms. Come forth and dwell in this place.” (Offer mead) “Through you, may I learn to share my words. Through you, may I learn to travel between words Through you, may hone my skill. And through you may I embrace hospitality. Hermes, magnificent god, Come forth and encounter this rite.” Greek Alphabet Oracle -- Zeta -- Futile to fight the force of the ocean Phi -- Take responsibility for actions Psi -- Righteous judgement My sun devotionals this week feel much improved, maybe because of the additional work, or maybe I’m just in a better state of mind. I’m not sure why there is an improvement, but I’m pleased with the work that I’m doing now. The ritual with Hestia worked very well last week, so I’ve decided that the invocations that I do will be written in the same format, so at least I have a form to work from in creating a new invocation each week. This week, I have decided to honor Gaia, because in ADF tradition she is the first Goddess honored, and the last one to be thanked. I’ve decided it would therefore be appropriate to do her ritual after Hestia, but before I continue along this journey. Also, the connection with the Earth Mother is a vital part of the CTP discipline, so I wanted to make the effort to further make my connection with her. I did the same “plug and play” ritual that I had created, with Gaia as my deity of occasion. I had great results and thought the structure worked well for this practice, and I’m excited for the possibilities of this ritual style.
“Gaia, primal goddess of the world, Great mother of all. You were the first to be born from Chaos and from you all life has formed. With your name, we grow and change. Come forth and dwell in this space. (Offer honey) “Gaia, gracious goddess of the earth Eldest of all beings, You who support and sustain us And inspire us with your love. With your name, I start my rite. Come forth and dwell in this place.” (Offer honey) “Through you, may we learn to love. Through you, may we learn to support. Through you, may all who join be welcomed. And through you may our intentions be pure. Gaia, magnificent goddess, Come forth and encounter this rite.” This week I also participated in an interfaith Yule ritual to build fellowship and community. This ritual was done in collaboration with the Red Grail, and Nebraska Heathens United. It was a beautiful, short ritual and was nice to see the community coming together to form friendships and “play nice” together. I’ve always wanted to see a true Pagan community and it is through those efforts that it is more likely to happen. I already see people making connections and building relationships, and that makes me incredibly happy. Greek Alphabet Oracle -- Lambda -- Blessing in disguise Eta -- Life-giving sun will care for you. Iota -- There will always be hard work Discipline is something that I still don’t feel like I am succeeding with, and I don’t feel like I’m making the connections I’m supposed to make, so I’ve decided to take on a new project. In addition to my continued Sun devotional, I have written a generic COoR rite for my personal use, the purpose of which is to make connections with new deities that I have never worked with in the past. This generic ritual states that the purpose of this is to aid me on my path toward clergy, and to help me make connections that I have never had before. To begin with, I want to work through the Greek pantheon, because while it is my hearth, I have focused much of my attention on Athena so I don’t always have the connections I feel that I should at least try to experience.
I decided to start this process this week, because it was once again time for my monthly retreat to happen. I spent all week working to perfect my base ritual, and managed to get it to a point that it can be used repeatedly by simply replacing my deity of occasion and focus of the ritual. I have also left a space in the “Working” section of the ritual that will allow me to do my Trance work each week in the same ritual. I have decided that doing Trance work in the ritual for each deity, and trying to make it specific to the deity of occasion may be an interesting way to try to complete these courses, and may give me a chance to further connect with each of them. |
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