Invocation of the Goddess
I greet thee, Lady. It is time to draw down the moon as the gracious Mother has directed shall be done once each month. I call upon thee Mighty Mother of us all, bringer of all that is fruitful, by seed and root, by leaf and flower and fruit, in the fullness of the Moon do I invoke thee to descend upon the body of this thy servant.
Invocation of the God
I call upon thee O Great Father, Sun and Consort of the Mother, who brings her light and warmth. Come forth Mighty Horned One. Live now within the body of thy servant.
Now: The Cleansing
Anoint forehead with salt water
I cleanse my thoughts that they might be pure and honest - grant that they always be pleasing to the God and Goddess.
Anoint throat
I cleanse my voice that all that I say might be for good and naught for ill or harm.
Anoint the heart
I cleanse my heart that it might be open, giving, and full of light. Grant that I might give freely of my love and care to others.
Anoint the hands
I cleanse my hands that I might use them for workings of good, to help and never to harm.
Anoint the feet
I cleanse my feet that they might take me far in life, that my journeys may be filled with love, light, peace and the joy of the Goddess and God.
Make offerings if you wish.
Showing posts with label Cleansing Rituals. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Cleansing Rituals. Show all posts
Mystical Musing: Cleansing Ritual
No one really likes to clean, but we all know we feel better when our physical space is tidy. It's one of life's necessary chores. Start your spring off with a good thorough cleaning, and then follow that up with a spiritual cleansing. This is a great ritual to perform at Imbolc -- remember that for many of our ancestors, washing came only a few times a year, so by February, a house was probably smelling pretty ripe. Pick a bright sunny day to do a clean sweep, and then invite friends and family to join you in a blessing of your home.
What You Need:
Some sea salt
Smudging material such as sage or sweetgrass
A blue candle, for purification
A bowl of water
An empty bowl or bag
Blessing Oil
Here's How:
First, do a complete physical cleaning of your house. Put on some music and thoroughly clean every room. Strip sheets off the beds, turn the mattresses, dust every surface, and vaccuum every floor. Sort through those piles of paper on your desk, and get rid of things you don't need to keep; file everything else. Gather up the kids' toys and put them in baskets for easy storage. If you need to get rid of things, do it now -- set aside a box for charity and put gently used items in it. Set aside another box for trash, and see if you can fill it up!
Once your house is clean -- and this assumes you did the kitchen as well -- it's time to have some fun. Call up some friends and invite them over for a potluck. Cook up some Imbolc-themed comfort foods, such as Braided Bread or Beer Battered Fish & Chips, and have a small potluck celebration. Ask each guest to bring a small token to bless your house -- pebbles, shells, interesting bits of wood, beads, etc.
Begin at the front door -- it is, after all, where you welcome guests into your home -- and go through the house in a sunwise direction (clockwise). Ask your guests to help you by smudging the perimeter of each room with the salt, sage, candle flame and water. You may wish to say some sort of incantation as they do this, something like:
As you pass from room to room, anoint each door and windowsill with the Blessing Oil by tracing the shape of a pentagram or other symbol of your tradition. This prevents anything negative from crossing into the home. If you like, you can offer a small incantation as you do this, something like:
Finally, once you've gone through the house, ask each of your guests to deposit their blessing token in your bowl or bag. Keep it in a place of honor in your home -- on the mantel or in your kitchen is a good idea. Gather around the dinner table, break out the goodies, and enjoy a feast with your friends and family!
Tips:
* If you don't have Blessing Oil, you can use rosemary oil instead. Make your own by infusing fresh rosemary in grapeseed or flaxseed oil.
What You Need:
Some sea salt
Smudging material such as sage or sweetgrass
A blue candle, for purification
A bowl of water
An empty bowl or bag
Blessing Oil
Here's How:
First, do a complete physical cleaning of your house. Put on some music and thoroughly clean every room. Strip sheets off the beds, turn the mattresses, dust every surface, and vaccuum every floor. Sort through those piles of paper on your desk, and get rid of things you don't need to keep; file everything else. Gather up the kids' toys and put them in baskets for easy storage. If you need to get rid of things, do it now -- set aside a box for charity and put gently used items in it. Set aside another box for trash, and see if you can fill it up!
Once your house is clean -- and this assumes you did the kitchen as well -- it's time to have some fun. Call up some friends and invite them over for a potluck. Cook up some Imbolc-themed comfort foods, such as Braided Bread or Beer Battered Fish & Chips, and have a small potluck celebration. Ask each guest to bring a small token to bless your house -- pebbles, shells, interesting bits of wood, beads, etc.
Begin at the front door -- it is, after all, where you welcome guests into your home -- and go through the house in a sunwise direction (clockwise). Ask your guests to help you by smudging the perimeter of each room with the salt, sage, candle flame and water. You may wish to say some sort of incantation as they do this, something like:
With the purifying power of water,
with the clean breath of air,
with the passionate heat of fire,
with the grounding energy of earth
we cleanse this space.
As you pass from room to room, anoint each door and windowsill with the Blessing Oil by tracing the shape of a pentagram or other symbol of your tradition. This prevents anything negative from crossing into the home. If you like, you can offer a small incantation as you do this, something like:
May the goddess bless this home,
making it sacred and pure,
so that nothing but love and joy
shall enter through this door.
Finally, once you've gone through the house, ask each of your guests to deposit their blessing token in your bowl or bag. Keep it in a place of honor in your home -- on the mantel or in your kitchen is a good idea. Gather around the dinner table, break out the goodies, and enjoy a feast with your friends and family!
Tips:
* If you don't have Blessing Oil, you can use rosemary oil instead. Make your own by infusing fresh rosemary in grapeseed or flaxseed oil.
Personal Cleansing
Choose candles according to your personal and daily preferences, I have found that any will work. Run a bath with as hot of water as you can stand. If you prefer, this ritual can be done in the shower. Use whatever bath oils work for you. Visualize all the day's negative energies surrounding you as you get into the water. Then, visualize all that negativity being removed from your Self by the water. Focus on your candle flames, meditate on cleansing your Self. When the water has cooled to the point of being uncomfortable, pull the stopper, and say these words: "Drain away these pains and troubles, As does this water pure and free. Take with it all this day's distress. As I will, so mote it be!" Dry yourself off and rub your preferred cream onto your body to protect you from negativity over the night. Prepare to sleep well!
Cleansing Ritual
SUPPLY LIST:
Cleansing Herbs - ie: chamomile, peppermint, calendula, lavender, and red clover
7 pieces of colored fabric (no white) long & thin enough to tie around post or branches of tree
2 larger pieces of white cloth (cotton or linen - some natural fabric)
Drums or other musical instruments for each participant
Dagger, or knife - do NOT use your ritual athame as this will be used to cut flesh - athames (traditionally) should never touch blood
Lighter / lighter fluid
Shovel or spade
Step 1: Make a brew of fresh water and cleansing herbs. Concentrate on the cleansing energies of the herbs during preparation. Start with cleansing the place of residence, starting from the inside - you need to proceed in a widdershins manner (COUNTER-clockwise) and sprinkle some in the corners and on each windowsill of every room, including closets. After the inside of the home is sufficiently cleansed, head outside and sprinkle the outside of the residence. Start and end with whatever entrance you will exit and re-enter, and again proceed in widdershins fashion. After sprinkling outside, return inside and sprinkle the cleansee. Get as much of the brew on the Cleansee as possible - take care in deciding your herbs that none will irritate the skin - the ones listed above are all actually pretty good for your skin and shouldn't create any problems.
Step 2: 7 Colored Cloths - after sprinkling the cleansee with the brew, the cleansee should be dried off with the 7 differently colored cloths drying the whole body with each cloth separately - colors don't matter here as long as they're different - but no white!! White will come later - Bag up the cloths and set aside - disposal of these comes after the completion of the ritual.
Step 3: Travel to the water NOTE: if you're not near any water, or if the waterways in your area are too public for you to feel comfortable, improvise - try a swimming or wading pool, even a bathtub in a pinch.
Step 4: Drum, chant, sing, etc. at the water's edge to generate energy - during the generation time, the Cleansee should begin allowing all negativity come to light and allow everything that's "bothering" them to crash through their mind, get angry, get upset, generate everything they want to get rid of - all resentments, all sorrow, all pain, etc.
Step 5: Enter the water, skyclad, or as close to it as possible, (crowd dependant) As earlier stated, you might want to have a close friend "stand guard" to prevent interruptions and distractions.
Step 6: Ritual performer opens dialogue about feelings of resentment, perhaps about negative situations they've gone through before and dealt with. Performer speaks openly with Cleansee about whatever the "problem(s)" is/are. Anything disclosed during this period is SACRED. The Cleansee must be entirely confident and completely trust the performer or THIS WILL NOT WORK! The Cleansee must be completely honest with the performer about whatever the problem is so it can be sufficiently banished.
Step 7: Ritual performer slowly walks widdershins around the cleansee, softly chanting, singing or humming while Cleansee begins and continues until Cleansee is finished with Step 8
Step 8: Cleansee communicates audibly with himself stating how much he resents whatever problems, actions, energies, everything in question - assert his want to rid himself of these problems, etc.
Step 9: Performer and Cleansee shall join hands & place in the water of the river and concentrate on allowing the energies to be released - visualize the energies being diluted and washed away by the water. After appropriate time for release, release hands and hug or "salute" (kiss) each other. It's also appropriate to present the Cleansee with a small token or gift at this time, a necklace or pendant of a stone of protective energies, etc.
Step 10: Exit the river and Ritual performer dries the Cleansee off with one of the white cloths, and then the performer dries self off with the other.
Step 11: Burn the white cloths and bury the ashes right there on the riverbank, thus containing any last traces of negativity. If you're having to improvise, bury the white cloth ashes at the base of the tree or gatepost on which the last cloth is tied as instructed in Step 13.
Step 12: Dress and leave, never looking back
Step 13: Sometime later THAT SAME DAY, preferably in solitude, the Cleansee should set out with the 7 differently colored cloths from Step 2 and proceed to go to a place off the beaten path - somewhere that you most likely will never go to again, or at least somewhere off your normal everyday route. Tie each cloth on a separate tree, or on separate gateposts - the next cloth just a way down from the one prior, etc. Again, after tying the last cloth or burying the ashes after tying the cloth as stated in Step 11, leave and never looking back.
Cleansing Herbs - ie: chamomile, peppermint, calendula, lavender, and red clover
7 pieces of colored fabric (no white) long & thin enough to tie around post or branches of tree
2 larger pieces of white cloth (cotton or linen - some natural fabric)
Drums or other musical instruments for each participant
Dagger, or knife - do NOT use your ritual athame as this will be used to cut flesh - athames (traditionally) should never touch blood
Lighter / lighter fluid
Shovel or spade
Step 1: Make a brew of fresh water and cleansing herbs. Concentrate on the cleansing energies of the herbs during preparation. Start with cleansing the place of residence, starting from the inside - you need to proceed in a widdershins manner (COUNTER-clockwise) and sprinkle some in the corners and on each windowsill of every room, including closets. After the inside of the home is sufficiently cleansed, head outside and sprinkle the outside of the residence. Start and end with whatever entrance you will exit and re-enter, and again proceed in widdershins fashion. After sprinkling outside, return inside and sprinkle the cleansee. Get as much of the brew on the Cleansee as possible - take care in deciding your herbs that none will irritate the skin - the ones listed above are all actually pretty good for your skin and shouldn't create any problems.
Step 2: 7 Colored Cloths - after sprinkling the cleansee with the brew, the cleansee should be dried off with the 7 differently colored cloths drying the whole body with each cloth separately - colors don't matter here as long as they're different - but no white!! White will come later - Bag up the cloths and set aside - disposal of these comes after the completion of the ritual.
Step 3: Travel to the water NOTE: if you're not near any water, or if the waterways in your area are too public for you to feel comfortable, improvise - try a swimming or wading pool, even a bathtub in a pinch.
Step 4: Drum, chant, sing, etc. at the water's edge to generate energy - during the generation time, the Cleansee should begin allowing all negativity come to light and allow everything that's "bothering" them to crash through their mind, get angry, get upset, generate everything they want to get rid of - all resentments, all sorrow, all pain, etc.
Step 5: Enter the water, skyclad, or as close to it as possible, (crowd dependant) As earlier stated, you might want to have a close friend "stand guard" to prevent interruptions and distractions.
Step 6: Ritual performer opens dialogue about feelings of resentment, perhaps about negative situations they've gone through before and dealt with. Performer speaks openly with Cleansee about whatever the "problem(s)" is/are. Anything disclosed during this period is SACRED. The Cleansee must be entirely confident and completely trust the performer or THIS WILL NOT WORK! The Cleansee must be completely honest with the performer about whatever the problem is so it can be sufficiently banished.
Step 7: Ritual performer slowly walks widdershins around the cleansee, softly chanting, singing or humming while Cleansee begins and continues until Cleansee is finished with Step 8
Step 8: Cleansee communicates audibly with himself stating how much he resents whatever problems, actions, energies, everything in question - assert his want to rid himself of these problems, etc.
Step 9: Performer and Cleansee shall join hands & place in the water of the river and concentrate on allowing the energies to be released - visualize the energies being diluted and washed away by the water. After appropriate time for release, release hands and hug or "salute" (kiss) each other. It's also appropriate to present the Cleansee with a small token or gift at this time, a necklace or pendant of a stone of protective energies, etc.
Step 10: Exit the river and Ritual performer dries the Cleansee off with one of the white cloths, and then the performer dries self off with the other.
Step 11: Burn the white cloths and bury the ashes right there on the riverbank, thus containing any last traces of negativity. If you're having to improvise, bury the white cloth ashes at the base of the tree or gatepost on which the last cloth is tied as instructed in Step 13.
Step 12: Dress and leave, never looking back
Step 13: Sometime later THAT SAME DAY, preferably in solitude, the Cleansee should set out with the 7 differently colored cloths from Step 2 and proceed to go to a place off the beaten path - somewhere that you most likely will never go to again, or at least somewhere off your normal everyday route. Tie each cloth on a separate tree, or on separate gateposts - the next cloth just a way down from the one prior, etc. Again, after tying the last cloth or burying the ashes after tying the cloth as stated in Step 11, leave and never looking back.
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