Samhain LLC

Samhain Ritual Bath/Self Cleansing (fill sink or tub with water and salt mixture and use it to bathe your arms, neck and face while getting robed for the ritual. Rose petals could also be added for this ritual.) Cast Circle H.Ps: We gather here tonight in honor and memorandum of another season spent and gone. We gather here on the night when the veil is thinnest to exalt the Summer and welcome the golden Autumn with wide arms. The harvest's have been gathered and stored against winter's coming chill. (The Priestess picks up the besom and shows it to the coven) The besom chases away all negative and chaotic energy from this space while we work here. (Sweep the circle starting N. and working clockwise ring the bell three times and the Priest will touch the tip of the anthame to the salt) H.P.: Salt is purifying and is representing of life. We use salt to mark the line of the circle to protect and mark our barriers. Salt is sacred of the God because it belongs to him, just as the water belongs to the Goddess, (pour 2/3 of the salt into the water and stir 3 times) With the joining of the salt and the water we join the God and Goddess for the first of 3 times tonight. North-Water H.Ps.: (taking the sacred water) Water is the lifeblood of the Goddess, it runs through her veins just as rivers and streams cover the earth, she is our mother, Demeter, the bountiful harvest that cares for us through the winter. We call to the element of water giver of life and inspiration, be with us now at this hour of our Samhain rite. Hail and Welcome. East-Earth H.P: Earth, the strength and love of the Lord and Lady manifest themselves through your strong arms. Through the earth we are given strength and the ability to care for ourselves. We use her trees to build houses, her land to feed our families, and her soil to warm our feet. We call upon the element of Earth to give our ritual stability, be with us now at this hour of our Samhain rite. Hail and Welcome. South-Fire H.Ps.: Fire, you will become all the more important as the wheel turns to Winter in the coming months, your flames will warm our homes and hearts through winter, fending off the cold and keeping us alive. Fire today you represent the love and light that we keep in our hearts to remember those who passed on before us, as well as those who are still with us. We ask you to burn away what is left of the veil and thank you for joining us at this hour of our Samhain rite. Hail and Welcome. West-Air H.P.: Element of air, you carry our ancestors spirits back to us through the veil tonight, and we honor you through the incense that holds a prominent place on our altar tonight. You may chill or warm us depending on the season but without you there is no life breath, you give inspiration and freedom of thought to all living creatures. We welcome you to our Samhain rite air. Center-Spirit H.Ps: Element of spirit, you live within us all, and once we pass on you are all that remains of us. You link us to the realm of the God and Goddess and for that we thank you. We welcome you to our Samhain rite Spirit. Hail and Welcome. Raise Power/Meditation/Grounding (Coven will be seated for this portion and holding hands with the priestess closest to the altar) H.Ps: Close your eyes and imagine you are a seed, safe and whole in your own little world. You are fed, housed, and content in this little space but you wonder what else is out there. So you start branching out, deep into the earth feeling Demeter's warmth and love envelope you. But as you grow you branch out upward to the sky as well. Your bright green leaves reveling in the light and the breezes that play across them. Thankful for all of these gifts you long to give something back. So along your green vines you start to grow fruit, and the elements help you, and soon you are big, bright, orange and full of energy. As is your spirit and you are now ready for magick. Gods and Goddesses H.Ps: A long time ago when the Earth was young and new Gods and Goddesses lived among the Humans who idealized them. It was always warm and never cold, the weather always grew the best crops and no one ever went hungry. There once was a mother, Demeter, who was the Goddess of the harvest, she was bountiful and glorious and beautiful to behold. Even so, her beauty was outwit by her daughter's, she was known from Mount Olympus all the way down into the Underworld for her charm and grace even as a child. But, Persephone, was a child no longer, she had grown into all the beauty and grace her mother had blessed her with. Her hair was the color of freshly washed corn, her eyes the green of waving wheat stalks, her skin the pure white of fresh milk. Her mother kept all of her suitors at bay with quests and trials and Persephone began to grow worried that her beauty would wither with age before she was to be wed. Her mother was greedy with her daughter's love and affection, wanting to keep it all for herself. One day while Persephone was wondering through the forest that surrounded her home she met a tall dark stranger who offered her an apple, but he warned her to beware of the seeds. She thanked him and sat beside the river to eat it. And the next day they met again. And so on for a week, when she learned his name was Hades, and she learned that he resided in the underworld, and he learned of her world, the wonder and light of it all. And he longed for a place within it, knowing that it could not be. One night, while they were visiting, unknown to the both of them Persephone swallowed one of the seeds from her apple, and it began to grow within her belly, a beautiful baby girl. Her mother sensed something was wrong with her daughter; although she still danced, and played, and wandered; she was spending more and more time away from home. Until one day she just didn't come back. (lighting the Goddess candle) We honor Demeter and Persephone with the lighting of this candle and ask both of them to join us here in this circle. We ask Demeter here for the role of the crone, and Persephone as the role of the mother, with her unborn daughter playing the maiden. Hail and Welcome Goddess! (lighting the God candle)We light the God candle in honor of Hades, Lord of the Underworld who watches over the souls of those who have passed on. The immortal Prince who loves the light yet was doomed to live in the shadows. Hail and Welcome the sad Prince! Honor ancestors H.P: We use this Sabbat to honor our ancestors that have walked on before us. Those whose names and faces decorate the wall behind the altar and those who are only silently remembered in our hearts. We not only remember them, but those who are still living and may need the light and guidance of tonight's full moon. Our hearts and prayers are with them, just as their spirits are here tonight with us. We welcome them into our circle now. Persephone and Hades were living happily in the underworld, not knowing what happened on the surface of the Earth above them. In her depression Demeter let the crops die and the Earth go cold, and many of their faithful followers died in the harsh winter that was the Mother's grief. Word was sent into the underworld and it was agreed that Persephone would spend half of the year above with her mother and half below with her family. And so we have the seasons, and the circle of life all in one tale. May our ancestors be forever in the loving care of Persephone and Hades. We now offer a moment of silence to reflect on those who have passed on and those we wish to offer prayer for in the coming months. And in this silence we will place the offering of wine and bread upon the altar for those spirits that have joined us here tonight to sup and gain strength for their return to Summerland. New Year H.P: Aside from being a day to reflect on the dead and departed, Samhain is a happy day for those alive as it marks the turning of the Wheel into a new Wiccan year. This is a time for new projects as winter draws close, changing old habits that may help, or setting those aside that we no longer need. Paper strips have been provided for a list of things we are getting rid of this year. And they may be added to the cauldron as offering to the God and Goddess so they may offer assistance in our personal quests to get over these hurdles. (take time here to write out lists and prepare them for burning. Once everyone’s papers are in the cauldron the Priest may light his and use it to ignite the others) As these papers burn we release ourselves from these feelings, actions, and behaviors. Watch the smoke rise and as it rises see that it carries your words up to the God and Goddess and you are in their hands now. Cleanse House H.Ps: As the New Year we have cleansed ourselves once again but we can not forget our surroundings, with white sage and salt water we chase the spirits and negativity from this house and home. Leaving no corner untended or shadow unexplored. Later I will allow all of you to do your own separate spaces but for now why don't we start with our bodies and minds? (Using the smudge stick and fan bathe each coven member in the smoke of the sage from top to bottom and then down their backs as well) If anyone has a problem with the smell of sage or smoke I can cut a doorway for them so they may excuse themselves from this part of the ritual. Full moon H.P: We were doubly blessed this year, not only is tonight the New Year, Samhain, but it is also the last day of a Full moon. (Weather Permitting) At this time I would like to encourage us all to go outside with our working crystals and charge them and ourselves in the pure white energy of the Goddess' moon. You may do this however you please, but quietly so we do not disturb others in their prayers. (Picking up the ritual sword) I cut the circle here between these two points marked by these candles as a doorway between my circle and the realm of the living. Here we may pass through safely, no harm may come to this circle or those within it as we exit, we acknowledge that the circle is open and never broken, and while we exit its boundaries set in the physical space we carry it in our mind's eye and spiritually we remain tethered to its safety and security. We are now safe to exit the circle for the next part of the ritual. Releasing Power H.Ps: As we stand here bathed in the pure white energy of the moon I urge you to release the energy we have been holding as part of this ritual. Let it go back into the universe and carry your thoughts, intentions, and prayers to the God and Goddess in Summerland. It is also here as we let our energies go back into the world that we call our ritual to a close. Those who wish to join us for bread and apples may come back upstairs, those who wish to meditate and ground themselves a bit longer may stay here, and to those that must leave we bid you merry meet, and merry part. As the High Priest of Lunar Light I call this Samhain rite to a close.

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