Imbolc

A celebration of the passing of winter
The Imbolc festival is the first rite of spring. The dark of winter is behind us and now the light of spring is beginning to emerge.
 
As this is a time of new life and growth, you will see the first signs of spring. The trees are in bud and some flowers begin to blossom, it is appropriate to plant bulbs or flowers, or to sow seeds for new beginnings.
 
The word Imbolc means ‘in the belly’ – the quickening of the year begins at this time as the Earth is made pregnant with the promise of summer fruitfulness and the harvest to come.  A time to dream the future.
 
A ritual for Imbolc
Find some time and a place where you will be undisturbed and take a dark red candle to represent the dark wisdom of night and a white one to represent the innocence of light. Call upon the elements of Air, Fire, Water and Earth as well as the Great Mother and Father to be with you.
 
Ask the power of the dark wisdom to give you an understanding of peace and contemplation – then light the red candle.
 
Ask the power of the light within its innocence to give you the warmth, love and inspiration of new beginnings – then light the white candle.
 
Next say, "Now it is time for the darkness to fall away and become once more the promise of new light." Blow out the red candle. 
 
Sit for a few minutes contemplating your dreams and desires for the future. 

Write a list of aspiration for the coming year and ask the Great Mother and Father to bless your journey.

Blessed be.

Beltane

A celebration of new life
Beltane honours the earth in her time of flowering. A time when we should encourage a positive, responsible, joyous attitude towards our sexuality, our hearts and desires.

A time for healing and nurturing our passions.

A ritual for Beltane
The ritual activities for Beltane should allow us to feel good in our bodies and to be proud of them.

The first ritual should be making a connection between ourselves and the Goddess, the Earth Mother who gives us such bounty, year after year.

The ancients called Beltane The Fire Festival and celebrated it with a huge bonfire and as sexuality is a fiery power it should be a sacred act and an honouring of our relationships.

Create an evening Beltane celebration by asking close friends and family to gather together to celebrate around a huge bonfire and for everyone to bring an item that represents the earth mother such as a stone, rock, a crystal, a statue, and place it around the fire, then each person to take a candle and to light that candle in honour of the Mother and in honour of each individual's passions and sexuality.

Each person should read out a poem or a song that represents the love and passion that they feel in their hearts and to place into the fire a list of all their heart felt desires that they wish to come true in the following year.  Then eat, drink and be merry as in the spirit of Beltane.

Blessed be to the spirit of Beltane and to the Great Mother and Father.

Summer Solstice Ritual

Summer is the celebration of the earth's incredible bounty.   It is the festival of inner fire - power, the power that makes abundance and nourishment grow from tiny seeds.  The power that brings things to fulfillment, that expands and brightens our lives, that makes good things come from seed - ideas and plans.  And the warmth of the sun and the long, hot days continually remind us of how good it is to find a balance between intense activity and lazy, idle hours doing nothing.
 
The Solstice is the longest day, when the sun's power is at its peak.  A time to mark peak moments in our lives, moments of warmth and growth.  Our ancestors built huge bonfires on this day to celebrate their tangible connection to a vital power of the immense burning star that keeps our planet bright, warm, and alive.  This is a good time to remember that we, like the sun, contain the power to nurture and sustain, and that we have a responsibility to burn as brightly as we can.
 
TREE OF LIFE MEDITATION
Sit comfortably with your eyes closed, breathe deeply and fully in and out for a few breaths.
Now picture tiny white roots sprouting out of the base of your spine and travelling down into the earth, the fertile, nourishing earth.
See these roots beginning to draw up the life - giving energy of the earth, drawing it up into your body, filling it with energy and light.
Your sense of aliveness grows with every breath, until you imagine the branches of energy bursting from the top of your head, bursting out and arching back down to the earth again, returning to the earth, one continuous circle of energy..

Winter Solstice Ritual

Embracing the innocence of our own light and connecting that light with the darkness of winter to enable us to embrace the peace and quiet of this glorious time of year.
Winter has an unqualified way of confronting our physical selves, making us pay attention to our bodies.  A time to take care of ourselves, to nurture and to allow ourselves plenty of time to sit by the fire and dream.
 
As children we adore winter, when snow falls and the bitter cold means hours of playing with the snow, sledding and skating.  After so many months of endless work and striving, we can give ourselves and our children the gift of winter, that a time of rest, and peace and inner nourishment, so that we can re-emerge in spring revitalized by its quiet, healing magic.
 
THE RITUAL
 
Creating a Yule Altar.
 
Yule time is a time for candles, and to light them again at the onset of darkness. The most powerful way to honour our light is to create Yule Altar with candles, evergreens, sun images, apples, pomegranate and nuts.
 
The altar reminds us of our sacredness and the images and mysteries of this great festival, and to enable it to be set up in a place of family and relationships so in the dining room or kitchen a place where everyone can see the altar as they come into your home.  Even a space for people that you love to add to the mystery of the table with their own gifts of fruit, flowers and candles.
 
Place a colourful table cloth with all the colours of winter – greens, reds, browns.  Candles are then the next must object – as the living light is crucial to this celebration.  Evergreens of all kinds – spruce, juniper, cedar, pine – are also a fragrant and beautiful imperative; place an armful in a brown pot, make garlands for mantels and stairways, wreaths for walls and doors, drape festoons over any available tables or flat surfaces and don’t forget your garden or window sills too fill with wreaths and flowers.
 
The sacred image of the Earth Mother and Sun Child, the Virgin Mary with Child are all wonderful pictures or statues that you can place on the altar. Every night as dusk blankets the earth you should light all your candles and send a thought and a prayer to your family, friends and to all your ancestors and deceased family members in remembrance of your love for them and their support for you and your own family.
 
On the eve of the 21st – you could organize a special supper for you and your family and close friends.  Everyone brings a gift for the altar and a small gift for each other.  Enjoy your supper and drink to each other and to the light coming again to the earth after the night of the 21st.  Celebrate, love and enjoy the peace and unity of the Winter Solstice.

Samhain

Do you honour your ancestors?

Do you know how to honour your ancestors?

This is a time of Samhain – the celebration of the ancestors.
Would you like to learn more? Click here

Some practical advice on where to start:

Creating an altar for your ancestral guiding spirit
Creating an altar is one of the most profound ways in which we can honour and reconnect with important ancestors. An altar can be a focus for meditation, for rituals and regular ceremonies that remind you of past influences and current issues you may need to address.

In particular an altar can honour a relative who takes on the role of your guardian ancestor. Your guardian ancestor can emerge through your dreams, meditation and journal work as the spirit who offers you guidance throughout your daily life. An altar dedicated to your guardian ancestor reflects his or her significance. An altar can be the focus of ceremonies and rituals you can perform to remember your ancestor, during anniversaries of marriages, birthdays and on other important dates.

Choose a corner, mantle piece, fireplace or table in your home for your altar. You might also like to consider a place in your garden for contemplation, meditation or prayer. Give careful thought to the objects to place on your altar that represents your chosen ancestor. Possibilities include an object from their place of origin, a traditional or religious object or a personal item such as clothing, jewellery, pictures and so on.

Choose one object to symbolize their nurturing, wisdom and blessings. This could, for example, be a crystal such as rose quartz for love, amethyst for wisdom, pearl for wise emotions or a blue stone for communication. Objects from nature could also be helpful. For example shells to represent emotions or a connection to ancestors across the sea, or dried flowers from their birthplace.

On anniversaries and celebrations place flowers on your altar to offer your ancestor love and spiritual connection from the earth. Burn incense to represent cleansing and protection. Write down prayers and wishes and place them under the central object on your altar for when you need to communicate with your ancestor. Ask your ancestor for his or her wisdom and inspiration when you are having any difficulties in your life, questions or problems that need solving.

A meditation to ask for guidance
from your guardian ancestor

• Find a quiet space where you can be alone.
• Sit or lie down comfortably with your back straight, either against a chair or on the ground.
• Make sure that you are breathing slowly and deeply into your solar plexus.
• As you breathe follow your breath right down into the lower part of your solar plexus and release any tension.
• Call upon your ancestral family guardian angel to send his or her light and essence to you.
• Imagine this light becoming more powerful, more real with each breathe; let it brighten your aura and continue to spread throughout your body.
• Imagine you are standing under a shower of light as clear pure water, coming down through the top of your head, and then washing throughout your body.
• When you feel that your body has connected with the ancestral light, call upon them with a simple prayer:
  ‘I ask that my true ancestral guiding spirit to come forward now to show me their power and protection to guide me in my current life at this time.’
• Imagine that as you are lying down bathing in this light. You will begin to sense a presence around your body.
• Ask your ancestor for insights into a problem that currently preoccupies you. Ask them to open your heart and mind to new perspectives on how to deal with it.
• Continue to breathe deeply and allow your mind to flow with your guardian spirit.
• To close down take a deep breath and thank your ancestor for coming to connect with you.
• Allow the light to be released from your body back into the sky.
• Wiggle your toes and clench your fists to awaken out of the meditation.
• Give thanks.