Samhain Ritual 2021

Is There Peace in our Circle?

The four directions are marked by colored candles in lanterns at the edge of our circle. Towards the North is a small table covered by a black lace cloth; two bowls, one with sea salt crystals and the other with water; a goblet, an athame, deity candles; and an incense burner.

We adorn our altar with Rosemary, pumpkins, squashes, gourds, pomegranates, apples, fall fruits, bread, cheese, wine,  and cider. Frankincense and candles. We include our loved ones passed by placing their photos on the altar. 

The cauldron is set in the front of the altar. Tonight it will serve as offering bowl for our dreams of the future and it will hold the flames to burn away our sorrows of the past.

*Purify space and each other with sage*

Place Rosemary on the the Alter:

“Rosemary is for remembrance,

and tonight we remember those 

who have lived and died before us,

those who have crossed through the veil,

those who are no longer with us in this realm.

We will remember.”

Chant together:

We all come from the Goddess

And to her we shall return

Like a drop of rain

Flowing to the ocean… repeat

Attunement

We join hands and begin to focus by following our breath. Inhale and exhale slowly and deeply several times. Breathing in all positive thoughts and feelings. Breathing out anything negative we’ve been holding. Inhale…..  Exhale….. Allow the mind to become clear, focused and centered.

Feel the arms of the great mother embracing and rocking you as you move away from the energy of the outer world to the peace and stillness of your inner world. Press your tailbone down through floor and into the belly of Gaia, Mother Earth. As your awareness taps into the earth, you are filled with a sense of stability and groundedness. Feel your head lift up towards the starry heavens. Peace abounds. 

Greeting

We Anoint with sandalwood/meditation  oil to center our focus and inspire our insight.  To the person on your left.

“I greet the God/Goddess in you.”

Cast Circle and Call Quarters

SHANNON: The East is a land of New beginnings, the place where breath begins, Spirits of Air, we call upon you, fall colored leaves blowing in the wind. Crisp autumn air caressing our cheeks and filling our minds with thoughts of inspiration. Blow into our sacred circle. Welcome East. (Light East Candle)

CLOUD: The South is a land of sunlight and Fire, whose flames guide us through the cycles of life. Spirits of Fire, we welcome you, cauldron flames of transformation, burning bonfires of ancient times, Light the way for our dearly departed and ignite our ritual with intention. Welcome South. (Light South Candle)

ANNA: The West is a place of underground rivers, and the sea is a never-ending, rolling tide.  Spirits of Water, we welcome you.  Cleansing tides of salty seas, Wash away our pain and loss and connect us to our intuition, emotions and dream nature. Welcome West. (Light West Candle)

JAMES:  The North is a place of Cold, and the Earth is silent and Dark.  Spirits of the Earth, we welcome you.  Bounty of the harvest, make our way steady. Fill us with green healing energy. Welcome North. (Light North Candle)

EVIE: Center, source of inner wisdom and eternal peace. Still us so that we may feel our connection to our loved ones in the other world. Welcome Center. (Light Center Candle)

Visualize being encircled by a mist of energy that is above, around and below us moving us into a sacred place outside of time.

Invoking Deity

(Light Red & Black Candles) 

NIEYSHA: Great goddesses of the underworld; Hecate, Persephone, Pomona, Lilith, Psyche, Morrigan.  A pair of candles is lit in honor of you.  You are Maiden and Mother throughout the year and tonight we honor you as Crone.. Be with us now in our sacred rite as we honor Samhain. Bless us with your wisdom, nurturance and compassion. Welcome Goddesses.

(Light Orange & Black Candles) 

BRANDON: Great gods of death; Orin, Hades, Pluto, Kronos, Odin.  A pair of candles is lit in honor of you.  You are wild, fertile and animal and tonight we honor you as the Horned God.  Give us the strength to move past fear this night as we rest in your loving embrace. Welcome Gods.

(Each take a piece of bread, saying):  

“May the Blessings of the Goddess be upon you”

(Light White Candle) 

JAMES: This candle is lit in honor of hearth and home. The mother and father, the Goddess and God, watch over us tonight as we honor them. 

ALL: We light these five candles for the powerful Goddess and her mighty horned consort, the God, and for the safety of home and hearth.

On this, the night of Samhain, when the Goddess is a wise Crone, and the God is a wild stag, we honor them both.

SHANNON: This is a time between the worlds, a time of life and a time of death.  This is a night unlike any other night.  Ancient ones, we ask your blessing. Goddess, great Crone, mother of all life, we thank you for your wisdom.
Horned God, master of the wild hunt, keeper of the forest, we thank you for all that you provide. 

ANNA: We call out to the Divine in all its forms to join us tonight as we honor those who have passed before us and offer our thanks for the blessings of another year. We seek the guidance of Spirits for the year to come and the blessing of their company.

ALL:

By the earth that is her body and the air that is her sweet breath. 

By the fire of her bright spirit and the waters of her living womb. 

By all that is above and by all that is below. 

We are between the worlds and what we do between the worlds, blesses and changes the world. The circle is cast. Blessed Be.

Statement of Purpose 

CLOUD – From the land of Tir Na Nog, the land of the dead, the Summerlands, we welcome our ancestors to our circle. Return to us and partake of the celebration of the turn of the Wheel.

NIEYSHA – From the lands beyond these shores, from the unknown places, from the eternal womb, we welcome our friends and family who have passed from this realm into our circle. Return to us and share the warmth of our love.

EVIE – From the halls of fallen warriors and the hearths of loving souls, we welcome all who have sacrificed in the name of love or have been sacrificed in the name of hatred. Return to us and grant us the pleasure of honoring your passing.

SHANNON5:

Samhain is a night of somber celebration, for it is a night when the final harvest is complete, and the long, cold winter is ahead of us. It is a night to look back at the year that has transpired and give thanks for those blessings we have been given. It is a night also for the honoring of our dead. This is a powerful time to deal with the issue of death, which many find difficult. During Samhain, the veil between the worlds is thinnest and the spirits of the dead may rejoin their loved ones.  This is the the night of our ancestors and of the Ancient Ones. Tonight we open ourselves to commune with those who have passed.

RIBBON SPELL:

Each Person takes a set of Ribbons saying:

“White for Life, Black for Death, Red for Rebirth.

We bind these strands together remembering those we have lost”

Each person shall braid or knot their 3 ribbons together, while focusing on the memories of those they have lost in their life.  Join together in chanting:

“As the corn will come from grain, all that dies will rise again.

As the seeds grow from the earth, we celebrate life, death, and rebirth.”

When all have finished, take a moment to lie down or seat yourself comfortably. Feel the energy of the circle we’ve created all around us, while holding those  who have passed in your mind, while I take you into a guided meditation.

Activity – Guided Meditation Lead by Shannon

Close your eyes, take a nice, deep in breath and exhale out into a long, slow, thin out breath. In your mind’s eye, see yourself in a beautiful fall setting. This may be a place you’ve been to before or are making up right now in your mind’s eye. Look around and notice the pumpkins and colorful gourds of different sizes and shapes. Inhale the smell of ripe apples hanging heavily laden on the trees. Feel the crisp cool autumn air against your cheeks. See yourself in your mind as you begin to walk. Hearing the crunchy fall leaves beneath your feet. Not headed in any particular direction. Just feeling guided to walk peacefully. Totally at ease and comfortable. As you walk begin to think of a loved one or loved ones passed. Anyone whom you choose to connect to this Samhain. In the distance, notice a grove of trees in a circle. Enter this grove and seat yourself in the middle. Find a nice place to sit and take a moment to enjoy the beauty and peace of this sacred setting. As you hold your loved one lightly in your heart, allow each in breath to invite them to be with you this rite. Think on the gifts that you have been given by this loved one. How has they affected your life? What is your most memorable moment spent with this loved one. Remember the joy, the laughter, the deep love that you shared. What lessons have you learned in your journey with them? Spend a moment and allow thoughts, images and memories to arise. In the distance you sense a presence. Feeling at ease you look up and see an image of your loved one slowly approaching you. They may look a bit different. Perhaps even a being of light or an angel. They may even continue to look just as you knew them in the physical world. Feel your heart leap with joy as you come face-to-face with them. Embrace them in any way that feels appropriate. Connect with each other’s heart for a moment and just savor this experience. You may choose to communicate in any way that feels right, perhaps verbally or silently. Talk on any things that come up for you. If you have unresolved feelings or unspoken words, let those out now. If you have questions for them, ask, and be open to receive their answers through thoughts, sensory feelings or images. Don’t judge what arises; just be with all that is.

Once you are complete, embrace and thank this loved one66 for joining you on Samhain and for still being such an integral part of your life. Know that even though you are on separate planes now, you are always connected.

See your loved one moving back past the trees and into the distance until they are out of sight. Breathe deeply and feel your energy coming fully back into your body as you absorb the experience.

In your mind’s eye, see yourself slowly stand up and make your way out of the grove of trees and back into the setting from which you came. Know that this is a place that you can always return to when you’d like to connect with loved ones passed.

Blessed be.

Begin to deepen your in breaths. Gently wiggle your toes and fingertips and bring yourself back into the sacred setting of the space you are in. Fully alert and conscious, you may now choose to take a moment to journal about your experience or even write a note to this loved one you’ve just been with. Tell them anything else that you need to. Light a candle to them as you honor their life.

End Guided Meditation

The time has come to offer thanks for those gifts the year has given. I have asked you each to bring a token in offering, something small that will represent your gratitude. I ask you now to place it into the offering bowl, and speak your gratitude either silently or aloud.

This season is an ending of one year and the beginning of another. A time to release that which is holding you back or no longer serves you. I asked each of you to bring a small piece of paper on which you have written what you wish to release. We will each light a candle in the cauldron and then speak our desires for the coming year as we lay our wishes in the flame.

Cakes and Ale

Much like communion, we partake of food and drink in our circles. The food and drink represents the gifts of the air, fire, water & earth. As we partake, we give honor to the elements, and also to those whose labor enables us to eat. We will make offerings of the food and drink to the Deities we welcomed to circle before we partake ourselves. Because it is Samhain, we will also make offerings to the ancestors.

The plate is raised with an offer of thanks, then a piece of cookie broken off and placed in the cauldron. Another piece is placed in the offering dish on the ancestor altar. Then a cookie is offered to each saying, “May you never know hunger.” The process is then repeated with the goblet, speaking softly, “May you never thirst.

Partake of the seasonal food and drink on the altar. Enjoy the bounty of the season. Breath into a feeling of gratitude for having the time and space to practice ritual.

The portions placed in the ancestors’ offering dish with their candle will be left outside the door tonight should they choose to eat and drink.

Farewells and Opening the Circle

(BRANDON) Great gods of death, you have given us the strength to move past fear and journey with our loved ones. For this we are ever grateful. Stay if you will, go if you must, hail and farewell gods.

(NIEYSHA) Great crone goddesses of the underworld. You have nurtured us and filled us with love and compassion and the great understanding of the cycles of life this rite. We are truly blessed for this experience. Stay if you will, go if you must, hail and farewell goddess.

(EVIE) Center, place of stillness in the center of our souls, we thank you for keeping us balanced and still enough to be with our loved ones. Stay if you will, go if you must, hail and farewell center.

(JAMES) Earth of the North, you have made our way steady and have grounded our energy. Stay if you will, go if you must, hail and farewell earth.

(ANNA) Waters of the West, our emotions have surfaced this night. We know that you will wash away our tears and cradle us in your healing tides. Stay if you will, go if you must, hail and farewell water.

(CLOUD) Fire of the South, you have lit the way for our dear ones to join us this night. We are transformed this night by the power of your burning light. Stay if you will, go if you must, hail and farewell fire.

(SHANNON) Air of the East, you have inspired us to trust in the process of your ever-changing ways. Stay if you will, go if you must, hail and farewell air.

Imagine the mist around our sacred circle slowly beginning to lift and dissolve. Tonight we have gathered and created sacred space, where we have stood together in peace and harmony. Four people from decidedly different places in life, in unity for this brief moment in time. As we leave this place, may we take with us a sense of purpose for the coming year, and path to peace that we may share with others by our example.

As is becoming our tradition, we close with this. I lift my left hand, enclosed around the right hand of the next person, to my heart. “From my heart, through these hands, to your heart, ” I move our joined hands to their heart, “take all the love that you need and pass the rest on.” (each person repeats)

May the circle be open but unbroken. May the love of the goddess be ever in our hearts. Merry meet and merry part and merry meet again. Blessed be.