Imbolc 2004 arranged by ---Shining Spider- 2004 The astrology of today: Moon- waning moon in Scorpio About Imbolc: Imbolc (also called: Oimealg ("IM-mol'g), Candlemas, Imbolg, Brigit's Day, St. Lucy's Day, Feast of Brighid, Oimealg, Imbolgc Brigantia, Imbolic, Disting (Teutonic, Feb 14th), Lupercus, Candlelaria, The Festival of Lights, or the Feast of the Virgin ) is a cross-quarter holiday (def of cross-quarter) in which the earth is preparing to 'give birth' to life. This mid-Winter feast traditionally commenced as the ewes begin to lactate which was the start of the new agricultural cycle. Although in most mythos the sun god has already been reborn (Winter Solstice) the earth through most of Northern Hemisphere is cold and barren. The goddess is reborn as a maiden, and from now until March 21st she is preparing for the bounty that is the warmer months of growth and harvest. This holiday is the quarter point between the Midwinter Solstice and the Vernal (Spring) Equinox, and when the sun reaches 15 degrees Aquarius. Astrologically it changes every year (this year it was The fourth) although many traditions honor it on February first. Ritual: I. Creating A Sacred Space A. Cleanse space B. Ground and Center C. Call Elements D. Cast Circle II. Calling And Honoring the Divine A. Chat: (invocation**) We honor the energy of the elements within us. We are earth. We are dark, we are heavy, we are substantial. We are grounded. We are water. We are fluid, we are clear, we are vital. We are renewed. We are fire. We are bright, we are hot, we are intense. We are passionate. We are air. We are light, we are movement, we are open. We are changed. II. Coming Together A. Calling And Honoring the Divine To call the Goddess** a participant reads: Milk giving mother we sit at your breast seeking nourishment and love to sustain us through the dark of winters end To call the God** a participant reads: Sun god of protection keep these ideas safe; our hopes lit and alive. Our hearth fires and candle lit altars beckon your presence C. Myth***: Hdi Ho -Li Ch'un- (China) His Ho is the Chinese mother of the sun, who stretches out her son's golden arms to warm and revitalize both the earth and its people. In Chinese mythology, His Ho bathes her child each morning in the eastern-shore lake so he can shine brightly through the day, strengthening hope and discernment. Her sacred animals are the water buffalo, and the bear, both of which represent spring. Contemplate: Teamwork, Ritual cleansing And hibernation's end. III. Pathwork A. Meditation**** Close your eyes. Breath in... and out... in...and out... Do not try to stop all your thoughts. Just allow them to be. Accept each thought, then see it evaporate and blow away. Imagine yourself in a meadow. It is a chilly February day. You are sitting on grass that is yellow, dormant and waiting to come back to life. Dotting your meadow are trees, gray and linear, their buds waiting just below the surface. The meadow gains sustenance from the stream that meanders slowly by you. The Sun is rising behind you. In front of you is the full moon; bright and luminous. It is a brand new day. Uncertain what the day might bring, you decide to get up and walk out of your meadow across the hills that surround it. As you come to the top of the first hill, you see a small village in the valley below. You turn your attention to a cottage that has a large plume of smoke coming out of the chimney. You walk toward the cottage. As you approach, you begin to hear a dull roar and the distinct sound of metal striking metal. When you open the door to the cottage, a wave of heat engulfs you. Through the haze, you see a figure hammering steel on an anvil. The figure turns toward you; it is a woman. She is tall, thick bodied and strong. Her long, curly red hair is piled on top of her head. Her face and clothes are stained with the efforts of her labor. "Hello," she says. "I was wondering when you'd come. You have much to learn. Come and join me - together, we will make something beautiful and precious." Feeling uncertain, you approach the glowing hot forge and tentatively pick up a hammer. The smith-woman shows you how to heat steel in the forge and how to use hammer and anvil to shape and mold it. She teaches you how to make a sword. It is difficult, challenging work to shape the sword so it is just right. Frustrated, you hammer away bit by bit, little by little. You become dizzy with the heat and the effort. Sweat runs down your forehead and into your eyes - your vision blurs... ...and suddenly it clears. You look down at the sword and realize that it is not a sword. It is Today. You stop hammering and stare at your work. Today is a beautiful, rich, glowing treasure. In awe, you realize that it is yours to shape as you will. With renewed vigor, you begin hammering again. Each time your hammer impacts, the shape of Today changes and grows. When you are finished, you admire your effort with pride. You turn to find the smith-woman who showed you this craft. She smiles radiantly at you. Her warmth and confidence fill you. You know that if you ever need her again, she will be waiting for you, here in this cottage, to show you the craft of making Today your own. You leave the smith-woman's cottage. The crisp February air cools your body and you walk back to your meadow with confidence. You kneel on the banks of the stream that babbles through your meadow and drink deeply of its cool water. You feel the water flowing down through your body...slowing bringing your awareness back to this room. IV. Spell-work - A. Raising Energy- Dance 3 times, and then light candles around clockwise... Chant: From one flame All candles are lit Here our intentions we name and to our visions we commit V. Thanking A. Share in snacks and experiences of circle B. Thank the god/dess C. Thank the elements D. Break the space Credits: Chant * by Lee Lanning and Nett Hart God/dess Invoking Poetry ** by Shining Spider Myth*** from 365 Goddess by Patricia Telesco Meditation **** by Kate P. Candle chant by Shining Spider |