Samhain/Day of the Dead/All Saints Day 2004 arranged by ---Shining Spider- 2004 I. Creating A Sacred Space A. Smudge Space 1. Group smudges and focuses on clean and safe space B. Introductions 1. Names and truths 2. Explanation of the Holiday: Through out the Northern Hemisphere the cycle of farm life has been completed. Seeds were planted, tended to, flourished under sun and rain, and finally harvested. Seeds from fruit and flower have been gathered for the next spring. Now after all of this work, we must rest and prepare for the dark months ahead. The Astrologically, and within the wheel year this is a cross quarter day, situated between Autumn Equinox and Winter Solstice. Astrologically, Samhain marks the rising of the Pleiades. It is said that if you go to a crossroads at Halloween and listen to the wind, you will learn all the most important things that will befall you during the next twelve months. This is a time of completion, and of reflection. The belief is that the veil between the physical world and the spiritual is at its thinnest. This is a time for communication with the dead, divination and confrontation of the shadow self. C. Ground and Center 1. Group meditation D. Call Elements 1. East to North deosil E. Create Space 1. Group meditation II. Calling And Honoring the Divine A. To call the Goddess** (Aspect Crone) a participant reads: Dark Mother, wild Mother of the waning moon we ask that you join us that you show us the path through the cold ground through death and loss to a place of wisdom. B. To call the God** (Aspect Dying One) a participant reads: Dying father the wheel year has turned your ground is growing colder hard and unyeliding. In your death we find silence and peace and the knowledge that buried deep within the ground and within us all is the seed the knowledge that come spring you shall find root again. C. To call Spirit *group meditation/calling* Spirit we find your spark in the ground in the air in the plants and in each other. join with us tonight So we may feel that energy in circle and in each other. D. Honor those who came before *group meditation/calling* El Consejo Materno Ven para aca me dijo dulcemente mi madre cierto dia (aun parece que escucho en el ambiente de su voz la celeste melodia) Ven y dime que causas tan extranas Te arrancan esas lagrimas, hijo mio Que cuela de tus tremulas pestanas Como cota cuajada de rocio. Tu tienes una pena y me la ocultas: no sabes que la madre mas sencilla sabe leer en el alma de sus hijos como tu en la cartilla? Quieres que te adivine, lo que sientes? Ven para sea, pilleuelo que con un par de besos en la frente dispaire las nubes de tu cielo. Yo prorrumpi, a llorar. Nada Le dije – La causa de mi lagrimas ignoro; pero de vez en cuando se me oprime el corazon y lloro! … Ella incino la menta pensativa se turbo su pupila y enjugando sus ojos y los mios mi dijo mas tranquila: –Llama siempre a tu madre cuando sufras; que vendra muerta o viva; si esta en el mundo a compartir tus penas y si no, a consolarte desde arriba! Y lo hago asi quando la suerte airada como hoy perturba de mi hogar la calma; invoco el nombre de mi madre amada, y entonces, siento que se ensancha mi alma E. Myth: 1. story of Vasalisa Read from Women Who Run With Wolves.) 2. The 9 tasks the myth holds: a. Allowing the Good Mother To Die- Letting die what must die, in that loss a new person is born b. Exposing the Crude Shadow (evil step-mom)- finding that that being overly sweet and good will not cause life to sing. c. Navigating in the Dark (the woods)- consenting to venture into ourselves (the doll as the wild self) d. Facing the Wild Hag- being able to face the wild goddess with out wavering; taking some of her values into our lives e. Serving the non-rational- Vasalisa does chores in exchange for fire- keeping the wild goddess close. 1- the house as a symbol of the psyche 2- washing of clothes as cleansing of the psyche 3- sweeping the floor- keeping psychic space uncluttered (daily meditation/art) 4- cooking for Baba Yaga- feeding the wild mother f. Separating this from that (seeds)- learning fine discrimination. Leaving the doll to sort the seeds is like 'sleeping on' an issue. g. Asking the Mysteries- Vasalisa asks about the horsemen (questioning and trying to learn more about life/death/life cycle) h. Standing on All Fours- receiving the fiery skull as light, and going on her way (taking on immense power to see and affect others) i. Recasting the shadow- the skull burning the wicked step-family (recasting the shadows in your own psyche) 3. Supplemental: Baba Yaga by some tales is considered a fearsome 'witch'. In some stories her back is bent, or her nose is large and crooked meeting her chin in the middle of herface. She is also known at times as "Baba Yaga Kostianaya Noga' or Baba Yaga Boney Legs, because despite her eating habits she is as thin as a skeleton. Like many of the witch imagry you'll see around the holiday she is associated with the broom, and other 'witchy' things. It is said that she travels the landscape in a large mortar pushed along with a pestle sweeping away all traces of her path with a broom. As a symbol of her living on the edge of the 'community' she lives in a hut in the forest. The dwelling can move freely on its own by its large chicken legs that spin, rising and falling according to seasonal changes. The whole thing is surrounded by a fence made of human bones. The story of Baba Yaga is a prime example among many images of the Black Goddess, the Crone or the wise woman archetype. All of these being at the heart of all creative. Men and women rarely approach her, except in fear. Over time and in recent history the Crone became associated with the dark side of the feminine; the withered old hag, the witch. Ironically, the word "Hag" used to mean "holy one" from the Greek hadia, as in hagiolatry, "worship of saints." (Starck 1993). And during the middle ages hag was said to mean the same as fairy Any Person who denies the life process at any time in their development: clinging desperately to outmoded images, myths and rituals of their past, obscures their connection with Self, the Divine, and therefore, the natural universe. There is a kind of internal balance and sense of holiness available to us when we accept ourselves as part of a world that honors cycles, changes, decay and rebirth. III. Pathwork A. Meditation*** Close your eyes. Settle your mind. Breathe in deeply through your nose and exhale through your mouth. Find your pulse slowing into a deeply soothing rhythm. Breathe in deeply through your nose smelling the dark earth And exhale through your mouth feeling the hot air escape into the cold night. The air on your limbs is cool and refreshing. When your eyes open you see a night's sky full of stars and a moon almost full, but waning face. You are drawn in to the grove. While at first the path was not obvious you find yourself picking between brush and winding between large majestic trees. You hear the scurry of mice, and the crunch of leaves being stepped on by predators. The moon gives enough light that you can see ahead of you and the path that you are on. You continue walking smelling, listening and sensing the nature around you until the path stops at a tree. You walk around the tree, feeling its thick bark. You realize that near the base what from a distance looked like a knot, or fallen limb is really a door into the tree. You take a minute or two to figure out how to open the door, then when you are ready, you find yourself inside the tree. Give yourself a moment to adjust to the change of light, the different smells and temperatures of this new place The inside of the tree is one room. How does the floor look? As your eyes travel upward you notice that the walls are covered with many different masks hanging. Let your eyes travel around and appreciate your surroundings. You realize you are wearing a mask that is too tight. It does not fit or suit you anymore. You take it off, and hang it on the spare peg right in front of you. Then, when you are ready find another mask on the wall. Find one that is your size; one that suits you. Looks at its face, find comfort and confidence in the features. Put on the mask and notice how it makes you feel. When you are ready stand up and walk out of the tree. Now back in the forest, notice how you feel, if there is any difference in how you see the woods, the night, or how you hear, and feel the nature surrounding you. When you are ready pick your way through the woods, finding your path to the clearing again. When you are in the field close your eyes. Settle your mind. Breathe in through your nose And out through your mouth. The air is warming, and there is light against your eyelids Now feel your physical body, and the temperature of this room. When you area ready, open your eyes. IV. Spell-work - A. Raising Energy- Chants: Hoof and Horn Hoof and horn All that dies Shall be reborn Corn and grain Corn and grain All that falls shall rise again V. Thanking A. Share in baked pumpkin seeds B. Thank the god/dess C. Thank the elements D. Break the space Incense: provided by the Store Credits: God/dess Invoking Poetry ** by Shining Spider Ancestor poem " El Consejo Materno" by Olegario V. Andrade an Argentinian poet. Story of Vasalisa *** As told by Clarissa Pinkola Estes Ph.D. in 'Women Who Run With Wolves pg. 75-80 More info on Baba Yaga can be found http://www.mythinglinks.org/BabaYaga.html Meditation by Shining Spider |