The Way of Ritual

Over many years the purpose and meaning of ritual has been lost. In many cases it has become just something you do before the party. Ritual serves many purposes.

First : It is spiritual exercise. From the outside people stand up wave their arms and say some words. What has been lost is the inner meaning. Each action or phrase is the outward expression of an inward and spiritual reality. By themselves the words have little to no meaning. It is the thought, feelings and intent of the ritualist that is important. During the banishing of the circle in the beginning of a rite a ritualist may say   " all that will not work with us BE GONE! " by itself this is meaning less. The ritualist envisions the forces that would hinder the ritual. ( Within the circle, the minds of the people attending and the magical universe ) By itself this is not enough. The ritualist visualizes those forces being blown away from the rite. This is still not enough. The ritualist puts their will and intent behind the visualization  and lets the rest of the circle know what they have done by saying " all that will not work with us be gone ! "  THIS WORKS! It would work just as well if the words were " uglies get lost." 

  It also is work, requiring much more effort  than just saying some words.  Ritual can be physically exhausting.

Second it is teaching ourselves about the universe. The universe shows itself to us in everything we see and feel. The nightly news gives us a picture of the Universe as murder rape and fraud. There is more to the universe than this. When we call the Quarters we are calling the universe. Breaking the universe down into quarters just makes it more manageable for us to work with. Just saying the words has little effect on us or the rite. To call the quarter we must connect with it at more than a verbal level. We reach into our own memories for the parts of the quarter that show us what it is. The parts that are great, strong, beautiful, terrible and majestic. Parts of the quarter  that have affected us are what we call.  

In thinking of water I remember  being at Lake Pulaski in the morning, looking at the water. It looked like liquid silver and the air was still.  The cattails were stark and starting to fuzz and there was a mist or a fog inches above the water.  It was a serene beautiful moment out of time that  touched me with a feeling of awe at its simplicity.  I stand in the west and I remember this moment and its feelings. I want it and I call it forth from my memory and I pull it out of  the universe of water where it still is. I say " I call the reflective power of Water ". The energy comes into the circle and lifts me up with its power and reminds me of a trout stream in the Dardenells with its white water boiling over the rocks and a soft roar all around me. I am impressed with the  power, force and life of this water.  I reach out for it in the magical universe and I say "I call the stream cutting through the mountains foaming and alive!" The energy comes into the circle and lifts me up with its power etc.

It takes time,  practice and will to bring power out of our past and from the Universe. Beginners often call the memory without the feelings that are part of the experience they had and so lose a key part of what they want to call. In the beginning their wanting and calling the power/ experience that they had is not strong enough to get an equal return from the magical universe. With time and practice they pass the break even point and more energy comes in than they put out. Taking that incoming energy  and using it to call more, starts a flow. Once a ritualist gets the flow started it lifts them up and exalts them and the quarter that they are calling. Soon they do not have to think about " what to call next?"  the images and visions come naturally  with the flow.  The quarters teach us things we have always known but never realized we knew. What we learn here is a better and more complete view of the universe than the Nightly News. We really do  live in an amazing universe.

Third socially ritual brings us together and works at expressing the wholeness of the universe. We hold hands and sing and sway. A song stops and someone starts a new one No one is in charge and leading. We are part of a whole There is cooperation but no domination. There is a place for me here. There is a place for you here if you want it,  you don’t even have to ask for it. The Rite moves on it is time for calling the quarters so we sing " The Earth The Air The fire The Water "  Someone calls the North / Earth. This we decided before the rite.  They call  Badgers Rabbits the Mountain Olympus it goes on for a time.  Dam,  the Earth is powerful great and  wonderful.  Listening to them I can see it.  Their love and admiration, it is obvious . Now they say to the Earth  " by my will you are welcome " 

It is my turn I have the East / Air  I like Air.  I can’t let Air be less than the Earth. I am challenged to show that Air is just as great. I think of what we are doing as a great song. " I call the blessings of Aeolis God of the wind and music."  The Earth has its badgers,  well the Air has birds. I remember a humming bird that was watching me as I rode in a car.  It was flying seventy miles an hour backwards. Effortlessly. " I call the bright birds that fly the sky"  The flow starts and I am lifted up into a whirlwind of Air. Everyone else in the circle disappears from my consciousness.  I ride the flow. Sometimes I direct it toward places in Air that I know and who’s power I want for this rite. Sometimes I let the flow carry me into new areas.  I don’t know how long I have ridden the winds but I am getting tired. I think of all that is Air Beautiful,  inspiring, powerful and my friends and I say   " by my will you are welcome "