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Peter Mooney©™ <--NEO--->

31ST OCTOBER.

The most popular festival of the year, 'the witches new year'.

Known under many names  such as  Samhain , ' Halloween,' day of the dead,' 'shadowmass,' 'old hallowmas,''feast of the souls ' and others.

We, as witches/wiccans now see our goddess in her crone aspect, our god has now descended into the underworld to rule, and to rest before rebirth. together they will rule in love, preparing old souls for rebirth and our god,  as' lord of the wild hunt' riding with his hounds, chasing souls who are reluctant to leave the earth, to go to the shadowlands.

Now is when by old farming calendars  mark the end of summer and winter begins everything outside was now done , and preparation began for the coming year.  Samhain 'an ending and a beginning.

Steeped in mystery , custom and myths, dating back to ancient times this is when the veil between our two worlds of man and spirit are thinnest, we take this time to remember and honour the dead  of the year, guiding them to the shadowlands.

As witches we believe in reincarnation and are not afraid.

We put our old year behind us now and contemplate and meditate, resting  and preparing ourselves ,for new ventures to come.

Yet this is also a fun time  of  parties and bonfires, pumpkins and dressing up as we celebrate life and death.  A perfect time for divination and meditation work.

Brightest Blessings;

Pete

As I have previously stated "Wicca is a religion", and as such deserves respect and reverence just like any other religion or spiritual belief.

Unlike many of the mainstream religious organisations of today, Wicca does not force people into believing they will burn in hell for eternity simply for having an opinion or making a bad decision. We are all equal and we all make mistakes, It's only natural and we are only human. Life is a lesson, a tool which should be utilised to gain wisdom and knowledge, and there is no better way to learn than from one’s own mistakes. Wicca was once forced underground for by many of these religious organisations. Nowadays we are lucky to live in a society that is much more open minded and people are slowly learning to live and let live…

As you will soon learn, many of the festivals and days of the religious calendar originated from the pagan days of power, such as the sabbats and equinoxes. In the past other religions also realised these days of power and felt threatened by the Wiccan way of life and tried to claim and overshadow many of them. The sabbats are a way of keeping us in tune with nature and the ever turning wheel of life. There are eight Wiccan Sabbats…

They are as follows:

IMBOLG: Falls on the 2^nd of February and is also known by many other names including imbolc, candlemas and Oimlec.

The Spring Equinox: Which falls on March 21^st.

Bealtaine: Is on April 30^th and also has many other names, Such as May Eve.

Midsummer: Or The summer solstice, falls on June 22^nd. There are also many names for this sabbat. The midsummer sabbat is also often called Beltane.

Lughnasadh: Lammas Eve, amongst other names, falls on July 31^st .

Autumn Equinox: Comes on the 21^st of September.

Samhain: My favourite Time of year, Hallowe’en, All Hallows Eve, Falls on the 31^st of October of each year.

Yule: The winter solstice, Falls on December 22^nd.

Although all of these sabbats are of relevance and importance, Imbolg, Bealtaine, Lughnasadh and Samhain are the major sabbats, The usual consist of the eve as well as the day, For example; Christmas eve and Christmas day. The actual dates may vary slightly from those of traditional dates and depending on astronomical factors etc. The solstices and the equinoxes are the minor sabbats, but are no less important than the major sabbats. In time you will learn about the sabbats and their importance and uses. These are the days of power and should be utilised and respected.

Imbolic, February 2^nd

The word ‘Imbolic’ comes from the Irish phrase ‘i mbolg’, meaning ‘In the belly’. This is the time of year when the goddess in the form of the crone, discards her winter cloak and becomes once again, the maiden. She recovers from the birth of the young god, we celebrate the goddess in her maiden form and also the child aspect of the god. This is symbolised by the earth reawakening from the long harsh winter and slowly beginning spring into life once again. The trees slowly sprout new leafs, animals soon start to come out of hibernation, the grass begins to turn a healthy shade of green and we see the first lambs in the fields and on the hillsides. It is at this time of year we begin to look to the future , we begin to spring clean and rid our lives of bad habits and we begin to plan ahead for the coming months.

In Ireland we make crosses of St. Bridget from straw or rush at this time of year. It is a Scottish tradition make a bed of rush or straw and place a corn dolly dressed as a bride in it to symbolised the goddess in her maiden form as Bridget. They would then place a masculine symbol , such as a tool of labour or a club next to the bed and leave it by candlelight throughout the night. This was, and still is, in many places done to ensure the fertility of the land in the months ahead. There are many traditions such as this all around the world.

Imbolic is a festival of light and fire. Most Wiccans refer to Imbolic by its Christianised name, candlemas. It is a happy time of year and we light candles and fires to bring light to the darkness and symbolise the end of winter. This is a sabbat of new beginnings, a time to rid of the old and welcome the new. A time of rebirth and death as a new beginning. This is also a good time for the making of candles for use in ritual and spells in the coming year.

In most covens the high priestess will wear a crown of thirteen lights or candles to symbolise the return of the goddess to her maiden aspect. The altar is usually decorated with a white cloth, a sprig of evergreen, some white and yellow flowers, A besom or broom and a statue of the triple goddess in her maiden form. Some Wiccans also like to place the symbol of a wheel on their altar. This is a good time of year for initiations and self dedication to the goddess and to the craft. Imbolic is an ideal time casting spells for new beginnings, rejuvenation, good luck and good luck in the future and especially purification spells.

I am a firm believer that the rituals, rites and spells that work best on any occasion are the ones we create ourselves. This makes them more personal, easier to remember, and they are filled with our own personal power. I would suggest you find a nice quiet place you know you will not be disturbed before you begin any ritual, you may prefer to work outdoors, many Wiccans feel closer to the goddess and the god when they are amongst nature. Choose the right time for your ritual, most are performed after dark so, if you are going to work outdoors, make sure you are in a safe and secure place.

Gather up all the materials you require for the ritual, this may be light to read by, incense, candles, athame, food for libation etc. You may want to perform the ritual naked or sky clad, If not you should wear clothes of a colour coinciding with the event.

It is at this time you should take a bath and ad some salt, preferably sea salt. You should visualise the water cleaning your spirit and soul as well as your body in a bright white and blue beam of light.

When you are sure you have everything you need and you are cleansed of all the days worries and stress take a moment to calm yourself light a candle and sit and meditate for a while on how the light has begin to break the darkness, feel the goddess’ presence in her fiery maiden aspect of light.

If you forget a line of the ritual or get confused by it all, don’t panic, just continue on. You will soon get used to it all and it will begin to come to you naturally.

Here is an example of an Imbolic ritual which you can use if you are not feeling quite sure or confident enough yet to write your own. If you are lucky enough to be working as part of a coven the group may already have their own ritual which you will participate in.

A simple Imbolic Ritual:

What you will need:

· An altar facing in an eastern direction, this can be a small table, or even set up on the floor.

· 20 white candles

· A white altar cloth

· Some white and yellow flowers

· Some cakes and ale. This can be as simple as bread and water , or a feast, if you like!

· A small dish or saucer for libation

· Some white and/or yellow flowers for decoration, not essential, such as snowdrops and lilies.

· Stick incense or dried incense and some charcoal to burn it on. You can use any of these or a mixture of all: basil, myrrh, frankincense, wisteria, jasmine

Begin by cleansing the area in which you will be working.

On your altar lay down your white table cloth and decorate it with the flowers you gathered earlier.

Now place your libation dish and your cakes and ale or similar on the altar.

You should make a circle of thirteen white candles in the centre, to symbolise a cauldron or a the sacred womb.

Then place a candle as a symbol of the goddess within this circle. Now place a candle to the far left and right side of the altar. Once you have this done place a candle on the ground at the east point of where you will create your circle, slowly walk around in a clockwise direction and place a candle in the north, west and south corners.

When you are ready, light the candles on the left and right side of the altar and the incense using a taper or a match,. Now walk in a clockwise direction and light the candle in the east corner of your circle and continue around slowly and light the remaining three in a clockwise direction.

The next step is to cast the sacred circle as covered earlier.

Meditate for a few moments to gather your bearings and clear your mind.

Invoke the goddess in the following manner or if you prefer in a way that you have previously written or feel more comfortable.

(You may wish to use names for the Deities such as Diana, Isis, Pan, Osiris)

O’ Sacred mother, Giver of life,

Lady of the divine light,

I ask of you to assist me and offer your guardianship in my rite,

I stand her in your honour, In celebration of your gifts and glory.

So mote it be.

Now invoke the young god.

O’ Great guardian of the universe, Fire of the skies,

Lord of the forest, King of the beasts,

I ask of you to assist me and offer your guardianship in my rite,

I stand her in your honour, In celebration of your gifts and glory.

So mote it be.

Light the remaining fourteen candles on the alter starting in the east and finishing with the goddess candle in the centre, and as you do so say:

Break the darkness and bring the light,

Come forth my lady out of the night.

Break the darkness and bring the light,

Come forth my lord out of the night.

Now take a moment to visualise the energy of the lord and lady bring light to the darkness, Feel the heat and the energy fill the room….

Offer up the incense in their honour in the following or similar manner:

O’ Almighty ones, Timeless Goddess and Sacred King,

I welcome thee in celebration!

O’ sacred lady, Giver of life and all that is blessed

May this time and place be sacred to your power and beauty.

So mote it be.

Cakes and Ale as covered earlier in this book…. Place a small amount on your libation dish and put it back into the earth later or leave it as an offering for the goddess and the god…

When you are ready, Face the circle of thirteen candles and say:

O’ sacred Maiden, most blessed Bride,

I burn your candle throughout this night,

To honour thee , and thank thee for the gift of life,

Emerge from the darkness and bring forth the light.

So mote it be.

You may now extinguish all the altar candles apart from the one within the circle of the thirteen candles. Thank the goddess and the god for attending your ritual and bid them farewell. Thank the guardians of the quarters and extinguish the for corner candles of the circle in a clockwise direction starting in the east.

Close the circle.

Your ritual is now complete. You should leave the candle burning in the centre of the altar throughout the night in honour of the goddess….

Pete