Monday, June 24, 2013

2013 Summer Solstice Ritual Attendance

Well, the sunburn hasn't faded yet so I better write this up before time passes and I forget!

This past Saturday I attended the local Grove's Litha ritual.  This ritual was different from previous rituals in that we held the ritual at Gaea Retreat Center and then had space reserved for overnight camping.  The Vedic pantheon was the focus.

The heat index hovered near 100 degrees as the ritual began.  My part in the ritual was the invocation to the fire.  I had previously memorized my part and had brought the ghee that was offered.  During the "workings" session of the ritual one of the regular attendees (I don't believe she is an "official" member) had an adult naming ceremony.  This was very nice and I appreciated the symbolism of her walking around the fire three times.  We typically haven't had any major workings during ritual - maybe just a brief mention of someone needing healing/help and the burning of a small offering.  I really liked having something "active" to focus on besides that basic ritual order.

Like most participants, we stayed to camp and had a wonderful day of swimming and hiking and shared meals.  My daughters also made wianki (wreaths) and we let them afloat on the lake near sundown.  It truly felt like a holiday.

One last thought:  prior to this ritual I gave my daughters a brief history lesson, explaining the relationship between the Vedic pantheon and other Indo-European pantheons.  There are some pantheons that I just don't feel much of a connection with at all, i.e. Saxon and Celtic.  Sometimes it seems like those Gods/Goddesses and I don't speak the same (figurative) language - there is no animosity between us, rather just head-shaking bewilderment.  We just don't get each other and that's okay (at least for now).  But then there are other pantheons that I connect with right away and "get."  I consider the Slavic pantheon my primary pantheon - I have established relationships with several of Slavic deities.  I also have a connection with the Avestan and Vedic pantheons and have begun working with a few of those respective deities. 

No comments:

Post a Comment