As polytheists, we often find ourselves in need of further spiritual work to begin the healing process when a loved one crosses the veil, especially when the family of the departed insists upon a funeral service from a monotheist point of view. I recently lost a dear friend who was honored in the most pagan way possible. I was struck by how fortunate we were to be able to express our loss in line with our personal religious values. I offer this personal rite to assist in honoring the one who has passed and to assist in beginning the healing process that must follow such a loss. May peace find your hearts.
Blessings,
Rev. Bee
Materials Needed:
Standard Fire/Well/Tree set up
Offerings for the Earth Mother and the Kindreds
Additional Offering for the Ancestors
Initiate the rite with a bell/chime or drum.
Statement of Purpose:
We gather today to honor the life of one who has passed.
Earth Mother invitation:
We call to you Blessed Earth Mother,
Creator, Giver of Life
Provider, Sustainer of all,
To be welcome in this place.
The rock upon which we stand,
We are comforted by your constancy.
Envelope us in your loving care and
Caress us with your gentle breath.
Your body, the land.
Your blood, the rolling sea.
Your essence, the Waters of life.
Earth Mother, All Mother, Our Mother,
You are everything to us.
Blessed Gaia, Mother Earth,
Our bodies were once a part of your body,
Set aside in our time to shape and change the World,
But to you shall we return once more at the end of our days.
May it be so that we lie down with pride in your pastures
Where our bodies shall once more be absorbed into yours,
Freeing our spirits to be welcomed in the Halls of the Ancestors.
Earth Mother, hear our words
And know them to be true.
Earth Mother, accept our sacrifice! (Make offering)
Grounding and Centering:
Take a moment and find your center. Feel yourself in your own skin, aware of all your parts from toes and legs, hand and arms, stomach and back, to neck to head and beyond.
Feel your mind, and as you do so, allow the stress and discontent to drain down your body and into the Earth Mother who is waiting to carry them away.
Feel also your heart. See the places where there has been damage and focus your energy on healing those wounds. Even though you cannot heal them completely in this time, open yourself enough to allow the healing process to begin.
Once you are in full contact with all you are, mind and body, focus on your spirit, the YOU behind you. Feel your inner self grow until you are full and you are one.
Now, see in your mind’s eye the expanse of the heavens above you, like a starry blanket of night enshrouding the world. Focus on a single star, a single point of pulsating light and allow your vision to blur until you can see the rays emanating from its center. Draw those rays down upon and feel the warmth of the light covering you, bringing new hope and healing.
Allow this light energy to enter your mind, to enter and fill you, pushing down all that is ailing you, all the hurt and loss and sorrow, pushing it down through your head, through your neck until it pools in your heart. This sadness that runs deep, this pain and suffering lingering here are not serving you any longer. Gather them all together into one ball of hurt and sorrow.
Draw down once more from above and continue to push down, keeping your grief contained in this ball. Push it down through your loins, through your legs and into the waiting hands of the Earth Mother.
Once you have pushed the hurt and sadness into her hands, once she has reached out and accepted what you are giving her, you must let go. Watch as she takes this carefully tended and intimate part of you and places it in the pools below, the Underworld waters beneath the Earth.
Emptied and drained, you need only breathe in and allow the Earth Mother to begin to fill you with the Waters of Life. Feel them trickling up into your feet, up your legs and into your belly. Feel them filling you, revitalizing you.
Feel them as they enter your heart, bringing their cool, healing touch to all those places that you marked for repair. Feel them transferring the physical love the Earth Mother has for you into your heart and infusing it into your life’s blood.
Feel this Earth Power draw up, through your neck and into your mind, bringing peace and contentment, bringing acceptance and new beginnings. Feel your mind relax and float in the gentle Waters of the Earth Mother as though she is holding you in her hands. Commune with her there, show her your residual pains and give them to her to wash away.
With one last deep breath, feel the Earth Waters fill you completely and spill out over your head, running down your body and back to the Earth, carrying away the last of the sorrow and pain you have been harboring and leaving you filled with peace and a new-found strength.
When you are ready, open your eyes with peace and prepare for the work ahead.
Hallowing the Sacred Center and Inviting the Kindreds:
Hallow the Fire with a drop of oil or a sprinkling of incense powder, saying,
May this flame be whole and Holy,
Connecting this altar to all Altars,
This fire to all Fires,
That our words and deeds may be heard and seen by the Gods.
Shining Gods and Goddesses,
First Children of the Mother,
Praise and Honor be yours!
We thank you for your wisdom,
For your grace and for your vision.
We thank you for the powers of
Creation and evolution you bring to our lives.
And we thank you for aiding us and warding us
As we walk the Elder Ways together.
Shining Ones, accept our sacrifice! (Make offering)
Hallow the tree with incense, saying,
May you be made whole and holy
as this smoke billows around your branches.
May they grow high into the sky,
into the Upper Realms where they touch the Sacred Fires above.
As this smoke gathers at your base,
may your roots sink down into the Primal Waters beneath the Earth Mother,
connecting us to the Realms below.
And may you open wide the ways to those who dwell in this realm
and behind this realm, those Noble Kin of Old.
Hail the Noble Ones!
Kin beside kin,
Good neighbors and friends
We honor you!
We thank you for the peace
And protection that you give us,
For the inspiration and magic
With which you fill our hearts,
And the companionship we share
As we walk this world together.
Noble Ones, accept our sacrifice! (Make offering)
Hallow the Well with silver, saying,
May these waters be made Whole and Holy,
sinking down, down, down into the Earth
to become one with the Waters below,
joining with well with all Wells,
and carrying out words and deeds to the Ancestors
in the Underworld beneath us.
We call out to the Ancestors!
To those of body who have given of their blood.
To those of heart who have given of their love.
To those of wisdom who have uncovered great truths.
And to those of hearth who have taught us to honor the Gods.
For the knowledge you have gained through your experience,
Used to build the foundations upon which we stand,
And the lessons you have left for us,
We give you thanks and praise.
Ancestors, accept our sacrifice! (Make offering)
Ancestral Dedication:
[Call to the Ancestors of your line and ask them to welcome the recently deceased into their care and to guide you to peace in the knowledge of the deceased new place among them. This can be rather informal, as you feel called, and does not need to be pre-written.]
Closing statements:
To all those gathered, we thank you for your gifts, and we ask that you continue to be present in our lives as we walk the Elder Ways in truth and love.
Kindreds, all, we thank you.
Earth Mother,
For upholding us in this rite and in our lives,
First and last honor are given to you.
All things unused will be returned to your bounty
That they may be transformed and serve a greater purpose
In the web of life.
Earth Mother, we thank you.
Breathe deeply and feel the cleansing air of healing and new beginnings filling your lungs and coursing through your veins.
Go with peace in your spirit and the names of your Ancestors on your lips and in your heart.
Blessings,
Rev. Bee
Materials Needed:
Standard Fire/Well/Tree set up
Offerings for the Earth Mother and the Kindreds
Additional Offering for the Ancestors
Initiate the rite with a bell/chime or drum.
Statement of Purpose:
We gather today to honor the life of one who has passed.
Earth Mother invitation:
We call to you Blessed Earth Mother,
Creator, Giver of Life
Provider, Sustainer of all,
To be welcome in this place.
The rock upon which we stand,
We are comforted by your constancy.
Envelope us in your loving care and
Caress us with your gentle breath.
Your body, the land.
Your blood, the rolling sea.
Your essence, the Waters of life.
Earth Mother, All Mother, Our Mother,
You are everything to us.
Blessed Gaia, Mother Earth,
Our bodies were once a part of your body,
Set aside in our time to shape and change the World,
But to you shall we return once more at the end of our days.
May it be so that we lie down with pride in your pastures
Where our bodies shall once more be absorbed into yours,
Freeing our spirits to be welcomed in the Halls of the Ancestors.
Earth Mother, hear our words
And know them to be true.
Earth Mother, accept our sacrifice! (Make offering)
Grounding and Centering:
Take a moment and find your center. Feel yourself in your own skin, aware of all your parts from toes and legs, hand and arms, stomach and back, to neck to head and beyond.
Feel your mind, and as you do so, allow the stress and discontent to drain down your body and into the Earth Mother who is waiting to carry them away.
Feel also your heart. See the places where there has been damage and focus your energy on healing those wounds. Even though you cannot heal them completely in this time, open yourself enough to allow the healing process to begin.
Once you are in full contact with all you are, mind and body, focus on your spirit, the YOU behind you. Feel your inner self grow until you are full and you are one.
Now, see in your mind’s eye the expanse of the heavens above you, like a starry blanket of night enshrouding the world. Focus on a single star, a single point of pulsating light and allow your vision to blur until you can see the rays emanating from its center. Draw those rays down upon and feel the warmth of the light covering you, bringing new hope and healing.
Allow this light energy to enter your mind, to enter and fill you, pushing down all that is ailing you, all the hurt and loss and sorrow, pushing it down through your head, through your neck until it pools in your heart. This sadness that runs deep, this pain and suffering lingering here are not serving you any longer. Gather them all together into one ball of hurt and sorrow.
Draw down once more from above and continue to push down, keeping your grief contained in this ball. Push it down through your loins, through your legs and into the waiting hands of the Earth Mother.
Once you have pushed the hurt and sadness into her hands, once she has reached out and accepted what you are giving her, you must let go. Watch as she takes this carefully tended and intimate part of you and places it in the pools below, the Underworld waters beneath the Earth.
Emptied and drained, you need only breathe in and allow the Earth Mother to begin to fill you with the Waters of Life. Feel them trickling up into your feet, up your legs and into your belly. Feel them filling you, revitalizing you.
Feel them as they enter your heart, bringing their cool, healing touch to all those places that you marked for repair. Feel them transferring the physical love the Earth Mother has for you into your heart and infusing it into your life’s blood.
Feel this Earth Power draw up, through your neck and into your mind, bringing peace and contentment, bringing acceptance and new beginnings. Feel your mind relax and float in the gentle Waters of the Earth Mother as though she is holding you in her hands. Commune with her there, show her your residual pains and give them to her to wash away.
With one last deep breath, feel the Earth Waters fill you completely and spill out over your head, running down your body and back to the Earth, carrying away the last of the sorrow and pain you have been harboring and leaving you filled with peace and a new-found strength.
When you are ready, open your eyes with peace and prepare for the work ahead.
Hallowing the Sacred Center and Inviting the Kindreds:
Hallow the Fire with a drop of oil or a sprinkling of incense powder, saying,
May this flame be whole and Holy,
Connecting this altar to all Altars,
This fire to all Fires,
That our words and deeds may be heard and seen by the Gods.
Shining Gods and Goddesses,
First Children of the Mother,
Praise and Honor be yours!
We thank you for your wisdom,
For your grace and for your vision.
We thank you for the powers of
Creation and evolution you bring to our lives.
And we thank you for aiding us and warding us
As we walk the Elder Ways together.
Shining Ones, accept our sacrifice! (Make offering)
Hallow the tree with incense, saying,
May you be made whole and holy
as this smoke billows around your branches.
May they grow high into the sky,
into the Upper Realms where they touch the Sacred Fires above.
As this smoke gathers at your base,
may your roots sink down into the Primal Waters beneath the Earth Mother,
connecting us to the Realms below.
And may you open wide the ways to those who dwell in this realm
and behind this realm, those Noble Kin of Old.
Hail the Noble Ones!
Kin beside kin,
Good neighbors and friends
We honor you!
We thank you for the peace
And protection that you give us,
For the inspiration and magic
With which you fill our hearts,
And the companionship we share
As we walk this world together.
Noble Ones, accept our sacrifice! (Make offering)
Hallow the Well with silver, saying,
May these waters be made Whole and Holy,
sinking down, down, down into the Earth
to become one with the Waters below,
joining with well with all Wells,
and carrying out words and deeds to the Ancestors
in the Underworld beneath us.
We call out to the Ancestors!
To those of body who have given of their blood.
To those of heart who have given of their love.
To those of wisdom who have uncovered great truths.
And to those of hearth who have taught us to honor the Gods.
For the knowledge you have gained through your experience,
Used to build the foundations upon which we stand,
And the lessons you have left for us,
We give you thanks and praise.
Ancestors, accept our sacrifice! (Make offering)
Ancestral Dedication:
[Call to the Ancestors of your line and ask them to welcome the recently deceased into their care and to guide you to peace in the knowledge of the deceased new place among them. This can be rather informal, as you feel called, and does not need to be pre-written.]
Closing statements:
To all those gathered, we thank you for your gifts, and we ask that you continue to be present in our lives as we walk the Elder Ways in truth and love.
Kindreds, all, we thank you.
Earth Mother,
For upholding us in this rite and in our lives,
First and last honor are given to you.
All things unused will be returned to your bounty
That they may be transformed and serve a greater purpose
In the web of life.
Earth Mother, we thank you.
Breathe deeply and feel the cleansing air of healing and new beginnings filling your lungs and coursing through your veins.
Go with peace in your spirit and the names of your Ancestors on your lips and in your heart.
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