Ritual in Theory and Practice

Page 22

SPIRIT

 

Begin by discussing the nature of the Yule festival. Like all Sabbats Yule has many aspects one can talk about, depending upon where you wish to put your emphasis. What you may wish to emphasize is up to you. In discussing the nature of Yule you might say something like:

 

"We come together to celebrate the festival of Yule, or Midwinter. At this time the powers of the Old God are at their height -the Sun's light has ebbed to its lowest point and the involution of the world is deepest. Tonight the Light is reborn. From this night forward the days will lengthen again, the Sun grow stronger. The Young God begins to grow, and the process of His return is set in motion, even while the Old God yet reigns. The Old God will continue to rule for a time, Winter has far to go before it ends, but the cycle of renewal has begun."

 

ACT OF POWER: Gift Exchange

 

In selecting ideas for a Yule ritual you should take advantage of the rich cultural and mythical traditions which surround this holiday.

 

One thing that you might wish to do for Yule is a Gift Exchange. This is a common practice, both in secular and Pagan society.

 

Ask each person to bring a gift to exchange. It is wise to set a specific price range that everyone can easily meet, so that the gifts are not unequal. If your group is good at arts and crafts, asking them to make the gifts themselves might be nice –but make sure to give plenty of notice if you want them to bring homemade gifts because the Yule season can be very hectic and doing such things at the last minute may not be either practical or satisfying.

 

The gifts should be wrapped so that their contents cannot be easily guessed.

 

Place the gifts in the center of the Circle, either as soon as people arrive, or at the beginning of the ritual. You might set them directly on the floor, or perhaps put them into a large bowl or cauldron (big plastic cauldrons sold at Samhaintide are perfect for this sort of thing) depending on their size.

 

Have everyone join hands.

 

Invoke a blessing upon the pile of gifts. You might say something like:

 

“Behold, we do Bless these gifts, that they may be a token of the bond of love which is between us all. May they be blessed to bring to their receiver joy, and success, and abundance.

 

“Imagine a ball of light in your Heart Chakra. A ball of beautiful, clear white light. See that ball of light grow stronger, clearer, larger. Let the ball of light radiate strength, and love, and peace throughout your Heart.

 

“And from that ball of light in your Heart Chakra, send forth a beam of light into the pile of gifts at the center of the Circle. Fill the gifts with the light from your Heart.

 

“Now imagine the gifts beginning to shine with light –beginning to glow and radiate with energy –and in that energy is love, and joy, and strength, and peace. See the energy growing stronger and stronger. Now we will dance, and as we dance let us continue to focus energy into the gifts, and imagine the Blessing growing in strength and power.”

 

Begin to dance in a clockwise circle around the gifts. As you dance, sing a seasonal chant. A good choice might be:

 

“Circle we the Carol now!

Singing joyfully and how!

Tread the measure, smile and bow,

In the Old God’s honor!

On this longest night of all."

 

When you feel that you have danced and chanted enough, and the energy is strong, stop the dance and focus back upon the gift-pile. Direct everyone to focus the energy which has been raised into the gifts. You might say:

 

“Imagine all of the energy which has been raised being sucked into the gifts –see it entering them and filling them. Behold –May the Blessing Be upon these gifts! So Mote It Be!”

 

All repeat: “So Mote It Be!”

 

If your group is sufficiently athletic you might choose to follow this by jumping the gift-pile, rather as we jump the fire at other times of year. If not, proceed directly to distribution.

 

Have everyone close their eyes and take a gift. It is important that they close their eyes and select randomly, since this confers a divinatory aspect to the proceedings: each person’s gift can be interpreted as a prediction for the coming year.

 

You may choose to have people open their gift immediately and interpret in Circle, or you may wait and do this after ritual as part of the feast. Some examples of how gifts might be interpreted: A pen set might indicate that the recipient needs to do some writing, say an article or a book, or a letter to a specific person: incense might indicate an increased spirituality for the recipient, or you might interpret the incense by its specific type, say cleansing if lavender or romance with rose or orange: a Yule ornament might indicate rejoicing for the recipient, or perhaps another meaning depending upon its color and shape.

 

Like any omen, the meaning of each gift may vary with the person, so make sure that they understand that it is what it means TO THEM which is important.

 

Now continue with the ritual.