A Child’s Introduction to the (ADF) Three Kindreds

October 16, 2011 at 6:48 am (Pagan Parenting, spirituality)
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What Druids and some Celtic Pagans call the Three Kindreds are; the Deities (Goddesses and Gods) we honor, our Ancestors, and the Nature Spirits.

The Deities
When Pagans talk about the Gods and Goddesses all together, they are sometimes called the Shining Ones.  People have many different beliefs about what they are.  Here are some of those beliefs:  the deities are all spirit-parts of the living universe…  they are powers, or forces of life…  the Gods and Goddesses are the First Ancestors and heros af long ago…  some believe that the deities are different aspects, or personalities of one Great Spirit.  There are so many different Gods and Goddesses…  each deity holds a key to a different way of understanding the mysteries of the universe.  Most Pagans and Pagan families have just a few deities that they worship (their patrons), but respect and sometimes pay homage to others.

Ancestors
The Ancestors are also called Mighty Ones by some Pagans.  Some of our ancestors live in the Otherworld and watch over us and guide us.  We cannot see them, but sometimes they come to us in dreams.  Other ancestors may be living a new life through reincarnation.  It is a Celtic belief that ancestors will often be reborn into the same family.
We especially honor our ancestors and dead loved ones at Samhain, the Celtic Feast of Summer’s End- October 31st.  Listen to the words of the song “Blood of the Ancients” and think about your connection to the Ancestors.

It’s the blood of the ancients / That runs through our veins
And the forms pass / But the circle of life remains

Spirits of Land and Nature
The spirits of land and Nature are sometimes called the Noble Ones by some Pagans.  They are spirits of place, inhabitants and guardians of root and leaf and land.  In Celtic lands, these spirits are called the Sídhe (pronounced shee)- but more often called the Good People or Fair Folk (fairies).  In other places they may be known by other names.
They are not merely little winged creatures, but powerful and noble spirits to be treated with respect.  We show them this respect by protecting the environment and treading lightly in their realms.  We may also show our respect by making offerings to them of milk and bread.

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Druid Beads

October 9, 2011 at 6:27 am (Chants & Songs, spirituality)
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A while back I was wondering if anyone has ever come up with a modern day Celtic “mantra”.  I did a Google search and didn’t exactly find what I was looking for, but what I did find was a CD called “Celtic Mantras” by Sarva-Antah. I listened to the song from the CD titled “Prayer for Your Druid Beads“.  I really liked it because it contains very nice prayers to the Three Kindreds.

I liked it so much that I decided to make some prayer beads and use the song as a weekly devotional.  I had been wanting to make a Celtic rosary a while back but I couldn’t figure out what prayers I wanted to use. So I was very pleased to find this. But I couldn’t make out all the lyrics from listening, and came up with nothing in searching with Google.

So I decided I’d look at Druidic prayer bead designs and figure out the lyrics later.  So I searched “Druid prayer beads” and I found  “Three Kindreds Prayer Beads, A Druid Devotional“. Those were the prayers used in that beautiful song, and instructions to make the Druid beads from the website “Celtic Prayer Book”.  What a nice surprise!

I didn’t construct mine exactly as the instructions described, however.  I didn’t use the opening and concluding prayer either. I designed mine to be more in line with ADF Druid cosmology, with additional beads, bits of ADF and such, though it doesn’t quite have all the items from the ADF “core order of ritual”.

These are the beads I used:
9 (8mm) obsidian beads for the Ancestors (Mighty Ones)
9 (8mm) jade beads for the Nature Spirits (Noble Ones)
9 (8mm) amethyst beads for the Gods & Goddesses (Shining Ones)
4 large spiral beads (3 to introduce each set above, and 1 for a final Kindreds blessing)
1 triskele bead for the Sacred Center of Fire, Well, and Tree (I couldn‘t find a triskele rosary center, so I wired three spiral charms together.)
1 earth-tone stone bead for Realm of Land
1 sea-green stone bead for Realm of Sea
1 blue and white stone star bead for the realm of Sky
1 tree pendant

And these are the prayers:
Tree – On the tree pendant I do a Tree of Life/ Two Powers meditation

Land – On the earth-tone stone bead, I say “The holy Land supports me.”

Sea – On the sea-green stone bead, I say “The primal Sea surrounds me.”

Sky – On the blue & White star-shaped stone bead, I say “The shining Sky ever arches above me.”

Sacred Center – On the triskele I say, “Fire, Well, and Sacred Tree,
flow and flame and grow in me.
Gatekeeper, walker of the ways between,
may the gates between the worlds be open.”

For the main body of the set, I use the prayers from the website I mentioned before, leaving out the first and last paragraphs. (My spiral beads correspond to their “sun beads”.) The three main Kindreds prayers are the ones that are in the song.

On the last spiral bead I say, “I bind unto myself today
The Love, Guidance, and blessings of the Three Kindreds.”

Which brings me back to the Sacred Center, where I say, “Thanks be to the Kindreds. O Gatekeeper, may the gates of the worlds be closed.”

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Celtic Pagan Daily Spirituality – when there’s no time for ritual

September 4, 2011 at 6:10 am (Day in the Life, spirituality)
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As part of my Dedicant Program studies for ADF, I’m supposed to keep a journal documenting things like my daily ritual and meditative practices. As time wears on, I find that not only can it be difficult to keep up the practice of journaling, it is especially difficult at times to maintain the routine of a daily ritual. This got me to thinking about an article I read years ago on the Imbas website; “Takin’ It All Home: Translating Our Ritual Structure to Personal Space” by Kami Landy. So I went back and read the article again to remind myself of how Celtic spirituality can be woven into my daily life, even when it seems I don’t have time. Infused with thankfulness, connection, and meditative awareness, the mundane activities of daily life take on new meaning. Life is the ritual.

Here are some of my ideas for daily Celtic spirituality inspired by Landy’s article:

Water
Just as so many modern Hindu worshipers do today, so too did the ancient druids start their day with ritual bathing. For Hindus, the sacred river is the Ganges. For the druids, there were many sacred rivers. The founding goddess of the Celts is Danu, Ancestral Mother and river goddess. Not all of us can bathe in a river every morning, but most of us shower daily. Why not consider the water coming from the shower as sacred? All the water that is on the planet has always been here, it just keeps circulating around the globe. That water was once a part of the sacred Danube river (and the Ganges, for that matter). The daily shower is the perfect time to connect to and worship Danu (and/or other water-related deities).  I begin by cupping my hands under the stream of water and saying something like this: “Danu, mo bandia, Ancient Mother, Ancient River, Waters of Life… may your flowing waters cleanse my body and soul for the ritual of life…”
Another way of viewing sacred water in a Celtic context is the concept of the Sacred Well. (Put in a drain strainer so that you can occasionally place a piece of silver in the drain as offering without it getting lost or causing a clog.)

Tree: the Sacred Center
For Celtic Pagans, the Bilé, or world tree, is symbolic of our connection between the upper and lower realms; the center of sacred space. Symbolically, it holds our worlds together. (I also consider the imagery of the tree as representative of a Curnunnos-type deity, but your mileage may vary.) Landy recommends touching a representation of the Bilé (a chimney or center wall of the house) as a meditative reconnection. I would also add that a tree figurine or other representation on your personal shrine would also work, and on the go, a tree pendant necklace. In your daily rounds, do you walk by a tree? Simply reaching out and briefly touching a tree can be very grounding; a physical trigger as well as an acknowledgement of the sacredness of the tree itself. You could also rub a pinch of red ochre or ground grains on the tree as offering, when you have time.

Fire
Landy speaks of the pilot light of the water heater, stove burner, etc. being representative of the home’s sacred flame. But what if you live in a home that is all-electric, and no fireplace to smoor? I like her idea of lighting a small candle while cooking, and putting some kind of symbol like a sun-face or Brigit’s cross above it. This gave me the idea of considering the stove-top itself an altar to Brigit and putting a symbol of her on the wall above it. But I don’t light a candle when I cook; I consider electricity her Divine Spark in modern form. When beginning cooking, I touch her image in reverence and smudge on a little ground grain or red ochre.

Earth Mother
Landy’s paragraph about the Earth Mother is spot on. Everywhere is Her altar and our worship of Her is in our actions; our sustainable lifestyles of recycling, conserving resources, non-consumerism. To this I would add that simply bending down to touch the Earth in reverence can be one of your most powerful spiritual acts of the day.

The Three Kindreds
The Three Kindreds are: Deities, Nature Spirits, and Ancestors. Worship of certain deities is included in the above water (well), tree, and fire reverence ideas. I also like Landy’s idea of using pictures to remind one of the Kindreds. These could be anointed with red ochre or some other sacred substance in a way similar to Hindu worship.
For honoring the Nature Spirits, I think that her idea of using a bird feeder as offering receptacle for them is pure genius. In many cases, even an apartment dweller could do this. To what she has suggested on this, I have nothing more to add. Her ideas on Ancestor reverence is well put also. My Ancestor shrine is in the dining area where I eat everyday, so it is easy to remember to honor them, but Landy’s article gives me ideas on how to enhance that shrine through use of scent and items held dear to the Beloved Dead. Little things like this serve to help one remember and revere the Ancestors.

Many of these ideas can even be adapted to use when traveling. I especially like the idea of using pictures (not neccesarily as part of a shrine) to worship the Kindreds; this idea too, could be portable in the form of homemade picture prayer cards kept in a wallet or purse, or one could use charms on a bracelet. A lot of what Landy’s article is about is setting up a home environment in which spiritual practice becomes second nature. We do have time for “ritual” when it’s many little things woven into our lives.

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ADF Ritual/Prayer Beads

August 28, 2011 at 6:11 am (Chants & Songs, Pagan Parenting, spirituality)
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[This post is from last year, note the recent update at the end of the article.]

At the end of last year, a little while after rejoining Ár nDraíocht Féin, I got an idea for making ADF ritual beads.  These would be a tool for learning an ADF ritual set up, or possibly a tool for individual devotions, and/or an aid to learning ADF chants.  I never made this proposed bead set, but I might still do that someday.

I think it would be great for beginners or for kids especially.  So I’ve posted the it here because I thought there might be someone out there who would like to take up the idea.  This string of beads and charms might work out nice woven together with macramé knots between each bead/charm.  If you make one, send me a picture!

This is based on a ritual outline from the ADF website.  If I’ve left something out that your grove does, included something that you would rather leave out, or have ordered it in an odd way contrary to your liking, feel free to adjust.  (Note the imbedded links to chants for most of the beads.)

1. The first bead might actually be a small silver bell, to indicate the beginning of ritual/contemplation.

2. A blue bead or clear crystal symbolizing purification.

3. An Earth bead, symbolizing the Blessing for the Earth Mother.

4. A black bead, symbolizing an offering to the Outsiders.  (You may choose to leave this out if you don’t do an Outsider offering, or put it somewhere else in the bead chain- I went to a ritual where the Outsider offering was done first, and it seemed very appropriate.)

5. A World Tree bead or charm, symbolizing the Triple Hallows of Fire, Well, and Tree.  You may actually want to expand this portion into three beads; one for each Hallow.

6. A triskele charm or bead could symbolize the Three Realms of Land, Sea, and Sky.

7. A key charm for the Gatekeeper invocation/chant.

8. A green bead or leaf charm for calling on the Nature Spirits.

9. A skull bead for honoring the Ancestors.

10. A silver apple for the Shining Ones.

11. A bead/disk with a rune/ogham marking to symbolize the time in the ritual when an omen is taken.

12. A cup charm for the return blessing.

13. A spiral or star charm or glittery bead could symbolize the point in ritual when magical workings are done.

*When using the ritual/prayer beads, after going through to bead/charm #13, jump back to #10 and go in reverse to #7 and then #3 to thank the powers and close the rite/meditation/prayer, or just get extras of those beads and add to the string so you won’thave to keep track of which beads to go back to in order to close the ritual.

Update: I finally made these beads! My original idea was to use a combination of charms and beads, and to macramé them together. The charms I wanted were very hard to find and many of them were expensive. I decided to see if I could made a set with strong salt dough to show that this could be made very cheaply. That I did, using pendants I already had to stamp imprints of a tree on one of the beads (for a Triple Hallows symbol) and a triskele on another (for a Three Realms symbol), and a key on the Gatekeeper beads. I only used materials I already had; strong salt dough, craft paints, a jingle bell, and yarn. I didn’t make the holes in the beads large enough to string two strands of yarn through for macramé, so I simply strung them on the yarn and made a tassel on the end.

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Searching for Spiritual Community

June 25, 2011 at 4:45 pm (spirituality)
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Through the years, I’ve had a changing image in my mind of the kind of spiritual community that would be ideal for me. From my late teens through my twenties I was Wiccan, so of course I wanted a “coven”, and in my twenties I did find a coven, plus a couple of larger Wiccan style groups.  These days, Wiccan groups are not that hard to find- yes even here in Arkansas.

In 2001 I began reading up on the history of Wicca and was astonished to find the real history of Wicca did not match up with what I had read and been told. After much thought, and some research into other kinds of Paganism, I decided to pursue a (new to me) path called Celtic Reconstructionism. It loved my new path, my new spiritual identity. The trouble is, I didn’t find a community for it. Sure, there are message boards and such, but I’m talking about a real, in-person community. Around that time I was involved in helping form a local CUUPs group. The two other core members were the people who originated the student Pagan association at the local university. These were smart kids; Hellenists who really knew their stuff. The participants who came to our meetings and rituals were smart students like them. One or two were Wiccan, but the rest Asatru, and other paths. (I even met one CR, but he wasn’t into starting a CR group; he met with the Asatru folk.) We had CR rituals, Hellenist rituals, and meetings where we just sat and talked. The CUUPs group eventually fizzled out, and I’ve never been in a more diverse group since.

On the other hand, many Pagan groups will say they are a “mixed group” or not of a specific path, but their format is loosely Wiccan based. I’ve been in groups like this, where everyone was invited to attribute to ritual planning. Celtic Reconstructionism is quite different from Wicca, as you may know. Often my suggestions were well taken, and my ideas included. My ideas weren’t anything drastic, but they were things that were not previously included and mainly consisted of deity prayers or invocations. No one else suggested this very small nod in the direction of worship in our rituals. It was important to no one in the group but me. I didn’t even suggest changing the actual format for a ritual or two. “Calling the directions” was one thing I know they really did care about being included in the ritual!

So I’m still searching for Celtic Pagan community. I’m in ADF, but finding local ADF members or even groves doesn’t always mean finding other Celtic-minded folks, for ADF includes all Indo-European paths and most of the local members I‘ve met are Hellenists.

Someone once told me once that I should just do like in that movie where they say “build it and they will come” or something like that. So I’ve created a yahoo group to try to find some local Celtic Pagans. It’s still in the gathering stage. If there are any local Celtic Pagans out there reading this, I ask you, wouldn’t it be great to have a community in which we can celebrate our Celtic/Gaelic customs together; the seasons of the land and of our lives, a community in which to build strong bonds of friendship? We will never know unless we try.
Celtic Pagans of NW Arkansas
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/CelticPagansNWArkansas/

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My Portable Ritual Kit

May 6, 2011 at 6:42 am (spirituality)
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What’s in it, clockwise from the top:

~Fire-pot (I used a ‘decorative’ copper cauldron from a thrift store.)
~a piece of egg carton fire starter (I have replaced this with commercial firestarter, see below.)
~matches
~small cauldron (Yes, that’s a “salsa cauldron”.)
~silver ring (You can also use a piece of silver or a silver coin .)
~divination method (like ogham or runes)
~drinking cup (Yes, that’s a pudding cup.)
~offerings (I have here; oats and cornmeal each in ‘snack-size’ ziplock bags, and a small bottle of oil, all in one drawstring pouch.)

So I put all the items in the fire-pot, small cauldron last, turned upside down, and tie it all up in a drawstring bag and add it to my backpack along with a bottle of water and a small towel or rag for cleanup. You don’t want too big of a fire for a short solitary ritual, but you might want enough of a fire to burn small grain offerings. The first time I used this, I packed a piece of egg carton firestarter and it created a lot of smoke. So you might want to use a small broken off chunk of commercial firestarter instead; its smokeless and environmentally friendly. If you’re not going to be burning offerings, you could even go with a tealight candle. The tall sides of the firepot will shield the flame from wind. If you were to create a bigger fire in your firepot, you would also need to let the fire burn itself out and the pot cool down before packing up and moving on, and a small fire will burn out faster, or can just be puffed out or snuffed out with a rock. When choosing a good place for the ritual, I look to the trees and find one that I particularly resonate with. It’s nice to find a flat rock to use as an altar, but it’s not absolutely necessary.

If you are not familiar with ADF-style Druid rituals, you may be wondering what some of this stuff is for. The central focus of ADF rituals is the Triple Center of Fire, Well, and Tree. The first three items on the list are for constructing the sacred Fire. The cauldron, in which I pour water from the water bottle when setting up the altar, represents the Well. The silver is the offering to the well. Divination is used in most Druid rituals. The drinking cup is for the “return blessing” portion of the ritual (for this I use more of the water from the water bottle- I bring a full bottle, for I also use some of this water for pre-ritual purification.). And offerings are an essential part of Druid ritual as well. It’s nice to have a variety of offerings; something different to offer each power. Dry offerings like oats and cornmeal are lightweight and portable. You might want to make the offerings an item that you put in the kit at the last minute, rather than storing with the kit, to avoid items going rancid in storage. Another alternative is using incense. In fact, I plan on adding juniper incense to my kit for pre-ritual purification and for offering to the Tree.

To learn how to make an even smaller kit see fiacharrey’s pocket ritual kit  youtube video.

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ADF Revelations

March 24, 2011 at 8:17 pm (spirituality)
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My last blog entry was about my rediscovery of Ár nDraíocht Féin. This, I suppose, is a continuance of that.  Only now I feel more convinced that I’ve found the path for me.  Looking back, I don’t know why I wasn’t this convinced before. I once wrote that a successful ritual should be spiritually moving. Lately, even just thinking about certain aspects of ADF ritual gets me near teary eyed…

One of the first things done at an ADF ritual is worshiping the Earth Mother. A prayer is said to her and participants bend down to touch or even kiss the Earth.  I have never been to any other style of ritual in which people do this. This is true Nature worship! Why do so many Pagans think “worship” is a dirty word?  I can think of no better purpose for ritual than to come into closer relationship with the Kindreds; the Sacred Three of Deities, Nature Spirits and Ancestors.

ADF liturgy has a special magic to it that at once inspires and makes me feel at home.  Participants are addressed as “children of the earth”; “The children of the earth call out to all those Spirits who share this world with us… The children of the earth call out to the beloved Ancestors… and to the Shining Gods and Goddesses…”  Lately I’ve been thinking about the significance of those oft used words in the liturgy and am comforted by them.  And those words I’ve used so often to start out ritual, even when not in ADF,  Ceisiwr Serith’s “I kindle the sacred fire in wisdom, love, and power… Sacred fire, burn within me.” My ears recognize all these words as sacred scripture.

Another aspect of ADF that is unique to the tradition is the “Triple Hallows” of well, tree, and fire.  They are thought of as gateways to communing with the Spirits and Deities. The symbolism of each is deep and multifaceted, but I have begun to realize that I had only touched the surface in my understanding of them when I was studying Druidry before.  The power of fire to transform is so magical, like nothing else on earth.  Matter cannot be created nor destroyed, yet when we place an object in the fire (say, an offering or a prayer) that object is instantly and utterly transformed. It is reduced to almost nothing before our eyes- ashes and smoke; hardly anything is left of it in our world for us to see. Surely the offering/prayer has been sent to the realm of Spirit. This is powerful symbolism.  This is deep magic.

So too is the magic of water and the well.  Water is the source of all life. Water seeps deep into the earth, combining with earth energy and the realm of the dead, making water a conduit for deep spiritual connection. What many people don’t know though, is that water remembers. It holds all the knowledge and experience it has acquired.  So too, may it carry our prayers and offerings to deeper realms.  And the tree?  The tree traverses all worlds, at once reaching deep into the earth and far into the sky. They hold our world together and give us the air we breathe. In my reasearch into Ozark folk magic, a great deal of what I found has to do with tree magic. (So it seems to me that there should be a natural Ozark-Druid connection.)

All these things and ideas have made me fall in love with Ár nDraíocht Féin like never before.  The things I took for granted are still there; the liturgy, songs, cosmology…  and I’m finding new meaning in things I didn’t fully understand; the role of the Gatekeeper and the Triple Hallows…  Also, I’m finding that I really groove with the balance of scholarship and inspiration; they reconstruct but are not ‘reconstructionists’.  There is also a well tuned balance of structure and freedom.

And then there is also the feel of the group; how can a religious tradition at once be so laid back and homey and at the same time so eloquent and meaningful in their liturgy and ritual style?  I don’t know, but they have figured out how to do it.  Ár nDraíocht Féin is a classic, and I am proud to say, my religion.

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Me and Ár nDraíocht Féin

March 22, 2011 at 6:43 am (spirituality)
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Those of you who follow my blog have probably read my rambling on the different types of Paganism I’ve tried on for size; my journeys from Wicca to Celtic Reconstructionism (CR), to ADF Druidry (Ár nDraíocht Féin), to Gnosticism, then back full circle revisiting them all again.  The two that seem to resound with me the most are CR and ADF.

A while back I was reading Facebook and came across a video someone had posted titled “A Druid Dialog: What is ADF?”.  Suddenly it made me miss being a member of ADF.  Kirk Thomas is an dynamic speaker, and I can’t think of anyone who could be a better leader of the organization.  I think part of my reflecting back on ADF is that I miss being a member of a larger Pagan organization and the sense of belonging that comes with it.  I went to YouTube and started watching ADF videos and came across one of my favorite ritual songs ever- the “Portal Song”.  Oh how I love that song!  I feel such nostalgia for the music, the liturgy, and the ritual style.   I realize that, even as a CR, I still use a lot of ADF terminology and liturgy.  Even more, most of the philosophy has stuck with me through the years.

It’s been twice that I joined ADF- the first time was is in 2001, then again in 2009.  Both times I let my membership drop after a year.  The first time it was because there were no local groups to join, and the second time it was because I felt I didn’t fit in with the local group, and I was feeling that ADF style rituals seemed too elaborate.  Also I wanted something specifically Celtic.  Now I find myself wanting to re-examine it all again.  It’s not like I’m going to join a local grove or anything (I‘m involved in a mixed Pagan group right now), but I’m starting to want to go back and finish the Dedicant program, just for my personal satisfaction.  I want to actually make those ADF prayer/ritual beads that I planned out.

What I think I need to do is a “pros & cons” kind of thing…

Ritual:  ADF rituals include a few things I usually leave out as a Celtic Reconstructionist.  Upon close examination, many of these things are not something that I would disagree with, it’s just that I think they are not necessary.  And actually, many of them are not “required”.  The only “required” ritual step (for the ritual to be considered ADF), that I am not real fond of, is the Gatekeeper invocation.  I have noticed that some CR folk do this though, so there must be some kind of historical precedent for it.  And although I’m not that fond of routinely calling on a “Gatekeeper”, I am resounding, as never before, with the symbolism of the Sacred Center of Well, Fire, and Tree and the reality that they are portals to communicating (more effectively, perhaps) with the Spirits.

I don’t like the “Outsider offering”, but as far as I can tell, it’s not a required item.

I also don’t agree with the idea of taking an omen to see if the Spirits accepted the offering.  I think the Spirits accept whatever we offer them if given in love…
“If one offers me a simple leaf, fruit, or flower with love and devotion, I will accept it.”  - Bhagavad Gita
I’ve noticed however, that in many of the rituals (that I’ve read on the website lately), the omen portion of the ritual is used just to divine the nature of the return blessing, not to judge the worthiness of the sacrifice.  This I would be more in agreement with.

And well, I guess that’s it about ritual.  I’m looking at the “ADF Core Order of Ritual” and finding nothing else to disagree with.  Could it have been that I just built up the ritual structure in my mind to be something too elaborate?  Some may think it a moot point anyway; an ADF member once told me that one’s personal practice need not be effected by ADF’s protocol.  However, I think it’s a matter of principle; shouldn’t one agree with ADF’s ritual style for it to be one’s spiritual path?  It appears that, except for a couple of little things, I do agree with the ritual structure.

Can I find any other disagreements with ADF in general?  At one time I would have preferred a Celtic-only group.  But at this point I like the freedom of being able to explore the entire Indo-European spectrum.  I’ve been into Hindu-Celtic connections lately, so Vedism might be interesting to explore.  (I just want my Celtic feast days to remain Celtic.)
Who knows, this time I might make ADF my long-term spiritual home- my personal practice, whatever group I may be in.

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The Three Realms vs. The Four Elements

February 28, 2011 at 11:55 am (spirituality)
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For ecclectic Pagan groups that do not consider themselves Wiccan- this is my case for encouraging the idea of using a Three Realms blessing for at least the Celtic holidays (which are Samhain, Lughnasadh, Imbolc, and Beltane) instead of the prevalent four elements system.

Three was a sacred number to the Celts. They viewed even numbers as unbalanced ones. They did not categorize everything into four elements, but rather they viewed the world as being made up of three parts.

The three realms are- the Land, Sea, and Sky.

Now, if you are used to categorizing everything according to the Greek elements, you might look at this and say, “Well that’s just the elements of earth, water, and air, leaving out the fourth element- fire.”

Remember though, the realms are places, not elements. The idea of the “elements” started in late Greek philosophy and was probably not put to the practice of “calling the quarters”, and assigning elements to the four directions until medieval times by ceremonial magicians. These ceremonial magicians would “cast a circle” to trap a demon, and the “Guardians of the Watchtowers” that they called forth were Archangels. So, the practice of “casting a circle” and “calling the quarters”, while having elements of ancient philosophy, were in fact, very much a part of the Christian world view and a product of the era it came out of.

Note above that I said the concept of the elements came from Greek philosophy, not ritual. There is no evidence that the Greeks “called the quarters”, and modern Greek Reconstructionist Pagans do not include this practice in their rituals.

In fact, the methods of “calling quarters” and “watchtowers” done by most Wiccans actually dates back only to the ritual magic work of the Golden Dawn (a revival of the western ceremonial magic tradition) in the early 20th century, later picked up and popularized in the 1950s by Gerald Gardner. So either way, part of the concept (the elements) is relatively old, but the practice of using them in ritual is rather new.

But I can give you even more reasons I don’t use a four-quarters-elements system- the concept is very abstract. The system puts an element in each of the four directions. But the earth is not in the north, the earth is beneath my feet. Air is not in the east, air is in the sky and all around me… etc.

Quarter calling encourages people to think of elements as a system to categorize, it encourages thinking of very real things in an abstact way and not acknowledging the chaos and limitlessness of the world around us… We need to acknowledge and experience the real world of nature, not an abstract concept of it.

Here are some links to a few examples of Three Realms blessings/invocations/meditations:

A Ritual Opener by Ceisiwr Serith

One CR house’s opening ritual by DubhTine

from ADF’s “A Simple Group Devotional” (item #6)

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Little Rituals

December 19, 2010 at 8:43 am (spirituality)
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I love writing/ piecing together rituals.  I have created rituals for Pagan groups than I’ve been involved in, as well as more family-oriented rites.  But now and then, for one reason or another, I find myself in the position of doing seasonal rituals alone.  Now, I’ve never been much for solitary ritual, so in the past if I wasn’t doing ritual with others for any given occasion, I would skip ritual altogether and do a brief prayer or meditation to mark the occasion.  I’ve decided I want something more than this.
So I’ve pieced together what I call “little rituals”.
My aim was to write a ritual for each Pagan holiday that would be only a page long or less, getting to the point of each holiday so as to get the most meaning out of a short ritual.  I wrote these rituals to suit my own style and beliefs, so your mileage may vary, as they say.  I am mostly CR oriented, but as you can see from the rituals, I am still kind of Wiccan-influenced in some ways (for example, I have written 8 seasonal holidays, not just the Celtic 4).
I have borrowed heavily from Ár nDraíocht Féin (ADF) rituals, and the language I often use is ADF in origin, for example; I often refer to the gods as the “Shining Ones”, and to the gods, nature spirits, and ancestors collectively as the “Three Kindred”.  However, unlike ADF rituals, these rites are quite brief and have a simple symbolic act at the center, somewhat like a Wiccan rite might have.

*Adaptations
These rituals, though written for a solitary person, can easily be adapted for use by a small group, simply by changing the pronouns and dividing up speaking parts (and some things could be spoken in unison, if that’s what seems suitable).  Also, I have written these rituals in a mostly “Celtic Reconstructionist” style, yet I’ve adapted a lot of ADF liturgy to it.  If you like these little rituals, but would like something that fits  in more with ADF, then go to the ADF Core Order of Ritual and simply put in what I’ve left out, mainly; a Triple Center (Hallows), Gatekeeper invocation and opening (and farewell), and an Omen.  Brief examples of these can be found in ADF’s “An Anywhere Devotional” and in other articles on the ADF website.

*Ritual Materials:
Lighting a flame and giving offering is a part of all these rituals.  If indoors, the flame could be a candle or a wood fire in a fireplace, with the fireplace mantle as your altar.  If outdoors, I recommend a small contained fire in a barbeque grill, portable metal firepit, metal container or cauldron.  If you use a cauldron, you can use a special method that requires no wood, called a “cauldron fire”- using epsom salts and rubbing alcohol.  You could even use a cauldron fire indoors, if kept small, but be careful!
You will also need offerings for all these rituals.  Oats do quite nicely and burn easily- I would bring them in a drawstring pouch tied to my hip.  Of course, if you are using a candle for your sacred flame, you won’t be burning the offerings, so in that case use an offering bowl.  If you can find a wooden or ceramic serving dish with three compartments, this would work out great for offering to the Three Kindreds.
In four of these rituals (Samhain, Imbolc, Bealtaine, and Lughnasadh), I have included the “blessing cup”- this is based on the ADF “return blessing”.  For these you’ll need something to drink, and a special container (chalice, goblet, what have you) to drink from.
Some of the rituals say to smudge/sain with juniper smoke.  For some of the rituals you’ll need special foods or other props.  It’s best to read through the ritual before you go to your designated site, to be sure you’re not forgetting anything.

*A few words of advice on outdoor rituals:
Don’t try to use candles outdoors- the wind will just keep blowing it out, plus it just looks silly to be lighting candles outside.  Its not practical.  Though a candle in a container with tall sides might work in a pinch.  Also, it’s not practical to bring a bunch of bling outside for your ritual.  You don’t need an altar cloth.  You don’t need statuary or figurines.  Long flowing robes will restrict your movement and could catch on fire.  On that note, it’s a good idea to have water close by just in case- even if you don’t decide to dress like Gandalf.

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