My Oath Rite

I decided to do my Oath rite in song. Music is one thing that I’m fairly known for in my various communities, and it’s a huge part of who I am. When I was thinking of how I would even begin writing my Oath Rite, I kept comparing it to writing a song. I kept trying to decide whether it would be even more difficult than songwriting, or if they were equally difficult. Then it hit me, why not use my gift as an offering to my path.
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Book Review: The Druids

I think by the time I had gotten to this book review, my second to last essay, I’ve finally started to realize the significance and importance of the dedicant’s program. I’ve learned more over the last several weeks, that it really lays to rest any doubts I might have had about my path.

My second book report was the 1994 edition “The Druids” by Peter Berresford Ellis. I had been told that this was a dry read, so I was somewhat apprehensive in reading it, as I’m not remotely a philosophical pagan.
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Relationship and Understanding of the Three Kindred

I feel most satisfied in everything I do when all the pieces of the puzzle fit together. It’s the need for balance in me that makes my life more full-filling when everything is in balance. I think that’s why the sacred trine of all things is so special to me. The three realms, the three worlds, and the three kindred’s all fit together in a cosmological puzzle that just makes sense.

The Three Kindred inparticular often take precedence in daily piety and practice. Every day I am influenced by the Shining Ones, the Nature Spirits, and the Ancestors.
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Two Powers Meditation

This had to be one of the most difficult portions of the dedicant’s program, as it forces me to try and adapt to a guided meditation. As mentioned in my building mental discipline essay, I am incapable of performing silent meditations. It’s not for lack of trying, but unless I am actively doing something rhythmic other than breathing, I am lost to many different types of distractions.
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Exploring a Hearth Culture

As explained in my “about” page concerning this dedicant’s journal, I technically pull from many different hearth cultures. My patron, Athena, a Greek Goddess of war and wisdom. My Grove, CedarLight, mainly Celtic, with some dabblings in Norse. My other patron (I’m not worried about being politically correct here), I’ve been exploring Odin, also a God of War in the Nordic culture. And then there’s the lifestyle and purpose in which I choose to serve, which is strongly Native American. When it came time to write an essay about one ore two of these, it was a bit of a task choosing which one.

When I had originally written this essay, I did so for the Native American culture. It meant a lot to me to do so because of my strong Cherokee heritage, but was unacceptable for the purpose of the Dedicant’s Program because it was not indo-european. So I was forced to choose a separate culture for this purpose, but I accept any challenge, and was glad to do so.
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Working with Nature

When I told some of my Grovemates that I would be working on this piece soon, they all laughed and said “Are you kidding? You could do that one with your eyes closed.” It was a good feeling, because it lets me know that an example on my part has been set. It’s far from perfect, but it’s still a good one.

To put it bluntly, I’ve been working with nature all my life. My family is full of generation after generation of farmers, and it’s instilled in my blood. My dream is to own a ranch where I too can develop my own farm (albeit on a more eco-conscience foundation) and be one with the land.

So where exactly do I start an essay that would essentially cover all of the different stages of my life?
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Ritual: Midsummer 2006

There is one word to describe this High Rite. Rain. It rained and it poured and it was lush with water. We gave up trying to stay dry or hide under umbrellas and jackets. Instead we plopped, stomped, danced, and drummed in the rain. It felt so good, as I’m often the victim of playing out in rain and thunderstorms due to my love for them. It felt very powerful, like we were sincerely connecting with nature on another level.

Our primary invocations were Dionysus and Selene, and this marked the 17 year anniversary of CedarLight Grove. Caryn told the story of CedarLight Grove and how the name came to be when our founder was on the banks of the Potomac in 1989 for our first ritual. The energy was high, and this was truly what rituals are about to me.

(Word Count: 141)

Ritual: Lughnasadh 2006

Before ritual we did a series of warrior games, which I was asked to judge. They were amusing and fun, but I don’t think anyone took them very seriously. We honored Lugh and Tailtiue as our primary invocations, as Tailtiue is the Grove’s patron deity, and Airmedd was our gatekeeper. This was the first ritual organized by one of our newer members, Kat, and I felt she did a good job for her first run.

During the outsiders, we noticed that a patch of balloons had filled the sky from a nearby street festival, which I took pictures of because I thought it was amusing.

I felt slightly overwhelmed this ritual with tasks to do. Being responsible for pictures, drumming, guestbook, songs before and after ritual, etc.

(Word Count: 127)

Ritual: Mabon 2006

For our Mabon High Rite, our primary invocations were Mabon and Modron, with Elen as the Gatekeeper. I did not feel connected to this ritual, as I felt the chants were poorly done. However it was led by one of our teenage liturgists, and I felt she did a really awesome job.

Nothing in particular stuck out to me about this ritual. I did my usual drumming heartbeat, and we had a good turnout of guests, but other than that it did not feel as celebratory as usual. The best portion was when Jack told the Lore of the season, because he is able to project the story as a storyteller would.

(Word Count: 111)

Ritual: Samhain 2007

Samhain is one of my favorite rituals, as I feel the most connected to the ancestors and to deity during this time. Our primary invocations were Iunium and Genii, as this was a roman style ritual, and the purpose was becoming good examples for our followers and admirers.

This ritual was entirely too windy so it was hard to hear anything, which resulted in not being as absorbed or focused for this particular high rite. However the setting and prompts were fantastic, with pumpkins, candles, and skulls to commemorate the occasion. We even lit the pumpkin on fire (as shown above) to give it a nice flare.

We honored the Earth Mother, and Janus as the gatekeeper, to which Renee even did the invitation to Janus in Latin, which sounded -awesome-. When acknowledging the outsiders, Kat used an old Roman method involving black beans, which I had never heard of.

(Word Count: 150)