Imbolc

Hello everyone. Imbolc is getting closer and closer. Is everyone prepared to celebrate? Below I posted information and things to do on Imbolc. Information credited to The White Goddess.

Generic

This holiday is also known as Candlemas, or Brigid's (pronounced BREED) Day. One of the 4 Celtic "Fire Festivals. Commemorates the changing of the Goddess from the Crone to the Maiden. Celebrates the first signs of Spring. Also called "Imbolc" (the old Celtic name). This is the seasonal change where the first signs of spring and the return of the sun are noted, i.e. the first sprouting of leaves, the sprouting of the Crocus flowers etc. In other words, it is the festival commemorating the successful passing of winter and the beginning of the agricultural year. This Festival also marks the transition point of the threefold Goddess energies from those of Crone to Maiden. It is the day that we celebrate the passing of Winter and make way for Spring. It is the day we honour the rebirth of the Sun and we may visualize the baby sun nursing from the Goddess's breast. It is also a day of celebrating the Celtic Goddess Brigid. Brigid is the Goddess of Poetry, Healing, Smithcraft, and Midwifery. If you can make it with your hands, Brigid rules it. She is a triple Goddess, so we honour her in all her aspects. This is a time for communing with her, and tending the lighting of her sacred flame. At this time of year, Wiccans will light multiple candles, white for Brigid, for the god usually yellow or red, to remind us of the passing of winter and the entrance into spring, the time of the Sun. This is a good time for initiations, be they into covens or self-initiations.

Lore

It is traditional upon Imbolc, at sunset or just after ritual, to light every lamp in the house - if only for a few moments. Or, light candles in each room in honour of the Sun’s rebirth. Alternately, light a kerosene lamp with a red chimney and place this in a prominent part of the home or in a window. If snow lies on the ground outside, walk in it for a moment, recalling the warmth of summer. With your projective hand, trace an image of the Sun on the snow. Foods appropriate to eat on this day include those from the dairy, since Imbolc marks the festival of calving. Sour cream dishes are fine. Spicy and full-bodied foods in honor of the Sun are equally attuned. Curries and all dishes made with peppers, onions, leeks, shallots, garlic or chives are appropriate. Spiced wines and dishes containing raisins - all foods symbolic of the Sun - are also traditional.

Ritual

Supplies: Symbol of the season, such as a white flower, snow in a crystal container, also needed, an orange candle anointed with cinnamon, frankincense or rosemary oil (unlit), red candle to represent the elements, and your ritual supplies.

1. Arrange the altar, light the candles and censer, and cast the Circle.
2. Invoke the Goddess and God.
3. Say such words as the following:
   "This is the time of the feast of torches,
   When every lamp blazes and shines
   To welcome the rebirth of the God.
   I/we celebrate the Goddess,
   I/we celebrate the God;
   All the Earth celebrates
   Beneath its mantle of sleep."
4. Light the orange taper from the red candle on the altar. Slowly walk the circle clockwise, bearing the candle before you. Say these or similar words:
5. "All the land is wrapped in winter.
   The air is chilled and
   Frost envelopes the Earth.
   But Lord of the Sun,
   Horned One of animals and wild places,
   Unseen you have been reborn
   Of the gracious Mother Goddess,
   Lady of all fertility.
   Hail Great God!
   Hail and welcome!"
6. Stop before the altar, holding aloft the candle. Gaze at its flame. Visualize your life blossoming with creativity, with renewed energy and strength.
7. If you need to look into the future or past, now is an ideal time.
8. Works of magic, if necessary, may follow.
9. Celebrate the Simple Feast.
10. Thank the Goddess and God.
11. Release the Circle.

The Holiday Season

I hope everyone had a great holiday. I know I did. Spending it with family and friends was so much fun. I joined into a winter solstice ritual to honor all the goddess of winter and help the souls go back to the light since the dark side of the year is ending.

During the time over my girlfriend's mom's house, she created a prosperity grid to bring in good tides for the new year. 

 

The big candle is for positive energy. The sphere in the middle is a aventurine, sorry that the stone look so dark. The adventurine is known as the "Stone of Opportunity". Raw quartz and citrine shards where added to help amplify and bring in wealth. At the end, there are bayberry candles that has dragonsblood. Dragonsblood helps boost energy into anything that you are working. Bayberry helps with drawing in money and luck. We started to burn them on christmas eve and on christmas.

What I got for winter solstice / christmas?

• A goodie bag of things I love, such as coffee
• A bag for astral travel through meditation; a candle, incense, and a beautiful type of quartz that's from the Himalayan Mountains
• A $25 giftcard
• A goddess necklace (I will take a picture of it soon)
• A oil burner with the pentacle on it. 

I think that's it. I'll add anything that I forget later. Have a happy new year everyone. 

My offering to Cerridwen

The night before I bought a offering bowl to make a offering to whatever god or goddess I want. The first one is Cerridwen since this is her time of the season. I posted about placing grains in a bowl so I used corn. Since I did it at night, the night of the full moon which was not planned but awesome anyway, I decided to let it sit during the day and empty the bowl the next night. Let my desires reach the goddess in peace.

Front View

Slated side so you can see everything without a glare

The Winter Goddess, Cerridwen

Since I'm into the celtic pantheon, I think it's fitting to call upon them in times of need and honor. On the Winter Solstice, I will be joining my fellow witch sisters in a ritual to celebrate the coming winter. I can't describe what we will be doing but we are allowed to call upon a goddess to join us in the ritual. I'm choosing to call Cerridwen to the ritual.


This is Cerridwen's Story From Order of the White Moon:

Cerridwen was originally worshipped by the people of Wales. It is told that she lived on an island, in the middle of Lake Tegid, named after her husband, with her two children, a beautiful daughter, Creidwy, and a very ugly son, Afagdu. To compensate her son for his unfortunate appearance, Cerridwen brewed a magickal formula, known as "greal", which would make Afagdu the most brilliant and inspired of men. For a year and a day, she kept six herbs simmering in her magickal cauldron, known as "Amen", under the constant care of a boy named Gwion.

One day, while Gwion was stirring the cauldron, a few drops of the bubbling liquid spattered on his hand. Unthinkingly, and in pain, Gwion, sucked his burned hand, and, suddenly, he could hear everything in the world, and understood all the secrets of the past and future. With his newly enchanted foresight, Gwion knew how angry Cerridwen would be when she found he had acquired the inspiration meant for her son.

He ran away, but Cerridwen pursued him. Gwion changed into a hare, and Cerridwen chased him as a greyhound; he changed into a fish, and Cerridwen pursued him as an otter; he became a bird, and she flew after him as a hawk; finally, he changed into a grain of corn, and Cerridwen, triumphant, changed into a hen, and ate him.

When Cerridwen resumed her human form, she conceived Gwion in her womb, and, nine months later, gave birth to an infant son, whom she, in disgust, threw into the water of a rushing stream. He was rescued by a Prince, and grew into the great Celtic bard, Taliesin.

They also have a explanation of what she represents in more detail on their site, Cerridwen. I don't want to copy the complete page, the story should be enough. Another site I've found is called Goddess Guide, summarizes of symbolism.

Areas of Influence: I'm often asked how to pronounce Ceridwen? (Ker-RID-Wen) so I thought it would be useful to include that piece of information on this page. Other spellings of her name include Caridwen, Cereduin, Keridwen and Kerridwen. Her name is derived the Celtic word cerru meaning cauldron which like the Goddess herself, symbolizes the transformative power of magic, wisdom, rebirth and creative inspiration. For these reasons she is seen as a patron Goddess of witches and wizards. She is also associated with the moon, fertility, science, prophecy and poetry.

The Cauldron and the dark moon are associated with this Goddess.

Sacred Animals: This Goddess often transformed into a white sow to address her people.
In her myths she also shape shifted into a greyhound and an otter
Sacred Birds: Hawks and hens.
Sacred Plants:Corn.

Evocation (Lazy Witch)

Cerridwen, keeper of the Cauldron of Awen,

I invite and welcome you to this circle.

I call to your transformative spirit

and ask for your power, wisdom, and inspiration to be shared with me.

Blessed be. 

Honor/Offering (Awaken The Goddess Within)

 It took me quite a while to find some suggesting for offerings because everyone had information on her story but not on how to honor her.

Cerridwen’s symbols are the cauldron, pigs and grain. You can prepare a meal of pork and wheat in her honor. Alternatively, you may wish to forego pork and wheat for a period of time to show reverence to her sacred symbols.

I've also read that you can offer grain in a offering bowl and whisper what you desire until the end of the day. After that, you will pour the grains outside for the wildlife to gather and carry to the goddess.

Prayer (Awaken The Goddess Within)

[Note: This is best done right before bed]
Cerridwen, Goddess of Inspiration, Knowledge, and Power
Knower of the Unknown
Hear my Prayer
[Describe your problem]
I know the answers I seek are within me, but they are clouded behind veils of misperception
Please push back the veils and reveal them to me.
[Sit for 15 minutes and see what Cerridwen reveals to you. If the answer you seek doesn’t come in that time frame, you may sit longer or go to sleep knowing the answer will come to you in a dream. Remember to thank Cerridwen before you go to bed and again once the answer comes to you.]

Altar Maintanence

This is my altar when I first set it up.
It has more things on it and below it now.

It's my first time in my life to have a altar. I've always wanted one since high school when I started my path of being a witch. A friend of mine have a altar since high school and every time I visited her, I was so jealous because she was able to have one. If I were to place one in my house, my mom would've thrown it away and had me in church everyday. Sad, but true.

What are my plans for my altar? I want it to be my primary altar to do some spell work and a place to worship the Morrigan, my goddess. I also want to make offerings to other gods and goddess as well, for example I will make a offering this week to Cerridwen since she is the winter goddess in the Celtic pantheon.

I'm so excited that I can do this and not have to worry about it being disturbed. Sharri, my gf, will have a altar as well. We are sharing right now because hers is in pieces and we are trying to find time to put it together. The reason why we will have two different altars instead of sharing one is that we worship different goddess, she will start worshiping Aphrodite as her goddess. And we might want to do different spell works at the same time and I don't think that would be good for one altar.

I plan to dust my altar every Sunday since that's the day that I'm actually home in the evening. I didn't do it this Sunday because I stayed out late and I fell asleep as I hit the bed. I feel bad about it, yes and it will be the first thing I do when I get home tonight.

Update sense last post

I haven't been having the time lately for me to do any spiritual study or practice. I've totally missed Samhain and Yule. I wanted to be able to rededicate myself to wicca to start brand new but my job is taking up so much of my time and the bills has taken up so much of my money. I almost gotten all my supplies I need for my altar. I've found a lot about myself but I will post this up at a later time because it's almost 12 and it's time for me to sleep.

My beginning

I've dedicated myself to Wiccan when I was in high school. I grew up in a christian home but never thought that it was for me. I always knew that there was something more to me than I knew. I started to study Wiccan when I met my best friend and spiritual sister, Lauren. I felt more at home the more I read. Now I know who I am and now I can live my life the way I want it without caring about what others say.

I've had experiences in my life to teach me to be myself and not what others want you to be. I'm finally setting up my altar and my girlfriend is also spiritual so she's helps to boost my confidence. I'm actually talking to my spiritual guides and angels now. I never felt closer to them than I do now. This is my first post of many. I want to share my life with you all while I'm on my spiritually journey and hopefully you all would love to share your journeys as well.