Ostara Ritual (Submitted by Alastar)

Preparation: For decorating the altar use dyed eggs and pink and green ribbons or streamers. Prepare the altar with the God and Goddess candles and the supplies for casting the circle. Include a soil-filled cauldron, a sword, a small shovel, a small pot, a few seeds of your favorite flower or herb, a Corn Dolly, and a Grape Dolly. The Corn Dolly should be dressed in white. The Grape Dolly should be dressed in green. The cauldron should be placed in front of the altar. Begin by casting the circle.

Here I am on this day, Ostara, Lady Day, Rite of Eostre, the Vernal Equinox, and the first day of the planting season. I am here to understand life, death, and rebirth, and to give reverence to those who have endured each.

Bow your head to think about how Ostara fits in one of the three groups above and how it fits in the Wheel of the Year.

I stand at the gate between the living and the dead on this night when both light and dark are equal. I am here to witness the union of my Goddess, Mother Earth, the waxing Lady of the Moon, and of our God, Green Man, the waxing Lord of the Sun. Conception. . . a necessary transition on the Wheel of the Year.

Lay the Dollies next to each other on the pillow.

Now is the time of the Great Rite between the beloved Maiden, one of the three faces of my Goddess, and her consort, the beloved Sun King, one of the three faces of my God. I watch as the Goddess is impregnated by the God with the seeds of conception.

Unite the blade of the sword with the depth of the cauldron symbolizing the Great Rite. Leave the sword standing. Hold the God candle and mingles the flame with the Goddess candle. Replace these on the altar and set them closer than they were before. Say:

The Elder Gods wish to bestow upon us the gift of knowledge. Thus they shall speak.

Hold the Grape Dolly and Corn Dolly up high, one in each hand. Say:

These wise words are their gifts. "There is a time for ever purpose under the heavens above. Now is the time to sow that which will be reaped come fall and winter. Now is the time of the conception of the Divine Child which is necessary to keep the Wheel of the Year turning. As I plant these seeds of child and harvest, each dependant upon the other, the Wheel of the Year turns, the land also ready to take to it seeds. It is now your time to begin your sowing of seeds, material, spiritual, and symbolic, to ready you for the coming seasons." So mote it be.

Place the Dollies closer to each other on the pillow. Say:

The Gods have shown me the way. Now, on this day of Ostara, at this time of planting and beginning, I shall sow my own seeds for the coming seasons.

Use the small shovel to transfer soil from the cauldron to the small pot. As you are plating the seeds, you should be thinking about your goals as though they were the seeds. You can now conclude the ritual.

May these newly planted seeds, material, spiritual, and symbolic, bring to me plentiful fruits and bounties.

Close the circle. Serve yourself hard boiled eggs, honey cakes, and egg nog. You can leave the cauldron and sword on the altar until Beltane to remind you of the seeds sewn on this day. Also leave plastic colored eggs to remind you of the conception of the Divine Child

 

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