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fire and ice
Feb. 3rd, 2007 04:45 pmIt has been a long time since I quietly slipped past the self-limiting role of the reluctant priestess. I'm still not going to be found declaiming high poetry to the gods, but I have found my ritual style, and I am comfortable in it. What works for me is having something practical to do, and a story to tell.
Our Imbolc celebration began with dipping candles on Thursday morning. I added a handful of beeswax to bring out the waxy, living texture that holds magic better than the slick brittleness of paraffin. The candles looked awesome. I've never dipped candles before, and expected it to be one of those crafts that takes a lot of practice. Call it beginner's luck, but eight pairs of smooth, stout tapers hung on the rack to cool. The one question remaining was, would they burn properly? Candles have to age a bit, so we wouldn't know until we celebrated the Esbat on Friday night. Yes, the eight pairs had been made with the Sabbats in mind, but there's no way we were going to wait until Ostara to use them. They would be blessed on Imbolc, and then one pair used to transition the altar from Imbolc to the full moon.
Part of the Imbolc celebration is re-awakening and re-dedication, starting fresh after winter's darkness has held you in it's grip. It is time for spring cleaning with a vengeance, getting the cobwebs out of the corners as well as out of the mind. We clean by earth, air, fire and water. I explained this to one of my sabbath-observant friends, who commented that it was like the ritual cleaning before Pesach(Passover). Yes, I agreed, but we clean four times over, by earth, air, fire and water. We really do use all the elements in a good spring cleaning. The iron skillets and cauldrons are scrubbed with coarse salt and oil. The chill air blows in open windows, sending the staleness out. Anything that can be scrubbed, is, and the water heater and gas-fired clothes dryer work extra hard to keep up. Most of this cleaning takes place in the days prior to the holiday. The last thing we do is clean and polish all our ritual tools. No, the very last thing we do is tumble exhausted into our hot, fragrant baths.
Our Imbolc celebration began with dipping candles on Thursday morning. I added a handful of beeswax to bring out the waxy, living texture that holds magic better than the slick brittleness of paraffin. The candles looked awesome. I've never dipped candles before, and expected it to be one of those crafts that takes a lot of practice. Call it beginner's luck, but eight pairs of smooth, stout tapers hung on the rack to cool. The one question remaining was, would they burn properly? Candles have to age a bit, so we wouldn't know until we celebrated the Esbat on Friday night. Yes, the eight pairs had been made with the Sabbats in mind, but there's no way we were going to wait until Ostara to use them. They would be blessed on Imbolc, and then one pair used to transition the altar from Imbolc to the full moon.
Part of the Imbolc celebration is re-awakening and re-dedication, starting fresh after winter's darkness has held you in it's grip. It is time for spring cleaning with a vengeance, getting the cobwebs out of the corners as well as out of the mind. We clean by earth, air, fire and water. I explained this to one of my sabbath-observant friends, who commented that it was like the ritual cleaning before Pesach(Passover). Yes, I agreed, but we clean four times over, by earth, air, fire and water. We really do use all the elements in a good spring cleaning. The iron skillets and cauldrons are scrubbed with coarse salt and oil. The chill air blows in open windows, sending the staleness out. Anything that can be scrubbed, is, and the water heater and gas-fired clothes dryer work extra hard to keep up. Most of this cleaning takes place in the days prior to the holiday. The last thing we do is clean and polish all our ritual tools. No, the very last thing we do is tumble exhausted into our hot, fragrant baths.
