Guest1: Lights the Lamp of Art, and say, �The fire is lit. The ritual has begun.�
Dedicant: Salt-water purification.
Take up the chalice of water and say, "Blessed be thou creature of water." Then, take up the bowl of salt and say "Blessed be thou creature of Earth." Using your athame, mix the salt and water together in the chalice.
Guest2: Charging with fire and air.
Take up the incense burner, sprinkling fresh incense on the charcoal,
saying, "Blessed be thou creature of fire and air." Take in around the circle, starting in the north, saying, "With fire and air, I charge the north." Walk, swing the censer, to the east, then pause and say, "With fire and air, I charge the east." Continue for the south and west.
Foxglove: Casting the circle.
Walking deosil around the circle, the circle is cast with these or similar
words: "I do hereby cast this sacred circle on the Sabbat of Litha and the night of the full moon. We are now between the worlds, beyond the bounds of time, where night and day, birth and death, joy and sorrow, meet as one."
Invocation of the Elements
Blackwood- Invoking the Quarters
Invoking the North
"Hail, Guardians of the Watchtowers of the North,
Powers of Earth,
Hard-working gnomes,
Black bull of Midnight,
North Star,
Center of the whirling sky,
Stone, mountain, fertile field,
We invoke you and call you,
To join our ritual,
Be here now!�
Invoking the East
�Hail, Guardians of the Watchtowers of the East,
Powers of Air,
Free-flying sylphs,
Golden eagle of the dawn,
Star-seeker, whirlwind, rising sun,
We invoke you and call you,
To join our ritual,
Be here now!�
Invoking the South
�Hail, Guardians of the Watchtowers of the South,
Powers of Fire,
Flame-leaping salamanders,
Red lion of the noon heat,
Flaming one, summer�s warmth, spark of life,
We invoke you and call you,
To join our ritual,
Be here now!�
Invoking the West
�Hail, Guardians of the Watchtowers of the West,
Powers of Water,
Graceful undines,
Serpent of the watery abyss,
Rainmaker, gray-robed twilight, evening star,
We invoke you and call you,
To join our ritual,
Be here now!�
Invocation of the Gods
Foxglove: Invoking the Goddess
�Crescent One of starry skies,
Flowered One of fertile fields,
Flowing One of oceans tides,
Blessed One of the gentle rain,
Hear my chant in this sacred place,
Open me to Your mystic light,
Waken me to Your silver grace,
Be with me in this sacred rite!�
Guest2: Invoking the God
�Horned One of the wilderness,
Winged One of the shining skies,
Rayed One of the blazing Sun,
Strong One, wild and free,
We pray that You grace us with
Presence this magickal night!�
Ritual of Midsummer
Foxglove-- � Blessed be this season of Midsummer. The sun rides at its peak in the skies above. The Goddess is heavy with pregnancy. Today we celebrate the light, for tomorrow that light will wane.�
Guest1-- Take your athame and raise it in front of you. Say:
�Farewell to the waning year
Season of fertility and growth
and the time of planting.�
Make the sign of the banishing pentagram of Earth.
Blackwood-- Take your athame and raise it in front of you. Say:
�Welcome the waning year
Season of harvest and wisdom
Welcome to the bounty of autumn.�
Make the sign of the invoking pentagram of Earth.
All--Take the Herb Pouch and hold above your head, saying:
"By thy power, oh sacred herbs, may the Lord of the Sun Burn away the hurtful, the troublesome, and the painful, Leaving me purified through His warmth and Light."
Set the pouch on fire. While it is burning, drop it in the cauldron, saying:
"Great Goddess and Great God, from Thee all powers flow forth.
By Thy powers, and the powers of Earth, Air, Fire, and Water,
By Thy powers, and the powers of the Sun, Moon, and Stars,
I banish these negatives from my life."
Visualize the negatives burning away to nothingness. When all that is left is ashes, douse the ashes with a cup of water, feel as if the water were being poured over you and your negatives washed away. When done, face altar, wave hand over the cauldron and say:
"As the Phoenix rises from the ashes, so let this water be pure and new.
Mother Goddess, bless this water so that it may bless and renew me.
Father God, may your rays of the MidSummer Sun bless and nourish me.
Two that are One, may your blessings sustain me as I journey, anew."
Cakes and Ale
Guest1 takes up the cup, and Blackwood takes her athame. Blackwood puts the blade into the cup of milk, and says:
�As the athame is to the male, so the cup is to the female; and conjoined, they bring blessings.�
Dedicant takes up the wand and Guest2 the cakes as Dedicant says:
�Lady of the Green Earth and Lord, we thank You for Your abundance at Midsummer.�
The food and drink is then shared around the circle.
Farewells
Guest2: Thanks the God, saying:
�Great Father God,
We offer You thanks,
Honor and Love.
Hail and farewell.�
The God candle is now extinguished.
Foxglove: Thanks the Goddess, saying:
"Gracious Mother Goddess,
We offer You thanks,
Honor and Love.
Hail and farewell.�
The Goddess candle is now extinguished.
Blackwood: Thanks the Quarters.
Foxglove: takes the sword and retraces the line of the circle. She uses words like:
�I draw back the energy of this circle, and return it to the earth. The space is once again mundane, once again of the world we know. May we take a piece of the sanctity of this place with us in our hearts.�
Guest1: steps to the altar and says:
�The flame is extinguished.�
She blows out the flame.
�The ritual is done.�
All:
�Merry meet, merry part, and merry meet again!�
Blackwood: knocks three times on the altar.