Public & Performance Rituals

Planetary Healing Ritual from The Witches Workshop

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Performance Ritual from the
Witches Workshop

Planetary Healing Ritual for the
Coffs Harbour Mind, Body Spirit Expo
January 10-12, 1998

The ritual was written by me, Lilitu and performed at the Expo by the Witches' Workshop. The Witches Workshop was at that time, an ad hoc group of witches from varying traditions who work together at public events.

The purpose of the ritual is to bind and then banish the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse and the negativity they represent. As the ritual was a performance ritual and spell casting, some elements of the circle were omitted including wine and cakes and the Great Rite. In the outline there is a Main Operator (MO) and a number of Secondary Operators (SO).

Pre-Ritual Preparations

Four altars are set up at the four quarters. They are small, wooden tables upon which are placed:

East - Element of Air
Covered with a yellow cloth and with a yellow candle
Sword, feathers and the bell for Narrator to ring

North - Element of Fire
Covered with a red cloth and with a red candle
Dragon statue and a bowl of hot chillies

West - Element of Water
Covered with a blue cloth and with a blue candle
Shells and a bowl of water

South - Element of Earth
Covered with a green cloth and with a green candle
Large crystal and a small bunch of herbs

* Each person should place their athame on their elemental altar.
* There shall be a box of matches on each elemental altar for the lighting of the candles.

Central Altar

The central altar is a larger table covered with either a white or purple cloth. Upon it is placed:

Bunch of flowers
Cauldron with methylated spirits (standing on 2 bricks)
2 white altar candles
Statues of the Goddess and the God
Pentacle
Long matches
Incense/Charcoal/Censer
Salt
Bowl of Water

NB: A blanket should be placed under the table prior to the commencement of the ritual in case of fire hazard.

Clothing:
All participants should be barefoot
Men: black robes
Women: black clothes
Watches should be removed

Just before the ritual:

MO cleanses the room using the Lesser Banishing Ritual of the Pentagram. S/he consecrates the ritual tools, incense, water, salt, candles etc.

When everyone has entered the room, SO explains the purpose of the ritual and indicates where the "audience" should participate. (During the binding and banishing the audience should visualise all negative aspects as being bound and then dissipating.) S/he outlines the nine elements of the ritual performance:

1. Calling of the Quarters
2. Casting of the Circle
3. Strengthening of the Circle
· water/salt · Incense · Candles
4. Invocation of the Goddess and God
5. Chants
6. Spell casting - binding and banishing
7. Thank you to the Goddess and God
8. Dissolving of the four quarters
9. Closing of the Circle

SCRIPT

Narrator: "The Ritual Shall Begin"

Calling of the Quarters

Hail Guardians of the Watchtowers of the East
Powers of Air!
We invoke you and call you
Golden Eagle of the Dawn
Star-seeker
Whirlwind
Rising Sun
Come!
By the air that is your breath
Send forth your light
Be here now!

Hail Guardians of the Watchtowers of the North
Powers of fire!
We invoke you and call you
Red Lion of the noon heat
Flaming one
Summer’s warmth
Spark of Life
Come!
By the fire that is your spirit
Send forth your flame
Be here now!

Hail Guardians of the Watchtowers of the West
Powers of Water!
We invoke you and call you
Serpent of the watery abyss
Rainmakers
Gray-robed Twilight
Evening star
Come!
By the waters of your living womb
Send forth your flow
Be here now!

Hail Guardians of the Watchtowers of the South
Powers of Earth!
We invoke you and call you
Lady of the outer darkness
Black Bull of midnight
Southern Star
Centre of the whirling sky
Stone, mountain, fertile field
Come!
By the earth that is your body
Send forth your strength
Be here now!

(During the calling of the quarters, each person lights their own candle and the Narrator will ring the bell once after each calling. Each person draws the invoking pentagram.)

Casting the circle:

The circle is walked three times sunwise.

MO says:

Cut the circle, make it sound
Cut the circle three times round
Between the world the circle’s bound
Where love, and joy and truth are found

(repeat three times with each walking of the circle)

then say:

Three times round the circle’s cast
Old ones’ spirits from the past
Witness it and hold it fast.

The Narrator says: "Let the circle be strengthened"

SO walks the circle once sunwise with the water/salt and sprinkles
SO walks the circle once sunwise with the incense and wafts smoke over everyone
SO walks the circle once sunwise with the flame (candle)

Invocation of the Goddess and the God

The deities chosen for this ritual were Apollo and Hebe (healers).

MO invokes the Goddess: (NB shortened version of the Charge of the Goddess only)

"I call on the healing Goddess Hebe to be present at this ritual and to aid us in the working"

Ye shall dance, sing, feast, make music and love
All in my praise
For mine is the ecstasy of the spirit
And mine is also joy on earth
For my law is love unto all being

SO (a male) invokes the God:

"I call on the healing God Apollo to be present at this ritual and to aid us in the working"

Bright sun, Dark death
Lord of winds, Lord of the dance
Sun-child, Winter-born king
Hanged one
Untamed! Untamed!
Stag and stallion, Goat and bull
Sailor of the last sea, Guardian of the gate
Lord of the two lands
Ever-dying, ever-living, Radiance!
Move us, touch us, shake us!
Bring us through!

Chants

The women repeat 9 times:

Isis, Astarte, Diana, Hecate, Demeter, Kali, Innana

The men repeat 9 times:

Osiris, Adonis, Cernunnos, Pan, Dionysis, Shiva, Demmuzi

PAUSE

Narrator says: "Light the Fires of Transformation"

SO steps forward and lights the cauldron fire…

Narrator says: "Let the Spell be Cast!"

The Spell

MO stands before the central altar, facing the south and the flaming cauldron to perform the binding:

By air and earth
By water and Fire
So be you bound
As I desire

By three and nine
Your power I bind
By moon and sun
My will be done

Apollo and Hebe
Keep harm from me
Cord go round
Power be bound
and Light revealed
(pause count three)
Now be sealed!

All four come forward and one by one, dip the tip of their athame into the flaming cauldron, hold up and call:

West - "Pollution be Gone!"
North - "War be Gone!"
East - "Disease be Gone!"
South - "Hunger be Gone!"

All four turn their backs towards the cauldron, facing their quarter and simultaneously draw the banishing pentagram.

MO says:

By all the power of three times three
This spell bound around shall be
To cause no harm
Nor return on me
As I do will
So mote it be!

Narrator calls: "The spell has been cast"

All four walk back to their quarters and turn to face the centre once again.

Farewell to the Goddess and God

MO says farewell and thanks to the healing goddess Hebe
SO (male) says farewell and thanks to the healing god Apollo
(each in their own words)

Banishing the Quarters

Guardians of the Watchtowers of the West
Powers of Water
We thank you for your presence and protection
At this our ritual
And bid you hail and farewell.
Blessed Be!

North - Powers of Fire
East - Powers of Air
South - Powers of Earth

Opening the Circle

MO walks the circle once, counter-sunwise and says:

"May the circle be open but unbroken".

Narrator calls: "The ritual is completed!"

Question time.

The calling and banishing of the quarters and the spell casting section are slightly altered versions of some that appear in The Spiral Dance by Starhawk (published by Harper Collins).

This page is Copyright Lilitu Babalon, 1999
I'll give you permission to reproduce anything on my page if you ask, provided it is mine.
However, if I find you plagiarising, well.....