21 Days of the Winter Solstice 11

Invocation to the Old Woman of Winter

Ancient Mother of Midwinter,

Watcher over life and death,

the one who re-births the world,

be with us on this longest night!

See us through the dark hours

and stand with us

as dawn births promise of new life.

So mote it be!

Susan Pesznicker

Blessings dark and deep!

21 Days of the Winter Solstice 1

Winter Solstice Tree Blessing

Holy Lady, Creator of Trees,

bestow Your abundant blessings upon 

this our Solstice tree, a symbol of joy.

May its evergreen branches be a sign

of your never-fading love & wisdom.

May its colorful lights and ornaments

 decorate our home and our world with love & peace.

May the gifts that surround this tree

be symbols of the gifts we have received

from the beautiful Earth Herself.

Blessed Winter Solstice tree within our home,

may Joy and Peace, wisdom and abundance,

compassion & love come and nest 

in your branches and in our hearts.

So mote it be.

  a Christian prayer for blessing the Christmas tree,

found at beliefnet.com & re-worded by E A Kaufman

Blessings dark and deep!

30 Days of Devotion - 23

Day 23 - My Own Composition for Hekate

Hekate's Offering

I am the Darkness,

Waiting, silent in stygian stillness.

I am the Silent Stillness,

Waiting, full, ripe with knowing, bliss.

I am the Amorphous Knowing,

Waiting, bringing truth, healing.

 From Beneath, within the rich, redolent Earth,

I wait.

From Beneath, within the crystal, renewing Waters,

I wait.

From Above, within the Winds that Whisper and take,

I wait.

 The Darkness holds and heals.

The Water blesses and heals.

The Wind cleanses and heals

These are My offerings. Will you accept them?

 Here is My torch, I hold it for you,

Opening the Path.

Light within Darkness.

Here from Beyond.

Wisdom from Knowledge.

 As you have offered to Me time and again,

Blood and honeyed wine, herb and egg,

Garlic and almond, fig and date,

Now, I offer to you.

From the Three Realms I come

To the Crossroads where you have called to Me.

Will you join Me there?

Will you journey with Me

To My Caverns of darkness and light, soft and still,

Mother's embrace?

Will you accept My gifts: visions, dreams,

Let your Spirit fill and flow?

 Will you come, O Priestess of Hekate,

Priestess of Mine?

Come, be with Me, I am waiting. 

copyright 2007 E A Kaufman

Published in "Bearing Torches, A Devotional Anthology for Hekate"

Published by Bibliotheca Alexandrina

SaveSave

30 Days of Devotion - 22

Day 22 - A quote, a poem, or piece of writing that you think Hekate resonates strongly with.

This invocation by Emily Carding is so beautiful, and while I have many invocation and poems that I love and feel Hekate resonates strongly with, this is a favorite.

Invocation to Hekate

Hekate, this name we gift you,

You who are older than names,

We visit you, in your deep places,

Your roots in the stars,

And ruddy feetIn the blood and bones 

of the primal surging Earth and waters,

The brilliance of a star, Veiled in darkness,

And once more robed in light,You are the maiden Mother,

And know our needs and our not-needs,

Which are stripped away

In the craggy rebirth of rock and bloody tears.

You are the many layered apple-seed that dwells within,

And the warm light without, containing too all the darkness,

It needs to grow into the tree of knowledge.

With your torch you guide us,

With your key you give us the power to choose,

To unlock, Or simply bear the symbol

Of a path that is walked towards a gate unopened.

The third hand cuts away, With sharpened knife, All that holds us back.

We are left undone, unmade, unfinished,

With the knowledge of incompleteness,

We are given choice, We are given voice,

And with the voice of choice, We are given power.

Horse hooves lead us on a path of movement true and strong,

Serpentine stealth may teach us ways into hidden places,

And secret knowledge, Dog-Wolf protector is ever loyal and full of instinct,

Not to be betrayed.

You give us choice,

And in the storm-filled darkness, you light the way,

Great Goddess, Dark Mother, shining Hekate!

- Emily Carding - 

Invocation of the Circle

I love this circle invocation by Doreen Valiente, found in "Witchcraft, A Tradition Renewed" by Doreen and Evan John Jones. I'm always writing, rewriting, and searching out invocations, prayers, quarter calls, for my circles. I like to change it up all the time. This is a favorite.

Invocation of the Circle

By stang and cauldron, cup and knife,

By right of office that I hold,

Ye ancient powers of death and life,

Forgather to the circle's fold.

Kinship to kinship, blood to blood,

By wild night wind and starry sky,

By heathland brown and darkling wood,

To this our circle now draw nigh.

In likeness of a henge of stone,

Stand guard around this circle's rim,

While looming through the dark alone,

Stands in the east the Hele-stone dim.

I summon forth the fairy hounds,

Sharp-fanged, white-coated, red of ear,

To prowl beyond the circle's bounds,

And put intruders' hearts in fear.

Ancestral powers of this our blood,

We are your people, guard us well,

By earth and air, by fire and flood,

By magic mime and spoken spell.

Our craft's own Goddess I invoke,

And Ancient Ones of hill and mound.

With fire aflame and drifting smoke,

I dedicate this circle's bound.

By three times three,

Thus shall it be!

~Doreen Valiente, Witchcraft: a Tradition Renewed~