Mabon Ritual

As used by Ancient Pathway

 

This is an example of how we practice. You should customize this ritual to meet your needs.

Ritual Preparation

• Gather the necessary tools
• Select two candles for your alter, one in a shade of orange, the other a shade of a russet.
• Select four additional candles for the elemental quarters. You can maintain the color scheme if you wish, or select a color that represents the energy of that quarter. For instance, you might chose a light shade of blue to represent the Water essence of the West quarter and a fiery red to represent the Fire essence of the South quarter. or find a set of dark maroon candles to complete the harvest colors.
• Choose your favorite ceremonial broom. You can often find a straw ornamental broom at local craft shows/stores.
• Choose your favorite serving trays or dishes. You can find some inexpensive brass or silver serving trays and goblets at a variety of gift stores.
• Set aside your ceremonial cakes (pumpkin muffins are a perfect example) and wine on the serving trays. And a special decanter to hold the wine. If you don't partake of wine, use your favorite grape juice or for this harvest festival apple cider is very appropriate.
• Select a bell, you might want to add a decorative ribbon or wrap a vine of silk fall colored leaves from your local craft store around the handle to coincide with the colors of the harvest festival.
• Choose a gift for honoring the God/Goddess on this harvest day. One of our favorite methods of gift giving on this Fire festival is to burn incense. We select a few stalks of the herbs we collected from the Lughnasadh harvest, like sage and lavender.
• A decorative pillow or rug to lie or sit on for your meditation.

Prepare ritual space
Clean the area, not just energy wise but dust and vacuum your space. If your space is outside, you might clean any fallen branches, weeds or even clear any animal indications that may have been deposited in the area. The most important part is to clear and cleanse the space.

Prepare body
It's just as important to prepare yourself as it is your space. On the day of your ceremony take a shower or bubble bath. Make sure your ritual cloths (whether a robe or just jeans and a t-shirt) are clean. Take time to have a meditation to align your energies, prepare your energies for the spiritual work ahead and open your chakra centers.

Open Circle
Finding the compass points, directing the ritual and speaking the blessings is usually performed by a High Priest or Priestess within a coven. If you are a solitary witch, then YOU are the High Priest or Priestess. For our example we will simply refer to the director of ceremonies as the Priest.

The Priest should find compass North, where the ritual will begin with calling in the quarters starting with the North. Set your circle according to the directions. If you are conducting the ceremony alone, you might chose to use a rope of natural fibers to outline your ceremonial circle. If you're performing the ceremony in a coven, mark the location of the quarters so everyone will know where to stand when the circle is drawn. The Priest should guide everyone through the steps for setting up a Door Between the Worlds by raising the vibration of the group and/or area.

Close your eyes and imagine a divine white light emerging from the solar plexus of each person and then raising up toward a center point over the circle. Many call this establishing a "cone of power". Imagine this light spinning clockwise rising your energies and awareness. If your a solitary witch, you will imagine the light beginning at your solar plexus and then moving out to fully encompass your ritual space. Each Quarter Master will then be directed to call the Watchtowers or Elemental Quarters it's usually the choice of the Priest, but each person should call upon the same force. Some witches call Angels, Spirit Guides, or just the elements. It's up to you or your coven. Just as which direction to start with is up the individuals. Many witches begin with the North, where others begin with the east.

Your prayer to summon the directions can be stated in a variety of ways. From old English to a modern statement. Here's an example:

Facing North the 1st QuarterMaster states: "To the God & Goddess of the Harvest, the Watchtowers of the North and the elements of Earth, we call upon your wisdom, summon your energy and love to witness this celebration of renewal, blessings to Mabon and union of spirit."


• Light the Northern candle and ring the bell once.
  
  If you are a solitary, turn to the East, or if in a coven the 2nd QuarterMaster faces East and states: "To the God and Goddess of the Harvest, the Watchtowers of the East and the elements of Air, we call upon your wisdom and summon your energy for clear communications to spirit and divine knowledge and understanding."
  
  
• Light the Eastern candle and ring the bell once.
  
  Turn to the South and state: "To the God and Goddess of the Harvest, the Watchtowers of the South and the elements of Fire, we call upon your wisdom and summon your energy for purification of mind/body/spirit and the harvest. We ask for your divine protection over all things that we bring forth for renewal."
  
  
• Light the Southern candle and ring the bell once.
  
  Turn to the West and state: "To the God and Goddess of the Harvest, the Watchtowers of the West and the elements of Water, we call upon your wisdom and summon your energy for renewing our connection to family in spirit and to the earth's celebration of life and abundance."
  
  
• Light the Western candle and ring the bell once.

Invocation to Spirit
The Priest should guide everyone through the steps to:

Call your personal Spirit Guide and solicit their assistance during the ritual. Your personal guide can assist you to maintain focus and concentration during the ritual as well as, aid in your tasks within the circle.

You might call upon them like this:

"(State your guides' name), I call upon your guidance and love to assist me during this spiritual celebration. To help me maintain my focus, energy and alignment for divine purpose and work."


• Light a candle for your guide and ring the bell twice.
  
  
• Call your deity and solicit their assistance aligning yourself with the deity. In most covens the High Priest/Priestess will summon the deity. In other covens each person will call upon their chosen deity and align their energies (this is the method we prefer most. It empowers each individual instead of setting one person above the rest). Which ever you prefer light a candle for each deity you summon upon the alter and ring the bell three times for each deity called.
  
  "I believe in the spiritual existence of myself as a perfect image of (deitys' name). In this reflection that is my physical embodiment, I align myself and my faith in the supreme guidance of my soul with the ancient powers and wisdom of (state the deitys' name once more)."
  
  

State Your Purpose
The Priest should state the intent of the gathering. For a Sabbat you'll state your purpose of honoring the harvest, as well as, the God and Goddess of the harvest. You'll continue by blessing the cakes and wine for the ceremony.

You might say something like:

"I/we have come to honor the nature kingdom, the abundance of the harvest and nurturing of the giving mother earth. We/I honor the prosperity given by the Father God and the many blessings of provided through our harvest of plenty and season of renewal."

Honor The God/Goddess
The Priest should preside over the steps to honor and dedicate the items for the festival.

Perform manual and visionary tasks by pulling in images of Mabon and the Goddess of renewal. You should state your honor and gratitude as well, something like this:

"To the Lord Mabon we offer our thanks and gratitude for this harvest;
To the Land of Avalon we give homage to your love and continual light.
For the harvest we have reaped and beauty you have provided we honor you both on this your night of Mabon."


• Light the candle you choose to represent the harvest festival and ring the bell seven times.

Dedicate offerings.
Whether you're conducting a ritual of honor or for work, you should present an offering that is commiserate with the event. We like to make an offering of energy through a fragrant bouquet. We light the smudge stick we prepared and allow the sage and lavender to blaze for a few moments. We say part of our prayer, then blow out the flames and allow the incense to continue to smolder. Then we complete the prayer and place the incense in a special holder, we like to use a brass bowl shaped in the fashion of a miniature cauldron.

Finally, because this festival is one of a harvest and new beginnings, we like to add a bowl or several bowls of seeds that we will use to plant in the spring.

We say something like this:

• Hold the smudge stick in your left hand and light it with the right. Then hold up the burning stick to the God Mabon with both hands.
  
  "We offer this gift as a symbol of our love and thanks to Mabon;
  We honor the Lord Mabon and his rays of light that bring forth the harvest of the orchard."
  
  
• Lower the smudge and blow out the flames, allow the stick to smolder. Again with both hands hold the stick up to the Goddess
  
  "We share the fragrance of this offering with the Goddess of Birth and renewal, We honor the elements of rain and fair weather that she has given to nurture our vineyards."
  
  
• Set the smudge in the bowl and retrieve a bowl of seed, holding it up to the God/Goddess;
  
  "We give thanks for the abundance of our gardens; And we share in the blessings of these seeds for gardens yet to come."
  
  
• Replace the seeds on the alter and ring the bell nine times.
  {We try to allow at least 2-3 of our plants go to seed before the harvest just for this purpose.}

For Honoring
Partake of cakes and wine that you have set upon a platter.
(Some covens like to serve the cakes upon small dishes, while others prefer to hold the cakes in their hand. Which ever you chose, the cakes should start on a platter for the dedication. The wine starts in a special decanter and is poured into ceremonial goblets. Once again different covens have different rituals. Some provide individual cups, much like silver shot glasses, while others insist each witch bring their own goblet.)

To dedicate your cakes and wine, you might say something like:

• Hold the plate of cakes up using both hands and say:
  
  "On this eve of Mabon we come to honor and share in our bounty. We offer these cakes made of pumpkin {or whatever} and this wine made of apple {again whatever wine you've chosen}."
  
  
• Ring the festival bell three times, then walk up to each person in the circle and allow them to take a cake from the tray with the right hand. Make sure there's one or two cakes left for the God/Goddess. When everyone has received a cake, each individual should hold it in both hands and raise it up to the God; then say:
  
  "With the partaking of this cake I take into my body the essence of Mabon, the God of renewal. I align my spirit and soul with the physical well being of my body and mind; As Mabon is the teacher and bridge builder between the earthly and divine worlds."
  
  
• Each person eats their cake.
  
  
• With your right hand grasp the neck of the decanter. With your left hand hold your chalice and pour the wine. When everyone has their share of wine, each person raises their goblet to the Goddess and says:
  
  "With the partaking of this wine I take into my body the essence of the Goddess, I align my soul with the balance and rejoining of our spiritual family."
  
  
• Each person drinks half their wine, then holds the goblet up again.
  
  "We ask the God of renewal and Goddess of Union to accept this wine as our offering of honor and thanksgiving on this the festival of Mabon."

Some people like to pour the remaining wine from the goblets into a large cauldron. As a symbolistic gesture that we are all one and all part of the divine. Some covens go a step farther and light the wine allowing it evaporate into the ethers through the flames. And others add to the ceremony and pour the wine onto the ground, making a circle and pentagram with the liquid.

Meditation
The Priest should guide everyone through a brief meditation. No matter what your ceremony is for, we believe you should add a moment of meditation to the event. In this altered state a witch can contact the God/Goddess and engage them in a private ritual.

You can use this time to thank them for the gifts they brought you, the enjoyment you had tending the garden, sharing the harvests with your family and so on.

In our view, the Sabbat ceremonies are not the time to ask for something for yourself. This is a time of honoring what the God/Goddess has already given you. You might ask for clarity of vision or better understanding of the messages they provided you with the growth of the garden and the tasks you were given to maintain and enjoy it.

Conclude your meditation by closing your chakra centers.

Thank the Deities and Spirits
The Priest should guide everyone through a statement of thanks.
This is one of the more important steps to any ritual. You spent a good deal of time asking for their assistance, calling the quarters, your personal spirit guide and the deities, so be polite and spend time thanking them as well. Here's a simple example:

• Stand facing the alter, hold your hands together as if you are praying, only open the top slightly at the thumbs as if you're making a bowl with your hands. Then state:
  
  "I, (state your magik name), thank the God, Goddess, Divine Spirits and the WatchTowers of the Four Corners for watching over this ceremony of Mabon. By the light and love of All that Is, we honor the blessings we have received on this day. Many blessings to each and all as we walk along the path of enlighentment forever."

Close the Circle
The Priest should guide everyone through a process of closing the circle.
Mentally and verbally close the circle. You don't want to leave the gateway between worlds open for several reasons. You could be inviting forces you don't necessarily want around you. You can also be maintaining a state of heightened perception. While this is great for ceremonies and ritual work, it isn't necessarily good for daily activities. If you find yourself saying "I feel out of it today", then you need to close your senses and get grounded. This is another reason for closing the circle.

• Imagine the "cone of power" you established at the beginning of the ritual, slowly coming down and dissipating back within the solar plexus of each person. Move to the center of the circle, holding a ceremonial sword or knife. Starting in the North, turn counter-clockwise and state:
  
  "We give thanks to the God and Goddess once more. We honor each other in this state of divine experiences. And we close this circle that binds us to spirit, and can never be broken.
  
  
• Snuff out the candles (don't blow them out). (Some people like to leave the two ritual candles burning during the night until they burn out by themselves. Then, if they last, you use these two on the next day of the festival as you continue our honor of Mabon.)

We prepare a special fall meal and invite family or friends to join us. These two candles are placed as the center-piece of the table. If the original candles have extinguished before the meal, we will light another candle from the flame of the original; allowing all candles to burn as long as they can.

Physically close the circle by exiting over the broom. Pick up the broom and sweep away any energy that may have been left over.

Clean your working area and prepare your offerings, gifts and candles for burial. If there are any cakes left over from the ritual, set them outside for the animals and spirit folk. Pour out any left over wine on the ground. Once again some people like to pour out the drink in the shape of a pentacle. Wash all dishes and clean all tools.

Ritual Is Concluded
Finally, some people like to share their experiences during the ritual. Some even carry the festival on and hold a party to share in some of the fruits, vegetables and breads they labored over. For the solitary, now is a good time to record the events and make notes about what you felt, what you did and didn't do that you might like to do next time.