tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11449606.post2632432190798258773..comments2023-05-23T07:44:00.067-04:00Comments on At the end of desire: So many birthdays; and, ritual protocolInannahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16117834687295375810noreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11449606.post-73790467269176581002007-06-01T09:58:00.000-04:002007-06-01T09:58:00.000-04:00Thank you, Willow, for your suggestions.Thank you, Willow, for your suggestions.Inannahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16117834687295375810noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11449606.post-25334834088163944762007-06-01T09:57:00.000-04:002007-06-01T09:57:00.000-04:00I meant no disrespect to Gardnerians, Alexandrians...I meant no disrespect to Gardnerians, Alexandrians, aficionados of the Golden Dawn, or anyone else who likes the Christian-inflected "watchtower" invocations. <BR/><BR/>My point was simply that the priestess had suggested a different way of thinking about the directions and elements, and most didn't heed her, falling back instead into the same old language, "welcome, spirits of the east, " and so on. Like I said, it was uninspired.<BR/><BR/>I'm tempted to say that this was a minor point within my post. But I also realize that I was irritated, at the ritual, by what seemed like an unfamiliarity with the elements much beyond the standard associations. I felt like the priestess was encouraging us to say what fire, for example, <I>feels</I> like to us, in the real world - to feel it and to express it. After all, we're not invoking abstract concepts. We're talking about the real thing.<BR/><BR/>I suppose I like my rituals to be down to earth. Seems appropriate for an earth-based spiritual practice, after all.Inannahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16117834687295375810noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11449606.post-55016481685835938222007-05-30T06:54:00.000-04:002007-05-30T06:54:00.000-04:00If that phrase works for that priestess/circle, th...If that phrase works for that priestess/circle, then that's their choice. I've tried creating a goddess chant with goddess's i call upon most, and it generally doesn't seem to be as powerful, even though it feels right for me.<BR/><BR/>Grounding and centring are good, but I guess when surrounded by people.. visualising pink/white light bubble around you, feeling the energy vibes of the earth and air to calm you, releasing negativity through the earth or air, metta bhvanna (loving kindness meditation - As you wlak or sit or stand, feel love for nature and the spirits and send out little pink/green balls of light from solar plexus, through your hands to each person, filling them with positivity and love.)<BR/><BR/>Those are some things i do in negative situations or where i feel uncomfortable... Breathing deeply also helps. <BR/><BR/>In Love And Light,<BR/>Willow.Willowhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07459981609770309139noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11449606.post-8329337055360204532007-05-29T20:31:00.000-04:002007-05-29T20:31:00.000-04:00It wasn’t quite “all hail the guardians of the wat...<I>It wasn’t quite “all hail the guardians of the watchtower of the East,”</I><BR/><BR/>You say that as if it were a bad thing!<BR/><BR/>Remember, all acts of love and pleasure are rituals of the Goddess.Hecatehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09291488568404382739noreply@blogger.com