Modern Female Rite of Passage
EARLY PREPARATIONS
Candles for the ritual will be made that day. Celebrant will make two white candles. Candles will be herbal and scented, and enscribed appropriately. Celebrant and mother will also bring something thatsymbolically (to them) symbolizes the rite of passage.
Ritual baths will be taken prior to ceremony, with Celebrant's bath being drawn for her. Salt, herbs and scents appropriate to the occasion will be added to the bath, and it will be blessed prior to use. Motherwill help Celebrant to the bath, where she will light a candle and incense, give words of love and comfort and instruction to the Celebrant, and then withdraw to assist in Circle Preparation.
CIRCLE PREPARATION
Circle area will be cleansed and Circle constructed and consecrated in the usual manner. Altar will sit just West of Center of Circle to symbolize both the emotional aspects of the ritual, as well as the death/ rebirth aspects.
Added to altar arrangement will be the Celebrant's two white candles. Also on the altar will be a mirror sitting behind and between the two white candles. Symbolic gifts will be placed beside the altar -- the mother's to the North symbolizing steadfastness, grounding, caution, and wisdom of the elder. The Celebrant's will be to the South of the altar, symbolizing the fire, passion and impetuosity of youth.
INVOCATIONS
Guardian of the East
Hail to thee, Ancient ones of Air!
Blow soft around us this night
That the restrictions and pains of childhood
Will be but memories in the mind of the adult.
Guardian of the South
Hail to thee, Ancient ones of Fire!
Lend to us this night your passion and strength
Envelope us in your warmth,
That the fires of youth may be tempered within thee.
Guardian of the West
Hail to thee, Ancient ones of Water!
Wash over us with thy loving embrace
That the sorrows of days long past
Can give way to new understanding.
Guardians of the North
Hail to thee, Ancient ones of Earth!
Stand firm with us in our purpose this night,
That from the youth shall grow the adult
Full of purpose and wisdom.
Invocation to the Lady
Blessed Lady of a Thousand Names,
You who art Maiden, Mother and Crone.
Grant that this night the bindings of childhood will be broken
And the bond between mother and daughter be strengthened.
For the two, as so reflected throughout all creation,
Are but images of thee in thy divine Trinity.
Blessed Be.
In honor of thee do I pour this toast, and drink this wine.
Invocation to the Lord
Great Lord, Ancient one of the fields and Consort to our Lady,
We ask that thou wouldst give a measure of your love and protection
to she who will soon join the battles of this life.
Fill her with the knowledge of thee as sancutary
And grant that peace may follow her always.
In honor of thee do I pour this toast, and drink this wine.
Chalice is then passed to each of the coveners to share in the toast.
Drawing Down the Moon
Priestess/Mother stands facing the moon with hands upraised and palms turned upwards, cupwise. Drinking in the Lady's essence, she says:
Come to me and fill me with thy light
Enter me, shine in me your fullness
That I may use your power for my good,
And for the good of All.
When appropriate, she blesses all within the Circle, and the rite that is about to be performed. Then, nodding to the Father of the Celebrant, says:
Bring forth your daughter,
that she might, this night,
cross the threshold of adulthood.
Father brings the Celebrant to the Eastern Gate.
Mthr: Is this the daughter I bore so many years before? Nay, it cannot be, for she was but a child when last I held her.
Dtr: Mother, I am your child. Now grown and ready to throw away the things of childhood. Years it has been since my moonflow began and I became a woman.Now it is time that this is recognized.
Mthr: Very well, lead the child into the center of the Circle. There to have her sit in silence.
Father leads Celebrant to the center of the Circle, while mother re-closes the Circle. She then joins her daughter in the Circle's center, saying:
Mthr: You sit now in the Center of the Circle; that which is known as the Cauldron of Hecate; the point of transformation; the mother's womb, where beginnings end and endings re-begin. I have heard your words, and weep for them; Tears of both joy and sorrow.
It was my body that cried out in pain and joy as you were born.
It was my mind that went in circles to provide for us.
It was my heart that broke when that which you wanted I could not give you.
But always did you have my love... and always shall you carry that love with you.
Behold in me the Three-Fold Goddess
She who is One in Three - Maid, Mother, and Crone
One in Three, as she is in you and all women,
And as you and they are in her.
Look upon her and know her,
That you, too, may be whole.
So I ask thee truly, art thou ready to face the woman within thee?
To see within thee the light and dark, and fear no more the dark?
To accept that which you are, and strive for that which you can become?
To leave behind the things of childhood,
But to continue to love and nurture the child which lives in all adults?
{Celebrant has answered accordingly to each of the questions, at which time the Mother now exhorts the Celebrant to stand and face the altar.}
Mthr: Daughter, I ask you now to look deep within the mirror. See yourself reflected there. Look into your eyes and know yourself. Repeat after me:"I come to commune with my Soul."
Dtr: I come to commune with my Soul.
Mthr: Look into the reflection of your eyes, and name one thing about yourself that you love.
{Celebrant and Mother will continue this, alternating between what the Celebrant thinks is both good and bad within her... }
After the last question, the Mother then says:
Daughter, within thee is both light and dark.
Know always your shadow side. If something is there which offends thee horrible,give it up. For others to love you as an adult, you must love yourself first. And loving yourself means giving up any self-hatred you've carried over from young years.
Now is the time to cut these things from thy life.
They are the bonds of childhood which have held you limited. Free yourself from them, and know that thy spirit flies free.
Now look again into the mirror. Look at yourself with love. See the Goddess shining within thee.
She is strong; no man has dominion over her.
She knows herself and loves herself.
She will give herself to those who are worthy of her affections, and turn from those who try to debase her.
Let the Goddess within thee shine through thee, that the nobility and strength of woman is clear for all to see.
Now, come with me.
Mother embraces daughter and leads her to each of the four quarters. After each challenge, the Celebrant must answer as she sees fit, and asks the Guardian's Blessing. The Covener at each gate will then bless the Celebrant, and offer a gift for adulthood, such as strength, courage, etc... or a physical gift pertinent to the rite and Gate.
Covener at Eastern Gate:
Hold! I am the wild wind and fury of the storm!
That which buffets thee without shelter.
How will you survive?
Covener at Southern Gate
Hold! I am fire and passion
That which will consume thee with lust.
How will you survive?
Covener at Western Gate
Hold! I am floods and weeping and gnashing of teeth.
I am lonliness and frustration.
How will thee survive?
Covener at Northern Gate
Hold! I am chaos and turmoil
Plans gone wrong and dreams that die.
How will thee survive?
Mother faces daughter (Priestess mode ON here)...
I am the Lady, thy Mother...
I shall be with thee no matter how far thou shalt roam.
And when lonliness besets thee,
Thou needs only gaze upon the moon,
To see my face and my love reflected there to you.
Father approaches daugher and turns her to face him...
I am he who is father to thee now.
I shall stand behind and beside thee always.
And when lonliness besets thee,
Thou needs only to step out into sunlight
To feel my warmth and love within thee.
Mother takes daughter by hand and returns to the altar. Daughter picks up her gift of childhood and presents it to the mother, saying ...
This I do give you as a symbol of childhood now behind me.
Hold it and cherish it as you remember me.
Mother picks up her gift of adulthood and presents it the Celebrant, saying...
This I do give you as a symbol of your adulthood, and my recognition of it.
Hold it and cherish it as you remember me.
Draw a pentagram above the celebrant, with an affirmation at each of the five points:
Point one: In the name of Inanna, Queen of Heaven
Point two: In the name of Athena, warrior Goddess, but also of Peace
Point three: In the name of Astarte, warrior Goddess, and protector of young females
Point four: In the name of Diana, she of the bow and arrow, Goddess of Light
Point five: Do I bless thee, and call thee "Woman".
May their strenth and independence, their love and virtue, be thine all the days of thy life. I recognize the child no more, but she the child who lives in all of us.
Mother stands with a space between her and her daughter and presents the new adult to the coven.Feasting (and in our case, a birthday celebration) follow. Quarter Guardians are thanked, and blessings are asked of the Lord and Lady upon the group, as well as the Celebrant.
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Menarche Ritual-A Daughter's Coming of Age
From: "Casting the Circle-A Woman's Book of Ritual"
by Diane Stein
Needs:
Candles-use red & white for the Mother and Maiden
Flowers-red & white flowers, try chrysanthemums, carnations, tulips.
Flower crown of red flowers for the girl of honor
Incense-use a red flower to stroke auras, or myrtlewood incense for fertility
Moon pendant or crystal pendant for the girl of honor
Bowl of cornmeal
Oils for self-blessing, or use cornmeal
Invocations & poems-use what follows or let the girl choose others that she likes
Gifts for the girl, or have a give-away
Potluck dinner contributions
matches to light candles & incense, charcoal block if using loose incense,
ritual wand (or cast the circle with a red flower)
Outline
Light candles-on altar and at each of the elements & spirit
Purify-use a red flower to stroke auras, or incense smoke
Cast circle/Invoke Amazon Goddesses (ask the girl for her favorites when planning the ritual)
Earth-Changing Woman, Goddess of women's bodies (Navaho)
Air-Athene, Goddess of action & women's wisdom (Greece)
Fire-Pele, Goddess of youth's love and passions (Polynesia)
Water-Yemaya, Goddess of women's blood and the sea (W.Africa)
Spirit-Hathor, Goddess of the moon and women's moontimes (Egypt)
Invocation- (high priestess)
"We are here to celebrate (name) who has now become a woman. We welcome her into women's mysteries and the sisterhood. Women come into their full power in their moontimes, and (name) has begun her knowledge of that power."
Body of Ritual-
Go around the circle. Each woman sings the girl's name and a welcome for her or uses her name as a chant. Go around the circle. Each woman talks about her own menarche, what it was like, what it meant, how things are different now. (Make it funny, make it not too long for each woman to speak, make it positive) The girl talks about her own first blood next.
The high priestess takes the girl's moon necklace from the altar, handing it to the first woman in the circle. Pass it around the circle, each woman holding the pendant and sharing a secret of being a woman and a blessing for the girl. The girl's mother puts the pendant on the girl and talks about her daughter's growing up, and what it means to both of them.
If others have gifts for her, they speak next and give them to her. The girl reads the "Daughter Chant" below, and then talks about what being a woman means to her:
Daughter Chant
(from the Navaho Puberty Ceremony)
Watch over me.
Hold your hand before me in protection.
Stand guard for me, speak in defense of me.
As I speak for you, so do ye.
As you speak for me, thus shall I do.
May it be beautiful before me.
May it be beautiful behind me.
May it be beautiful below me.
May it be beautiful above me.
May it be beautiful around me.
I am restored in beauty,
I am restored in beauty,
I am restored in beauty,
I am restored in beauty.
The high priestess or the girl's mother talks briefly about responsibility-she can have a child now, be sexual with men or women. Talk about how to take care of herself (birth control, safe sex, etc.) Passion is an act of The Goddess, but use free will and balance, it's not a power to take lightly. Talk about how the girl's body will change, is changing, what to do for cramps, etc.
Self-blessing-ask the girl to lead it and all to participate.
The high priestess says:
"From this month on, you are a member of the women's moonlodge. You have joined the cycle of the Moon Goddess as women have done for untold centuries. We hope your monthly bleeding will be a time of joy, a time of reverencing your womanhood and Goddess-within, a time of reverencing life. We hope that you will flow with the changes of your body and the moon, resisting the negativity that patriarchy places on women's blood. We welcome you and bless you as a woman. So mote it be"
Raising power-use songs to raise the cone of power and direct it to the girl for blessings and for her protection, good life and happiness as a girl and as a woman.
Visualize the energy of the cone cascading back into the circle as a waterfall of red light, filling the circle with life and positivity. Breathe the light within.
Ground-send the excess energy for earth healing,
(Open circle/hugs.)
Proceed to have celebration meal such as a potluck or picnic.
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