Creating Circles and Ceremonies: Rituals for All ... - reading...

Book II: Rites & Rituals 139
it is everyone’s responsibility to sustain, heal, and preserve the soil, the air, the fresh and salt
waters, and the energy resources that can support diverse and flourishing life.
All people, all living things, are part of the Earth-life, and so sacred. No one of us stands
higher or lower than any other. Only justice can assure balance, and only ecological balance can
sustain freedom. Only in freedom can that fifth sacred thing we call Spirit flourish in its full diversity.
To honor the sacred is to create conditions in which nourishment, sustenance, habitat, knowledge,
freedom, and beauty can thrive. To honor the sacred is to make love possible.
To this we dedicate our curiosity, our will, our courage, our silences, and our voices. To this
we dedicate our lives.
160. Elemental Call to Power
I raise my hands, my heart, my voice
To call upon the forces of life.
Earth, Air, Fire, Water and Spirit
The five Elements combine to become one
Triple Goddess, hear the calls
I. Earth
I call the Maiden for a new beginning
Mother for life
Crone for experience
Goddess bless, Blessed be
Triple Goddess, I call for thee.
Mystic power, so mote it be.
—Adella Moon DragonStar
Attunement with the Earth
By Farida Ka’iwalani Fox
Let us start with the Earth. Go outside somewhere where it is
quiet and you can be undisturbed. Find a comfortable spot and take
a moment to stand there. Feel the contact your feet make with the
ground. Be aware of your weight as it is supported by the Earth and
feel the force of gravity that is a reality of our physical existence.
Now focus your attention on your breathing. As you exhale, visualize openings in the
soles of your feet and imagine that you are sending roots down into the cool and nourishing
Earth. With each exhalation, let those roots sink deeper until it seems as if you cannot move
from the spot. As you are becoming more firmly established in the Earth, imagine that you
are releasing the tensions and stresses of your life—simply breathe them out and visualize
them running down your body, into your roots and out into the Earth.
As you breathe in again, begin to draw up into yourself the nutrients that are in the Earth
herself. Think of such qualities as steadfastness, endurance, stability. In this simple exercise
you are reconnecting with the foundation of your life. You are grounding yourself. Let yourself
enjoy this connection. You may actually feel something like an electrical current running
into your feet and legs. This would be a good time to reflect upon the graciousness of our
planet who receives not only our personal toxins but the excessive pollution of our modern
life. Our gratitude for the purification work of the Earth is helpful.
You can end this little exercise by taking a walk on the Earth, being very aware of each step
you take. Imagine an interchange between you and the Earth, and as you make contact with each
step, you bless one another. This activity of consciously walking and breathing becomes a very
real relationship between you and the planet who is our Mother and our physical home.
Standing on Holy Ground
By Ikari Segawa
Many Pagans feel that a formal ritual to cast a Circle for sacred space is not always appropriate
when you are in nature, as it can feel a bit artificial. So here is a very simple ritual that is