4 Days of Devotionals by Lisa Lea (Tiogar Saille) of Three Cranes Grove, ADF
We couldn’t get a group of us together (as often happens) to do a Special Rite for the Earth Mother, so we did a Home Game version of Honoring the Earth for Earth Day. This is a condensed version, with the daily themes grouped together. To do the Devotionals as we did, you will need:
Bell… chime, knocking on a hard surface, or some beginning signal
Candle… or some other Good Fire (fire in the head, heartshrine, object, etc.)
Offering… for the Earth Mother (grains, sweet herbs, pretty words, etc.)
Water… drinkable or sprinkable OR Incense… waftable – to receive blessings
Order of Devotional:
Beginning Signal
Ring Bell (or other sound) 3 times
Attune to Purpose
Focus on your connection with the Earth Mother
Take 3 cleansing breaths to ground and center
(Maybe… Roots down; Branches up; Poof! Sacred Center 🙂 )
Prayer of Welcome
Kindle your Good Fire
Recite the prayer (or one of your own)
Prayer of Offering
Recite the prayer; This will change daily with the theme
Words of offering (optional); Add to the prayer as it fits your needs
Make your Offering
Prayer of Blessing
Call the Earth Mother’s Blessings into your Water or Incense
Take in the Blessings; Drink, sprinkle, anoint, waft, or whathaveyou
Prayer of Gratitude
Recite the prayer (or one of your own)
Ending Signal
Ring Bell (or other sound) 3 times
Themes for the 4 Days of Earth-Along 2014:
SAT 04/19 – Day 1: Being of Service to the Earth
Get out there and do something to take care of or give back to our Mother Earth – today we are being of good service. Share your plans and experiences.
SUN 04/20 – Day 2: We All Come from the Earth
What does it mean to you to be a Child of the Earth? Today we honor that relationship with our Mother Earth. Share your experiences and feelings.
MON 04/21 – Day 3: The Earth Sustains Us All
All that we use comes from the Earth – for our sustenance, for our work, for our creative endeavors… Today we honor those resources and the ways we make use of them. Share your thoughts and experiences.
TUE 04/22 – Day 4: Grateful *Ghos-ti with the Earth
There is a give-and-take that does not keep score to all healthy relationships. *Ghos-ti is about creating and maintaining that reciprocity – We give that we may receive. Today we celebrate all for which we are grateful for receiving. Share your experiences and gratitudes.
2014 Earth-Along Home Game Devotional
Honoring the Earth Mother for Earth Day
Beginning Signal
– Ring Bell (or other sound) 3 times
Attune to Purpose
– Focus on your connection with the Earth Mother
– Take 3 cleansing breaths to ground and center
Prayer of Welcome
– Kindle your Good Fire
It is fitting that we honor the All Mother;
She from whom we have all emerged,
She who sustains us,
She to whom, in the fullness of time,
Our bones will return.
Come, Blessed Goddess, and hear our prayer;
We ask that you support and surround us
For this rite, as you do for all rites,
For this day, as you do for all days.
Eldest of all beings, crowned with every grace,
We give you honor, and we give you praise;
Yours is the joy of the rain, and of every sacred thing.
We honor you best when we walk in balance;
We honor you best when we make our footprints light;
We honor you best when we become your true champions.
Earth Mother, All Mother, Our Mother,
Ignite your spark within us
That we may know ourselves to be truly human,
Truly holy, and truly part of the web of life.
Join us in the warmth and light of our Good Fire.
Earth Mother, be welcome here this day.
– This is where the theme-of-the-day comes in… Do one each day for four days, do all four in one Devotional, or come up with your own interpretation. 🙂
Prayer of Offering
– Day 1: Being of Good Service
Great Mother, bringer of life, it is our quest to serve you well. We gather in your fields and forests to clear and to plant; we tend our gardens with loving care; we clean up your highways and waterways; we honor you in our rites. We give to you freely and with glad hearts, knowing that each act of service and sacrifice, whether great or small, serves to strengthen the strands of the web that connects us all. You pour out your many blessings upon us, too great to measure, and it is our solemn duty and joyous obligation to bring all our gifts to fruition in returning those blessings to you…
– Words of offering (optional); Add to the prayer as it fits your needs*
*Today, we plant trees that will sink their roots deep to hold fast your soil, that will provide shade and comfort under their branches, that will give homes to many and various creatures, that will add beauty and grace to the land. Let the planting of these trees be an honor and a blessing to us all.
Blessed is she whose vital essence brings life to all the land.
Blessed is she whose lifeblood wells up and flows out to the sea.
Blessed is she whose gentle breath whispers of love across the sky.
– Make your Offering
Blessings to the All-Mother!
Prayer of Offering
– Day 2: We All Come from the Earth
Great Mother, bearer of all life, we are your Children. We are created from your deep and sacred places. Your body, the beautiful and bountiful land that supports us and surrounds us, gives us life, and sustains us through all of our days. Your blood, the ever-flowing and sacred waters that cradle us and uphold us, flows through our veins, and slakes our thirst. Your breath, the soft-warm gentle breezes and the ice-cold tempest winds that fill up our lungs and whisper in our ears, enlivens us to the very core. You are all that has been, and all that we are. We looked for you in the high-hard places, and found you in the wisdom with which we fill our minds; We sought you out across the vast teeming oceans, and found you in the tears of our love and laughter, of our sorrow and joy; We searched for you in the star-born depths, and found you in the twinkle of another’s eye. You give of yourself freely and completely that we are made whole. You honor us with your many blessings; we honor you with jubilant celebration in returning those blessings to you…
– Words of offering (optional); Add to the prayer as it fits your needs*
*Today, we celebrate you as our Mother, acknowledging that without you, we do not exit. The beauty and the bounty of thy form is found within each of us, your children. Let us use well and wisely the gifts of all that we are, that we may become a blessing unto you.
Blessed is she whose vital essence brings life to all the land.
Blessed is she whose lifeblood wells up and flows out to the sea.
Blessed is she whose gentle breath whispers of love across the sky.
– Make your Offering
Blessings to the All-Mother!
Prayer of Offering
– Day 3: The Earth Sustains Us All
Great Mother, sustainer of all creation, from you flows all that we need – to live, to work, to love, to play. Your blessed waters are a joy to behold, not only do they slake our thirst, but also do they provide us nourishment, entertainment, transportation, and beauty in their very existence. From the smallest creek-let to the largest ocean, your liquid blessings are truly “The Waters of Life!” Your vast expanses of land, from verdant meadow to windswept crag, are home to countless creatures, great and small. You support us and surround us with the means to feed and clothe ourselves, and provide us with all we need to feed those other parts of us as well – pigments to paint with, clay to sculpt with, wood and stone to carve, fibers to craft with, and all that allows us to conduct our business and build community together. The winds of your sacred breath that blow across the plains and the fields, that swirl among the clouds, carry the seeds of new life, lift us up like birds on the wing, sing the songs of a myriad voices, and bring back the blessed waters in the endless cycle of the pouring our of your blessings…
– Words of offering (optional); Add to the prayer as it fits your needs*
*Today, we honor you as the great Provider, she who gives all that we may live. We honor the sacrifice you make to sustain us all. May we use these resources wisely; may be remember to use them for the good of all; may we revel in the beauty and joy that they bring. Let us tend well your land and sea and sky that we return those blessings unto you.
Blessed is she whose vital essence brings life to all the land.
Blessed is she whose lifeblood wells up and flows out to the sea.
Blessed is she whose gentle breath whispers of love across the sky.
– Make your Offering
Blessings to the All-Mother!
Prayer of Offering
– Day 4: Grateful *Ghos-ti with the Earth
Great Mother, creator and destroyer, you are where we begin and end in the eternal circle of life. You bring us forth from your starry womb, and provide for our every need. We wend our way through the days of our lives, tending and toiling, planting and harvesting, praying and playing, sharing in the blessings you pour out upon us to sustain us. As the fruits of our labors come to fruition, they will be our service and sacrifice unto you. And, in the fullness of time, we also return to to you to contribute to the next turn of the wheel, becoming part of that which sustains you, and those who come after us. We come to celebrate this unbreakable and unshakable relationship that is our *Ghos-ti bond – the reciprocity of unconditional love. We endeavor to gratefully provide our service and sacrifice, as you support and sustain us, that we may return an outpouring of blessings to you…
– Words of offering (optional); Add to the prayer as it fits your needs*
*Today, Earth Mother, let us be ever mindful of your protection, guidance, love, and support, and let us, in turn, strive to provide these things to you, and to others. Let us honor our *Ghos-ti bond, giving and receiving of beautiful and bountiful gifts, not with expectation, but instead with boundless joy and wonder, that these blessings flow freely from you, to us, and back to you.
Blessed is she whose vital essence brings life to all the land.
Blessed is she whose lifeblood wells up and flows out to the sea.
Blessed is she whose gentle breath whispers of love across the sky.
– Make your Offering
Blessings to the All-Mother!
Prayer of Blessing
– Call the Blessings into your Water, Incense, Oil, Breath…
O come Blessed Goddess, and listen to our prayer,
Make the increase of your bounty thy constant care;
We ask that you support us, and let your blessings flow,
Praise to you, Sacred Mother, for all that you bestow.
Beloved Ancestral Mother of prosperity and plenty,
From whose starry womb the green earth springs,
We have offered freely, with our heads and hands and hearts,
Bring forth now your blessings that we may take them in.
Pour out the blessings of the Cup of Inspiration!
Send down the blessings of the Spring of Renewal!
Infuse us with the blessings of the Well of Wisdom!
Behold the beauty and the bounty of the gifts the Mother brings!
– Take in the Blessings; Drink, sprinkle, anoint, waft, or whathaveyou
Prayer of Gratitude
As it began in your honor, let it end in our thanksgiving.
Earth Mother, we are ever grateful for thy bounty,
For your presence in our lives, and in our rites,
For your support in our work, and in all our days.
With gratitude for blessings received, we carry forth
The gifts bestowed upon us to share with all the world;
Blessed Goddess, wellspring of potential, we honor you;
Through the fruits of your labors are we made whole, and holy.
Earth Mother, we thank you!
Ending Signal
– Ring Bell (or other sound) 3 timesConfigure
Page Information:
“2014 Earth-Along Home Game – Honoring the Earth.” submitted by LisaLea
