Little Acorn Grove Yule - 1999 - Ár nDraíocht Féin

First published in OAK LEAVES, Yule 1999 – No. 12

For the last decade my family has celebrated Winter Solstice with many of our friends. The following ritual was designed to incorporate elements of our Grove and our household culture. The ritual borrows its structural elements from ADF while pulling many of its descriptive passages from extant sagas and our family tradition. It also pulls from my general knowledge of ritual customs and IndoEuropean and classical mythology. The ritual is oriented towards social rather than, psychological effect.

PRELIMINARY ARRANGEMENTS:

The ritual site is arranged with a fire circle as the center. The well is sunk into the ground to the west and space is allotted for the tree in the east. Torches mark the cardinal points. Fuel wood is stacked to the south and the processional enters from a gate in the north‑east of the circle. Sacrificial items and the torch for the joining of the fire and water are placed on the stones around the fire circle. Each participant carries a sprig of rosemary in the procession. All lights are extinguished until the lighting of the fire.

ADDITIONAL PROPS:

Horn

Ale

Flour

Whiskey

Sacred oil

Rosemary branch

A jug of water

Evergreen tree

Basket of tree ornaments

A bowl of nuts

Ancestral recipe

Brandy

Bread or fruit

Runes

Blessing cup

Beginning signal:

A horn is blown three times to signal the beginning of the ritual.

Introductory prayer (Note 1):

Druid 1:

By earth, by sky, by sea, In the sight of spirits, ancestors, shining gods, and mortal men Let our words and deeds proclaim the ancient way. Let this rite begin!

Processional:

Participants proceed to the fire, circling around deosil.

Druid 1 and Druid 3:

As we approach the sacred grove With heart and mind, flesh. and bone, join us now in ways of old. We have come home.

Statement of purpose and precedent:

Druid 2:

The Sun has withered and grown weak His strength is waning and we who are Dependent on his light and warmth, Wait and watch in the Wolf’s darkness On this, the longest night of the year.

Let our voices sound to the heavens.

Let our wills be joined as one.

Let our gifts strengthen the gods

To drive the Wolf once more to the shadows

To hasten the Sun’s rebirth.

Invocations to earth and sky (Note 2):

Druid 1:

Hertha, O beloved Mother Earth From whose dark womb is born all green and growing things And to whom all life descends in death’s darkness, We honor you as our forefathers did before us. Offering this precious drink; which was born of your bounty, We pray that you accept our gift and bless and uphold this rite.

Druid 1 pours ale onto the earth beside the fire.

Druid 1:

Tiwaz, O beloved Father Sky From whose bright heaven comes the wind, the rain, And the lightning which first gave spark to life itself,

We honor you as our forefathers did before us. Offering this precious grain, which was born of your bounty, We pray that you accept our gift and bless and uphold this rite.

Druid 1 takes a handful of flour and blows it across the fire.

Sacrifice to the outsiders (Note 3):

Druid 3: ‑

Ancient and dark ones; unseen, unsightly, and unloved

We make this offering to you

You twisted and misshapen

You cold of heart .and dim of mind

Take this offering and trouble not our rites.

Druid 3 pours whiskey onto the earth, southwest of the circle (Note 4).

Establishing the sacred centers:

Druid 1:

In ancient times fire, man’s greatest tool and nature’s fiercest weapon, defined the meeting place of the sacred and the profane, the heart of the home and of religious ceremony. Therefore, when we come together to celebrate the rites of our ancestors, we light a fire with flint and steel, the twin gifts of earth and skill. We light this fire as the center of our circle, the symbol of the ancient ways, and as a means by which our sacrifices may be conveyed to the realms of the gods.

The fire attendant lights the fire with flint and steel (Note 5).

Druid 4.

O sacred fire that consumes and transforms

Ancient enemy and first born friend of humankind.

Druid 4 pours oil into the fire.

Druid 4:

Accept this offering of fragrant bough

Become for us the living door to the heavens

The manifestation of the Shining Ones .

And the path of our return to the ancient ways. (Note 6)

Druid 4 raises rosemary branch.

Druid 4:

O sacred bough of fragrant memory (Note 7)

May your sweet, rising smoke

Reach the halls of the gods.

Druid 4 casts the rosemary into the fire.

Druid 4:

May we pray with a good fire. (Note 8)

All participants cast rosemary sprigs into the fire.

All:

May we pray with a good fire.

Druid 5 pours water from the jug into the well.

Druid 5:

O sacred waters that flow and swirl beneath all,

Primeval womb of all that lives,

Take into yourself the fire of the heavens.

Become once again newly potent with unmanifested possibilities. (Note 9)

Druid 5 pours oil into the well and lights the torch from the fire.

Druid 5:

Accept this offering of sacred oil. Become for us the door into the darkness And the mirror of the unknown.

Druid 5 thrusts the torch into the well, extinguishing it and then asperges the participants with the wet branch. (Note 10)

Druid 2 steps away from the circle to the east and spreads arms to gather attention.

Druid 2:

An ash stands, I know by the name Yggdrasil. (Note 12)

The tree attendant (Note 11) exits the circle to the east and retrieves the tree which has been positioned just out side the gate to the east. The tree attendant returns to stand behind Druid 2 in the east.’

Druid 2:

That tall tree is watered by icicles daily. Thence. comes the dew that drops in the dells. It stands ever green above Urd’s well.

Three are the roots that run three ways Beneath that mighty bole uprearing: One harbors Hel, another the frost giants, Mortals find shelter beneath the third.

Ratatosk is the squirrel that runs From its roots to the Heavens and again downward. The words of the eagle above the branches, He bears to the gnawer below.

Four are the stags with necks gracefully arched That gnaw on the widespread, green‑clad limbs.

There are more serpents beneath that tree

Than any unwise ape could imagine.

Yggdrasil’s Ash must yet endure,

More than mere mortal may know.

The bole of it crumbles with rot

And belowgnaws the Serpent, ever hungry.

The Ash Yggdrasil is the noblest of trees,

The horse of Ygg, who rides upon it

From Earth to Asgard and Hel after.

Yet nine worlds I knew, nine Trees of Life,

Before this World Tree grew from the ground.

Druid 2 steps aside, leaving the tree and tree attendant as the attention focus.

Druid 1 steps forward beside the tree, picking up the basket of tree ornaments.

Druid 1:

From the fire of the heavens to the watery abyss of the underworld, all trees are one tree, the Shaman’s stallion that joins heaven and earth. So also is this tree, Yggdrasil, by which we may travel between the realms of mortals and gods, ,and with us our hopes, our dreams, arid our desires.

Druid 1 walks slowly around circle, handing each person an ornament:

Druid 1:

In ancient times our ancestors would dedicate a tree in every grove and village to’‑be what were later called fairy trees. On this tree they would hang ornaments, ribbons, little bits of metal, or other tokens as symbols and sacrifices that their wishes might come true. From that comes today’s custom of raising the Christmas tree. So tonight, we take this opportunity to remind the gods of our wishes and dreams. Take an ornament and dedicate it to some special desire, to some message you have for the gods tonight and hang it on the tree.

Druid 1 demonstrates by hanging the first ornament on the tree, then moves aside.

All:

(Chorus)

By fire and by water,

Between the earth and sky,

We stand like the World Tree,

Rooted deep, crowned high.

Come we now to the well,

The eye and the mouth of earth.

Come we now to the well

And silver we bring.

Come we now to the well,

The waters of rebirth.

Come we now to the well.

Together we sing.

(Chorus)

We will kindle a fire,

A door to the Shining Ones. (Note 13)

We will kindle a fire

And offerings pour.

We will kindle a fire,

A light beneath the moon and sun.

We will kindle a fire.

Our spirits will soar.

(Chorus)

Gather we at the tree,

The root and the crown of life.

Gather we at the tree,

The branching and tall.

Gather we at the tree,

The pillar of heaven bright

Gather we at the tree,

The center of all!

(Chorus)

Sacrificial rites:

Druid 1 (Note 14):

O you who dwell within this land, who are this land in spirit; you round rocks and standing stones, you trees tall and solemn or spreading and fair; creatures hoofed, horned, scaled, and winged, we greet you in the spirit of kinship and offer you hospitality. May there be friendship and sharing between us in the ancient way.

Druid 1 offers a bowl of nuts at the base of the tree. Then, he kindles torch to the east from the fire.

Druid 1:

O you who were our fathers’ fathers and our moth ers’ mothers, you who gave our flesh and bloodits form, though now you dwell in the spirits’ realm, we greet you in the hospitality always owed to kin ship. May you remember us in your. world,as we remember you in ours. May there continue to be sharing between us in the ancient way.

Druid 1 offers a cup of special ancestral recipe (Note 15) at the western torch and kindles torch from fire.

Druid 2:

O you who are great beyond moral knowing, Shining Ones of ancient and immortal kin, Aesir and Vanir, gods of heaven and of earth, we greet you as in days of old. May there be friendship and hospitality between us. Gaze kindly on us, High One, Just‑as‑High, and Third! Accept the offerings we make this night, that there may be sharing between us in the ancient way.

Druid 2 offers brandy directly into the fire. As Druid 3 begins speech, south and north torches are kindled from the fire.

Druid 3:

Tonight we come together to witness the longest night of the year and the beginning of winter. Over the centuries this has become a joyous time, as families join together and exchange food and gifts. We must remember that this was not always such a happy season. In ancient times, the first day of winter marked the beginning of along, cold, and often hungry wait until spring. During that wait it was not unusual for many members of the community to die. The oldest and the youngest, those too weak to survive without fresh fruits and vegetables, and victims of diseases that passed quickly in small houses around smoky fires would pastaway. This night was a preparation for the harsh times ahead. No one knew when death would come nor in what dark year Ragnarok’s demons would swallow the sun entirely along with the gods and the men whom they protected: So it is on this night we join together, as they did then, to remember that all things die. Cattle, kinsmen, and even the gods themselves will someday pass away. We can only hope and pray that this night will not be the beginning of that endless night, that the sun will rise tomorrow, heralding a spring still far to come.

Druid 1:

Tonight we remember the darkness and the doom which will overtake even the gods by recounting the tale of how Odin came to know his own fate. He traveled the road to Hel to raise the ancient Volva from her grave to foretell the fate of Balder, the beloved God of the Sun (Note 16).

Counsel took the Aesir under

Yggdrasil’s out stretched branches.

Omens sought, shook runes for answer

Why Balder was troubled by dreadful dreams.

Mighty slight was the Sun‑God’s slumber

Less his comfort when lots were cast.

Staves then showed him doomed to die

Woe the weird of Frigg’s son.

Up rose Odin, all‑wise father

Saddled Sleipnir, faring downward,

Riding the road to Hel’s dark doorway.

Summoned She who knows all secrets.

Forced to rise, She spoke from the grave.

Druid 2:

Who among men wakes my sleeping?

Covered with snow, I lay forgotten.

Drenched with dew, long have I been dead.

Druid l:

Answered the Aesir’s all‑high father.

Druid 3:

Name me Waywont. I will answer.

Speak you from death’s home as I from life’s

For whom is a place preparing yonder?

Druid 2: .

Mead is made for fair‑browed, Balder.

Bench and couch are covered in gold.,

Cease your questions. Ask no more!

Druid 3:

Cease not, seer. I will know all.

Who shall be the bane of Balder

And rob Odin’s son of his age?

Druid 2′

High above the field there grew

Slender and fair, the mistletoe bough.

The sprig I see there shall become

A sorrow‑dart shot by Hoder’s hand.

Now cease your questions. Ask no more!

Druid 3:

Cease not, seer. I will know all.

Who shall avenge him harshly on Hoder?

What hand shall bring Balder’s bane to the pyre?

Druid 2:

Balder’s brother, before his time born.

Not one day old, shall Odin’s son battle.

He laves not his hands, nor combs his hair

Ere he brings Balder’s foe to the fire.

Now cease your questions. Ask no more!

Druid 3:

Cease not, seer. I will know all.

Druid 2:

No mere wanderer are you, Waywont.

Odin I name you, Father of aeons.

Know then the doom of the gods awaiting.

Eastward in Ironwood the Old One sits

Fostering Fenrir’s fearsome offspring.

From them shall come a troll‑shaped monster

That shall devour the shining moon.

It feeds on the life of those who lie dying

And blood‑red colors the dwellings of heaven.

The sun shall be dark the summers thereafter

And all winds stinking.

For the Aesir crows a gold‑combed cock

That wakes the warriors in Host Father’s hall.

But another crows’ beneath the earth

A soot‑red cock in the halls of Hel!

Garm howls at the hollows of Hell

What is fast loosens, and Freke runs free

To Ragnarok, the gods’ death‑struggle.

Brothers shall battle and slay one another.

Kin‑ties of sisters’ sons be shattered.

Ax‑time, sword‑time, shield shall be cloven

Wind‑time, wolf‑time, ere the world wanes.

Loud blows Heimdal the horn held high.

The giant .is loosened, the Tree overturned.

The serpent writhes, whipping the waves:

From. over the water come Muspell’s folk.

Loki their helmsman, monsters fare forth

Flaring fire flames fierce from the south.

Mountains burst open, heavens are sundered.

Skewered the gods’ bright sun on a sword..

The sun grows dim.

Earth sinks beneath the waters.

The sparkling staffs fall dark from the sky.

Fire entwines the life supporter.

Steam rises to the heavens.

Then comes Frigg’s second life’s sorrow

As Odin fares forth to battle the Wolf.

The sword of Freyr flashes against the fire

There shall Frigg’s heroes fall.

Would you know more, or what?

Ride home Odin, with what rest you may.

So close shall none come to me again

Until Loki from his fetters is free

And the Wolf runs wild at Ragnarok!

Druid l:

So rode Odin homeward, bearing with him such knowledge as made his journey no lighter. Like Odin, perhaps we know more than is comfortable. We know that life and pleasure are never. secure and that our time to enjoy them is uncertain. Tonight a war is waged in the heavens between the gods of light and warmth and, the demons of cold and darkness. We celebrate Yule knowing that it marks the beginning of a winter which could always be the final winter, the terrible Fimbulwinter that precedes Ragnarok and the final destruction of the very gods themselves. We keep a fire‑vigil all this night, to join our hearts and wills together with those forces which are friendly to us and to mankind. To those forces whom we name gods, we offer the gifts of our shared affection and the strength of our will and desire. Here we have ale, fruits, and bread. Who will we name as our gods, friends, and protectors?

Individuals volunteer the name of a favorite god or goddess, taking ale for libation and bread and fruit for more solid offering. In each case a piece or sip is taken by the worshipper to signify the shared nature of the sacrifice and then the equivalent part is tossed in the fire (Note 17).

OMEN TAKING:

Druid l:

The gifts of the people rise to the gods on the smoke of sacrifice. May our prayers go clearly and without hindrance to those we have praised (Note 18). A favor requires a favor; a song another song, and a gift given requires a gift is return. This is the law of ancient, times, alike between man and man and mankind and the gods. We have offered our gifts to the gods and we ask them in return for knowledge of what tomorrowwill bring. Will, our vigil bear fruit and the darkness pass?

The seer draws and interprets a rune. If an, unfavorable omen is drawn, the vigil will give ample opportunity to the participants to meditate on the gods’ message and consider how to respond individually.

Druid 2 raises the mead bottle and blessing cup.

Druid 2:

Ancient and mighty ones we honor you. Having established the bond of hospitality with the gods, what the gods have given to us we distribute freely. Behold the waters of life!

All:

Behold the waters of life!

The cup is passed around the circle. Participants at the opposite end of the circle from the cup begin to chant.

All:

When we give we receive and are blessed

What we share will be shared in return.

Those we praise in joy will respond in our need.

We are kin to the gods when we drink their mead (Note 19).

Druid 1:

Now the formal sacrifice is ended. Let the people stay or part as they will. This, fire will be kept burning until sunrise to hold the night’s power at bay. Good luck will follow those who keep vigil with strength and will to watch through out the night.

All light in the house is kindled from the fire, and no electric lighting is used until dawn (Note 20).

Closing rites performed at either visible dawn or clear light:.

Druid 1:

The son of the dawn spurs on his charger,

Caparisoned gaily in precious gems.

Radiance flows from his steed’s mane.

He draws in the chariot Dvalin’s toy.

Up rise the gods. Forth shines the sun

Northward to Niflheim. The night draws away.

Heimdall once more springs upon Bifrost,

Mighty‑clarion‑blower on the mountains of ‘heaven.

Another earth rises green from the sea.