Posts Tagged ‘Ancestors’

110 at Samhain!

Sunday, November 1st, 2009

It may surprise some, but Samhian this year set a new record for guests: attendance topped 110! Not only that, but we had representation from several Groves around the state (and beyond), many of whom had never attended a Three Cranes rite before.

Our omens were also very good. They were:

Were our offerings accepted? Mannaz: Yes! Embodiment of the people and self-actualization. A recognition of Unity. We played on the same team for the good of the folk and the Kindred. May this always be true in the end.

Shining Ones: Jera
Nature Spirits: Isa
Ancestors: Dagaz

Seamus, interpreting Jera, reminds us of the harvest time, a time to reap the benefits of the good works we have sown throughout the year. Reflect on the events of the pats year. Look deeper and find the lessons that you may take with you as you move forward into the new year.

Leesa, interpreting Isa, sees the ice and snow coming in the next season. All things come in their cycles, and the quiet and solitude of the cold weather is one of them. Again, reflection and changing seasons.

Skarlett, interpreting Dagaz, says, “Seize the new day!” As the new year dawns, we can take with us the lessons and other rewards for what we have sown and move forward into a new beginning.

The ritual went very well, too: from start to finish, the rite moved fluidly through the ADF Core Order of Ritual, and the Druids-In-Charge didn’t seem to run into many issues at all; even the points where improvisation had to take place went smoothly.

It is astounding (and wonderful) to think that we are outgrowing the spaces we have always rented: we were ten shy of a fire-code violation at this ritual, which brings new considerations that I never expected.

We have come a long way from the days when I thought that 6-9 regularly attending members at our rituals was all I could ever ask for. Congratulations, Three Cranes: you have surpassed your founders’ wildest expectations!
    -Rev. Michael J Dangler

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Remembering our Ancestors

Sunday, October 26th, 2008

As we approach Samhain (the night of October 31, of course, is the traditional beginning of Samhain, as the Celts are said to have begun their days on the evening prior rather than at dawn), it is proper to think on our Ancestors, those who came before us and who show us the way.

The ancients believed themselves descended from a single ancestor: Cæsar referred to this being by the Latin name Dis [Pater], meaning “rich father.” This title may sound somewhat odd, but the image it conjures of the Otherworld is of a place ruled over by a king who was once the first human. Their reverence for this ancestor stems from many things, including the fact that he taught us to sacrifice and the fact that as the first human (and the first to die), he is the one who can show us how to walk the paths to the Otherworld.

One of the primary deities that can be identified as a possible candidate for the “Dis” of the Celts is Cernunnos, the antlered god. Rather than a god of animals, he is a god of opposites and wealth. Perhaps he is the king of the Otherworld, or perhaps he is the psychopomp. In nearly all depictions, he is shown pouring out the wealth of the underworld, and holding apart the opposites: material wealth and hoarders of wealth; domesticated animals and wild animals.

Understanding the deities who know the ways between this world and the next, who holds them apart, and who stands at the doorway between them is vital to understanding the Ancestors themselves, for they had to pass that way and travel those roads.

This is just one way that the Kindreds interact with one another within our cosmology: the Guide of the Dead and King over them has his position by being the first among the Dead. We cannot understand one without building a relationship with the other.

And so at Samhain, we honour both: the Antlered God who knows the ways between the worlds, and the Ancestors who have traveled them. As they have gone, so shall we, and their example will be our guide.
    -Rev. Michael J Dangler

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Developing a presence

Sunday, June 8th, 2008

Three Cranes does not own land, but we have been given the opportunity to help be good stewards on some land, and to use the land often for ritual. The UU church in Reynoldsburg has offered us some space to work our rituals (so long as they don’t conflict with theirs, of course) in exchange for aid keeping their land in good order.

Of course, if you’re going to keep your land in good order, calling the Druids does seem to be the logical thing.

Today, the Grove gathered together in the hot, humid weather to clear brush, improve the fire pit, and improve a trail to the circle. As we pulled back the border of the tall grass and weeds, we found ourselves working together and enjoying our time as a single Grove, working in a Grove of our own.

This land holds the site of our first permanent altar, which has been mostly erased in the five years since we first made sacrifice at it. Now, though, that location is beautifully placed within the sacred precinct of the fire circle, and we are thinking of (and finding) ways to make use of the impression left by that altar. When we stand in this circle, we have an ancestral connection to the land: sacrifice has been made here before us, and it will be made here again.

At the end of the day, we also sank two stone posts into the earth, marking the ceremonial entrance to our space. Two symbols of the triplicity of the realms and those who reside in it were placed there, and prayers were said over them as silver and herbs were offered to them.

While this is not land that we can call our own, it’s clear that we have established a link with the land: this land can call us its own.
    -Rev. Michael J Dangler

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An Ancestor Box Devotional

Sunday, December 23rd, 2007

It is a long tradition in our Grove that we keep a box, a treasure-trove of memories and physical things that remind us of our Ancestors. This box is opened only once per year, during Samhain. It contains a little bit of every Grove member’s family, something that reminds us of a story, or a smell, or a loving smile that we once saw on the face of an Ancestor.

The Ancestor Box travels separately from the rest of the Grove’s ritual gear. It is treated with a deeper reverence than our other altar supplies, for unlike most of them, the Ancestor Box retains its sacredness far beyond ritual. Instead of being stored in our (now trademark) big blue bins of ritual supplies, it is given to the person who will lead our next High Day ritual, and it is their job to take care of the box.

While discussing what this Box means to the Grove, our Senior Druid, Seamus, and I realized that we need to recognize this sacred status while the Box is traveling. The Box cannot simply be taken home; it needs to be given attention, to be a living part of the next Officiant’s life.

We decided on creating a devotional ritual, with the focus on the Ancestors of the Grove, and a small ritual kit that travels with the Box. The devotional would be done weekly by the person in charge of taking care of the Ancestor Box.

Today was my first opportunity to do a devotional of this type. I spent some time re-working my altar space to ensure that there was space for the Box, and then placed it, a candle, and a well next to it. And then I simply began speaking from the heart.

I first began to pray, to speak to the Ancestors of the Grove, telling them that they were not forgotten. I promised that the work I have done in creating a devotional rite would continue with their guidance, and asked that they help me in the upcoming Druid Moon Rites and the Imbolc ritual that I’m leading.

Then I placed my hands on the Ancestor Box and breathed deeply, and I felt the presence of the Ancestors.

It was then that I decided that this sort of devotional is not only a good thing for the Grove, but a needed addition to the Grove’s spiritual life. While I feel the need to state that we should look at what we’re getting into (there is a lot of trust involved by stating that the future Officiant will do these weekly rituals, since life intervenes and sometimes throws our schedule for a loop), I can also tell that this is something we should have been doing all along.

This is a tradition I hope will grow and deepen over time. The Ancestor Box is a way to invite the spirituality of the Grove into your own life for six weeks and to connect with the rest of the members on a deeper level. It also increases the responsibility of the person officiating our rituals, making them responsible for the *ghos-ti- relationships that the Grove keeps.

This devotional is a wonderful addition to the Grove’s spiritual work, and I hope that it will bring out the best in our members by distributing some of our responsibility as a Grove to each person.
    -Rev. Michael J Dangler

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