Our Altar at Imbolc

Our altar has suffered lately from clutter, and attempting to do too much all at  the same time. So we decided to move the altar proper (the Well, the Fire, the Tree) to its own space, and purchased the lovely red cabinet in this picture for that purpose.  Beneath it, we will have space for storage of consumables (incense, candles, etc) and practical use items (lighters, a small pitcher to pour water, etc) as well as a shelf to house the current spiritual books we have on rotation, so they don't stack up waist high and trip us as we walk by (not that much of an exaggeration).

The green cloth covered cabinet (a repurposed entertainment center) is now our shrine - a place for the seasonal tree, which is decked out for each holiday, as well as a place to hold other ritual items.  This portion will change for each ritual we perform at home.  Right now, it's set for Imbolc.

On  the wall above the shrine are a pair of carved wooden symbols - the UU Chalice, and a triskele with two crescent moons.  Between the altar and the shrine is a tall table that holds what we think of as our chalice.  All of this together is a pretty adequate reflection of the eclectic nature (and history) of our religious journey.

A closer look at the altar, from left to right:  a bell - this was a gift several years ago from a friend who traveled through Asia.  There is a dragon on it, and a connected clapper that swings and hits the bell; our World Tree representation - this is actually a carved wooden "hot chocolate whisk" from Mexico, a gift from my daughter; a stone oil lamp (our Fire) Michael found during a trip to his hometown; a carved drinking horn (carved with a raven), sitting in a carved horn holder - a gift from me to Michael for Yule; a stoneware blue and brown bowl (bought at a yardsale) that serves as our Well, and in front of that a silver bracelet we use to silver the well.  Lastly, a candle snuffer.

 

Look how pretty the oil lamp is when lit!

The seasonal tree is something I've been doing for about three years now.  This is its 'look' for the season following Yule - blue and silver and white balls and sparkly snowflakes to reflect Winter after Yule has passed.  Amongst the frosty ornaments, there are also a few sun symbols, as the light returns, and for Imbolc, there is a Brigid's cross, as well as a Celtic harp.


For Imbolc, I have surrounded the tree with a ring of dried white roses, saved from a bouquet Michael gifted me a while ago, and next to the tree, a corn husk dolly (our "Bride") lies in her Bride Bed.

 Her bed is actually a stoneware bread tray - at the top is a Claddagh that was a gift from a friend who brought it back from Ireland - it's actually carved out of dried peat.

The Brigid dolly is made from cornhusks - one I made a couple years ago, and filling the bed are a bunch of dried red rose petals from a friend's garden, saved since last summer.

It hadn't actually occurred to me until now how very much of what we use are gifts that connect us with other aspects of our life.


 The remainder of the shrine is a simple arrangement of 8 white tea-lights surrounding 3 red votives - these are being lit for a part of our Imbolc ritual this year.   The trio of red votives reminds me of a red heart.

It seemed wise to make sure nothing cluttered or flammable was anywhere near the candles.

What Happens Next

I am nearing the end of the Dedicant work. I finished reading "Drawing Down the Moon" and drafted my review of it a few days ago. I am still working toward meeting the mental discipline requirement, and I still have to write and take the dedicant oath, but everything else is close to done. I have a couple more essays to write, although I know what I'm going to say, and I want to revisit and update those I wrote a while back. I'm targeting March to submit.

This has seemed like a long road, although I know others have taken much longer. I credit ADF for making the program available, but I realize that, as challenging as it is, it's very much the foundation of study, not the end.

It may be premature -- I still have to finish it, submit it and have it accepted -- but I'm mulling where I will go from here. (Or, there once I get there.) I'm not sure. And I think it would be wise to pause for a while and continue to cultivate the new habits that the DP encourages one to develop.

And Home

This is a follow-up to the previous post. You should read that one first.

So we made our offering, acknowledging our oversight to Wotan (whom I suppose has become my patron over the past year or so) and offering a portion of Irish whiskey to him in apology and another portion asking for his protection on our way home.

The omen was positive, and indeed, the three-day return trip went smoothly, and all was well at the house.

This plus the experience with Thor/Thunor during Sandy has gone a long way toward shaping my personal practice.

Road Weary

We set off on a three-day road trip to visit family for the holiday. We briefly considered making an offering before we left, but we didn't.

Our first travel day was uneventful, but on day two, a small rock hit our windshield, leading to a crack that has so far spread about two feet. On the morning of day three, I slammed my finger into the car door and had to ice it for a while. The motel where we stayed was abysmal with a hard-as-brick bed and a heater than emitted a foul odor. And then, on arrival at our destination, I tripped and took a fall, hurting my knee, wrists, hip and ribs (though not seriously, I don't think.)

Before we leave on our return journey, we will offer some whiskey to Woden.

Why did the misfortunes come and how can we avoid them? The Druidcraft tarot, three-card PPF reading:

Past: Knight of wands reversed

First impression: Heading off on a journey without adequate preparation.
The official interpretation speaks of discord, separation, a misunderstanding, progress interrupted.

I think this fits with what we suspected ... the discord is between us and the gods; the progress interrupted is the progress in making polytheism our living religion, not a subject of academic study. We did well to ask Thor/Thunor to ward our home against hurricane damage, then we went off and left on a long trip with no offering, no asking for safety and protection, no acknowledgement of the kindred. While this is not something we would have done in the past, now that we know, we should.

Present: Three of wands.

This is a fellow looking hopefully down a road, much as we're hoping our return trip will be smooth. A phrase in the official keywords, most of which speak of success in businesses, stands out for me: "grasp of future and things needed for growth." Taken to mean, they see that we've figured it out and that we plan an offering before we leave on the return leg. This is acknowledging that we have the right understanding of the reason.

Future: High priestess, Reversed

The only major arcana card to show. I know the HP as a keeper of mysteries. Reversed, it seems to speak of poor intuition, lack of sense. Given that the three of wands suggests we've gotten this one right, belatedly, this one may say that it won't be the last time we forget -- or that it's a tendency to guard against.

Warding

With Hurricane Sandy bearing down on us, we held a ritual to ask Thor for protection. We adapted a ritual from the ADF site (http://www.adf.org/rituals/norse/general/house-warding.html) and performed it yesterday afternoon. We followed the core order of ritual (leaving out only the outdwellers portion).The offering for Thor was most of s 22-ounce homebrewed stout, minus only a small amount that we used for the waters of life.

At the end we used runes for an omen, asking three questions: What do the gods need from us during the storm? What warnings do they have for us, or preparations we have neglected? And
what blessings do they offer? The runes were: dagaz, algiz and ingwaz. Our interpretation: They need our trust; the warn us to take the storm seriously and use our knowledge of how it works to prepare; and they offer opportunities for learning and growing closer to them.

Reflecting on this inclines me to revise my essay on piety, which was essentially done. I am struck by how natural it felt to turn to Thor to petition for help regarding a major weather event. A year ago, it would have seemed like the "correct" thing to do as a practicing pagan, but I don't think it would have been as intuitive as it is now.

Pagan Every Day(?)

Teo Bishop writes compellingly here about the importance of a daily devotional practice. It's an argument I agree with, and yet find very hard to maintain.

My sense of nearness to the kindreds waxes and wanes and, perhaps unwisely, feels the farthest away when I am under stress. And I have been under stress the past few weeks, mostly due to a project at work, that has only this week mostly lifted.

I want a daily practice, or at least a weekly one. I still need to get seriously to work on developing mental discipline to fulfill the Dedicant Path requirement, but even more than that, I want to create real relationships with the kindreds. I feel that I am actually on the edge of that in a couple of cases, but my regularity is lacking.

And still, it's hard to do. It's hard to carve out a dependable time, to work around distractions, even though a simple devotional takes only 10 or 15 minutes. I do it sporadically, sometimes a couple of times in a week, sometimes only once every couple of weeks.

I frequently hear that paganism is a religion of practice more than belief, and yet, my practice falters. How does one break out of the rut?

Antlered Crown and Standing Stone

Not really an entry, just a note to point you to a free download of a new song by Damh the Bard, "Antlered Crown and Standing Stone." This is the title track of his new album, coming next month. Get it here:

http://www.reverbnation.com/play_now/song_14858534

Also, I'm proud to say that I put Damh together with Mark Helpsmeet for this wonderful two-part interview on the "Song of the Soul" podcast:

http://www.northernspiritradio.org/index.asp?command=programInfo&id=2