High Days

A Year of High Day Rituals:

June 21: Midsummer Moot.  Traditional Asatru Blot to Thor. We did not use the Core Order, as it was not an ADF gathering but rather a gathering of Michigan Heathens, approximately 50 in attendance.  We asked for Thor’s blessing on our event and passed the horn around while each person there made a toast to Thor.  We then poured the rest of the mead into the blessing bowl and the gothi asperged each person in turn, then poured the rest out at the root of the Oak we’d chosen to receive Thor’s gifts for the moot. 

Having grown up Catholic, I often find Heathen religious ceremonies lacking in ritual.  While part of me likes the simplicity of the ritual practices, part of me does not feel like we’ve had a deep or spiritual experience.  One of the things that has seemed the most lacking to me in my Heathen practices is the lack of music and singing.

August 1: Freyfaxi.  Also not done as an ADF ritual, but as a traditional Blot to Ing-Frey in thanks for the ripening of the grain and the fertility of the land.  My kindred baked two loaves of bread, then we made butter as a group.  Instead of passing a horn and making toasts and boasts, we passed a ball jar with heavy cream and a rock marked with a Manaz rune in it, tightening the bonds of frith of the kindred of man.  When the butter was made, we poured the buttermilk into the offering bowl and then shared it with the garden wights at the home of the kinsman hosting the ritual.  We then buried one of the loaves in his garden and shared the other among those present, smeared with the fresh butter.

While in style this resembled a Blot, perhaps the linages and symbolism of the bread and butter fit better with the day for me and made it more meaningful than the horn at moot.  We ended up having to pass the jar about ten times to get butter, but that was okay.  We had plenty of deities to toast.  I would incorporate elements of this ritual again in the future.

September 21: Winterfinding Blot was also done with a Heathen community, not an ADF one.  We had a pig roast and gathered at a friend’s horse farm to enjoy the autumn weather.  We blessed the pig (it had been raised for us) and then put it in the smoker for the day.  While it cooked, we had a Kubb tourney.  Our feast was made with all local food and prepared by us, nothing bought pre-made.  We offered the first plate to the land in thanks for its generosity, and also shared with the deity of the occasion, in this case Sif.  Everyone took home a plate of food from the event in a ritual of sharing what we’d made and produced for the year. 

Again, this was celebrated with a large group of Heathens (about 30).  We had a lot of kids there (at least ten under 5).  It was relatively chaotic.  I enjoyed it, but it again felt more of a cookout with religious friends than a ritual itself.

October 31:  ADF style Samhain ritual.  This was the first attempt I made at doing an ADF style ritual, although I had attended some before.  I was supposed to celebrate it with the local grove (Cedarsong) but was recovering from surgery and couldn’t make it.  Since I’d committed to attending, though, I decided to try using the style.  I’ve never felt all that comfortable naming an Earth Mother in the Norse hearth culture, so instead I made my offering to the Earth itself, knowing that it’s the only one we have and we have to take care of her if we want her to continue to care for us.  The deity of the occasion was Hel, and the purpose was to remember those who had already passed.  For omens, I drew runes, but failed to write them down afterwards.  I remember one was Jera, the cycle, which felt appropriate for the occasion.

While I felt a bit silly with some of the parts of the Core Order, I did get a sense that it was closer to a full on ritual than the more simple blots I’d been doing.  I think that I am still searching for the happy medium for me. 

Dec 21:  Yule Blot was again with a Heathen group.  We had a fire pit outside that was very hard to get started in the ice storm.  We finally doused it with kerosene to get it going.  We offered to Odin and Holda for the occasion, and gave them the first plate in the fire, then carried a yule log inside for our feast.  We had a full High Sumble with three rounds.  There were about 20 of us there.  Everyone was pretty drunk by the end.  I know that historically, that was pretty normal.  Since I was still recovering from surgery and was toasting with pop instead of mead, I found it sort of annoying.  I did however make an Oath during sumble to complete a paper on why the trichotomy of a Triple Goddess didn’t apply in Asatru by June.  (I fulfilled the oath.)

Feb 1: ADF Style Ewemeolc.  I just finished Alaric’s Path of an Anglo-Saxon Pagan and am very interested in this holy tide.  I combined the deity of the occasion and the Earth Mother together, in that Hertha was honored for both.  Having not been raised on a farm, this was a tide that had never had much meaning for me, but I celebrated it with an offering of sheep milk cheese.  I read runes for the omen and got Laguz, Sowilo, and Fehu.  I interpreted this to mean that I was treading in holy places that had hidden dangers if I did not proceed with care, but that there were also gifts awaiting me through the returning warmth and perseverance on this path.  I considered this a good omen.

Mar 21: ADF Style Ostara ritual.  Deity of the day was Ostara, Earth Mother was Jord.  Purpose was to ask for the blessings of fertility for the coming year particularly in the areas of getting my creative juices flowing to get the papers completed that had started.  I also had just had my divorce finalized, so I wanted the blessings of fertility in this new chapter of my life.  Additionally, I honored Sunna with mead.  Ostara got died eggs and chocolate.  Once again I drew runes for an omen and received Beorc, Hagal, and Ansuz.  I took it to mean that it was an affirmation of the new chapter of my life, that there might be some growing pain, but the pain would bring me the needed nutrients to continue to learn and grow, and that I need to spend more time on a regular basis with my religious studies.

May 1: ADF Style Beltaine ritual.  Deity of the occasion was Freya.  Purpose was to continue to exchange gifts with the Aesir and Vanir to strengthen relationships and ask for blessings of creativity and inspiration and a gift of love within the community.  As an offering, I wrote a poem and spent time in front of my alter singing.  The omen was Ehwaz, Algiz, Isa.  I saw this as a partnership that was suffering.  Possibly in the form of being smothered by too much protection.  I decided that perhaps I needed more of an offering and so I got out a bottle of the good mead (my personal favorite, a strong mead aged in a whiskey barrel).  Realizing that I was also in the middle of my job search and that I was looking at uprooting my life and destabilizing the kindred I’d co-founded, I poured out mead to ask Odin to support it in continuing to grow, and also to ask Tyr, our patron, to help me stay true to my oaths while still finding fulfillment in my career.  I did a single rune pull and got Thurisaz.  A decision to make based on survival.  Given the last year I’ve had, I knew that a tough choice was coming, and I would need the support of my family and friends in making it.  Thus the partnership rune.  The next pull was Jera.  The cycle.  Change coming as I entered a new part of my own life cycle.  Beorc.  Beginnings.  So yes, my creativity would flow in a new beginning.  It would be difficult, I would need to protect myself and my loved ones, but I had to make my choice in the end.  (For the record, I chose to move away from all of my loved ones.  It was a very hard choice, but I think I made the right one.  I’m infinitely happier and no longer being smothered).