Nemos Ognios Brighid’s Day 2011 Ritual

Before ritual, disconnect fire alarms and open flue. Prepare a fire in the fireplace (but don’t light it).

In the living room, the Fire Tender forms a “hedge” with a circle of rope/clothesline with the xā́sā at its center. It has to be big enough to hold her, two pitchers of milk, a pitcher of wine, and these, placed there before the ritual:

Xā́sa, with charcoal briquettes
Matches on a plate
Pitcher with very small amount of lighter fluid in it
Large purification bowl
Small purification bowl, filled with water
Pitcher of Waters
Waters bowl
Ladle on plate
Bowl of butter
Small butter spoon
Small offering bowl

Outside the hedge:

Image of Janus
Image of Xáryomen
Planter for images
Second large purification bowl
Cups
Runes
Rune cheat sheet

On the kitchen table:

Crystal bell
Bowl for purification with water
Offerings:
- Two pitchers of milk
- Silver plates
- Pita bread on first silver plate
- Irish soda bread on second silver plate
- Two pitchers of milk
- Pitcher of beer
White napkin over soda bread

On dining room table:

Bowl for silver and dimes
Silver

Outside front door (after all have arrived):

Lit candle
Matches
Plate for matches
Brass Brighid’s cross

The Priest gives the ritual briefing and finishes putting things in place. If there are guests, they put their dimes on a plate at this time. The Chthonic Celebrant puts a lit candle and the brass Brighid’s cross outside the front door, along with matches, just in case. Everyone else waits in the dining room.

The Beginning Ritual

When it is time for the ritual, the Fire Tender goes to the kitchen table and rings the bell. The others join her. When all have gathered, the Priest says:

Bígí i do thost! May we all maintain a holy silence.

The Fire Tender says:

And in that silence, may inspired words be spoken, with your aid, Oghma, of golden tongue.

The Chthonic Celebrant says:

We are here to celebrate Imbolc, feast of Brighid, feast of the hearth, feast of bread and milk.

The Fire Tender says:

May be we pure that we might cross through the sacred. May we cross through the sacred that we might attain the holy. May we attain the holy that we might be blessed in all things.

She asperses herself and the others, and then puts the bowl down.

The Procession

The Chthonic Celebrant says:

Set forth upon the shining path, the ancestral way laid out before us. Place your feet with measured stride, in ancient rhythm.

The Fire Tender picks up a pitcher of milk and the plate with the bread (or a female guest picks up the milk). The Chthonic Celebrant picks up the other pitcher of milk and the pitcher of wine (or a female guest picks up the pitcher of wine) and the Priest the beer. A guest picks up the dish with the dimes. All process to the living room, led by the Fire Tender and then the Priest.

When all have arrived at the ritual site, the Priest says:

Ta muid anseo leis na dheithe a adradh!
All:
We are here to worship the gods!

The Chthonic Celebrant puts her milk outside the hedge (on the fireplace side) and the wine inside the hedge. All except the Fire Tender go to their places. The Fire Tender remains standing. The Priest says:

Come we together on this holy day across the distances that lay between us to this time, to this place, To worship the Holy Ones in the proper manner To honor she who is the heart of our home.

The Chthonic Celebrant says:

We call to Brighid, the flame on the hearth.
All:
Come to us, come to us, bless us with your presence.
Chthonic Celebrant:
We call to Brighid, inspirer of poets.
All:
Come to us, come to us, bless us with your presence.
Chthonic Celebrant:
We call to Brighid, strength of smiths.
All:
Come to us, come to us, bless us with your presence.
Chthonic Celebrant:
We call to Brighid, power of healers.
All:
Come to us, come to us, bless us with your presence.

During this, the Fire Tender has been going to the front door. After the last sentence, she says:

Lady Brighid, come in, come in, come in, you are thrice welcome!
All:
Lady Brighid, come in, come in, come in, you are thrice welcome!

The Fire Tender opens the door and brings in the candle and the Brighid’s cross (relighting the candle if it has gone out). She puts the candle down next to the xā́sā, lifts the xā́sā, puts the Brighid’s cross down under it, and puts the xā́sā back.

The Fire Tender pours the lighter fluid on the briquettes in the xā́sā and lights them with fire transferred from the candle via a match, saying:

In the home’s very center is a living fire, here where the sacred and the mundane meet, under the care of the Triple Brighid.

She spreads her hands and says:

The fire of Brighid is the flame on our hearth.

She pauses while the flames catch. Then she says:

High One, Brighid, unite us all, for by worshipping at a common hearth we are made one family, one people. Queen of the hearth, your household is here. May we pray with a good fire.

She blows on the fire, while the Chthonic Celebrant says:

With our prayers we feed you, with the breath of our mouths.

The Fire Tender holds her hands out to the fire, cupping them together, and says:

Receive our offerings and bless our rites.

She starts to sing, with the others joining in on the chorus:

This flame is small that’s how it seems yet even so it bears our dreams

For flame’s a goddess to whom we pray to be one family, here today.

The flame now grows from coal to coal and every one is each a soul

For flame’s a goddess to whom we pray to be one family, here today.

The flame has spread from heart to heart. It binds us still when we’re apart.

For flame’s a goddess to whom we pray to be one family, here today.

She burns within through all our days. Let all as one sing out her praise.

For flame’s a goddess to whom we pray to be one family, here today.

The Fire Tender sings the last chorus by herself, with "family, here today" sung more slowly.

The Priest says:

Brighid is here, in the fire on the hearth; there she stands, in golden garments, tall and lovely.
All:
Brighid is here. Failte, a Bhrigid.

The guest with the dimes goes to the mundus, and with eyes averted, opens it, putting the tile on the floor, and pours the dimes in. They then purify themselves and return to their place. While this is going on, the Chthonic Celebrant says:

Around the hearth fire, throughout long ages, our people have gathered, for warm and community. Tonight we welcome the honored dead to sit beside the hearth they once held so dear. Welcome to the Ancestors!
All:
Welcome to the Ancestors!

The Priest says:

Listen to my words, see the Cosmos about you.

He sings:

The waters support and surround us

He makes a semi-circle with both his hands, extending upwards from a point. He sings:

The land extends about us

He puts his hands in the middle of the top of the semi-circle, palms downward, and brings them out to the ends of the semi-circle. He sings:

The sky stretches out above us.

He makes another semi-circle upwards from the edge of the other one, with his hands meeting at its top. He sings:

At the center burns a living flame.

He holds both of his hands, joined together, out towards the fire, and then brings them in to touch his heart. He sings:

May all the Kindreds bless us. May our worship be true.
Others:
May our worship be true.
Priest:
May our actions be just.
Others:
May our actions be just.
Priest:
May our love be pure.
Others:
May our love be pure.
All:
Blessings, and honor, and worship to the Holy Ones.

The Fire Tender says:

The cosmos is made fast here by the presence of the Hallows: by Well, and Fire, and Tree, around which everything turns.

She begins to sing the the Portal song. and the others join in.

The Priest sets up the image of Janus to the east of the fire, while the Chthonic Celebrant pours a libation of red wine into the small offering bowl, saying:

Jan-e Pater, with honor, with worship, with thanks.

The Fire Tender pours butter on the fire and says:

Á Bhrigid, lovely Brigid, clear the path, make it smooth and sweet: Open the way, Brighid
All:
Open the way!

The Fire Tender pours butter on the fire and says:

Á Bhrigid, lovely Brigid, strew the path with petalled words: Open the way, Brighid
All:
Open the way!

The Fire Tender pours butter on the fire and says:

Á Bhrigid, lovely Brigid, light the path to the Shining Beings: Open the way, Brighid
All:
Open the way!

The Fire Tender holds her hands out to the fire and says:

Be our priestess, Brighid, drawing the gods near, and conveying our offerings to them.

She spread her hands and says:

From the land of the gods, to the land of men
All:
May sacred power flow. May Brighid be our guide to the gods.

The Priest then sets up the image of Xáryomen. The Fire Tender offers butter. The Priest sings:

Xáryomen Dhétipotei,
All:
Xáryomen, Lord of the Law of the People.
Priest:
Sumenesṇs prihons dōtor
All:
Giver of well-disposed friends.
Priest:
Suwéstēr zdhi.
All:
Be our good Herdsman.
Priest:
Wedhe nōs som
All:
Bring us together.
Priest:
Xṛneu nōs sḗm.
All:
Make us one.
Priest:
Tebhyo sṃgénse spendemes.
All:
May we worship you as one people!
Priest:
Unite us, Xáryomen, make us one,
All:
May we come before the gods speaking with one voice.

The Fire Tender pours butter on the fire, saying:

May all the Holy Ones come to us as we worship them here. May they come to us on the shining path as we call to them with proper words.
All:
Holy Ones, We worship you with sweet offering.

All sing "Hail all the Gods."

The Fire Tender pours milk into the offering bowl, saying:

We feed you with cow’s milk, á Bhrighid, You who feed children and calves, Giver of Thrice-milked Cows, Brighid.
All:
Biodh se amladh.

(She pours some with each line.)

The Fire Tender puts the loaf of bread in the offering bowl, saying:

Eat with us, Share our food, Share our home.
All:
Biodh se amladh.

The Fire Tender says:

Brighid is pure, and only the pure may approach her. With pure body and mind, make offering.

The Fire Tender purifies her feet, hands, and head with water. She pours more milk into the offering bowl, saying:

With reverence I pour this milk to you.

She then puts butter on the fire, saying:

With this gold of the cow we honor you, Brighid. Sweetly may its scent rise through the fire, an offering to you, the goddess of fire.

Each person comes forward, purifies themselves, and offers milk. Women use the purification and offering bowls inside the hedge, while men use the purification and offering bowls outside it. The Priest is last. After he is done, the Fire Tender fills the offering bowl with more milk, saying:

We feed you with cow’s milk, a Bhrighid, Giver of Thrice-milked Cows, Brighid. All of us together offer it to you.

The Chthonic Celebrant pours beer with her right hand into the small offering bowl, saying:

May all the Kindreds be honored in our midst. We pour out our offering to you, like living water, like grain from a bag. Drink deeply of the gifts we give.

She returns to her place. The Priest says:

Have the folk brought praise?

The Fire Tender says:

They have!

Praise offerings

When the last offering has been made, the Fire Tender says:

Holy Brighid, Gods and Goddesses, Holy Ancestors, Spirits of this place: If anything we have done here has offended you, If anything we have done here has been incomplete, If anything we have done here has not been done in the proper manner, accept this final offering in recompense.

While she is saying this, the Fire Tender tears off a piece of the pita bread and puts it on the fire, then a second, which she puts in the main offering bowl. She then gives the rest to the Chthonic Celebrant. The Chthonic Celebrant puts a piece in the large offering bowl outside the hedge, in the small offering bowl, one in front of each of the images, one in the mundus. She breaks the rest of the bread up into the large offering bowl. The Chthonic Celebrant and the Fire Tender time themselves to finish at the same time.

The Chthonic Celebrant sits down, and the Fire Tender says:

Diviner, take the omens.

After the divination has been announced, the Fire Tender says:

We hear what the Kindreds have said, and are made wise by it.

The Fire Tender pours the Waters into their bowl. She ladles milk from each offering bowl into it, and stirs it three times clockwise, and puts the ladle in the pitcher that had held the Waters. The Chthonic Celebrant holds the bowl over the fire for a moment and then raises it. The Fire Tender says:

Féachaígí ar na h-Uisci Beatha! Behold the Waters of Life!
All:
Behold the Waters of Life!

The Chthonic Celebrant holds it over the fire again, raises it again, and the Fire Tender says:

Féachaígí ar na h-Uisci Beatha! Behold the waters of Life!
All:
Behold the Waters of Life!

The Chthonic Celebrant holds it over the fire a third time, raises it, and the Fire Tender says:

Féachaígí ar na h-Uisci Beatha! Behold the Waters of Life!
All:
Behold the Waters of Life!

The Priest says:

With the gates opened and the offerings made, we have established the bonds of hospitality with the Kindreds. And, in return, they have given us this blazing water.

The Fire Tender says:

Fires of Brighid: Fires of Poets, Fires of Smiths, Fires of Healers, Inspire us with the Fires of Creation: Inspire us, Brighid. Waters of Brighid: Waters of Purification Waters of Protection Waters of Nourishment Inspire us with the Waters of Life:

The Chthonic Celebrant lifts the Waters bowl high, and the Fire Tender says:

Behold the Waters of Life!
All:
Behold the Waters of Life!

The Fire Tender says:

What the Kindreds have given to us, we distribute freely.

The Fire Tender ladles some of the Waters into the libation bowl, saying:

May the Kindreds always receive their due.

The Waters are then are distributed by the Fire Tender and the Chthonic Celebrant.

After all have drunk, the Priest says:

Filled with the Mystery of Fire in Water we rest in the presence of the Kindreds.

There is a pause while all meditate on the divine presence which fills them. Then the Fire Tender says:

With wondering souls we have welcomed this wisdom, with grateful hearts may we accept its manifestation in our midst.

The Priest says:

We have offered to the Ancestors, we have prayed to all the Great Ones, we have worshiped Brighid as it right, and they have given us only a token of what they will bestow. We have asked, we have given, we shall receive. Biodh se amladh.
All:
Biodh se amladh.

Then the Fire Tender says:

Never would we take without returning, never receive without appreciation. We must end our rites, but we will do it with gratitude

Then the Fire Tender offers butter, while the Priest says:

Blessed ones, may you always be with us. We thank all the Kindreds for their many gifts. Go raibh maith agaibh.
All:
Go raibh maith agaibh.

The Fire Tender offers butter, while the Priest says:

Xáryomen, who guards society’s peace, you have joined us together in our worship today: though the rites may end, and the people scatter, may our fellowship remain strong. Xáryomen, we thank you for your presence and blessings. May we grow and flourish under your benevolent gaze. Tebhyo gwrtins dedǝmes
All:
Tebhyo gwrtins dedəmes.

The Fire Tender offers butter, saying:

Golden-garbed Brighid, who conducts the flame of creation into the world of men, we thank you for leading our rite into the mystery, and ask that you return us again, until the next time we call to you. Go raibh maith agait!
All:
Go raibh maith agait!

The Fire Tender makes a sign of closing and says:

Let the gates be closed!
All:
Let the gates be closed!

The Fire Tender offers butter, saying:

Á Bhrighid, Belovéd, Lady of Fire, Queen of the hearth, who by rights receives the last, bless and guard all those who worship you whether in their home or without whether alone or with others whether thinking of you or engaged in business. Shining One, receive this offering. On this day, your greatest feast day, we honor, worship, and thank you. Go raibh maith agait!
All:
Go raibh maith agait.

The person who had offered the dimes goes to the mundus, puts the tile back on, returns, and purifies themselves, while the Chthonic Celebrant is saying:

It is now time for the Ancestors to return to their own hearth fires, to gather around them as the Further Family. Farewell, Ancestors, may your journey be blessed!
All:
May your journey be blessed!

When the butter is burned, the Fire Tender extinguishes the fire by setting the top of the xā́sā on gently, saying:

We cover you, Brighid, not sending you away, but keeping you with us everywhere.

When the fire has finished smoking, the Fire Tender says:

Extinguished without but burning within.
All:
The living fire flames within us

The Fire Tender says:

With the hearthfire smoored, the center of our sacred world sleeps. We will carry it in our hearts, though, nestled deep with the love of the gods.

The Priest then says:

We have offered to the Holy Ones and they have accepted our sacrifices.

The Fire Tender says:

We have worshiped the Old Ones as it is right to do.

The Priest says:

We have done what the people before us have done.

The Fire Tender says:

May we always be mindful of those we have worshiped. May we always be mindful of them, worthy of worship. May this grove grow strong, under their watchful eyes.

The Priest says:

On all who have worshiped here:
All:
Inspiration, power, peace.
Priest:
On all who revere the Kindreds:
All:
Inspiration, power, peace.
Priest:
On all who walk the ancient path:
All:
Inspiration, power, peace.

The Fire Tender says:

With the gates closed With the gods worshiped With the ancestors honored We will walk in wisdom.

All go to the kitchen, and the Fire Tender rings the bell to end the ritual