
	Home Page - Mail Archive - February 1st: Imbolc Ritual!

February 1st: Imbolc Ritual!

Sent: 2008-01-21 18:10:02

Hi folks,

February 1st is the traditional day to celebrate the festival of Imbolc, which marks the time of the year when we first see signs of Spring from beneath Winter's cloak. It is also a festival sacred to the Irish Goddess Brighid, who is a Goddess with three aspects relating to three flames: the fires of the forge in which we are shaped and transformed; the fires of healing that purify us and cleanse us; and the fires of inspiration that bring us creativity and joy.

The CUPS ritual will begin at 8:15pm on Friday 1st February, and will be held in the Quaker Meeting House, 43 Charles Street, in Cardiff. For those who don't know how to get there, please meet outside Blackwell's of the Student's Union on Senghennydd at 7:45pm to be taken there. If everybody could arrive around 8pm, that will give us plenty of time to get everybody ready to begin so we can start promptly at 8:15!

This ritual will be centred around the theme of the Triple Brighids and the rekindling of warmth after the long Winter. All you need to bring is yourselves, a few tealight candles, and some food and drink for the post-ritual feast. You can wear what you like, ritual attire is entirely optional, but attire at all is essential: we do not work skyclad, since this is an open ritual. People are also welcome to bring items to place on the central altar that represent this festival, its theme, or Brighid to them: flowers, altar cloths, statues, ritual items, artwork, random items, anything!

After the ritual and during the feast there will also be a Bardic Circle, in which anyone who wishes to can share something creative - whether it is a composition of their own or something written/painted by somebody else that they find moving. You can sing, dance, tell a story, read a poem, show off some of your art skills - anything you feel celebrates the Fires of Inspiration!

Of course, we do need a few people to fill some of the roles of the ritual. Here are the roles available:

- Invoker of the Goddess Brighid
- Invoker of the God (in a form appropriate for the caller - some sort of Awakening, Youthful God is appropriate, particularly an Irish one. Perhaps the young Lugh Samilidanach?)
- Caller of the Quarter of East / Air
- Caller of the Quarter of South / Fire
- Caller of the Quarter of West / Water
- Caller of the Quarter of Earth / North
- Circle Caster.

The callers of East, South, and West will also have an added role to play (which will be short and sweet, don't worry!) so if you fancy it, email me and I'll explain so you can make a more informed decision! Anybody who wishes to take one of these roles can email me at kimhuggens@yahoo.co.uk.

So, come and celebrate Imbolc with us! Imbolc is a nice, relaxing, and reflective festival, and this ritual will be perfect for anybody a little nervous of group ritual, or attending a Pagan festival for the first time. Any questions, comments, or suggestions, are welcome and should be sent to kimhuggens@yahoo.co.uk

Hope to see you there!

Blessings,

Kim Huggens

Our philosophers debated the existence of this page for 0.040822s
Specification and development © 2003 - 2005 Andy Holland ahweb.co.uk. Design thanks to (© 2004) Toby Jackson warmfusion.
All content © 2003 - 2005 Cardiff University Pagan Society or the original author. All rights reserved. [Admin: Configure this page]