Greetings again. With today’s post, I hope to help you create your own individual ritual for Beltane. No, I’m not going to write it for you. There is an abundance of solitary rituals out on the internet. What I will do is my best to assist you in writing your own Beltane ritual. Ready? Ok, let’s go.
What Do you Want to Accomplish?
First off, you need to decide your intent. This needs to happen before you do anything. Ask yourself, what is it I want to do with this ritual? This article is about Beltane ritual; therefore, your intent should be related to the Sabbat. We have an introductory article on Beltane you can read here. Modern Beltane is celebrated differently by different paths in the craft. Wiccans and other branches of the craft may celebrate the joining of the Goddess and the Oak King. Others, such as myself, may celebrate the seasonal change and Gaia’s fertility as seen in the budding trees, green grass, and spring bulbs that are blooming. Prosperity, fertility, sexuality, and family are all good starting points.
As an example, if you choose to highlight prosperity, remember, the Goddess rewards those who work hard to achieve their goals. In your ritual show how you wish to achieve the goal of prosperity. Just asking for a truck load of money will not cut it with the Gods. Know what you want, how you want to achieve it, and what you will do when it is achieved. The Gods may reward that forethought with sending inspiration to you.
Image by Stefan Keller from Pixabay
Deities
Once your intent is set, start looking at the appropriate Gods and Goddesses that fit in with your intent and Beltane. If a fertile garden is your intent, finding deities that specialize in agriculture and fertility would be your best bet. Each pantheon has Gods and Goddesses that specialize in almost everything. Do your research. Find a God and Goddess that click with you. Your comfort with the deities is a must. Read up on what their favorite offerings are. Discover what their favorite colors, foods, incense, herbs, plants are. Use this information to build your ritual and the correspondences you may need.
Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay
Find your Correspondences
Your correspondences (colors, smells, stones, offerings) should relate to both your deities and Beltane. Suppose you choose a traditional Beltane god such as Cernunnos. Being a God of the Forest, green is associated with Cernunnos and Beltane. Use green leaves as decoration on your altar, as well as other nature related items that represent early summer.
Use the same process when picking out your incense, offerings, and altar decorations.
Image by David Mark from Pixabay
Elements
The Beltane fire is a major element of the Sabbat. Incorporate fire through your incense by using charcoal and herbs creating a hot smoke from your cauldron. Celebrate fire by creating a fire in your fire place, BBQ, candles, flameless candles, and in a pinch, a fan with fire colored crepe paper attached to the fan grill. Invite the element into your circle using it to cleanse you spiritually through meditation. With Rosemary being one of the Sabbat herbs and an herb related to the fire element, brew up some rosemary tea to sip before or after a solitary mediation.
Writing your Ritual
When I first starting writing my own rituals, I did search the internet and my books for ideas. By doing this I learned the context and form others were using. Do you need to make it rhyme? Depends. For me, spells and rituals that rhyme force me put more thought into what I want to say and do. So no, you do not need make your ritual rhyme. You only need to project into words your intent.
I hope this article helps you create your own solitary ritual for Beltane. When writing your ritual, remember correspondences, matching correspondences to your god and goddess, and write what you feel.
Do you have questions? Do you think I left something out? Please, let me know below in comments.