Notes

These are notes about things I’m reading, workshops I’ve attended, or thoughts that work best in bullet point format. May eventually turn into an essay.

“A Voice at The Fire: Invitations To The Spirits” Workshop Outline

“A Voice at The Fire: Invitations To The Spirits”

Speaking Praise Offerings and Invitations to the Three Kindreds is a vital part of our practice as Druids and pagans.  In this writing workshop learn to craft your own invitations to the Kindreds for use in your personal practice, or in small group ritual.  We will work with descriptive language, poetic forms, and other literary devices when writing.  The workshop will conclude with a short blessing ritual where each person will have the opportunity to take the invitation they have written, speak it before the fire and the spirits, and make offerings.
The full workshop may be viewed on the Three Cranes Grove, ADF YouTube Channel:

 Workshop Notes:

Writing Invitations to the Kindreds

  • Invocation – Beings Within (think “Drawing Down” and “Horsing”)
  • Evocation – Beings Without (Inviting to be present at the ritual)

Memorize bookends & formulas if possible

Hey, you’re a god!

Here’s why you’re awesome!

We’re honoring you on this day.

Here’s your offering.

It’s appropriate to give to you for this celebration because Reasons.

Here’s how it is given to you and how you receive it.

Yay, god! Take your gift!

Types of Prayers:

  • Praise
  • Petitions
  • Love
  • Focus
  • Thanks
  • Forgiveness

Types of Rituals:

  • Solitary (1) -private
  • Small Group (2-10) – intimate; everyone knows what’s going on; everyone welcome to speak
  • Medium Group (11-30)– some may be unfamiliar with what is going on; most people still welcome to speak
  • Large Group (31+) – many may be unfamiliar with what is going on; speaking parts generally scripted; praise offerings welcomed, but perhaps not in verbal form
  • Extra Large Group (70+) – celebrants guiding/leading; may be the only ones who are speaking or know what’s going on; praise offerings sometimes welcomed, rarely in verbal form

Literary Devices & Descriptive Language:

Excellent book is Writing With Stardust by Liam O’Flynn

  • Active verbs
  • 3×3 descriptions
  • epithets
  • extended metaphor
  • parallel structure

Write Your Own:

 

Activity

Short Devotional:

Full COoR; parts divided amongst participants

Notes on Ritual Speech and Movement

What does taking a ritual part mean to you?

–       tour guide

–       ambassador

–       priest of the entity you’re calling

–       kindergarten teacher

–       either talking to the entities or talking to folk.  Trying to mesh them, but not quite there yet

–       being comfortable with silence and allowing wait time

–       need a par that you’re comfortable with already.

Memorization:

–       power words: the words you remember when everything else goes out the window.  Also serve as markers for your memorization.

–       Taking pauses and slowing down work much better (you’re probably talking twice as fast as you think you are.

–       Memorize what you’ll say, and then stick the little white note card in your back pocket for the ‘just in case’ moment.

–       If you write your own invocation it will be easier to memorize it.  It’s from the heart.  No one will know if you mess up but you.

–       Bookends are good!  It is good to know exactly how the person before you will end.  For the Kindreds the middle section is for describing/honoring them, and the bookends help standardize and make the liturgy flow.

  • Bookends are important for the folk, even if the invocation feels finished to you.

Projection:

–       you’re not getting louder, you’re putting more power behind your words.

–       Key is how you’re standing, how’re you’re prepping to speak, and how you breathe.

–       Pull shoulders back, head up – it opens up your diaphragm and your hands will come up and out.  When you get tense, you close all those pathways.

–       Think of prepping for ritual speech like a daydream: you’re in the mindset of talking to the entities, and not even seeing the folk.  Envision the entities that you’re talking to, and see them rather than the folk.

–       When you stop to breathe, that’s when you get your focus.

Movement:

–       in big groups, do as little movement as possible.  You may end up putting your back to a member of the folk, and it’s easier to hear someone when you can see their face.

–       When you’re talking, stand directly in front of the DiC.  This will maximize your range of people who can hear you.

–       Know the landscape – Are there potholes, rocks? Is there a slope?  Are you offering something flammable with the wind blowing towards you?  Will your offerings put out the fire?

–       Have your offerings with you in most circumstances (excepting Outdwellers & Seer) so you’re not making multiple trips.

  • Seer: leave the bag on the altar, have the Seer walk across the circle pick up the bag, draw the omen (at the fire if possible), and then turn around and face the folk with the altar at your back and deliver the omens.
  • The Folk must hear the omens, because if they’re accepting them and are going to be imbibing them, they need to be knowledgable and be able to accept or refuse them.

–       Practice gestures when you speak.  It will help with memorization of your part, and makes your speech more impressive.  However, don’t be distracting with your movements.

–       For large rituals movement should be limited – moving around disrupts your speech.  Limit to hand gestures and head placement.  Get to your spot, find your mark, but stay there.  Don’t move your feet.

  • No Nature Spirit fingers, No Queen’s wave!

–       Bring your offering with you in most cases to the place where you’re doing your invocation – be uniform with the rest of the people with ritual parts.