Animisma - All Things In-Spirited

A time of abundance,A time of preparation,A time of balance,A time of release,The edge of the bright leaning into the darkness.A time of celebration for the harvests of fruit and root.The second harvest, completing the cycle.The second harvest, calling the animals home.Let us welcome the in and the out breath, the double spiral, the balance of day and night.This is the autumnal equinox.

Hoof and horn, hoof and hornAll that dies shall be rebornCorn and grain, corn and grain,All that falls shall rise againDear Hazel, sacred tree of the ancients, the druids, holy tree of wisdom, knowing and intuition we honor you.We pray that your blessing of sight and vision is bestowed upon us, that we might see beyond ourselves and undertake a transformation as you do, in service of all that is highest, best, and most in its wellness.We pray your nuts of inspiration and wisdom fill our lives and hearts such that we can walk in true honor and grace, unburdened by the pains of our pasts or the fears of unknown futures.May inner wisdom be ours to tend and nurture as we tend and nurture your groves and forests. Blessed be this sacred tree.Transformation, strength, accomplishment, pride, celebration of the first harvest, the grain harvest - Lughnasadh is a time for honoring all that has been achieved in the warmth of the summer sun, while starting our gentle walk away from the light towards the darker half of the year.

This is a day of great abundance, wonder and celebration of achievements! And, as with all celebrations on this blessed and beloved wheel of the year, as we celebrate the strength of the light we now turn our sight softly towards the darkening half of the year that will begin shortly after this resplendent day. Celtic stone circles, ancient gathering places, monuments and tombs, are lit by the dawn light on this day - sacred, special, solstice.The summer solstice offers us a space for connection and prayer, to walk through the trees at the height of their color, to connect deeply with their wisdom and wonder. The summer solstice also offers us the opportunity to see the sun within ourselves, our own shining heartlight, radiant, powerful, magnanimous, divine and true.Beech, Vervain, Oak and Rose are celebrated today, among many other gorgeous trees and plants of the solstice.On this day of power may you be blessed with shining light, removing all that no longer serves such that you may live authentically a life of service; may you radiate with divinity, your own holiness, walking on the shining paths of the solstice. May you lovingly welcome the darker half of the wheel, that also begins at this time, claiming radiant power and surrendering again to the endless turning of the wheel of the year. May you partner with fire, allowing it to bless you and burn away all of your dead branches and leaves. May you be refreshed and revitalized this summer solstice!

Beltane is the celebration of the Fire of Bel, the ancient god of the Sun who at this time marries Danu, great mother Goddess of the Earth. This is the time on the wheel of the year when the Sun and the Earth become one - when fertility peaks, when union abounds, and when celebrations of the warming Earth take place. This is a celebration of skin and physicality, senses and sensations. Today, we will journey together to a sacred hawthorn grove and anoint ourselves with the most mystical and magical of waters - the Beltane morning dew. Hawthorn is a deeply important tree - the sixth tree of the sacred ogham; its berries offer human bodies profound circulation and heart medicine and its energies offer release and healing, and pathways towards love of self and love of other. It is a wild and enchanted tree under protection of the faerie realms - glennie kindred says it has the protection of the old magics and as such it must be greatly respected. Wherever it grows it brings the wildness, whether in a city or on vast lands. To know the Hawthorn is to know the heart, one cannot hide from the exceptional wisdom the Hawthorn brings.