HedgeWitch (14 page)

The HedgeWitch
Dedication Ritual

Ceremony Night

You've worked extremely hard these past thirteen days and nights (or weeks) to make the changes within yourself that you desire. This ceremony is an acknowledgement of your difficult work and of your determination to continue to allow Nature to assist you on your chosen life path. Read over the ceremony carefully. Feel free to change or insert any additional information or practices that you feel will enhance and personalize the ritual, so that it is more meaningful for you.

Tonight's Preparation

The dedication ceremony supplies are listed here so that you can be prepared for your final rite of passage into HedgeWitchery.

Mortar and pestle (for grinding herbs)

HedgeWitch cleansing herbal mix—dried or fresh lavender, rosemary, chamomile, lemongrass, and lemon verbena (this is also used in the first night rite)

Spring water

Incense and incense holder (your choice of scent)

HedgeWitch dedication candle:
A special candle of your choice to be used for the final ceremony

Appropriate candle holders

Altar stone on which to do your workings

Four altar candles for the final ceremony:
Green, black, gold, and white

A cauldron in which to burn your wish

Your signature herb

Your magick key (real or charm)

Bell or chimes

Other herbs/flowers (fresh or dried) of your choice

Empty bowl (for mixing water and herbs)

Empty bottle to store tonight's power potion—this should be a gold-colored bottle with a good sealing cap, if at all possible

Fresh flowers, if you so desire

Your magick symbols:
How you represent these in your ceremony is entirely up to you. I drew mine with indelible black marker on small white stones. Some students drew them on notecards and arranged them near the dedication altar, others embroidered them on their ritual clothing or on an altar cloth. During the ceremony, you will touch each symbol. Some students simply opened their HedgeWitch journal and touched the symbols drawn there.

Chamomile, bergamot, ginger, and rosemary (powdered or crushed—for the power potion)

Morning dew collected from outside (for the power potion) or your favorite magickal oil or perfume

Your HedgeWitch journal

Fourteenth Night

I am always connected to Spirit.
Spirit fulfills my every need and
my every desire. I know that Spirit lives within me.

Welcome to Your HedgeWitchery
Dedication Ceremony!

In this ceremony, we begin with an empty altar (other than the stones you may have left there from the mountain ritual). All supplies should be close at hand for their placement as indicated within the ritual. Right before you begin, write one wish in primal language on a small piece of paper. You will burn this during tonight's ceremony.

Ring your bell or chimes to match your personal magick number. Light incense, and place this on the eastern corner of your altar. Mix together the HedgeWitch power potion herbs in a bowl. Add spring water and three drops of morning dew. If you have not collected morning dew, you can use three drops of your favorite magickal oil or perfume. Pour this mixture in your HedgeWitch power potion bottle. Hold your hands over the bowl and repeat the power potion blessing:

Power Potion Blessing

HedgeWitch power I invoke

Heaven's prayers like sacred smoke

Clear the way to manifest

That desire which I think best!

Holy vial of glass and gold

Allow my treasure to unfold

With candle spark and vibrant flame

I conjure that which I dost name!

Sacred vessel, create the field

Pattern rise and thought congeal

Coalesce and make it right

Spirit, lend thy holy light

To conjure this most special brew

Of my desire and morning dew!

Power grows and comes to me

As I will, so mote it be!

Sprinkle a little of this potion on yourself, saying: “I am cleansed, consecrated, and regenerated in the name of HedgeWitchery!” Once you have cleansed yourself, sprinkle the remaining water on the altar and around the room or area in a clockwise direction. Place any fresh flowers on the altar now. If they will not fit on the altar, place to the right and left of the altar, on the floor, or on their own pedestals.

Stand by your altar with knees slightly bent, feet about two feet apart. Take thirteen slow, even breaths—in through the nose and out through the mouth. Raise your hands like a gentle wave and flip your fingertips to the sky as you inhale, and bring hands down to chest level and push out toward your altar as you exhale. Do not begin the HedgeWitch circle conjuration until you feel steady, secure, and well-balanced—completely comfortable in what you are about to do.

“I conjure thee, O HedgeWitch circle”
(put right hand up to the sky and left toward the ground—slowly bring both hands to an imaginary ball in front of you and believe that you have brought the power of the sky and the power of the earth together)

“Through charge of earth and sky, I create a leafy hedge of positive energy”
(make the imaginary ball in your hands larger and smaller by moving your hands in and out at least three times, breathing in as you move your hands out and breathing out as you move your hands in)

“And manifest a field of unlimited possibilities herein!”
(open your arms as if you are flinging the energy out around you like a protective circle, visualizing the leafy hedge of protection exploding around you in a riot of delightfully colored leaves, flowers, and hedge)

“As above, so below! This circle is sealed!”

Stamp your foot on the ground to seal.

Ring your bell or chimes three times.

HedgeWitch Charge

Rub your dedication candle with HedgeWitch herbal mix—either the mix you learned to make on the first night or your signature herbal mix. Place a bowl of clear spring water on the altar, preferably on the left side. Place your magick key on the altar, near the center. As you put it there, consider what this key means to you. Set up the candles (green, black, white, and gold) that represent the HedgeWitch colors. Do not light the candles at this time.

Breathe deeply and slowly thirteen times. Shift your mind into the power of the earth, sea, and sky. Draw a figure eight on the ground. Imagine a gateway at the center of the eight. Step into it. Wait until you touch the still point of quiet. The hair on your arms may begin to rise. Speak the charge loudly, and as you say each element of HedgeWitchery (wind, fire, etc.), think of the lessons you have learned in the past several days. Allow your voice to flow with power!

Wind of Spirit, inner fire

Bring the change that I desire

Earthly gifts of stable ground

Sky to bring the spirit down

Rain to nourish, sun to light

Mountain guards and moon for sight

Lightning sparks to make connection

Thunder roils to merge perfection.

Wood and stone and nature's breath

Inner magick coalesce

Metal bends and shapes and cools

Still-point silence—HedgeWitch rules!

Your Dedication

Speak the dedication:

From this day forward, I pledge to study the ways of herbal witchery

for the betterment of myself and others on my life journey.

Honor is the law. Love is the bond. So be it!

Ring your magick bell or chimes three times.

Place your HedgeWitch journal in the center of your altar. Light the four altar candles (green, black, white, and gold). Hold your hands out in front of you, palms up. Now light your personal dedication candle. Envision a spiral of energy building in each palm. Take your time. Each time you breathe in, you are gathering power; each time you breathe out, the power in your palms grows. When you feel quite strong, touch the representation of your first symbol (wind), then place your hands over your heart and repeat the first line below, inhaling and exhaling slowly to reap the benefits of all that you draw in with your breath. Repeat each subsequent line, following the same procedure (touching the symbol, putting hands over heart, announcing the power, and breathing in the energy, exhaling slowly).

I take into myself the power of wind (breathe deeply)

The power of fire

The power of earth

The power of sky

The power of rain

The power of mountain

The power of lightning

The power of thunder

The power of metal

The power of stone

The power of sun

The power of moon

The power of wood

The power of silence

Which combine to make the power of One! It always works. Always a blessing!

Remember to smile! Dip your finger in the spring water and draw the figure eight on your third eye to seal these powers within yourself. Ring your bell or chimes fourteen times.

Your Rebirth

Take apart the stone pile you created on the mountain night. As you remove each stone, say: “I am reborn in power and perfection. From this day forward, I have the ability to accomplish anything I desire.” Place these stones under your altar or near it. You can reuse them again later, if you so desire. Burn the conjuring bag and its contents in your cauldron. (This can be done outside at a later time, if you feel it will smoke up the house too much.) When the flame has died, state clearly: “I am reborn!” Ring your magick bell one time.

Your Wish

Place your wish that you wrote before the ceremony underneath your magick key but on top of your HedgeWitch journal on the altar. Take a deep breath, and exhale slowly. Hold your hands over the key and wish, saying:

Power of the east, winds of sacred birth

Gather all your forces and bring desire to earth.

Power of the south, winds of hot creation

Separate the earth by fire, refine this incantation.

Power of the west, winds of down below

Bubble up to meet the sky and make the pattern so!

Power of the north, winds of sacred treasure

Solidify my own desire and formulate the measure!

Power of Spirit, winds of dusk and dawn

Align the planets in their places, words convey the song!

Power of myself, the winds of my demand

Thrice I speak to penetrate and bring about my plan!

It always works. Always a blessing!

Clearly speak your desire three times in primal language. Say thank you, and smile! Then burn the wish paper in your cauldron. Ring your magick bell three times.

HedgeWitch Closing

Stand with your feet about two feet apart, knees slightly bent. Gather the circle into a ball of energy in front of you. Visualize the leaves, branches, and flowers you created in your mind condensing back into a beautiful ball of energy, and then clap your hands together, saying:

Thanks be to the spirits of earth and sky;

Thou art released to thy natural form!

Peace with the gods

Peace with nature

Peace within.

It always works.

Always a blessing.

Thank you!

Smile.

Allow all candles used this night to burn completely or light them every night for a few moments until the candles are all gone. Pour any remaining spring water outside, asking for blessings from Spirit. Sprinkle any remaining herbal mix on your doorstep to keep negative energies from entering your home. Put your HedgeWitch symbol representations in a safe place. If you drew them on notecards just for this evening's ritual, burn them and scatter the ashes. Write of tonight's experiences in your HedgeWitch journal, then draw a design, or sigil, that best represents tonight's ritual. This symbol means sacred ceremony and the combined power of all the other symbols.

You are about to embark on the wonderful life of a HedgeWitch! Open your arms, and welcome this positive energy. Spirit will teach you, if you only listen!

Your HedgeWitch Sacred Symbols

Over the past two weeks, you have created fourteen sacred symbols that are specifically meaningful for you. Here's the complete list:

First Night—Wind—My connection to Spirit

Second Night—Fire—My personal creativity

Third Night—Earth—Richness and abundance of the universe

Fourth Night—Sky—My unlimited opportunity

Fifth Night—Rain—My good health and healing

Sixth Night—Mountain—My stability and treasures within the self

Seventh Night—Lightning—My personal power, confidence, and balance

Eighth Night—Thunder—My power of thought and action

Ninth Night—Metal—My flow and harmony within Spirit

Tenth Night—Stone—My gratitude

Eleventh Night—Celestial Power—My light within

Twelfth Night—Wood—Knowledge, wisdom, and education

Thirteenth Night—Silence—The still point of manifestation

Fourteenth Night—The symbol of my personal transformation and combined power of all my symbols

We can now use our symbols in a variety of ways, such as meditative tools, divination lots, spell activators, and affirmation vehicles.

Your Symbols as Divination Tools

Inscribe your symbols on stones, small pieces of wood, or clay, and store them in a small bag. To divine, place a glass of spring water (this is your offering to the gods, spirits, angels—whatever you believe in), a small bowl of blessed water, your magick key, your magick bell, one white candle, and a bowl of your favorite herb mixture on a clean table top or divination cloth. Light the white candle. This represents bringing inspiration and peace into your life. Take your stones out of the bag and sprinkle them with a bit of the blessed water from the bowl. Roll the stones in the herbal mix, and brush off the stones. Place stones back in the bag. Ring your bell or chimes corresponding to your personal magick number. Repeat the following charm or incantation of your choice:

HedgeWitch Divination Charm

I close my eyes and touch the spirit

Of things both seen and not.

And in this place of perfect peace

I bless and cleanse these lots.

Then say three times:

I receive and understand the answer.
It always works. Always a blessing!

Remember to smile! Finish with:

Peace with the gods

Peace with nature

Peace within. Thank you!
It always works. Always a blessing!

Smile.

Ask your question, and then draw a single sigil from the bag. For example, let's say you are working on a very difficult problem that just refuses to resolve itself, and you are seeking to find the way to best handle the situation. The sigil you pull from the bag will tell you which HedgeWitchery correspondence will most help you find the right way for you. Once you pull the sigil, read over the work you performed in your journal for that night or check this book on the explanation. Sometimes, even though we think we know something, we overlook important information. Repeat the affirmations that match the symbol. If necessary, release the suggested item for that day (there's always junk to remove in our lives), and if the situation calls for it, do that night's ceremony as a mini spell. If you are concerned about timing, what day (first, second, third) did this sigil originally represent? That's approximately how many days or months it will take to resolve your problem, or perhaps it indicates the time needed to build what you desire. I would be careful, though, in tying yourself to timing, because if you do, you could be stalling what you really desire. A single-draw sigil can be done each morning to help you better design your day or at night to help you with dream interpretation.