Inspirations from Binah

From Shirley:

I recently turned 61 and the dreams I had a s a young girl and even as a young woman no longer apply or I have let them go. Now I am struggling to find a new dream. Something to aim for, something that excites my interest and stirs my mind and creativity. I seem to be drifting, seeing where the stream of life takes me, wondering what is around the next corner, but not doing any thing much to steer my course. The problem being I no longer know what that is, what I should be aiming for, doubting my capabilities, not really knowing my talents or direction…

Until the last few years my purpose has been my family, bringing up my sons so they can go into the world well adjusted, confident and with a belief in them selves, but some where along the way I have “lost” myself,. I have been mum, taxi driver, coach, teacher, cook, advisor… all the things a mum does. Now that role is not needed, I feel lost and need to get back in touch with Shirley the individual.

Inspirations from Binah:

As you pass from Mother to Crone, this is a time for celebrating your new phase in life.  A Crone is empowered, wise and self-defined.  She is an ancient archetype associated to Hecate, the Greek Goddess of the Crossroads who presides over childbirth, nurturing the young, gates, lunar lore and dogs.  She was the only one among the Titans who retained her power under the rule of Zeus, showing the lasting strength and insight of this third phase of a woman’s life.

You have acquired much wisdom and power, now it is time to step into your new role.  Crones hold the link in the cycle of birth, death and re-birth.  Through the experience of motherhood, you have built an arsenal of healing knowledge which is to be shared with the next generation.  You are a natural teacher and wise one, an essential part of your latest journey.  And yet, you must value your solitude, for it is in the silence that you commune with the mature, feminine energies and find Understanding.  You need little words to express your thoughts, for time has shown you ways not always visible to young eyes.

While the definition of a Crone is known, now it is time for you to discover how you will interpret this role.  The first thing you must do is formally accept this new phase in your evolution so that the energies associated with it can flow freely.  A Croning ceremony is necessary, presided over by those that move and honor you.  This recognition of wisdom gained through experience will allow you to pass through the gates from Motherhood to Crone, shedding an old uniform and orienting you in a new direction.

The Wicca Bible provides a beautiful ritual from which the basis of your unique ritual will come.  This ritual has traditionally become a party at which friends offer gifts and praise elderhood.  The ritual outlined below provides space for friends to come forward with poems, gifts, and insights as a part of the celebration.  Feel free to modify it and personalize it.  As the famous magician Dolores Ashcroft-Norwicki once told me, “take every ritual you find and change at least one thing in order to make it your own.”

You will need:

• Four individuals to each preside over an element
• An officer to crown the Crone
• Bunches of dried sage for smudging (can using any purifying herb or resin)
• Crown of fresh sage and rosemary

Performing the ritual:

1. Take a ritual bath to honor and cleanse your body
2. Create a Sacred Space within a circle with an altar containing photos and artifacts inspired by the empowered women in your life
3. Officer for Air says: “Blowing from the east, the winds of change.  Riding through the Air on brooms, the Hags of the East. Hail and welcome!”  [All respond] “Hail and welcome!”
4. Officer for Fire says: “Out of the flames the Phoenix rises, old and young and wise, strength and courage remade.  Hail and welcome!”  [All respond] “Hail and welcome!”
5. Officer for Water says: “Rain, puddle, streams, rivers, seas and the mighty ocean, all part of the great cycle.  Hail and welcome!”  [All respond] “Hail and welcome!”

1. Officer for the Earth says: “Gaia, eldest, in whom all is dispersed and all is renewed.  Hail and welcome!”  [All respond] “Hail and welcome!”

1. Crowning office to Crone says: “[Name] We have gathered to honor you as you enter elderhood and to name you Crone, sage and honored elder.  The silver in your hair comes from time spent under the Moon, the knowledge in your counsel from treading the path before others and the wisdom in your hands from weaving the web which is the source of life for us now and for those to come. Hail and be honored, Crone.” [Smudges elder with smoldering dried sage leaves before placing the crown on her head]
2. Friends come forward one by one to read poems to the elder and offer praise and gifts.
3. Crowning officer to Crone: “Honored one, know that the gift of age is wisdom.  May you offer that wisdom kindly and carefully, and with patience.  Remember always to recognize beauty and strength in the changes that time has brought to your body.  Defy convention and embody nothing that is not your true self.  Blessed Be.” [All respond] “Blessed Be.”
4. Close the circle
5. CELEBRATE!

With the ritual complete, the Universe is free to fill the pages of this new life chapter with all you need in order to discover how you will share what you have learned.  Go forward with confidence, taking your place as an elder within the community. “You have a lifetime of achievements behind you, and decades more to look forward to. The word Crone should now be a word of power for you, so celebrate it. You’ve earned it.”

Ritual adapted from: The Wicca Bible by Ann-Marie Gallagher

Quote from: http://paganwiccan.about.com/od/wiccanandpaganrituals/p/Croning_Info.htm

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