equinox ritual – Wicca Now – Everything You Need To Know About Wicca

Hi, my loves and welcome to WiccaNow. I’ve been covering some of the Wiccan Sabbats recently, like these posts on Samhain, Imbolc, Imbolc symbols, Imbolc recipes and most recently a post about Ostara. I’d like to continue on in this vein by sharing one of my favourite Ostara rituals with you. Ostara is a time to celebrate the balance between the seasons and to really farewell the colder months and welcome the arrival of longer days and shorter nights. This time of year, everything is starting to spring back into action. The trees probably have leaf buds on them (if not leaves), the first spring flowers are coming out and the days are definitely getting warmer. Mother nature is waking up out of her winter sleep and as mentioned many times previously, it’s one of my favourite times of the year! This is basically me in spring. This Ostara ritual is a simple way to acknowledge the Sabbat and to say thanks to the earth for its sustenance and coming abundance as well as opening yourself up to the flow of new ideas and possibilities. I prefer to complete this ritual outside, at dawn if I can get myself out of bed early enough. Witches and Wiccans celebrating Ostara will often make a point of watching the sunrise on this festival, it’s become something of a tradition to herald the longer days which are coming by seeing the first rays of sun stream out from the horizon. Obviously it’s not always possible to watch the sunrise, and it’s totally ok if you don’t manage to do this! Complete the ritual at any time of the day where you feel it makes the most sense for you and don’t think you have to follow a prescribed method just because it happens to be traditional (if you’re a ceremonial witch, however, ignore what I just said and follow your stricter set of guidelines). This ritual involves a little bit of candle magic, if you haven’t done this before, I’d suggest having a quick read of this candle magic 101 that I wrote so that you’re familiar with the ideas behind it and understand the basics. Your Ostara eggs represent fertility and abundance. Ostara Ritual I really like this Ostara ritual because it strengthens my connection to the spring and to the earth while also bringing to the fore all the new ideas I've had simmering over the winter. To me, Ostara is all about the fertility of ideas and trying to harness the new and vibrant energy of spring to help these idea and thoughts grow to fruition. Ostara Ritual Ingredients 3 candles in colours of your choosing. White works for anything, so use those if you don’t have anything else available. I like to use a green candle to acknowledge the abundance of life that spring brings, yellow for the sun and it’s warmth and pink to represent the gentle love of nature and to call on healing powers for the planet (it needs it at the moment). If you want to learn more about candle colours so that you can choose your own, check out this post. I would choose candles that have a 1/2 hour burn time here, that way you definitely have time to let them burn down completely. An egg - decorate this egg if you want, in keeping with the Ostara tradition. You can paint it, dye it or even bedazzle it with jewels and feathers. Let your creativity flow if you want here, it’s actually quite a fun way to be a little bit crafty. Be aware that you may damage your decorations during this ritual so if you want to make a super pretty egg, keep it to decorate your Ostara altar. A piece of raw amethystA small bowl of water A lighter or matches Ostara Ritual Method Head outside when you feel the time is appropriate. As I said, dawn would be the traditional time and it is really lovely to see the sunrise but if this doesn’t suit you, pick a time that does. If the weather is bad, you can complete this ritual inside too. Make sure you are wearing warm clothes as it’s still relatively cold in the mornings this time of year! I prefer to go somewhere where I can sit on the grass or the earth, but last year I went onto my roof (I'm lucky enough to have access to a small roof terrace) because I didn’t want to be disturbed. You’ll want to pick somewhere a little bit sheltered so that you can actually light your candles and so they’ll stay lit. Sit down and place your bowl of water and crystal on your right-hand side. Place the egg directly in front of you, then place the 3 candles in a semi-circle around the side of the egg furthest away from you. Take 5 deep breaths and calm and relax your mind. With your eyes closed, focus on the smell of the morning air, on the dewy chill on your skin, on the feeling of the ground underneath you. Connect to the elements around you and focus on how they feel. Think about all the life underneath you, waiting to burst out. All the seeds in the soil waiting with anticipation to push out their first shoot, all the roots getting ready to soak up nutrients for the explosion of life that’s coming and all the worms and beetles who will no doubt appreciate the thawed ground. Once you feel connected to the elements and the earth, open your eyes.Take the amethyst in your hand and place it in the water. While still holding it, imagine the energy of the crystal infusing the water. Feel it’s balancing and healing powers flowing through your hand and into the water. Release the crystal into the water.Light all 3 candlesPick up the egg, a symbol of Ostara and the Goddess Eostre, and hold it carefully in your hand. Holding the egg, and looking at your 3 candles, say: “As the Wheel of the Year turns, I welcome the spring equinox. On this day, when light and dark are equal, I give my appreciation for the balance of the universe and the powers within it. As the soil begins to warm, and the earth wakes from its winter dreams, I send out my love for the new life breaking through it’s dark and earthy mantle. As the sun begins to share it’s warmth, I beam into the universe my gratitude for its life giving golden rays. As the wheel turns through spring, I thank the universe for its rain storms, its flower buds, its new green leaves and the abundance of new life all around me. So mote it be.” While still holding the egg, focus on all the new things you are interested in. Let the egg soak up the excitement and joy of these possibilities. Turn it over in your hand and feel the irregularities in the shell, notice each bump and rough patch as you turn the egg gently and meditatively in your hand. Imbue this symbol of fertility with everything you want in life, all the things you dream of or hope to achieve. Meditate on these thoughts and when you are ready, place the egg back on the ground in front of you. I always spend at least 15 minutes doing this but take as much or as little time as you need. Take the amethyst out of the water and place it beside you. Hold the amethyst infused water above the egg, and while you think about all the joyful ideas and new directions you infused the egg with, carefully and mindfully pour the amethyst water over the egg in order to balance and germinate the ideas completely. Depending on how much time you have, now is a nice time to sit and reflect on what you love about spring and the vitality and new energy the season gives you. Let your candles burn down to nothing if you are able to, and then bury the candle remains in the soil. Take your watered egg full of fresh and fertile ideas, and place it on your Ostara altar.Enjoy the day and have a lovely Ostara! Let those ideas, feelings and possibilities grow with the season my loves! Until next time my loves, Blessed Be, Amaria xx Shop Our Favourite Ostara Ritual Resources These tarot cards are absolutely gorgeous and come in a fun and unexpected round format? Ostara is a great time to learn about tarot, lean into learning new things at this point in the year! Click here to buy https://amzn.to/3dkk9vA This amethyst geode is so pretty and is on the larger side so would look lovely on your altar :) Click here to shop it on Amazon https://amzn.to/2WybIXE Do the bees a favour and plant some bee-friendly wildflowers this Ostara! It's a great way to connect with nature while doing something wonderfully useful and beautiful. Click here to shop these seeds on Amazon https://amzn.to/2Jb4vEQ This is a great book which covers the 8 Sabbats of the year and includes Ostara rituals as well as rituals for each other Sabbat. Click here to buy https://amzn.to/2Uy7gFt