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At the heart of the paganisms lies the grand drama of the seasons.*
In the unfolding of the year, before our eyes, the gods live out their eternal stories.
In ritual, we encounter these gods.
In ritual, we participate in these stories.
In ritual, we enter into the inner life of the gods.
This is what ritual can do for us.
This is what ritual should be doing for us.
Spring is, in my opinion, the best time of year to really connect with nature, the elements, and elementals. Everything is coming back to life and is fresh and new.
Fire, the first element and initiating spark and spirit of all life makes its vibrant, solar return in spring and continues to gain strength and heat until the peak at midsummer. Fire burns, water flows and rains down, the fragrant air stirs and the earth bears new growth. All the elements have returned in all their glory.
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I'd been to my share of skyclad rituals before, but this was to be my first among non-pagans.
Both the bride and the groom had grown up in the naturist movement, and wanted to get married at their naturist club.
“What about your parents?” I asked, curious.
Their parents were members, too.
“Grandparents?”
Turns out Grandma also belonged.
Together the three of us planned a nice, tight little ceremony. Finally I popped the obvious question.
“Uh—did you want me to be naked too?”
“That's up to you,” they say.
The day of the wedding came: beautiful, sunny. What the heck? I thought. When at home, do as the homos do. I stripped off with the rest, and the ceremony went swimmingly.
(Feeling that, naked or not, I needed something to mark me off as the officiant, I settled for my biggest, showiest torque. It did the job very nicely.)
Afterward, I stood around with the rest having a cocktail. The groom sidled up to me and slipped an envelope into my hand.
“Hey, we're going to start taking photos,” he says. “Would you like to be in them?”
Series: A Wiccan Wheel Mystery
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Do you know what torques me off most* in contemporary depictions of the Horned God?
When the artist gets the legs wrong.
He's called the Thrice-Bent for a reason. In the arms, one bend. In the legs, two.
Check out the picture of the goat leg shown above. Note that the hind legs feature two bends: one pointing forward, one pointing back.
The forward bend is called the knee. The backward bend is called the hock.
When the Horned is shown with the rear legs of an animal (he isn't always), he should have both.
If you love the Horned well enough to depict him, you should love him well enough to look.
O thou
Betorqued Betined,
sitting cross-legged
on the altar:
in thy broad lap, O lord,
Edible flowers
You may have guessed, but I like my food and finding that some of the flowers we grow in our garden for decorative purpose are actually edible is a total bonus. Please do make sure you identify the flower correctly before scoffing it, we don’t want any accidents or worse.
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