Yesterday i have done a long walk through a local forest. I harvested resins from pine, spruce and fir trees. I will use these resins for incense in my rites, witchcraft and as offering for Hekate. The resin of these trees have a very nice smell and are a good alternative to olibanum resin (the olibanum trees are on the way to become extinct). I harvested a whole bowl of resin and consecrated it on my Hekate shrine in the night.
The last year was a year of change and transformation for me- a year that was full of new influences. Many things changed to the better- but there were also changes that were quite difficult, hard lessons that I had to learn. For me the spiritual new year started on Samhain/Halloween- things settled more after this time of endings- and new beginnings. I have used the dark months of the year (between Samhain and Yule) to recover from the changes, to sellte a little bit. To find back my own power. And now where the mundane new year has come into being, too- i feel it is time to stand up, to work for positive change again. To make the hands dirty again and being active.
During the Deipnon i focused on the topic of cleaning. I do this on every Deipnon, but this timeI focused more to this cleaning topic than usual. I created a incense of hekatean herbs, empowered this mixture on my Hekate shrine, mixed this incense with the resin of spruce trees and cleansed the home with the thick smoke. Cleansed myself with the burning herbs and resins. I created a strong herbal tea made from seven cleansing herbs, empowered it again on my Hekate shrine and prepared a cleansing bath with herbal salt and the tea. I blessed the water in the name of Hekate Phosphoros- asked her for renewal, for rebirth and to nurture my soul. I bathed and relaxed, went into the emotions that were still lingering in my soul, let it all out- freeing my soul again. I felt the blessing of the Goddess felt the power of rebirth and after the bath i felt changed. After this i did my usual practices for Hekate to honour her on the Deipnon. Asked her to banish negativity, clean me and my home. Asked her to bring light into my darkness. And in the night i brought the offerings for Her and the spirits (that follow her through the night during the dark moon) to her crossroad shrine (located on a hill outside of my village- this hill was once a germanic cult place, in christian times then a gallows hill).
To the Noumenia (the time of the first crescent after the dark moon) i honoured the Goddess and the other Deities of our household (at the moment Hestia, Dionysos, Zeus Ktesios and Bast) and the benevolent spirits around us as i do it usual. I burned a herbal honey (that i prepared in last march) as offering to them, offered food and incense. I blessed and empowered white candles and aske Hekate Phosphoros to bless them with her light. And i empowered a rose quarz too. I blessed the home and myself with sacred water, blessed myself with incense and holy oil. I drew down the light and energy of the first crescent moon- to bring me healing and renewal. I asked for new beginnings, new cycles- for change.
Even if the changes of the last year where sometimes hard and difficult- i don’t fear the change. Change and growth go hand in hand. I am open for the change- and to be reborn means always to die. To accept change means to accept the fact that old things have to die, before new things can come into being. And for me the Deipnon and Noumenia are strong connected with ending- and new beginning. During the Deipnon Hekate appears as the dark and fearful queen- wandering with the restless spirits through the night. During the dawn of the last day of the dark moon period she moves into the underworld- takes with her some of the spirits from her horde. And when the first crescent appears again in the sky after (or during) dusk- she comes up from the underworld again. Now as the white dressed shining queen, the bright maiden- she renewed herself.
Where Three Roads Meet... 