| "BLESSED ARE WE IN HER MYSTERY HAIL MIGHTY DEMETER AND SWEET KORE" |
| PURIFICATION CEREMONY THE PRIESTESS OF DEMETER SPEAKS Initiates, We will begin the purification ceremonies, You have been given cypress (or cedar) for banishing, Rosemary for purification, And mint for cleansing and healing. Be prepared to let go those influences of the past, That you have chosen to release. You will use the herbs, To carry that which you no longer want Away from your soul. THE PRIESTESS OF HECATE INSTRUCTS THE INITIATES TO PLACE THEIR HERBS IN A BOWL , TO PLACE THEIR HANDS OVER THE HERBS AND TO REPEAT THE FOLLOWING Hecate, Immortal Goddess of crossroads, caverns, and moonlit rites, Come and bless these herbs, That they may serve us here. Queen of magic, Lend Your powers unto this rite. May all that needs to be released, Be removed from its enclosure And set upon the purifying coals With Your blessings. So be it. INVOCATION OF KORE, THE HOLY DAUGHTER We call upon the Daughter of Holy Demeter, Upon She who is both Maiden and yet Underworld Queen. Beloved Kore, With courage have You ventured into the unknown And come back again. For You who are Maiden of sunlit meadows Are also Persephone, Queen of the lands below. Reigning with Plouton upon both the dark throne And in the bright flowering groves, You have come to know the powers of Your deeper soul. There, with compassion do You dispense Themis’ law Mending, healing, and bringing justice to all. To all of good heart; Initiates And to those who have sought the truth, You reveal the beauty of the immortal soul. Upon Earth do You bring riches unto the land, Where, hand in hand with Demeter, The land blossoms and all things grow. Tonight we call upon Your powers, That You may bless the initiates. Come, fair Persephone, And assist us in these rites of purification. As we place those things we wish to release Onto the burning coals, Be with us, O Noble One, purifying all, Bringing to us a new life of clarity and freedom As we send our praises unto the Holy Daughter. And so it s. EACH INITIATE PLACES A SMALL AMOUNT OF CYPRESS/CEDAR, ROSEMARY, AND MINT ON BURNING CHARCOAL TO PURIFY THY HEART AND MIND AND SPEAKS Fair Persephone, Come, be with me for I am pure of heart. Noble Queen, Here, burn away the past. THE INITIATE IS (SELF-)BLESSED WITH SALT WATER AND SAYS Cleansed with the waters of the sea, I am at peace. |
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