Hey everyone!
I started this post as a follow up to the post Initiation: The Big Mix Up @Vivienne… I don’t know if this is something you’re still thinking about, but… here we go!
I’ve been studying sigls recently and was really called to hypersigils and narrative magic. Here is the video that @tracyS shared that really got me thinking, I could craft the perfect initiation ceremony for myself through a narrative and meditation and make it real in my mind’s eye. So I did and I’d like to invite you to be a part of it. ((ETA: I know that hypersigils are a way to help you manifest something to happen, but I adapted here. It’s chaos magick, I can do that!)
Many of us here are solitary practitioners and, from time to time, I think we all crave a bit of community… so this is what I did. I’ve spent my weekend meditating and crafting my perfect initiation - this is the initiation my heart craved (craves?) and I have written it out and walked through it in my mind’s eye over and over and over this weekend and my heart feels truly full because imagining this feels very real to me. I’m going to be a little bit vulnerable and share it with you because I wonder - what would you have whispered to me as I began my journey? What would you have gifted? ((Read below to figure out what on earth I’m talking about!) I’d love for you to share it with me!
Also, if this practice resonates with you… I’d love to read and be a part of your sacred initiation. I don’t mind if you share it below!
Here’s mine
The night was warm and balmy, the kind of night that reminds you summer is right around the corner. The sky was the perfect periwinkle of dusk and, soon, the full moon would climb high into the sky. Tonight was the night Ailey would walk the sacred spiral and claim her birthright as a witch.
Her journey had begun on a whim - “I wonder what witches actually believe?” she’d asked herself before setting off down the rabbit hole. She loved research and this topic felt both taboo and exciting all at once. It was not long before she knew, deep in her heart, that this was the path she was meant to walk. She was a witch. She had been a witch her whole life. The people around her had hinted at it, had laid invisible foundations that seemed mundane at the time, but had actually prepared her heart for tonight’s sacred journey long before she even knew she wanted it, she ached for it.
The sacred spiral, a path constructed by large smooth river rocks, was nestled in the forest by a beautiful misty lake. The dark trees stood like silent sentinels of the space, watching and protecting and remembering. Soft green moss carpeted the ground and large rocks were scattered along the edges of the clearing, each with flickering candles resting on top. Fireflies danced through the night and the air thrummed with power.
Ailey waited. She was dressed in a white gauzy gown that flowed down to her ankles. Her feet were bare, but she wore anklets of tiny tinkling bells - to let the world know that she was coming. A golden crown of peridot was settled on her head - gold for her sun sign and peridot for her birthstone. White tea roses were woven into her flowing hair, a reminder of how she had grown and blossomed despite the thorns she encountered along the way.
When the time was right, soft drum beats called her to the edge of the spiral. She took a few deep, cleansing breaths and took the first step into the spiral. All along the way, the coven waited - some people she knew well, some she didn’t know at all.
She carried a basket and walked the path, the drums echoing her heart beat and the bells on her ankles announcing her. She stopped at each person who greeted her with a kiss on each cheek and whispered a truth to her - something that would help her make her way on the journey. Into the basket, each slipped a small gift - a stone, a favorite spell folded on parchment, a spring of herbs, a piece of driftwood, a pendulum, a bottle - something that would help her begin.
Once Ailey reached the center of the circle, she was greeted by the one who had truly taken her underwing, who had helped her find her way. The women greeted each other with a kiss on each cheek and the ritual continued, a truth, a gift, and a few minutes of quiet for Ailey to take it all in.
When she was ready, Ailey stood before the large tree stump that served as the altar and her dearest friend dipped her fingers into scented oil, carefully prepared for the night: rose oil with hawthorne and myrrh- for protection - for enlightenment - for growth. Her dearest friend anointed her - her feet, her hands, her heart, and her head with these words:
We anoint your feet,
that you may walk with purpose,
ever mindful that the path is now yours.
We anoint your hands,
that your craft may serve the good,
woven with wisdom, and shaped by intention.
We anoint your heart,
with rose and reverence,
that you may love fiercely,
and know you are already enough.
We anoint the crown of your head,
that you may carry this knowing—
you are worthy, you are chosen,
And the stars remember your name.
With that, Ailey took an unlit candle and lit it from the candle that was burning on the center of the altar and her dearest friend said:
Now, she carries the flame—
a light kindled in sacred promise,
a fire born of will, wonder, and becoming.
Let her walk among you,
not as one above,
but as one beside—
A sister, a seeker, our kin.
From her flame, remember your spark.
From her courage, remember your own.
For in the light of one is the light of us all.
She turned to her dearest friend and lit the first candle and then walked back through the spiral, stopping again at each person to share her light. The candlelight flickered and illuminated Ailey’s face and as she lit each candle on her way back through the spiral, she was known.
Finally, when Ailey had returned to where she started, her dearest friend said:
And now the circle shines—
many flames from one fire.
May this light guide you through shadow,
warm you in solitude,
and remind you that
you never walk alone.
So it is begun.
So it is blessed.
So may it ever be.
And just like that, with fire and joy burning in her heart, it was done. She had become and she had begun.
Thank you for sharing it with us!
