Ostara is the festival of Spring, and as a rule people incorporate Spring themes into their decorations.
The vivid colors of the dawn are often used at Ostara: they show up in many colored flowers, dyed eggs, and colorful altar cloths. Flowers, all kinds of foliage, and the image of the Green Man are also common elements in Ostara decor, as are images of baby animals. In recent years the idea of Ostara trees decorated with colored eggs has become popular in some circles.
Because Ostara once coincided with the Suns apparent entry into Aries, the Ram is still a symbol associated with the holiday, as is the image of Young God as shepherd. To the Romans this feast was known as Palilia and was especially associated with shepherds and with the shepherd God Pales. Fire jumping was one aspect of the Palilia -as it was among more northerly Europeans as well- which is still associated with the holiday today.
Of course, Ostara is the Vernal Equinox, and the theme of perfect balance between light and dark is also quite appropriate. Parti-colored themes in polar colors such as black and white, black and red, or red and white are very fitting.
Remember too that in some Wiccan Traditions Ostara rather than Samhain is the beginning of the Liturgical year and, so, New Year’s themes can be adopted as well.
As always, choose what works for you.
AIR
Begin by clearing and releasing all excess energy, as usual. Release all tensions and anxieties. Just let them flow through and out of your body, like a gentle wave of energy, exiting through the soles of your feet.
Begin by cleansing the Salt: make three tuathal circles above it while visualizing yellow-white light. Imagines the light forcing out all negative or unfocused energy from the Salt. She speaks words to the effect of:
“Behold, I exorcise you, O creature of Earth, casting out from you any impurities which may lie within.”
The Salt is then Blessed: make three deosil circles above it, while visualizing blue-white light. Speaks words to the effect of:
“And I do Bless and Charge you to this work!”
Next cleanse the Water, making three widdershins circles above it while visualizing yellow-white light forcing out all negative energy. Speaks words to the effect of:
“Behold, I exorcise you, O creature of Water, casting out from you any impurities which may lie within.”
Then bless the Water, making three deosil circles above it and visualizing blue-white light. Speaks words to the effect of:
"And I do Bless and Charge you to this work!”
Address the Salt, saying:
“Behold, the Salt is pure!”
Then address the water, saying:
“Behold, the Water is pure!”
Now takes three pinches of salt and add it to the water, saying something like this:
“Purity into purity then, and purity be blessed!”
Taking the mixed Salt and Water walk deosil around the ritual space, asperging the area while doing so. Visualize yellow-white light filling the area and forcing out all negative or unfocused energy. Say something like:
“I cleanse you…. I cleanse you…I cleanse you…”
When finished asperging, return the Salt and Water to the altar.
Now we will cast the Circle. For this ritual we will cast our Circle using visualization. You will need to lead everyone in visualizing the creation of the Circle, which might go something like this:
“Let us join hands.
“Become aware of your Heart Chakra. Imagine a ball of clear white light in your Heart Chakra: beautiful, clear white light. And in that light feel strength, and love, and peace. Have this image clear in your mind, feel the energy strongly. Now let that energy begin to move and expand within you, filling your body. Let the energy fill you, move within you, filling and suffusing you with beautiful, clear white light.
“Now feel a bit of that energy within you begin to move out from you –see it begin to flow deosil around the Circle. Feel the energy connect with the energy of the other people present, forming a circle of white light, moving from hand to hand around the circle. See the circle of white light moving from person to person around the circle, growing stronger and brighter, moving faster and faster.
“Let the circle begin to expand beyond us –see it move out to the edges of our ritual space. See the circle expand and grow brighter and stronger as it does so, moving deosil around the ritual space: moving faster and faster. See the white light expand upward, forming a wall or moving light around us –a battery and a focusing barrier to strengthen our working and increase its effect. See this boundary clearly, feel its energy, and the focusing effect it has upon the energy of the circle.
“Behold, we do cut apart a place between the realms of humankind and of the Mighty Ones: A Circle of Art to focus and contain the powers we shall raise herein! The Circle is cast! So Mote It Be!”
ALL
”SO MOTE IT BE!”
Now release hands and continue.
FIRE
The Quarters are now called, beginning in the East:
The Priestess first asperges the Quarter with the Salt and Water, visualizing the area suffused with yellow-white light. She says something like:
Priestess:
“By the powers of Earth and Water, I do cleanse and purify the Quarter of the East.”
The Priest then censes the Quarter with the burning Incense, visualizing the area suffused with blue-white light. He says:
Priest: “By the powers of Fire and Air do I charge the Quarter of the East.”
Begin in the East. Use a Wand, Sacred Tool of Fire, or if you prefer, use your fingers. Raise the Wand, imagining as you do so a column of pure white light arising in the East, at the border of the Circle. See the column as strong and pure and filled with energy. Say something like:
EAST
“Hail unto You, O Guardians of the Watchtower of the East, Powers of Air and Inspiration! We invoke You, and ask You to be with us this night, to share with us Your love, Your guidance, and Your inspiration. We pray that You will help us to open our minds and our eyes and strengthen our thoughts as we go forward this night. We bid You hail and welcome!”
ALL
“Hail and Welcome!”
Now move to the next Quarter. Again raise the Wand and imagine a column of pure white light arising in the Quarter. Say something like:
SOUTH
“Hail unto You, O Guardians of the Watchtower of the South, Powers of Fire and Manifestation! We invoke You, and ask You to be with us this night, to share with us Your love, Your guidance, and Your inspiration. We pray that You will help us to open our courage and passion and strengthen our resolve as we go forward this night. We bid You hail and welcome!”
ALL
“Hail and Welcome!”
Now move to the next Quarter. Again raise the Wand and imagine a column of pure white light arising in the Quarter. Say something like:
WEST
“Hail unto You, O Guardians of the Watchtower of the West, Powers of Water and Compassion! We invoke You, and ask You to be with us this night, to share with us Your love, Your guidance, and Your inspiration. We pray that You will help us to open our hearts and our emotions and strengthen our sensitivity as we go forward this night. We bid You hail and welcome!”
ALL
“Hail and Welcome!”
Now move to the next Quarter. Again raise the Wand and imagine a column of pure white light arising in the Quarter. Say something like:
NORTH
“Hail unto You, O Guardians of the Watchtower of the North, Powers of Earth and Integration! We invoke You, and ask You to be with us this night, to share with us Your love, Your guidance, and Your inspiration. We pray that You will help us to open our souls and our Higher Selves and strengthen our understanding as we go forward this night. We bid You hail and welcome!”
ALL
“Hail and Welcome!”
Now it is time to invoke Deity. Since the Lesser Sabbats are Solar ceremonies, the God will be invoked first. In this case we shall invoke the God not in any particular form, but in His Archetype as Hero. You will remember from First Degree studies that some Personal forms of this Archetype include Apollo, Mars, and Thor.
The Priest raises his arms to call upon the God. He might say something like:
PRIEST
“Hail unto You, O God! We do invoke You in Your form as Hero -Lord of the Rising Sun and of the Waxing Year! Master of Rebirth and New Beginnings! Trailblazer, Who forges ahead where others fear to go! Lead us with You into the future! The Doors of the House of Dawn are opened, and Spring is upon us -let us move forward and embrace it! O Hero, with love and with respect we do bid You Hail and Welcome!”
ALL
“Hail and Welcome!”
Now imagine the God entering the Circle -imagine it in any way which makes sense to you –perhaps by imagining the God in human form, or as a shower of glittering light, or as a ball or tower of light appearing in the Circle.
Now let us invoke the Goddess in Her archetype as Maiden.
The Priestess raises her arms to call upon the Goddess. She might say something like:
PRIESTESS
“Wise and beautiful Maiden Goddess, we do invoke You! Goddess of creativity, beauty, and all arts -Guide and Guardian of Heros- we pray that You will join us and guide us in our holy rite. Even as You guided the Heros of old we pray that You will guide us to fully embrace all our potential, even as now You guide the Earth to rebirth and renewal! We bid You Hail and Welcome!”
ALL
“Hail and Welcome!”
Now visualize the Goddess entering the Circle.
Finally, invoke the Ancestors. You might say something like:
“O Mighty Ancestors, Beloved Ones Who have gone before, We invoke You and ask You to join us and to Bless us! Ancestors of the Correllian Tradition, Priestesses and Priests, Mothers and Uncles of the lineage, Spiritual family which aids and supports us –lend us Your inspiration and Your love, Your guidance and Your aid this night, we pray. Beloved Ones, we bid You Hail and Welcome!”
ALL
“Hail and Welcome!”
SPIRIT
Begin by discussing the nature of the Ostara festival. Ostara like all Sabbats has many aspects one can talk about, depending upon where you wish to put your emphasis. In discussing the nature of Ostara you might say something like:
"We come together to celebrate the festival of Ostara, to celebrate Spring and renewed life. The reborn Sun God rises as Hero and the Earth welcomes Him. The return of the Sun warms the Earth and brings forth the living things: leaves and flowers open, spreading color and scent to delight the senses. The animals rejoice and become active -many bring forth their young. It is a time of new beginnings and of limitless potential. Rejoice then -embrace the spirit of life which moves in the world afresh! Let us, like Hero and Maiden, walk where we have not walked before, embrace the new and brave the unknown! Let us grow and expand even as light and life grow and expand at this time of year!"
ACT OF POWER
For this Act of Power you will need a packet of seeds and a number of small individual planting cups filled with potting soil. All of this can be obtained from your local garden center.
Flower seeds would be a good choice for this, although the seeds can be any kind of common garden plant –but whatever you choose you should make sure it is a plant that is easy to take care of, as not everyone is equally good at or inclined to gardening.
Before ritual, open the packet of seeds and fill a small bowl with the contents, then place this on the altar. Fill the planting cups with soil and place them on the altar as well.
When you have cast your Circle, invoked, and spoken a bit about Ostara, take up the bowl of seeds from the altar. Speak about the nature of seeds and their relevance to the holiday. You might say something along these lines:
“At this time of year we turn our thoughts to new beginnings. The waxing Sun heralds the beginning of the growing season, and new life abounds on all sides. The plants are greening, the animals are becoming more active –all that has slept through Winter is awakening.
“What better symbol of this time of year than the seed? For a seed is all about potential. Planted in the warm and nurturing Earth, gently coaxed by the heat of the Sun, it has every chance to grow and blossom in the garden of life. But left to lie as it is, without care and guidance, it will remain a seed and never know what could have been.
“It is the same with us and our lives. Our hopes and dreams are all about potential –but they must be nurtured and shepherded along if they are ever to move from potential into being. We must set our intent and focus our will, putting our energy behind our goals if we wish to see them blossom. Only then may the seed of hope fulfill its destiny and become the flower of manifestation.
“Therefore at this time of year we honor the return of life to the land, and seek to imitate it in our lives –blooming in our turn and bearing fruit in our season. Consider therefore the seed, for all things begin as a seed –the seed of life: the seed of thought: verily the seed of action. Let us therefore plant our seeds consciously and with care.”
Place the seeds in the center of the circle –set them upon the floor, or have each person put a hand under the bowl and all hold them jointly. Bless the seeds. You might do it like this:
“Behold, in the name of the Goddess and of the God, may these seeds be blessed!”
Imagine the light of Deity coming down upon the seeds, filling them.
Now ask each person to take some seeds.
Pass out the planting cups. Explain what is to be done –you might say:
“Now we are going to plant our seeds, so that new life can grow. Make a little hole with your fingers and put your seeds into the Earth. Then gently cover them over. As we plant these seeds, let us think about the seeds we wish to plant in our lives, to grow in coming months. What do you wish to do in the next few months? Is there anything you wish to accomplish? Anything you’d like to change. Think of these things as you plant your seeds. Focus upon them, so that the seed is imbued with the thought. As the year moves forward the seeds will grow –and as they grow they will help carry our goals forward.”
Plant your own seed along with everyone else, and think about what you wish to accomplish in coming months.
Now place the cups in the center of the circle. Have everyone focus energy into them –see them glowing with light and power. Remind everyone to think about what they want to manifest as the plant grows.
You may wish to chant and dance around the seed cups now, to strengthen the energy you are raising. If so, a good chant might be:
“Protected by the Earth
Inspired by the Sun
Blessed Be the seeds that grow
Arise and blossom everyone!”
Now finish the act: focus all of the energy into the seeds and say something to this effect:
“May these seeds be blessed –may they carry our will forward: Even as these seeds grow, so too shall our wishes be made manifest. Goddess and God, we pray You lend Your strength to ours, as we bless these seeds to their purpose! So Mote It Be!”
Explain to people that they will take the seeds home with them after the ritual and should take care of them as described on the seed package, transplanting them to a pot or the Earth when appropriate.
WATER
We will now Bless and share the Chalice.
To many Pagans alcohol is considered sacred. There are several reasons for this, one of them being that intoxication can resemble ecstatic trance. Another reason, as the Alchemists observed, is that alcohol represents the union of the Feminine (Water/liquid) and Masculine (Fire) Polarities by virtue of being a liquid which will burn. Our Chalice Blessing for this ritual draws upon this idea.
Let the Chalice be prepared with an alcoholic beverage such as brandy. The Priestess or someone else suitable will hold the Chalice and represent Goddess. The Priest or someone else suitable will hold a consecrated match, barbecue match, or lighter.
The Priestess will face the people and present the Chalice, holding it aloft. She should say something like:
“Behold –the womb of creation! The cauldron of eternity! The circle of life and death which returns ever unto itself!”
Now let the Priest face the people and hold up the consecrated lighting instrument. Let him say something like:
“Behold –the phallus of the God! The axis of the Planes! The line of time and space which moves ever forward!”
Now Priestess and Priest face each other. The Priestess continues along these lines:
“In the beginning was the Goddess –and She was alone and without form in the void of Chaos. Within Her were the seeds of all things which would come later, for Hers was infinite potential. And alone with all possibility She dreamed, and wondered about what possibility could become: Dreams moved to plans, and plans to action: and behold, from within Herself She created the God.”
And the Priest might say:
“And the God burst forth from the Goddess with a Big Bang –an explosion of fire and light which shot out in all directions! This was the first creation, when God was split from Goddess: Son from Mother: Brother from Sister. And all that was motile, hot, and physical became the God: and all that was stable, cool, and ethereal remained in the Goddess. And the Goddess looked upon the God and She desired Him with exceeding much desire.”
Let the Priestess continue:
“And the Goddess yearned to be One with God again. But She was told: ‘To Rise You Must Fall.’ And so She separated the many souls off from Herself and sent them into matter –separate from Her and yet always connected to Her.”
And now the Priest:
“And thus did Goddess unite with God: and thus was the world formed as we know it. For each of us is both Goddess and God, soul and body, joined together in the mystery of life.”
Now let the Priest light the match or lighter, and place the flame in the fumes of the brandy, so that it is set alight. Be very careful with this.
This will be a very pale flame, delicate and blue, which will endure for a few minutes as it burns away the alcohol in the Chalice. Let the Priest and priestess continue thus:
PRIESTESS
“The God is not greater than the Goddess.”
PRIEST
“Nor is the Goddess greater than the God.”
PRIESTESS
“But both are equal.”
PRIEST
“And neither is complete without the Other.”
PRIESTESS
”therefore in the name of the Goddess…”
PRIEST
“And in the name of the God…”
TOGETHER
“May this Chalice be Blessed!”
Let both Priestess and Priest now flood the Chalice with energy, seeing it filled with the bright, shining light of Blessing.
TOGETHER
“So Mote It Be!”
ALL
”So Mote It Be!”
Now make certain that the flame is out –it does not take long to burn itself out, but it may be wise to cover the Chalice for a few moments to make sure it is extinguished. Again, do be careful with this.
Now pass the Chalice deosil around the Circle, letting each person drink in their turn. You should go last and offer the last bit to Spirit.
Or if you prefer you can pass out paper cups and fill them from the Chalice, asking everyone to wait and drink at the same time. Make sure to have a cup for Spirit. If you do it this way you may wish to offer a toast such as:
“To the Goddess! To the God! To us!”
ALL
“To the Goddess! To the God! To us!
EARTH
Now you will close the ceremony and open the Circle.
Begin by giving thanks to the Ancestors and the Deities.
“Beloved Ancestors, You Who have gone before, Your wisdom and Your example guide us. We pray that You will be with us and aid us as we go forward, that we may call upon the strength and knowledge of the past, even as we build the future. We thank You for Your presence and Your aid this night, and always. May You Blessed be in all things. We offer You our love and our respect! We bid You Hail and Farewell!”
ALL
“Hail and farewell!”
PRIEST
“O Hero God -Lord of Youth and New Beginnings! Master of the Dawn! We thank You for Your presence and Your aid this night, and always. We offer You our love, and our respect! We bid You Hail and farewell!”
ALL
“Hail and farewell!”
PRIESTESS
“O gracious Maiden Goddess -Rosy-fingered harbinger of Light and life! We thank You for Your presence and Your aid this night, and always. We offer You our love and our respect! We bid You Hail and farewell!”
ALL
“Hail and farewell!”
Now thank each Quarter. Start in the North.
NORTH
“Hail unto You, O Guardians of the Watchtower of the North, Powers of Earth and Integration! We thank You for Your presence here this night. May there be peace between us, now and always. Stay if You will, go if You must. We bid You hail and farewell!”
ALL
“Hail and farewell!”
Using the Wand, pull down the tower of white light which was erected when the North was called.
WEST
“Hail unto You, O Guardians of the Watchtower of the West, Powers of Water and Compassion! We thank You for Your presence here this night. May there be peace between us, now and always. Stay if You will, go if You must. We bid You hail and farewell!”
ALL
“Hail and farewell!”
Using the Wand, pull down the tower of white light which was erected when the West was called.
SOUTH
“Hail unto You, O Guardians of the Watchtower of the South, Powers of Fire and Manifestation! We thank You for Your presence here this night. May there be peace between us, now and always. Stay if You will, go if You must. We bid You hail and farewell!”
ALL
“Hail and farewell!”
Using the Wand, pull down the tower of white light which was erected when the South was called.
EAST
“Hail unto You, O Guardians of the Watchtower of the East, Powers of Air and Inspiration! We thank You for Your presence here this night. May there be peace between us, now and always. Stay if You will, go if You must. We bid You hail and farewell!”
ALL
“Hail and farewell!”
Using the Wand, pull down the tower of white light which was erected when the East was called.
Now you must open the Circle. Begin in the East. Take up the Athame and point it toward the Eastern Quarter. Devoke the Circle, walking Tuathal around it, imagining the barrier of light disappearing, returning into the tip of the Athame. Now speak the charm:
“Behold: As Above, So Below! As the Universe, So the Soul! As Within, So Without! May the Circle be Open, but never Broken! Merry Meet –Merry Part –and Merry Meet again!”
Now have everyone cleanse and release all excess energy.