Website currently under renovation - thanks for your patience! Dismiss

Category: Kemetic Polytheism

Kemetic Bright Moon 1/20

This month, the full moon is also a Super Moon, and in the Northern Hemisphere, a Blood Moon Eclipse.  It’s tonight around midnight here on the East Coast, but my Ladies have permitted me to do the ritual the day before.  Here is the message from Bast and Sekhmet:

This Bright Moon brings you the strength of a lioness on the hunt, bloody and determined.  Use your claws to tear away things you do not need, and execrate them.  You will be left with simple clarity about your spiritual purpose, and then you can prepare for this next cycle of your journey, for the new secular year.

I think I’ll be doing a red paper execration, which I’ve explained elsewhere.

See you on or around February 19th for the next Kemetic Bright Moon!

Kemetic Holiday: She Is Led Back

Due to illness and sudden out of town guests, my celebration of the return of the Eyes of Ra was a bit more subdued than I had planned. Here’s a picture of the altar following their unveiling, however, with an offering of chocolate, and clear water. I also gave them a plate of the dinner we made that night, but it didn’t fit neatly in the picture, as it encroached into the space allocated for Athena Columbia. (I expect that a larger shrine, and perhaps even one that closes, is the next thing on their wishlist for Wep Ronpet.)

Next year, I think I’m going to try and write a specific prayer or song for the second half of this holiday, and offer that and some food each night as they come back, as a sort of extended feast.

Next Bright Moon is on January 21st!

Kemetic Holiday: The Eye Wanders

This month’s Bright Moon coincided with the beginning of a two-part holiday, called “The Eye Wanders” and “She is Led Back”. The first takes place I Peret 19-21, which for me here is December 23-25. The second part is I Peret 28-II Peret 4, which for me here is Jan 1-7. Between that, I’ll shroud my statues to represent the Eyes being “gone”. This is taking the place of the Sailing Holiday I’ve done in previous years, and follows the same general format, with votive offerings before they leave and celebration when they return. I’ll post some photos of that below, but first, the short message from Bast and Sekhmet for this month’s Bright Moon:

“We are leaving soon, but when we return we will bring good things back with us. Celebrate and rejoice, life is meant to be enjoyed!”

The first day, I offered the white cloths I’ll be using to wrap the statues, alongside my usual Bright Moon offerings of food, drink, incense, and candlelight.

The second day, I added the boat, and gave another food/drink offering, hot cocoa, which you can see on the far right edge.

For the third day, I offered golden origami lilies, as votive offerings, and I placed them in the boat.

The statues I wrapped gently and placed them in small boxes, where they will stay until the next part of the holiday, She is Led Back.

Kemetic Bright Moon 11/23

This is a few days delayed because I’ve been sick, but here’s this moon’s message from Bast and Sekhmet:

You’ve come a long way in your spiritual and creative growth, and that cycle is coming to completion.  Turn your attention now to more mundane matters, for a time.  You are struggling, and it may be because you are attempting to achieve impossible perfection, failing to see the whole mosaic as you search for the perfect shard of pottery.  You may be working hard, but unless you’re making progress, it isn’t useful work.  It could be that the big picture is overwhelming for you right now, but you need to confront that fear and face it in order to prioritize.  Have faith in yourself and your work.  You’re building important foundations for the coming season.

Here where I live near DC, December 5th is the first day of the first month of Peret, so the Kemetic season is about to turn.  Peret will last through the 3rd of April, here, and then Shemu will begin on the 4th.

The next Bright Moon will be December 22nd, and I’ll post an omen in the days following it.

Before that, I’ll be celebrating the first part of the Holiday of the Wandering Eye, which replaces the Sailing Holiday I’ve celebrated in previous years.  On I Peret 19-21 (Dec 23-25) I will say good bye to Bast and Sekhmet, and pack up my shrine as The Eye Wanders.  If I feel well enough to do so, I will do some sort of fast* the first two days and make preparations, and put away the statues and close my shrine on the third day at sunset.  The second part of the holiday, The Eye is Led Back, takes place on I Peret 28 – II Peret 4 (Jan 1-7) and I’ll welcome them back and re-open the shrine on the first day, feast them, and give daily offerings for the next few days.  I’d love to try to begin at dawn, but I don’t think that’s realistically going to happen. We’ll see!

 

 

* Because of my chronic health issues, I will probably only fast from meat, dairy, and sweets, because it’s not generally safe for me to do stricter fasts, but I do also try to eat somewhat less food than normal as well.

(Belated) Kemetic Bright Moon 10/24

Sorry for not posting this sooner!  Last week I was struggling with my physical health and also trying to pack everything up for the retreat I was attending this past weekend. I asked Bast and Sekhmet for an extension and they agreed.  Today I did my ritual, and here is the omen I received:

“Cycles are completing, things are coming to resolution, but this is not the final victory.  There is still much to fight for, many battles you must win.  Rest, if you need it.  Regain the vigor and passion that has drained from you in this long struggle.  But do not rest on your laurels too long – there is work still to be done.”

Short, but to the point.  I know I have more work for Samhain to do in the coming week, but after that I intend to rest, ponder the results of the US midterm election, and then begin to prepare myself for 2019.

The next Bright Moon will be on 11/23, and I’ll post the next blog shortly thereafter.

Kemetic Bright Moon Omen 9/24

This Bright Moon I once again performed my solitary ritual, answered questions that were presented to me, and received the following omen from Bast and Sekhmet, whom I serve as an oracular priestess-initiate:

Disaster looms on the horizon, invited by those who crave the poison of isfet.  It is not yet a certainty, however – only one possibility out of many.  You can free yourself from the poisonous allure by sticking to truth, knowledge, and using your own intuition.  This uncertain time is part of a cycle of growth and change, and the Eyes of Ra fight beside you as you use whatever means are at your disposal to fight back.  You must protect yourself, but you must also fight, because the outcome will be our legacy, for good or ill.  Those who prevail will grow in power, and if they are not righteous it will be all the harder to resist them later.

This seems to echo themes I’ve been hearing from the Morrigna, and messages others are getting about this turbulent time.  Some believe that this turbulence is due to the turning of an Age, and that holds resonance for me, but my personal beliefs have always centered on the Here and Now, doing what work we can in our immediate communities, as soon as we can.

Blessings from Bast and Sekhmet, and I’ll see you all next Bright Moon.

Kemetic Bright Moon 8/26

This moon’s message from Bast and Sekhmet:

“Things are in flux right now, turning, shifting, and you need to take rest where you can find it. You can manage your mundane life and household well if you stay organized, though, and don’t let things slide. There is time and energy enough. Time comes in fast cycles now, dark and light, night and day. Shadows grow long and frightening at night, but you can address them more shrewdly in the sunlight. Things are not as bad as they seem – you have them better in hand than you think.”

That’s encouraging! Happy Bright Moon, everyone!

Wep Ronpet 2018

The Epagomenal Days started right after Lughnasadh again this year, on August 2nd, with Wesir (Osiris).  I gave offerings to each “birthday” god on their day, and took an omen from them by tarot card, using my Egyptian Tarot deck by Lo Scarabeo.  Here were their messages for us:

  1. Wesir (Osiris) gave me The Chariot: go forward, fighting your obstacles, and you will be victorious!
  2. Heru-Wer (Horus the Elder) gave me the 5 of Wands: work together, let constructive conflict and competition raise you to greater heights!
  3. Set gave me the Knight of Swords: take courage, and rage against the darkness of isfet!
  4. Aset (Isis) gave me The Hermit: be prudent, take your time, and use the wisdom you have gained.
  5. Nebthet (Nepthys) gave me the Ace of Pentacles: we are winning! We will have the success and glory we crave.

All in all those were pretty uplifting omens!

20180807_145839

 

On Wep Ronpet (Aug 7) I did my execration, using red paper this year instead of smashing a terracotta pot, removing the negativity of the old year and preparing for the new! I drew a/p/e/p on the paper, added some words about other things I wished to execrate, and then cut it up, and burned it.  It was very satisfying!

Afterwards I took a magical cleansing bath, with a scented bathbomb, the perfume oils I bought for Bast and Sekhmet, and some natron salts.  While I soaked, I meditated, talking to my Patronesses about the coming year.  I’ll be renewing my oath as an Oracular Priestess-Initiate, bound to honor them weekly and to serve my community through oracular work and heka during the Bright Moon.  This year I’m also going to work out a more set holiday calendar, finding appropriate holidays that I can celebrate spaced out throughout the year, instead of just Wep Ronpet and the Sailing Holiday, which are both very close to other holidays in my personal calendar.

My shrine item this year for Wep Ronpet is the travel shrine box – I’m finally painting it, and I’ll dedicate it and renew my shrine set up and welcome my Patronesses home on the next Bright Moon, which is also when I’ll be formally renewing my oath.  Look for that post after August 26th!

Kemetic Bright Moon 6/28

Here is the message from Bast and Sekhmet this time:

As we reach the end of the Kemetic year, it is time to focus on ourselves, on rebalancing, on getting our affairs back in order, on finishing incomplete or procrastinated tasks, and most importantly: on self-care and healing. We can take time now to retreat, and process our emotions. The wheel will keep turning. Better things are coming. There will be more work to do later, but for now we need to rest, to heal, and to prepare for Wep Ronpet, when we will begin anew. Em Hotep.

As a reminder, my local calendar has Wep Ronpet on August 7th. There is one more bright moon before that, but I expect that one to give us instructions for Wep Ronpet itself. Rest until then, lovelies.

Kemetic Bright Moon 4/29

Here is the message I received this full moon from Bast and Sekhmet:

As the part of the world you live in warms up, it is time to leave the dark of winter behind. Emerge into the full light of spring – bask in the warmth of the sun that caresses. But do not stay still – now is a time for movement, and action. You must remember that you have a body, and whatever mental, emotional, spiritual, or political things you are working on must be supported by physical actions. Create a working model. Express your feelings through art. Smash a red pot, or dance for the joy of connection. Clean a stream, walk in a protest march. Whatever seeds of practice you have been tending, it is time to live them physically, however you can. Manifest it in your own body to manifest it in the world.

Posts navigation

1 2 3 4 5 6