HearthBeats: Notes from a Kitchen Witch

Blessed Samhain all of you and Blessed Beltane for those in the Southern Hemi. Wow has it really been a year… I started writing these article last October.. and how scared I was that they would bomb… but you seem to like them and I enjoy writing them for you..  so here we go..

Here is some basic Samhain correspondences to work with

Oct. 31st – Samhain (All Hallow’s Eve)

Altar Decorations: Pumpkins, gourds, seasonal fruits and flowers, a statue of the Triple Goddess in her Crone phase, broom, acorns.

Herbs:, dittany, flax, heather, mandrake, mullein, oak leaves, sage and straw, mugwort.

Spices: Thyme, rosemary, salt, pepper,  poultry seasoning

Incense: sage, apple, mint, nutmeg

Gods & Goddess’: The Crone, Hecate (fertility, moon-magic, protectress of all Witches), Morrigan (Celtic Goddess of death), Cernunnos (Celtic fertility God) and Osiris (Egyptian God who represents death and rebirth).

Colors: Black, Orange, Red, White

Gemstones: onyx, obsidian, hematite

Food: Apples, Pumpkin pie, nuts, cranberry(scones or muffins), ale, cider, mugwort tea, mead and meat

Tree: Birch, oak, alder and walnut

This Sabbat as well as the whole month of October is a time of change. The veil is thinning and contact with our ancestors is becoming easier and divinations of all kinds seem to work better now. It is customary to set an extra place at your supper table on Samhain Eve in honor of the departed. This is not a scary time, rather a time when the veil is thin and we can spend time with the spirits in warmth and love.

But this is also a time for the living. A time to prepare for the cold season, harvest the last of the summer crops and save them for next year, a time for family and friends to become closer, planning inside activities to enjoy while it snows; a time for cleaning and settling in, for putting away the summer and storing for next year.

So we will start here… contacting the ancestors and go on from there

Samhain Meditation

To prepare for this meditation, have your cauldron or bowl ready.

If you will be outdoors have small sticks that you can light for a fire in the cauldron.

If indoors, a votive, and a fire brick to put under your cauldron.

Place paper and pen near the cauldron.

Visualize yourself walking in a place of nature. This may be a place you already know, or it may be somewhere you create in your mind. Be aware of the crispness of autumn, the chill in the air, the changing colors of the leaves, the seeds that fall from dying flowers, the pine cones and acorns underfoot. As you walk, you come to a stone circle with a low stone altar with a large cauldron sitting on it in the center. On the altar you see articles that you know belonged to, your deceased ancestors, family members, and friends.

Next to the cauldron is a small collection of wood ready to be lit. Light the fire. (Or candle, if indoors).

This is your opportunity to contact anyone from your family, or among your friends, that you wish. Think of why you want to contact them. Is there any unfinished business with anyone that you would like to take care of now? Do you wish to ask forgiveness of anyone? Is there someone you need to forgive? Do you want to tell someone how much you love them and miss them? Do you wish to ask for help or guidance?

Next to the cauldron you see paper and pen. Sit quietly, take your time, and write letter. Allow yourself to experience any emotions that arise as you do this. When you have finished your letter or letters, burn them in the cauldron. As the flame turns them into smoke, know that as the smoke rises it carries your message. (If indoors, be careful).

Take a few more minutes to sit quietly before the cauldron. The cauldron represents the womb of the earth,  to which we return in death to await rebirth. Gaze into it. This is a time to receive messages. Take your time. You may have a thought, or image, come into your mind. You may receive the answer to a question, or be given some wise advice. You may not get your answer right now, it may take a few hours or even days for you to understand.

When you are ready to leave thank your ancestors for the help they have given, tell them you love them and know they will be there for you always.. Leave the circle, returning by the same path you took before. Take the blessings of the cauldron of life and rebirth with you.

Samhain for Family & Friends

This is a non-ritual way to celebrate Samhain, and children can join in.

You will need:

A candle for each individual to be remembered (small birthday candles or tea lights to be very effective)

A cauldron or other fireproof container filled with sand

A photograph or other mementos, or the name of each individual written on

paper

Apples

Food including pumpkin soup, pie, and so on

Tarot cards, scrying tools, and other divination tools.

Push each candle into the sand-filled container ,light a candle for each individual to be remembered. Place the name, photos, a poem, or other memento against the container of candles. When all are done, welcome the family members that have passed to come and share the feast with you.

After, when everyone is full, read poems, play music, sing, or whatever you like to entertain each other. Any children present may want to put on impromptu plays or read their own poems aloud.

Read tarot cards or practice other forms of divination.

Children may want to use an apple cut in half to make pictures, when dried you can place the names of each remembered family member in each apple..

Here is a Blessing for this sabbat.

Samhain Blessing
May the ancestors deliver blessings on you and yours…

May the New Year bear great fruits for you…
May your granted wishes be as many as the seeds falling from the maple…

May the slide into darkness bring you comfort and peace…
May the memories of what has been keep you strong for what is to be…
May this Samhain cleanse your heart, your soul, and your mind!

Until next time

Blessed Home and Hearth

The Hearthkeeper