Celebrating Mabon:Ritual
One of the most powerful ways to honor the Fall Equinox is by deepening your connection with the natural world. Mabon marks the balance between light and darkness, and through this sacred ritual, we can align with the Earth's rhythms and harness the potent energy of this seasonal shift.
Spending time in nature allows us to gather elements that embody the magic of the equinox, helping us reflect, give thanks, and celebrate the cycles of life. This Mabon ritual is a journey of transformation, inviting you to embrace the harvest of both nature and spirit.
A Personal Harvest Ritual
1. Take a Nature Walk
Step into the wild woods, meadows, or a nearby park, letting your feet follow the path of intuition. As you wander, gather gifts from the Earth: seed pods, dried herbs, acorns, hazelnuts, or any other treasures you find along the way. These natural tokens are imbued with the magic of transformation, wisdom, and health.
2. Set Your Intentions
As you collect these items, visualize them absorbing the energy of the Earth beneath your feet. See them as vessels of power, ready to hold your intentions for the coming months. Whether you use them in rituals, create a sacred space, or carry them as talismans, they will serve as reminders of your connection to the natural cycles and the energy of Mabon.
3. Offer Gratitude
When your walk comes to an end, pause. Take a deep breath, and give thanks for the blessings and lessons that have shaped your year. Reflect on the balance you wish to maintain as the days grow shorter and the veil between worlds thins. Let your heart fill with appreciation for the bounty and challenges that have come your way.
4. Create a Sacred Altar
Welcome the spirit of Mabon into your home by crafting an altar that mirrors the energy of the season. This sacred space will honor both your personal journey and the abundance of the harvest.
Set Up Your Altar : Adorn your altar with symbols of the season: apples, grains, small pumpkins, and vibrant autumn leaves. Include representations of deities like Demeter or Ceres, guardians of the harvest. You might also add personal items—photos, mementos, or tokens—that reflect your growth over the past year.
Light a candle to honor the waning sunlight, and place a small bowl of wine or cider as a tribute to the season's celebrations. Your altar becomes a sacred space where you honor the energies that have shaped your journey.
5. Reflect on the Year
Take a quiet moment to sit before your altar. Close your eyes and reflect on the challenges and triumphs you've experienced. Honor the lessons learned and the growth you've achieved. This moment of reflection is a chance to acknowledge your strength, wisdom, and resilience.
6. Write a Gratitude List
With pen in hand, write down the things you are most grateful for. Let each word carry deep meaning, capturing the essence of both the trials you've faced and the joys you've celebrated. Gratitude is a powerful spell that weaves abundance into your life.
7. Offer a Toast
Pour yourself a glass of cider, herbal tea, or any drink that feels like a celebration of the season. Raise it high, offering a toast to the abundance in your life, the fruits of your labor, and the path you've walked. This simple act is a magical gesture, honoring your journey and the energies that support you.
8. Meditate on Your Achievements
Close your eyes, breathing deeply. Picture your achievements as seeds planted in fertile soil, nourished by your dedication and care. Visualize them growing, blossoming into future successes. Feel the magic of potential stretching out before you, and allow a sense of pride and fulfillment to rise within you.
9. Close the Ritual
As you bring your ritual to a close, give thanks to the energies of the season, to the Earth, and to the unseen forces that have guided and supported you. Place your gratitude list somewhere special, a reminder of the abundance and blessings that surround you.
May Mabon bless your journey, and may the magic of the harvest fill your heart and home.
Blessings to you on your path,
~Aradia
Goddess Ishtar
Drawing inspiration from the feminine divine, Devadasi & the soul memory of the temple dancer rites.
Honoring the lineages that create the rooted structure of these practices of many ancestors who have come before. Movement and dance are inherent qualities, not only to humans but to all of nature and the cosmos. From the creation of the universe to the first heartbeat of the fetus in the womb, rhythm and dance have always existed. For tens of thousands of years, humans have used dance as an integral part of ritual, prayer, and reaching other states of consciousness, for the purpose of healing, and facilitating contact with the Divine. It is believed that the soul of a people is woven into the steps of their dances.
The Origins of “Belly Dance” is extremely old and traces of it can be found up to 6,000 years ago, based in pre-Christian pagan societies who worshipped nature & feminine divine. This dance was women’s fertility magic & helped in childbirth. The origin of the name ‘belly dance’ comes from the French Danse du ventre, which translates as “dance of the stomach”.
Her-Story
A common thread in many ancient civilizations is sacred dance, dancing before the goddess & god as an essential element in all rituals. The rituals being of sacred knowledge and origin, practiced only by women initiated into lineages by their mothers & grandmothers. Within the context of the ancient Hindu temple, a devoted temple dancer, popularly known as a Devidasi performed for the sole purpose of devotional offerings to specific gods/goddesses.
These women also known as conduits & receptors possessed the ability to manifest within the material body, the heavenly dance of Apsaras. The Apsaras are the celestial muses who incarnated in women's bodies during ritual yet remained immortal & made of the heavens. Devidasi dancers dedicated their lives to holding the energy of the temples & dancing in devotion to the deities. The antiquity of the Devadasi tradition mystifies its origin. The temple inscription & architecture within the archaeological record provide relevant and significant information regarding this holy tradition. Inscriptions can be found, dating as far back as 611 A.D. in countries such as Egypt, Greece, Assyria and Babylon. It was customary in many of these traditions for the nobles to employ their unmarried daughters for the service of The Goddess. In Babylon, not a single girl before her marriage could be spared from this duty. This was a binding obligation, however, the custom of dancing after marriage was not an obligation. In Sumerian times the Devadasi were a highly respected tradition of Babylon & as Ishtar was the famous deity of Babylon, the Devadasis appointed as Ishtar herself.
In Egypt, priestesses performed ritual dances that mimed significant events in the story of a god/goddess, they imitated stories of the stars & cosmic creation myths. The Afterlife is a major theme of Egyptian religion & much of one’s life was spent preparing for reincarnation. At Egyptian funerals, women danced to express the grief of the mourners. The Egyptian temple dancers had various initiations to become a temple keepers, many of whom were devoted to the Temple of the goddesses Isis & Hathor.
The roots of Belly Dance originated from the Ouled Naïl people whose women were trained in arts, dance and song. This tribe of nomadic people brought their traditional arts to the public for performance in exchange for money. Adorned in traditional costumes and jewels, these women were exotic sights. These women would literally wear their entire wealth. In belly dancing the term Ouled Naïl refers to the style they are noted for their way of dancing. "Belly Dance" is a Western term describing raqs sharqi which is the Arabic word for Oriental Dance and the basis of Egyptian, Turkish, and Persian dance. The traditional dances of the Middle East also known as Oriental Dance span a large variety of folk traditions throughout North America, the Middle East, and Central Asia.
Mata Hari 1905, Mata Hari began to win fame as an exotic dancer. She was a contemporary of dancers Isadora Duncan & Ruth St Denis became leaders in the early modern dance movement, which around the turn of the 20th century looked to Asia and Egypt for artistic inspiration. Critics would later write about this and other such movements within the context of Orientalism.
Belly dancing is natural to a woman’s bone and muscle structure with movements emanating from the torso rather than in the legs and feet. The dance often focuses on isolating different parts of the body, moving them independently in sensuous patterns, and weaving together the entire feminine form. Belly dancing is generally performed barefoot, thought by many to emphasize the intimate physical connection between the dancer, her expression, and Mother Earth. Women danced often with their whole families including their grandmothers.
Throughout all history, the mythic temple dancer appears. In Greek history, the temple dancers were appointed in the temple of Apollo, the Sun God. Many of these rites were performed by the mythological Maenads, whose dancing is devoted to the harvest rites & for the god Dionysus. The connection to priestesses of Delphi & oracular divination was a well-known practice in the temple and it was honored that these women held deep communion with the spirits & offered dance as a spiritual devotion.
This woman is such a great inspiration to me.
At 87, Sashimoni she is the oldest surviving Devadasi in Odisa. There is a strange romance associated with the word 'Devadasi'. A romance that only gets more enigmatic what with records saying that the number of Devadasis in Puri has now been seeing a sharp decline from 25 about 100 years ago to nine in the 1956 Gazette of Odisha to four in the 80s to just two who are now alive to tell the tale. Myths abound and so do memories of the days when Devadasis or Maharis were regarded and respected as those great women who could control natural human impulses, their five senses and submit themselves completely to God.
By: Rajan G Srikrishnan
Vajrayoginī Buddhist tantric deity, She is often described as carrying the nectar of transmutation "the Dakini who is the Essence of all Buddhas. "She is a female Buddha and a Dakini a transcendent passion that is free of selfishness and illusion — she intensely works for the well-being of others and for the destruction of ego-clinging. She is seen as being ideally suited for people with strong passions, providing a way to transform those passions into enlightened virtues. She is a tantra deity and her practice includes methods for preventing ordinary death, intermediate state Bardo and rebirth (by transforming them into paths to enlightenment), and for transforming all mundane daily experiences into higher spiritual paths. Practices associated with her are Chod and the Six Yogas of Naropa.
Belly dancing costumes are often colorful, flowing garments, accented with flowing scarves and veils. Finger cymbals (made of brass and dating back to 200 B. C. as well as exotic jewelry, including intricate belts made of coins that, in earlier days, comprised the family’s wealth so that it might be portable in the event the woman needed to move quickly or flee. Other interesting accessories used during the dance are swords, snakes, large vessels, and even huge candelabras, complete with flaming candles.
Belly dance innovator Jamila Salimpour formed Bal Anat as a truly unique and exciting entertainment experience. She named it for “Bal,” the French word for a dance gathering, and “Anat,” an ancient Mesopotamian mother goddess: Dance of the Mother Goddess. Bal Anat dance troupe Originally created in 1968 for the spectacle and wonder of the Renaissance Pleasure Faire in Northern California, Innovative Jamila Salimpour’s groundbreaking presentation was the first to integrate dancing with and balancing a sword, a now quintessential belly dance prop. The feminist movement, in the 1970s and 1980s in the USA, rediscovered belly dance as a form of dance that empowers women. All women of any age & background. There is so much more to share on the Her-story & Lineages of this ancient & mesmerizing Art Form.
You can see how I have been totally inspired & devoted my life’s path to learning & now sharing these sacred practices.
Thus far my life experience & training have taught me the marriage of yoga & dance As well as including the ancient sister science to yoga Ayurveda ritual & practices . These 3 ancient pathways have come together in such profound ways. They are the core triad of all my offerings.
I would like to honor all my teachers who have been a divine light inspiration & support. As dance has always been a form of meditation & spiritual practice to honor the cycles & rhythms of life. I am forever a student in this school of life, continuing my studies in Sacred Dance, Ayurveda, Shamanic Healing, Somatic healing & body energy medicine
Accreditation: 15 years of training in Sacred dance & have been a professional dancer touring & working with many exceptional artists. My teachers and dance luminaries I have had the honor to study with: Jill Parker, (Tribal Fusion) Suhaila Salimpour,(Tribal/Cabaret) Carolena Nericcio (A.T.S) Rachel Brice (Tribal Fusion) Zoe Jakes,(Tribal Fusion) Colleena Shakti, (Odissi) Prajwal Vajracharya ( Nepalese ) & many more.
18 years of yoga practice & 4 Different Certifications, from Traditional Hatha, Vinyasa, Tantra, & Yoga Nidra. My beloved Teachers in Yoga are Swami Sitaramananda, Shiva Rea, & Vidya Shakti. Honoring & Carrying the lineages of Krishnamacharya, Sivananda, Kashmir Shaivism.
Certified A.H.C Practitioner Graduated from the California College of Ayurveda & presently in an Internship program. Certified Bliss body treatments including panchakarma programs
Life Long Studies & Path of Great Initiations My Teachers in Esoteric studies : Barbara Brennan, B.O.T.A, Tom Kenyon, Jonathan Rigby, Lady Freda Harris, Dion Fortune, Angelles Arren, Martin Prectel, Temple sisterhood of Sekhmet, Ordained Priestess of the White Rose.
“The Priestess and the Performer
The priestess in ancient times was integrated into her community. With time priestesses as keepers, and dancers of ritual disappeared. The altars, which had been centered in each family’s hearth, were moved out of the temples & into the church.
Churches replaced the communal worship grounds and centers. Temples were now viewed as separate edifices to a distinct institution of priests. Ritual became to be the domain of only select individuals on behalf of the community in place of community participation and self-expression. Organic rituals became prescribed religion. Dance as an integral part of women’s spiritual practice shared a parallel fate with the priestess.
As many religions forgot their roots and were forced to conform, the priestess now in secret led communal nature dances. But the sacred dancer was now made the servants of the temple and its priests. The momentous split between artistic forms of worship in a devotional setting. The social division of priests and worshippers now made masters and servants, brought about a split between the sacred and the profane.
Devotional dances gradually became commissioned works for the enjoyment of paying ruling spectators, for provocative entertainment. Dance was transformed from religious art and rite to a work of art intended for observation and subject judgment by the observer. From these shifts arose a culture of dance and theatre as entertainment.
The universal feminine principle of spirit-matter connection was transformed into the duality of seductress/virgin, priestess/midwife these roles were considered black magic. This is primal exotic illusions appear. Repeating itself over and over in history.
Sexuality and procreativity were split from a concept of belonging to nature and the flow of seasons. In addition the sacred dance became a spectacle and only entertainment. Another major transition occurred when men gradually began emulating and then taking over women’s roles in dance. Increasing the propaganda against her and her rituals. Men dressed as women and danced for their kings.
The few remained dancing in the priestess's steps. She is the lens focusing for the others the higher energies. The sustaining life that constitutes and defines earthly existence. She acts as the transmitting agent of divine emanations. Her dance is a system of movements, gestures, prayers, and devotion to the invisible forces of life. The function of the priestess is to facilitate the groups and gingival process to teach and remind how to be receptive". ~Unknown