Pagan/Wiccan question?

Question

Does anyone know anything about Pagan/Wiccan funerals?

Answer 1

Rite of Passage Memorial

A High Priest and High Priestess may be chosen to lead this ritual or various parts may be given to various member of friends and family.

( Light Incense)
(Purify Space)
"By Water, By Earth, By Fire, By Air, By Spirit, Be this circle bound as we desire! So mote it be!"
(Cast Circle)
" I conjure thee, O Circle of power that thou beest a meeting place of truth, love and joy.
A shield against all wickedness and evil, a boundary between the worlds of men and the realms of the mighty ones.
A rampart of protection that will preserve and contain the energy they we will raise within thee. In the names of the Dark Goddess and the Dark Tanist. So mote it be."
(Light Candles)
Black- "O candle of power to this circle give the knowledge and truth in which all power lives. So mote it be."
White- "O candle of light send forth all we do to cause only changes deserving and true. So mote it be."
Brown- "O candle of the mother on whom we all live for all that we take in return we must give. So mote it be."
(Call Quarters)
(Use Silver Branch)
"Great Guardians of the (N,S,E,W,) we call to your powers. Be here in our circle, join our rite. So mote it be.
(Invite God/dess)
" We call to the Dark Goddess, The Crone, The Reaper, The Comforter, Sister in life and death. Be with us, join our rite! Blessed be.
We call to the Dark Tanist who resides in Caer Sidi, Greeter at the gates of Death and Life again. Be with us, join our rite! Blessed be."
(The Rite of Passage)
" Tonight we gather to bid farewell to one who has begun the journey from life into death. Tonight we gather to call the Ancestors, those who have gone before us, to be with us in this rite. We call to the Goddess and God to join us in this rite. We call to the elements of Earth, Air, Fire and Water, to be with us here tonight."
(Light Lavender Candle)
" We call to _________. May you hear our words tonight. Though we know you cannot take any physical gifts with you on this journey you make to the other world, we gather to offer you gifts of energy.
Gifts to guide and ease your journey, Gifts to empower you to cross the bridge and Gifts to bless you when once again you leave the land of Spirit for rebirth to the Land of Life. We offer these gifts into the Cauldron of Rebirth."
(Each coven member and friend places their herb gift into the cauldron and speaks the gift to share with everyone.)
"I offer the gift of (herb name) May it (Purpose) . Blessed be!"
( All offer their gifts individually.)
Hps: "We offer these gifts to you (name) . May they bless you now and always. By Water may your emotions be carried and cleansed. By Fire may your soul light shine brightly in the other world. By Air may your spirit rise and soar. By Earth may you find comfort and peace within Her arms. May the Ancestors light your path. May the Goddess embrace your soul. May the God guide your rebirth. And may the Wheel turn again to bring you there. Merry Part, Blessed Be, and Merry Meet Again."
(A small amount of the mixed herbs are placed in a small mojo for the family and the rest are burned to release the spell.)
( As they are burned the group may wish to chant the following traditional chant):
Hoof and Horn, Hoof and Horn, All That Dies Shall Be Reborn,
Corn and Grain, Corn and Grain, All That Falls Shall Rise Again.
(Move into the symbolic Great Rite. If possible this should be performed by the mourning family members to symbolically reaffirm the power of life.)
M) "As the Athame is to the Male,"
F) "So the Cup is to the Female,"
Both) "And when joined they bring Truth, Love and Life. Blessed Be."
(Bless Cakes)
"May these cakes be blessed with Love, Joy and the Hope of future life. Blessed Be."
(Release Goddess)
" We thank you God and Goddess, You who reign in the Underworld, for joining our rite. Be with us again when we call you forth. Merry Part, Blessed Be, Merry Meet Again."
(Release Quarters)
" Guardians of the N,S,E,W, we thank you for your part in our circle. Return from whence you came harming none along the way. So mote it be."
(Close Circle)
" This circle is open but never broken. May the Blessings of the Dark God And Dark Goddess teach you the value of life! So mote it be!"



2. Death Rituals
AT THE MOMENT OF DEATH


Typically those who love a person who is dying will be aware that the moment of
their death is approaching, even if the dying person is unaware. Even in the
case of sudden accidental death there is an interval where those who are with
the dying person will be aware of their situation, although they may not be able
to mark the moment of death due to their own pain, fear and grief.

So, though this brief ritual may be performed by a loved one of a dying person,
or by any person, it is more likely to fall under Ministry and to be performed
by a Priestess/Priest visiting the hospital or the home to help through the
transition.

I believe that there is some part of a person that survives death, which may
undergo changes in the realm of the Goddess prior to being reborn into another
body. This part of the person strips off personality and memory more or less
rapidly along with its body but it may need assistance in doing so as death
occures.

There is no doubt that the person who is dying is experiencing a variety of
things, which a death ritual needs to address - the dissolution of personality,
the loss of contact with the body, the loss of the family and friends, the fear,
the wonder and the awe of this transformation, and the presence of the Goddess
and the Ancestors.

And those who are with them, their family and friends ideally, are experiencing
terror and confusion, grief, fear at their own mortality. They will also
experience the coming of Death and the warmth or cool of the soul leaving the
body behind. And what the Priestess says will also have to partly address their
feelings (although she will have time with them after the death to comfort
them).


3. The Formal Ritual

Priestess: (Takes the hand of the dying person gently, and looks into their eyes,
or into their face if the eyes are closed. )

" You are dying. None should ever die alone. I am here to share your death and
to journey with you.

There is only love, the greatest Mystery. I reach behind my fear. I open my
heart and my eyes in the light of this love.

I will go as far on this journey with you as I can. I will not abandon you. "

She should breath deeply and centre herself and enter a state of light trance.
And she should follow the spirit of the dying person as deeply as she can.

" The Goddess is taking you back now, the Great Mother. She will be with the
people left behind, providing strength and comfort. You are not abandoning them.

You will leave behind your work. You will give up all of your ties to your
family. You will give up sex, and even gender. You cannot be a woman or a man
and enter the other world. You will leave behind your body. None who have bodies
can pass into the other world.

You will become nothing. You will float on the endless waves of the Goddess'
womb. You will drift in the warm emptiness at the centre. Nothing will be left
but the Will to be reborn."

If possible the Priestess will remain with the dying person until she is dead.

At the moment of her death say the following:

" Journey on now, sister. We will follow when we can. May you be born again at
the same time and in the same place as those you knew and loved in this life.
May you know them again and love them again."

And now the Priestess' task must be to comfort the living.



4. A WICCAN FUNERAL RITUAL

The person to be buried should be buried wrapped in a cloth. Her body should
decompose as quickly as possible to nourish other life. It may not be legally
possible to be buried like this and so burial of ashes from a cremation would be
preferable to a hermetically sealed casket.There are also Green coffins available made from reeds or cardboard.

People should be encouraged to make their wills long before death specifying the
style of their burial. It is extremely important for people whose families do
not approve of their religious choice that they specify in detail these matters
and appoint a Wiccan or a lawyer, not a non-Wiccan family member, as executor of
the will.

There are three parts to the ritual - parts one and three preferably to be
performed in a hall and publicly, part two at the graveside. Only the closest
friends, coven-mates and family should be at the graveside.

This ritual is for cases when the dead person was not comforted and assisted at
the moment of death. Even under the best circumstances the spirit will sometimes
remain partly tied to the corpse, in a state of greater or lesser awareness and
confusion and pain for a period of time unless assisted to journey on. And so
the dead person is a primary guest at the funeral, because she may very well
need to be there. In addition the members of her family and coven and her
friends can assist her in journeying on and themselves in grieving by
acknowledging her and blessing her.

The Funeral Ritual

Part 1:

The Priestess and Priest, dressed in green and black respectively, shall conduct
the ceremony. Their assistants, dressed in red and black, shall assist, act as
ushers and lead Part 3.

The ritual space will be prepared as follows: cleared of furniture, with a
candle at each of the cardinal directions and two flanking the main altar. The
corpse should be laid out at the main altar.

Sweep and Cast the Circle as usual. (As the mourners wait at the edge to the
ritual space, the Priestess shall sweep out the Circle widdershins (counter-
clockwise) while concentrating and grounding. She shall replace the broom by the
main altar, pick up the sword and cast the Circle widdershins while saying;

"This is a place which is not a place
in a time which is not a time
halfway between the worlds of the Gods
and of mortals."

Bring people into the Circle as usual (The Priestess takes the Priest by the
hands and pulls him into the Circle. They turn in a half-turn widdershins as he
comes in and then he pulls in the next person and so on until everyone is in the
Circle, after which she takes up the sword and closes off the doorway left in
the Circle through which people had entered.)

Call the directions widdershins, beginning with West. The assistants should do
this and the directions should have been assigned ahead of time.

West: " As the sun sets
So our friend has left us
The water of our tears like the salt water of the sea, and
like the water of our mothers' womb, blesses this Circle."

South: " As life is a day
So our friend has passed into the night
The fire of our life, the memories and courage, the
strength given to us by our friend blesses this Circle."

East: " As all that falls shall rise again
So our friend will be reborn
The air we breath, this treasure of our life, the
compassionate caring we give each other blesses this Circle."

North: " As the Earth forms us
So our friend shall return to the earth
Our Mother feeds us, and clothes us. She gives us
everything and in the end she takes our bodies back. And earth
blesses this Circle."

Drawing Down The Moon and Sun. The Priestess and Priest recognize the presence
of the Gods in the Circle and specifically heighten their own awareness of the
presence of the divine, acting from the divine part of themselves through the
ritual.

Priest: " You are the Goddess, as are all women. You give birth. You feed the
children from your own body. And You take them back for a new birth. World
without end, eternal creation."

Priestess: " And you are the God, as are all men. You are born. You live and You
die, only to be born again. All-Father, All-Destroyer, ruler of the land of the
dead."

Together: " Birth and death." Over and over and over.

The Priestess turns and addresses the corpse:

" You are dead. None should ever die alone. I am here to help you with your
death.

There is only love, the greatest Mystery. I reach behind my fear. I open my
heart and my eyes in the light of this love.

"Our lives are formed of many others and we form other lives in turn. And when
we are here with you after you die we honour your life."

"There is only love. The love of the Goddess gives birth to the universe. The
love of our parents gives birth to us. The love of our friends and family
sustains our life. Kindness, love, and pleasure - we are formed from these and
we form each other. When we die we leave them behind us."

"You have left your family. You have left sex, and even gender. You cannot be a
woman or a man and enter the other world. You have left behind your body. None
who have bodies can pass into the other world.

"The Goddess is taking you back now, the Great Mother. Her womb is the Earth
that will recieve your body, your body is a seed now, a seed of other lives."

"In a sacred space we have gathered to honour you and to give you some things to
take on the journey with you."

Priest - addresses the Circle:

"Please come up now if you can and speak to your dead. Tell her/him whatever you
need to. Help in the journey into death."

Addresses the corpse:

" I will remember you at Samhain and bless you then."

The Circle will chant, quietly:

"We all come from the Goddess
and to Her we shall return
like a drop of rain
falling to the ocean
We all come from the Horned One
and through Him we are reborn
corn and grain, corn and grain
all that falls shall rise again"

while everyone who wishes to comes to the main altar and talks to the dead
person.

When everyone who wishes to has talked the Priestess will say:

" Journey on now, sister. We will follow when we can. May you be born again at
the same time and in the same place as those you knew and loved in this life.
May you know them again and love them again."

And now the body will be ceremoniously wrapped and the Circle ended. The
Directions will be dismissed as the body is being wrapped with the following:

East - "The sun will rise again."

South - " Life continues"

West - "Love is all that we can be sure of."

North - "Only the mother is eternal."

A pillar candle shall be lit after the body is wrapped and left to burn while
the crowd files out of the Circle.

Part Three: the ushers will direct people to food and drink and quiet
conversation to continue while the Priestess, Priest and the dead person's
coven-mates and closest people proceed to the grave with the body.

When they have finished their private part of the ritual they will rejoin
everyone else for a reception at which stories of noteable things done by the
dead person and prayers are offered up.

Part Two:
The grave has been dug and prepared. A Circle will be cast around the grave and
the directions called as follows:

East: "We welcome the spirits of the ancestors and the honoured dead not yet
reborn."

South: " We welcome our heroes and inspiration."

West: "We welcome the Ancestors to incarnate in our children and grandchildren
and in our families."

North: "We welcome our deaths and our lives."

The body is gently lowered into the grave.

Priestess and Priest bless food and drink:

"It is not we that bless this food and drink
But it which blesses us.
In its nature it nourishes our bodies
and in sharing food and drink
we create community."

Each person takes a drink and pours some into the grave, eats something and
places part in the grave. When all have finished the grave is filled in.

The directions are dismissed quietly with an informal thanks. The mourners head
back to the reception.

A glass of wine and some cakes are left behind at the grave side.



WEBSITES
http://www.grailmedia.com/wz1/pinol/death.html
http://www.reclaiming.org/dying/
http://www.reclaiming.org/dying/greenburial.html
http://www.paganparalegal.com/ - I included this because it is important for a pagan to set up a will and choice of death burial before they rite. There are no pagan cemetaries. When many pagans die, someone such as family takes over and the wishes of the dead one are ignored.
Ariel
)O(

Answer 2

It all depends on which type of Pagan you are. Are you asking for Wiccan funeral rights? I'm sure you know that not all Pagans are Wiccans.

Answer 3

Depends on the pagan. I've read of an Asatru funeral where the body was marked for Odin, thier prize posessions put in the coffin and burned, as our ancestors did.
I doubt the Egyptian pagans do that. *G*

Answer 4

Yes. Thanks for asking.



Lol I'm not THAT big of a smartass... as far as actual funerals, there's not much. However, covens in some traditions have been known to hold requiem rituals after the death of a covenmember. There's a really good one that I know of in "A Witches Bible" by the Farrars, but I don't have the time to type it all out.

Answer 5

yes, as a matter of a fact we had to doa Wicca death rite for a fellow soldier not to long ago, Raymond Buckland's complete book of witchcraft has a very good example of one. Blessed be

Answer 6

Depends on the state, really. Clergy requirements are similar to marriage.

I've done two. Not my idea of fun.
Email me with any questions.