LAMMAS ESSENTIAL MAPS & TOOLS CONTENTS WELCOME TO RITUAL BOX CONTENTS | LAMMAS LAMMAS | ESSENTIAL CHRONICLE, CELEBRATION & ALTAR HERBS & BREAD RITUAL & INTENTIONAL MAGIC CAST YOUR CIRCLE LAMMAS QUESTION & AFFIRMATION PENDULUM DIVINATION RITUAL WELCOME TO RITUAL My grandmother threw salt over her shoulder to appease the spirits. To a house spider she would extend her finger and let it crawl aboard, then circle it around her head three times before setting it free outdoors—the money spider, harbinger of good fortune. She lived in a very real state of prosperity without ever seeming to struggle for it. I was blessed with extraordinary time in England with my grandmother while growing up. From her I absorbed an understanding and respect for both the natural and ethereal worlds. She shared magic without calling it magic. Fast forward to my life now. As a woman whose children are grown, I can see the breadth and beauty of those early days of discovery, and how they opened a door to my life’s work. What I’ve learned is this. We can, each one of us, be the originator of our own magic. It can be simple and natural. We can settle our hearts into a moment, gather in around our lives all the things we hold dear, and learn more about the world and its marvels. In this way we can cultivate light, and subsequently, love. So dive in. Explore! The world is full of beautiful rituals and magic. At the center of each is a path to your own awareness. Please enjoy the journey. All my love, always. Kim Sorden Proprietress, Magic Fairy Candles BOX CONTENTS | LAMMAS NEW MOON | INTENTION GOAT’S MILK SOAP Leading up to your harvest celebration, enjoy preparing and soothing your summer skin with the the scents of rosemary, tea tree, and mint organic essential oils. Utilizing olive oil, organic coconut oil, goat’s milk, and shea butter as its base, your soap is indulgent skin nourishment which feeds the body’s largest organ—the skin! Lather up, then rinse with warm water and gently pat dry to preserve the moisture of the natural oils. To prevent soap from softening, store in a soap dish which drains away standing water. ESSENTIAL | LAMMAS BATH BOMB Consider the heavy release of a body which has run and worked and flowed through the summer months as you soften your skin with nourishing organic shea butter and coconut oil. Release, relax, perhaps set an intention, as you prepare both heart and mind. Surrounding a crystal charged under the full moon, along with enlivening organic botanicals and essential oils, simply dissolve your bath bomb in warm bathwater to relax and prepare. Take care to remove the crystal from the bath before draining. CRYSTAL PENDULUM A pendulum is a tool used to focus our natural human sensitivity to energy in all its forms. While held by the fingers in one hand with the crystal hanging over items of divination, the weight of the crystal responds to energy by moving in specific directions. With regular use, the crystal and user become ever more finely tuned to one another, so that over time the pendulum becomes a trusted tool. Instructions for divining answers to life’s questions with the use of a pendulum are included in the next pages. PENDULUM DIVINATION CARD A pendulum card is a tool used to help answer a specific question, in conjunction with your pendulum. Your card contains letters, numbers, the phases of the moon (from new moon to full moon) and direct answers of yes, no, and maybe. Use your pendulum card as a starting point by following the instructions for the pendulum divination ritual on the next pages. Once you connect more readily with your intuition and the energies around you, you may wish to deepen your practice and rituals by creating a pendulum card of your own. ESSENTIAL | LAMMAS SOY CANDLE Illuminate the night, honor the sacred, amplify rituals, enhance self care, or light your candle just because you want to! You might like to recite affirmations, write intentions, or meditate after lighting. Or maybe you just want to sit, watch the flame, and enjoy its warmth and scent. When lit, your candle creates a soy wax pool just three degrees above body temperature which can be massaged into the skin to soothe and moisturize. Made with GMM-free soy wax, it is a pure source of Omega-6 fatty acids and antioxidants which essentially become skin food when used in this manner, so go ahead and dip into that goodness and smooth it onto your skin! The essential beauty of basking in the benefits of this seasons labor is enhanced by this candle’s heady key notes of lavender, patchouli, and lemongrass. FIRST HARVEST ART CARD A bounty emerges, sometimes more than we can possibly utilize in our own home and so we share with others and they with us. The beauty of exchange is at the heart of abundance. How we open is how we become opened by others. Let this moment of the year be of magical abundance and collective wealth. Place your art card where it might spark such things within your heart. INCENSE Warding off insects, honoring the sacred with pleasing aromas, cleansing or blessing one another or a space—these and numerous other reasons for burning incense have been practiced throughout the centuries. Herein you have been given a selection of incense tested by time and the human heart. Utilize their aromas and purifying natures to enhance rituals, or make the hours of any given day more sacred. RITUAL BOOKLET Simple and straightforward instruction is provided in this booklet for casting your circle and performing rituals. Some pages contain questions which you can ask yourself as a means of opening the heart to explore fresh awareness. Others introduce activities for ritual celebration or meditation. Over time, you may develop or add your own words and rites to personalize this practice. In fact, the more you add from your own experience, the more powerful ritual becomes. LAMMAS Our labors in life produce more life. Not one thing exists alone. Each is essential. From the Latin word essentia, meaning essence, every human, creature, stone, plant, grain of wheat, possesses an intrinsic nature which is essential to the whole of life. It is with this knowledge that we honor and celebrate Lammas. A CHRONICLE Lammas is the first harvest of the season. Largely observed on August 1st or 2nd, the word lammas has its origins in the Old English word hlāfmæsse, meaning loaf mass. Hence the ritual of bread baking to honor the wheat harvest at this time of year. While not one of the year’s most boisterous celebrations, its existence dates back many centuries, marking the approximate halfway point between the summer solstice and autumnal equinox. Though some of its first rituals are recorded in very early Anglo-Saxon texts outlining instructions for prayers of protection over newly harvested corn, specifically to keep the mice at bay. Ancient Celtic observance of this day signified the union of the Earth goddess with the Sun god, uniquely called Lughnasaid. This name for the day is not interchangeable with the title of Lammas, as some might believe. And there exist very different histories of celebrations for Lammas in England and Ireland, which have their roots in Christian customs. Some Scottish weddings in older times, which occurred on Lammas, could be broken off after a year without penalty or religious questions. Thus, the day of Lammas is not solely a pagan observance, but spans a multitude of beliefs. A CELEBRATION Lammas is a time to honor and observe the fruits of your labor—literally and figuratively. Perhaps this was the first time you planted a garden. Or maybe you’ve labored in other ways to sustain yourself or your family. Whatever transitions which may have occurred during the first part of your year, this is a moment for reflecting upon the successes. Harvests of all kinds occur about this time, so it’s easy to find local crops to fulfill your celebration’s needs: bake bread using local grains; gather herbs to dry for use during the rest of the year; pick or buy local fruits to freeze or make preserves; or collect seeds to dry and plant next year. Lammas is also a time to honor others for the sacrifices they have made on our behalf. A first harvest of the season is the perfect time to share the abundance of what you have through baking and gifting, hosting a small feast, or lavishly preparing something for your beloved or someone you don’t even know, simply for the pleasure of sharing. THE LAMMAS ALTAR Consider setting up a space outdoors, if possible, including any items representative of the harvest. Wherever you set it, an altar is an intimate expression of your experience with this celebration. There are no rules, only suggestions based on those who have come before us: • A richly colored cloth which reminds you of ripe fruit or golden fields. • Items to represent all the elements—earth, air, fire, water. Some soil, a feather, your candle, and a small bowl of water are simple selections. • Herbs ready for drying. Think sage, thyme, rosemary, oregano, or parsley. • Stalks of wheat or corn, perhaps tied with a ribbon of an earthy shade. • Fresh raspberries, blackberries or blueberries. • Stones of topaz, slate, quartz, jasper, or lodestone. • Personal spiritual items such as deities, amulets, talismans, or images. • Something to represent both the feminine and masculine. Above all, make it a delight to gather items and create your altar.