On April 22th Pagan Federation International and Flame of Frith performed an online ritual to celebrate Earth Day 2020
A ritual to honour the earth. To offer her strength and healing and call upon peaceful powers around us to work with us side by side. Eight speakers in turn read the text.
Opening the sacred circle
1 May there be peace in the north.
2 May there be peace in the east.
3 May there be peace in the south.
4 May there be peace in the west.
5 May there be peace in our circle.
6 May there be peace all over the world.
7 May there be peace for our Earth Mother.
8 May there be peace for all living beings.
1 May there be peace in the hearts of people
2 Hand in hand, heart to heart we open this sacred circle.
All: Hail
Honouring the earth
3 Generous earth, giving earth,
fruitful earth, fertile earth,
serving earth, supporting earth,
restoring earth, refreshing earth.
4 Healing land, hallowed land,
Living land, laudable land,
Dazzling land, dignified land,
Careful land, creative land.
5 Beloved earth, land that I love!
Hail to the earth, hail to the land!
All: Hail to the earth, hail to the land!
Invocation
6 Hail fore-mothers, hail fore-fathers!
Hail gods and goddesses all!
Hail elves, dwarves and giants!
7 Hail land wights and water wights!
Spirits of woodlands and well,
cliff and coast, shallows and sea
Spirits of mountain and moor
forest and field, ditch and dyke.
8 All are welcome,
all wights inclined to honour frith!
All: Hail ancestors, hail spirits of nature!
2 Hail goddesses and gods!
All: Hail goddesses and gods!
1 Rhiannon, hail lady of the moon
3 Freyr and Freya, lord and lady of love and lust
4 Isis, hail lady of motherhood and medicine
5 Atecina, hail lady of spring and seasonality
6 Neftis, hail lady of home and hearth
7 Pan, hail lord fields and fertility
8 Flora, hail lady of flowers and fertility
1 Hail mothers of the earth!
2 Gaia
3 Terra
4 Hludana
5 Danu
6 Papatūānuku
7 Damkina
8 Pachamama
1 Aditi
2 Ninmah
All: Hail all earth mothers!
Prayer
3 Lessons learned long ago
lay hidden in the land.
Skills and soundness acquired by ancestors
teachings humankind could benefit from:
how to live healthy and in harmony
with sun and moon, with time and tide.
4 Awareness awakes in the well,
and by whirling waters
flows into all directions.
5 Balance and honesty rise
along the roots of mighty trees,
entrust through buds into the breeze.
The winds of change moves us,
further and forth into we-societies
6 Fuel and feed contributions
from concerned citizens,
joining benevolent forces.
7 Fuel and feed every voice
and every movement
caring for the earth, the living land.
8 To speak with Mahatma Gandhi words:
“The world has enough for everyone’s need,
but not enough for everyone’s greed.”
1 We honour our earth mother and stand in solidarity with all who hold sacred:
2 Flowery meadows, verdant forests,
flourishing wetlands, fresh and fertile waters.
3 All ways of life that honour and value the earth,
plants, animals and people over profit.
4 Free and safe drinking water as a right for all living beings.
Clean soil, clean air and clean water.
Growing back trees and forests.
Conscious consuming, recycle and replant.
5 Human rights, democracy and the rule of law.
The right for each individual to decide for him or herself.
Free natural and traditional cures.
6 “The theme for Earth Day 2020 is climate action. The enormous challenge — but also the vast opportunities — of action on climate change have distinguished the issue as the most pressing topic for the 50th anniversary.
Climate change represents the biggest challenge to the future of humanity and the life-support systems that make our world habitable.”
7 Many see the earth herself as a living entity, a conscious being. We know the effect of our lifestyle and what this further will cause, global warming and mass extinction, if we allow the present toxic system to continue to spread it’s venom.
8 Greta Thunberg said: “If one virus can wipe out the entire economy in a matter of weeks and shut down societies, then that is a proof that our societies are not very resilient. It also shows that once we are in an emergency, we can act and we can change our behaviour quickly.”We need to change our behaviour and choose a lifestyle with respect for our planet.
1 We all have our responsibility and we all have to be aware of our footprint. At the same time: never must we forget who’s footprints cause the most pollution. Continuously we have to hold governments and big polluters responsible and keep putting pressure on them in non-violent ways to take the proper action. The COVID-19 crisis shows how swift governments could make changes once forced and climate change is an emergency.
2 All mothers of the earth, all earth mothers: help us to hear our own heart, to hear the heartbeat of our planet and to listen to her voice. She speaks in many tongues and in many ways directly to our souls and mind. The minds of scientists who tell the truth, to all people who see humankind as part of our planet’s ecosystem in which there is respect and place for all living things.
3 Be creative, be courageous, be resilient!
4 Rise up for mother earth!
5 Rise up for climate justice!
6 Rice up for social justice!
7 Planet over profit!
All: Planet over profit!
8 Power to the people!
All: Power to the people!
Closing
1 May our thoughts and deeds
be a loving contribution
for all living beings.
2 May our thoughts and deeds
be a loving contribution
to generations yet to come.
3 Come, those who want to come.
Fare, those who want to fare.
Stay, those who want to stay.
Hail!
All: Hail!
Gaia -greek
Terra- roman
Hludana- germanic
Danu – celtic
Papatūānuku – māori
Damkina – sumerian
Pachamama- inka
Aditi – hindi
Ninmah -mesopotamian