“To me more dear than in days of old was ever maiden to man; but no one of gods or elves will grant that we both together should be.” – Skirnismal
“Frey’s love-sickness is the start and finish of the eddaic poem Skirnismal, which is one of several northern versions of the tale of the lost lover who represents the spirit of vegetation…Even as late as this, Snorri (who died in 1241) unwittingly included memories of the myth’s original fertility associations when he named the marriage rendezvous of the two lovers as Barrey (or Barri) which means ‘among the corn’.” – Brian Branston, The Lost Gods of England
“Those old Beserkers reverenced their Alruna, or Holy Women, on earth and worshipped goddesses in heaven, where, according to Scandinavian belief, gods and goddesses sat together in a hall without distinction of sex.” – Matilda Joslyn Gage
“Well, what can be deeper than love?” – Raymond Buckland
Something that tends to be misunderstood since the success of Neo-paganism, is the Wiccan Hand-Fasting. Originally, these were completely unlike secular wedding ceremonies where there is often a large guest list of extended family and coworkers, and the bigger the budget the better everyone is supposed to believe the newlyweds are really sincere in their love for one another. Instead, the Seax Wica have their own marriage ceremony, relevant to the personal lives of the Witches involved, the life of their coven, and possibly whatever other covens their coven may be in communication with. As there are no oaths of secrecy of any kind required by initiates among the Seax Wica, how public the couple chooses to be about their vows to one another is entirely up to them. Those couples who choose to fill out the required paperwork to be married in the eyes of the State, or to have an additional, more public ceremony that extended family may attend, are ideally free to do so, but nothing in Witchcraft requires it. The Seax Wica Hand-Fasting, made as it is in the couple’s Witch Names, and witnessed only by the Lord and Lady, their Brothers and Sisters in the Craft, and any other guests the couple and coven might decide to include in the occasion, is a far more private matter than the wedding ceremonies of most other religions, or their secular equivalents. Here, then, is the Hand-Fasting Rite of The Tree, as slightly adapted for our coven.
(This rite is best performed during the waxing of the Moon. The Altar may be decked with flowers, and flowers strewn about the Circle. The couples’ silver rings rest on the Altar. The Erecting the Temple is performed. Priest and Priestess kiss.)
Priest: “There are those in our midst who seek the bond of Handfasting.”
Priestess: “Let them be named and brought forward.”
Scribe: “…(Name)…and…(Name)…”
(Witches come forward to stand facing Priest and Priestess before the Altar.)
Priestess: “Are you…(Name)…?”
Groom/Bride: “I am.”
Priestess: “And what is your desire?”
Groom/Bride: “To be made one with…(Name)…, in the eyes of the Gods and of the Seax Wica.”
Priest: “Are you…(Name)…?”
Bride/Groom: “I am.”
Priest: “And what is your desire?”
Bride/Groom: “To be made one with…(Name)…, in the eyes of the Gods and of the Seax Wica.”
(Priestess takes up Sword and raises it high.)
Priestess: “Frey and Freya, here before you stand two of your folk. Witness, now, that which they have to declare.”
(Priestess replaces Sword on Altar; takes her Seax and holds the point of it to Groom/Bride’s chest.)
Priestess: “Repeat after me: ‘I,…(Name)…do come here of my own free will, to seek the Partnership of…(Name)…I come with all love, honor, and sincerity, wishing only to become One with her/him whom I love. Always will a strive for…(Name)…’s happiness and welfare. Her/his life will I defend before my own. May the Seax be plunged into my heart should I not be sincere in all that I declare. All this I swear in the names of Frey and Freya. May they give me the strength to keep my vows! So be it!’”
(Priestess lowers her Seax. Priest then raises his Seax and, in turn, holds it to the breast of the Bride/Groom.)
Priest: “Repeat after me: “I,…(Name)…, do come here of my own free will, to seek the Partnership of…(Name)…I come with all love, honor, and sincerity, wishing only to become One with him/her whom I love. Always will I strive for …(Name)…’s happiness and welfare. His/her life will I defend before my own.* May the Seax be plunged into my heart should I not be sincere in all that I declare. All this I swear in the names of Frey and Freya. May they give me the strength to keep my vows. So be it!’”
(Priest lowers his Seax. Priestess takes up the two rings and sprinkles and censes them both. She then exchanges the rings between the couple, who hold them as the Priest speaks.)
Priest: “As the grass of the fields and the trees of the woods bend together under the pressures of the storm, so too must you both bend when the wind blows strong. But know that as quickly as the storm comes, so equally quickly may it leave. Yet will you both stand, strong in each other’s strength. As you give love; so will you receive love. As you give strength; so will you receive strength. Together you are as one; apart you are as nothing.”
Priestess: “Know you that no two people can be exactly alike; no more can any two people fit together, perfect in every way. There will be times when it will seem hard to give and to love. But see then your reflection as in a woodland pool: When the image you see looks sad or angered, Then is the time for you to smile and to love, (for it is not fire that puts out fire). In return will the image in the pool smile and love. So change your anger for love, and tears for joy. It is no weakness to admit a wrong; more is it a sign of strength and a sign of learning.”
Priest: “Ever love, help, and respect each other, And then know truly that you are One in the eyes of the Gods, and of the Seax Wica.”
All: “So be it!”
(Witches place rings on one another’s hands and kiss. The couple then moves about the Circle to be congratulated by the others. Then shall follow the Ceremony of Cakes and Ale, followed by feasting and merriment.)
*Always feel free to rewrite the Hand-Fasting Rite as needed to make the vows more meaningful to the couple in question—but at a minimum, for handfastings where a bride is pregnant, or where the man and woman being handfasted desire to conceive, it would probably be wise to omit (or otherwise alter) this particular vow in the woman’s oath.
Wiccan Handfasting Cake
- 1 cup butter
- 1 cup sugar
- 1/2 cup honey
- 5 eggs
- 2 cups flour
- 2 1/2 teaspoons lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon rosewater
- pinch of dried yarrow flowers
- powdered sugar
In a large mixing bowl, cream softened butter and sugar. Add honey and mix well. Add eggs, mixing well after each egg. Add flour, mixing well after each cup. Add lemon juice, rosewater and yarrow. Mix well. Grease a 9x3x5 inch loaf pan and pour in the batter. Bake the cake in a preheated 350 degree F oven for one hour and 15 minutes. Remove from oven and let it stand on a rack for 20 minutes before un-molding. Sprinkle powdered sugar on top of the cake just before serving.
(This recipe is my adaptation of a recipe provided by Gerina Dunwich in Candlelight Spells, 1988. Rose and yarrow are both “herbs of love” in the Saxon tradition of Witchcraft. Lemon is, according to Charles Godfrey Leland in The Gospel of the Witches, 1899, symbolic of the Moon. Lemon is also an ingredient in traditional Seax Wican Dandelion Wine. Still looking for the name of the illustrator for this image. If any of our readers happens to know, please leave a comment below.)
Lincoln Green 