To aid the self-dedicated Wiccan Priest and self-dedicated Wiccan Priestess, here is the ritual script for the Samhain Sabbat of The Tree, as slightly adapted for our coven. Additional sources consulted included Matriarchy Among the Picts, Myths of the Norsemen, The Book of Hallowe’en, Poetic Edda, Reincarnation, The God of the Witches, The Silver Bough, Witches, Witchcraft…The Religion, Songs of Saxon Witchcraft, Buckland’s Complete Book of Witchcraft, The Magick of Candle Burning (Wicca Candle Magick), Norse Magic, The Complete Book of Amulets & Talismans, Falcon Feather & Valkyrie Sword, The Wicca Garden, The Law Enforcement Guide to Wicca, and Wicca: The Complete Craft.
(The Erecting the Temple is performed. Priest and Priestess kiss. The outer edge of the Circle may be decorated with spruce cones, small pumpkins, ect. Let there be barley cookies in animal and human shapes for the Ceremony of Cakes and Ale. On the Altar rests the Priest’s antlered helmet. There may also be flowers on the Altar. Priestess wears silver Moon circlet. Witches may wear silver or copper neck torcs, necklaces of jet or amber beads, silver Hercules’ club/Thor’s hammer pendants, or silver pentagram pendants.)
Priestess: “As Summer ends so begin the dark months of winter. All praise be to Freya, and to Frey her Brother.”
All: “All praise!”
Priestess (raising Seax): “Gracious Goddess, we thank you for the joys of Summer; for the crops, the harvest; for Life, for Love. Freya, Great Mother of Magick, Queen of the Valkyries, you who have gathered to you your share of the fallen heroes, we salute you.”
All: “Hail!”
(Priestess puts Seax in its sheath then takes up antlered helmet and holds it high.)
Priestess: “The year Wheel has turned, the harvest has come again. Once more I stand before the Barrow, at the portals that divide the Worlds. We are shielded by the Mighty Smith, wielder of club and hammer, by the Great Goddess, and by the powerful night-riding Disir. The footsteps of our ancestors, of our sisters and brothers, rustle in the fallen leaves. The whispering winds carry their voices to us. Here before the door at summer’s end, do I hold the symbol of Frey the Mighty One, Lord of Life and of Death. As he will guard us and guide us through the months to come, so will his servant, our Priest, here.”
(Priest kneels and Priestess places antlered helmet on his head.)
“Now do you represent the Lord. For him you speak; for him you act. Lead us, we ask you, through the hardships that lie ahead.”
(She then raises him and kisses him.)
Priest (standing out from the Altar in the God Position): “As Lord of Life, of Love, of Death, would I bid you have no fear. Behold, I am He who is at the beginning and end of Time. The spark of life is within me, as is the darkness of death. Lord-dweller in the Sea, you hear the thunder of my hooves upon the shore and see the fleck of foam as I pass by. My Strength is such that I might lift the World to touch the Stars. Yet gentle am I, ever, as the Lover. I am He who must be faced at the appointed hour, yet I am not to be feared. Death is but the beginning of Life, and I am He who turns the Key. With the Goddess at my side I shall know always there is Light. I shall know always there is hope of Life to come. I will lead you happily as I lead those who have gone before, yet are here now. So be it!”
All: “So be it!”
(Priest and Priestess kiss. Priestess then leads the others, one by one, around the Circle, to embrace the Priest.)
(When all are back to their places Priest replaces antlered helmet on the Altar.)
Priest: “Now is the time for celebration, to give us strength, to give us joy. Our loved ones return from Drëun, the Summerland, to join with us. This is Ancestor Night, the Feast of the Dead, the strongest night for communication with those who now dwell over the Rainbow Bridge. The door has been opened that we may know we are not forgotten. May this turn of the Wheel reunite us with our brothers and sisters once more. All those who wish us well are welcomed within this Circle. Let us greet them, and one another. Let us feast and make merry. Let us remember those who have gone on to the domains of the Mighty Ones. That they may return briefly to revel with us is good, as all souls must return to the cauldron of rebirth. This night is for merriment ‘ere the hardships of winter enfold us. Be happy all. So be it!”
All: “So be it!”
(Then shall follow the Ceremony of Cakes and Ale followed by feasting and merriment.)
Witches’ Brew
- 1 apple
- 1 orange
- 1 lemon
- 2 Tbsp whole allspice
- 2 Tbsp whole cloves
- 4 cinnamon sticks
Slice fruit into rings. Don’t worry about peels, seeds, cores, ect. Place all ingredients into a crock-pot. Fill with water. Simmer on low. Refill with water as needed. Be careful not to let the water get too low.
(Simmer during Samhain-tide as an offering to dead loved ones. Recipe from a dead loved one.)
Image: Moose Hunters’ Camp by Albert Bierstadt (1830-1902)
Lincoln Green 