Polytheist Ceremonial Magic: Opening and Closing a Temple

[ecosophia]

Several previous entries here have covered the basic practices of ceremonial magic in a form reworked for those who follow polytheist faiths. We've discussed the Lesser Ritual of the Pentagram, which is the most basic ritual working in Golden Dawn-style ceremonial magic, and the Middle Pillar exercise, which is the basic GD method of spiritual development and inner alchemy. I've heard from a number of people who've been practicing those regularly since then. That being the case, it's time to move on to the next piece of the system: the rituals for opening and closing a temple. 

Please note that a magical temple in this sense isn't a building set aside for magical work. I wish I had one of those, but that's kind of hard to afford on a writer's income! A magical temple is a space temporarily set aside for magical practice. It can be any convenient place. Before the temple is opened and after it's closed, the space can be used for any other purpose. (For example, I use my study as a temple space; the rest of the time, it's where I write.) It needs to be large enough that you can set up an altar in the center and then walk around it without bumping into anything. The altar can be any flat surface at more or less waist height at least 18 inches square -- a folding tray works very well. You can cover it with the altar cloth of your choice, or leave it bare. 

You'll also need two pieces of hardware to go on the altar. One of them is something in which you can burn incense; the other is something to hold a small amount of water. These can be as ornate or as simple as you like. I practiced for years with a simple pottery wineglass and a plain wooden incense burner. Put the altar in the middle of the space, with the four sides square to the four points of the compass -- if you have any question where east is, get a magnetic compass and find out. When you stand at the west side of the altar and face east, the vessel of water is on the left side of the altar and the incense burner is on the right. 

Once you're set up, you're ready to begin. As with the other polytheist ceremonial magic rituals I've posted here, the marker (PATRON) in the text should be replaced by the name of your own patron deity.  Here are the rituals:  

Opening the Temple

First, stand at the west side of the altar, facing east. Raise your right hand, palm forward, to salute the divine powers you will summon during the ritual, and say, “In the name of (PATRON), and in the presence of all the gods and goddesses, I prepare to open this temple.”

Second, perform the complete Lesser Invoking Ritual of the Pentagram to call magical energies into the space.

Third, standing at the west of the altar, facing east, pick up the vessel of water in both hands and raise it up. Say: “Let this temple and all within it be purified with water.” Go to the east, dip the fingers of one hand into the water, and flick droplets of water three times to the east. Go around to the south, and do the same thing; repeat the same action in the west and the north. Return to the east, face east, lift up the vessel of water in both hands, and say: “The temple is purified.” Then go back to the west of the altar and return the vessel of water to its place.

Fourth, standing at the west of the altar facing east, pick up the incense—if you are burning stick incense, just the stick is fine; if you are using cone or loose incense, lift up the burner in both hands.  Say, “Let this temple and all within it be consecrated by fire.” Go to the east and with one hand, wave smoke from the incense three times to the east. Go around to the south, and do the same thing; repeat the same action in the west and the north. Return to the east, face east, lift up the incense in both hands, and say: “The temple is consecrated.” Then go back to the west of the altar and return the incense to its place.

Fifth, starting from the west of the altar, walk clockwise in a circle around the altar, passing the east four times. Each time you pass the east, bow your head in respect. This is the ancient and very widespread Pagan rite of circumambulation, still practiced in many polytheist societies around the world. As you walk, imagine your movements creating a whirlpool of energy that draws in magical power from the far reaches of the universe to your magical temple. When you have passed the east four times, circle back to the west of the altar and face east.

Sixth, spread your arms wide and say, “(PATRON), my patron god(dess), I ask you to bless and consecrate this temple of high magic, and aid me with your power in all the work I perform herein.” Pause for a time, and concentrate on sensing your patron deity’s presence and power surrounding you.

Seventh, still standing at the west of the altar facing east, raise your right hand again, palm forward, and say, “In the name of (PATRON), and in the presence of all the gods and goddesses, I proclaim this temple duly open.” This completes the ritual.

Closing the Temple: 

First, standing at the west of the altar, facing east, pick up the vessel of water in both hands and raise it up. Say: “Let this temple and all within it be purified with water.” Repeat the process of purifying the temple with water, exactly as you did in the third step of the opening ritual. Then go back to the west of the altar and return the vessel of water to its place.

Second, standing at the west of the altar facing east, pick up the incense and say, “Let this temple and all within it be consecrated by fire.” Repeat the process of consecrating the temple with fire, exactly as you did in the fourth step of the opening riutal. Then go back to the west of the altar and return the incense to its place.

Third, starting from the west of the altar, walk counterclockwise in a circle around the altar, passing the east four times. Each time you pass the east, bow your head in respect. As you walk, imagine your movements dispersing the whirlpool of energy you created earlier and sending the intention of your working out into the universe to accomplish your will. When you have passed the east four times, circle back to the west of the altar and face east.

Fourth, spread your arms wide and say, “ In the name of (PATRON), I set free any spirits who may have been imprisoned by this ceremony. Depart unto your rightful habitations in peace, and peace be between us.” Pause for a moment, and then perform the complete Lesser Banishing Ritual of the Pentagram. 

Fifth, standing at the west of the altar facing east, raise your right hand again, palm forward, and say, “In the name of (PATRON), and in the presence of all the gods and goddesses, I proclaim this temple duly closed.” This completes the ritual.

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Okay, now you've got the rituals; what do you do with them? 

First of all, of course, you practice them until you can do the complete opening and closing ritual from memory, just as you did with the Lesser Ritual of the Pentagram and the Middle Pillar exercise. (If you haven't practiced those two rituals enough to do them from memory, go back and work on them until you can do that, before you get to work in this ritual.) 

Once you've got the opening and closing rituals by heart and can do them with intention, the fun begins. The opening ritual establishes a space in which you can do serious magical practice, and the closing ritual disperses any unused energies and makes the space safe for other purposes. They're the two slices of bread on which you build your magical sandwich. The filling? That's up to you. It can be spellwork, it can be spiritual exercises, it can be active imagination aka scrying in the spirit vision aka Pathworking, it can be whatever kind of magical working you happen to want to get up to. Doing the work in an open temple gives you a safe, cleansed, magically empowered space for any work you want to do, and closing the temple afterwards settles things down afterwards. 

There are other ritual elements that get plugged into the ritual structure we're developing here, and we'll get into those as we proceed. For now, try doing this at least once a week; if you don't have anything else to do between the opening and the closing, try doing the Middle Pillar exercise in the space between the opening and the closing. 

Have fun, and we'll go further in due time. 

Comments

Thanks for this

[(Anonymous)]

This is great! I was in need of a detailing of the purposes of opening and closing rituals, although i am following the regular GD curriculum. I have a question, though: can the water for cleansing be plain tap water, or should it be holy water? (I would bless it with the instructions in Circles of Power, of course).

JP.

Re: Thanks for this

[ecosophia]

You can do it either way. These days I normally use filtered drinking water, for what that's worth.

[(Anonymous)]

Thank you! Is this compatible as-is with the Heathen rituals?

[ecosophia]

Yes, but there's also a more specifically Heathen version in the works; I'll check with my coauthor and see if he's willing to see that released here. You can also modify the ritual given here with a phrase such as "In the name of the Aesir and the Vanir," or something similar, in place of the invocation of the patron deity.

Incense

[lunarapprentice]

What considerations are there in the selection of incense?

Re: Incense

[ecosophia]

Depends on the traditions of the pantheon you're working with, and on your own preferences. If it burns and produces smoke, it'll provide the essential symbolism. If you're doing a magical working in the temple that will call on, say, one of the planets, you can of course burn a planetary incense, and the same principle applies more generally.

[(Anonymous)]

Is outdoors an acceptable place for this too? If so does it matter about incence being blown away?

[ecosophia]

Yes and no. Just be sure you have a reasonable amount of privacy; I've done workings outdoors in private places, and the magical effect of the incense remains even though the physical smoke doesn't.

LRM

[(Anonymous)]

Hello,

What is the equivalent of opening and closing a temple in hermetic magic taught in LRM?

Thanks

Re: LRM

[ecosophia]

You'll find the ritual for opening and closing a temple in my book Circles of Power, which is basically the sequel to Learning Ritual Magic. The actions are the same but the words are somewhat different.

[(Anonymous)]

At the risk of being pedantic...
"Go to the east, dip the fingers of one hand into the water, and flick droplets of water three times to the east. Go around to the south, and do the same thing; repeat the same action in the west and the north. Return to the east, face east, lift up the vessel of water in both hands, and say: “The temple is purified.”"
1) Does it matter if I go to the east side around the north or south of the altar? (My guess is always clockwise during the opening and CCW during the closing, but best to ask the master!)
2) When I go to the south, do I flick the drops to the south etc. or do I always flick to the east?
3) At the end, do I return the water to its place before or after I return to the west side of the altar?
RPC

[ecosophia]

1) Always go clockwise around the altar except in the reverse circumambulation during the closing.

2) Flick the drops in the direction you're facing -- south to the south, etc.

3) After.

[amritarosa]

Hello there, and thanks for this.

My question is about the water. Could you comment on the difference between adding salt to the water prior to purification, and using plain water?

I'm going with plain water as instructed here to feel what the difference between that and using salt water is, but I'm wondering if there's more symbolic or traditional/practical information to consider.

I was once told not to use plain water in circle for purification because "things" could get in it that the salt prevents. The plain water feels bright and lively when I use it, though. I haven't noticed any psychic contagion.

The salt water strikes me as being more "bitter water" to plain water's "sweet"- potable and what you'd water plants with, compared to non potable, so perhaps the salt water more antiseptic? Then again salt-water is more like amniotic fluid, with the birth associations, and links to the Great Sea. Certainly there's some good material for meditation here!

thanks!
Bonnie

[ecosophia]

Salt water's useful when you need to clear away serious nonphysical crud -- if you splash it around, the salt crystallizes in the air as microdroplets evaporate, and soak up any stray etheric energy. If you're in a fairly clean space, though, fresh water is as good. The symbolic dimension is certainly worth reflecting on as well!

[amritarosa]

Thanks!

elements

[dfr1973]

Chiming in, as this thought has occurred to me as well. The trad I trained in would use salt as symbol for Earth element, so salt water covers the two, while incense covers both Fire and Air elements. When I read over it, my thought was, "Missing Earth element, other than that it sounds quite a bit like I was taught."

Just the proverbial two cents' worth of opinion.