Heathen Kinship Blessings

The Greatest Blessing of Yule    (Read about the Origins of Yule)

Materials needed: Somewhere to burn the wreath, the wreath, paper for new year’s resolutions, boar for swearing the oaths upon, the altar candles, an implement to light them, ale and mead both.

Hallowing:

1. The Hammer Signing
2. Adoration of Sunna - midnight
3. The Hammer Rite

"This stead is hallowed for our work here tonight. As the god Heimdall wards the Bifrost Bridge, so is this stead warded against all unholy wights and ways. Let all true and good folk now gathered, be here of their own free will, in full frith and grith."

Lay (Reading): "...Yule is the holiest feast and greatest blessing of the Teutonic year. It begins on December 20 and continues for 12 nights, the twelfth being New Year's Eve or Yule Proper. These are the Wigh-Nights representing the culmination of the 12 months of the year. It is a space of time that is set apart between the old year and the new. This is the time in which the greatest workings are wrought and the greatest wyrds turned. The Gods and Goddesses are also called the "Yule-Wights," for their might is at its peak at this time. During the nights of Yule, the doors between the worlds are open. The "Wild Hunt" and Perchtenlauf both ride during these nights. The dead walk freely in the land of the living. For this reason, we give honor and worship to our kin who have gone before us, for they stand unseen about our hearth…"

Rede: "This midnight upon the Yule we are gathered together as in the nights of yore, to greet the sun at her lowest stead, and to honor all our own forebears who dwell in the halls of Harr and Hel. We call upon them all to make ripe their might and main in our lives. We call upon them all...the holy gathering...living as a whole as is Wotan's Law..."

"Sunna sinks down into the dark sea, worl and wind howl outside the walls, now Hulda shakes out her snowy bed, now are the life fires hid in yew night from Thrymheim, Skadhi, Shadow black, skis. Wotan's gray steed leads ghosts on the wind, trolls fare from cliff-halls. Harry from caves the etins arising from ice and stone. Ye who would watch this night, ward ye well!"

"Sunna sinks down into the dark sea..."
(He/she lays hands upon the holy boar and says)

"But Gullinbursti gleams bright in the hall
Well are we warded who watch this night
by boar's tusk thrusting, by Thunar's strength.
In this high hall stands all holy kin,
From sib-roots to branches runs hidden fire.
Thunar's stark hammer this hall has hallowed.
Alfs and dises the dark and light kin
Frey and Freya share now frith and might!"

(He/she lights the Yule Candles. First the Black, then the Red and finally the White)

"We kindle the yew-flame to year's Yule-night!
Burning ever bright in the minds of our Folk..."

Call:

"Wotan, we are awed by thy craft"
All: "We give thee welcome"
"Tiw, we stay true to thee forever"
All: "We give thee welcome"
"Balder, thy brightness & boldness guides us"
All: "We give thee welcome"
"Frigga, thy fruit & wisdom keeps us all"
All: "We give thee welcome"
"Idunna, thine apples strengthen our souls"
All: "We give thee welcome"
"Thunar, thy thunder wards our stead"
All: "We give thee welcome"
"Freya, we get freedom from thy frolic"
All: "We give thee welcome"
"Frey, from thee we get a harvest of frith"
All: "We give thee welcome"

"Again we call to you in all your names, be among us here this midnight as the year reaches its depth and Sunna stands sunken to her lowest stead."

All: "Hail all the Gods, Hail all the Goddesses, Hail all the holy ones who dwell together!"

Loading: "We give you the gifts of our works woven and blended with the might and main of the mead. It lends us...gods and folk together...help in our striving towards the shining plain where the worlds and wights dwell in wholeness. The year has come into its depth of darkness...the Great Dragon rises along the deepest roots of the World Tree...may his sight find us not wanting in wisdom."

Drinking: At this time all partake of the mead from the horn.

Blessing: The harrow is sprinkled with the holy liquid while saying:
"The blessings of all the Gods and all the Goddesses of our folk be upon us."

Then the Speaker sprinkles and blesses the gathered folk with the following words:

"The blessing of all the Gods and all the Goddesses of our folk be upon you."

Giving: "Wotan, Tiw, Balder, Frigga, Idunna, Thunar, Frey, Freya and to all the Gods and Goddesses of our folk, to you we give this gift."

The Lighting of the Yule Wreath/Holy Blot:

Setting: (Harrow in standard fashion with a vessel of beer or ale with a single red candle and the Yule Wreath at the center. Best performed outside, as we will burn the wreath.)

(Speaker draws the mystic circle with the incense)

"...I know that I hung on a windy tree,
night all nine
wounded by the gar given to Odhinn,
myself to myself
on that tree of which no man knoweth
from what roots it rises
They dealt me no bread nor drinking horn,
I looked down;
I took up the runes, roaring I took them,
and fell back again.
This holy day, from dawn to dusk,
myself to myself I give
and from dusk to dawn anew,
Hroptr has my mind all whole,
I give myself to the wondrous rune-work...in
this hour and throughout the day...
I SHALL WORK MY WILL..."
"...So shall it be!..."

(Speaker faces the north in the form of a cross or Odin's Eye, and says:)

"Now are Harr's sayings said in Harr's hall,
helpful to the son's of men
but of no help to etins' sons;
Hail, the one who speaks them
Hail the one who knows them!
Gain, the one who gets them,
Hail, those who hear them!"

"By the Bristles of the Boar!
Jolnir, lord of the Yule-Tide
We call upon thee to witness
These oaths of Yule
Jolaheit skaltu at heyra ok heit skullum ver at strengja!"

All: "Thou shalt hear the oaths of Yule and we shall bind our oaths!"

At this time the boar is lead around to the folk, and every true man and woman lays their hands upon the boar and gives a boast swearing

"By the Bristles of the Boar" and proclaiming their oaths or boasts, ending with the statement "To Jolnir and the oaths of Yule".

This is repeated until all oaths are completed.

Speaker then returns to the Harrow stone, and performs the sacral duty while proclaiming these words:
"To Jolnir and the Oaths of Yule!"

After the sacrament is performed each person comes up to the harrow and is blessed. The words and statement will be through the personal inspiration given to the Speaker.

The "holy fuel" is poured on the Yule Wreath in a traditional fashion. While pouring incant:

"Jolnir, ruling the Yule-tide,
We yearn for thy might,
That when the yarn of the year is yielded
Yare the year and yard to make!"

The red candle, signifying the old year passing away, is used to ignite the Yule Wreath, and while doing so, the speaker intones:

"In the year of this Yule
Are we tried and true:
We plight our troth
and truly pledge
To hold these oaths
To the Aesir and the Vanir
To kith and kin and hearth
In these flames of the year's passing
In the year of this Yule!"

All: "Hail the Aesir and the Vanir. Hail to the folk who by their deeds serve them. Hail to Victory in the coming year and Hail to Jolnir and to the oaths of Yule!"

As the wreath burns the Speaker says:
"Jolnir, ruling the Yule,
We yearn for thy might;
That when the yarn of the year is yielded
Yare the year in the yard was made!"

Leaving: “Thus the work of the old year is wrought. The work of the new year begins. Contemplate the flames in silence as they burn the wreath, carrying the oaths aloft. Gaze on the glowing embers… you may be moved to make prophecies for the coming year, or find new meanings for the year now past. As your meditations draw to a close, you may quietly move back, we will end our ritual rightly as the embers lose their glow.”

"Thus our work again is wrought. It renews our hearts to do deeds worthy and true…to strive towards our goals with mighty moods, wise words and trust in our own powers and abilities...ever holding our oaths to ourselves and to our Folk…(Onward to Sumble and) ONWARD TO ULTIMATE VICTORY!!!”

All: “HAIL TO VICTORY…HAIL TO VICTORY…HAIL TO VICTORY!!!”