Ash
by Blayze

Sink your awareness down into the earth. Become aware of your breathing. Enter a trance state (using usual breathing techniques…)

You find yourself standing at the foot of a large hill - all around you is darkness pierced only by the brilliant light of the stars… twinkling like jewels embroidered into the velvet cloak of the night sky above you.

By the light of the stars you can see that a path winds in a spiral about the hill. You move to the left and begin to walk along the path - ever twisting and spiralling to the left. You begin to feel the ground slope beneath your feet as you slowly walk the spiral path. Your awareness shifts with each turn as you sink deeper and deeper into trance.

You are aware moonlight growing brighter as you near the summit of the hill and you realise that the moon is rising to hang just above the hill itself. 

Bathed in the moonlight is a tall, ancient stone that stands in the centre of a flat plateau. The spiral path winds ever towards the stone in the centre, one half of which is in shadow, the other illuminated by the silver light of the moon.

Gradually you find yourself walking in a ever tightening spiral as you move closer and closer to the stone… always and ever moving to the left. At last you come face to face to with the towering and ancient weathered rock. By the light of the moon you see that there is an image carved upon its surface… A straight line runs from an inverted V at the base to the top of the stone. Halfway up the line you see five horizontal lines extending to the right. This is the Ogham Nion - the Ash carved into the single upthrust spur of living rock.

You feel the power awakening in the stone and sigil as the moon continues to rise. The Ogham stave glows and you run your hand along its length. You feel the energy tingle through you from the tips of your fingers to your feet upon the earth. Suddenly everything shifts and you find that you have passed through the stone into another realm. Mist envelopes you and you experience a moment of disorientation, but you can now feel the stone standing at your back. 

Mist surrounds you. You can feel solid earth beneath your feet. You begin to walk forward and as you do the mist begins to move and shred away. Between the mist you see rays of dappled sunlight illuminating patches of bare earth. You are aware of trees of great girth and height surrounding you. You look up and see mighty Ash trees growing up into the sky. You are in a forest of trees and bare earth. Nothing grows beneath the gnarled trunks and their roots go deep into the ground.

You see that there is a path that winds between the trees and you follow it by the light of the sunlight that slips through the canopy of the forest. 

This is ancient forest, you feel that you are the first to tread here yet you also feel the power of the place crackle in the air. You keep walking along the path and you see begin to look at the trees carefully. You see that beneath some of them are branches lying on the ground. Some of the trees are also cleft in two by lightening strikes. You notice that one of the lightening struck trees has a long, straight but leafy branch lying beneath it. Pick up this branch. You feel the forces of nature begin to gather around you and you continue to walk along the path.

Eventually you come to a roughly circular clearing. In the centre of the clearing is a fire pit surrounded by stones and on the opposite side of the clearing is a stone altar one mightly slab resting upon two stone uprights. Go to the altar begin to strip the leaves from the branch. Place them in a neat pile upon the altar. Then take  your branch and stand it the centre of the fire pit. 

Go to the edge of the clearing once more and begin to gather small Ash twigs both green and those that have fallen upon the ground. 

When you have enough to fill the fire pit, take them to centre and arrange them around the base of the upright branch.

Go to the altar and remove your clothes and all of your possession. Place them underneath the altar. Now take some of the Ash leaves and knot them into your hair. 

Still you feel the power that is crackling around you. 

Stand before the altar and raise your arms up to the sky. Like the Ash you take a stance of going deep into the earth and raising your branches to the sun and sky. The Ash connects the three worlds of physical, mental and spiritual being, magically it was born from the sea, stands upon the earth and reaches the sky. It is the past, present and future and rebirth on all three levels.

Find the balance of the three principles within you, physical, mental and spiritual. Find that point of peace within and without.

But ahhhh, the ash is connectedness of all but it is also the checker of the peace. You have reached a point at the three levels of being where you need to move forward and leave the comfort of challenges accomplished, knowledge gained and spirit calmed . It is time do battle with yourself, take the understanding and break through to the other side, to another level where magic truly flows through you.

Think about what you have acheived and what you wish to achieve in the future.

Begin to move around the clearing in a circular dance... start off slow and feel the resistance within you and around you. Own it and dance it. 

Break through it as you dance faster and faster. You are spear unleashed, the recoil of the bow, the pull of the oar through the towering waves. You are the witches besom ridden on the wind and the wand raised high in invokation and magic.

Dance around the clearing drawing the power in and letting it flow in and around you. Channel it, let it flow.

Begin to dance in a spiral towards the fire pit in the centre.

You become aware of clouds forming above you blotting out the sun. The winds rise around you whipping at your hair and tangling the leaves into more and more knots. You taste the ozone on the air and draw down the power of the lightening into the branch at the centre. Courter of the flash, able to be burnt when still green, you call the Lightening down into the Ash at the centre of the fire pit, calling the lightening home with a gesture.

You hear the rumble of thunder all around you and watch as a single zig zag of lightening ignites the twigs at the bottom of the branch. 

You earth the energies that spin around you into the ground. 

Watch as the fire burns the twigs down to ash of Ash. The branch burns at the base but the main part of it is not yet consumed. Pull the branch out of the centre of the fire pit and holding the flaming brand go to edge of the clearing and draw a circle with the fire. 

Go back to the centre and raise the branch high. You feel the first drops of rain from the summoned storm. The rain becomes heavier and the tip of the branch smolders and then is extinguished. Blackened on one end. A staff of the elements, summoner of rains to cleanse the land and wash the body. 

Once again you dance around the circle, this time cooled by the rain, tempering you have survived the checking of the peace. 

Slowly the rain stops, the clouds disperse and fire ring is only a line of ashes. The sun shines down upon you and dries your skin.

Take your staff and go to the altar and make a pillow of ash leaves upon it. Climb up onto the altar and lie down with your head upon the leaves. Place the staff along the length of the your body. 

Now the inertia is overcome it is the time for prophecy. 

Sleep upon the leaves and stone and let your body, mind and spirit become one once more. Let images and ideas form within you.

You become aware of a light weight upon your brow. You focus your new awareness upon it and realise that it is an Ash seed winged and key shaped.

Focus the image of the prophecy you wish to come to pass into the ash key. 

When it is full, remove it from your brow and sit up. You are suffused with a feeling of love.

Climb down off the altar and cup the seed in your hands.

Blow upon it and release it the winds of the world to carry your prophecies to fulfillment.

It is now time to leave this place. Take up your clothes and possessions. If there is anything you feel you now need to leave behind, do so, this is a protected place.

Put on your clothes and walk to the path that you entered from.

Slowly walk along the path between the towering Ash trees. 

Finally you return to standing stone,  but this time a spiral is carved into its surface. Move to the stone and begin to trace the spiral as it twists to the right. You become aware of mist forming around you once more and again a feeling of disorientation. 

As the mist begins to clear you find that you are once again standing upon the hillside under the fading light of the setting moon. By the light of the stars you begin to walk the spiral path out from the centre, ever moving to the right. You begin to feel the path sloping downwards as you tread the spiral path around the hill. As you walk you feel yourself becoming heavier and heavier, you begin to be aware of other sounds…. Slowly you reach the bottom of the hill and sit at its base. You become aware of the feel of your body, the shape of your skin and your breath. You feel the blood flowing through your veins . You become aware of the sounds around you… 

When you are back… open your eyes.