ritual craft workshop handouts

8/2/2019 Ritual Craft Workshop Handouts

1/5

Ritual Craft - Section 1: Intent

Carly Lesser (Ketzirah) 2012 / 5772 www.peelapom.com

Ritual Craft 1: KavanahRitual Intent

The intention is the guiding force;

without its presence, a ritual becomes a shell of what it can be.The Art of Ritual

Defining Ritual

Joseph CampbellA ritual can be defined as the enactment of a myth. By

participating in a ritual, you are actually experiencing a

mythological life. And it's out of that participation that

one can learn to live spiritually.

Renee Beck and Sydney Barbara MetrickThis is the purpose of creative ritual--increasingbalance and connection within ourselves, with each

other, the world and with the larger rhythms and

energies that bring stability and light to our lives.The Art of Ritual, Pg 6

Zev ben Shimon HaleviThe essence of ritual is that something done in the physical realm is related to the

higher worlds...Ritual is the mode of formalizing action and giving it not only meaning,

but creating a contact with other worlds. The Art of Ritual, Pg 6

Ritual: Perspectives and Dimensions, Revised Edition by Catherine Bello Ritual portrays the idealized way that things in this world should be organized,

although participants are very aware that real life keeps threatening to collapse

into chaos and meaninglessness. Ritual, he suggests, is an opportunity to reflect

on the disjuncture between what is and what ought to be; it is a focusing lens

through which people can attempt to see, or argue for, what is significant in real

life

o Ritual as the means for acting out social conflicts in a series of activities throughwhich people experience the authority and flexibility of the social order, the

liminality and bonds of egalitarian communitas, and the passage from an old

place in the social order to a new status in a reconstituted order.

o myth and ritual are the means by which people keep forging some sense of thisunity of human experience.

o rituals are designed to arouse a passionate intensity, feelings of effervescence, inwhich individuals experience something larger than themselves. These emotional

responses cause people to identify their innermost selves with this sense of a

larger reality, what is, in effect, the collective community in a disguised form.

Types of Ritual for Intent

Community Building Cycles (Seasonal, Physical) Transitions (Beginning/Ending/ Merging) Adjuration (Requests, Healings, etc.) Worship

Four Elements of Ritual

1. Kavanah2. Aggadah

3.

Otot(Symbols)4. Peulot(Actions)


2/5

Ritual Craft - Section 2: AggadahCarly Lesser (Ketzirah) 2012 / 5772 www.peelapom.com

Ritual Craft 2: Aggadah Sacred Myths and Archetypes

A myth is a sacred narrative that explains

how the world and humanity came to be in their present form.

Alan Dundes, Sacred Narrative: Readings in the Theory of Myth (pg 1)

Defining Myth by Function

Lauri Honko (1932-2002)Finnish professor of folklore studies and comparative religion

The ritual acting out of myth implies the defence of the

world order; by imitating sacred exemplars the world is

prevented from being brought to chaos.-- The Problem of Defining Myth". Sacred Narrative: Readings in the Theory of Myth

(pg49)

Mircea Eliade (1907-1986)Romanian historian of religion, philosopher, writer and professor

Myth is to establish models for behavior and that myths

may also provide a religious experience. By telling or

reenacting myths, members of traditional societies detach themselves from the present

and return to the mythical age, thereby bringing themselves closer to the divine.Myth and Reality, Mircea Eliade

Joseph Campbell(1904-1987)American mythologist, writer and lecturer

1. Mystical: experiencing the awe of the universe2. Cosmological: explaining the shape of the universe3. Sociological: supporting and validating a certain social order4. Pedagogical: how to live a human lifetime under any circumstancesThe Power of Myth, Joseph Campbell

Types of MythMyths are public dreams, dreams are private myths.

Joseph Campbell, Myths to Live By

Origin

Eschatology /Destruction

Messianic andMilleniarian

Heroes Time and Eternity

Rebirth

Renewal Transformation Memory and

Forgetting

High Beings andCelestial Gods

_________________

_________________ _________________ _________________

Mythic Archetypes

Ancient patterns that exist in human consciousness-- Caroline Myss

Youth/ Maiden Damsel in Distress Hero Martyr Midwife Mother

Great Mother Lover Weaver Trickster or Fox Devil or Satan Crone / Sage

Mentor Warrior Prophet Seeker Fool _________________

Selected Sources: wikipedia.org/wiki/Archetype, www.myss.com/library/contracts/determine.asp, www.kohenet.org



3.



3/5

Ritual Craft - Section 3: Symbols


Ritual Craft 3: Otot Symbols and Correspondences

[Symbols] serve as a cultures consciousness and conscience. They

contain a peoples memory, its values, and its dreams.

Ellen Frankel, Encyclopedia of Jewish Symbols (pg xiii)

Symbols

Symbols are a key to a deeper story, myth, or reality

Elements of a Symbol

1. Character is cultural, not natural2. Interpretation is inexhaustive3. Significance is expressed within a social context4. Content is both emotional and cognitive5. Sum equals more than its parts

Ellen Frankel, Encyclopedia of Jewish Symbols (pg xiV)

Correspondences

A relation between sets in which each member of one set

is associated with one or more members of the otherMerriam Webster Dictionary

Elemental Correspondences from Zohar

Element Water Fire Air Earth

Direction South North East West

Archangel Michael Gabriel Uriel Raphael

Aspect Love Strength Balance Shekhinah

Patriarch Abraham Isaac Jacob David

Matriarch Sarah Rebekah Leah Rachel

Metal Silver Gold Bronze IronSource: http://telshemesh.org/earth/the_four_elements_and_the_four_seasons.html

Twelve Tribes Correspondences from Sefer Yetzirah (excerpted)

Month Sign Tribe (Ex) Tribe (Num) House

Nissan Aries Reuben Judah Life

Iyyar Taurus Simeon Issachar Property

Sivan Gemini Levi Zebulon AttractionTamuz Cancer Judah Reuben Ancestors

Av Leo Issachar Simeon Descendents

Elul Virgo Zebulon Gad HealthSource: Sefir Yetzirah, Aryeh Kaplan translation

Psalm Correspondences from Traditional Sources:

Communal distress: 20, 28, 85, 86, 102, 130, 142

Recovery from illness: 6, 30, 41, 88, 103

Healing (RN of Breslov): 16, 32, 41, 42, 59, 77,

90, 105, 137, and 150

Gratitude: 9, 18,21, 57,91, 95, 116,118, 138

Grief: 13, 77, 88

Protection: 16, 23, 91

Pregnancy: 1, 4, 5, 8, 20, 35, 57, 93, 108

Labor and Birth: 20, 118, 12



3.



4/5


http://www.peelapom.com/spiritual-practices/elements-of-judaism

Jewish Elemental Symbols and Correspondences

Elements, (CC) Daryl Sim

The concept of the elements as building blocks for creation has a long-standing history in Judaism. It is

found in the Sefer Yetzirah, the Zohar, and even Maimomedes utilizes this concept.

There are four bodies (gufim), and they are fire (eish), air (ruach), water (mayim), and earth

(afar). They are the foundation of all that is created beneath the firmament.

Maimomedes as found on Telshemesh.org

We can take these elements at face value or we can dig deeper. These lists of correspondences are just

a beginning to understanding the elements and how to work with them in our spiritual practices. For

each element Ive assigned a season, a time of day, a form of the Divine, Patriarchs, Matriarchs, ritual

actions, mythical beings, Kabbalistic world, form of being, level of the soul, and more. Many of these

are compiled from traditional sources, and some are my own associations. Youll notice that Fire and

Water have two options for directions; this is because their locations seem to vary depending on the

Jewish source you read. Along with the four traditional elements, Ive also added a fifth center or

void. This is common in many traditions, and I think has always been the unspoken element in Jewish

tradition. All the correspondences for Aether (center) are my own.

FIRE ( ):South/North, Summer, Noon, Burning Bush / Pillar of Fire, Strength, Issac, Rebekah,Candles (Sabbath, Havdalah, Yahrtzeit, Chanukiah, Menorah) Ner Tamid, Bonfire of Lag BOmer Burning

Chametz, Sun, Gabriel, Gold, Priesthood, Divine Connection, Cooking, Aaron, Staves, Burnt Offerings,

Letters on Parchment, Salamander, Myrtle, Phoenix ( Job 29:18), Snakes, Spiritual authority, Light,

Atzilut, Existing, Chayah (level of the soul), Divine connection

WATER ( ):North/South, Winter, Midnight, Well of Miriam, Love, Sarah, Abraham, Silver,Michael, Mikvah, Washing, Dipping Greens in Salt Water at Passover, Tashlich, Bat Yah, Moses, The

Whale, Water libation, Willow Branches, Reeds, Sea of Reeds, Wine, Miriam, Joseph, Noah, Annointing

oil, Divination, Intuition, Dreams, Willow Branches, Lotus flowers, Water lillies, Emotions,

Leviathin,Darkness, Yetzirah, Feeling, Ruach (level of soul), Creativity

EARTH ( ):West, Autumn, Sunset, Ten Commandments, Raphael, Shekhinah, Rachel, David, Iron,Challah, Salt, Lulav, Etrog, Fruit, Flowers on Shavuot, Trees and tree planting, burying foreskin, earth in

coffin, burying sacred texts, shoveling earth on grave, building of stone altars (cairns), bones, gardens,

fields, Ruth, Boaz, the Shofar (not blown), Stones, Behomot, Life, Assiyah, Doing, Nefesh (level of soul),

Resources we Consume

AIR ():East, Spring, Dawn, Cloud of Glory, Balance, Leah, Jacob, Bronze/Copper, Uriel, Scent,Incense, Blowing of Shofar, Besamin, Sukkah, Greggors, Singing, Chanting, Speech, Spoken Prayer,

Dancing, Breath, Blades/Knives (air feeds fire), Tzipporah, Inspiration, Imagination, Bells on Priestly

garmets, Keturah, Tzovah, Ziz (aka Renanim, Sekewi), Cloud of Glory, Judith, Solomon, Joshua,Wisdom,Briah, Thinking, Neshamah (level of soul), Community

AETHER/AKASHAH ( ):Center, Void, Sabbath, Mt. Sinai, Wilderness, Liminal Space,Transformation, Gestation, Calendars, Mishkan, Temple, Passover Table, Seder Plate, Garden of Eden,

Mystery, Sheol, Shamayim, HaSatan, Lilith, Sound of the Shofar, Baalot Ov, Circles, Shamir Worm ,

Foundation Stone , Moon, Torah, Talit and Tzittzit, Magen David, Tamei/Tahor, Menorah (6 branched),

Containers, Vessels, Tohu v Vohu, Yechidah (level of soul)
http://www.flickr.com/photos/daryl_sim/2649859812/in/set-72157594480502746/


5/5

Ritual Craft - Section 4: Actions


Ritual Craft 4: Peulot Actions & Halakhah

Ritual can be fertile ground to explore, embody and effect change.Rahel Musleah, The Arts: Timeless and Fresh Rituals, Hadassah Magazine

Ritual Actions

The actions that take place within a larger ritual that engage

and physicalize the experience for participants

Types of Ritual Actions

Sacralizing / Markingo Immersingo Washingo Incense or Sageo Lighting Candleso Drawing Circles

Ingesting of food or drinko Individualo Groupo Sharing of Food/Drink

Movemento Dancingo Processionalo

Walking Sound

o Speakingo Intoningo Chantingo Singing

Offeringo Burnt Offeringo Libationo Buryingo Submerging

Creationo Cookingo Altar buildingo Object / Totem creatingo Writing

Destructiono

Burningo Tearingo Smashing

Oracularo Divinationo Aspectingo Meditation

______________________________ ______________________________ ______________________________

Halakhah

What are the halakhic requirments for this ritual? What are the traditional expectations for this ritual?

Logistical Considerations

Is this a public or private ritual?

Are all participants from same religion, denomination, and community? Will the ritual take place in a public or private location? Will the ritual take place inside or outside? Is the location big enough to do the actions you want? Will it accommodate the actions

you wish to perform?

Are children invited or allowed to participate? Can all attendees physically accomplish the desired activities, and if not how will they

be accommodated?

Do the attendees have the skills to perform this ritual and do you have access to any andall ritual objects required?


1.Kavanah2.Aggadah

3. Otot(Symbols)4. Peulot(Actions)

ritual craft workshop handouts

Documents