Question by melissaharrington: What goes on at a Wiccan fertility ritual?
I was invited to one, and don’t know what to expect? Is it an orgy, like the pagan fertility ritual behind Ishtar/Easter? Or is this something different?
Note: Why does everyone assume I’m a Christian? I have said all over this site that I’m a Jewess.
This is for Halloween… she wanted me to have time to think about it. But I was looking online and found this: http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/news/article69185.ece…. so that’s why I’m asking.
Best answer:
Answer by Katrina P
fertilization?
Know better? Leave your own answer in the comments!
Wear protection.
Maybe you should ask whoever invited you.
I’m clueless ,sorry…bd
There are many versions of fertility rituals in Wicca and its many sects. Most are not an orgy. Typically friends and family are invited to provide loving energy. However, knowing that many different possibilities exist, I would ask for more information from who invited you. They should be able to provide details. Wiccans are typically very open about their religion and the processes used in ritual – especially to those invited to attend. If there’s an air of secrecy, I would rely on my gut instinct to decide whether you want to be involved or not.
I imagine lots of flabby, unwashed, middle aged people prancing around naked. Yuk.
ROFL @ ‘skyclad’!
i would ask who ever invited you…but do it in a polite matter. but honestly it probably is going to depend on how they want to do it…and i know of very few pagans that celebrate anything with a orgy.
You would not have been invited if you were not a Wiccan. And hon – we don’t do fertility rites – that’s malicious gossip!
It depends on the people running it. Wicca, much like Christianity has many different beliefs, sects, and practices. The best people to ask is the people who invited you. Find out if they go skyclad (naked) or dressed in ceremonial cloth. Find out what, if anything, is expected of you. Most pagan rituals do not involve sex in any form and most certainly not orgies. Although that is a popular myth pushed by the popular religious reich.
Edit: Samhain is the new year for many pagan religions. So in one aspect it does celebrate a new beginning. It also symbolizes rebirth through death, generally in my experience it’s the most fun holiday to participate in as an outsider. Just be sure to keep in contact with whoever invited you and know what is expected for them and yourself and I suspect you’ll truly enjoy the experience.
Man, now wonder people like to be pagan, you get to do that stuff?
Why don’t you ask the one who invited you? I would not expect an orgy. I would expect a nice Beltane ritual, thanking the goddess and god for their abundance at spring time.
Ask the person who invited you.
Are you in Australia or somewhere else in the Southern Hemisphere?
Someone has no idea of what they are doing… It is the wrong time of year for a fertility ritual. Neither is the moon right for it, its an eclipse and a full moon in an air sign on the 16th. Full Moons banish and eclipses are chaotic and unpredictable, neither a good recipe for success.
In Australia Beltane isn’t until Oct. 31 / Nov. 1
FYI… Spring (Oestara) is a fertility rite for the earth and nature, Beltane is the fertility rite for us Humans.
[edited] we know you’re not in the Southern Hemisphere, now. 🙂
[edited]
[edited] we now know it can’t really be a ‘fertility rite’ at Samhain.
Wiccans covens or witches, no matter what tradition, generally don’t engage in “orgies” as it’s been rumored for thousands of years.
Added: Sorry, thought I read on your profile that you were a Christian… didn’t realize “devout monotheistic Yahwist ” meant Jewish. My apologies.
I wonder why they would invite a “devout Jew”, anyhow??
Also: Halloween, (Samhain) is so NOT the time for fertility rites… how long have your friends been “wiccan”?
Sounds to me like they are playing fast and lose with the meaning of one of the most important Sabbats of the year. Samhain is the time for honoring the ancestors and loved ones who have passed over.
They say it’s the time when the ‘veil between the worlds’ is thinnest; a time for scrying, divining, and communing with the dead, for seeking answers to problems that came up within the prior 12 months, and for celebration of the “new year” in some trads.
BTW: The link you provided does not work.
Ptah… If she is in the southern hemisphere, they would be going into Spring at the time we in the northern hem. would be going into fall. (Sept).
Spring rites and Beltaine rites aren’t exactly the same, but they are similar in most traditions. It’s all about renewal, rebirth and fertility.
Edit: Thanks for the extra info, but the page you linked to is no longer available.
But isn’t The Sun a trashy tabloid paper? A “rag” as we call them here in the states?
Why in the world would you believe ANYTHING that “newspaper” has to say about Wiccans or anyone else for that matter?
I’m seriously starting to doubt the validity of your question…..
Ask the person who invited you. I seriously doubt there’s going to be any type of orgy. We don’t really do that sort of stuff.
Unless it’s to honor Hecate, who is a goddess of death, fertility and rebirth, (and has a holy day this week, but I can’t for the life of me remember what it’s called) I can’t think of anything that should be happening this time of year. In the north it’s almost harvest time and the rites are not for birth.
I must be missing something.
Edit: Even Halloween isn’t a time for fertility. Halloween is the time of death. Fertility doesn’t even come into the picture till after Winter Solstice.
It is possible that your friend wants to conceive at this particular time of year, so she doesn’t have to carry a baby in the summer months, and she has chosen this day for her private ritual. If this is the case, she has written it all by herself, and we won’t be much help to you. Sorry, but you have to ask her.
It would completely depend on the group that’s hosting it. I recommend asking the person who invited you. Have her explain what will be happening, what the meaning behind it is, and, if you will participate, what you will be doing. I would also recommend asking her if you should bring anything.