A New Year's Pagan Prayer
Something I came up with just now. (Like, literally, within the past hour or two!) At first, it was just a few ideas that occurred to me, and next thing you know...I sit down at a computer, and it just pours from my fingers, onto the keyboard, and into the Notepad program. I suspect that there might be a divine component to this, in the sense of some degree of inspiration from the Gods, though I cannot be sure of that. (I'm not as close to Them as some peeps I know, but I have been honoring some of them for some time, and I believe they are somewhat aware of my existence and my interest in them.) Regardless, I hope They like it. Hope you like it, too. You could either pray it as a prayer or turn it into a ritual of sorts.
The Opening:
As this year vanishes and a new one appears, let me/us also honor and personally experience the terrible, delicious processes of destruction, transformation, and rebirth and renewal. Let me/us cast away the refuse of the old year, keep what should remain, and be open to the changes and wonders to come. Let me/us now honor those who bestow these mysterious, painful, and healing gifts.
Benediction of Surt as the First:
Hail to Surt, Alpha and Omega, oldest in the Nine Worlds
Benediction of Destruction:
Let me/us honor now the forces of destruction
Hail to Durga, whose fierce compassion protects us all
Hail to Loki, enemy of stagnation, who breaks worlds that they may be reformed anew
Hail to Oya, the raging storm, who cuts down and purifies everything in her path
Hail to Shiva the Destroyer, who also permits himself to be destroyed when necessary
Hail to Kali, force of Time, for every act of creation is but a destruction in the making
Hail to Sekhmet, dazzling lioness, devourer of all, she of the sacred bloodlust
Hail to Fenris, Great Wolf, for even kings must eventually die
Benediction of Transformation:
Let me/us honor now the forces of transformation
Hail to Hela, Lady Death, Mistress of Helheim, who holds the departed in her loving embrace
Hail to Anubis, psychopomp of the underworld, who shows us what has been repressed
Hail to Ereshkigal, who takes away all our trappings and coverings to leave us bare and exposed
Hail to Eris, Discordia, whose disorder restores balance
Hail to Nidhogg, devourer of rot, who makes room for new growth
Hail to Cerridwen, she who stirs the Cauldron of Transformation
Hail to the Lady, who makes destruction a tool of creation*
Benediction of Rebirth and Renewal:
Let me/us honor now the forces of rebirth and renewal
Hail to Inanna, who, against all odds, returns from below
Hail to Balder, who rises anew as the dust of Ragnarok settles
Hail to Christ, revived reviver, who shows that even death must sometimes relent
Hail to Persephone, who yearly rises again, bringing us the spring
Hail to Prometheus, bringer of fire, who plants among us the seed of everlasting growth
Hail to Baphomet, Lord of Perversions, who heralds the reawakening of the human spirit**
Hail to Taliesin, Great Bard, reborn to sing to the world
Benediction of Surt at Ragnarok:
Hail to Surt, Alpha and Omega, both destroyer of the old world and creator of the new at Ragnarok
The Closing:
May the gods of destruction, transformation, and rebirth and renewal be honored and exalted, at this time and at all times. May I/we have the wisdom and heart(s) to face the new year, meet its challenges, and receive its blessings. May all things unfold, for my/our greater good and for the greater good of all. Merry meet and merry part, and merry meet again. Blessed be!
*If you know some of the same people as I do, then you also know of the goddess to whom I am referring. Although she remains anonymous, I felt she deserved to be mentioned and honored here.
**If you think I'm weird for putting Christ and Baphomet into the same category, I understand. :-P
Happy New Year! :-)