Why Rituals Are Important

Last updated on: September 21, 2016 at 8:21 am by Terry Drew Karanen

Why Rituals Are Important 2016-09-18T08:26:34-06:00 Terry Drew Karanen

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Do you have sacred rituals in your life? Unless you are practicing a religion where ritual is part of worship this may not seem to be important to you. There’s a lot, however, to be said for ritual.

First, we ALL have rituals in our life, whether we see them that way or not. Monday Night Football, Wings Night at the corner tavern, holiday meals and just sitting around the dining room table reading the Sunday paper together are all rituals.

Second, everything we do is sacred. Our very breath, the words we use, the emotions we express are all sacred acts. Our lives reflect how we feel about the Divine. Why? Because we are sacred spiritual beings having a spiritual experience on the earthly plane.

Unfortunately, our modern society doesn’t always include formalized or consistent rituals to mark events or the passage of time. It may be up to us to create that as a way to more closely and personally connect with our Higher Power.

“Science of Mind” magazine publisher Dr. David Goldberg recently asked the question, “What day of the year is your personal spiritual apex?” (Daily Guides, September 10, 2016) He suggests that we create or honor a “specific tradition or a day that may be special” to us. Here are some suggestions you might find useful:

Your birthday
October 31/November 1 – The end and beginning of the year in the Old Religion
Yule/Midwinter/Mōdraniht – the time when the earth is darkest and the light begins to grow
December 31 – New Year’s Eve (or another New Year’s Eve if you use a different calendar)

All these, and ones you might come up with, are about honoring and releasing the past, as well as embracing the future. You might want to use candles, incense, song and special foods to create a ritual. A “burning bowl” is a popular way to write down on paper what no longer serves us and then throw it into the fire. One of my favorite rituals is to go through my contact lists twice each year – on my birthday in May and on October 31 – releasing the people who no longer support me and honoring those who do.

Rituals give closure to the past. They also provide a more formalized way of giving focus to our desires. What sacred rituals would you like to honor in your life?

In Spirit, Truth and Playfulness,
Terry

#DrTerryMakingSense
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@TerryDKaranen

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