Rough Notes - Houseblessing Workshop 2005

(Jeri Ann, Jason, and Sofia’s house, September 2005)

Why?

*to introduce yourself to the house and land.
*mark boundries.
*set up shields and wards.
*invite deities into house.
*to honor existing land spirits and nature spirits / make friends with them.
*to clean out the house if you don’t get along with it. Better to make peace with it.
*to make house come alive as a living being (if you want to).
*ultimately, to make the house your own.

Who?

*owners of land, or renters / whoever is living there.
*friends and family and community should witness
*deities and kindred and ancestors - very important - bring ancestor items out during houseblessing, let ancestors know you’re there.
*your own guardians, familiars, pets, personal spirits, muses, etc.

When?

*anytime
*yearly at Imbolc (see Imbolc houseblessing traditions) :

leaving a cloth out for Brigid to bless / tying a cloth strip to a well for blessing
Lady of the house inviting Brigid in formally
making Brigid’s crosses - protecting from fire / blessings in general
cutting reeds / beating the walls with reeds
housecleaning at Imbolc - “upstairs /downstairs day” "Half the wood, half the hay on Candlemass Day"
putting out and relighting the hearth fire (can be done with pilot lights if you’re careful and know what you’re doing - light pilots from Brigid’s candle and ask Her blessing.)

*chinese - propitiate kitchen Gods each day and yearly
*romans -daily offerings to the Lares - own altar- male house deities -male makes offerings
*celts / saxons -milk for Brownies (househelping fairies), fairies in general, take care of house spirits in different ways depending on the kind of fairy. Does land have this kind of history? Do you intuit anything? Any ghosts still about, old owners lingering?

Where?

*start with front door:

fish boy, Ganesh, Manannan, gatekeepers union
evil eye preventative (single hands or 4 hands)
happy kitty (waving oriental kitty blessing - “one double-A battery gives you many hours of continuous blessing”)
ed and norma have boar of the underworld looking over our door
broom in hall
Brigid’s cross in hall
Elephant with fringe
(a lot of what looks like decoration in your house can actually have a magickal use)
discuss string of beads for harmful spirits to count, stitches to count, fringe, over-door hangings, etc. sparkly things- old folk magick, all to catch the eye of anything trying to get in. (They tend to be obsessive enought to need to count the strings or beads, but their attention span is small enough that they'll have to start over and over again.)

*altar, or altars:

keep tidy, clean now and then, keep up with offerings, use your altar

*every room:

painting - paint a symbol or two on the wall in the same color you’re going to paint the room, and charge it. Then paint over it so it disappears in the wall.
or- paint symbols different color in closets, places people won’t generally see. Paint an outline of your hands in the back of a closet, or behind a painting or poster.
bells, (threat of bells) music, musical intruments
ribbons on fans, air cond., forced air ducts

*kitchen:

Brigid’s cross there too
Brigid’s brat
nutmeg - whole- for good relationships, peace in the home
tiny bag of barley in the cupboard (in a plastic bag)- so larder is never bare

*attic:

Brigid’s crosses up in peak - highest point

*basement:

Brigid’s brat around pipe or plumbing - well idea
people put rosaries around furnace pipes. You could use blessed beads. Brigid’s brats in vicinity (remember, nothing flammable near furnaces or water heaters)
relight pilot lights? (see disclaimer) (stove story)
machines and appliances respond well to magick. Also, take care of your furnace and such in a mundane way as well. These are things like pets that need some care.

How?

for the house:

*sweep house with mundane broom
*clean the house (imbolc)
*sweep house with magickal broom (open a window or two first so stuff can get out). Learn how to ground energy, and where it goes in your house when you ground.
*beat the walls with rushes or reeds
*formally take your deites outside and invite them in one by one as honored residents (before you ask them to bless anything, or give them a job if you’re going to do that)
*as people go through the house, have them knock on wood floors, moldings all over the house.
*open all the doors- every one- and a couple windows on each floor.
*bless every room, all the space
*have people keep asking and giving blessings all over spontaneously - specific for each room (bedroom: sweet dreams, great sex, fertility, gentle sleep, satisfying rest), or just general blessings.
*make a lot of noise! spoken blessings, bells, tambourines- have a parade through the house.

THEN- Maintain these blessings:

*talk to deities on your altar, ask them to bless and protect house- also your guardians. maintain, clean altars, images, and guardians
*keep up shields once a week- but don’t enclose yourself in an airtight snow bubble either- have a way for stuff to get out.
*if you want something to go, open a window, sweep, and ask it to leave.
*every now and then, walk through the house, touch the walls and floors, talk to the house- you need to have a verbal relationship (in head is ok, but “spoken word is different”).
*know your home on a mundane level- watch for termites, carpenter ants, bees, wasps, (we encourage spiders) check screens, oil things that need oil from time to time, don’t mistreat it on a mundane level.

for the land:

*boundry markers - celts used ogham- can be stones or on stakes. beating the bounds.
*make cement steppingstones in magickal designs (sell them at AC Moore or Rag Shop- craft stores with a small c).
*plant plants that you associate with your deities, or your own spirit.
*dress your well, if you have one.
*know your trees.
*put food out for birds in the winter. Treat your nature spirits kindly.
*put out things for the winds to play with (so they don’t play with your roof and windows). Can be in entranceway or on porch or where wind can reach them.
*pick a spot to bury offerings.
*sit out there and get to know your land!

A few words on banishings and exorcisms-

First- make really sure that you're not banishing something from its legitimate home. Remember, a spirit on the land or in the house has probably been there a lot longer than you, and probably has a better claim to it than you do. Try to work with land spirits, ghosts, and such. Make peace with them, give them their due. See above about milk for Brownies, offerings for fairies, ect. There are good ways to work with land and house spirits- offerings to give them (milk, shiny things- never give them clothing...) etc.. Only exorcise and banish if you really believe that a spirit is malevolent and means harm. Knowing this usually takes time- part of getting to know the house and land.

If you need to exorcise, remember to open doors and windows so that what you're trying to get to leave has a way out!

You can exorcise with blessed water (Brigid's water, sprinkle it about) and use your magickal broom to sweep the air. Also smudge with sage. Ask the spirits that are not happy there to go where they will be happy, tell spirits that mean harm to leave. Use your intent and will to make it happen.

You can also open the windows and sweep the air after a fight, or after relatives are over, or after you've been in a bad mood.

If you find you have to banish something, always bless the house again after you banish, and keep up your wards and such!