Sacred Endings

Candle lit, incense wafting, salt blessed and anointed in oil I step into the bath. Herbal flowers scent the water and steam rises languorously. I meditate on things I’ve put behind me, things in my past, and bid them to stay there. I want room for fresh beginnings and don’t desire to be visited by ghosts of old disappointments. I let go of all the tension and frustration of the past, letting it leach out into the water and down the drain.

When a situation I had placed behind me cropped up again, trying to draw me back into old drama and ancient recrimination, I got very upset and stressed. How dare these old ghosts disturb my contentment? How often must I banish them? I was frustrated and angry beyond clear thought and went to a teacher for advice.

So in the waning of the moon I lay chanting softly in a ritual bath, urging the past to remain past and making room for new growth. It was a sacred ending full of love and peace. It’s important for our health that we have closure and it’s important as well that we release all the negative energy that difficult situations arouse in us. We all must prune our souls in season to make room for new growth.

As Pagans I believe we should strive to make our endings an opportunity for healing. Yes, I know this sounds like fluffy touchy-feely crud, but it’s really important if you want sanity and peace of mind. Endings shouldn’t be a severance, because there is benefit in every connection and experience. Rather, we should recognize a lesson learned and move forward with our lives.

Sometimes you feel a need to sever a connection whose usefulness is past, but true severance removes the good with the bad. The ex may have cheated on you but they also taught you to play guitar. Why would you want to deny the gifts received from even the most trying situations?

As the moon wanes, soon to refresh itself anew, recognize the things in your life that have ended. Honor the benefits you have received, then place the situation and any associated negativity firmly in your past. Never deny it but embrace, reverence and release it. It feels so much better than holding onto anger, frustration and wounded pride. Postponing the release only allows the negativity to fester. Open your heart to the past, place it behind you and move purposefully forward.

Then, take a long cleansing bath and speak to your spiritual family for guidance. Call it Spring Cleaning of the Soul. You’ll feel better and become fertile ground from which new inspiration shall spring!