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Post by Scruffy Brooky on Jan 14, 2011 11:03:46 GMT
Another forum I belong to has been having quite a heated debate on the use or other wise of ritual dress (robes etc.). In particular as to when it is appropriate to do so. I am interested what peopl here think.
Do you have a robe or cloak? What is it like? Why do you have it?
Do you wear it for private ritual (own home garden)?
Do you wear it for private ritual in public places (i.e. excursions into the woods)?
Do you wear it for public/open ritual?
Are there any other occasions on which you are likely to wear it (I have heard accounts, though never known or seen personally, or Pagans robing up to nip to the shops)?
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Post by summerstorm on Jan 16, 2011 9:28:43 GMT
Until recently I didn't get the whole cloak thing. I felt a cloak wasn't something that I needed or desired. I couldn't imagine how it would add anything to my magical practice so I didn't bother.
Then five months ago scruffy and I got legaly married and handfasted. We were lucky enough to have two close friends perform the ceremony one of whom made me the most beautiful cloak as a handfasting present. It is a deep green velvet on the outside and white satin on the inside and falls beautifully. I wore it on the day and as soon as i put it on i felt instantly special and magical.
I haven't worn it since and probably wont everytime i engage in magical activity/ritual but I certainly plan to wear it for special occassions.
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Post by Scruffy Brooky on Jan 17, 2011 10:32:17 GMT
as soon as i put it on i felt instantly special and magical. I think cloaks and indeed all ritual objects work like this. They're a catalyst. You don't achieve anything with them that you couldn't achieve without them but they get you there quicker, expecially in terms of achieving the necessary mindset for magic and / or ritual.
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Post by summerstorm on Jan 19, 2011 12:58:34 GMT
as soon as i put it on i felt instantly special and magical. I think cloaks and indeed all ritual objects work like this. They're a catalyst. You don't achieve anything with them that you couldn't achieve without them but they get you there quicker, expecially in terms of achieving the necessary mindset for magic and / or ritual. I do agree as I posted above I am now a cloak convert I guess we should consider if a cloak (or indeed other ritual objects) doesn't make an individual feel special and magical and instead actually makes them feel a little bit silly then its going to be a distraction and is not going to have the desired effect. I guess it must all be in how it makes you feel.
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Post by sacredspiraldoula on Jan 19, 2011 13:14:16 GMT
I have a fleece cloak, and consider it a practical and magical item. when you are out in the open all night at camps/gatherings it is indispensable and keeps you lovely and warm! I take it wherever I go camping (pagan camps or otherwise!) as it is useful as an extra blanket, or an umbrella to children needing the toilet in the night, or a midge 'protector' with the hood up! I know all these things don't sound very 'magical' but I do consider everyday tasks in life to be so.. (hope that makes sense?!) however if I am attending ritual I would still wear the same cloak as I feel it has 'bonded' with me because of the regular wear wheras another cloak I have which is an itchy wool one doesn't have the same feel - IUKWIM? Other than my cloak I dont wear any other 'special' clothes.. although I was involved in a coven once where cotton shifts were worn just for ceremony.. I didn't feel it was necessary to go to these lengths, however I DO understand the theories behind why bringing everyday wear into ritual isn't acceptable.. it just isn't the way I work personally. :-)
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Post by Scruffy Brooky on Jan 19, 2011 14:56:10 GMT
...I know all these things don't sound very 'magical' but I do consider everyday tasks in life to be so ... I DO understand the theories behind why bringing everyday wear into ritual isn't acceptable.. it just isn't the way I work personally. :-) If you believe the everyday tasks that you are performing with the item to be magical then surely the way you work is exactly in keeping with theories of reserving ritual items for magical use. Am I misunderstanding something?
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Post by sacredspiraldoula on Jan 19, 2011 15:38:31 GMT
Hmmm... I think what I am trying to say is that I follow more of a freelance 'hedgewitch' path rather than the ceremonial rituals of a wiccan coven where tools are reserved specifically for magickal use... does that make sense or am I warbling now? lol ;-)
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Post by Scruffy Brooky on Jan 19, 2011 16:30:16 GMT
Not warbling at all! I am equally as likely as not to use tools, although I have accumulated a set I am rather happy with.
My cloak is used for most rituals however, indoors and outdoors. It is also used practically in settings where I feel comfortable and appropriate to do so (i.e. camps etc, not going round ASDA etc).
My cloak itself is reversible black / green and was given to me in my minds eye when I dedicated myself to my path. It is worn black Samhain - Beltane and green Beltane - Samhain (unless newspaper photographers are around and I feel it happens to be politically wise to avoid the black stereotype, which I feel might compromise the content of the article - before anyone observant points it out)!
I wear it for almost all my private rituals, and to camps. I have never yet worn it in more public settings although I might do for a private ritual in a public setting at night, for the age old trick of using a black cloak to "disappear" into the darkness.
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tim
Earth Dreamer
Posts: 24
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Post by tim on Jan 20, 2011 15:27:21 GMT
This is a subject currently in the forefront of my mind. We are currently making arrangements for our handfasting in the Summer (you are all very welcome, details will be available very shortly when they exist!). One matter that we have been discussing is... what should we wear?
I think that dressing in a non-standard way is one part of how we signify the special significance of the ritual (I can hear the shouts of "Why should clothes make any difference!" already!) but just like the words of the ceremony, we want the clothes to "be our own".
Thoughts and suggestions?
We're having a parallel discussion on who we would like to conduct the ceremony. Anyone "official" will share some but not all of our beliefs (and why have someone official anyway?) and I think that we're settling on one or more friends.
I know that this is a separate topic but again, thoughts would be interesting.
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Post by Scruffy Brooky on Jan 20, 2011 16:29:43 GMT
This is a subject currently in the forefront of my mind. We are currently making arrangements for our handfasting in the Summer (you are all very welcome, details will be available very shortly when they exist!). One matter that we have been discussing is... what should we wear?... We're having a parallel discussion on who we would like to conduct the ceremony... and I think that we're settling on one or more friends. Firstly very many congratulations! Summerstorm and I were handfasted in September. We also had a civil marriage ceremony at the same venue (Brownsover Hall) on the same day. As such for the handfasting we wore our cloaks over a wedding dress and a hired suit ( I am not saying who was wearing which )! We had two friends perform it, on the logic that you do not need anyone official to perform any other Pagan ceremony. Anything else in terms of rituals we would do ourselves, so why get someone we do not even know to do this most personal one? I was very pleased with our decision. I do not believe in photography during rituals, but towards the end of the photo's (photo 178 onwards) at the following link there are some pictures of the circle before any callings had been performed, and some reconstructed / posed photographs from after the ritual also. www.photographybybillhaddon.co.uk/Hayley&Richard/index.htm
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