After some to-ing and fro-ing from the local station, five of us assembled at Cobham Park for our Autumn Ritual on Sunday 21st September. Cobham Park had fallen into some dereliction in previous years until the Mausoleum featured in the first BBC Restoration series some years ago. Although it did not win, it did prompt a major restoration project on what is essentially a ‘Folly’ (it was never consecrated and no bodies are interred there) erected by The Darnly family in the 18th C. This seems to have brought much life and ‘positive energy’ to the surrounding parkland, riding it of the ‘spooky atmosphere’ I personally encountered when I first went there in the 90s. The Park lies in Kent, just off the A2, near the village of Cobham (the setting and inspiration for Dickens’ ‘The Pickwick Papers’) south of Gravesend and just east of Meopham. A bit of a journey for some but it was nice to get out of London and into some real countryside, and still be not to too far from the Great Thames Himself.
On what may turn out to be the last lovely day of the waning summer, we walked into the wood past many a strange, hollowed out and twisted tree. Some with faces and one with a branch hanging like a crouching dragon. With all the tree hugging that was going on, I wondered if we would ever get to where we were going.
The area I had chosen for the ritual was a little clearing where some of the old spookiness had seemed most intense all those years ago. We found a secluded spot (or so we thought!) and precariously perched on a bit of a slope with brambles catching our clothes and new cloaks – though with a lovely view of the valley below and what I assumed to be some of the North Downs in the distance.
On the way, we found a large twig with a languid, sleepy face on it to use as our Talking Stick and took a round just to catch up on what we were all doing with our lives and how we were all doing.
I had prepared a script for the main part of Ritual celebrating the gathering of the harvest and the gifts of The Goddess. Liz kindly volunteered the be the Lady Ceridwen Cariadwen for the first part of the Ritual and the second, more informal, part I left up to the group to decide what to do.
After some discussion as to the directions (I will remember to bring a compass next time!), we started, and it was then we discovered that we were not as off the beaten track as we thought as a succession of ramblers and mountain bikers paraded past, some displaying more interest than others and it became apparent that the revitalisation of the woodland was welcoming people once more into its environs. Once the circle was cast though, we were isolated from any outside influences, merely curious or otherwise, and with the sunlight dappling the ground through the branches of an oak under whose canopy we had selected our spot, I some how managed to direct us through the opening with out too much of a hiccup. I then bid the Lady Ceridwen Cariadwen to enter our circle and She very kindly obliged us by doing so, bring gifts of the fruits of the earth and the wine of the vine, which were graciously distributed among those assembled. At some point, the script I had written went out of the window, but I knew when that happened everything was going right and we were being guided in our words by beings higher and wiser than ourselves.
Next, the Lady (Liz) was asked to bless a wheatsheaf which had been kindly given to us by wiccan friends of ours from Wicca Moon (thank you and Bright Blessings on ye!) in Eltham who had used it as part of their own ceremony on Friday night, and asked that it be left as an offering to the place when we left.
After thanking the Lady Ceridwen Cariadwen for Her time and help and Liz was allowed to become just plain old Liz again and we sent healing energies to Hilde who had unexpectedly gone into hospital the day before for some tests – get better soon, Hilde, thinking of you,.
Next, we sat down and for a round of reflection on the summer just passing and our affirmation of what we expect and want to do with our lives over the coming winter months. On the whole, we all seemed to be rather up-beat with some of us looking forward to new beginnings in our lives or the continuation of important works in progress.
I am not sure how, but I managed to get us through the closing though I am not sure queries of ‘what’s next?’ are included in the ancient rituals of this land – thank you, Cilla, for your timely prompts.
After feasting and finishing of the gifts of the Lady (as well of many libations given to the earth) we followed the path up the hill and paid a visit to the famous Mausoleum – a lovely building, I’d admit, but a little too ‘Classical’ for the setting I thought, I prefer my follies a little more Victorian Gothic. But, by turning away from it, the view was improved with vistas over some lovely countryside and the near-by (just audible) A2 not obscuring the view in any way.
Somehow, we managed to cram the five of us into my Fiat Punto, and, leaving behind the wheatsheaf – against the base of the oak tree that had kindly sheltered us hopefully to spread some more healing energy around the park and make it even more welcoming than it is now – we headed back to the urban environs of Caer Lundain.
Thank you, to Cilla, Liz, Jo who took the pictures, and new person Kris for coming all that way. Blessing on you all and Blessing on all who read this!
Mike Firecrow
