Order of Paladins Lesson : 8 Circle Casting copyright 2013 Kerr Cuhulain

Hint:  Check out the notes pages for this Power Point presentation. There is a lot of additional information cached there. copyright 2013 Kerr Cuhulain

Warrior’s Admonition Your body is your temple: Care for it! Do not engage in useless activity. Listen to the Goddess. Help thyself. You create your own reality. The Warrior’s path is creativity. A serene path to enlightenment. Know thyself. Master thyself. Create your own reality. Nurture the ability to perceive the truth in all matters. Perceive that which cannot be seen with the eye. Learn from your mistakes. Teach thyself. Create your own reality. Do not be negligent, even in trifling matters Grace and guilt do not exist: Strive for responsibility. Honor thyself. Create your own reality. copyright 2013 Kerr Cuhulain

13 Precepts: 1.Know thyself. 2.Nurture the ability to perceive the truth in all matters. 3.You create your own reality. 4.Develop a sense of Right Action. 5.Do not be negligent, even in trifling matters. 6.Your body is your temple: Care for it! 7.Minimal appearance, maximum content. 8.Perceive that which cannot be seen with the eye. 9.Power with. 10. Who dares wins. 11.The Gods cannot help those who will not help themselves. 12. Be creative! 13. Do not engage in useless activity. copyright 2013 Kerr Cuhulain

Code of Chivalry:  All members of the Order of Paladins must live according to the principles of chivalry, which include:  Sincerity.  Courtesy.  Compassion.  Perseverance.  Industriousness.  Justice.  Loyalty.  Courage.  Self-Discipline.  Humility.  Largesse.  Truth.  Honor copyright 2013 Kerr Cuhulain

Order of Paladins Circle Casting “Thunder is good, thunder is impressive: but it is the lightning that does the work.” Mark Twain, Letter to an Unidentified Person, August 28, 1908 copyright 2013 Kerr Cuhulain

Preamble:  Some of you long distance students are solitary, and I’ve prepared a solitary version of the following ritual for that eventuality. For the rest of you, and for the purposes of this lesson, I’ve sent the full ritual to accompany this lesson. If you’d like the solitary version, just let me know and I’ll send it.  Refer to the script and to the notes pages in this Power Point presentation: The notes pages explain the statements and the history behind them. copyright 2013 Kerr Cuhulain

The Commandery: The cast in this ritual is based on a Knights Templar Commandery. A Commandery was an assembly of Knights Templar, consisting of at least nine members. Commandery is the name that our Order gives to the cast members in a ritual. The ranks of the cast members are mostly actual Knights Templar ranks, but I am using Templar HQ ranks rather than the ranks that the Commanderies used in the field. copyright 2013 Kerr Cuhulain

The Commandery:  Commandery is also the name given to a group of Knights of our Order that are gathered together to engage in training or magick. copyright 2013 Kerr Cuhulain

Commandery Structure 1  Grand Master: Commander and High Priest/ess  Seneschal: The Seneschal was the Grand Master’s right hand. Seneschal first appeared in English in It is derived from the Frankish Latin term siniscalcus, derived in turn from the Proto-Germanic “sini” (“senior”) and “skalk” (“servant”).  Marshall: The War Master for the Grand Master.  Under Marshall: The Grand Master’s person in charge of troops and equipment copyright 2013 Kerr Cuhulain

Commandery Structure 2  Standard Bearer: The person in charge of the squires and, as the title suggests, the colors or standard. Because this Commandery member carries the flag staff, he is always stationed in the south, which is related to the staff and spear.  Quartermaster: The Knights Templar gave their quartermaster or person in charge of clothing and linens the title Draper. I decided to change this as the more modern meaning of the word has to do with clothiers, not Warriors. The Quartermaster is always stationed in the west, as she is related to the cauldron and grail.  Constable: This represents the Commanders of the Knights templar, who were in charge of regions, provinces or locations.  Sergeant at Arms: This represents the rank and file of the Knights.  Squire: The Squire was in training to be a knight. Squires were assigned to knights and commanders at various levels as assistants copyright 2013 Kerr Cuhulain

The Commandery: Gender  This ritual is set up so it can be led by either a man or a woman:  The Grand Master can be a man or a woman. The assistant to the Grand Master, the Seneschal, must be the opposite sex to the Grand Master. So if the Grand Master is a male, the Seneschal must be a female, and if the Grand Master is a female, the Seneschal must be a male.  The other cast members can be of either sex. copyright 2013 Kerr Cuhulain

Aspects of the Circle Casting Ritual  Refer to the script copyright 2013 Kerr Cuhulain

“In Hoc Signo Vinces!”  Latin: "under this sign thou shalt conquer." Adapted from the motto of the Knights Templar  This is the line used by the Standard Bearer at the beginning of the ritual copyright 2013 Kerr Cuhulain

Squire Lights the Candles  The first line, “Ancient and Dark Ones of the deep…”, is adapted from the Summer Solstice ritual for Ravens Cry Grove of the ADF written by Todd Covert er/rcgsummersolstice.html er/rcgsummersolstice.html er/rcgsummersolstice.html copyright 2013 Kerr Cuhulain

Under Marshall’s Banishing:  “Avaunte! Avaunte! Maleficum defense! Honi soit qui mal y pense!”  Translation: "Keep away! Keep away! Evil is forbidden! Evil to him who thinks evil of it copyright 2013 Kerr Cuhulain

Correspondences  East/Air/To Will/Sword/Athame  South/Fire/To Imagine/Spear/Wand  West/Water/To Dare/Cauldron/Chalice  North/Earth/To Keep Silent/Shield/Pentacle  Center/Spirit/To Know/Spirit/Mind copyright 2013 Kerr Cuhulain

Cast Positions copyright 2013 Kerr Cuhulain

Quarter Calls The quarter calls used in this ritual are the same as those used in the Armoring ritual from Lesson VI copyright 2013 Kerr Cuhulain

Constable’s Casting:  “Wind wind around. Make walls as sound as it were bound.”  “It is the mountaintop that lightning strikes.”  “Cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armor of light” copyright 2013 Kerr Cuhulain

Standard Bearer’s Casting:  “Bright fire stay what comes this way. Keep dark away.”  Branch, burn; fire, flame; Goibhniu, forge the sword again.” copyright 2013 Kerr Cuhulain

Quartermaster’s Casting:  “Wild waves so tall. Make us a wall. Our foes forestall.”  “Three from Me of five alive by nine makes Mine.” copyright 2013 Kerr Cuhulain

Sergeant at Arms’ Casting:  “Stone rise from sleep and shield this keep with ramparts steep.”  “Fling but a stone and the giant dies.” copyright 2013 Kerr Cuhulain

Marshall’s Casting:  “The circle is cast. Anything that is evil to us, or that may witness against us, where we shall longest be: Illume it to us, obscure it to us, banish it from us, root it out of our hearts. Ever, evermore, everlastingly, ever, evermore, everlastingly.” copyright 2013 Kerr Cuhulain

Grand Master’s Announcement: “The circle is cast by air and fire; The circle is charged by water and earth. What is within the circle is between the worlds; A place that is nowhere and everywhere. A place of power. What is between the worlds does not concern the world, but can change the world.” copyright 2013 Kerr Cuhulain

Seneschal’s Blessing:  “May our Gods shield the house, the fire, the kine, Every one who dwells herein tonight. Shield myself and this beloved group. Preserve us from violence and from harm; Preserve us from foes this night, in this place, and in every place wherein they dwell tonight, on this night and on every night, this night and every night.” copyright 2013 Kerr Cuhulain

Warrior’s Admonition: The four principal cast members, The Grand Master, Seneschal, Marshall, and Under Marshall, recite the five stanzas of the Warrior’s Admonition, which I wrote for my book Full Contact Magick. copyright 2013 Kerr Cuhulain

Calling on Warrior Aspects of Deity: This can (and frequently is) done by the Grand Master and Seneschal in their own words. I’ve put a version in the script adapted from the NROOGD ritual. copyright 2013 Kerr Cuhulain

“I am”… The Song of Paladins At this point in the ritual you can either:  Recite the Song of Amergin, or  Recite a collection of the “I am” lines that your group has created to personalize it into a “Song of Paladins” copyright 2013 Kerr Cuhulain

Magickal Working: At this point in the ritual you can work any magick that needs doing or any celebratory ritual (e.g.: for Sabbats) that needs doing. copyright 2013 Kerr Cuhulain

Agape: Most Wiccan rituals use the term “Cakes and Wine” to describe the part of the ritual that involves sharing food and drink. I prefer to use the ancient Pagan term “agape” (“love feast”). copyright 2013 Kerr Cuhulain

Agape part I “I am a fountain in the sun; I am a fragrance in the night; I am a fire beneath the skin. Of earth and air we eat, And are made complete.” copyright 2013 Kerr Cuhulain

Agape Part 2 “Be it known that man is not greater than woman, nor is woman greater than man, but when joined, become one in truth, for there is no greater magick in all the world than that of love.” copyright 2013 Kerr Cuhulain

Closing Declaration: ”The Circle is open, yet unbroken. The Circle is ended, but never the trust within. Go forth now into the world and run straight for whatever you fear the most. Maher Shalal Hash Baz! Be glorious!” copyright 2013 Kerr Cuhulain

Lesson 8 homework reminder  Find some time to practice the Order of Paladins Circle Casting, using your own “I am” statement(s) if you can.  Choose one of the eight Sabbats and come up with an outline for a ritual for that event. You can come up with an entirely new ritual or adapt an older one. copyright 2013 Kerr Cuhulain

Order of Paladins Be Glorious! copyright 2013 Kerr Cuhulain