Honoring the Fates
Connecting with The Fates, also known as the Moerae, can be very helpful when you are doing any type of divination or dream work, or just wanting a clearer glimpse at your life to help you make better choices. Since The Fates weave each person's "Life Thread", they can help you look into your life through dreams, meditation, or divination.
You can also look at any Three Card tarot reading in terms of the Three Sisters known as the Fates or The Norns... Past, Present, and Future. Before drawing your three tarot cards, call upon each sister by name... Clotho (Past), Lachesis (Present), and Atropos (Future) and see what each card, or each sister, reveals to you. If you wish, you can call upon the Nordic Norns for your tarot reading in a similar fashion; They are Urd (The Past), Verthandi or Verdandi (the Present), and Skuld (the Future).
The Dark of The Moon is a good time for Divination and Dream work. The night before the New Moon, it is the night of No moon... the darkest night of the cycle. In this time we experience a long period of darkness, and the night is not even illuminated by the moon... we can delve deep into the psyche and the inner, secret realms of the Night. The Fates in Greek Mythology are the daughters of Nyx (Goddess of Night), so the dark moon is a perfect time to call upon them to help you see things more clearly. Ask them to assist you in your tarot readings, rune readings, or to show you answers or clues in your dreams during this dark night. Here in this blog post I have included some information on The Fates, along with a beautiful ritual for honoring them.
The following information is from the book, "
Moon Magick" by D.J. Conway and you may find it helpful in connecting with the Fates, The Norns, or The Wyrd Sisters before you try to attempt any ritual invoking them.
THE FATES & THE NORNS-
The Greek Fates and Nordic Norns are very
similar. It may be that these Goddesses all came from pre-Aryan cultures in the
Far East, before these cultural groups migrated to their respective areas to
settle. Although there is no record of sacrifices to The Norns, the Nordic
clans held them in awe and high regard. In Greece and Rome, the Fates were
taken very seriously. They were given sacrifices of honey and flowers. Well
into Medieval times three rings were used in special rituals to invoke the
Fates. The three gunas, or colored threads (white, red, and black), of India
were said to run through every life as ordained by the Fates. Ovid, Theocritus,
and others wrote of the same colored life-threads in Greek literature.
* The Fates
The Greek Fates ("portions,
shares") were also called the Moerae or Moirai and became known as
the Parcae during the Middle Ages. These three serious daughter of Nyx (Night),
were Clotho, Lachesis, and Atropos. Clotho spun the life-thread, Lachesis
measured it, assigned the destiny, and added a portion of luck. Brooding
Atropos with her shears cuts the thread at any time without warning. Not even
Zeus would go against a decree by the Fates. The Goddess Nemesis was the only
one who could influence Atropos to let the thread spin into a longer length.
They were often accompanied by the Keres (Dogs of Hades) who were three beings
with sharp teeth and robed in red. Although this trio was feared, the beings
were also invoked at weddings for a happy union.
* The Norns
In many
aspects, the Nordic Norns were quite similar. This trio of fate Goddesses live
at the Well of Urd near one of the roots of the World Tree Yggdrasil. They are
Urd (The Past), Verthandi or Verdandi (the Present), and Skuld (the Future).
The Norn Urd (Fate) was defined as "that which is becoming"; Verthandi (Necessity) as "That which is"; Skuld (Being) as "That which should become". Predestination and predetermination were were unknown to the Norse. They believed that what each person did influenced his/her future.
The Norns were almost as important as the Aesir themselves. In fact, these Goddesses were said to weave the destinies of men, gods, giants, dwarfs, and every other living being. Each day the Norse Gods held their counsil at this Well in the presence of the Norns. The fact that the water from the Well of Urd turned everything white may tie
these deities to the three phases of the Moon. Certain records also speak of
the helpers of the Norns, who were the Disir; in some writings these were
called elves. The Hamingjes were like guardian angels to the humans. There were
elf-maids who cared for unborn babies. The decrees of Urd were carried out by
the Giptes. Other Disir oversaw certain families or clans. There were even
supernatural women , not Valkyries, who brought the souls of the dead to Hel's
realm.
It is rare for a person to know exactly where their future is going, including all the sidetracks that invariably go on. It is difficult to even get a clear glimpse of the broader picture. Learning to work with the Norns and The Fates and Listen to their advice is important to avoid major pitfalls. If they point out coming problems, and we manage to change our direction to avoid them, we have taken responsibility in the molding of our future. If the problems revealed by the Norns seem to stay in our path regardless of our efforts, then we must work through them, learning the necessary lessons.
* The English knew of the Norns by the name of the Weird Sisters. The
Anglo-Saxons called them Wyrd; in Old High German Wurd. These Wyrd Sisters are
quite likely descendants of the Greek Moerae or Fates.
RITUAL:
This
is from the book "Moon Magick" by D.J. Conway. It is suggested for
the Dark Moon that falls in December. I am not copying word for word except for
the ritual and the info on the fates... I have done this ritual before and have
added my own notes and thoughts.
* You will need; * 3 long cords (thick string
or ribbon) - one white, one black, and one red
Your altar set up however you
want for the Winter season and whatever candles or incense you find fitting.
You
may choose to have three candles, one of red, one of black, and one of red, also,
to represent the three sisters (The Fates/The Norns) or three candles of any
color you wish... however you want to set it up is fine.
* The Ritual;
Call upon The Fates. You can
call upon the Greek Fates (Clotho, Lachesis, and Atropos) or the Nordic Norns
(Urd, Verthandi, and Skuld), or call on them as The Wyrd Sisters as they are
known in English traditions.
* Take the three cords and braid them
together. If you wish, make this long enough to be tied around your waist and
in the future use the braided cord as part of your ritual garment, (or
something to be kept on your altar at all times) As you braid, repeat this
chant; *
"Over, under, threads of Fate.
As in my life, so in all things.
Weaving the pattern, soon or late,
I see the result that action brings."
(You may also choose to chant the names of
the Fates between each repetition of the above chant.) When you finish braiding
the cord, knot both ends and kiss the braid. Wrap it around your waist or drape
it over your shoulders (or wrap it around your wrists and lift your hands
upward) Visualize the Fates of Norns before you, lift your hands to them and
chant;
"A new year dawns, the threads weave
on,
to ultimately reveal my destiny.
Oh Fates of Life, I ask your aid
To clear my path and set me free.
Let old things die and blow away.
Let new come in to prosper me.
Oh Fates of Life I ask your aid,
To clear my life and set me free."
Sleep with the braided cords under your pillow and pay attention to your dreams. And be prepared to do whatever is necessary and proper to straighten out your life and make your path smoother.
You may also choose to use the braid to wrap around your deck of tarot cards, or to wear around your wrist, shoulders, or waist whenever you do divination of any form, to help you connect with The Fates or The Norns during future readings.
