The purpose of this ritual is to bring the worker closer to a deity. In a sense, in the Lesser Nearing Ritual you share the cup of fellowship with a god or goddess. I am not claiming that this is an ancient Celtic, Germanic, nor other custom. It is original, although the purpose of the ritual is ancient.
The Lesser Nearing Ritual is designed to be part of a larger solitary ceremony. It is the core of nearly every solitary deity honoring I perform. No sacrifice of any kind is made in a nearing ritual.
Those of you who never practice Asatru can adopt this ritual for honoring any deity. It does require the use of a personal sigil _ your own logo _ and for this purpose a bind rune would be convenient and an adaptation of ancient practice. I wrote the ritual for rune use. However, you can use your initials in Roman block print if you want. Just so the magical intent is present. Use this ritual primarily to refresh or strengthen ties with your patron deity, but on occasion refer to an entire pantheon.
As the title implies, this ritual is related to the Greater Nearing Ritual. A brief comparison may relieve one's curiosity. The lesser nearing is less work, takes less time (probably at most a minute compared to hours), is less psychologically profound, and is more modern. The Lesser Nearing Ritual is based on a Roman food offering technique and libation offerings common in Asatru ritual scripts. The Greater Nearing Ritual is based on ideas in the Sioux Ghost Dance, the Northern European ritual of sitting out, and other sources. The Greater Nearing Ritual is the less structured of the two and does not easily fit as a component of a larger ritual.
Preparation
Fill a vessel with some liquid that you intend to use as a magical beverage. Distilled water is fine. I use sugar-free Kool-Aid. Do not use more than you intend to drink ù one or two hearty swallows should do.
Consecrate the beverage. I sometimes pour and consecrate prior to the larger ceremony, but not if I want the drink cold or hot. In Asatru, you could consecrate the beverage by making the hammer sign over the drink in silence or while singing a runic mantra. Wiccans-only or others might prefer to draw another sign of magical protection, such as a pentagram, and sing a Wiccan chant to draw and project power for the spell. For those who prefer using runes to ritually purify the beverage, sign the H-rune over the drink and push it toward the beverage with your hands as you imagine Hagalaz' power of protection driving out harmful influences. The H-rune mantra, an open-mouthed hiss, is excellent for using breath to project power.
The Ritual
Sign your personal logo bind rune over the vessel, then give it a shove into the drink, stopping the shove short of the liquid surface. Say, "I charge this drink with my personal force." It is important that the bind rune be as fully representative of you as possible. If you have several aliases, relate this bind rune to the alias that represents who you feel you are most of the time. You are going to symbolically offer your support _ without reservation _ to a deity.
Holding the vessel higher than your eye level, say "[Name of deity] I ask that you accept the essence of this drink and the spiritual charge it carries. Please accept my allegiance and dedication and be strengthened thereby." When you feel that the deity has accepted your offering, bring the vessel down to rest your limbs. I cannot tell you how it feels when a deity accepts an offering. It is a subjective experience like all mystical experiences, and you may or may not have a physical sensation. I never have a physical sensation in this ritual; the feeling is very subtle. When it happens, you will know it.
Raise the vessel again, and say, "[Name of deity] I ask that you charge this beverage with some of your essence, that in drinking it, I may become more like you." When you feel that the deity has responded as requested, lower the vessel and drink all the beverage.
Discussion
The commitments symbolized here should be strengthened in your subconscious as you go through mundane and nonmundane life, and your life should be better. Your favorite god or goddess will be stronger. If you do not feel this way some time after a nearing ritual, it did not work for you.
I advocate learning rune use because runes are practical tools for rituals such as this.
What if you hit a snag on your way? Some Wiccans seem to believe that deities always accept their sacrifices, always pay attention to them, and never give them any hassles nor resistance. If you tell your pagan friends that you tried this ritual and your sacrifice was not accepted, some of your friends may think you are strange. Be careful who you ask for advice. Consider doing a little divination or just mulling things over. If necessary, change the way you do the ritual, give it up, or fix your life up a little.
