Animas Ceremony Complaints Department: Where Am I Going with This? (An Explanatory Outline.)

Due to feedback received by the Pray to the Moon complaints department, I am adding a brief explanation for what I am sure seems (from the outside) to be a bizarre meandering about in details rather than an explanation of how a ceremony came to be.

To clarify, I am actually telling this tale in the order in which it unfolded. Really & truly. The ceremony proper was not written until long after choreographing & costuming & painting & many other things like logistics & gathering of offerings were long underway. 

This is the honest truth.

Why?

Because I don't like to write ceremony. (Actually, I don't like to write anything when it feels like an assignment.)

And because I trusted this Thing to emerge from its chrysalis naturally, at the right time. So I began all the needful preparations for its arrival & waited for it to unfold. 

cRaZy. Sometimes you just go with it.


So, in an attempt to placate the audience (which is odd, since I generally write under the presumption that I don't have one), I will provide a draft outline of Where-I-Am-Going-With-This (subject to change, of course). 


Animas Ceremony: An Invitation to Passion, Table of Contents


I. Public Animas Ceremony Part I: Breaking in the Bellwether

• Discussion of the origins of the Animist Bellwether & its first use as an introduction to ceremony.

II. Public Animas Ceremony Part 2: Having A Vision

• Discussion of receiving, recognizing & trusting a Vision that is True.
• Includes formal public announcement for Summer Solstice Animas Ceremony & Ecstatic Dance Event: An Invitation to Passion.

III. Public Animas Ceremony Part 3: Communicating & Manifesting The Vision (Even Without the Written Word)

• Discussion of communicating a Vision to others which remains unwritten.
• Includes concept sketches of ceremony visuals.

IV. Public Animas Ceremony Part 4: Trust Your People

• Discusses, in three parts, trusting the skills of experts to assist in manifesting the Vision.
• Also emphasizes the importance of gratitude for these people's contributions.

1. Public Animas Ceremony Part 4a: Trust Your People: The Costumer
2. Public Animas Ceremony Part 4b: Trust Your People: The Choreographer
3. Public Animas Ceremony Part 4c: Trust Your People: The Magus (DJ, that is)

V. Public Animas Ceremony Part 5: Art. Let it in.

Public Animas Ceremony Part 5a: Art. Let It In. (And make it an offering.)

• Discusses the use of art as an offering as well as an aesthetic, spiritual & communication device.
• Includes images of Art Bowls used in the ceremony.

Public Animas Ceremony Part 5b (1-8): Art. Let it in. (And celebrate the artists.)

• A succesion of biographies for artistic contributors to the ceremony. 
• Also a reminder that animism is about relationship & this includes our human relationships; respecting, understanding, honouring & having gratitude for those who enrich our lives.

1. Public Animas Ceremony Part 5b(1): Art. Let It In. (And Celebrate the Artists: Anna Nelson)
2. Public Animas Ceremony Part 5b(2): Art. Let It In. (And Celebrate the Artists: Lee Harrington)
3. Public Animas Ceremony Part 5b(3): Art. Let It In. (And Celebrate the Artists: Joanne Harnagel)
4. Public Animas Ceremony Part 5b(4): Art. Let It In. (And Celebrate the Artists: Bryan Perrin)
5. Public Animas Ceremony Part 5b(5): Art. Let It In. (And Celebrate the Artists: Susan Perrin)
6. Public Animas Ceremony Part 5b(6): Art. Let It In. (And Celebrate the Artitsts: Alica Wolter-Hausser)
7. Public Animas Ceremony Part 5b(7): Art. Let It In. (And Celebrate the Artitsts: HPS CC)
8. Public Animas Ceremony Part 5b(8): Art. Let It In. (And Celebrate the Artitsts: Moma Fauna)

Remaining Subjects, in Tentative Order:

VI. Public Animas Ceremony Part 6: Offerings. (More? Really?)

• Will discuss yet more offerings including art eggs, herbals & poetry. May require multiple entries.

VII. Public Animas Ceremony Part 7: Selecting & Tending Your People

• Will discuss the process of selecting Officiants, getting commitments, the importance of communicating their personal value & the power of relationship.
• Will also briefly discuss the folly of the standard call for volunteers & why, imho, it does not work. Also a bit on how & when "ritual by committee" can & does work.

VIII. Public Animas Ceremony Part 8: Ceremonial Structure

• Will reiterate reasons for hosting this ceremony as well as the intent, language & structure of ceremony.
• Will include outline of Officiants Invo/Evoc/Invit-ation to/of spirit(s) of Passion.
• Will include link to full ceremony document (PDF via Google Drive).

IX. Public Animas Ceremony Part 9: A Wee Bit on Ecstatic Dance

• Whys, hows & goals around the ecstatic dance portion of the evening.

X. Public Animas Ceremony Part 10: Rounding it Out & Covering Bases. Even More Communication & Gratitude: Ceremony Programmes

• Will discuss the value of providing a ceremonial programme, particularly for newbies & persons unfamiliar with animist concepts. 
• Will include images of Animas Ceremony: An Invitation to Passion programme as well as a link to the full programme document  (PDF via Google Drive).

I am certain I have overlooked something. So I will continue to update & adapt here & ultimately I hope to create a Ceremony Section for this journal where all this & future ceremonial details will be recorded. However, that must wait until I complete my current work on the Nyx devotional gallery page.