Celtic Rites and Rituals to Enhance your Special Day
I love rituals!
As part of your ceremony a ritual can add a dimension that goes beyond what words alone can express for a deeply profound and significant event.
When two people decide to devote their lives to the health and happiness of each other, when a new life is welcomed into a family, when people decide to mark in time an important phase of their lives, these are all events that come from the deepest part of our humanity, our essence – they are founded in love.
So, a ritual is an expression of that love. It goes beyond words, and conveys the weight, the joy and the full human essence of what is happening.
That’s why I love rituals. They cut through our logic barriers and touch us on a deep emotional and spiritual level to help us express the profound love that underpins each and every rite of passage through life.
Rituals are also great fun!
As part of the Celtic culture there are some beautiful rites and rituals you might want to use. Additionally, we can also devise a new ritual, just for you – it’s all open for discussion.
Check the rituals below and let’s have a wee blether if you fancy exploring the possibilities.
The Quaich
A Quaich is a Scottish traditional two handled cup. The Quaich is often referred to as the love cup as you each take a handle to take a drink, showing you trust one another to share the cup. You can fill the cup with a drink of your choice, usually whisky, symbolising the two of you becoming one.
Symbolic of the sharing between the couple, it’s an ancient vessel used by two families or clans, to celebrate a bond, with each leader partaking of the offered drink.
The quaich ceremony usually happens after the signing of the marriage certificates.
Celtic Handfasting
Hand-fasting is an ancient Celtic custom, especially common in Ireland and Scotland, in which two people came together at the start of their marriage relationship to declare of their own free will that they intended to marry.
While facing each other, the couple will join hands while a cloth is tied around their hands in a knot. This is where the term “tie the knot” came from. Couples often choose to use a cloth made of a particular clan tartan or a specific colour of cloth symbolising something important to them.
The handfasting ceremony happens as part of the personal vows.
The Oathing Stone
The Oathing Stone is an old Scottish tradition where the couple place their hands upon a stone while saying their wedding vows. Taken from the ancient Celtic custom of “setting an oath in stone”, inclusion of the oathing stone ceremony in the vows can be deeply moving.
During the declaration of wedding vows or civil partnership promises, the couple hold the Oathing Stone, together, in their hands. It is believed that holding the stone during the vows casts or sets them in stone.
Any stone can be used. One way to do it is for the couple to collect a stone from a favourite place, such as a beach, before being scrubbed and treaded with almond oil then wiped dry to give it a satin sheen.
There are also ways to include your guests in this ritual. The Oathing Stone usually happens as part of the personal vows.
The Caim Circle
The Caim was the Celtic tradition of casting a ring or a circle of protection. The word “Caim” is Gaelic, meaning “protection” or “sanctuary.”
It’s a beautiful ceremony that can be tweaked and written to suit your own needs.
In the old times this protective circle was a practical means of guarding the bride and groom during the wedding ceremony in case the party was attacked by jealous rival clansmen
In modern times, we make a Caim circle around the couple with either rocks, petals, or even family and friends. Then some ritual words are said to invoke safety, clarity, peace, hope, and guidance.
The Caim circle is a beautiful way of segueing from the fun part of the ceremony – the love story – to change the mood and energy for the vows, to fully honour that part of the ceremony where two people commit their lives to each other. In doing so it can bring beautiful balance, deep meaning and full hearts to both the couple and their guests.
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