Mallorie Vaudoise - Honoring Your Ancestors: A Guide to Ancestral Veneration

Llewellyn Publications

Woodbury, Minnesota

Copyright Information

Honoring Your Ancestors: A Guide to Ancestral Veneration 2019 by Mallorie Vaudoise.

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First e-book edition 2019

E-book ISBN: 9780738761053

Book design: Samantha Penn

Cover art: The Dance of Death/The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York/

www.metmuseum.org

Cover design: Shira Atakpu

Editing: Laura Kurtz

Llewellyn Publications is an imprint of Llewellyn Worldwide Ltd.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data (Pending)

ISBN: 978-0-7387-6100-8

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Manufactured in the United States of America

CONTENTS

Chapter

Chapter

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter

Chapter

Conclusion

For Mom

Introduction

A ncestor veneration has become a hot topic in recent years. People across a wide range of spiritual traditions, including witchcraft and Paganism, seem to be rediscovering rituals aimed at ancestors instead of gods. Meanwhile, practitioners of older traditions, including African diasporic traditions and traditions practiced by indigenous peoples, have been honoring their ancestors through ritual for hundreds of years. Because I reside in diverse New York City, Ive had the privilege of hearing from people from many spiritual circles, all of whom seem to agree on one thing: first, honor your ancestors. But what does that even mean? And how do you do it?

If you come from a spiritual lineage that incorporates ancestor veneration into its body of practices, your godparent or initiator will tell you how. But maybe you dont have the benefit of a teacher. Maybe you are still seeking your path. Or maybe you have found that following an eclectic path suits you better than someone elses teachings. Even if those statements apply to you, you can still have a deep, fulfilling ancestor veneration practice. I wrote this book to show that ancestor veneration is for everyone.

Ancestor veneration can refer to any ritual or spiritual practice that reconnects you with the people who came before. Doing genealogical research, cooking your grandmothers favorite recipe, learning the folk music and dance from your cultural background, and speaking to the dead in your dreams are all examples of ancestor veneration. Ancestor veneration practices can be secular, magical, or both. They complement a wide variety of spiritual paths.

We see examples of ancestor veneration occurring in cultures around the world. The Hungry Ghost Festival, celebrated by Buddhists and Taoists in several Asian countries, includes offerings for the dead such as food, joss paper, and chants. The Egungun masquerades give ancestors a physical form in Yorubaland and Brazil. Sangoma diviners in South Africa prescribe spiritual healing according to the wisdom of the ancestors. And Catholics around the world honor their ancestors on All Souls Day (November 2), often incorporating Pagan customs into this nominally Christian holiday.

I began honoring my ancestors when I became interested in witchcraft and Paganism. As a child, I had been taught to show respect and gratitude toward my ancestors who had suffered so that I could enjoy abundance and good health. But witchcraft taught me the importance of the cycles of nature. I learned that Halloween, my favorite holiday, had its roots in the Celtic Pagan festival Samhain. Samhain was believed to be a time when the spirit world, the realm of ancestors and faeries, was more accessible to us physical beings. It was historically celebrated by performing divination and staging mummers plays. I started by contemplating my ancestors around this time of year and conducting seasonal rituals to honor them. But I soon realized that my ancestorsthe people who gave me lifewere too important to honor just once a year. So I started looking for ways to honor them year-round.

My ancestor veneration practice grew more important when I became involved in African diasporic religious communities. I have been blessed to meet several elders in these traditions who have generously shared their cultures and medicines with me. Anyone who becomes involved in African diasporic religion is encouraged to develop their relationship with their ancestors, regardless of where those ancestors hailed from. During this process, I was brought through rituals for honoring my ancestors that came from Africa via Cuba and Brazil. My teachers also encouraged me to deepen my understanding of my Italian ancestors culture, including the ways that they themselves had once venerated our ancestral line. And, as my ancestors grew stronger and more present in my life through these rituals, they sent other messages to me about what they considered important: lessons about family, friendship, love, and hope.

Ultimately, your ancestor veneration practice is your own. You are already the high priest or high priestess of this religion. That means you have the freedom and the responsibility to honor your ancestors in a way that works for both you and them. Even if you are learning how to serve your ancestors according to the ways of a traditional lineage, there are still opportunities for developing your personal relationship with your own ancestors. This book will provide inspiration for doing so.

As you go deeper into your ancestor veneration practices, you will see substantial benefits in your mundane life and magical pursuits. Think of your existence as an incarnate being as a garden. Anything that you want to manifest in this lifetime is a plant. Jobs are plants, special vacations are plants, lovers are plants, children are plants, creative projects are plants. Your ancestors are the soil, the weather, and the water that nurture the growth of this garden. For any plant to take root and bear fruit, it needs to be supported by the ancestors. It must be compatible with their soil and climate and nourished by their sunshine and water. But once you understand how to tend to your garden properly, theres nothing you need to do to will a plant to grow. Just as Mother Nature is ultimately what causes plants to grow, the ancestors increase blessings in our lives.