Epicureanism
The Twentieth supper
120 min
A monthly meal with friends in the spirit of the Eikas.
- Invite two or three friends on or near the 20th.
- Serve bread, olives, cheese, fruit and water or wine.
- Phones away. Talk about what each of you is grateful for.
- Raise a cup to Epicurus and to the friends who are absent.
Epicureanism
Evening review of desires
10 min
Check which desires drove your day.
- List what you wanted today.
- Mark each one natural-necessary, natural-unnecessary or empty.
- Note one empty desire to drop tomorrow.
Epicureanism
Premeditate small loss
5 min
Weaken fear by imagining losing something you have.
- Pick one ordinary good: your coffee, your bed, a friend.
- Imagine it gone for a day.
- When you return to it, taste it freshly.
Paganism
Daily threshold greeting
1 min
A one-minute habit that marks the day.
- Step outdoors or to a window.
- Note the weather, the light and one living thing.
- Say a short greeting aloud, in your own words.
Paganism
Simple seasonal altar
20 min
A small shelf or windowsill that follows the Wheel.
- Choose a cloth and one candle.
- Add things you found locally: a seed head, a leaf, a stone.
- Change the items at each festival.
- Return natural items to the ground when you are done.
Paganism
Offering and thanks
15 min
A reciprocal act towards your local place.
- Pick up litter from one spot, or pour out water at the base of a tree.
- Name what you are thanking.
- Leave nothing that does not belong there.
Paganism · Beltane
Morning dew
15 min
A folk custom for the first morning of May.
- Go outside at dawn on 1 May.
- Touch the dew on the grass and splash it on your face.
- Stay a few minutes to listen to the birds.
Paganism · Beltane
Flower garland
30 min
Make a ring of flowers from your garden or a market.
- Gather flowers and leaves, taking only what is yours or fallen.
- Bind them onto a ring of wire or ivy.
- Hang it on a door or wear it for the day.
Paganism · Imbolc
Brigid cross
30 min
Weave a cross from rushes or straw.
- Soak rushes or straw stems in water for about an hour.
- Fold one stem around the middle of another at a right angle.
- Keep turning and folding each new stem around the last until the arms are even.
- Tie the ends and hang it above a door.
Paganism · Imbolc
Spring clean and candle
20 min
Clear the house and welcome the light.
- Open the windows and tidy one room.
- Light a candle in the cleanest spot.
- Say what you want to begin this year.
Paganism · Litha
Sunrise watch
30 min
Greet the sun on the longest day.
- Find out the time of sunrise and go somewhere you can see the horizon.
- Sit quietly and watch the light grow.
- Say thanks for the daylight you are given.
Paganism · Litha
Herb bundle
20 min
Dry herbs from your own garden.
- Cut a few stems of rosemary, lavender or mint from your garden.
- Tie them with string.
- Hang them upside down in a dry place for two weeks, then keep them for cooking or the home.
Paganism · Lughnasadh
First loaf
90 min
Bake bread to mark the first harvest.
- Bake a loaf from scratch, using flour from this year's harvest if you can find it.
- Share it with others.
- Set a piece aside for the birds.
Paganism · Lughnasadh
Hill walk
120 min
Climb a hill, as people did at this season.
- Choose a hill you can reach comfortably.
- Take a picnic and eat it at the top.
- Look out over the land and think of what is ripening.
Paganism · Mabon
Thanksgiving meal
90 min
A shared meal of the season's food.
- Cook with food that is in season where you live.
- At the table, let each person name one thing they are grateful for.
- Pour out a little of a drink onto the ground at the end.
Paganism · Mabon
Share the harvest
30 min
Give away some of what you have grown or bought.
- Choose some surplus produce or a few tins from your cupboard.
- Take them to a neighbour, a food bank or a community fridge.
- Note what you are glad to have enough of.
Paganism · Ostara
Seed planting
15 min
Plant seeds on the equinox.
- Fill a pot or a bed with soil.
- Plant seeds you can grow in your climate and name what you hope for.
- Water them and keep a note of when they sprout.
Paganism · Ostara
Balance of light and dark
10 min
A short reflection when day and night are equal.
- Write two columns, one headed light and one headed dark.
- List the things that bring you energy and the things that bring you rest.
- Choose one change that would balance your week.
Paganism · Samhain
Ancestor supper
60 min
A meal with an empty place for those who have died.
- Lay the table with one extra place.
- Light a candle and name the people you are remembering.
- Share a story about one of them.
- Leave a small portion of food outside afterwards.
Paganism · Samhain
A light for the dead
10 min
A short candle vigil at dusk.
- Light a candle at a window as it gets dark.
- Sit quietly and think of those you have lost.
- Say their names aloud and let the candle burn down safely.
Paganism · Yule
Longest-night vigil
120 min
Stay awake through the longest night and welcome the sun.
- Dim the lights and light one candle.
- Sit with friends or alone until midnight, or until dawn if you can.
- When the sun rises, raise a warm drink to it.
Paganism · Yule
Evergreen wreath
30 min
Bring greenery indoors as a sign of life in winter.
- Gather fallen evergreen branches, never cut live ones from protected land.
- Bind them into a ring with twine.
- Hang it by the door and return it to the garden in January.
Paganism · Animism
Learn one neighbour
20 min
Get to know one local tree, bird or stream well.
- Choose one living thing near your home.
- Visit it at least once a week for a month.
- Learn its name and how it changes through the weeks.
- Leave a small offering, such as water, or clear litter around it.
Paganism · Animism
Give thanks before eating
2 min
A brief pause that acknowledges where food comes from.
- Before a meal, stop for a few seconds.
- Name where the food came from, including the plants, animals, soil and people.
- Say thank you aloud or silently before you eat.
Paganism · Celtic Reconstructionism
Hospitality for the day
30 min
Offer welcome to a visitor, or to someone who needs it.
- Choose one day and decide to welcome whoever comes.
- Offer a seat, a drink and food to a guest, friend or stranger in need.
- Listen before you speak.
- Note afterwards what it cost you and what it gave.
Paganism · Celtic Reconstructionism
Read an Irish tale aloud
40 min
Take a story from the sources and read it slowly.
- Choose a short tale from Early Irish Myths and Sagas.
- Read it aloud to yourself or a friend.
- Ask what the story values.
- Write down one image that stays with you.
Paganism · Druidry
Tree companion
15 min
Get to know one tree through the seasons.
- Choose a tree near your home.
- Visit weekly and sit with it for ten minutes.
- Note the leaves, birds, weather and your own mood.
- Keep a record through the whole year.
Paganism · Druidry
Awen chant
5 min
A breath practice from modern Druidry.
- Sit comfortably and breathe slowly.
- Draw out three sounds, ah, oh and en, on one long breath.
- Repeat three times.
- Sit quietly and notice what arises.
Paganism · Heathenry
Simple blot
15 min
A gift offering to the gods or to your ancestors.
- Choose a deity or an ancestor to honour.
- Place a small gift, such as mead, bread or flowers, on a table or stone.
- Say why you are giving it and say thanks.
- Afterwards pour the drink onto the ground or compost the food.
Paganism · Heathenry
Toast to the ancestors
10 min
Raise a cup to those who came before you.
- Fill a cup with water, mead or juice.
- Name one ancestor and tell a story about them.
- Drink, and pour a little onto the earth.
Paganism · Hellenism
Daily offering to Hestia
5 min
Ancient Greek custom put Hestia first and last in offerings, so begin the day at your hearth.
- Light a candle or a small flame.
- Offer a few drops of water or a pinch of incense.
- Say a short thanks in your own words.
Paganism · Hellenism
Noumenia
20 min
Mark the first day of the lunar month with a small household observance.
- On the first visible new crescent, tidy a table or shelf.
- Place flowers and a candle there.
- Pour a libation of water or wine and name the gods you wish to honour.
- Share a simple meal.
Paganism · Kemetism
Morning greeting
10 min
A short household offering in the spirit of temple ritual.
- Wash your hands and face.
- Light a candle before an image or an object that stands for a god.
- Offer water and say words of greeting.
- Thank the god and put out the flame.
Paganism · Kemetism
Maat review
10 min
An evening review of conduct, inspired by Spell 125 of the Book of the Dead.
- List the ways you were honest and fair today.
- List the ways you fell short.
- Choose one thing to put right tomorrow.
Paganism · Rodnovery
Kupala wreath
45 min
Weave a wreath of fresh flowers and herbs at midsummer.
- Gather flowers and herbs that grow near you.
- Braid them into a wreath.
- Set it on a stream or hang it by the door.
- Sit by water or a fire as evening falls.
Paganism · Rodnovery
Offering of bread and salt
10 min
A simple welcome and thanks at home.
- Place bread and a little salt on a clean cloth.
- Name what you are thankful for.
- Share the bread with someone, or leave it outdoors for the birds.
Paganism · Wicca
Full moon esbat
30 min
A monthly rite at the full moon.
- Choose a quiet space and light a candle.
- Mark a circle with a cord or by walking its edge.
- Speak your intentions, or your thanks for the month.
- Close the circle and share a simple meal or drink.
Paganism · Wicca
Casting a circle
15 min
A way to set a space apart for ritual.
- Walk clockwise around your space, starting in the north.
- Picture a ring of light as you walk.
- Face each of the four directions in turn and greet it.
- When you finish, thank each direction and walk anticlockwise to open the circle.
Shinrin-Yoku
Sit spot
20 min
Return to one place and watch it change.
- Choose a place near home you can reach in ten minutes.
- Sit for 20 minutes without a phone.
- Note what moved, what sounded and what smelled.
- Return weekly.
Shinrin-Yoku
Slow walking
30 min
Walk at a third of your normal pace.
- Pick a short path.
- Take a step only when you have noticed something.
- Turn around when you reach the first bench or clearing.
Shinrin-Yoku
Tea in the trees
15 min
End a walk with a quiet drink.
- Carry a flask of tea.
- Find a stable seat.
- Drink slowly and look up into the canopy.