Ritual Purity

[Meritmut]

Okay so before I do my daily offerings to the Netjeru I purify myself.



For me that is to wash my hands and face in a mixture of water and natron. I was wondering is there a certain term for this purification?

In Hellenism (sorry for the constant reference but it's what I know best) before a ritual it is traditional to cleanse oneself with khernips, or spring or ocean water or water that has been purified by lighting a match from the sacred hearth-fire and plunging it into a bowl of water. The water is thus cleansed by fire.

I was also wondering how and if you also cleanse yourself before ritual?

[Meritmut]

Totally random question but I didn't want to start a new thread XD

Do any of you use oil lamps instead of candles for your altars? And if you do where did you buy your oil lamp from and what type of oil do you use?

Thanks ^^

[Devo]

I was also wondering how and if you also cleanse yourself before ritual?

I don't know that washing your face or hands with natron has a specific term. I'm sure there are others here who can give you a better answer in regards to that than me

I dont' do a lot for cleansing before ritual, honestly. I normally do ritual in the morning which doesn't leave me a lot of time. I also have overly dry skin, so I try not to use a lot of soaps.. so sometimes it's just a matter of rinsing my hands off and my mouth out with cool water. This is also doubled by my Shinto practices- so I do it once for both sets of ritual. I'm sure there are hundreds of ways to purify yourself before ritual. Should be interesting to hear what others do

-Devo

[Meritmut]

I don't know that washing your face or hands with natron has a specific term. I'm sure there are others here who can give you a better answer in regards to that than me

I dont' do a lot for cleansing before ritual, honestly. I normally do ritual in the morning which doesn't leave me a lot of time. I also have overly dry skin, so I try not to use a lot of soaps.. so sometimes it's just a matter of rinsing my hands off and my mouth out with cool water. This is also doubled by my Shinto practices- so I do it once for both sets of ritual. I'm sure there are hundreds of ways to purify yourself before ritual. Should be interesting to hear what others do

-Devo

Thanks for sharing Devo I have been trying to edit my posting but it isn't allowing me too. There is no edit button lol. I accidentally typed natron I meant salt water >.< Guess that's what happens when you multitask lol

[Etheric1]

Okay so before I do my daily offerings to the Netjeru I purify myself.

For me that is to wash my hands and face in a mixture of water and natron. I was wondering is there a certain term for this purification?

In Hellenism (sorry for the constant reference but it's what I know best) before a ritual it is traditional to cleanse oneself with khernips, or spring or ocean water or water that has been purified by lighting a match from the sacred hearth-fire and plunging it into a bowl of water. The water is thus cleansed by fire.

I was also wondering how and if you also cleanse yourself before ritual?

Not that I'm aware of. It's just cleansing, I don't think it needs to be any more complex a term than that. I do use natron when I'm doing a full on ritual with other people, but using a basic soap works just as well for me too.

To answer your other question, no I do not use oil lamps, I much prefer old school candles and fire.

[Helmsman_of_Inepu]

Not that I'm aware of. It's just cleansing, I don't think it needs to be any more complex a term than that. I do use natron when I'm doing a full on ritual with other people, but using a basic soap works just as well for me too.

To answer your other question, no I do not use oil lamps, I much prefer old school candles and fire.

I've seen the term "Lustration," but that's a Greek one as well. If you were searching it might turn up something more specific. It has a modern political use as well.

Depending on what I'm doing, it goes two ways. If I'm going to be doing a Kemetic Orthodox Senut, there's a formula that's used to bless the water that starts by calling on Tayet. Then the Natron gets blessed, with a standard formula that mentions Geb, Djehuty, Set, and Heru-Dunanwy. The two get mixed together. I shower, swish some of the natron in my mouth, and splash some on "all the body openings" including the eyes and ears, then I rinse off.

There's a ritual in Reidy that I use if I'm doing some other sort of ritual. It's short, but it's stunning. It starts out "I (name), am a child of Ra. I am the child of the Lord of Life, Lord to the Limit." It's on page 200.

I definitely get something out of it. Knowing I'm ritually pure at least for a while.

I use oil lamps, though they're not in the "shoe" form you see in antiquity. They seem cleaner than a candle, that you don't have wax running out from them. The flame seems a lot hotter though. I have inserts that I will eventually make holders for on my lathe. I'll probably burn some useful glyphs on the holders.

[Firaza]

I was also wondering how and if you also cleanse yourself before ritual?

I shower and brush my teeth every morning, and usually shortly afterward make my offerings, so that's good enough purification for me. If I'm doing ritual later in the day or in the evening, I wash my hands.

I used to recite the words Helms is referring to, on page 200, but I stopped after I came back from Japan and had to use the shared bathroom in my college dorm. I suppose I can start the practice back up now that I've graduated.

[SatAset]

I was also wondering how and if you also cleanse yourself before ritual?

I bathe with soap and water. Then I rinse my mouth out and wash my hands with natron (a mixture of baking soda and salt) and mix it in a bowl of water. I do the Kemetic Orthodox Senut ritual so I use that purification ritual and the Senut ritual itself to honor the gods.

People purify differently for ritual. Some pour the natron mixture into the bath itself and then bathe as normal or pour it over their heads and then shower. They also rinse out their mouths with the natron water too.

[SunflowerP]

To answer your other question, no I do not use oil lamps, I much prefer old school candles and fire.

Nitpick: oil lamps predate candles. That's just an objection to your use of the term "old-school" in there, really; I have no issues with what you choose to use.

Sunflower

[Etheric1]

Nitpick: oil lamps predate candles. That's just an objection to your use of the term "old-school" in there, really; I have no issues with what you choose to use.

Sunflower

Interesting. I was not aware, thank you.