Jennifer directed my attention to the podcasts 20 & 21 on the OBOD website that contained a lecture by the founder of ADF on their 37 levels of ritual.

I didn't take notes because I knew ADF has all their cool stuff on their website http://www.adf.org/rituals/explanations/brief-lit.html.

I have attended ADF rituals at Pantheacon.  They are beautiful, particularly since they understand about drama.  We use most of the same elements in the Taliesin Dragon Ritual since we acquired our concept of ritual from many of the same sources, but removed and changed some things, and brought some language from chaos magic.

Not appearing in the Dragon ritual is smudging and a visualized tree grounding, though I now do both.  I like what he said about using the language of the deities you are invoking.  It's only polite after all.  I never felt a need to leave offerings for outsiders so they leave us alone.  We create a sacred circle, but unlike Wicca, we do not view it as a barrier that can't be crossed without a lot of fuss and bother. ADF doesn't like the fuss and bother either and they avoid the circle altogether, preferring to create a vertical axis.  This is entirely consistent with OBOD tradition.

Parts of their ritual have me looking at my watch because I wasn't connecting with what was going on.  However, they have sound reasons for each of the 37 steps in their standard ritual, and I particularly like the fact that it is a standard ritual.  Members of ADF can go to any ritual within their order and know what is happening. Most of us know what is happening as well because the elements are drawn from numerous (e.g. Vedic) traditions and are pan pagan. Very Jungian and appropriate.

The Taliesin, in creating their standard opening and closing, retained many of OBOD elements, but attempted to simply things as much as possible to accommodate memorization and drama.  We are completely off paper and believe that reading from a script sucks energy.  However, in public ritual, it is useful to have a program people can follow so they know where we are in the ritual, as long as it isn't a script. Such as, the one that Grand Yew Grove used at their Pagan Pride day in October.

It might be worth discussing having a standard House of Danu opening and closing as we create our very own Diaspora throughout the West.

You get it.  The 37 elements used by ADF each make sense, but we just don't need them all for effective ritual.  I totally agree that each group should develop their own standard.  I have participated in lots of inter-faith pagan rituals with the Pagan Alliance and the various fire tribes.  The elements are interchangeable and everyone always seems to know what is going on.  It's not necessary for the House of Danu to have a standard to feel part of a diaspora.  The ritual I outlined during the retreat was off paper, new to most, yet I'm sure you knew precisely what was happening.

I'm looking forward to a Welsh ritual from you guys.

James

Oops!