What is the traditional wiccan ceremony?

Answer 1

Start by deciding what the purpose of your ceremony is.

Research the ritual, the time (moon house & phase, pantheon & gods, and the other needful things (tools, colours, candles, incense, etc) to perform it.

Write your ritual (even if you are using one borrowed from a book, write it out in your own hand writing in your own Book of Shadows); gather your needful things; invite those you wish to participate/observe (if you want to); cleans yourself; and at the appropriate time take all of your needful things and go to your sacred space.

Start by cleansing the area (sweep with a besom, asperge or smudge as you prefer).

t up your altar according to your tradition, and open your Book of Shadows.

Take a deep breath, ground and centre yourself. Lift your Athame (or wand) and starting in the North (East in some traditions) create your sacred circle according to your written ritual. Return the Athame to the Altar.

Stand facing (or move to) the North (some traditions start in the East) and call the element/corner/quarter (light the candle for that element if you are using one). Turn clockwise to the East and call the element/corner/quarter, light candle; turn clockwise, and repeat for the South and then again for the West. In our tradition we also call the Centre, however this is not necessarily common with all Wiccan groups.

At you Altar, once again gather yourself, and invite (do not command) the deities to your ritual, light candles for each if you are using them. Be sure to use the specific names of the gods you have chosen.

Now you will undertake the "working" of your ritual. Perform whatever spells, meditations, magics as you have planed. Do not deviate from your written plan, raise the cone of power in whatever manner is appropriate (chanting, dancing, etc) and release it to do your will.

Next comes the small feast, bless the wine and the cakes, and share them with the others (if there are any). Be sure to leave a bit of each for the gods.

Once the small feast is finished, it is time to close. Start with your deities, acknowledge their presence and your appreciation for it ("Thank you" is something you say to a peer or sub-ordinate, NOT to a deity). Leave the candle of the deities to burn out on their own (if you can). Next, thank and dismiss the element in reverse order (counter-clockwise) to how you called them (the elementals are subordinates so you command them), put out the elemental candles. Release the circle in whatever manner you have chosen. Then ground the extra energies by clapping your hands three times. Clean up, don't forget to leave some of the cakes from the small feast and pour the remaining wine out on the ground for the gods (if you are inside, take these things outside): and act in accordance with your "working".

Keep you Book of Shadows close so you can write in observations from the ritual itself, and make notes for changes you might make next time. Also you should note the results of your "working", how and when they came about.

Answer 2

Wicca is a religion. The traditional ceremonies are considered sacred and private. Just as you would not discuss the secrets of your religion on a message board, most Wiccans will not tell you ritual secrets on this one. Most rituals include the worship of natural forces, however, and include various protective methods to prevent magical force from escaping and harming anyone.

Another perspective
There are hundreds of rituals and ceremonies, all with different focuses. However they generally follow a standard pattern.
1) Cleanse the area. 2) Create sacred space. 3) Call the elements. 4) Call the Deities. 5) Perform the Ritual/Spell. 6) Raise the power. 6a) Focus and release the power. 7) the small feast. 8) Gratitude to the Deities. 9) thanks and release of the elements. 10) Grounding of the remaining powers and opening of scared space.

Answer 3

A Wiccan Wedding is often referred to as a Handfasting.
It can be personalized depending on preferences and beliefs. There are a number of ritual guidelines you can follow, but it is best to use them as a basic outline and fill them in with your own personal touches, or that of the persons being handfasted.
http://www.handfasting.info/h_rituals.html
http://www.magicalomaha.com/Handfastingrituals.htm

As with all spiritual paths, wiccan weddings (sometimes known as hand-fastings) can take any number of forms. I will give you a broad view of one held recently.
For a wiccan (and pagan friendly) only hand-fasting:
The sacred space is cleansed. The witnesses (friends, family and members of the couple's group) are invited into the Circle and blessed (anointed) by the High Priestess and/or the High Priest. Once everyone is in place, the couple enter and are blessed by the High Priest and/or High Priestess. The Circle is cast, the Elements are called, the Deities are invited and the couple are called forward. A brief prelude is spoken by the High Priest/Priestess. The couple exchange vows and rings, the High Priest/Priestess lightly binds the couple's hands together, raises Power and Blesses the union. She/he then leads them around the Circle and presents them to the Elements. They all return to the Altar where they are presented to the Deities and then to the group attending. The small feast is celebrated, gratitude is expressed to the Deities, the Elements are thanked and dismissed, the Power is grounded and the Circle is opened. Everyone progresses to the reception.
For a ceremony including people of other paths who may or may not know or understand our ways:
Seats are set up as with most weddings. Once the witnesses are seated the High Priest and/or High Priestess and those calling the Elements (often the bridal party) walk down the aisle, and take up their places. The couple then join them. The rest is about the same as with the afore mentioned with the exception that the witnesses are outside of the sacred space. In some cases, at the request of the couple a Circle is not cast. However, generally, if both halves of the couple are pagan they will prefer to be joined within a Circle.

Answer 4

As you have not specified the Ritual you are interested in I will give you a general overview of the form most pagan Rituals take.

-the area is cleansed, this can be done using smudging or asperging techniques or a ritual sweeping with a besome can be used.

-the participants are invited in and anointed, usually the participants enter through the north-east part of the intended Circle as that is between Earth (north) and Air (east), and they are met at the entrance by the High Priestess and/or the High Priest where they are anointed with oil or water and invited into the Circle "In perfect love and perfect trust."

- the High Priestess will then formally create the Circle, usually with an Athame, but sometimes with a sword. - Pagans do not usually have formal permanent sacred spaces like churches, synagogues or temples, we create our own new each time we gather, and most often we work out of doors in nature.

- the Elements are called in whatever order is common to the group. North - Earth, East - Air, South - Fire, West - Water and in some traditions Center - Spirit.

- the Deities are invited (one never calls or commands the Deities)

- the purpose of the Ritual is stated, the "Working" is done, power is raised and released.

- the Small Feast is held, sometimes called "Cakes and Ale/Wine" it is a bit like communion, wine, water or juice is blessed and shared, as are fruit or sweets.

- the Deities are acknowledged and respect in given for their attendance/help. (One does not dismiss the Deities, they are more powerful than us and due more respect than that)

- the Elements are thanked and dismissed.

- the High Priestess will ground the remaining energies and open the Circle.

In most cases you will be invited to either a discussion or celebration following the Ritual.

There are other points of etiquette and general behaviour that you need to know it you are attending your first Ritual with a group, however this will be specific to the Ritual and the group performing it, so check with the person who invited you for complete details.

Don't be shy about asking for details, it is always advisable to "know what you are getting into."

Answer 5

Wicca is a nature based religion. So many of the traditional Wiccan 'ceremonies' take place on the solstices and equinox'. A few commonly known ones are

Yule: The celebration of midwinter or the beginning of the sun staying longer in the sky. Takes place during the winter solstice. Common practices include decorating an evergreen tree and burning a Yule log. Similar in tradition to the common American holiday of Christmas.

Ostara: The celebration of spring, warmer weather, and birth- new life. Takes place during the spring equinox. Common practices include decorating eggs (as a tribute to birth) and honoring rabbits (as a tribute to fertility). Similar in traditions to the common American holiday of Easter.

Samhain: The celebration of fall, death, and honoring ancestors. Takes place during the autumn equionox. Common practices include placing candles in hollowed pumpkins to light the ancestors' way home and giving gifts. Similar in traditions to the common American holiday of Halloween (many pagans also call it "Hallow's Eve".)

There are many more Wiccan ceremonies that take place throughout the year. And many are closely related to common holidays already practiced. These three are probably the most commonly known.