Category:Ritual

A highly formalized style of magic, the use of ritual to create specific effects through carefully planned and prepared means is used in many styles. Ritual magic is notable in that it rarely requires an inborn gift and that the details of rituals are often kept secret. Ritual magic often uses elaborate chants, inscribed circles, special herbs, unguents, or salves, crystals, and other accouterments believed to have an association with the desired effect.

Local Use

On Yuriba, ritual magic is used heavily both by priestesses and those in many traditional careers. Some native rituals are small and commonplace, such as the Blessing of the Child performed on new converts, newborns, and even on favored household pets to be sure they're 'seen' by the goddesses, or the Invocation of Spring, a rhyme chanted as natives decorate their homes for the Yuriban New Year, to clear out old, bad feelings. Others are far more complex and elaborate, such as the First Snow ritual that invokes a communal vision of the first snow to ever fall on the island, or the ritual known as Spiral-gazing that is used to help view a particular person's past or past life. Many native rituals use spirals as a theme, and repetitions numbering 3, 9, 27, or 81 are all considered powerful. For rituals tied to or appealing to a particular goddess, stones, colors, or herbs linked with them are typically used.