We swear by Peace and Love to Stand,
Heart to Heart, Hand to Hand,
Mark, O Spirit, And Hear Us Now,
Confirming This, Our Sacred Vow.
Caitlin Matthews
Created by Sor. Ashera, O.O.L.S.
gfaulk@mindspring.com
Imbolc, 2003
The illustration above is by Rowan Fairgrove;
“Holy Brighid Holding the World in Her Hands” (used with permission).
How to Craft With Your Peace Beads
First, make yourself comfortable and upright, spend a few minutes
following your breathing and letting the mind settle.
Within your personal spiritual practice, invite in the Divine
Peace-makers; gods, goddesses, natural helping spirits and ancestors. Ask
them to assist in the work of peace today. When you are ready recite or
read the following dedication;
Brighid, you are a Goddess of Peace.
You bring harmony where there is conflict,
You bring light to the darkness,
You bring hope to the downcast.
May the Mantle of Your Peace
Cover those who are troubled and anxious.
Inspire us to act justly and to reverence all of Creation,
And may Peace be firmly rooted in our hearts
and in our world.
So Mote It Be!
Holding your beads, think of what peace means. It may be different from
one person to another. For whom do you set this intention of peace – for
yourself or your family? For your country? For a particular place or event
in the world? Be specific; what does this peace look like, feel like? In
your mind, build a picture of peace, imagine it as concretely as possible.
Hold this visualization while you chant the spell. This becomes easier to
do with repetition.
Beginning at the bottom of the loop, recite the spell below on each bead.
At the ˝ way point (the peace charm/bead), pause for a moment and renew
your visualization, then continue with the chant.
May Peace Prevail On Earth
If your mala has 54 beads, go around once more. Chant as
many ‘rounds’ of the mala as you wish, but always try to complete at least
one full set of 108 repetitions of the spell. At the end of the loop where
the beads join, read or recite the prayer to The Lady of Peace. Feel free
to add in other blessings for your own circumstances.
Dona Nobis Pacem
Lady of Peace who hears the cries of the world
Extend your power through me and with me;
Bless those in harms way.
Bless those who are suffering.
Bless those who are dying.
Bless the lost unknowing dead.
Bless those who love.
Bless those who are helping.
Bless those who are scared.
Bless those who can do nothing but wait.
Bless those who are falsely suspected.
Bless those of limited understanding.
Bless those upholding civil liberties.
Bless those who, though well intentioned, do wrong.
Bless the Ancestors
who love and hold us dear;
may we feel their comfort, too.
Bless those who work and pray for peace
throughout the good, green Mother Earth.
Bless us all, hold us safe within your embrace.
So Mote It Be!
Sit for a few moments, surrounded by the loving peace of the Mother.
Extend this peace to the world. Blessed be.
About the Prayers
The prayer of dedication is by Brisingamen of Ord Brighideach and is a
goddess version of a prayer from the Brigidine nuns of Kildare.
May Peace Prevail On Earth
May Peace Prevail on Earth was originated by the World Peace Prayer
Society. This prayer for world peace carries a message of great hope and
healing. People all over the world are joining together to bring peace to
our hearts and our planet through the prayer. It transcends barriers of
nationality, race and religion to unite humanity in a call for the common
good of all life on Earth.
The Lady of Peace
This blessing was adapted from a peace prayer by Carolyn McDade. We are
powerful to create change and we work in relationship to the sacred. A
mother watches over and responds to her children. She desires the best for
them, accepts and nurtures them. There is no reason to believe less of our
Divine Mother, from whom all life comes and to whom it returns in ever
joyful union.
Humanity has many names and faces for the Lady of Peace. Some of them are
Brighid, Aphrodite Columba, Eirene, Pax, Kuan Yin, and Mary. Among her
symbols are the gentle dove, the olive branch, the sheathed sword and the
abundance of the earth. We ask her to pour out her healing blessings upon
the world.
The Goddess Brigit was a goddess of war in the sense of being a tribal
protector. In ancient Irish literature Brigit is associated with the
sounds of war and conflict such as weeping and lamentation. So Brigit is
not depicted as a warrior goddess associated with the destructive, gory
side of war. She gives protection to those in her care and laments for
those who die. She is a mother goddess who weeps for her fallen son and
perhaps because every warrior is some mother’s child she does not glorify
or exult in war. Brigit is surely the patron goddess of all grieving
parents. She may also be delivering a wake-up call to us to become more
aware of the sources of injustice and conflict. Brigit the Saint is known
for giving away her father's sword. She often appears as a mediator and in
one story in the Liber Hymnorum, when two brothers in conflict ask for her
help in battle, she put a film over their eyes so that they were unable to
recognize each other and thus conflict was avoided. In this depiction she
is on the side of peace and promises her protection, not in battle, but if
weapons of war are abandoned.
Dona nobis pacem; grant us peace.
