Drawing Down Deity
My first few years as a Witch were a rather solitary affair. Occasionally I’d meet someone who was also interested in magickal things, but they were few and far between. After a few years of working on my own I joined a Pagan group at Michigan State University and started working with other Witches. For the most part we were Witchlings instead of honest-to-Gods Witches. We had only the slightest idea what we were doing, but what we lacked in knowledge we made up for in sheer exuberance.
In my second year with that group we all decided we should do a “big” Samhain ritual. To us “big” meant we would attempt to draw down the moon. Up until then we had always made a point of inviting deity to ritual, but we had never before asked a goddess to inhabit the body of one of our circle-mates. We looked at this endeavor as a chance to take our Witchcraft to the next level.
Looking back on that night many, many years later, it’s obvious to me that we had no idea what we were really doing, but the power we had hoped for was most certainly present. The ritual began in the usual fashion: we called the quarters, cast the circle, and then invited the Horned God to join us for Samhain. After that, our acting High Priest stepped up and called the Great Goddess to inhabit the body of his wife, who was acting as our High Priestess that evening.
There was electricity in the air as he performed the fivefold kiss, moving up his wife’s body from her feet to her lips, blessing and consecrating the vessel that would hold our Lady. Then he uttered the words “descend into this, the body of thy High Priestess and servant who stands here,” and the eyes of our High Priestess opened and looked different than they had just moments before.
Generally, when a goddess is drawn down she interacts with the Witches who have gathered in front of her, or perhaps she reads the Charge of the Goddess. Since we had no idea what we were doing, we put a veil over the face of our High Priestess/Goddess and sent her off to sit in a corner. This was followed by my now wife (Ari) stepping forward to read the Charge of the Goddess, which we had just denied the Lady.
While Ari read the Charge, my gaze kept returning to the Goddess we had banished to the corner. To this day I swear that her skin was glowing in a rather alien way. It was like our High Priestess had swallowed several glow sticks and their light was radiating out from her. There was a power around her that I could feel, and it was that power that was making her literally glow in the dim light.
I felt unworthy looking at her, so my eyes and ears drifted back to Ari, and I was astounded by what I was hearing. I had heard Ari read the Charge before, but never like this. The cadence in which she spoke was different, and her voice was full and confident, as if she had suddenly transitioned from a girl of nineteen years to a full-grown woman. There was a power coming from her lips that she had never seemed to possess before. I was now awestruck in two directions.
As the ritual proceeded, my gaze drifted back toward our High Priestess in the corner. She was still glowing in the darkness, and I found myself both in awe and frightened of her. Just before I was able to look away, her gaze caught my own, and I felt like she was looking through me.
It was most likely just for an instant, but it felt like hours, and I expected her to jump up in front of everyone we were circling with, point at me, and yell “Fraud!” for all to hear. It felt as if she could feel every doubt I’d ever had about the Craft, and this made me feel ashamed. But instead of yelling at me, she just smiled, nodded her head, and broke our shared moment. I felt relief wash over me, but for the rest of the evening a little bit of that fear remained.
As the ritual ended, the High Priest removed the veil from our High Priestess, and his wife returned to who she had been before. Her skin no longer glowed and the power that she had contained just a few minutes earlier was now extinguished. Ari’s voice also returned to what it had been, and suddenly we were all back in mundane space instead of between the worlds.
The next day over email we all shared our ritual experiences, and we all agreed that some sort of divine presence had visited us the previous evening. I remember making some comment about how we had seen “Ari grow up” that night, but it was far more than that. Years later I would find out that Ari too had drawn down the Goddess, which is why her voice and tone had been so different during the ritual. Looking back on it now almost twenty years later, that’s painfully obvious to me, but that’s only because we’ve shared many drawing down experiences together since that night.
That Samhain night back in 1998 was one of the most intense and spiritual experiences of my life. From that point on I knew that drawing down the moon and standing in the very presence of the gods wasn’t just a hypothetical; it was one of the most awe-inspiring mysteries in all of the Craft. Not all of my drawing down experiences have had that sense of presence that I felt that October night, but many have to varying degrees.
A little less than a year later, with many of the same people who were a part of that Samhain rite, I drew down a god for the first time. Our ritual was focused on celebrating the Greek god Dionysus through the music of the band the Doors and at least a few libations. I had spent most of the days immediately before that ritual focused intently on “Big D,” as we call him, but I didn’t really expect him to show up, and I didn’t learn that he had until the ritual was over.
I remember calling the quarters and reciting some poetry by Jim Morrison (the lead singer of the Doors), but the rest of the ritual remains pretty much a blank. An easy explanation for this is that I had consumed a few more drinks than I should have, but I know from experience that it’s hard to drink too much when you are busy talking.
Drawing down a deity into yourself is a completely different experience than experiencing deity through another person. When I draw down a deity, it’s like “checking out,” and the people I’ve circled with have to fill me in on what happened during the ritual after it’s over. That’s what happened with Dionysus. When the lights came on, I was suddenly hearing stories about all of these things I had done, and I most certainly didn’t remember doing them.
Apparently I was witty, clever, debonair, and had a lot of admirers (of both sexes) during our ritual. That was all Dionysus; it certainly wasn’t me. I felt closer to Big D when the experience was all over, but not because I was conscious of what had happened in the ritual circle.
Since those early experiences of drawing down the moon, I’ve been in dozens of circles where the gods have been drawn down (or have been attempted to be drawn down anyway). Sometimes it’s been as amazing as that Samhain evening, and other times it’s been less than overwhelming. Much of my life as a Witch has been about experiencing another night like that first one. Being able to experience the gods in the flesh is truly transcendent and is one of Witchcraft’s greatest mysteries.
What Exactly Is
Drawing Down the Moon?
Depending on whom one talks to, drawing down the moon can be many different things. As a believer in deities (goddesses and gods), I think of it as I just described it—as a process and experience where a goddess or god inhabits the body of a human being. In my more clinical moments I like to describe it this way:
Drawing down the moon is the opening up of oneself to deity so that deity speaks with your tongue, sees with your eyes, and experiences with your body. It’s a willful surrendering of consciousness in order to become one with deity so that others around you may experience that deity.
To me what’s most extraordinary about drawing down is that it’s literally “a god made flesh.” For a brief period of time, gods like Pan, Artemis, and Cernunnos inhabit a flesh-and-blood body, and we can touch them, talk to them, and be seen by them. Perhaps even more importantly, drawing down is generally a willful surrendering of consciousness. This means that the gods aren’t “taking over” our bodies; we are allowing them to be at home within us.
Periodically I hear people use the term possession to describe the drawing down experience, but I find that word troubling. Today, possession is generally used in a Christian context and in reference to evil spirits or demons. Such entities are generally not willfully sought; they come of their own accord and are hard to get rid of. In drawing down, we invite the gods in, and they are certainly not unwelcome guests!
Not every Witch is a believer in deity, which means that drawing down is sometimes interpreted in a different way by those whose beliefs about the gods are different from my own. There are many Witches who believe that deity is something that already exists within ourselves, and that there are no gods or goddesses outside of our own consciousness. For folks with views such as this, drawing down is an awakening of the divine that’s already inside of us.
Beliefs such as this are backed up in some ways by Doreen Valiente’s Charge of the Goddess. As the end of the Charge, the Goddess states:
And thou who thinkest to seek for me, know thy seeking and yearning shall avail thee not, unless thou know this mystery: that if that which thou seekest thou findest not within thee, thou wilt never find it without thee.
For behold, I have been with thee from the beginning; and I am that which is attained at the end of desire.150
Perhaps the process of drawing down helps to activate the divine within ourselves? It’s not something I subscribe to myself, but I can understand the reasoning.
What Happens to Us
When We Draw Down Deity?
I believe that when we draw down deity we are bringing gods and goddesses into our own human bodies, but I expect science to be skeptical of such claims. My atheist friends who doubt the existence of something like drawing down the moon will often claim that it’s a delusion we create inside of our own minds, or that perhaps we are engaging in personal hypnosis. My more negative friends have chalked it up to multiple personality disorder or some other sort of mental illness.
These suggestions are things I obviously disagree with, but I don’t discount all of the theories of the skeptics. People who suggest that Witches who draw down are faking the experience are not always wrong. I have been in circles where I doubted the validity of the drawing down experience, and I’m not alone. Such experiences are heart-breaking, but most of the time I believe that the experience is being faked because the ritual leader feels pressured to create an extraordinary experience for their coven.
While no one has ever run a brain scan on a High Priestess engaged in drawing down the moon, there have been studies involving Pentecostal Christians speaking in tongues. While speaking in tongues is not a direct parallel to drawing down the moon, it is similar. An adherent who speaks in tongues believes that the Christian Holy Spirit is speaking through them, and it’s a willful surrender much like our own practice.
A 2005 study found that the brain centers that control language were not in use while a person was speaking in tongues. However, the areas of the brain involved in maintaining everyday consciousness were active, which means the people speaking in tongues were not in a trancelike state. Speaking on the study, one of scientists remarked:
“The amazing thing was how the images supported people’s interpretation of what was happening,” said Dr. Andrew B. Newberg, leader of the study team, which included Donna Morgan, Nancy Wintering, and Mark Waldman. “The way they describe it, and what they believe, is that God is talking through them,” he said.” 151
It’s nice to see science backing up a person’s individual experience with the divine, but whether or not drawing down the moon (and related practices) can be proven as “real” by researchers isn’t of much importance to me. What I value above all else is the experience; I’m not really all that interested in where it comes from, though it’s fun to speculate.
Interacting with Deity
Modern Witches interact with deity in a variety of different ways. Drawing down the moon probably represents the pinnacle of that experience, but there are other levels. To fully understand drawing down the moon as a mystery, it’s important to look at our other forms of interaction with deity in our sacred spaces.
Calling to Deity
Almost every ritual I’m a part of involves a “call” to the Goddess and God and/or calls to particular deities. A call is a simple invitation to deity asking it to show up in the circle. Since it’s just an invitation, there are times when deity declines that invitation. I’ve been to plenty of rituals where we’ve asked the gods to join us and it felt as if they passed on that offer. There’s nothing wrong with that. I’m sure gods have lots of things to do.
Alternatively, I’ve been in circles where the gods have most obviously shown up. Perhaps the energy level of the circle increased after they were called to, or we felt their presence while engaging in a magickal rite. Calls are the most common way to address deity, especially in public or eclectic Witch circles.
The Particular Energy of Deity Is an Active Part of the Circle
If a call to deity is especially successful, then the energy of that deity can often be experienced during ritual. I was charged with putting together a Pan ritual at a local festival several years ago and was instructed to make sure it was rated PG. That was a real challenge with a god like Pan, but I did my best. When the ritual was over, a friend came up to me and said, “Jason, I felt a whole lot of Pan energy at tonight’s ritual,” and he was right!
After calling to the goat-footed one, all of us at the rite could feel some truly intense sexual and chaotic energy. No one acted on it during the ritual, but the next day I heard lots of stories from people about liaisons in stairwells and other things. The “goal” of the ritual was to make people feel sexy and confident, something I associate with Pan, and that’s exactly what happened that night! When the energy of a god is a part of ritual, that energy can change our consciousness and influence how we behave.
When a Mother goddess is invited into ritual and truly shows up, our circle often feels like an intense hug or a warm bed on a lazy Sunday morning. Our temple space generally feels safe and inviting, but the presence of a Mother goddess magnifies that feeling, and I can’t help but think it’s her energy transforming our circle. When we invite a Maiden goddess like Eostre,152 our circle becomes giggly, childlike, and deliriously happy.
A deity drawn down is the peak of all these experiences. Not only has a goddess or god been invited to circle, but their energy fills the ritual space, and we can talk to them! In such situations almost anything is possible, and emotions and feelings are likely to be strong and intense. When a drawn-down goddess feels grief, everyone in our coven feels it too, and when she feels joy, we experience that as well. Sometimes a drawing down experience can be especially intense, and other times a deity might want to visit for only a short period of time.
I tend to think of these ways of interacting with deity as overlapping ones. A simple call might lead to an intense visitation of energy by a particular deity, and sometimes deities show up inside of us humans even when they aren’t formally called down. Deity can do anything from simply watching our activities to actually entering our circle—and I think that’s when we truly begin to feel their energy in a transformative way. From there it’s just a short hop into a willing Witch!
A friend of mine has always had a strong relationship with the Roman god Bacchus (the Roman version of Dionysus, though there are some differences). One night he planned a very long ritual in honor of his favorite wine god that involved visiting a grapevine and picking grapes before heading back to his apartment. As the evening wore on, a girl I was seeing at the time and I retreated into a more private corner of my friend’s apartment.
Eventually my buddy came in to check on us, and as he left the room he flashed a grin that was knowing, devious, and a little bit sinister. As that smile unfolded, my lady friend and I felt an intense energy rush over us. Then the smile disappeared and my friend rejoined us, but without even trying he had drawn down Bacchus, and the Roman god of wine had made his presence known to at least my companion and me.
I know from my own experience that the gods I am particularly close to have no problem with “jumping in” to my coven’s rituals now and then. To let them draw that close to me is something I embrace, which means our ritual circle often winds up with honored guests when we aren’t expecting them. For most Witches, deities are very real entities, and when we invite them to our circles and to be drawn down, they often enjoy showing up. Just be prepared for the consequences that might result from a deity coming to visit.
Drawing down the moon isn’t the only phrase associated with a person letting deity inhabit their body, but for a variety of reasons I prefer to use drawing down or drawing down the moon to the exclusion of the rest. Part of that is because drawing down the moon is a phrase that is explicitly associated with Witchcraft today, and part of it is simply to avoid confusion.
Invoke
Invoke is the most common “other” term for drawing down the moon and is used in a lot of the more common ceremonies to bring about a drawing down. One of the problems with the word invoke is that it’s often used in a couple different contexts in Witchcraft circles. For many Witches invoke is synonymous with drawing down, but others use it more as an invitation to deity. A Google search for “Invoke the Goddess” provides results such as “11 Powerful Goddesses to Invoke Into Your Life.” Obviously they aren’t using it in a way that’s equivalent to drawing down deity.
Dictionary definitions for invoke make the word even less clear. The Oxford English dictionary offers a couple definitions, including “Call on (a deity or spirit) in prayer, as a witness, or for inspiration” and “Cite or appeal to (someone or something) as an authority for an action or in support of an argument.” 153 Neither of those definitions are anything like drawing down the moon. In my own coven we sometimes use the word invoke when preparing to call the Goddess and/or draw her down.
Similar to the term invoke is evoke. In fact, in the Oxford Dictionary the definition for evoke includes “Invoke (a spirit or deity),” along with “Bring or recall (a feeling, memory, or image) to the conscious mind.” 154 I sometimes use the word evoke when commenting on the type of ritual environment I’m trying to create. Another word I’ve heard in relation to invoke and evoke is envoke, which, for the record, isn’t even a real word.
Perhaps my least favorite analogue of drawing down the moon is avatar. In the Hindu religion an avatar is a deity who visits the earth in the flesh, and on occasion is an especially revered, enlightened, and highly respected guru. Because of this word’s ties to the Hindu faith, I like to try to avoid it, as I think it might be confusing to those familiar with those traditions.
There are a few local groups near me who don’t always specifically draw down deity but often appoint someone to act as a stand-in for a particular goddess and god. In their way of doing things, they often associate this “avatar” with an experience like drawing down the moon. Also, I can’t hear the word today without thinking about James Cameron’s 2009 movie of the same name.
One last term often associated with drawing down the moon is aspecting. Aspecting is used by some as a synonym for drawing down, while others use it to signify that a portion (an aspect) of a greater power is present. For instance, a person might “be in aspect” if they call upon the Great Goddess and the Lady shows up in the human vessel only as the Maiden. This word is also sometimes used to signify that only a piece of deity has arrived. Instead of completely drawing down a deity like the god Pan, the person in aspect picks up only the god’s tendencies and his wisdom. The exact use of the term aspect can vary from place to place and community to community.
150. While Doreen Valiente wrote the version of the Charge of the Goddess that is most familiar to many Witches today, there are those of us who also believe that her work was divinely inspired. So while Doreen’s physical hand was pushing the pen, it was being influenced by a higher power. For the text of Valiente’s Charge, see appendix 1. Doreen’s work is hosted at http://www.doreenvaliente.com/Doreen-Valiente-Doreen_Valiente_Poetry-11.php.
151. Carey, “A Neuroscientific Look at Speaking in Tongues.”
152. Eostre is generally seen as a Germanic fertility goddess and is where the holiday Easter gets its name. In the experience of our coven, Eostre generally comes across as “young,” for lack of a better word. For more on the historical Eostre, check out this link: http://www.patheos.com/blogs/panmankey/2015/03/looking-for-eostre/.
153. Oxford English Dictionary, https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/invoke.
154. Oxford English Dictionary, https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/evoke.