The Druid Magic Handbook: Ritual Magic Rooted in the Living Earth - John Michael Greer 2008

The Three Cauldrons
The Secret of the Grail
The Practice of Druid Magic

As you have probably noticed by now, Druids like the number three, and use it fairly often to structure symbolism and ritual. The subject of the present chapter is no exception, for the Inner Grail working comprises three stages, and the first stage focuses nwyfre on three subtle centers within the enaid—three cauldrons that unite to form the Grail.

These are not the only centers of nwyfre used in Druid magic, of course, nor is the Inner Grail working the only exercise that awakens centers in the enaid. The Elemental Cross, the very first magical ritual you learned in this book, focuses nwyfre on two centers, one in the middle of the head, the other at the solar plexus. These centers are crucial in the early phases of magical training; the center in the head helps strengthen your ability to sense nwyfre, while the solar plexus is the portal through which nwyfre from outside you becomes part of your enaid.

These centers remain important, and the center in the head takes on a new role as the container for the lunar current. Two other centers of nwyfre, however—in the center of the chest and the lower belly—become crucial at this point. These centers and the one in the head have been mentioned already, in the discussion of the three currents back in chapter 1. They appear in the world's magical traditions under many different names. The names we use are the cauldrons of the earth, the Moon, and the Sun.

Before you begin working with the cauldrons in ritual, practice imagining them in your body. First, picture the cauldron of the earth in the middle of your belly, about two inches below the level of your navel. Make it four inches or so across, the color of dark bronze, with a triangle on its side to represent the secret fire. This cauldron corresponds to vitality, the passions and the material body, and forms your link with the telluric current.

Once you have this image firmly in place, picture the cauldron of the Sun in the middle of your chest at the level of your heart. Make it the same size as the cauldron of the earth but the color of red gold, with a sunburst on its side. It corresponds to reason, emotion, and imagination, and connects you with the solar current.

Figure 7-1 The Three Cauldrons

After getting this image firmly in place, picture the third cauldron, the cauldron of the Moon, in the middle of your head. Imagine it the size of the others but made of crystal, with a crescent Moon on its side. It corresponds to intuition, inspiration, and enlightenment, and forms the vessel where the lunar current will manifest once you create it.

The Three Cauldrons Ritual

When you can easily imagine all three cauldrons in their places, the next step is a ritual working to begin filling the cauldrons with nwyfre. This is best done on one of the eight holy days of the Druid calendar, but if your circumstances don't allow this, any time will do. If you have any questions about your readiness for this ritual, cast an Ogham reading to settle your doubts. Set up your working space for an ordinary grove ritual, using your wand, cauldron, and crane bag, and open the grove in the usual way. When you cast the Sphere of Protection, ask the first four elements to assist you in awakening the three cauldrons inside you, and banish any obstacle that hinders you from awakening them.

Once you reach the invocations of the three forms of spirit, however, the ritual leaves familiar ground behind. When you invoke Spirit Below, trace the orange circle and say words like these: “By the bright heart of the Earth Mother, and in the great name Ced, I invoke Spirit Below, its gods, its spirits, and its powers. May a ray of the telluric current ascend into me this day and always. May the cauldron of the Moon be filled within me.” Breathe in, and as you do so, imagine yourself drawing the telluric current up through the soles of both feet, up your legs, and into the lowest of the three cauldrons. As you breathe out, imagine the cauldron filled and surrounded with silvery light that ripples like water. Repeat this process, drawing the telluric current into the cauldron on the inbreath and letting it radiate there on the outbreath, nine times in all. Then say, “I thank Spirit Below for its gifts.”

Go on to the invocation of Spirit Above, trace the purple circle as usual, and say words like these: “By the Sun in its glory, the father of light, and in the great name Celi, I invoke Spirit Above, its gods, its spirits, and its powers. May a ray of the solar current descend into me this day and always. May the cauldron of the Sun be filled within me.” Breathe in, and as you do so, imagine yourself drawing the solar current in through your solar plexus and up to the middle cauldron at the level of your heart. As you breathe out, imagine the cauldron filled and surrounded by golden sunlight. Repeat this process, drawing the solar current into the cauldron on the inbreath and letting it radiate there on the outbreath, nine times in all. Then say, “I thank Spirit Above for its gifts.”

Go on to the invocation of Spirit Within. Be aware of yourself, with the two cauldrons shining inside you and the six powers invoked and present around you. Say words like these: “By the six powers here invoked and here present, and in the grand word Awen, I invoke Spirit Within. May the lunar current be born in me this day and always. May the cauldron of the Moon be filled within me.” Breathe in, and imagine silvery light rising straight up the midline of your body from the cauldron of the earth. As it reaches the cauldron of the Sun, it blends with the golden light there, and a stream of mixed silver-gold light rises the rest of the way to the cauldron of the Moon and flows into it. On the outbreath, the light in the cauldron of the Moon turns into pure white radiance, filling and surrounding the cauldron. Repeat this process, drawing light up from the two lower cauldrons on the inbreath and converting it to white radiance on the outbreath, nine times in all. Then imagine a drop of pure white light falling from the cauldron of the Moon all the way to your solar plexus, halfway between the two lower cauldrons. Once there, it expands out in all directions to become the sphere of light used in the Circulation of Light, and you proceed as usual. Once you finish the Sphere of Protection, take your seat in the grove and meditate on the three cauldrons for a time. When you are ready, close in the usual way.

The Three Cauldrons Exercise

This ritual need be performed only once to start the process of establishing and filling the three cauldrons. Once you have done the ritual, however, regular work with the three cauldrons should become part of your daily magical practice, so that you can build on the foundations the ritual puts in place. Do the exercise as follows.

First, perform the Elemental Cross as usual, then invoke and banish the elements of air, fire, water, and earth in the usual way. When you begin the invocation of Spirit Below, trace the orange circle as usual and say words like these: “By the bright heart of the Earth Mother, and in the great name Ced, I invoke Spirit Below, its gods, its spirits, and its powers. May a ray of the telluric current ascend into me this day and always. May the cauldron of the earth be filled within me.” Breathe in telluric nwyfre up through the soles of your feet and lead it into the cauldron three times. Then say, “I thank Spirit Below for its gifts.”

Go on to the invocation of Spirit Above in the usual way. Trace the purple circle and say words like these: “By the Sun in its glory, the father of light, and in the great name Celi, I invoke Spirit Above, its gods, its spirits, and its powers. May a ray of the solar current descend into me this day and always. May the cauldron of the Sun be filled within me.” Breathe solar nwyfre in through your solar plexus and up to the cauldron of the Sun three times, then say, “I thank Spirit Above for its gifts.”

Go on next to the invocation of Spirit Within, and say words like these: “By the six powers here invoked and here present, and in the grand word Awen, I invoke Spirit Within. May the lunar current be born in me this day and always. May the cauldron of the Moon be filled within me.” Breathe telluric nwyfre up from the cauldron of the earth, combine it with solar nwyfre from the cauldron of the Sun, and bring the combined currents up to fill the cauldron of the Moon three times. Then perform the circulation of light as usual.

If you find yourself in a situation where you can't perform the Sphere of Protection for some reason, an even simpler version of the Three Cauldrons exercise can be done. Simply call a ray of light down from high above you, as in the beginning of the Elemental Cross, and send it down to the center of the Earth. Then imagine the cauldron of the earth in your belly and draw telluric nwyfre into it three times with three inbreaths, as in the ritual. Imagine the cauldron of the Sun in your chest, and draw solar nwyfre into it three times with three inbreaths. Imagine the cauldron of the Moon in your head, and bring the currents up the midline of your body to it with three inbreaths. Finally, perform the circulation of light. This version should not be used often, since it lacks the balancing effect of the elemental invocations, but it works well in a pinch.