The Wheel of the Year – A Mystery Play

 

The Wheel of the Year – A Mystery Play

Characters:
The Goddess (she begins wearing a long white dress with a long white veil hidden under a long red veil)
The God (he begins wearing a pure white outfit)
The Narrator

Props:
Elemental Altars:
Candle x4, Cords (long!) x4,
Pieces of The Mantle x4 – each with Velcro to make a full cloak and covered in dead foliage and fruit
Incense and burner, The Goddesses’ crown
Fire Brazier, The Goddesses’ scepter
Water, The Goddesses’ necklace
Salt, The Goddesses’ belt

Center Props:
Sickle (sharp)
Flower Crown
God’s Crown

Circle’s Edge:
Curtains…. Somehow. Suspended from a frame….?

North West:
Throne of the underworld
Black Cloak with hood (on the throne)
‘Nesting area’
Chest
The Mantle (in the chest) – cloak covered in flowers and fruits of all stages of seasons
Red veil in the chest
Doll (sun god)

North East Props:
Two curtains
Mirror

South East Props:
Picnic stuff, blankets and pillows
Flowers
Knuckle bones

Hidden Props:
Grey veil
Green tunic
‘Figure’ Mask
Ghostly veil material for the god
'Lion pelt'
'Monster hide'
'Dragon heart'

ALL IN DARKNESS
QUARTER ALTARS ARE SET WITH THE ELEMENTAL PROPS
NARRATOR WALKS AROUND CIRCLE LIGHTING CANDLES/INCENSE ON QUARTER ALTARS

NARRATOR: (WITH GOD/GODDESS JOINING IN ON THE ONE STEP ROUND LINES)

The Virgin Queen crowned in light, labors ‘neath the stones
The Dawn Lord adrift upon the waves-
With His birth the world is saved...
One step round we go

In the East, sets forth the Maid, rejoicing in Her reign
The Wanderer sampling earthly charms
Seeking wonder in flesh and forms…
One step round we go

The Bright Prince led on a wild hunt, through danger and through pain
Spurred on by She of Perfect Grace
Seeking to lead him to His fate...
One step round we go

In the South, in the flames, the Lover calls His mate
The Priestess rises and leads Him on
Answering only to desires’ song...
One step round we go

The King of All surveys this land, tied directly to his fate
The Shadow Bride within His bed
Lays a crown atop His head...
One step round we go

In the West the Corn King lays, blood dripping to the ground
The Mourning Hag lets out a cry
The one She loves She sends to die...
One step round we go

The Enchantress searches for Her mate and finds Him in His shroud
The Slain King who, through magic’s care
Returns too brief, yet sires an heir...
One step round we go

In the North, the Devourer sits, upon a bed of bones
The Pale King cradled ‘gainst Her form
Seeking through death to be reborn...
One step round we go

One step round we go
Once more round we go...

Always around we go

The year wheel is a story.

Not a series of stories, one tangentially related to the other. Not a set of tales to be dusted off and read once a year each upon the appropriate day and then folded back up into a book of lore.

The year wheel is a single story. It flows and ebbs with the crops and rains, it rises with the tides and falls with with autumn leaves. The year wheel is the story of life; of the energies of birth and living and loving and death and rebirth writ large across the collective existence of human kind.

It is the oldest story, and the only story – for all other stories exist within it.

The year wheel is the story of the turning of the seasons of the earth and the turning of the seasons of our lives. It both turns and is turned by the dance of the goddess and god. Their unions, their separations, their love and their sorrow.

And like a wheel, there is no beginning, no finale. No firsts. No start. Eternal. Endless.

And yet, for us to understand, we mere mortals trapped within the web of time, we need beginnings.

And So... we begin. We begin the story with how our own stories begin. With a birth……

GODDESS ENTERS AND BEGINS TO STIR AND PUTTER IN THE UNDERWORLD AREA LIKE SHES NESTING, SHE HUMS A LULLABY

On Earth it is the longest night of the year. Yule. The Winter Solstice. The sun has set. The land is in darkness. The deepest darkness it has known. But the sun will return to break the darkness, we know it will return.. or at least we trust it will. It has to. We need it to. …… It must.

In the depths of the underworld, the goddess dwells. A miracle is about to occur. An impossible thing. In the darkest recesses of existence, in the twilight kingdom of the dead, a child will be born. Life coming forth in the land of death. A miracle.

She is the Virgin Mother. The Blessed. Holy. She carries within herself the promise made at Samhian – for even if this is our beginning, there still exists the paths and events that have lead to the beginning. Our lady conquered hell to find her love and through her he shall be reborn, but reborn here in this place of shadow and memory. How can such a thing be?

GODDESS STANDS, EXAGGERATING A
PREGNANT FORM, GOES TO CHEST AND LIFTS OUT
THE MANTEL HOLDING IT OVER HER STOMACH

GODDESS:
O Mantle of Fertility. Thou art Life. Thou art life and light and fruit and bloom, root and leaf, sap and seed and rot and decay and rebirth.

Thou art the lock to the powers of the earth and thou art the key. Whosoever so bears you bears the weight of nature and is tied to its cycles just as those cycles are tied to whosoever bears The Mantle.

PLACES MANTLE AROUND SHOULDERS

I am the Queen of Heaven; yet here too I rule, if only in proxy as the Queen of Hell. With this Mantle I regain my rule as the Queen of the Earth and of the power of the life that teems upon and within it, and tonight that life shall burst forth in the land of the dead and the shadows of death shall fall before the reborn sun.

NARRATOR:
The Mantle of Fertility.

The Mantle carries with it all the powers of the fertility of the earth, it IS the fertility of the earth. It must be worn, and must be worn by one worthy of it, if not worn the power will fade and fall into eternal winter and life itself will cease to be; if the wearer is not worthy, the earth will sicken and rot, but rot without renewal and regrowth. By the wearing of it, the wearer too is tied to the doom of the earth, and will follow natures own fate.

GODDESS BEGINS LABOUR PAINS, LAYS DOWN

From Maiden to Mother
From Crescent to Full
From womb to encircling arms

Through the grace of The Mantle
One flesh becomes two
And the wheel shall turn evermore

Goddess: (Chanting)

From Maiden to Mother
From Crescent to Full
From womb to encircling arms

GODDESS CONTINUES CHANTING DEVOLVES
INTO BIRTH WAILS, GIVES BIRTH THE “CHILD”
IS WRAPPED IN THE MANTLE WITH HER STILL WEARING IT

NARRATOR:
Through the grace of The Mantle
One flesh becomes two
And the wheel shall turn evermore

And so the Lord of the Dawn has come forth. He who has begotten himself. The God reborn. Renewed. Resurrected. He is the Promised Prince, the Heir Presumptive - he has been reborn, but he must yet prove his worth if he is to truly become his own inheritor.

But that is all yet to come, for now we know only the glory of joy and the comfort of hope. The God is reborn! The sun rises out of darkness!

GODDESS:
Your birth has broken the strongest hold that sleep that has ever had upon the earth and with your birth you have fulfilled your promise to safeguard the light and the sun until the darkness' breaking.
My child, you have so many choices ahead of you, and yet – you will stand at the crossroads of choice and choose the same path again and again and again and forever. My pride for you is matched only by my sorrow.

GODDESS STANDS, TAKES CHILD TO QUARTER
ALTARS USES SALT, WATER, INCENSE, AND
CANDLE TO BLESS CHILD

Whether here in Hell or in Heaven or in any of the corners of the earth, all life is made up of four things, and with a fifth animating from behind.

I bless you with these four things –

I bless you with air – with wit and wisdom and wiles, with ways to twist words into tools and with curiosity and confidence enough to walk boldly into the unknown, just to see what is there.

I bless you with fire – Passion. Drive. Strength. Love. Lust. I give to you an unfulfillable need and I give to you the unending desire to fill that need.

I bless you with water- feelings and fears and tears and loves and the beautiful terror felt while gazing into the depths of ocean or into the depths of the night sky.

And earth - I bless you with earth – with a form and flesh, bones and skin and touch and the feel of wet moss on rocks under bare feet.

All things are made up of four things, with a fifth animating it from behind. I bless you with these four things. I do not bless you with the fifth - for you are, as am I, that fifth thing

GODDESS SITS AGAIN WITH BABY AND BEGINS TO SING A LULLABY

Sleep, my sun child, in the cradle of night,
Rest, little star, until mornings light.
Dream of the seasons, of sun and of rain.
Dream of the heavens, where your light will reign

Mother's beside you, whispering low,
Sleep now, Sun God, let your brilliance flow.
Hush little star, as the year wheel turns slow,
In the cradle of night, let your dreams grow

NARRATOR:
And one step round we go.

The winter solstice has brought forth the son, the new sun, the boy child, the god. The light reborn. But reborn as a boy child, as a new sun, light reborn yes, but weak, impotent, all promise with no power; life looks towards this sun, but can not be sustained by it. Not yet. Maybe one day. Maybe never. Yule brings hope, not certainty.

GODDESS HIDES BABY/DOLL AND THE YOUNG GOD EMERGES AND JOINS HER, THEY PLAY TOGETHER

But Yule does not last forever, and one step round we go.

And with that step we turn to Imbolc.

The light of the flame in the darkness. The strengthening of that flame – brighter now if not warmer – brighter, and growing. The god too, brighter now and growing. The Young God… hope in the darkness – the heir presumptive if not heir apparent – the idea of the returned god if not the reality.
Deep within the underworld the young god grows, marveling at all around him

God: (laughing)
Mother, look! The way these crystals sparkle...

Goddess:
Yes, they shine like the stars

God: (looks around confused)
What are stars mother?

Goddess:
They are the little points of light that shine far up in the sky

God:
What is sky mother?

Goddess:
Its like the roof of our cave, but over the whole world

God:
The world?

Goddess:
It doesn’t matter my little one

God:
Sometimes I think I hear something... beyond these walls. A sound like singing, or a light trying to break through the darkness….. Is that the world?

Goddess: (Sighs, looks up as if she was seeing through the cave itself)
Yes little star, the world. The land of the living. It beckons with light and song, but it is also a place of endings, of death.

God: (curious)
Death? What is death, Mother?

Goddess:
Death is the end of one cycle and the beginning of another. If you ascend to the world above, you will begin your journey through life, with all its joys and sorrows. But know this: once you go, you will walk towards your own death.

God:
And if I stay here?

Goddess:
You will remain safe, never knowing pain or loss. But you will also never grow, never experience the wonders of life. You will remain as you are, forever.

God:
Forever sounds... lonely.

Goddess:
It can be. But the choice is yours, my child.

God:
I want to see what's up there, Mother. I want to know what the light and sound are!

Goddess: (resigned)
Then we must leave this place, but remember what I have told you.

THE GOD AND GODDESS LEAVE THE UNDERWORLD, THE GOD IS AMAZED AT EVERYTHING HE SEES. THE GODDESS WATCHES, PROUD, AND AFRAID
THEY DANCE A SIMPLE DANCE AROUND THE CIRCLE, SHE POINTS THINGS OUT TO HIM, HE KEEPS SPEEDING UP AND RUNNING AHEAD AND COMING BACK ASKING QUESTIONS

God: (pointing)
What is that?

Goddess:
A flower

God:
Its beautiful.

THE GOD SKIPS AHEAD AND THEN RETURNS

What is this? (holding open his hands)

Goddess:
A bee

God:
Its beautiful.

Goddess:
Be careful of its sting

God:
Whats… sting?
Goddess: (smiling)
It would hurt you little star

God:
Hurt? I’ve never been…. Hurt... I wonder what that would be like

THE GOD SKIPS AHEAD AND THEN RETURNS

What is that? (pointing)

Goddess:
A log

God:
Why is it falling apart
Goddess:
it is dead my love, and rotting back into the earth
God:
Its beautiful!

THE GOD RUNS OFF BUT DOESN'T RETURN

Goddess:

Wander, my child, through darkness and light,
Wander the forests, wander the night,
Explore, little star, the world wide and long.
Explore the oceans, both stormy and calm

Be brave, my sweet child, face each day anew,
Find, little star, all that life brings for you.
My hearts always with you, filled with pride and with fear,
Be brave, my dear one, my loves always near.

Explore now, my star, and learn of the earth
Learn of the cycle of death and of birth
Learn now, little one, but please take it slow,
In the vast world around, let your dreams flow.

God:

Wander, I will, through darkness and light,
Wander the forests, and wander the night.
With wide eyes I see, the world fresh and so new,
The mountains, the valleys, the skies deep and blue.

With courage, I’ll greet both beauty and pain,
For it’s all a part of this life’s great refrain.
I’ll wander through joy, through shadows and fears,
For in every moment, something new does appear

The world is so big, and my heart feels it grow,
With every new sight, with each step I go.
So I wander, and wonder, and dream as I see,
This world full of wonders, all waiting for me.

THE GODDESS STANDS ALONE IN THE CENTRE, LOOKING DOWN AT
THE EARTH, SHE KNEELS, PLACING HER HANDS ON THE GROUND

Goddess:

If the earth is to be your playground my son, then let it bring forth life and wonders for you. Let the seeds of growth be planted, let the potential for life flow from me into the land so that it may wake from its winter sleep.

GODDESS REMOVES RED VEIL HAVING
THE WHITE ONE FALL AROUND, HER RED VEIL SHE LEAVES IN THE CENTRE

Narrator:
And so the potential for life returns to the land of the living. The Goddess, once the Mother - now passing that power into the land itself - becomes the Maiden of youth. She sends the spark of her fertility into the earth and all the life it holds within and with on it, the promise of renewal, the promise of return.

Goddess:
Life begets life, an unending chain,
From death comes rebirth, through joy and through pain.
I ignite Springs spark within the earth's core,
So life may return, forever more.

THE GOD, FAR FROM THE GODDESS SUDDENLY FEELS A POWERFUL PULL. HE SENSES THE SPARK OF LIFE IN THE EARTH, IT CONSUMES HIS THOUGHTS AND HE FALLS TO HIS KNEES AND PLACES HIS HANDS ON THE GROUND
(MIRRORING THE GODDESS)

God:
I don't know what it is, but I must find it,
Merge with it, worship it, be devoured by it.
This spark, this light, it calls to my soul,
I must find what it is, to make myself whole

HE BEGINS TO LOOK AROUND FOR THE SOURCE OF THE SPARK

NARRATOR:
And one step round we go.

At Imbolc the goddess gave the promise of the return of life, and the young gods return brought the light of the sun and the promise of its warmth.

Now we turn the wheel to Ostara where those promises begin to be fulfilled.

The god continues to wander, searching for the source of the pull he feels within himself, the source of the life that is growing and blooming around him even as he himself is growing and blooming. No longer a child but not yet a man, he searches for the spark, but unknowingly he is also searching for himself.

THE GOD RECREATES THE DANCE THAT HE AND THE GODDESS
DID AT IMBOLC, HESITANT AT FIRST AND THEN FASTER,
REMEMBERING THE STEPS

God:
Where is the source of that spark? I felt it, so strong, so pure... I must find it and show it my strength, my power, my worth!

HE COMES ACROSS THE GODDESS WHO IS GARDENING IN THE SOUTH EAST

It's you! You're the spark! I know you….. but…. You're different! I've felt you call to me, you must have felt me too…. I am the god! I am strength and power…. that spark, it must be for me, why else would it call to me? With that spark I could conquer the world!

Goddess: (without looking up, calmly)
You speak loudly, young god, but I see no substance. The spark you seek is not found in noise or empty gestures. You are not yet whole, only half a man playing at greatness."

God: (taken aback, but determined)
Half a man?! Fine, then I shall prove my worth to you! I will show you my strength, my valor, my courage. You will see what I am capable of!

HE STORMS OFF AND STOMPS AROUND MUTTERING TO HIMSELF, THE GODDESS CONTINUES CALMLY WORKING ON HER GARDEN

God:
She is wrong, I'll show her

Goddess:
Ahhh, the rashness of youth

God:
I am the god!

Goddess:
He is a child

God:
I will posses the spark

Goddess:
The spark can not be possessed, only nurtured

God:
I will conquer all, I will be ruler and king!

Goddess:
One does not rule by conquering, but by the giving of ones self

God:
I will conquer and show her my worth. I will slay monster and beast, I will win over unbeatable foes, I will face terrible tasks and answer unanswerable riddles. For her, I will become a hero. I will show her.

Narrator:
And so, the rashness of youth and the certainty of his greatness drives the young god. He seeks to prove himself worthy of the spark, worthy of the goddess. He does not yet realize that if he can not find his worth within himself than no deed or trial will grant it.

THE GOD WALKS PROUDLY UP TO THE GODDESS, SHE DOESN'T RISE

God: (triumphant)
Look, Goddess! I have slain the mighty lion, greatest of all beasts! I offer you its pelt as proof of my strength!

Goddess: (glancing at the pelt, unimpressed)
A beast conquered by brute force is not a prize, it is merely a reflection of your untamed pride.
This does not impress me, young god.

THE GOD STORMS OFF, THE GODDESS CONTINUES GARDENING.
THE GOD RETURNS

God: (breathless, but proud)
Here, another trophy! No mere beast – but a monster! Felled by my hand! Surely now you see my worth, surely now you see my glory!

Goddess: (barely looking at the hide)

You fight to prove yourself, yet still, you do not see. Victory over monsters will not make you whole.
This does not impress me, young god.

THE GOD STORMS OFF, THE GODDESS CONTINUES GARDENING.
THE GOD RETURNS

God: (desperately)
A dragon’s heart, plucked from its chest! The greatest creature on this earth, the most powerful, the most dangerous. And I killed it! This must be enough, Goddess, to earn your favor!"

Goddess: (shaking her head, with gentle pity, she takes the heart)
As all living things are my children, this beast too was beloved by me. Its death does not please me. You chase after power, after fleeting victories, yet the true battle lies within, unseen and unchallenged.
This does not impress me, young god.

THE GOD STORMS OFF BUT KEEPS LOOKING BACK TO SEE IF THE GODDESS NOTICES (SHE DOESN’T) WANDERS AND FINALLY FINDS THE
UNDERWORLD IN THE NORTH EAST

Narrator:
Disheartened and disbelieving, the God stumbles away. He does not understand how the goddess can not see his greatness, his power. He searches, thinking for a way to impress upon the goddess his worth, he does not yet know that he is actually searching for his own self.

He stumbles upon a cave, a familiar place… his birthplace. He knows it, and yet it is different, with new twists and passages. He enters, determined to find what he has missed.

God:
What is this place? It calls to me, like a dream, I know it and yet it feels unknown. Is this where I was born, or something more? I must find the source, the truth, the spark!"

HE FOLLOWS MEMORIES AND SHADOWS, SEARCHING, HE HEARS SOMETHING BEHIND HIM AND WHIPS AROUND AND HE FACES
THE MIRROR IN THE NORTH EAST

God: (panicked, covering his eyes)
AHHHH! No! What is this? It’s horrible! All my fears, all I hate… I cannot face it!

HE SHAKES IN FEAR BUT UNCOVERS HIS EYES AND LOOKS….INTO THE MIRROR PARTING THE TWO CURTAINS MORE

God: (whispers, shocked)
It’s… it’s me. All the fear, the hatred, the darkness… It’s within me. I see my pride. I see my failings. I am my own monster? I discovered the beauty of the earth and sought to keep it for myself alone, I saw the bounty of life and sought to devour it. I saw the goddess and demanded she acknowledge my greatness when the only thing great in me was untapped potential.

THE GOD REACHES OUT TO TOUCH HIS REFLECTION

Narrator:
Pride. Insecurity. Violence. The will to dominate. The will to conquer and devour and posses. It lies within us all. There is darkness in all life, but darkness is not evil, it is a part of the balance. Needed. Necessary. It is only when these things control us do they lead to ruin.

God:
But this… this shadow, it is part of me. And without it, I cannot be complete. The bad can be used for good, if I accept it, If I take it into myself and transform it; by doing so I shall become whole and truly know myself

HE TAKES A DEEP BREATH AND WALKS THOUGH THE CURTAINS
THE GODDESS RISES AND BEGINS TO TAKE NOTICE, EVENTUALLY
WALKING OVER
GOD PUTS ON A GREEN TUNIC WHILE BEHIND THE CURTAIN THE GOD EMERGES FROM THE NORTH EAST
THE GODDESS IS STANDING THERE WAITING

God: (humbly)
Goddess, I have returned, not with trophies of slain beasts, but with myself, whole and complete.
I offer you not a prize, but my true self, in all my light and shadow, in all my strengths and failings

Goddess: (smiling, finally impressed)
Now, you have truly returned, not as a half, but as a whole. This is what impresses me, young god,
For now, you are ready to walk beside me. As equals. As partners.

THE GODDESS HOLDS HER HAND OUT AND THE GOD TAKES IT

God:
You were right, you have shown me the truth
Goddess:
Ahhh, the wisdom of experience
God:
I am the god
Goddess:
You are my equal
God:
The spark I sought I found within myself.
Goddess:
The spark can only ever be found there
God:
I will protect all, I will be ruler and king
Goddess:
You shall - by the giving of yourself; you shall conquer - though love.

GOD AND GODDESS WALK TOGETHER THROUGH THE
CURTAIN IN THE NORTH EAST

Narrator:
And One step round we go

The god has passed though his trials – he is initiated into the mysteries of life - no longer the young god, no longer the heir presumptive; heir apparent now – and soon to become more than that – soon to meet his doom, and his crown, and his fate, and his destiny; and soon to fulfill his deepest and truest dreams. He has proven himself worthy. Worthy of the title God and worthy of the Goddess. And this day he receives the reward for which he is worthy.
Today is the day the god comes, authentic heir and proven prince, ready to bear his fate

GOD COMES OUT FROM BEHIND CURTAIN IN THE SOUTH EAST

Today is the day the Goddess comes – the maiden, the teacher, the priestess, the bride –

GODDESS COMES OUT FROM BEHIND CURTAIN IN THE SOUTH EAST
GODDESS FUSSES WITH THE MANTLE

The bearer of life and renewal and rot and rebirth. The bearer of the mantle.
The mantle. The fertility of the land – the Mantle, tied to its bearer as its bearer is tied to the earth.
Today they declare their union, they declare their merging, melding, their mating of existence, of goddess and god, of light and dark, active and receptive

GOD AND GODDESS WALK TOWARDS THE CENTER, MEET AND TAKE RIGHT HANDS
NARRATOR BINDS HANDS WITH CORD

Union… unity… love is the force that binds them…. But not just love, but the cycles of life and of death, the cycles of moon and of sun, the cycles of sowing and growing and harvesting and consumption.

God:
Union… unity… love is the force that bind us, but not just love, but strength and purpose too,
For the harmony of all that is, and all that will be, today, we unite, not as halves completing the other - but as wholes, complimenting

Be with me my love, through sorrow and mirth,
Be with me, forever, through death and rebirth,
The love that we share shall echo through time
And all life shall sing in our story

Goddess:
Union… unity… love is the force that guide us, but not just love, but passion and wisdom too,
For the balance of all that is and all that will be is our dance of power

Be with me, my sun lord, in the bed of the night,
With me bright star, until mornings light.
The love that we share shall engender the earth
And all life shall sing of our glory

God:
I crown you, my Goddess, my bride, my lover, my queen. I crown you not just as the bearer of life, but as its ruler. You with strength that rivals the mountains, with power that commands the storms, you are that which brings order to chaos, the sword that brings justice, and the shield that protects.

THE GOD PLACES THE FLOWER CROWN UPON THE GODDESS

Goddess:
And with this mantle, I embrace you and name you the nurturer and protector of life.
With your love that flows like rivers and your compassion that heals all wounds; with your nurturing spirit that brings forth abundance – you, my God, you now hold the power of fertility within and about you. The earth is yours……. and you belong to the earth.

GODDESS TAKES THE MANTLE AND PLACES IT ON THE GOD

Narrator:
The mantle!
The mantle has passed!

No longer are the crops and fields and seeds and shoots tied to the ebb and flow of the Goddess, but now tied to the strength and the lifeblood of the god. Tied to the life of the god. Tied to the death of the god.

Goddess:
Remember, my God, you now hold the power of fertility within you, it is tied to you – all life is dependent now on the choices you shall soon have to make. Carry this power with honor and grace.

GOD AND GODDESS KISS AND WALK BEHIND A CURTAIN
GODDESS PUTS GREY WIG ON UNDER HER WHITE VEIL

Narrator:

And so, the merging, melding, mating of existence, of goddess and god, light and dark, active and receptive. The passing of that spark – that connection to the earth and the crops and the fields and the plants and the berries and the seeds and roots and leaves and grains from goddess to god.
The god carries the mantle now.

All life is dependent on the gods strength, and thankfully, for the sake of all life, the god is strong.

For now.

Half way round we are, and half way round we've left to know

And so one step more around we go

One step round. To summer. To Litha, To the height of the strength of the god.
His strength is no longer growing – but grown. He is grown. He is at his prime. He shall never be stronger or greater or more powerful or more perfect then than he is at this moment.

GOD AND GODDESS EMERGE FROM CURTAIN

Goddess: (pointing to the earth around them)
I am this world, my beloved.
I am the earth that nourishes, the air that gives breath, the fire that drives passion, the water that soothes. I am life itself, eternal and changeless, but it is you, dear star, you bring change to me.
Through you, I grow, I wither, and I bloom. Our union creates the cycles of nature, The harvests, the seasons, the very pulse of existence.

God: (thoughtfully, as they walk)
When I wandered in my youth I always saw the beauty in this world, the colors, the patterns, the life that flourishes. But now, as you speak, I begin to see deeper, to understand the connection we share,
And how our cycles echo through all creation.

Narrator:
As a youth the god wandered though the world – in it but not of it, not connected to it, nor was it connected to him.
But then the mantle. The mantle of creation.
Now the god is not only of the earth and the earth of him, but through the Mantle they truly are one – what happens to one happens to the other.
And so now the earth and all things of it sing with the great strength of the god, revel in the power of life and grow and bloom and burst forth.

Goddess:
Show me, my bright star, show me what you discovered when you journeyed in your youth, let me discover my world anew through your eyes

GOD AND GODDESS WALK THE CIRCLE THREE TIMES.
THEY STOP AT THE EAST, THE GODDESS LIFTS THE CORD TIED TO THE ALTAR

Goddess:
What of air did you see when you wandered as a youth?

God:
I saw sound and songs whisper on the breezes, I was moved to laughter and tears by wit and by words; I heard tales old as time.

Goddess:
And what do you see now?

God:
I see now.. The air… not just a whisper, but a shout into the void, it is the clarity of thought, the jumbled spark of innovation, I listened, not just heard truths told in is old tales.

GOD TAKES EASTS CORD IN HAND WALK AND STOP AT SOUTH WHERE THE GODDESS PICKS UP THE CORD TIED TO THE ALTAR

Goddess:
What of fire did you see when you wandered as a youth?

God:
I felt its warmth – reveled in it. I saw its beauty – I reveled in that too. Excess, abundance, the glories of passions inflamed.

Goddess:
And what do you see now?

God:
I see now, the Fire… it is within me, the burning desire to protect, to love, to fight. I am the spark of this fire, and I am its fuel. I am the keeper of its balance, for without it, the world would be cold,
Yet uncontrolled, it would turn to ash

GOD TAKES SOUTH CORD IN HAND, WALK AND STOP AT WEST WHERE THE GODDESS PICKS UP THE CORD TIED TO THE ALTAR

Goddess:

What of water did you see when you wandered as a youth?

God:
I saw the oceans swell and break, I saw waves reach into the heavens and storms calm themselves in a single breath – I saw the deepest regions of the globe. I saw into the coldest barren depths and into waters teeming with fantastical life.

Goddess:

And what do you see now?

God:
I see that I am the force that shapes the heart that brings forth love and happiness or brings forth solitude and sorrow. I am the one who stirs the waters and who is stirred by them. I am who brings forth life through love and compassion, yet also the storm that can break the greatest foundations

GOD TAKES WEST CORD IN HAND, WALK AND STOP AT NORTH WHERE THE GODDESS PICKS UP THE CORD TIED TO THE ALTAR

Goddess:

What of earth did you see when you wandered as a youth?
God:

I saw mountains as tall as the heavens and trees nearly as so. Petals of every shade the eye can see and many more beyond. I saw caves and canyons, soils and stones in enough colours to make a rainbow blush.

Goddess:

And what do you see now?

God:

I see now… the earth is a reflection of our bond, the foundation of life, yes, but also a mirror, and it reflects the strength and sustenance that I must provide

GOD TAKES NORTH CORD IN HAND AND THEY WALK TO THE CENTER

Goddess:

And here, here at the centre of all things, at the cross roads of creation, what do you see?

God:
I see… or at least I begin to see,

My Goddess, this journey is not just a path of discovery, but of responsibility, of sacrifice. The world is not just for me to enjoy, but for me to sustain, to protect, to nurture.
While all life needs you – you need me, you who are unending experience end through me. You who are eternal celebrate impermanence though me. Where you are Necessity, I am Time.

Goddess:
You begin to understand. This is a journey of mirth and of joy, but also of work, and of sacrifice, and above all, of deep and abiding love.

I am eternal life, death is outside my existence - and so it must be through you that life is released and renewed, reformed, and regrown. Do you accept this as your fate and as your doom and as your glory?

Do you stand as does the wheat in the fields and trees in the orchards and the crops in the earth, stand as a promise of harvest and eternal life? Do you accept this as your fate and as your doom and as your glory?

Do you stand as the god triumphant, King and leader and guardian, nurturer and provider for all life? Do you stand here at the crossroads of creation, holding the powers of creation, holding the powers of earth and air and fire and water in your hand - yours to rule and protect and nurture? Do you accept this as your fate and as your doom and as your glory?

God:
I do

Goddess: (raising the crown from the ground)
With this crown, I name you, the protector of all life, ruler of the elements, keeper of the cycles.
Bound to the earth, as the earth is bound to you; what happens to you, happens to all and as you now stand in your greatest strength so too does the fertility of the earth burst forth in abundance.
By the very powers of the elements of creation that you hold I anoint you King. Ruler.

GODDESS KISSES HIS FOREHEAD

You have proven yourself and proven worthy.

God:
Where before I saw a field of grain I see now see my own essence, my life’s work,
Each seed and shoot, a part of me, growing, living. I am the source, the defender, the protector of all.
I understand now my lady

GODDESS PLACES HANDS OVER GODS WHICH ARE STILL HOLDING THE CORDS

Goddess:
Do you

God:
My strength prophesies my death, and your love is the bait and the blade that brings it about

Goddess:
Would you have it any other way?

God:

Never

THEY PLACE THE CORDS ENDS DOWN AT THE CENTRE OF THE CIRCLE
AND WALK OVER TO THE SOUTH EAST AND RELAX AND REVEL

Narrator:
And one step round we go.

From Litha to Lughnasadh.

A long and lazy step. The kind of step you take through a field soaked in sun as you relishing the heat and breezes that dance upon your face.

The queen is crowned, and the King too. Life is in order. Laughter abounds. Love reigns. The days are long, the nights are peaceful; it is a time to breath.

From Litha to Lughnasadh. The grain ripens, the crops near ready, the seeds that feed life and the seeds that guarantee rebirth grow as gold as the sun, their heads bow low as if for the blade.

………….A promise has been made. It's keeping is about to be called.

GOD AND GODDESS LOUNGING TOGETHER PLAYING GAMES AND PICNICKING,
THE GOD IS PLAYFULLY TOSSING A KNUCKLE BONE

God:
Shall we play, my Goddess? A game? Shall we toss for wagers or shall we toss for fates?

Goddess:
Let us play for fates, my star, let us see our future lying hidden in the roll of the bones

THE GOD TOSSES THE KNUCKLE BONES ONTO THE GROUND THEY BOTH LEAN FORWARD CURIOUSLY

God:
The first cast… Look, it speaks of a bountiful harvest, of fields overflowing, of life and laughter! The earth will flourish, and all will rejoice.

Goddess:
Indeed, the earth shall bloom, and where there is life, there is joy, and where there is joy, there is hope

THE GODDESS TOSSES THE BONES

God:
Ah, and this? It speaks of a grand celebration, of dances under the full moon, of love and unity, of bonds unbroken.

Goddess:
A prophecy of joy, of love's embrace, what better fate could we seek? Let us dance in the moonlight, my love, And celebrate the life we share.

THE GOD THROWS THE BONES AGAIN. BOTH LOOK ILL AT EASE

God:
This… this speaks of something darker, Something inevitable, something… final.

Goddess: (shaken)
It is time, my God… the time of sacrifice, the time that must come. For without your death, there will be no life, no rebirth, no cycle to continue."

God:

I agreed to this, and I will not now be forsworn, I will not even beg for it not to be so…. and yet, yet... why must it be so?
Why must I be the one to fall? There is so much yet to do, so much life to live!

Goddess:
Because it is the way of the world, the cycle that must turn, for every beginning, there must be an end.
You wear the mantle. You and the earth are one. You and the crops and seeds and grains are one. If you do not die then the harvest can not happen – if the harvest can not happen then humanity will fall. Life shall fall and rebirth will not come to it. Seeds will no longer engender life. Souls will no longer pass to the worlds beyond to rest and then to be reborn.

The cycle shall be broken and broken shall I be.
I can not sacrifice myself for the people, even to spare you, my star – I am life eternal and unending and unwavering. I can not die. And so you must.

God:
I know, my love, I know. It is but that it is a heavy burden, but one I will carry willingly and always. Forgive me.

Goddess:
There is nothing to forgive. We will face it together, you will not be alone. And through your sacrifice,
life will flourish eternally

Narrator:
The promise has been called in – the promise of life. The promise of death. The god shall be sacrificed and by his sacrifice the spark of eternal life shall flow into the earth and into the crops and into those who consume it.

Devouring death to engender rebirth, death safeguarding the cycles of life.

GOD AND GODDESS WALK TO THE CENTER OF THE CIRCLE
GODDESS PICKS UP THE EARTH CORD AND TIES IT TO THE GODS RIGHT LEG

Goddess:
To the Earth, I bind you,
To the physical world, to the ground beneath our feet,
To the soil that nourishes, to the roots that anchor.
May you be the strength that sustains all life.

God:
I am the Earth,
I am the foundation, the sustenance, The strength that holds the world together

GODDESS TIES AIR CORD TO RIGHT WRIST

Goddess:
To the Air, I bind you,
To the thoughts that soar, to the breath of life,
To the winds that carry seeds, to the ideas that inspire.
May you be the mind that guides all life."

God:
I am the Air, I am the thought, the inspiration, the breath that fills the lungs of the world.

SHE TIES THE FIRE CORD TO THE LEFT LEG

Goddess:
To the Fire, I bind you,
To the passion that burns, to the warmth that sustains,
To the flames that light the way, to the power that drives action.
May you be the spark that ignites all life.

God:
I am the Fire,
I am the passion, the warmth, the flame that fuels the spirit of the world

SHE BINDS WATER CORD TO RIGHT WRIST

Goddess:
To the Water, I bind you,
To the emotions that flow, to the currents that shape,
To the tides that rise and fall, to the tears that cleanse.
May you be the soul that nurtures all life.

God:
I am the Water,
As I am the emotion, the current, the tide that moves the heart of the world.

THE GODDESS TAKES UP THE SICKLE AND WALKS AROUND THE CIRCLE THREE TIMES OVER AND UNDER THE CORDS MOVING OUTWARDS TO THE EDGE OF TEH CIRCLE. AFTER THREE TURNS SHE TURNS AROUND AND WALKS WIDDERSHINS THREE TIMES, OVER AND UNDER THE CORDS, SPIRALING INWARDS UNTIL SHE IS IN FRONT OF THE GOD

GODDESS:
You are those things …..and yet I cut you from them –

I cut you from water and yet in water if left your emotion, your heart- removed from you and set forth into the world.
CUTS WEST CORD
I cut you from fire, and yet in fire is left your passion and warmth- removed from you and set forth into the world.
CUTS SOUTH CORD
I cut you from air, and yet in air is left your inspiration, your thought- removed from you and set forth into the world.
CUTS EAST CORD
I cut you from earth, and yet in earth is left your strength, your substance- removed from you and set forth into the world.
I cut from you from earth , and yet in earth is left your life.

CUTS NORTH CORD
THE GOD FALLS TO HIS KNEES
WITH ONE EXAGGERATED CUT THE GODDESS CUTS THE GODS NECK

And with this final cut, I release you, from the ties that bind, from the life you knew.
The sacrifice that must be made, for the sake of all that is, for the sake of all that will be.
I am sorry my love.
And thank you

THE GODDESS KISSES HIS FOREHEAD

I anoint you my star, I purify you in your final breath – you are a worthy substitute and by your sacrifice you sanctify all life

THE GOD FALLS TO THE GROUND AND THE GODDESS SCREAMS
20-30 SECOND PASS WITH NO MOVEMENT
THE GOD RISES SLOWLY WITH LIQUID MOVEMENTS
HE DELIBERATELY TAKES THE MANTLE AND HOLDS IT BY TWO CORNERS.
THE GOD WALKS TOWARDS THE GODDESS, SHE TAKES THE OTHER TWO CORNERS OF THE MANTLE, THEY STAND CHEST TO CHEST
THEY CIRCLE EACH OTHER SLOWLY PULLING AWAY AND AS THE MANTLE IS STRETCHED OUT THE GOD DROPS HIS CORNERS AND WITH A BOW, WALKS AWAY.
THE GODDESS HOLDS THE MANTLE CLOSE AND THEN STIFFENS, LOOKS AT IT IN UTTER HORROR

Goddess:
No! I cannot bear it, this is a symbol of loss, it carries the weight of death! I can not bear it anymore

SHE THROWS THE MANTEL FROM HER (TO BEHIND THE CURTAIN)
SHE PULLS OFF HER WHITE VEIL, AND LEAVE IS ON THE GROUND- TO HAVE A GREY WIG UNDERNEATH
THE GOD WALKS TOWARDS AND STANDS IN FRONT OF
THE THRONE IN THE NORTH WEST

Narrator:
And one more step we go.
The god, the sacrificed god, entered the kingdom of the dead, and in that kingdom, his might and kindness and his glory was such that he charmed even its denizens. And the promise of rebirth that clung to his spirit was such that it brought solace and hope to even the dead.

HE GOD SITS ON THE THRONE OF HELL PUTS ON A CLOAK THAT'S ON IT

He could comfort the dead, but to the living he could only hear their cries.
And what he heard broke his heart.
He heard the wails of humanity – 'the Mantle is gone! No one wears it! The earth has lost the life within it, we will not be reborn'
The mantle. The spark of life. It lies forgotten, rotting, rent apart by wind and rain and claw. Discarded pieces tossed to the quarters of the earth.

Mabon sees the spark fading.

The god, wills the goddess to hear him. Through the bonds of their love he wills her to listen

God:(stands and yells)
I have kept my promise but you, you o goddess, you have broken yours! The mantle rots and the fertility of the earth falls with it. Take up your doom or else you doom all life

THE GODDESS IS IN THE PICNIC AREA BUT IS DISHEVELED AND CRYING
SHE SNAPS HER HEAD UP AS IF SHE HAS HEARD SOMETHING.
ALMOST BECOMES LUCID, BUT THEN DROPS BACK
THE GOD STORMS OFF BEHIND THE CURTAIN PLACING HIS CROWN ONTO THE THRONE
THE GOD PUTS ON HIS 'GHOSTLY VEIL'

Goddess: (muttering)

...No...no no no. What does it matter? The wheel has stopped, the cycle is broken. He is gone, and with him, all hope, All life, all purpose… gone.

Narrator:
Outside, the voices of humanity still call to her. Sacrifices still made in her name. The smell of burned incense and poured wine drifts to here even here. Though she fights to shut it out
To shut it all out.
To sleep. To slip into oblivion. And drag all existence with her.
But the endless calls and pleas and cries and prayers and moans and wails and screams keep her awake

SHE TRIES TO SLEEP. TRIES TO BLOCK OUT THE CRIES.

'Goddess', they cry. 'Hear our plea! The earth is barren, the spark in the seeds of the harvest dwindles. They carry neither nourishment nor the promise of rebirth.
Nothing can be born, nothing can grow!
The wheel does not turn!'

Goddess: (harshly, covering her ears)
Cease your wailing! I have given you all I had, now leave me to my sorrow, let the world rot, what do I care?"

SHE CAN NOT BLOCK THE CRIES, THEY TORMENT HER

Enough! Enough! FINE I will do what must be done, If only to silence your cries,
To end this torment you bring upon me!

THE GODDESS WANDERS, LOOKING FOR THE PIECES OF THE MANTLE.
SHE FINDS THE FIRST PIECE UNDER THE QUARTER ALTAR SHE PICKS IT UP AND PAUSES AND A FLICKER OF EMOTION CROSSES HER FACE

Goddess: (softly, almost reluctantly)
Here… the first piece. So tattered, so torn, like my heart… like the world.

SHE SEARCHES MORE, SHE FINDS A SECOND PIECE AND ATTACHES IT TO THE FIRST

A part of him, a part of us. A part of the world. How could I have abandoned it…

THE GODDESS, MORE ACTIVE NOW SEARCHES MORE, SHE FINDS A THIRD PIECE AND ATTACHES IT TO THE OTHERS

A part of him, a part of us. A part of the world. How could I have abandoned him to the realms of death and shadow

God: (his voice soft, echoing, hidden)
Goddess… I hear you

THE GODDESS SEARCHES MORE, SHE FINDS A FOURTH,
LAST PIECE AND, ATTACHES IT TO THE OTHERS.
SHE FALLS TO HER KNEE HOLDING THE CLOAK

Goddess:
What have I done? I have ignored my duty, I have ignored the mourning, the grief of the earth, of humanity… Of my own heart.
I am so sorry, my love, so sorry

THE GOD WALKS TOWARDS HER
HE REACHES DOWN AND TAKES HOLD OF TWO CORNERS OF THE MANTLE ,
THE GODDESS RISES HOLDING THE OTHER TWO CORNERS.
THE MANTLE IS STRETCHED OUT BETWEEN THEM AS THEY SPIRAL AROUND EACH OTHER

God: (gently, yet with a tone of chastisement)
Goddess, my eternal love, you cannot forsake your sacred duty, you cannot abandon the earth. For if you do, I cannot return, I cannot be reborn, and we…We will never be reunited.

THEY CIRCLE EACH OTHER GETTING CLOSER

Goddess:
I… I was lost, lost in grief, in sorrow, in anger. I could not bear the pain, but you… you are right, I must turn the wheel, I must bring life back to the earth.

THEY EMBRACE, THE MANTLE BETWEEN THEM

God:
I understand, my love, I know your pain, your fear. I cannot imagine a world without you, for you are eternal, unchanging. And yet you change for me, change so that I may bring the future to pass,
So that I may create, and renew.

THE GOD PLACES THE RECONSTRUCTED MANTLE ON THE GODDESS

Narrator:
The Mantle is saved!
The goddess has taken up the mantel.
The Mantle is healing. Life is returned to the world once more.

Autumn’s leaves have turned and fallen, but the tree shall not die; it only slumbers now, where it very nearly simply ceased to be.
Fields almost cursed barren now just lie fallow waiting to engender new life
The seeds are alive and carry within them the promise of life everlasting.

Goddess:
We will create anew a vessel for your return yet again, a vessel for the hope of humanity. We will make a cradle for life, A promise that the wheel will turn again.

God:
And through this vessel I will return, To walk beside you once more, To be born and grow and change and be renewed, To relearn mysteries, to relearn my self. To fulfill the cycle of time."

THEY HOLD THE CLOAK ABOVE THEM SO THEY ARE ENTIRELY SURROUNDED BY IT LIKE A TENT

Narrator:

New life engendered. A new vessle to hold the god. The sun child-yet-to-be
New life engendered and this new life is reflected through the mantle. Reflected onto the earth.
After the time of harvest and reaping and dying and cut stalks in bare feilds – a second bursting of life – of berry and nut and fruit and the wild bounty of the woods.

New life to celebrate new life. To give thanks for the turning of the wheel

THE EMBRACE ENDS
THE GOD BOWS HIS HEAD AND PLACES HANDS ON GODDESSES STOMACH

God:
The vessel is made, sacred and sanctified by being a part of your holy body. A vessel conceived to carry my spirit. Worthy to carry my spirit. Worthy to return to you.
But not yet. Not yet my love.
I must return now to the lands of death and shadow. I who now rule over the spirits of the dead, I carry the fate of the dead with me as I once carried the fate of the living.
My rebirth must come in that place of death – birth where there is no life, and so by doing bring life to all.
You must come to me there my lady

Goddess: (shocked)
The land of the dead. I can not. I am life. I am not strong enough.

SHE HOLDS HER STOMACH

I can not risk your vessel!!

God:
You must. And you can. You are stronger than you believe, you need only be reminded.
TAKES AND PLACES AIRS CROWN ON HER HEAD
Remember lady, your command of thought and wit, you guide the winds of change with clarity and purpose
TAKES AND PLACES FIRES SCEPTER IN HER HAND

Remember your passion, your enduring light, let it burn brightly, guiding the way for all. TAKES AND PLACES WATERS NECKLACE AROUND HER NECK

Remember your connection to the waters . Your love and your compassion for all life

TAKES AND PLACES EARTHS BELT AROUND HER WAIST
Remember your connection to the earth, your strength and your beauty, you are the foundation of all life.
THE GODDESS STANDS PROUD, REMINDED OF HER SELF

Goddess: I will carry on, my love, until the day you return, until we are together again. I will seek out the road to hell and I will join you before its throne and there we will turn the wheel once more.

God:
And I will return, the cycle is unbroken, life is eternal.

THEY HOLD HANDS AS THE GOD BACKS AWAY, LETS GO AND GOES BEHIND THE CURTAIN IN THE NORTH EAST

Narrator
And one last step we go
Though not truly last. Not really. There is always a next step around the wheel – it has no beginning, no finale. No firsts. No start. Eternal. Endless
And yet, for us to understand, we mere mortals trapped within the web of time, we need endings.
And So... we end. We end the story with how our own stories end. With death……

Not a death. For that we have seen already. The death demanded by the goddess and the death devastating to her.
Samhain is not about a death. It is about death itself. And it is about rebirth. The guarantee of rebirth. Samhian brings certainty, not hope.

GODDESS WANDERS AROUND

The goddess has wandered long. She has traveled the corners of the earth in search of the gates to the underworld, in search of the road to hell, in search of the god.
She sought the gates to hell in all the corners of the earth. From Mabon until now she has wandered, searching; until now.
For on Samhain night, the gates to Hell are everywhere.

Goddess:
On this sacred day, when the veils between worlds are thin, I will confront my fate. I will harrow hell and hallow the spirits held there. I will reclaim the Self of the God – he who died by my hand and he who now is carried with in my body
It is only now, when the veils are at their thinnest, that I, Life- eternal and deathless- can enter the realm of the dead.

SHE TAKES A DEEP BREATH AND WALKS THE CIRCLE. WIDDERSHINS SHE IS STOPPED AT THE NORTH BY A MASKED FIGURE (THE GOD) IN A MASK.

Figure:

Goddess, you seek to enter the realm of the dead, but to pass, you must give up what grounds you,
What ties you to the earth, to the physical world. What will you offer in exchange to let you pass? Will you sacrifice you beauty of flesh and your strength of form?

FIGURE GRABS FORCEFULLY AT HER BELT

Goddess:
This is but a symbol of those. I would give it up to you should you let me pass in search of my love, it is meaningless without him.

GODDESS REMOVES BELT AND OFFERS IT. FIGURE CONSIDERS, TAKES IT AND GESTURES HER PASS. SHE CONTINUES TO THE WEST AND IS CONFRONTED BY THE FIGURE

Figure:

Goddess, you seek to enter the realm of the dead, but to pass, you must give up what flows in you,
What ties you to the water, to the world of feeling. What will you offer in exchange to let you pass? Will you let me take your compassion? Your hope?

FIGURE GRABS FORCEFULLY AT HER NECKLACE

Goddess:
This is but the symbol of those. I would give it up to you should you let me pass in search of my love, it is meaningless without him.

GODDESS REMOVES NECKLACE AND OFFERS IT. FIGURE CONSIDERS, TAKES IT AND GESTURES HER PASS. SHE CONTINUES TO THE SOUTH AND IS CONFRONTED BY THE FIGURE

Figure:

Goddess, you seek to enter the realm of the dead, but to pass, you must give up what burns in you,
What ties you to the fire, to the world of passion. What will you offer in exchange to let you pass? Would you give up your passion and your will

FIGURE GRABS FORCEFULLY AT SCEPTER

Goddess:
This is but a symbol of those. I would give it up to you should you let me pass in search of my love, it is meaningless without him.

GODDESS OFFERS SCEPTER, FIGURE CONSIDERS, TAKES IT AND GESTURES HER PASS. SHE CONTINUES TO THE EAST AND IS CONFRONTED BY THE

FIGURE

Figure:

Goddess, you seek to enter the realm of the dead, but to pass, you must give up what lifts you,
What ties you to the air, to the world of thought. What will you offer in exchange to let you pass? Would you loose your wit and your wisdom?
FIGURE FORCEFULLY GRABS AT CROWN

Goddess:
This is but a symbol of those. I would give it up to you should you let me pass in search of my love, it is meaningless without him.

GODDESS OFFERS THE CROWN. FIGURE CONSIDERS, TAKES IT AND GESTURES HER PASS. SHE CONTINUES TO THE CENTER AND IS CONFRONTED BY THE

FIGURE

Figure:
You have given up your regalia, your symbols of power, your earthly ties. Now, what remains? What will you offer to prove your worthiness, your right to be here? What have you left that is worthy enough to offer me? Would you sacrifice yourself?

Goddess:

I have given up mere symbols, but what remains is me, the essence of who I am. The eternal, the deathless, the one who loves, the one who endures. I remain, and that is not something even should I desire to, that I can be given up or taken.

Figure:
Very well. The mantle that you wear then. You could give that up. Offer that to me.

Goddess:
I can not

Figure:
Even to save your love? Even to save your god

Goddess:
I…. I can not. This mantle is a promise, one I have made to life. I nearly broke that promise once, I will no do so again. I will not stop the turning of the wheel. Not even to save my love. There must be something else.

Figure:
You will not give me yourself. You will not give me the mantle. Then what have you left that is good enough to offer me? Would you sacrifice the child that you carry?

Goddess:
This child is the vessel for the rebirth of my love and the hope of life everlasting for all that lives and has died. I will not give it up

Figure:
Well then, a third and final time I ask.

THE FIGURE REMOVES HIS MASK, IT IS THE GOD. HE SMILES THEY WALK TO THE SOUTH EAST PLACES IT ON THE
GROUND, TAKES GREY VEIL OFF GODDESS, PLACES IT ON THE GROUND.

A third time I ask, what will you give to me?
You who have proven yourself to me below as I proved myself to you in the world above.

Goddess:
I will give myself to you as you have given yourself to me; as we always have and will again and again and again. Always standing at the crossroads of choice. Always choosing again and again life. And love. Always love.

God:
But this was not just a test for you, It was a test for us both,- for I have come to love the earth,
To cherish humanity and all its creatures and the cycle of death and rebirth.

Goddess:
We have united the three worlds, Heaven, Earth, and Hell, and in doing so, we have tied humanity’s fate, to our own

God:
Rule here, Queen of Hell in my name while I am gone and growing and waiting again to be born, so that when I am born, rebirth will come to the land of the dead and all life will live eternal
I who am the seed of all creation seek to be reborn through you, to let the cycles flow and make the wheel ever turn.

Goddess:
I who am the cauldron that holds all creation within it, I take you into the life we have engendered, to let the cycles flow and make the wheel ever turn.

THEY EMBRACE WITH THE MANTLE LIFTED AROUND THEM BOTH
God:

I will be with you, my love through sorrow and mirth,
Be with you through cycles of death and rebirth,
The love that we share shall echo through time
All life is part of our story

Goddess:
Be with me, my love, in the dark of the night,
With me bright star, until mornings light.
The love that we share shall engender the earth
All life shall sing of our glory

GOD GOES BEHIND THRONE AND THROUGH CURTAIN
GODDESS PICKS UP CROWN OFF THRONE, SITS ON THRONE
AND HOLDS STOMACH, SINGING TO THE GOD

Hush, my bright star, within me you sleep,
Cradled in warmth, in the darkness so deep.
You are my bright one, my light yet to shine,
Nestled within, where our spirits entwine.

Dream of the dawn you will bring to the sky,
But for now, my dear sun, in my womb you do lie.
One day you will rise, in the heavens above,
But for now, rest easy, in the my cradle of love.

THE GODDESS RISES, PLACES THE CROWN BACK IN THE CENTRE,
GOES BACK, GENTLY TAKES OFF THE MANTLE AND PLACES IT BACK INTO THE CHEST IT CAME OUT OF AT YULE

Goddess:
Like planting a seed.

SHE PULLS A RED VEIL OUT OF THE CHEST AND PLACES IT OVER HER

For now the earth rests, winter lays upon it, dormant but not not devastated. Dreaming but not dead. The the mantle will repair of its rending and be ready to bless the birth of the god. The rebirth of the god.

As it ever was
And as it ever shall be.

THE GODDESS SITS IN THE SPOT SHE WAS IN AT THE BEGINNING AT YULE AND BEGINS TO PUTTER AND NEST WHILE HUMMING.
Narrator:
As it ever shall be
As it ever was
One step round we go
Once more round we go
Always around we go