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Spiritual Recipes to Celebrate Milestones, Ease Transitions, and Make Every Day Sacred by BARBARA BIZIOU St. Martin’s Press $11.95 (softcover)
I had never been very much interested in using rituals for myself before reading this book. I felt that rituals had become just another trendy New Age fad. Many current books offer rituals, created by the author, that are not much more meaningful to me than those handed down in the churches and temples of my childhood. However, Everyday Rituals gives a broad base of information for creating your own rituals. The author’s explanations of why we need rituals got my attention and interest up enough to try a few of her suggestions. Biziou formats the information like a cookbook. First, she explains the five key elements that work together to create a basic ritual recipe: intention, sequence, sacred space, ingredients, and personal meaning. Then the "ingredients" and their traditional meanings are discussed. There are physical materials, such as food and artifacts, and psychic elements, such as meditation and guided imagery. She then demonstrates how to put it all together by offering forty rituals in eight chapters with titles such as "Rites of Passage," "Rituals for Relationships," and "Rituals for Everyday." For each ritual, there is a story about how someone created it and the benefit that he or she derived from it. Biziou constantly reminds the reader to use his or her own intuition and creativity in creating meaningful rituals. Since reading the book, I burn a few more candles and spray around the lavender oil. When created from the heart and mind, rituals can be more than just trendy fare. I must admit that I've been enjoying the increased sense of peace and magic in my home. |
Do your days speed
by one after another in a hazy blur of routine? Do weeks go by
without anything to distinguish one day from another? Creating
a few meaningful rituals for yourself can help to make the ordinary
things you already do seem more special. With the intention of
developing and maintaining a habit of mindfulness, making her
daily activities more meaningful and memorable, Barbara Biziou
has created rituals to mark the most mundane activities, like
eating or brushing teeth.