The Role of the Seer in ADF Ritual

This is an article Caryn asked me to write for the ADF, so.....I did! Because if not me, then who? Taryn did her best to proofread it; I'm an immovable object when it comes to things like this. We'll see if it gets accepted or not.

The Role of the Seer in ADF Ritual

By Ashley Bryner, CedarLight Grove

            In the arc of ADF liturgy, the taking of an Omen is held at the pinnacle, signifying the beginning of the Return flow of energy; it is neither up nor down. All ritual and sacrifice up to this point has been made in hopes of participation by the Kindred, and primarily the Deities/Beings of the Occasion. Once the Prayer of Sacrifice has been made, the folk listen intently to hear the words of the Gods, and so they look to the Seer to share this divine communication.  The Seer gives resonance to the voice of the Gods, relaying their wisdom and blessing in a very real sense. In this way, the Seer is simultaneously the most weighted role in the ritual and also the most dangerous.

            Naturally, every grove or solitary practitioner within the ADF has their own style or flavor of ritual. We tend to emphasize some things over others depending on any number of things: the season, the hearth culture, shared interests, interpretations of the lore, etc.  It is quite remarkable the amount of difference and similarity that we express through one single ritual framework: The Core Order of Ritual (COoR). For some Groves, the Omen is underemphasized with more focus being on other segments of the ritual, such as honoring the Beings of the Occasion or a wicked awesome Gate Opening or Prayer of Sacrifice. As the ADF has been using the various incarnations of the COoR over the years, groups have developed traditions around it to grow organically. For some groups, the Omen is one of the driving forces behind ritual. We have given offering and praise in the ancient ways, we have given sacrifice to the Gods, and we go as a community before them and ask for their Blessing. That Blessing, be it upon our continued work or an answer to our prayer, instructs us on how to proceed from there. This essay is essentially a firsthand testimony of one Grove’s experiences with Seership and how we have come to understand this role.

Choosing a Seer

            The Seer is the mouthpiece of the Gods. No matter how you slice it, or how you view the Omen itself, the Seer has a hard task. They are entrusted with an enormous responsibility and the power to wield words which can change the lives of ritual participants. The message must be received and delivered without embellishment or falsehood, and thus the Seer should be chosen carefully from within the group by the Chief Liturgist. The prime candidate for the position could possess any of the following qualities: Proficiency with a divination set or system, the gift of Sight, a working relationship with the Deities who are being honored, a high code of honor or integrity, an honest personality, and be trusted by the community as a proven Seer.

            The absolute most important quality of a good Seer is Trust. The community trusts in the ability of the Seer to communicate a message clearly and concisely from the Gods, while the Seer themselves must open themselves entirely and trust the Gods/Other to both take care of them physically and be the vessel to carry their message forward.

            If you are fortunate to have multiple quality Seers at your Grove, you may wish to select one based upon their proficiency with a divination method that derives from the hearth culture the Rite is celebrating. For example, if you are celebrating a Norse Jul (Yule), you may wish to select a Seer who is proficient in Rune casting. While seidr is also a powerful divination method found within that hearth culture, it would likely not be appropriate for your main ritual; it might be too long, too personal, or not fit well into the theme of the Rite. Seidr could easily be performed prior to the rite in preparation, or even afterward. Then again, perhaps it may fit nicely as the divination method of your choosing. It depends on the abilities of your group, and if there are folk who would be well served by it then by all means do so. Remember that our Rites are designed to be public, so plenty of information regarding what will be occurring during the Rite should be made available beforehand for attendees who are not regulars.

Choosing Divination Methods

            This may seem like a chicken and egg question; which comes first—the Seer or the divination method? Truthfully, it’s up to the Chief Liturgist to decide. If your Rite is to be celebrated in an Irish fashion, it might make most sense to ask a Seer proficient with the Ogham. Then again, perhaps someone who has volunteered to be Seer is an especially adept visionary who would prefer to scry in the old way (sans the murdering of a bull) or utilize imbas forosnai, then perhaps if the community was comfortable and trusted the Seer, the Chief Liturgist may decide that they’d prefer the latter. Each rite and each community are different. Everyone’s skill levels are different and their specialties will vary.

            While we are on the topic of open and closed systems, it’s probably worth noting that most Grove Seers utilize a closed system of symbol sets like Runes, Ogham, Tarot or the Greek Alphabet Oracle. That is, they have a set of traditional meanings from which to pull the language of the Omen from. Some will attest that it is most useful to use a symbol set for public ritual because many people are aware of the meanings, and they will be able to comprehend the Seer’s demonstration and interpretive skill. This arises from that issue of trust; a Seer can be held more accountable to their understanding of the message against the traditional meanings of the symbols. People are cynical by nature and like to see that the Seer is as capable as they hope they are.

            However, there have been times in which the set symbols are presented, but the meanings were not the traditional ones, or taken in context with the accompanying spread or toss are taken to mean something completely different. In this case, it is up to the community to trust the skill of the Seer to accurately represent the words of the Gods. It doesn’t matter what sort of spectacle is made to demonstrate Seership; if a Seer is full of crap, it will be evident. You can have the most beautiful velvet bag in the world or the most intricate knitted veil, and you can still be perceived as ostentatious or even ridiculous depending on your audience.

            This is why after some time of trust being built between groups and their Seers it is perfectly acceptable for Seers to practice an open system such as scrying, entrail reading, or tea leaf reading. If the Seer is trusted, then the method will not matter. Much training and practice should be had before a Seer attempts use of an open system in ritual. Once again, the folk may wish to actually SEE that the Seer is doing something, even if it is gazing into the fire. Take a moment and make offering to the fire first and actively engage it. It isn’t a circus, but it does help to use some sort of tool to demonstrate HOW exactly you received the message. It is not a bad idea to describe your Seeing process during the pre ritual briefing regardless of which method you will be using; this way participants will have a level of understanding of what is going on even if there are not a lot of “tools” visibly present.

Ritual Etiquette and the Seer

            Once again, these are only suggestions from the mind of a Seer; how your own group chooses to integrate the ideas or reject them is entirely up to you. Your mileage may vary.

            The first thing the Seer might wish to consider is to take a moment before the Rite to introduce themselves to the Beings of the Occasion and to the Kindred and let them know that they will be serving as the bearer of their voice for the ritual. It is good to be acquainted early on. It isn’t a terrible idea to make a personal offering just before taking the Omen as a special token of thanks or offering for clarity.

            The Seer should be focused and observing from the time the pre-ritual briefing ends, right up to the conclusion of the Rite. This is especially true if the Seer is utilizing an open system which requires trance or concentration; the ritual team should be mindful of the needs of the Seer and be aware of their individual tendencies. For example, don’t let them roll around in the fire in a tranced out state just because they CAN. Take care of them.  This is why having an Omen Scribe is a good thing; they can keep an eye on the Seer through the Rite and be the person whose responsibility it is to understand the Seer’s tendencies (communication is vital) and know when to be concerned and when not to be. It takes discipline on the part of the Seer and the Omen Scribe.

            Once again, take care of one another. Some Groves will absolutely not take Seership this seriously, but those that do or are considering a move in this direction ought to be extra mindful of these things. Seership can be dangerous if the Seer is unprepared or undisciplined, and for more than just the obvious deity interaction reasons. Historically it has been dangerous also. Beyond this, someone who isn’t so good at it might do something to shame themselves and hurt their own self esteem pretty badly in the process. In dealing with the public however, out there be dragons…

False Omens

            One of the lesser discussed (but omnipresent) reasons the position of Seer is such a dangerous one is because if it is given to the wrong person, you run a high risk of receiving a false omen: one intended to harm, deceive, or subvert.  The emphasis on INTENTION to harm, deception or subversion is tantamount to understanding a false Omen. This concept presents a challenge to the popularly held belief that the Seer-is-always-right, or that the Omen given by the Seer is absolutely the correct Omen and the only one to consider. The Omen is as the Seer presents it because only the Seer can know and understand the message that was communicated to them. During a false reading, the Omen may herald more information than the message of the Gods. The Gods may also wish to demonstrate a False Tongued Seer and expose them. It sounds harsh, but it does happen, albeit quite rarely when a Seer is wisely chosen. Some of the things which signal a False Omen may unfold physically before your eyes, and other times it can be something like the entirety of ritual participants are suddenly nauseous with headaches. Sometimes it can be as simple as a dramatic shift in energy tangible enough that even the least sensitive folks are aware of it and are made uncomfortable.

            False Omens/Seers are quite rare, as the ADF teaches and demonstrates living a virtuous life of integrity. Nevertheless, mistakes are made. Errors in judgment are made, and in those less-than-ideal situations where a false Omen has been given because the wrong Seer was chosen, the best course of action depends on the belief of the individual group. Perhaps that Seer may not be called upon in the future or perhaps they could do with more time practicing their divination skills. If your future Ritual Prayers or themes are based upon the Omen given in the previous rite, one may have to dig a little deeper to create a correlating prayer or perhaps may be able to shift the focus from the False Omen by focusing on a prayer of clear communication with the Gods or of honesty. During the ritual itself, just as one may refuse the Waters of Life for any number of reasons, one is also not required to drink if they feel the Omen was false. There are subtle ways of reacting to such things without causing a scene in sacred space. Remember that you are in the presence of the Kindreds and Honored Guests and the Folk, and it is important to understand that when you are in sacred space, only truth should be spoken. If that truth is somehow broken and hospitality/integrity has been breached, it is on the individual to carry themselves with honor and do right by the Kindred.

            False Omens are absolutely a problematic topic of discussion, and it is difficult to approach someone who has been intentionally malicious to your group, and so each case must be handled with care. I do not speak of Seers who are merely unpracticed in their craft and are simply doing the best they can, though one might still wish to present them with other Seership opportunities apart from High Rites to help them gain their bearings before asking them to divine an Omen for a High Rite.  Take care of your growing Seers; everyone had to start somewhere.  

Conclusion

            Once again, this is the testament of a Seer who works with a tight knit, large community of Druids and has witnessed these things. I encourage you to think of Seership as a practiced art and the gift/curse it is. Gifted Seers are easy to recognize; their Omens strike a deep resonance within the core of many folk and can alter the path of their lives. We are not so unlike our ancient ancestors, even now, and the gift has never left us. It is up to us to accept it, deny it, or practice it with excellence.