I am not particularly a spiritual person, but I keep having dreams where I am weaving in a ritualistic fashion, and I have been noticing a lot of circles of rocks on the ground, which remind me of when I was a kid and obsessed with trying to find fairy circles or fairy rings in the forest. I have decided these are enough signs to write my post about rituals, rocks and circles.
For anyone who doesn’t know what a fairy circle is, it’s a naturally occurring group of mushrooms that are growing in a circle. The mycelium beneath the ground consumes nutrients at the center of the circle and gradually spreads outward. As you may be able to guess, fairy circles have a lot of folklore and mythology surrounding them, especially in English, Scandinavian, and Irish folklore. They believe that fairy circles were formed by fairies or elves dancing in a circle, usually at midnight or dusk. Entering a fairy circle is generally frowned upon because it is thought to bring bad luck and is dangerous, as they act as doorways to other realms.
What first got me thinking about fairy circles was Björk’s exhibition in Reykjavik, specifically the one called Ancestress, which “reckons with the cyclical nature of life. Set in a remote valley in Iceland, the lamentation is staged as a ritualistic procession of musicians and dancers” (from exhibit description linked below). This exhibit focuses on the grieving process of Björk losing her mother, and had me transfixed. I literally sat in this exhibit for like 2 hours. I definitely recommend going if you have time before you leave. After I left the exhibit, I found a park with what I would describe as the Barbie Twelve Dancing Princesses doorway circle, but maybe that’s too niche a reference, so here are photos and a video for context.
When I arrived at house 35 on our first day in Blönduós, I immediately noticed this altar-like rock structure in our fireplace (picture below). What a perfect place for an altar, and what a perfect misty day to notice it, with fog as the only thing I could see out of the windows. Had some travellers done a ritual here? What was the ritual for? Had the hidden people accepted their offerings? Are there even any houses other than the Textile Centre in Blönduós? A few days later, when it had become less foggy, house 35 decided to do a ritual of our own. As excited travellers, we had already picked up rocks and shells and brought them into the house without asking. We apologized altogether, and each said a few words of thanks for letting us enjoy this amazing place, people and environment.
After our ritual, I sat and thought about the connection between fairy circles, as in-between places where you can reach other realms, and the Icelandic hidden people, huldufólk, who don’t appear in sacred spaces necessarily but appear at in-between times, and in-between places. Johanna later confirmed this during her spinning lesson as she discussed the huldufólk and the solstice’s continuous cyclical light. She explained that the Solstice is a time when lots of doorways open. I don’t necessarily believe in rituals or superstitions, but I have had a lot of fun picking Shannon’s oracle cards every morning with house 35. Here are some of my favourites picked up right before spinning (Ancestral Joy) and right before weaving (Earth Song).
byebye
Annabel
https://www.listasafn.is/en/art/exhibitions/bjork (Link to Bjork Exhibit)