This rite can be used to dedicate yourself to The Hedge Witches Craft, to walking between the worlds.
If you can, begin your work by standing in or near a hedgerow itself, looking away from civilization.
If this is not possible, you can create a hedgerow by standing between two plants.
Many potted trees will do well indoors, so you can research their properties and see what kind would be suited to your work.
Stand on your dominant leg, raising your non-dominant foot off the ground (if you are right-handed, then your dominant side is your right side, for example).
Close your non-dominant eye, perhaps by placing your non-dominant hand over that eye.
This is a very tricky pose to hold for long, and if you are in a public place, can look rather odd.
It is, however, an ancient Witches pose used to travel between the worlds, as one half of you is solid and grounded, while the other half is being suspended.
If this is too difficult a pose to maintain for any period of time, you can just put your non-dominant foot forward, to symbolize “walking between the worlds”.
Or you can hold the more difficult pose for a few seconds, before moving to the easier pose.
Whatever pose you choose to use, hold it for a few moments until you feel a shift in consciousness, then say these or similar words:
I walk between the worlds, by the blessings of nature:
By the blessing of the green and growing things
By the blessing of the wild creatures
By the blessing of the Fair Folk.
I walk the path of the Hedge Witches Craft Craft;
May the wisdom of the Otherworld be open to me;
May I take my guidance from all the realms around me
In safety and surety I travel between the worlds
To speak in the language of bird and beast
Of plant and rock
Of the sun and moon and stars.
Turn anti-clockwise three times, and state:
By the power of three times three
This is my will, so may it be.
Take a moment to adjust, and know that wherever you go, whether you choose to move from this space or not, you are now also in the Otherworld.
Here, you can receive guidance from plants and animals, from nature spirits and the Fair Folk, from gods and goddesses of the wildwood, and more.
Journey where you wish to go. This can be done either in the physical realm, actually walking across heathland or meadow, or through a
forest, or down the beach.
Know that you are straddling the worlds as you walk and that what you see and come across may have a very different meaning than in ordinary reality.
Or you can simply sit where you have begun the rite, and journey in your mind to a place where you wish to travel, to gain wisdom from the plants and animals, the ancestors, and other guides you may meet.
Start slowly and gently, becoming used to being between the worlds.
It is not something to be rushed, but to be savored.
When you have finished, return back to the place where you began, and assume the original posture once again, this time facing towards
civilization.
Say these or similar words:
I return from walking between the worlds;
In harmony and in peace I return.
May my powers be strengthened,
May I receive protection in all my endeavors
As I work towards balance and harmony with the whole.
May I be the awen (inspiration).
Turn clockwise three times, and state:
By the power of three times three
This is my will, so may it be.
Take a moment to settle back into this world. If you can, eat and drink something to ground you in the present moment.
You might clap your hands three times, or pat the earth three times to signal your full return.
You can also say your name aloud three times. Journal your experience as soon as you are able.
This beginning rite can be performed each time you begin your work in walking between the worlds, in hedge riding.
You might do this before you go out to collect plants for your work, or to search for guidance from animal companions, or to use the weather to predict future events.
It helps you to bring magic back into your life, to reenchant the soul.
When simple actions are performed when one is between the worlds, the power is increased and the work which we do sings out in a chorus of harmony across the web of all existence.
