The Great Rite

The Great Rite

Marriage is a sacred union between two individuals, whether they be mortal or gods. During a ritual, when humans act as symbolic representations of the goddess and god to enact a sacred marriage, it is called hierogamy. Hierogamy is also known as Hieros gamos or ‘holy marriage.’ While human participants represent both deities, they do not need to consummate the marriage with literal sexual intercourse. The joining or union can be purely symbolic and still have the same spiritual effect. Hieros gamos performed in a ritual setting was the precursor of the modern Wiccan fertility ritual called the Great Rite.

What is the Great Rite?

The Great Rite is one of the most well-known rituals in Wicca and paganism. As a form of Hieros gamos and a fertility ritual, it pays homage to the necessity of sexual intercourse for the propagation of humans and, for that matter, all life. And at the same time, it also honors the duality of nature by centrally incorporating the female and male, goddess and god, and priestess and priest. In doing this, the Great Rite acknowledges the polarity that exists in the universe.

Specifically, the Great Rite is a Wiccan ritual that includes symbolic sexual intercourse to draw energy from this powerful connection. The natural sexual energy that occurs between two partners is extremely powerful. Just to be clear, while the Great Rite focuses on a connection between a female and male, this does not have to be a biological female and a biological male. The practitioners participating in the ritual must merely embody the concept of the feminine and masculine, but there is no requirement that they must have the anatomical structure.

Therefore, the Great Rite can be performed by anyone regardless of their biological sex or gender identity. Most of the time, the Great Rite is performed by the High Priestess and High Priest in a coven. However, not all covens contain both sexes. In these cases, another coven member fills in for the missing role and chooses to embody the role of the missing component. Doing this in no way diminishes the ritual as, for most practitioners, the Great Rite has become more symbolic than literal.

The marriage of the god and goddess and their subsequent sexual union produce offspring. The offspring from this act is the God Head, also referred to as spirit. Think of spirit as the top of a triangle with the base being the goddess and god. Spirit resides at the top of this holy trinity. Spirit as the God Head is an ancient practice dating back to Neolithic periods in human history. The Hieros gamos gave legitimacy to rulers and kings as they entered into a sacred union with the goddess, often represented by one of her priestesses. With the king representing the god and the priestess representing the goddess, the divine spirit that sprung forth from their powerful sexual union and approved and legitimized his rule.

How is the Great Rite performed?

A coven generally performs the Great Rite. During this ritual, the sexual union between the goddess and god can be either literal or symbolic. The first step to performing the Great Rite is to determine which type of ritual will be performed as a coven. It is essential that the coven be unanimous in their decision. If anyone is uncomfortable during the ritual, the energies shift, and the power of the ritual is not as great. Plus, when working with others in a coven, you don’t want anyone in your spiritual family to feel uncomfortable during a ritual, regardless of whether it includes sex or not.

The ritual begins in a typical fashion for the practitioners. This includes grounding and centering, calling the elements, and casting the circle. However, depending upon the tradition, this will vary. It is the core of the ritual that encompasses the Great Rite. If the coven decides to perform the Great Rite as a literal holy marriage between two practitioners and all members of the coven agree, then the two people must be chosen if it is not the High Priestess and High Priest.

The Great Rite as a ritual is generally done during Beltane or a handfasting ceremony. Beltane is the fertility celebration of the year. During this season, the fires of Bel were lit, and herds of cattle were passed through the bales to ensure fertility for the coming year. Beltane is the springtime festival of optimism, as it brings forth and celebrates all the potential within new life. And new life is formed through sexual union, which is why the Great Rite is often performed at this time of year. At a handfasting, two people are pledging their love and desire to unite, so it is also the perfect time to perform this ritual.

How much of the union is displayed in front of the coven depends on the coven and tradition. Gerald Gardner and his coven openly displayed the sexual union of the goddess and god in front of the coven. During his Great Rite rituals, the coven would create a circle around the pair, and they would consummate the marriage in front of the group. Gardner also encouraged scourging (self-whipping as punishment) during the act; however, currently, this practice is not generally accepted. Other covens choose to have a mixture of public and private sex during the ritual. The amount of public display depends upon the comfortability of the coven. In some groups, the coven forms their protective ring around the couple but turns their back during the sexual union. Usually, the couple, who are already intimate partners, perform the union in private and then return to the circle. While other groups leave the couple in the ritual space, but the practitioners leave by walking backward out of the sacred circle in a clockwise fashion.

It doesn’t ultimately matter which way the coven decides to perform the literal Great Rite. There is no specific right or wrong way to honor the sexual union of the goddess and god. In fact, some covens have chosen to represent the sexual union symbolically instead. The Great Rite doesn’t have to be a physical act between two people. Clearly, it originated that way, but humans evolve in relation to our culture and society, and so do our spiritual practices.

One practitioner holds a vessel in the symbolic Great Rite, usually a ritual cup, ritual bowl, or cauldron, to represent the goddess’s womb.

Whether physical or symbolic, the Great Rite is a powerful and beautiful ritual that honors both the feminine and masculine divine. The importance of the ritual is the energy it creates and how the coven uses it to strengthen itself and each of its members. Another practitioner holds a ritual athame, wand, sword, or staff to represent the god. The phallic representation is then ceremoniously placed into the ritual vessel or womb. In some covens, the High Priestess kneels in front of the altar holding the vessel above her head as she faces the High Priest. At this point in the ritual, especially during Beltane, the High Priest explains the return and maturation of the Sun King. The goddess has now moved from Maiden to Mother.

Why is the Great Rite performed?

In ancient times, the Great Rite was a way for people to gain favor and blessings from the spirit of the universe and at the same time promote fertility of both animals and plants. The holy marriage helped to ensure a good harvest and continue the circle of life. Nowadays, the Great Rite relates more to energy than ensuring fertility. While the Great Rite represents the sexual union of the goddess and god, it also represents the union of feminine and masculine. Each of these aspects resides in all of us, and honoring and accepting the joining of both natures is essential for balance. Finding this balance helps practitioners find their own true divinity.

Wicca is a fertility religion, so a practitioner will come across either sexual acts or references to them at some point. However, the Great Rite is not for all practitioners. In fact, you can practice Wicca for your whole life and never take part in the Great Rite, and that’s totally ok. This ritual should only be performed by those who feel comfortable doing so and consent to participation. Those who partake in the Great Rite should do so with accountability for their actions as this is a union of love between two people. Fear, shame, and coercion must never be allowed.

The essence of the Great Rite is to generate energy through the joining of the masculine (physical being) and the feminine (spiritual being) to create and produce the spirit. Whether done through a literal sexual act or a symbolic one, the Great Rite harnesses the power of fertility and allows practitioners to birth their own magickal work and projects.