You find yourself on a lonely country road. In your hands is a heavy knapsack. It is very dark and the night sky is filled with stars. It’s the night of the Dark Moon. You sigh, put on your knapsack, and begin to walk down the road. The knapsack is very heavy tonight and you have a long, long way to go.

As you walk you become aware of the night sounds. You can hear a hoarse creaking sound in the ditch beside the road. Soon you hear more croaking and creaking as the frogs fill the night with their chorus.

Suddenly the frogs stop singing and silence envelopes you as you trudge wearily down the road. The pack on your back feels even heavier than it did when you first put it on. The night is lonely and cold, the road barely visible in front of you. If it wasn’t for the starlight night you would be in total blackness.

You feel a breeze overhead and look up to see a huge barn owl pass over you, hunting for rabbits or mice that venture too close to the road.

As you walk ahead, the trees growing on either side of the road seem to be reaching out towards each other, causing the road to become narrower and darker. The branches are snagging your pack, clothing and hair as you walk. You slap angrily at the branches and notice that the trees are Willows. The pack seems to be getting heavier with each step you take. The road becomes narrower and narrower, the trees closer and closer.

In the distance, a dog begins to howl.

As you continue to trudge down the road, you hear the dog again and it seems closer this time. The straps of the pack are digging into your shoulders, and your legs are getting tired. You have a very long way to go before you may rest. You must keep walking; you must carry your pack until the end. You shrug your shoulders, put your head down and continue on.

The dog howls again, and this time you know that it’s near. The hair on the back of your neck stands up in fear. You raise your head and see that you have come to a crossroads.

There is an old woman standing there, and in front of her is a coffin.

The woman is chanting and inscribing runes on the coffin lid, she does not look up from her work, but you realize that she knows you are there. Her hair is wild and black, streaked with grey. Her face shows the lines of one who has lived long and seen much. She wears a black robe with the hood pulled up. Beside her are three large black dogs, silently watching you.

The woman continues to chant, but you are unable to understand the words that she speaks. Curious, you move closer to her, but she doesn’t look up. You become aware of the scent of yew and cypress in the air. You move closer and closer until you are right beside the coffin. You put your pack on the ground and peer at the coffin and the runes that the woman is drawing upon it.

You look up at the old woman. She stops her work and looks you straight in the eyes. Wisdom and knowledge of the ages are reflected in Her eyes. You want to look away but you are held by Her gaze. You feel as if She is judging you and your worth. You feel as if She can see into your very soul.

Satisfied with what She has found, She nods and begins to draw another rune.

She begins to chant again, then stops.

“Do you know what this is?” She asks you, Her voice strong but soft as if She were speaking to a child. “I am called Hecate, and this is the Burning Coffin.”

She lets you think about this for a moment before She continues.

“You carry something you no longer need; a burden that is keeping you from fully experiencing life. I give you an opportunity to let go of it, to surrender it if you can, and let it die. You may place it in the coffin, close the lid and burn it. You may release your burden in this way. The Burning Coffin is a very useful tool.” She tells you with a chuckle in her voice.

She continues to draw runes on the coffin lid.

“Do you have a weight? Something that is no longer useful?
Something that you have been unable to let go? Anger? Fear? Regret? Jealousy? Grief? Sorrow? You have been carrying it for a long time. It is with you even now, in that heavy pack beside you. Do you have something that you would like to surrender to the Burning Coffin?”

You pick up your knapsack. It feels even heavier than before. You open it and peer inside. You find that there are three heavy boulders inside the sack. Each boulder has a word chiselled into it. Anger…..Fear….Regret

Hecate opens the lid of the Burning Coffin and steps back.

You pick up the boulder marked “Anger” and look at it. What anger are you holding onto that you are ready to let go of and drop into the Burning coffin? When you are ready, drop the boulder into the coffin.

 

Reach into your pack and pick up the boulder marked “Fear”. What fear is holding you back from being the person you wish to be? When you are ready, drop the boulder into the burning coffin. It lands beside the first boulder

Pick up the last boulder in your pack, it is marked “Regret”. What regret can you let go of tonight, so that you may enjoy your life in the present? When you are ready, drop the boulder into the burning coffin.

As you drop each stone in the coffin it lands with a satisfying “thunk”.
The moment the last boulder lands in the coffin, mists and fogs begin to form within the coffin. They begin to swirl widdershins, and as they swirl they begin to pulse with yellow light. Faster and faster the mist revolves around the boulders, turning orange, then red. Hecate steps forward and extends her arms over the coffin and it bursts into flames. You step back, expecting the heat to singe your clothing and Hecate laughs……..”The Fire of Transformation will not harm you” she explains.

You watch, fascinated as the coffin and rocks disintegrate, collapsing into a heap of grey ashes.

Then it is quiet. Hecate brings forth a knife and gently prods something out of the ashes. She pushes it towards you and you pick it up. Look carefully at the gift Hecate has given you. As you study it you realize that it’s just what you need to continue on down the road. You pick up your pack and put the gift inside. Your pack is so much lighter now!

Thank Hecate for Her gift and offer her a gift in return. If you wish, stay a moment and speak with Her.

Hecate steps aside and gestures to the road. You put on your pack and resume your journey. Behind you, the frogs again take up their singing. Ahead, you see the light of dawn. Your pack is light and your heart is bursting with joy.

©Rowan Morgana 2013