Calendar of the Moon
13 Nion/Anthesterion
Anthesteria Day 3: Khutroi
Color: Purple
Element: Earth
Altar: Upon a purple cloth set a great jug of water, the ship of Dionysos, a wreath of grapevines,
nine purple candles, and a cauldron in which are many beans.
Offerings: Food. Feed people in the community.
Daily Meal: Beans and lentils and rice. Grains cooked with honey. Only water to drink today. A
great meal should be prepared, and many people from outside the community should be invited,
especially those who are in need. If there is not room, the meal may be cooked and taken to the
appropriate shelter or soup kitchen.
Khutroi Invocation
After the joy of the vine,
We come to water and work.
Water of the flood, which washed away
Our ancestors, may you give us
Only aid, and may we not see
Your terrible aspect, drowning the millions.
Work of the world, the greatest of which
Is the giving of sustenance to those who have none.
As we come to a better understanding
Of what it is to be past childhood,
After the day of joy and mirth
We come to the threshold
Of work and toil for the good of others.
For this is truly the mark
That we have passed youth and innocence:
When we realize the Fate does not
Take care of everyone, including we ourselves,
And that we must stand in for Fate
And alter the order of the world,
Giving of ourselves that others may survive,
And thus become Fate.
On this the Day of Pots
We open our cooking fires
To the rest of the world.
(All depart and proceed to the kitchen, where the meal is prepared in silence, with all meditating
upon the effort that it will take to feed all that they can, and what that means to one's
understanding of oneself as a mature being connected to the web of life.)
[Pagan Book of Hours]