Ritual: Queer Ancestor Dance Party 2022
To kick off Pride Month 2022 I decided to revisit the Queer Ancestor Dance Party ritual I posted last year. This ritual was inspired by an impromptu ecstatic ritual I found myself in last year, involving my old Queer Ancestor Shrine and some good dancing music. I spent some time designing a formal dance party ritual with appropriate boundaries and safeguards, and shared it with the internet in 2021.
I’ve continued adding to the playlist and have decided to provide an updated link! The original ritual post is copied below.
Happy Pride, y’all!
QUEER ANCESTOR DANCE PARTY PLAYLIST - UPDATED
A dance party is not complete without a good playlist. You can find the 2022 Queer Ancestor Dance Party Spotify playlist be CLICKING HERE.
HOSTING A QUEER ANCESTOR DANCE PARTY
The first thing I do is cleanse the space I’m going to use for the dance party. I want to get as much of the negativity and bad vibes out of the area as I can. If I’m going to invite other (living) friends to this space I might ask if they are interested in helping. Consider it the set-up for the party and you recruited some help to decorate and clean.
The next step is to set appropriate wards or boundaries. Clearly define the space, who is invited into that space, who is not invited into that space, and what behavior is and is not allowed. Clearly define that you retain the power to evict folks from that space if they don’t abide by the rules. An important follow up is to determine, in advance, your process for evicting a troublemaker and/or closing the whole thing down if necessary. Some traditions utilize bells for summoning or driving out spirits so you might consider consecrating a small bell specifically for this task.
If you feel it is necessary and/or if it something you do in your own practice, you may want to look into getting some '“bouncers” for this space. Are there particular familiar spirits, guides, etc. you have a working relationship with that can help protect and enforce the boundaries you’ve set up? Can they assist you with tossing out someone who gets a bit too rowdy?
I find it helpful to have a clear start and end to the party. I’ve tried a few different ways to do this including:
Starting the party
Verbally acknowledging the start of the ritual/party and welcoming the Queer Ancestors into the space
Not starting the music until I’m ready to welcome them in
Lighting incense at the Queer Ancestor Shrine as a way to mark the beginning of the party
Creating a small, temporary Queer Ancestor Shrine indoors and lighting a candle there to begin the party
Ending the party
Verbally acknowledging the end of the ritual/party and thanking the Queer Ancestors to sharing space with me
Explicitly stating at the outset that when the music stops the party is over and folks need to leave
Returning the Queer Ancestor Shrine and ringing the small windchime I have there to mark the formal closing of the party
Extinguishing the candle at the indoor Queer Ancestor Shrine to end the party
I find this ritual helpful for a number of reasons. It helps me feel closer to my Queer Ancestors and helps me deepen the connection I have to them. It helps me pivot to a celebratory space with them when so often the history of our community is marked by trauma and death. Sometimes I feel like I’m able to provide a small, temporary space of vibrancy and celebration to folks who may not have been able to live their lives openly and authentically. I’ve also found it useful to use this ritual to consecrate tools and items that I want to use specifically for work with Queer Ancestors, or for which I want to imbue with their blessings and protection.
