Memento Mori - A Ritual For Death and Remembrance

As COVID continues its rampage, death and loss has become even more present reality in our lives. As non-theistic Satanists, I think we’re uniquely positioned to acknowledge and confront the topic of death. Many of us have even been captivated it - we understand the frailty of our time on earth and commit to live full lives. We see death as an inevitable and ever present aspect of life and don’t have illusions of an afterlife to comfort us. So what can we do to help us cope with the passing of loved ones?

Ritual is known to be a powerful healer that can help us process grief. One of the most frequent questions I’ve been asked in the last year is if I have any ritual resources to help process death and loss. I created this simple ritual last year as part of my Satanic ritual book, The Devil’s Tome. I share this ritual with you now in hopes that it can help serve you and your community. Please share widely. I’ll be working on many more resources around death and grief in 2021.

Memento Mori:

A Ritual For Death and Remembrance

Tools:

Relics from loved ones passed

Flowers, fruits, and/or gourds

Photos of people you want to honor that have died

Candles (you can grab my Memento Mori candles here)

Tome

Sacred Space: An altar

Preparation: Gather relics and photos of those you want to honor that have passed. Find candles, flowers, food, and other elements that remind you of the departed.

Ritual: At midnight, begin to build a sacred space to honor loved ones that have passed. Place photos and relics of those loved ones on an altar. Decorate the area with flowers, candles, and foods that remind you of them.

Once the altar is completed, light the candles and/or incense and contemplate your relationship with the departed. Write down beloved memories of those who have passed inside your tome.

If you can, keep the candles burning.

The next day, spend time visiting places and/or engaging in activities that remind you of the departed.

Before the day ends, spend time volunteering or commit and act of kindness in honor of your loved ones who have passed.

For seven days, visit the altar and record more memories of the departed in your tome.

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Want to support the work? Check out my shop to pick up The Devil’s Tome and handmade ritual tools. You can also join my Patreon to get additional ritual content and connect with the Satanic ritual community