6th Rauhnight: Forgiveness, Release & Asatoma Mantra Ritual

Let's open our circle with two rounds of the peace mantra SAHANA VAVATTHU together to settle the mind,

Soften the breath,

And come into shared intention.

This mantra reminds us that we are supported,

Nourished,

And guided together.

Please find a comfortable position.

You can join the chant or simply listen and soften,

Letting the sound carry the meaning.

Beautiful.

May we be protected,

May we be nourished,

And may our practice today unfold with clarity and mutual respect and ease.

Welcome,

Beautiful beings.

Thank you for joining me for the sixth row night,

A night of reflection,

Letting go,

And forgiveness.

Before we begin,

Take a moment to gather what you may want beside you,

Your candle,

Your incense or herbs,

A small bowl for ashes,

Your round night journal and a pen,

And your box with the remaining wishes.

We will use one of these wishes later,

Offering it to the flame either physically or within your inner vision.

Before we begin,

Here's a gentle outline of our journey today.

We will open the space with candle and incense,

Connect with the ASATOMA SAT GAMAYA mantra,

Move through a turning point meditation for forgiveness and reconciliation,

Integrate with a few reflection questions,

And then enter the heart of our ritual,

Selecting one wish,

Offering it into the flame and blessing its path.

We will close with a few slow mantra repetitions and a quiet blessing for this night.

Once you are ready,

Let's take a moment to arrive.

You can light your candle if you have one.

Find a comfortable position,

Notice how you are sitting,

Upright yet relaxed,

Allow your face to soften,

Allow your breath to flow naturally,

And if you like,

Gently close your eyes.

With each inhale,

Become a little more present,

With each exhale,

Allow yourself to soften more deeply and arrive.

This sixth Rao night is connected with the month of June,

Called Brachet or the Brahmund in old traditions.

It is the month of the summer solstice when the light reaches its highest point,

And yet from that peak,

Something subtle shifts,

The days slowly begin to shorten again.

Tonight invites us into that moment of turning,

A midpoint reflection,

A quiet honest look back,

And a gentle act of letting go.

Let us begin.

If you have incense or herbs,

You might light it now.

If not,

Simply imagine the fragrance rising around you.

You may choose whatever herbs you feel drawn to tonight,

For example,

Mugworts,

Fumitoes,

Rosemary or spruce raisin are really good for this sixth Rao night.

Mugwort opens inner perception and supports deep honest reflection.

It helps us to look back clearly and move between what was and what is ready to change.

Fumatory,

Erdrauch in German,

Gently loosens what feels heavy or stagnant.

It supports emotional release and helps the breath move more freely through places where we have held too much.

Rosemary is bright and cleansing,

A plant of memory,

Courage and forgiveness.

It clears the heart and brings gentle warmth to places that feel tight or unresolved.

Spruce raisin carries grounding and strength.

It supports resilience,

Stabilizes the nervous system and helps release old burdens into transforming power of fire.

Take a moment to watch the smoke rise,

Real or imagined.

Let it carry away what feels heavy.

Let it soften what has been held too tight.

As the scent surrounds you,

You can whisper softly,

I am stepping into this Rao night.

I allow myself to look back with honesty.

I allow myself to let go with compassion.

I allow peace to enter where forgiveness is ready.

I am ready to receive.

During these Rao nights,

We walk with the mantra Asatoma Sat Gyan.

Gamaya,

The simple ancient prayer,

A movement from what is unclear to what is true,

From darkness into light and from what binds us into what frees us.

The words are Asatoma Sat Gamaya,

Lead me from the unreal to the real.

Tamasoma Chyotir Gamaya,

Meaning lead me from darkness to light.

And Mrityorma Amritam Gamaya,

Lead me from the mortal to the immortal.

Tonight,

This mantra meets us in a very specific place.

The sixth Rao night invites honest reflection,

Not to judge the past,

But to see it clearly,

Not to hold on,

But to soften and release.

As we chant,

Allow the mantra to gently illuminate what has been hidden,

To bring light into memories that still feel heavy and to open a pathway forward toward forgiveness for yourself and for others.

You don't need to force anything,

Let the sound do the work,

Let it move where words no longer need to go.

As we begin to chant,

Allow this mantra to become a bridge from holding on to letting go and from tension to peace.

Before we start chanting,

Place your box with your remaining wishes and everything else you need in front of you.

If you like,

Place one or both hands over your heart and gently close your eyes again.

Feel the contact of your hands on your chest,

Feel your breath on your face.

Moving in and out,

Steady,

Natural,

Nourishing.

Let your breath gently gather what is present.

With each inhale,

Invite a little more space.

With each exhale,

Allow yourself to soften.

Notice how your chest gently expands,

How your face softens and how your breath gently carries you deeper into this moment.

The mantra reminds us that even in moments of deep darkness or confusion,

There is light,

Clarity and a path forward.

Tonight,

Let the sound support you as you look back with honesty and loosen what no longer needs to be held.

We begin with call and response line by line in a Vedic style.

I will sing first and if you like,

You can repeat after me.

You may chant softly or clearly or simply listen and let the vibration move through you.

Let the sound arise naturally from within you.

There is no right or wrong,

Your presence is enough.

I'll accompany us with the harmonium,

Let's begin.

We will chant line by line,

Repeating together.

Let's continue for two more rounds,

Allowing the sound to carry you and the meaning to settle gently inside.

Allow the sound to slowly dissolve into silence.

Stay connected with the after vibration,

The subtle echo of the mantra.

Feel it resting in your chest,

Moving through your breath.

Beautiful.

Now from here,

We continue with a gentle turning point meditation.

This round night is guided by the rune Aivas,

The rune of transition,

Inner maturity and deep transformation.

Aivas reminds us that real change often happens quietly over time through honesty and patience.

You may remain seated and allow your body to settle,

Feel the support beneath you.

Allow your hands to rest comfortably on your thighs or over your heart.

Let the breath move naturally,

Nothing to change,

Nothing to fix.

Tonight Aivas invites us to stand at the threshold,

Not with your body but within.

Behind you lies the past year,

All that has been lived,

Learned and felt,

And before you the path begins to open again.

Feel yourself right here,

Held between what was and what is still becoming.

This sixth round night marks a time of reconciliation,

A gentle honest looking back.

Not to judge,

Not to analyze,

Simply to see with kindness.

Allow the past year to appear softly in your inner space,

Not as a list of events but as a felt sense.

Which moments still ask to be acknowledged?

Now bring your awareness into your body.

Notice where something from the past year is still held.

Perhaps in the chest,

The belly,

The throat or the shoulders.

There is nothing you need to do,

Just notice and allow it to be here.

This is the space of letting go.

With each exhale,

Allow a little softening around what feels tight or heavy.

You are not pushing anything away,

You are creating space.

With each exhale,

Just softening a little.

Beautiful.

And now we gently turn toward forgiveness.

Forgiveness does not mean forgetting.

It does not mean agreeing with what happened.

It means allowing healing to begin.

You may now bring to mind a person or a situation that you have been in for a long time.

That still feels unresolved,

Without forcing anything.

You may silently offer these words one by one at your own pace.

I am sorry.

Please forgive me.

Thank you.

I love you.

Let these words move through you,

Toward yourself,

Toward another,

Or simply into the space between.

I am sorry.

Please forgive me.

Thank you.

I love you.

With each breath,

Allow resentment,

Guilt,

Or heaviness to soften a little more.

You are not erasing the past,

You are releasing yourself from carrying it any further.

Remain here for a few moments.

Nothing to resolve or complete.

Just this quiet act of standing at the threshold,

Looking back,

Letting go,

And forgiveness,

Reconciliation.

Beautiful.

Now,

From this quiet place,

Allow a few reflection questions to arise gently inside you.

Let the answers come not as analysis,

But as feelings,

Images,

Or simple knowing.

You can write about them in your Rao Knight journal,

Later or now,

While I chant one round of the mantra for each question.

Simply let the answers arrive in their own way,

As feelings,

Images,

Or quiet,

Inner knowing.

The first question is,

What feels complete now,

What no longer needs to be carried?

The second question is,

What has softened or shifted within me,

Where is more space than before?

Beautiful.

The third question is,

What can rest now,

Even if it is not fully resolved yet?

Now,

Let the questions rest.

There is nothing you need to decide tonight.

Trust that what is ready will continue to unfold in its own time.

And if the need to release something more arises,

You can gently return to the meditation for forgiveness and reconciliation.

Let's now enter the heart of this Rao Knight ritual.

Everything can be done physically or in your inner vision.

Both are equally powerful.

Turn your attention to your candle now,

Either real or imagined.

Watch the flame for a few moments,

Steady,

Alive,

And transforming.

This flame holds the energy of June,

The turning point of the year.

The moment when the light stands at its peak.

A powerful threshold,

Holding both fullness and change.

Bless this flame with your presence.

May it help you release what no longer belongs to the path ahead,

So that your wishes may unfold freely in their own time and way.

Now,

Take your box with the remaining wishes.

Hold it gently in your hands for a moment.

Then,

Without opening it,

Choose one folded piece of paper.

Trusting that the right wish comes forward tonight.

And when you're ready,

Bring the wish to the flame,

Real or imagined.

And as you do so,

You may silently offer these words.

May this wish be released from my control.

May it unfold in its own time.

May it find its right place and form.

Allow the paper to burn or imagine it dissolving into light.

Let it release.

Let it transform.

And when only ashes remain,

Real or imagined,

Place it gently into your bowl.

You may later return it to the earth with gratitude.

Nothing is lost.

Everything transforms.

To seal this round-eyed ritual,

We chant the full mantra again together.

In a soft flowing melody,

Slowly,

Gently,

With an open heart.

Join in whenever you're ready or simply let the sound wash over you.

We chant three rounds.

Allow the sounds to fade into silence.

Notice the space that remains.

Feel the echo of the mantra in your chest.

Quiet,

Warm glow spreading through your whole being.

Rest here for a few breaths.

Beautiful.

For tonight,

Let your candle burn as long as it feels safe and right.

Let its light guide you.

Let forgiveness continue its quiet work in these days and nights ahead.

What has been released does not need to be revisited.

Trust the turning and let the darkness fall away behind you and walk toward what is waiting.

Let's close with one soft round of Aum Shanti,

Shanti,

Shanti.

Take a soft,

Deep inhale for Aum.

May peace be within you.

May peace be around you.

May peace be on every step of your path.

Thank you,

Beautiful being,

For walking this round night with me.

Namaste.