Joanna Macy: Invoking the Beings of the Three Times

Photo by Molly

Invoking the Beings of the Three Times

This ritual invocation, to which the group members add their voices, affirms our connectedness with those who have gone before and those who come after us, as well as those living now. It evokes our solidarity with all these beings across time, and opens us to the inspiration they can offer. Heightening our sense of gratitude and responsibility, it strengthens the will.

Gather with us now in this hour. Join with us now in this place.

Invoking first the beings of the past:

Be with us now all you who have gone before, you our ancestors and teachers. You who walked and loved and faithfully tended this Earth, be present to us now, that we may carry on the legacy you bequeathed us.  Aloud and silently in our hearts we say your names and see your faces…  

Invoking the beings of the present:

All you with whom we live and work on this endangered planet, be with us now.  Fellow humans and siblings of other species, open us to our collective will and wisdom.  Aloud and silently we say your names and picture your faces.

Invoking the beings of the future:

You who will come after us on this Earth, be with us now. It is for your sakes, too, that we work to heal our world. We cannot picture your faces or say your names – you have none yet — but we would feel the reality of your claim on life. It helps us to be faithful in the work that must be done, so that there will be for you, as there was for our ancestors, blue sky, fruitful land, clear waters.

—  From chapter 9 of Coming Back to Life 

by Joanna Macy and Molly Brown

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Please go here for the original: https://workthatreconnects.org/resources/invoking-the-beings-of-the-three-times/