Grief ritual in the Dagara lineage often includes at least one song during the day, during the drumming, where everyone has a chance to grieve at the altar as and when they feel like it. Grief rituals in other traditions also often include song.
In the rituals at Village Rising, we also include several simple circle songs throughout the day. Some teaching, some we just sing and whoever happens to feel like humming along or singing can do so.
If you don’t consider yourself a singer, terrified of singing, we invite you to push a little beyond your comfort zone and see that it’s still safe. You can always hum along or mumble.
Also singing is your birthright as a human and you are welcome to sing here. This is more about the act of singing together than meeting some high standard of vocal talent, and part of the joy is learning how to listen to one another (for those who are often loud) and be heard (for those whose survival strategy was to be quiet). Ritual is not a performance, it’s an experience.
And…whatever is blocking you from singing, like someone who dismissed your vocal skills – take it to the grief altar.
Sharing Songs: Grisha has some rough recordings for the songs. You’re welcome to share these links with friends or sing them at song circles or other grief rituals (with credit).
Here’s a set we enjoy at ritual:
- The Welcome Song – Grisha Stewart
- Being Being Guided – Grisha Stewart
- Bearing Witness – Grisha Stewart (this probably won’t be taught, so feel free to learn it in advance)
- Ancestors and Future Ones Grisha Stewart
- You Belong – Grisha Stewart
- Worlds Weave Together – Grisha Stewart
- When We Dream, aka Dream Big Enough for All of Us – Grisha Stewart
- At the closing ritual we sing We Share This Planet just a few times then sing You Belong again together.
LYRICS: Grisha has a printable songbook with her songs (some cowrites).
Some other songs we love:
- Standing on the Shoulders – Kjersten Hallin
- For All Our Relations – written by Laurence Cole (recording by Kjersten Hallin)
- Carry This All – written by Alexandra “Ahlay” Blakely. Ahlay is a grief tender in Washington and her songs are potent! (Ahlay is on Patreon)
- There’s also a great song about grief ritual Riomas (formerly Shireen Amini). The words are “This medicine stitches me back together in the web of life, thought I’d be gone forever. This medicine stitches me back into the village where I belong. It’s like I always knew. My soul’s home. My soul’s home.”