Powerful New Year’s Eve Release and Manifestation Ritual

My dear friend and Goddess expert, Rev. Laurie Sue Brockway, has graciously shared this very powerful, sacred ritual with us to release 2021 and welcome in 2022.

In this three-part end-of-year ritual, you will have a chance to express gratitude, release the old, and call in your true desires for 2022. It is best to read this in advance and prepare by gathering the items listed. Feel free to adapt this to do with a buddy or partner.

Tools: Paper, one new pen, one old pen, shredder or burning pot, bell, or chime, three candles to represent the past, present, and future, lighter, music, and something sweet to drink.

To begin: Center yourself. Feel your feet grounded on the earth and imagine your soul is connected to the stars above. Gently call in the spirits of all four directions, as well as the spirits of above, below, and within. Say a prayer for protection, using whatever divine name feels comfortable, such as: Mother, Father, or Divine Source of All there is, please fill this place with your sacred presence and surround me with your love and protection.

Part One: Honor the Good
Light the first candle to honor the past year. Play music that uplifts you. As much as 2021 challenged us, there is always good to be found. Think of at least five things you are thankful for. Ring your bell three times in appreciation.

Part Two: Release Disappointment
Light the second candle to bring light to this moment. Play music that helps you connect to the energy of releasing. Take the older pen in hand and hold it to your heart as you allow yourself to remember the difficulties of this year. Allow tears to flow and when you are ready, take your pen to paper and start letting go of the past disappointments and distress of the year by writing them down. When you feel you have released as much as you can, write a note to your Divine Source, at the top of the paper, and thank the divine for taking all of your concerns.

As the final step, rip them up, put them in a shredder, or burn them, if you can do so safely in a burning pot or fire pit, and say: I release this and thank the Divine Source of All There Is for taking all that I no longer need. Please transmute my pain and disappointments and bring me the healing I need for the New Year.

Then throw the older pen into the recycling bin. Wash your hands before going on to the final part of the ritual, and imagine you are washing away the worst parts of 2021 and allowing them to go down the drain. Ring your bell three times to ring out the old.

Part Three: Call in Your True Desires
Play music that inspires your heart and soul, and sway until you feel alive and filled with love. Get a fresh piece of paper and your new pen. Light the third candle to bring new light to the future and let that future begin right now by creating a list of your true desires for the New Year. This is not a resolution list. It is a list of things that will bring you joy, wellness, relationship happiness, spiritual growth, and work-related pleasure ― and anything else your heart desires. Putting it on paper makes it more tangible.

Write everything as if it is already accomplished. For example: Thank you for my joyful heart … my new love… my spiritual community … and work that make my heart sing and is financially satisfying. Allow yourself to feel the power of possibility with each desire you write on paper. You are creating your future.

To close: Hopefully, you will come to the end of this ritual with a sense of release and renewal. Now it is time to sit and admire the light of your three candles. Having enacted these rites of self-care, you can use the power of the moment to send out a silent prayer to your loved ones, your community, and the world. Then raise your glass of something sweet and take a sip.

Close the circle by thanking your Divine Source, as well as the four directions and the spirits of below, above, and within. Ask that they continue to surround you in love and protection in all ways. Look toward the year ahead with fresh eyes.

Ring your bell three times to call in the New Year.

Laurie Sue Brockway is the author of many books on Goddess spirituality and sacred writing including, The Goddess Pages, Lakshmi Magic, Alakshmi, Seshat Journal, and the forthcoming Goddess in the Mirror and Writer’s Flow. Her new book, She Who Scrivens: Write Your Book with the Help of the Egyptian Goddess Seshat, publishes on New Year’s Eve.

Wishing you love, laughter, and a magical New Year,

Arielle