The second segment of the ASH stage - Settling - can serve as a transition between individuals arriving to the place of encounter, and a ritual family reaching out to commune with the Divine, or, if the ritual is solitary, as a final settling of the mind and soul of the celebrant.

Since the function of this stage is somewhat different between a group Rite and a solitary Rite, the following discussion is divided accordingly.

For a group Rite:

If one looks at the analogy of a family gathering, there is always a moment when everyone has arrived, the door has been closed behind the last guest, and conversation begins.  Introductions might be made, smiles exchanged, folks find their places in the room, sit down at the table, someone would hug someone else, someone else would tell a joke, and the gathering is transformed from that first sometimes awkward moment of stepping in, to an almost single organism, with a character and appearance of it own.   Now the folks who had come are a small tribe, a community, and, at least until the end of the gathering, they function as such.

Both group and solitary rituals have their own advantages.  For a group Rite it is the sense of strength that comes from many acting as one. If done properly, it is an exhilarating experience:  many voices joining in one song, many lives, for a time, joining as one life with a single purpose.

Part of the purpose of a group Rite is to not only strengthen one's sense of Kinship with the Divine - but also with the other worshippers.

This is why, even if those who come to a Rite are initially strangers, within the Rite, and for the purposes of the Rite, they are ritually Kin.  This ritual Kinship between the participants is a mystical image of the Kinship between the participants and the Divine, and indeed an image of a Universal essential interconnection of all things - and it's importance can hardly be overestimated.

This transition from individuality to ritual Kinship can be achieved in several ways, and usually involves one or more of the following:

Consider the following example:

Each participant entered the ritual space bearing a handful of earth, upon which they had meditated during the individual consecration.

Now they deposit their handful, one by one, into a common bowl, while singing an appropriate chant. Once all have done so, the Designated Celebrant blesses the earth in the bowl by drawing a sigil symbolizing the identity of this particular group, and says:

"From the Earth we go forth, and to the Earth we return in the fullness of time.
  Let our spirits be joined within Her Body.

  We are One!"

<All respond>   "We are One!"

An appropriate song is sung by all.

Common sense and experience suggests that in general any action taken by the participants together as a group serves to achieve the desired transition, and the particular way in which it is done adds to the tradition and character of the group, so creativity and focus is particularly important in this section.  It is useful to keep in mind, however, that talking about it, or even meditating about it alone is rarely sufficient - as with any relationship, an act is just as important as a thought, and since the process is interactive, possibly even more so.

For an individual Rite:

On the other hand, for a solitary Rite, the thought becomes pre-eminent.

In an individual ritual, the focus can be either very narrow and intimate, or conversely broad and mystical - but the relationship being actualized is only with the Spiritual Realm, the Otherworld, and thus the purpose of settling becomes to focus one's mind and spirit towards that encounter to the exclusion of all else.

This is equivalent to coming to visit a good friend, settling down at the table, or in a comfortable chair, having just taken off your coat, and taking a deep breath...   There...  The attention shifts completely to focus on the other person, and interaction with this person.

The transition is subtle, but quite powerful.  Because in personal ritual, the "other person" is a guest from the Otherworld, a visitor of the soul, and in a solitary experience one is free to develop a uniquely personal focus of perception, unencumbered by the need to meld with other humans. 

The personal settling then is a shift in perception, a focusing on the senses of the soul, where all things are possible, and where the boundaries are not governed by the laws of physics, but by the laws of the heart.  It is a turning inward, so that one can see through the inner eye and to a greater Truth/s.

This process may consist of one or all of the following:

For instance, a solitary Druid might chant the Song of Amergin at this point:

"I am the Wind that blows across the Sea;
  I am the Wave of the Ocean;
  I am the Murmur of the Billows:
  I am the Bull of Seven Combats:
  I am the Vulture on the Rock;
  I am a Ray of the Sun;
  I am the Fairest of Flowers;
  I am a Wild Boar in Valor;
  I am a Salmon in the Pool;
  I am a Lake on the Plain;
  I am the Skill of the Craftsman;
  I am a Word of Science;
  I am the Spear-point that gives Battle;
  I am the god who creates in the head of man the Fire of Thought.
  Who is it the Enlightens the Assembly upon the mountain, if not I?
  Who tells the ages of the moon if not I?
   Who shows the place where the sun goes to rest, if not I?
  Who calls the cattle from the House of Tethra?
  On whom do the cattle of Tethra smile?
  Who is the god that fashions enchantments -
  - the enchantment of battle and the wind of change?"

Indeed, one of the best ways to settle and start focusing oneself at this point is to perform one of many possible "identification" mini-rituals, such as chanting the Song of Amergin given above, or any other chant or poem among many available that identify the Self with the greater Universe. Writing an Identification Chant for oneself is another way to do this, and can be a very valuable and important exercise in a Druid journey as well.

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