The Sabbat of the Black Goat

A Lovecraftian Ceremony Inspired by the Lore of Traditional Witches' Sabbats

(Note: This was inspired by the work of H.P. Lovecraft and traditional folklore. I tried to write it with it with a bit of flair.)

Across centuries of folklore and whispered legend, the witches’ sabbat has been depicted as a secretive nocturnal gathering, held upon moor or hilltop beneath the full moon’s silvery gaze. Here, practitioners assembled in a circle—sometimes hand in hand—chanting incantations and dancing in wild abandon around a blazing fire. The air thickened with strange perfumes and the beat of drums, as stories tell of feasting, revelry, and the sharing of secret knowledge. Central to these tales was the presence of a horned figure—sometimes regarded as the Devil, at other times as a primal spirit of the wild—who presided over the rites, accepting homage and guiding initiates through mysteries both feared and revered.

Among the shadowed pantheon of Lovecraftian entities, Shub-Niggurath stands as a figure of primal fertility and cosmic awe—an ancient, eldritch goddess often invoked as the Black Goat of the Woods with a Thousand Young. Her presence is never fully revealed, but the scattered, fevered accounts speak of a cloud-like, seething mass from which countless monstrous progeny emerge, writhing and bleating in the spectral gloom. Simultaneously fecund and terrifying, Shub-Niggurath embodies both the boundless creativity and the untamed chaos of the natural world, her worship marked by rites of wild abandon and whispered supplications in haunted glades. Her name, uttered in forbidden texts and moonlit ceremonies, calls forth images of abundance entwined with the eerie, unknowable pulse of the cosmos.

Preparation

Before the ritual begins, gather in a secluded glade or a candle-lit chamber, where shadows flicker and the air is thick with the scent of moss, earth, and ancient mysteries. Prepare the altar at the heart of the circle, draped in night-black cloth and adorned with the following:

· A horned effigy, or representation of the Black Goat of the Woods

· Bowls of milk, honey, and dark wine

· Symbols carved upon stones: spirals, stars, and unnameable sigils

· Bundles of wild herbs: mugwort and bay leaves, for example

· Black candles and incense of myrrh and cedar

· A bell or bone flute to sound the summoning

Encircle the space with salt and ash. All participants wear dark cloaks, their faces half-shadowed by hoods or masks carved to resemble the visages of woodland beasts.

Opening: The Calling of the Night

Coven Leader:

(Raises arms to the sky)

"O Night, shroud of secrets, veil of power,

We gather beneath the wheel’s turning,

Where shadows lengthen and the world is unbound.

From the roots of the earth to the reaches of the stars,

We summon the old ways and awaken the wild blood within."

All:

(Chanting softly until light trance occurs)

"Darkness deep and silence wide,

Let the ancient doors swing open."

One by one, each participant lights a candle and places it upon the altar, murmuring:

"By flame, by blood, by whispered breath,

We awaken the night and all its depths."

As the last candle is placed, the leader takes up the bell and rings it thrice.

The Spiral Dance

With slow, deliberate movements, the coven begins to circle the altar counter-clockwise, footsteps in time with the heartbeat of the earth. The leader intones:

"Turn now widdershins, as the witches did of old,

Unbind the chains of daylight,

Let the world grow strange and cold."

The bell or flute sounds a low, haunting note. The dancers move in spiral patterns, weaving inward and outward, calling:

"Spirits of the wood, arise and join our revel.

Shadows that dwell between root and star,

Come forth this night to dance in our circle!"

Invocation of Shub-Niggurath

The leader stands before the horned effigy, arms outstretched.

Coven Leader:

"Great Mother of a Thousand Young,

Black Goat of the Woods,

Shub-Niggurath, whose name is a trembling hush

On the lips of mortals and spirits alike,

We call you from beyond the rim of stars,

From the writhing green and the deepest cavern,

To this circle of earth and bone."

All:

(Chanting, rising in volume)

"Ia! Shub-Niggurath! The Black Goat of the Woods with a Thousand Young!"

The leader pours milk and wine at the base of the effigy.

Coven Leader:

"Accept our gifts, O Mother of Abundance,

Let your power flow through our veins and root into our bones.

Let the wild earth awaken and the stars wheel madly overhead."

The Sacrament of the Woods

Each participant takes a sprig of herb and breathes upon it, whispering a secret desire or fear. They place the herbs in a communal bowl, which is set upon the altar.

The leader lifts the bowl and speaks:

"With these offerings of green and shadow,

We feed the mysteries that slumber in the soil.

May our wishes be seeds, and our fears be roots,

Nourished by the Black Goat’s eternal night."

The bowl is set before the effigy.

The Revel and the Transformation

The circle erupts into wild, exuberant dance, feet stamping, hands clapping, voices raised in wordless song. Some participants wear animal masks or antler crowns, embodying the spirits of the forest and the untamed nature within.

Amidst the revel, the leader sprinkles drops of wine upon the ground, saying:

"Let the boundaries fall away,

Let the self dissolve,

Let the dance become the only truth!"

The music grows frenzied, then slowly fades, as dancers collapse to the ground, panting and spent.

The Vision and the Blessing

All lie in silence, eyes closed. The leader, in a voice low and resonant, whispers:

"In the darkness, O children of the night,

See the thousand forms of Shub-Niggurath:

The swaying bough, the coiling root,

The horned beast and the lurking shadow.

Let your dreams be filled with the wild abundance

Of the Mother who dwells beyond reason and name."

A hush falls. Each participant sits up and shares, in turn, a vision or sensation granted by the rite: an image glimpsed, a feeling awakened, a strange truth learned. These are recorded in a black-bound book, the Grimoire of the Sabbat.

Closing the Circle

The leader stands and speaks with solemnity:

"The doors of night swing shut,

The circle is once again sealed.

We thank the Black Goat of the Woods,

Mother of a Thousand Young,

For her gifts, her madness, her wisdom."

All stand and raise their hands in silent reverence.

"Depart, O spirits, return to root and star,

Depart, O shadows, fade into the night,

But let the spark of wildness remain within us,

Unforgotten, undiminished,

Until the next turning of the wheel."

One by one, candles are extinguished. With each flame that dies, the coven whispers:

"Darkness within. Darkness without.

By the Black Goat’s grace, the Sabbat ends."

As the last candle is snuffed, the leader closes the grimoire and speaks:

"So it is written, so it is done.

The world returns to order,

But the wildness lingers,

A secret in the blood,

A song in the shadow,

To be remembered

When the stars are right,

And the woods call once more."

All depart in silence, the echo of the rite whispering through the trees or the corridors of dream.