Alfablót is the ritual that opens the Heathen Holy Tide of Winter Nights. It is a Blót (Sacrifice) to the Álfar (Elves).
You can learn more about the Elves and what we believe about them here in our section on Spirits.
In short, Elves are powerful spirits in this world who settle in particular places like graves, grave-mounds and other kinds of holy or hallowed ground. Today, Álfar is used by most Heathens as a term for their male ancestors. The historical practice of Heathenry didn’t have such a strong affiliation and used that term Álfar in that more general sense of a powerful spirit that resided in a holy place.
Winter Nights is a Holy Tide (a period of a few days between different phases of the moon) where we remember our beloved dead, reflect on our own lives and the meaning of love, loss and memory. It’s the “after-party” after the wild times we had during the Harvest Holy Tide, where our thoughts begin to turn inward.
This will be a virtual event hosted by our President and CEO, Lauren Crow, who will conduct the ritual for the benefit of any Heathens who want to be a part of a Winter Nights ritual but just don’t have a means to do it themselves or people who are just curious as to how a Blót looks and how people do them.