Crimson River Ceremony
Earth Daughters Festival 2025

The ‘Crimson River’ Ceremony brought together 700 women to walk in honor of the womb. of the Blood. Of healing the ancestral connection to the womb, the rose petalled path, the rights of passage of birth and death, and the deep connection to the heart of woman.

We opened this ceremony by singing ‘Lineage’ and calling a tone to the heart and the womb.
Hope Medford heald the rhythm down for our 700 person crew to sing these songs.

We then welcomed elder Uma to guide us in a session of rest as radical resistance. Together, we laid with our backs against the earth as she sang to us about rest. About letting go. About horizontal presence with isness. We did this together, to rise and walk on rested feet on behalf of all women.

Then we welcomed the ancestors to witness this prayer with beloved Mahadevi wearing my ancestral mask puppet, created in honor of the remembered grandmothers of our line.
We sang Center of the Wheel to invoke their presence to behold the ritual space we were creating to support our bloodline to heal.

Jasmine introduced the umbilicus she wove with the bleeding women during her retreat and all the blood prayers woven and tied to it.

Then we welcomed Blood Woman puppet created by Amy Sass, and invoked the Blood Woman song
(this song was composed 30 minutes prior ater I saw the puppet and imagined how she would enter the ceremony)

‘Blood Woman’
Women of the moon remember
Your womb holds an ancient time
It’s a circle it’s a hoop it’s an ember
that burns with a sacred rhyme
Blood women
We walk with rested feet
We walk in reclamation
For the rhythms that breathe

After teaching this song, we had our rose priestesses hand out 700 roses to each of the women
a remembrance of the rose lineage and the phases and stages
as we sang Awaken To Your Power

Then introduced the Ruby Ray, danced by Sister Swan, the emanation of the essence of the great she that lives
as the Ruby radiance of the goddess,
who lives as a drop at the center

Then we invoked the Phoenix puppet (which I had dreamed) and fan veils to come and bless our circle, to transform int he fires and purify any where that we hold any taboo or repressed or self-critical energies related to the womb blood.

I then taught this song, an original piece composed a few days before the ceremony, in 3 parts for the crimson river procession

‘From bud to blossom to bloom
I walk the rose hoop
Through gates of a womb illumined
Through rivers of crimson tides
Petals that guide our way back home

I am holy woman
I am healing bloodlines
I am holding visions
Of a lineage love reborn

Crimson River hold me’

We then walked in procession with all the puppets, and roses, umbilicus
the women of She Rose holding hoops and fans
to the meadow singing the song in 3 parts with Hope Medford holding the drum beat for us.

I invited everyone to hold their rose up to gather the energies of Ruby Ray
to leave a petal on the path as a prayer and offering,

We sealed with signing Voice of my Womb
and processed back to the center fire to close

Page Photography and Video:
Anabel DeLaForet
Jade
Eyecatchers Media
Femme Film Works

with art by Marya Stark, Sister Swan, She Rose Troupe, Amy Sass, Giant Puppets Save The World, Jasmine Rose

In collaboration with Earth Daughters Festival