Tuning-in … becoming conscious of our connection to Mother Earth, helps us to restore balance and return to awareness of the rhythms of life on the planet … the cycles of creation, destruction, and rebirth.
The ancients knew that life is a wheel … and that the passage of time can be experienced as a wheel, with recurring cycles, predictable segments that we can align with and benefit from that alignment.
When we attune to the cycles of the seasons and the turning of the wheel of the year, we enhance our natural abilities, gifts, and resources. The cycles of the seasons are marked by sacred holy days … designed to remind us to be mindful of the gifts and opportunities offered by each place along the wheel.
In this moment, we are celebrating Samhain … the final harvest. We prepare for the coming Winter by reflecting back on the year that is passing … by feeling gratitude for all that we have received, and by practicing the art of allowing things that are no longer useful to fall away.
As the leaves turn, and Mother Nature paints her beautiful expression of endings, we can take comfort in that beauty as we also experience endings … releasing pain, old programs, relationships, situations and anything else that has served its purpose and is now ready to move back into potential for rebirth.
Making room for the new is an important aspect of Samhain season. We are entering the in between time … the old year is dying and the New Year is not ready to be born. This space between cycles is also a space between dimensions.
Many speak of this time as a moment when the veil lifts and we are able to perceive the presence of beings in other dimensions, including those who have left their Earthly bodies and traveled to the realm of non-form. Communing with loved ones who have crossed over is very easy during Samhain.
The element of fire is a symbol of this time. Ceremonies of release and transformation are particularly powerful now, and working with those intentions in the presence of fire amplifies and strengthens those intentions.
If we deliberately intend to move with the rhythms of the Earth during this time, we will find ourselves in the flow … moving with the currents of energy shifting on the planet … rather than struggling against the current.
Sometimes I find it difficult to let-go of Summer … especially here in Mt. Shasta, where the hiking season on the mountain is precious and short. As the leaves begin to turn, and the cold wind blows, I feel resistance … wanting to say “stop … just wait a little longer”, and when I do, the struggle is tangible … uncomfortable. People in town begin to speak of snow, and are hushed by the many who want to hold on to the cherished time when we can roam the mountain meadows and delight in the wonder of her magic.
After a while, I realize the beauty of the changing season … it is always the brilliance of Mother Earth’s palette that brings me back into alignment with the need to honor the cycles and move with the rhythms of change
. I count myself fortunate to live in a place where this brilliance is so evident … so close … and I wonder how my brothers and sisters in the cities are faring … what calls them into the rhythms and cycles … how are they moving with the seasons … and I wish that everyone could witness the stunning beauty of autumn …
This time between is the place of infinite possibilities … of living without limitations. Experiment with the idea that you can explore your dreams and visions outside of time … outside of habits of thought … you can dream yourself awake and live the dream.
The Luminous Seed within all of us is the template for embodying our Source Consciousness while we live on the Earth. This seed can be activated now … in this between time. We can create anything as we allow the new year to be born.
In the next few weeks, take time to go outside. Breathe the air and feel the subtle energies of change that move on the wind. Look at the world with Beginner’s Eyes … look for the beauty, in the natural world and in the eyes of your brothers and sisters … see the common threads that connect us all. Use this time of entry into multiple dimensions … really pay attention and see everything.
Breathe consciously this week … follow the rhythms of your breath and connect with the rhythms of the Earth.
If you have been hoping to connect with someone who has crossed over … there was never a better time.
What are you grateful for? What can you honestly say you appreciate in this moment?
Samhain is a doorway …one of the two great doorways of the Celtic year. In ancient times, the year was divided into the season of light and the season of darkness. Beltane, celebrated on May 1st marked the season of light, and Samhain on November 1st marked the beginning of the Celtic night.
In the dark night, came the whisperings of new beginnings … the stirring of the seeds buried beneath the ground.
In ancient Ireland, people traveled to the ceremonial centers of the tribes on Samhain for the greatest feast of the year. The Feast of Tara was celebrated at the royal seat of the High King … the heart of the sacred land … and the point of conception for the New Year. In all the households throughout the land, hearth fires were extinguished while the people waited for the Druids to light the new fire of the year on a hill twelve miles to the northwest of Tara.
The gods drew near to Earth at Samhain, so gifts were offered in thanksgiving for the harvest. Personal prayers held in talismans symbolizing the wishes of the supplicants were cast into the fire. Those wishing for healings cast objects into the fire that represented the illness to be healed.
At the end of the ceremonies, brands were lit from the great fire to re-kindle all the home fires of the tribes, as at Beltane. As they received the flame that symbolized this time of new beginnings, people focused on kindling new dreams, projects, and hopes for the year to come.
As we pass through the Day of the Dead, we can create celebrations of life for those who have crossed over. The in between time is the best time for our limiting beliefs to drop away, making it possible for us to experience the presence of our loved ones.
You can cook the foods they loved to eat … listen to music they enjoyed … decorate your homes with colors and light and symbols of eternal life … joy … celebration. Create an altar with photos of your loved ones … decorate with fall flowers, leaves, colorful candles and fruits.
This is a time to honor the presence of the other dimensional beings who are always with us … to communicate with them and give thanks for their eternal natures.
Winter on the Mountain is Beginning
