What the 21 December Solstice means (reprise)

Ever since I relocated to Magick River, I've been observing the Solstices and Equinoxes. The ancients used these cardinal positions of the Sun as a marker of seasonal changes. When humans lived according to these celestial signifiers they were naturally and rhythmically connected to the earth and were constantly appreciative of the life-giving energy of our Sun. This is why Solar Temples were found in all antediluvian cultures and the myth of the Returning Sun God is still deeply embedded in the human psyche - even in Christianity, which plagiarized the entombment, resurrection, and ascension of the Sun God from Solar God rituals dating back from time immemorial. These were the magical ceremonies of an agrarian community who knew the miraculous properties of seeds. The seed is a highly compressed package of genetics containing survival-enhancing permutations. Bury the seed in the ground and it appears dead but a few months later - lo and behold, it resurrects itself into a seedling and wastes no time ascending to the heavens

In today's consumer reality where almost all the food we eat is produced by agro-giants using slave labor in less developed countries and then processed and packaged for the hypermarkets, it's virtually impossible to feel any sense of wonder at how it's possible that nature can give birth to such a prolific variety of edible plants and animals. "Eat! Eat!" that's what nature seems to be saying, like any Mama who loves spending all the day in the kitchen, cooking up more goodies for her kids.

Anyway, a few days ago my SkyView Astrologer friend Katharina Bless sent me a link to a fascinating report that absolutely blew my mind. Apparently a group of astronomers have cautiously arrived at the conclusion that our Solar System was not originally a member of the Milky Way galaxy. It was, in fact, a small part of the Sagittarius Dwarf galaxy which slowly got drawn into the stronger magnetic field of the Milky Way.

A new infra red digital survey of the entire sky was made in 2003. Teams from the universities of Virginia and Massachusetts used a supercomputer to sort through half a billion stars to create a NEW STAR MAP showing our Solar System (yellow circle) to be at the exact nexus crossroads where two galaxies are actually joining. [David Law/University of Virginia]

This would indicate that stellar constellations are not static - bits and pieces end up joining other star families... or get munched up like in some Pacman game. I leave you to ponder the significance this discovery.

AHAU 13 ~ by Jonathan Star

Gone to the Unseen

At last you have departed and gone to the Unseen.
What marvelous route did you take from this world?

Beating your wings and feathers,
you broke free from this cage.
Rising up to the sky
you attained the world of the soul.
You were a prized falcon trapped by an Old Woman.
Then you heard the drummer's call
and flew beyond space and time.

As a lovesick nightingale, you flew among the owls.
Then came the scent of the rosegarden
and you flew off to meet the Rose.

The wine of this fleeting world
caused your head to ache.
Finally you joined the tavern of Eternity.
Like an arrow, you sped from the bow
and went straight for the bull's eye of bliss.

This phantom world gave you false signs
But you turned from the illusion
and journeyed to the land of truth.

You are now the Sun -
what need have you for a crown?
You have vanished from this world -
what need have you to tie your robe?

I've heard that you can barely see your soul.
But why look at all? -
yours is now the Soul of Souls!

O heart, what a wonderful bird you are.
Seeking divine heights,
Flapping your wings,
you smashed the pointed spears of your enemy.

The flowers flee from Autumn, but not you -
You are the fearless rose
that grows amidst the freezing wind.

Pouring down like the rain of heaven
you fell upon the rooftop of this world.
Then you ran in every direction
and escaped through the drain spout...

Now the words are over
and the pain they bring is gone.
Now you have gone to rest
in the arms of the Beloved.

"Rumi - In the Arms of the Beloved" ~ posted by Jonathan Star
New York, 1997

MAY THE DECEMBER SOLSTICE 

BRING NEW BEGINNINGS 

FOR ALL OF US!

[First posted 21 December 2009]