Tuesday, June 28, 2016

Divine Consciousness


I am a wild woman.
Is that true? Sometimes. More so now that I don't have to go to work every day. Deep down, it's always been true. That wild part within me has clawed my innards daily in order to remind me that who and what I am remains wild and free, roaming the wide worlds within and outside me. Finding my way in the adventure.

I am sacred.
Yes! Every quark of my being screams it moment by moment. Sacred means, quite simply, that I am connected to the Divine. Who among us does not? We forget our connections at our own peril. We release them, but the Divine does not release us. That's what keeps us going. I've learned to trust that.

I am Divine Consciousness.
My awareness of the Divine within me and the Divine around me preserves me in every move I make. With that memory, I let go of the pettiness of personal battles. Are they worth the effort? No. Can they do me real harm? No. I am responsible for that consciousness ~ nothing more and nothing less. The latter is the more difficult. Recognizing that I am bound by and to that Divine Consciousness. I walk the worlds carrying that sense in my soul. What I touch, what I speak, what I make, all belong to the Divine first. I must remain in contact with that Divine, even if it feels like it is a spider-web-thin strand connecting us. Sometimes it feels finer, more delicate than that. Sometimes it feels thick and strong as a steel cable holding a bridge aloft. What I know for sure is that it is always, always present.

How do you see yourself in terms of the sacred? Do you feel your connection? What inspires your wildness? How do you practice and/or remain conscious of that connection? Where do you feel closest to your own Divine Consciousness?



Monday, June 27, 2016

Knowing and Walking


Anyone who has found oneself on a spiritual path understands this quote from Morpheus. Knowing the path, understanding the tenets, is not the end.

Most people want to find a guru or teacher or master or whatever title they choose to give the person. There is that universal, internal drive to find someone who has the knowledge and the practice, to instruct in their chosen path.

What I've experienced over time is that a teacher can only take me so far. I can learn steps and practices as I gain a mental understanding of the path. That's all good. What takes me to the next step is actually doing the practice, walking the walk, of the path.

More than two decades ago, I studied with a Native American medicine woman as part of a women's circle. At the time, I was fully aware the Red Road, her particular tradition, was not mine. Although it was an amazing journey for me, it was not the course, the path, the tradition, that called most deeply to my soul. Walking the Red Road for a time gave me an incredible foundation. Whenever I find myself feeling out-of-sorts and off track, I breathe deeply into that tradition. It centers me and becomes the springboard for continuing on to the path that does call most deeply to my soul. That path has been pretty much a solitary one. I have uncovered multiple facets of it from an intuitive practice that encompasses my past lived practices and rituals, deep contact with the ancestors, steady communication with the Ineffable One, and use of other tools I have picked up along the way.  None of this would have been possible without walking the paths I walked in my youth as well as the Red Road of my dear sister.

What path calls to you? Do you practice one of your own choosing? Have you experienced others? How do you feel when walking your path stretches you? How does that stretch look to you? What signals that you have gone from 'knowing' to 'walking'?

Monday, June 20, 2016

Strawberry Solstice Full Moon



Today is the Solstice all over the world. In the Southern hemisphere, it is the Winter Solstice. In the Northern hemisphere, where I am, it is the Summer Solstice. The longest day.

The name Solstice come from the Latin solstitium, the sun stands still. It's the time when the sun stops at its northernmost point at the Tropic of Cancer and begins its southward journey again.

For the first time since 1967, the Summer of Love, the Full Moon false on the Solstice. This won't happen again until the June Solstice of 2035. The two falling on the same day deepens and intensifies the day.

This is the second Full Moon in Sagittarius in 2016, occurring at 29° ~ right on the edge, ready to slip over. This makes it a time of completion, a time to look at the broader picture, let go of whatever needs to goand,  begin whatever needs to come into being. It's a Moon filled with awareness, opportunity and possible breakthrough. It's a time to listen to your higher self, follow your moral compass, rely on your internal gyroscope. Trust those strong forces within you.

The cycle of influence from the deep Feminine continues as well. Venus walks with Black Moon Lilith in Scorpio, adding intuitive magic to the mix. It's a time to break away from the story of separation and remyth a new one of inclusion, understanding and compassion.

Where do you want your life to go? How do you envision your relationships with yourself and with others? What can you do to get it there? How can you best hold onto that vision?

Sunday, June 5, 2016

Ramadan Kareem


This particular New Moon brings with it the beginning of the Muslim blessing month of Ramadan. During Ramadan, all who are healthy and able participate in fasting from first light to last light every day. Experiencing Ramadan during summer in the Northern Hemisphere is long and exhausting.

Iftar, the breaking of the fast, traditionally begins with the eating of three dates at sunset. It is often a widely shared meal. Though I am not a practicing Muslim, I have had the great fortune of being invited to participate in three iftar meals. The first time was in the lower level of a private home with only women. Ten or eleven of us sat on low couches and large pillows scattered on the floor. I was the only non-Muslim woman present. Though I felt the awkwardness of an outsider, the women included me in every part of the ritual, the meal and the conversation. By the end of the nearly 90-minute time together, we were all smiling, laughing and embracing as we went our separate ways.

My other two times were during my time in Egypt. Muslim friends with whom I worked invited me to join their families. I was deeply touched by their offers. For each of those days, I participated in the full day fast: no food and no drink. Not the same as their month-long experience, I realize, but my meager way of honoring their invitation. The warmth and generosity of the people equaled what I had previously experienced and I went home from each iftar with a deeper sense of the blessing of Ramadan.

What celebrations bring you blessing? Have you shared in celebrations with strangers? What blessing have you found in them? Do you choose times to fast, to give something vital and precious up for a time? If so, what have you experienced?

Saturday, June 4, 2016

New Moon in Gemini and Grand Cross


New Moons are always about letting go, change and transformation. This one in particular, intimately connected with the mutable Grand Cross, is about changing direction, changing perception, changing affection.... releasing anything, any little thing, inhibiting our deeper, truer Selves from showing up.

This New Moon, as it squares Jupiter, Neptune and the Nodes and opposes Saturn, lights our way to discerning the truth in our life and making decisions to release the past so the new can show up for us. We must relish our own self-love in order to express our love for others in the best possible way. We have to learn and experience and practice how to do things differently, to create new pathways in our very being leading toward that creation and creativity. We benefit from remembering our power is in embracing Mystery and Unknowing in order to shift our reality and create change by unlocking the alchemy of surrender. This New Moon also celebrates the facets of the Divine Feminine: instincts of the Moon, physicality of Venus, resistance of Lilith.

Because this New Moon is also activating many planetary energies, there is potent and potential energy in this New Moon, preparing us to consider the seeds we want to plant for the future. This is something we should take seriously ~ or find ourselves stuck in the patterns of the past. All the recent retrograde energy we've been rolling through (see my post on the Full Moon in Sagittarius and Other Wonders) has aided us in stirring up the past in order to release it. Gemini is all about communication and the throat chakra to express our truth and feelings and call forth what we truly want.

As we look for what has been cleared and released from our lives during all the retrograde cycles, the golden opportunity of this New Moon is to notice the cracks and seek clarity on how to proceed. Our actions and energies, current to the next eclipse season starting in September. will shape what is to come. As we clarify and set our intentions, in writing preferably, it would be wise for us to remember that when one door closes, another opens.

What are your intentions for the future? What are you willing to release? What do you wish to call forth? What do you wish to manifest? How will you speak your wishes? How will your intentions affect those around you? To whom will you speak your intentions?