Water journeys from ocean to raincloud to stream then back to sea, being able to embrace eternal recurrence is the ultimate expression of love.
Last term’s velvety darkness, creeping in around the edges, has shifted into a heavy darkness that feels a little oppressive this week. The more connected to the seasons I become the more I become aware of how the 'changing of the clocks' unsettles me for a week or two. Admittedly the bright mornings have been a blessing, much like the mild sunny days, however the heavy darkness earlier in the evenings suddenly feels too much, too soon.
The changing of the clocks feels too linear, an act of disconnection from the natural cycle of things. Most beleive that it was introduced to help farmers but in actual fact it was adopted during the First World War when the country needed to make use of as much daylight as possible to conserve coal. If anything it disrupts rather than helps the farming world. Livestock and crops respond to the natural cycles, so if schedules are changed disregarding natural rhythms, this can be unsettling and disruptive.
It has an unsettling effect on humans too. Our connection to the natural cycles is our circadian rhythm, when this is disrupted it can affect our mood and our health.
Every time we change the clocks, what we are effectively doing is giving the entire country a form of jet lag. This interferes with our circadian rhythm, and puts stress on our immune systems. - Dr Helfer
By contrast the Ancient Druids of this land honoured the cycles of the sun and moon and lived their lives in rhythm with them.
Based on this deep and mysterious connection between the Source of our individual lives and the Source of the life of the planet, Druidry recognises eight particular times during the yearly cycle which are significant and which are marked by eight special festivals.Of these eight times, four are solar and four are lunar – creating thereby a balanced scheme of interlocking masculine and feminine observances. https://druidry.org
Life, and all within it, is a dance of masculine and feminine energy. One is not more valuable than the other, the magic is in the play and dance between both. Much of our modern life is dominated by linear and structural qualities (masculine energy) so there is less dancing between the masculine and feminine, and we lack a little magic as a result.
Every human has both masculine and feminine qualities within them, whatever gender we are, or identify as. In yoga philosophies this play of masculine and feminine is the relationship of Shakti and Shiva. Shakti energy is within us all, it is the life force that animates the universe, the water that brings life to the earth.
"When we come from a place of feminine principles - balance of masculine and feminine - curiosity replaces fear, generosity replaces greed, complacency is replaced with creativity…the Divine Feminine honors the Divine Masculine." - Hart
The first point on the Celtic Eightfold Wheel is Samhain.
Samhain (pronounced sow-en) marks the ending and the beginning of the Celtic year. This festival is now more commonly known as Halloween, whilst the symbolism of today’s celebrations have been lost, their roots are deep in ancient Celtic traditions. Celtic people would wear masks, veils, and ghostly disguises to conceal their identity, confuse the spirits, and protect themselves from evil. Children would go from house to house showing off their disguises, singing or performing silly tricks in exchange for treats.
Celtic culture revered the circle as a symbol of the goddess and the divine feminine. Over the last couple of months I have been ‘noticing’ more circles, increasingly so over the last week. It is not something I am looking for, it is one of those uncanny feelings where things keep popping up to catch my attention. I spent a day wandering round Snape last weekend, revisiting somewhere I’d spent a lot of time with my Dad. Two sculptures there really had an uncanny resemblance to an amazing piece of bark I found a couple of years ago which was like a 'mask'. It felt like I was being drawn to reflect on the symbolism of circles (divine feminine) and masks (disguises).
We wear the mask that grins and lies,
It hides our cheeks and shades our eyes—
This debt we pay to human guile;
With torn and bleeding hearts we smile,
And mouth with myriad subtleties.
Why should the world be over-wise,
In counting all our tears and sighs?
Nay, let them only see us, while
We wear the mask.
This powerful poem by African-American poet Paul Laurence Dunbar, serves as a reminder that sometimes masks are worn not to deceive others, but to protect ourselves from judgment and scrutiny. It highlights the inner struggles individuals face while presenting a facade to the world. https://poemverse.org/
Circles symbolize the divine feminine, the cycles of day and night, season to season, the cycle of light and dark, of inhale and exhale and of life and death. Circles symbolically convey cycles and rebirth due to their round nature that has no beginning or end. Its perfect symmetry is seen as the embodiment of balance and harmony that represents wholeness, unity, eternity, and the infinite.
"When I experience the Divine Feminine, I experience wholeness and oneness. There's a sacred space that's big enough to hold us all." - Schaaf
Earth as a planet is often referred to as Mother Earth, or Mother Nature, referring to the source of life. All human beings come to earth through the womb so there is a direct link to all our ancestors through the feminine energy of the womb, of the earth.
The divine feminine is often depicted as nurturing, compassionate, and deeply connected to the earth and all living beings. The womb, as a symbol of the divine feminine, embodies these qualities.
"From ancient times to modern spiritual practices, the womb holds significant symbolism, serving as a gateway to both physical and spiritual life. It is a powerful symbol of birth, transformation, and renewal." - https://www.lovemoredivinely.com/
As a seasonal practice Autumn asks us to release and to surrender to this natural cycle of the seasons. As we fall into Winter we’re invited back home, back to the earth, essentially back to that ‘womb space’ where we can rest and be held in that loving darkness.
Our relationship with darkness is valuable to explore at this time of year. We have developed many negative associations of the dark and many of us have a fear of the dark or at least resist its many forms (physical darkness, emotional darkness etc)
I know a number of us within our class groups have experienced the loss of a loved one recently that brings with it a darkness, a hole within our lives. Andrew Graystone gave a beautiful Pause for Thought on Radio 2 (Sunday 27th Oct) https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/p0k07sl0)
He said that we are never in total darkness, never without light. He shared that often the darkness times are due to the contrast with light, that the darkest skies are only so dark because of the brightest stars.
The time between Samhain and Yule (Midwinter Solstice ) is a time of darkness before the light returns, little by little. Can we explore the magic of darkness during this time? The magic of darkness is explored through imagination, dream states and intuition.
The gift of insight is associated with our third eye; the eye that sees in the dark, sees the unseen and connects us to our intuition.
The gift of Intuition is associated with the divine feminine; primal feelings within our gut/belly/womb space, the connection to our ancestors and to the earth.
This point in the year is a time of introspection, of doing less and ‘being’ more - exploring the depths of our thoughts and ideas.
Exploring our inner worlds can be a bit like walking into the woods in the dark - scary. The winter trees, bare of leaves, can look vulnerable and exposed, a mirror to how we may feel when we remove our masks. In actual fact their winter nakedness is a symbol of inner strength and intuition. Knowing the lack of sunlight means they need to conserve energy at their core, they drop their leaves and their energy is moved inwards. Each tree responds to the changes around it and does what it needs to, to conserve its life force regardless how it looks externally.
How others perceive us is also very different to how we experience life from our 'inscape'. As with anything there is always more than one way to understand, nothing is simply right or wrong, black or white. Often it takes surrendering the need to understand, to know or to find a resolute answer, simply surrender to the experience as it is, without labeling it one or the other. In doing so it enables us to break it down, to step back and see all the parts, to appreciate the bigger picture and find our greatest strength.
The light is always present, the dark doesn’t last forever.
We cannot save, control or make time, we can only honour it, celebrate it and flow with it.
We’ll continue working with the elements this term; balances and mat work to keep us grounded (earth) adding movement (water) to bring life to earth. Incorporating heat (fire) again to stimulate Agni ( digestion) which supports our wellbeing through the darker season. However, this term we will bring a more introspective and nurturing element to our practices and adding soothing sounds (air).
It’s a great time of year to explore some Restorative yoga. If you can’t make one of the new taster classes in November & December, don’t worry as we’ll have a little taste of restorative yoga in our regular weekly classes too.
Samhain blessings. I hope you get up to some mischief whilst also honouring and celebrating loved ones who have passed. They say the veil between the worlds is thinner during Samhain, so I hope you feel those you’ve lost a little closer during this celebrated time.
Om Shanti
🙏
Sophia
“It is this earth that, like a kind mother, received us at our birth, and sustains us when born; it is this alone, of all the elements around us, that is never found an enemy of man… though she produces the poison, she still supplies the antidote… and when life is over she piously covers his remains in her bosom.” — Pliny the Elder
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