divine spark

The Spring Equinox heralds the beginning of the new year, as the Sun moves above the equator once again, bringing more light and warmth here in the northern hemisphere.

March is when passion and energy bring focus to our new plans for the year.

As more sunshine warms us all up, sap once again flows with life - stimulating growth in nature. So too our Mars nature answers within - we are purified and release the past.

With the uprush of male energy, we turn outward to express and manifest. Let this Mars energy be more playful and creative - make love [not war], have fun, rejoice, be uplifted.

Shake off dormant drudge and sludge of the winter months as light and new life return.

Collage by Nat Girsberger

The Aries New Moon arrives as we leave behind the month of March and head into April. To work with the magic of this New Moon, no matter where in the world we are - this night of March 31st and April 1st these energies are at their peak.

earth hour 2022

A worldwide movement organized by the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF), the Earth Hour annual event encourages individuals, communities, and businesses to turn off all non-essential electric lights on March 27 for one hour, from 8:30 to 9:30 p.m. local time, to symbolize their commitment to the planet.

©Earth Hour Macedonia 2020

Earth Hour isn't just a symbolic movement - it's a catalyst for real change. Tracking major milestones and wins over the years though we believe it is too little and not enough.

It all began on Saturday, 31 March 2007. The world’s first Earth Hour in Sydney, Australia, saw more than 2.2 million people turn off their lights for one hour to show a climate-sceptic government that people were concerned about climate change. 

Last year, while still facing COVID-19 restrictions in many countries, people in a record-breaking 192 countries and territories united digitally to speak up for nature louder than ever. The first-ever Earth Hour Virtual Spotlight highlighted the connection between nature loss, climate change and the rise of pandemics.

The need for humans to do more for the earth and living things and the little that we have managed to achieve towards critical goals may feel for most like the difference between the Trump presidency and the Biden administration. 

The latter is so much better than our past four years of mayhem at the mercy of a flailing temperamental incompetent - that we may actually be lulled into believing we are improving - even if only in picayune increments, the relief is still great and real. 

Unfortunately, neither are not enough. Earth Hour may allow us to sleep better at night, deluding ourselves that we did our bit. But much like tracking our carbon footprint or recycling, they hardly chip into solving the real problem we face. 

Yes, we celebrate the effort and awareness of growing participants - kudos to many more. We still need to do so much more to turn the tide. Time for minimal and passive participation is long over. 

action & reflection

The full moon embodies self-expression and action. When the moon and sun are in opposition, Helios is so far away from Luna that the full face of our nightly companion is lit up. Perhaps distance does make the heart grow fonder.

We have traveled far, and now is the time to rest, and look back on our accomplishments, or at what we have left behind, as the case may be. Our emotions and our physical body are heightened during this phase of the Moon.

Listen to the needs of body and mind - opposing energy of the Sun (ego, self) and the Moon (inner-self, subconscious) can cause tension - explosions of emotions. Create rituals that reflect and manifest this.

"equinox" comes from the Latin for "equal" & "night"

Mahashivratri | a night of awakening

Mahashivratri is an opportunity and a possibility to bring yourself to that experience of the vast emptiness within every human being, which is the source of all creation. Shiva is also known as the destroyer. He is known as the most compassionate. Shiva is also known to be the greatest of the givers. Shiva is the primal Atman (Self) of the universe.

Lord Shiva statue at Murudeshwar

There are many both benevolent and fearsome depictions of Shiva. In benevolent aspects, he is depicted as an omniscient Yogi who lives an ascetic life on Mount Kailash as well as a householder with wife Parvati and his two children, Ganesha and Kartikeya. In his fierce aspects, he is often depicted slaying demons. Shiva is also known as Adiyogi Shiva, regarded as the patron god of yoga, meditation and arts.

classic Shiva mantra

Mahashivratri is a special night for receiving too. It is our wish and blessing that you must not pass this night without knowing at least a moment of the vastness of this emptiness that we call as Shiva. Let this night not just be a night of wakefulness, let this night be a night of awakening.

#Sadhguru #MahaShivRatri #MahaShivRatri2022

22.02.2022

Happy Twosday! February 22, 2022, i.e., 2-22-2022, is a mathematical rarity - special as well as rare.

The date boasts of being both a palindrome and an ambigram. A palindrome is a word, phrase, or sequence that reads the same backwards as forwards. An ambigram is a word that reads the same right-side-up and upside-down.

The number 2 is a portal into other realms — it is a divine number with varied meanings and portents. Angelic, biblical, spiritual, symbolic — what power does its energy hold and reveal?

self care

“And every day, the world will drag you by the hand, yelling, 'This is important! And this is important! And this is important! You need to worry about this! And this! And this!' And each day, it’s up to you to yank your hand back, put it on your heart and say, 'No. This is what’s important.'" ~ Iain Thomas #NoteToSelf

heart throb detail by David Michael Bowers

Setting boundaries is an essential step in mental health maintenance and gaining the safety, space, and respect we need. Creating our personal rules or defining limitations we prefer. Setting boundaries guide other people towards how to behave towards one another. 

We avoid harming our self-esteem when we start setting boundaries. By drawing the line, we can protect ourselves from being taken advantage of by others and ensure others meet our needs. 

Why should we be setting boundaries and how do we set them for other people - to ensure others respect our space, body, and being?

borderlands of dreams

The hypnagogic state of consciousness is the experience of the transitional state from wakefulness to 

sleep during the onset of sleep. Its opposite state - hypnopompic, is the transitional state from sleep into wakefulness. These are the borderlands of dreams - thresholds of consciousness with extreme potential and possibility.

Mental phenomena that may occur in this phase include hypnagogic hallucinations, lucid thought, lucid dreaming, and sleep paralysis. The latter two phenomena are themselves separate sleep conditions that are sometimes experienced during the hypnagogic state.

In this transitional time between the sleep self and awake self lies a precious void of self-regeneration. Threads between wakefulness and dreamtime weave into the tapestry of cognition and consciousness. 

Moth Moon © K.A.K. Lecky 2018 @arctic.selkie

Waking up, in that moment,⁠
coming from the dream world, ⁠
the real world, ⁠
to this one, ⁠
before rolling over, ⁠
before feet touch the floor,⁠
the feel of other places⁠
still swimming around me,⁠
I am in between time. ⁠
⁠
Sometimes lost, ⁠
sometimes found,⁠
leaping from one world⁠
to another,⁠
carrying in my rucksack⁠
more secrets⁠
in the hidden pouch inside,⁠
waiting⁠
for just the right moment to⁠
empty them onto the page. ⁠
⁠
~ excerpt © Elise Stuart 2018⁠

a return to our earth nature

There is a learning curve of how to tend to oneself and each other during this time of dismemberment and simultaneous rememberment. Mostly our minds are focused on what is broken and what is not working. 

We do need to take actions now and in the future but first we must have the energy to deal with what is coming. A period of growth is required to gather the energy for our continued journey that does not end until our soul decides it is time to go home.

When we move into a state of growth and take our place in this life, we must remember that we came here to be caretakers of the Earth.

art by Autumn Skye

We must step out of the dimension of division and constantly return to the divine spark that lives in all of us. That is connected to the creative forces of the universe which are always singing the song of dismemberment and dissolution as well as the song of rememberment and new creations.

When we step into the dimension of recognizing that there is only oneness, love, light, and lessons for our spiritual growth we can be held by a state of inner peace within.

But we must let go of fear, self-hate, division, and hyper vigilance. We need to ground to the land and feel the land supporting us for that is the real support we need. 

We need the support of all the elements who have been here for billions of years and have been through and contributed to the storms of change that we have been going through since life began on this Earth. 

You can read the full message of Sandra Ingerman on her website. 

covid coloniality

With the COVID-19 pandemic still raging around the world, people are still dying of other preventable diseases like HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis and Ebola. With the arrival of the latest mutation, Omicron - we're realizing that ignorance, entitlement, and hardheadedness can kill us just as easily too. 

Colonialism refers to the political and economic subordination of a nation or people to another nation. Distinct from colonialism, coloniality refers to the long-standing patterns of power that emerged as a result of colonialism. 

That's especially true in underdeveloped countries, places physician and anthropologist Eugene Richardson calls the global south. 

© AFP / Ed Jones - 'Fearless Girl'

The global public health system is broken because it perpetuates an imbalance of power rooted in colonialism. Reparations and economic investment are needed to improve public health and medical care in these countries.

awed & inspired

Throughout the ages, the Milky Way has hung above humanity in the sky, a beautiful marvel shining steadily each night. 

Nowadays, most city-bound folks rarely see the full splendor of our home galaxy stretching across the heavens. 

Luckily, there are photographers all over the world with the skills to show off what many sky watchers are missing. 

Take a look at the winners of the 2021 Milky Way Photographer of the Year competition from the travel and photography site Capture the Atlas. 

Pablo Ruiz - Riaño, Spain