The most sacred way to live your life, is to live connected to nature. How to know if you are on the right course? Watch sweetgrass ripple under wind. How to heal a fractured self? Listen for the call of crows and their rushing wing beats. And how to remember what work you promised to bring to this world? Watch the moon. Watch her dress and undress. Watch her give herself, again and again, to this world.
That is all. It’s uncomplicated. But it is not easy. This is the interesting thing. As Pema Chodron writes, “If you follow your heart, you’re going to find that it is often extremely inconvenient”. That is true. If you follow the sacredness of the earth, it will not be terribly convenient. Watch the trees this time of year. The buds they held so tenderly in their arms last spring, fed until they reached deeper towards the sun, flowered, flourished, celebrated – these are now turning to dirt on the ground. We are not meant to always know the coming or going of things, people, events. We are only meant for the climbing and rising, and the falling and collapsing. And sometimes we are given a glimpse into the wide mystery of why. Sometimes, if we are very lucky, we know the why.
But absolutely, the surest way to live a sacred life is with the rhythms of this nature – with her rises and falls, her nights and days, her pushes and pulls. Resist one, and we resist the other.
Little by little over the years, I’ve synched my life more and more to these rhythms of nature – the seasons, the cycles of the moon, and my own internal rhythms and flow. And little by little, I am more deeply supported, more inspired, more in love with life. It is truly incredible. There is a sense that comes of joining something greater than me, of joining in the grand dance of life, with all its creatures. It is not me against the world, it is me in harmony with the Universe. There is a trust that grows with myself and with the Universe. What a joy it is to create with the Universe!
This time of year, I’m most interested in this turning towards darkness, these growing nights. We are quickly approaching the Winter Solstice (December 22nd), the shortest day of the year. This is a powerful time. It’s also holiday time – Christmas, Hanukkah, and many other holidays are celebrated this time of year. While I do not resonate deeply with any of the traditional holidays, I do resonate deeply with the Solstice. It represents a deep turning inward. Night has always represented a kind of feminine energy, an intuitive opening, a returning to the void. Night represents the void, dreams, and the great mystery. There is an incredible opportunity that opens at this time of year that is ripe for deep understanding of the mysteries of life. There is a subtle doorway that opens to the understanding of the great dreams that want to be lived through you. I’m talking about your purpose. The problem is, we are too busy baking cookies, buying stuff we don’t need, and going to parties to notice it.
However, chances are good that if you’re reading this you do sense this deep yearning to turn within this time of year. You can feel it underneath everything. You go to a party, you keep thinking about how good it will be to go home. You schedule gatherings with family and friends that do truly fill you up and feel good. And you still secretly dream for more time alone with your own thoughts, your own sacred heartbeat. I know. I feel it too.
I’ll tell you this, opening even just a little bit can make a massive difference. Reserving just a little bit of space to delve into the mysterious darkness this time of year can yield so much understanding of yourself, of your dreams, of the sacredness of your life. It can fill you for the entire year.
For the past few years, I’ve made a conscious effort to make space in my life this time of year to go within. It feels like I am dipping the bucket of my Soul down a deep, dark well. There is something about doing this at this particular time of year that fills me like nothing else. I have received many visions, dreamed many dreams during the Winter Solstice that have brought so much joy, love, and radiance into my life.
That is why this year, I am offering you the chance to go within with me with the Illumination E-Course. It helps to have support. Especially in these winter months that are cold and insular. We need the sense of community around us. We need to know there are others making this journey with us.
This time of year it’s easy to get swept up in the busyness of the season. I urge you to find some space away from that. Find some space to turn in. There are visions and knowings right underneath the surface. There is a great dream that wants to be lived through you. Use this time of year to reach in to get to know it. The time is ripe for you.
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