Winter Solstice Greetings

Winter Solstice was on Monday December 21 at 9:47 am PST. Though I missed the day to send out this greeting, we are still now in the depths of Winter. Winter Solstice is at the height of Winter, when the days are shortest and the nights are longest. These long dark Mid-Winter eves afford us the time to luxuriate within our homes, within ourselves. This is a time of contemplation, a time of being – a time to sit and settle in our bones. The solstice is the time when the sun is “still”; it rises and sets in the same place for these few days, hardly moving even through these few weeks.

Some years these Mid-Winter days are times of self-exploration, dreaming, planning, pondering. But for me this year, it is a time of being still -- still in the sense of not seeking, still in the sense of accepting and being.

In whatever way these days draw you, yield to their guidance. Savor these long velvety dark nights, for the light of Spring is on its way, and this moment will pass.

Blessings to you all at Mid-Winter – Anne


A note on dates: Mid-Winter is also called Yule (originally from the Scandinavian). Astrologically, Mid-Winter may be calculated as the date the Sun is at 0° Capricorn (in the Tropical system), which currently Falls around December 21-22 (This date range applicable to U.S. time zones. Other methods for determining the cross-quarter days and charts showing the date ranges for the seasons can be found at: http://www.archaeoastronomy.com).

from my Aunt.....

I don't know if this actually has Cherokee roots, but the sentiment is oh so appropriate right now. We are what we feed within ourselves.

TWO WOLVES

One evening an old Cherokee told his grandson about a battle that goes on inside people.
He said, "My son, the battle is between two wolves inside us all.

"One is Evil - It is anger, envy, jealousy, sorrow, regret, greed, arrogance, self-pity, guilt, resentment, inferiority, lies, false pride, superiority, and ego.

"The other is Good - It is joy, peace, love, hope, serenity, humility, kindness, benevolence, empathy, generosity, truth, compassion and faith."

The grandson thought about it for a minute and then asked his grandfather: "Which wolf wins?"
The old Cherokee simply replied, "The one you feed."

mantras

Thanks for posting the Mantra of Light, Rick. We'll be singing that at our Winter Solstice ritual. We'll also be doing the Tara action Mantra (Om Tare Tutare Ture Svaha). And...I think we should sing "Here comes the sun"--- what do you think??

Mantra of Light

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mantra_of_Light

On abokya beiroshanō makabodara mani handoma jimbara harabaritaya un

Ohn ah boke ya bay rosha no
maka bodara mahni
han doh ma jim bara hara bary taya uunn

New Moon on Wed

We are closing in on the darkest time of the year, and this week the moon is dark on Wednesday. This is a wonderful time to seek within, to be in the quiet -- quiet mind, quiet body, quiet heart -- and allow what is deep within each of us to come to the surface. Drift and dream in these luxurious dark days!

A couple of wise words from astrologer Cathy Pagano:
At this time of year, we need to check-in with ourselves to see if our beliefs still serve our life’s purpose. In this quiet time before the Solstice, as the darkness grows to its deepest depth, we need to take stock of our lives and our beliefs. Sometimes we forget that it is our values and dearest beliefs that give us the courage and will to live. During the Sun’s journey through Sagittarius, we get to examine our beliefs and re-center ourselves around them.
We are all journeying through life. It is always the Sagittarius New Moon that calls us to look for meaning and purpose in life, to re-discover our philosophy of life. This is an especially good year to do it, since the New Moon falls within a few degrees of the Galactic Center. The Galactic Center is a gigantic black hole, constantly emitting vast amounts of energy which affect the electromagnetic fields of the Earth and its inhabitants. This energy is the evolutionary energy for the whole galaxy. Maybe there are other planets with other beings, which are being tested as we are. Perhaps we are all receiving our instructions for evolution.
http://www.wisdom-of-astrology.com/sagittariusnewmoon2009wintersolstice

Death?

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/robert-lanza/does-death-exist-new-theo_b_384515.html

a message from my tea bag

Sing from your heart!

Next Resonant Vibration: Sunday Dec. 20!

Well, last Sunday night was pretty sweet. Thanks everyone for coming. Our next gathering will be on Sunday December 20th at 6:30pm at Ben and Anne's. We'll be having a Winter Solstice ritual along with chanting. If you'd like to help out with the ritual, or need directions, email me
(anne - at - rabbitmurmurs - dot - org ).

what to do with time

Thanks for that post Rick. I have been thinking a lot about time and priorities lately, and coming to the realization that time is not under my own control. Sure, I've got the watch and the multiple google calendars, but ultimately I can only decide what to do for this moment. So here I am on our blog.
A yoga teacher of mine once said that our mind is in the future, our body is in the past, and only our breath is in the present. I think that is one thing that chanting does for me -- brings me into the present. Over and over - 108 times!

A Buddhist Meditation known as the Five Remembrances asks us to reflect on the nature of reality and our actions. This can help us to decide what our priorities are and how we should spend our days.

The Five Remembrances:

1. There is no way to escape aging. I too will grow old.
2. There is no way to escape physical degeneration. My body too will weaken.
3. There is no way to escape death. I too will die.
4. Everything and everyone changes; we must part even from loved ones.
5. My deeds are always with me as propensities. Only my karma accompanies me when I die; my karma is the ground on which I stand.

Entrainment

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brainwave_entrainment

Wheel of Life

http://www.npr.org/programs/re/geography_heaven/kawakarpo/wheeloflife/slide.html

Mind machines

Mind Machines

At theater, with Pro Tools.

Jarocha dancer

I was fortunate enough tonight to see a local dance troupe here in Xalapa, Veracruz, Mexico. They performed Veracruz folk dances in the style called Jarocho. My heart lifted watching the men and women dance together. The men were enjoying the dancing, deep into it and grooving. The women, so strong and powerful, were flinging their very feminine lacey skirts around with strength and style and grace. And the flirting! They performed the dance just as it is supposed to be – a courtship. The couples looked into each others’ eyes, the men firmly held the women’s waists, and the women sent smoldering glances under their eyelashes. When the men danced, the women cheered them on. When the women danced, the men cheered them on. And when they danced together, they whistled and shouted.
The jarocho style has a lot of banging on the heels, and I began to see how that sound was a like a drumbeat, like the zills , like shimmies – that it raised a sweet serpent of energy that whirled around the dancers and encompassed us, the audience.
I had tried to stand up on the balcony so that I could get a better view to film, but I ended up on the floor right in front of the dancers. And that is the best way to appreciate this dance. It pulled me in and danced me around. It made me think of why I love the dance gigs at Solstice Café or any of these other places where we dance right there at eye level with the audience – because it is less of a performance and more of a sharing, a drawing in. Tonight I was breathing with the dancers, my heels tapping away, feeling the sweetness as they looked at each other in this dance of courtship. It was ecstatic. I had begun the evening tired, and now I was energized, smiling, full of heart. I hope that is how people feel when they watch us dance.

Killian Mansfield

From a friend. Thanks Nina.

Killian Mansfield

When you play an instrument you figure out pretty soon that scales are one of the main ways to get better. All melodies are constructed from scales. There are different kinds of scales, but 99% of all the music ever played came from just a few scales. So at some point you have to commit to playing scales. You get a metronome and you start slowly, playing the same scale over and over in different positions. Over time something starts to happen. Your ear gets attuned to the sound of the scales on your instrument. You'll hear some guitar music and know instinctively where and how it's being played. You will think of a sound and know exactly where it is on your guitar. You can almost visualize it. Your ears have become attuned. Musicians call it your inner ear. "Man that guy has big ears" is one the higher compliments you can be paid. Could it be that meditation and chanting are like the scales of the instrument that is your Body/Mind? I'm looking to make my ears bigger.

performance and service

Thanks again to John for stimulating more thoughts on these matters. We were talking about performance, and I was reflecting on my priestessing activities. Of course, theater has its roots in religious rites, so in a sense all performance is, or could be, at its root sacred. But I suppose some of the difference is what one expects from the "audience". Performance implies that the audience watches and appreciates, just as I dance. In that sense, I don't see Priestessing as performance. When I lead ritual, I try to guide people to a place where they can have an experience with the Divine. Just as when I read Tarot, I view it more as a service than a performance because of the interaction with the participant.
Does that have any comparisons with music and performance Rick?

this is it

Mind grooves. And thanks to John Hardham for this first one. I've been thinking about the drop and the ocean, how I am the drop (ego-individual) and the ocean (collective). I'm fairly careful, though, about how I interact with the collective, and I wondered about my trepidation. Exploring it, I see that I get a little worried about getting carried away with the collective, because of course the collective doesn't really have my individual interest in mind. There is the beautiful side of that -- being moved, taken, swept away to someplace new. There is the side that causes me trepidation -- not knowing where I am going and how that will effect me, the individual. How does one give up oneself completely to the collective, to the ocean?