Sunday 20 March 2011

Spring Equinox

As we begin to awaken from the slumber and retreat of the winter, we start to feel the stirrings of new life. As we look within and around us we can see the breathe of life invigorating, energising and revitalising everything it touches. Dawn comes earlier each day, and the Sun leaves later and later giving a wave of solar powered vitality to us all.

Spring flowers tentatively reach up into the sunlight bringing with them an array of colour and beauty, birds start to nest and insects get back to the business of being busy. The closer we look at our surroundings, the more we can see the Divine in everything and in everyone.

It is all too easy to lose sight of the perfection of nature, to get out of step with the perfect rhythm of the Universe. Life often prevents us from being conscious of what is truly around us; we focus instead on over-thinking, over-complicating, over-whelming ourselves with worry, fear and concern.

This is not to say that life is perfect, far from it in many ways. But how many of us stop, even for a brief moment to watch the birds, gaze at the flowers or contemplate the stillness within, and the quiet busy-ness around?

Today, the 20th March is The Spring Equinox, and this marks the time when the Sun enters the sign of Aries. The Ram is a fire sign, a sign of energy, vigour, enthusiasm, drive and courage. Fire represents the chaos of the untamed imagination; it drives spiritual quests and our deepest aspirations. So, just like the natural world, we should be contemplating making the most of this energy drive to bring about change in our own lives.

For Aries, no challenge is too great, no problem insurmountable, no obstacle too great. There is a sense of strength in the air now, a feeling of being back in the driving seat once again.

Of course, spring is a stormy and unpredictable time – the weather plays tricks from Jack Frost, to March winds and April Showers. The rawness of the elements comes at us all with full force and vigour. And if we consider the huge amount of energy surging forth from the land – how much energy a single bulb needs to flower for example, it is clear that this is a wake up call, a time to shake off the cobwebs from the winters sleep in order to start the cycle of the year once again.

Aries is about looking forwards, looking ahead. It is also a time for finding balance, because after all this is a time when day and night are of equal length. Balance within and without, balance between wisdom and intuition, ideas and reality, logic and inspiration. This is truly a time to listen and to trust your instincts and inner wisdom, for it is only through doing this that we can bring ourselves into balance with ourselves, one another and with the Divine.

So, we can make the most of this vibrant fresh energy to bring about important changes in our lives. It is a great time for preparing and refreshing our environments too. Some space clearing, or spiritual spring-cleaning on top of a physical spring clean breathes a new life into our living and workspaces. It is a great time for detoxing to breathe new life within ourselves. And most importantly it is the perfect time to stop for a moment to connect with nature, and to see the Divine both within us and around us…