Awakening Women of the Earth (AWE) gathers online once again to celebrate the summer solstice!Winter Clouds, Winter Clarity, Winter Healing
Whether cloudy or clear, wintertime can deepen meditation and heal the heart.
Winter: Accept and Respond
A harsh task-master, winter forces us to accept what is and respond appropriately – and also brings refreshing honesty and authenticity.
Still and Quiet – Gifts of Winter
Wintertime has many spiritual gifts for us; perhaps the greatest are opportunities to be still and quiet, teaching us the way to inner peace.
What speaks to you in the quiet of Winter? What do you hear in the pause between the gusts of wind, blowing the last of the leaves from the trees? In that place of silence, we hear our own heart, and our soul, speaking softly. We hear the gentle, quiet voice of the Divine, if we allows ourselves to listen. In order to listen, we need to slow down and become still.
Winter Solstice and the Divine Light
The winter solstice is near – a time when the sun is “reborn”, so to speak. We reach the shortest day of the year, and from that point on, the daylight lengthens and intensifies. This is the season of the rebirth of the Divine Light.
Trataka – the Yogic Art of Gazing
As the days grow colder and shorter – and the holiday season approaches – I am always drawn to candles. Candlelight is soothing, warming, and inspiring. My daughter and I love to light them all around the house and especially at the dinner table. We also relish time to create home-made, rolled beeswax candles.
Lighting candles is also a wonderful way to celebrate the first day of winter – the Solstice. As the hours of sunlight begin to increase from this point forward until summertime, igniting a candle (or several) honors and symbolizes this growing solar light, as well as our Divine Light within.
The ancient yogis knew the power of candlelight, and incorporated it into a practice called Trataka.
