December/Peace

Posted on November 28, 2011 by

“One is wise to cultivate the tree that bears fruit in our soul” - Henry David Thoreau

This morning I woke up to a world covered in frost. As I gazed out the window at the frozen remnants of my garden I reflected on the beauty of this present moment. This great cycle of life is reminding us that death is a natural part of life.  Like trees we need to reconnect with our roots and go deep within ourselves to find the essence of what we wish to rebirth in the spring.

“In the depth of winter, I finally learned that within me there lay an invincible summer.” - Albert Camus

Celebrating Peace – Winter Solstice – Dec 22nd – 2011

The Winter Solstice on December 22nd is symbolic of inner peace as people throughout time have reconnected to their inner light. It is also both the shortest and darkest day of the year. It heralds the opening of the door when the sun is reborn, gradually growing in strength til the Midsummer Solstice on June 21st.

To Northern Europeans the Winter Solstice was known as Yule a celebration that lasted for twelve days. Yule trees were cut and decorated with images of wishes for the year ahead. A Yule log was burned and a portion of it saved to be used for protection of the home.

One of the prominent early Gods of the Winter Solstice is the God Mithras. His origins date back over 4000 years or more.

Mitra (circa 1700–1100 BC) is also seen as one of the ancient Hindu Gods of the Rigveda. Paired with the God Varuna, Mitra/Varuna are seen as the Devas who bring balance to the world. Varuna represents the God of the cosmic night sky, Mitra represents the dawning of the solar day. Together they bring light, life, order and truth to the world.

Mithra (circa 1000 BC) is also one of the Persian Zoroastrian/Iranian Gods of Truth.

Mithra (circa 600 BC) was also known as the Sumerian/Chaldean trinity of Anu/El (God of the Sky), Enki/Bel/Baal (Son of Anu/El) and Enlil/Hea (God of Wisdom), sometimes referred to as Ad (Adonai, Adonis or Lord) .

With the creation of the Julian Calendar in 46 BC the Winter Solstice officially fell on December 25th.

In Roman culture (circa 200 BC – 313 AD) Saturnalia (Saturn is the Roman God of Agriculture) began on December 17th and lasted for seven days culminating on December 25th the Winter Solstice.  On that day Mithras the Sun God or Sol Invictus (the invincible sun) was born. The Emperor Constantine saw himself as the Sol Invictus before converting to Christianity in 313 AD. This celebration was marked with wreaths on doors, gifting and feasting.

Early Christians didn’t have records of Jesus actual birthday so they chose the Winter Solstice as the perfect day to celebrate it. They saw it as both the rebirth of the “Son” & the “Sun”. Since Jesus taught that the “light” was within each of us, his followers wanted to honor his birth on a day that honored the “light within”. The Winter Solstice was the perfect time to honor that sacred connection.

“You are the light of the world, let your light shine before men.”- Jesus, Matthew 5:14-16

“The light of the body is the eye: if therefore thine eye be single, thy whole body shall be full of light.” – Jesus, Matthew 6:22

When Pope Gregory the VIII, adjusted the calendar in 1582AD, the Sun had changed in relation to the actual days so the Winter Solstice was moved to either December 21st or 22nd. Pope Gregory chose to keep Jesus birthday on December 25th as a way to separate the “Pagan” holiday from the “Christian” holiday. This severed our sacred connection to the Winter Solstice and the “light” we share with nature. People began to feel separate from the beauty and harmony nature great cycles of life provides.  The word pagan itself means “to be from nature”.

“Holidays” are “Holy Days” and the Winter Solstice is a “Holy Day”.  It is also natures “Holly Day” for Holly is symbolic of truth and the concept of being forever green/alive. Holly is an evergreen that is used to make wreaths for celebrating the sacred circle of life and natures cycle through the seasons.

December has always been a month of inner reflection and preparation for the Winter Solstice. During the long nights of winter, nature reminds us quiet ourselves and nourish our bodies, minds and souls in preparation for Spring.

Today we rush around from place to place, overextending ourselves on so many levels. This is so counter intuitive to what nature had intended for us. My wish for you this holiday season is to find some time for peace and balance. To breathe, be gentle with yourself and others and to count your blessings. Find joy in the simple things and to remember that often less is more……

May love, peace and joy fill your hearts and keep you warm

….love to you all Laural

Posted in Sending Peace | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

November 11/11/11

Posted on November 2, 2011 by

Hands

Man’s earliest counting system was based on the ten fingers or “digits” found on their two hands.  They also noticed that it took nine “moons” or “menses” for the completion of a human pregnancy. This observation formed the sacredness of “nine” as the number symbolic of “completion”. Ten became the number of “divine order”. These numbers have etched themselves into our human psyche, providing the basis of storytelling and belief.

The month of November is named for the number “nine”. This is because the early Roman calendar had only ten months. The months we now know as January and February did not exist 3000 years ago.

November is now the 11th month of the year, another significant number in the evolution of human consciousness. Eleven was the first number that could not be counted using the ten fingers of our early ancestors. It marked the beginning of a new cycle, a new way of thinking, a sort of letting go and trusting. By opening their minds to the concept of 11 they were able to expand human consciousness.

The number 11 is made up of two “ones”, each marks a beginning point. This concept of two “ones” is connected to the concept of creation (Mother/Father or Heaven/Earth) as it takes two to create one. This is why we see the number 11 as a “birth portal”. It triggers our primal understanding of new beginnings, birth and expanded awareness.

When we see 11:11 on our digital clocks it triggers this unconscious memory. It is a calming and supportive pattern that reminds us that life continues on. Many stories and prophecies surround these numbers. I hope to explain just a few concepts of how they play out in our conscious and unconscious mind.

Carl Jung (1875 – 1961), is considered the first modern psychiatrist to view the human psyche as driven “by nature religious”. Meaning that people naturally want to feel connected to something beyond themselves. In doing so beliefs and religions have formed over time based on myth, metaphor, history and story. He saw that the human psyche operated on four primary planes: Self, Personal Consciousness, Personal Unconsciousness, and Collective Unconscious. It was from this place of the Collective Unconscious that he saw the formation of Archetypal patterns. These patterns are based on the universal experience of being human. These Archetypal patterns inform us and connect us to each other as a species.

The use of numbers has always had a profound effect on all levels of our psyche. The more awareness we bring to these Archetypal patterns we can begin to awaken the fifth level of awareness called the Collective Consciousness.

From this place rapid change can occur throughout the world. We are seeing this today as the worldwide web is providing access to each others “stories and beliefs”.  As we begin to connect the dots held within the Collective Unconscious we can see the circular pattern of life emerge. This circle is representative of the sacred journey of birth, life, death and rebirth. Jung also saw it as a “Mandala” or sacred circle and identified it as the Archetype of “Wholeness”.

Another example of awakening to our sacred journey is held within the Kabbalistic Tree of life.  The Kabbalah provides a framework for receiving and revealing insights on both a physical and metaphysical plane. By traveling through the Tree of Life and connecting with the wisdom of the 10 Sephirot, a person is able to reach the 11th place of Da’at. From this place everything becomes interrelated and oneness is achieved.

Apollo 11 was the first spacecraft to bring mankind to the moon. On July 20th, 1969 the lunar module named “Eagle” landed in the “Sea of Tranquility” on the Moon’s surface. Neil Armstrong’s words: “The Eagle has landed” and “One small step for a man, one giant leap for mankind” signaled a new beginning as man ventured out beyond earth. A plaque was left on the moon with the words:  ”Here men from the planet Earth first set foot upon the moon. July 1969 A.D. We came in peace for all mankind.”

Apollo is the ancient Greco-Roman God whose origins are also linked with many earlier cultures. Apollo is seen as a messenger God. Apollo is a God of healing, light and prophecy. Apollo carries the energy of both the feminine and the masculine and is the Archetype of clear headedness, order and harmony. The Eagle is also one of the most ancient symbols representing the rising Sun, the new day, and the compass direction of the East. Apollo 11 and the Eagle lunar module became a mated pair that created a new world for all of mankind.

These subconscious and conscious messages inform the collective unconscious allowing us to once again connect the dots and awaken to oneness.

This November, in 2011, we will witness the numeric phenomenon of 11/11/11. If you take it a step further, we will will have two opportunities that day to experience 11/11/11 at 11:11:11 am and 11:11:11 pm.

I invite you each to take time that day to honor the expansion that is occurring within you and around you. Acknowledge the Collective Unconscious that resides within you connecting you to everyone else on this planet. Honor the sacred feminine and the sacred masculine within everything.  Allow yourself to awaken the Collective Consciousness by seeing the oneness of being. Connect the rhythm of your heartbeat with the heartbeat of the earth. Give yourself the gift of love and realize that by doing this you are sharing your love with humanity.  From this place of expanded awareness you are creating a new world.

Thank everything for making this moment happen, being mindful of the many gifts in your life. Carry this sense of gratitude forward. In the United States November is also the month of Thanksgiving and we have much to be thankful for.

May we live in peace…Laural

Some quotes of gratitude:

“Learn to be thankful to everyone, to the entire creation, even to your enemy and also to those who insult, because they all help you to grow.” – Amma 

“Feeling gratitude and not expressing it is like wrapping a present and not giving it.” – William Arthur Ward

“Feeling grateful or appreciative of someone or something in your life actually attracts more of the things that you appreciate and value into your life.” - Christiane Northrup

“At times our own light goes out and is rekindled by a spark from another person. Each of us has cause to think with deep gratitude of those who have lighted the flame within us.” – Albert Schweitzer

“If the only prayer you said in your whole life was, “thank you,” that would suffice.” – Meister Eckhart


“Let every step you take upon the earth be as a prayer.” – Black Elk

 “Gratitude is not only the greatest of virtues, but the parent of all others”. - Marcus Tullius Cicero

“Gratitude is to be thankful for even the most difficult situations the present moment brings you – for that is when there is the most spiritual growth”

Posted in Sending Peace | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

October/Infinity

Posted on October 3, 2011 by

“You and I are essentially infinite choice-makers. In every moment of our existence, we are in that field of all possibilities where we have access to an infinity of choices.” - Deepak Chopra
October is named after the Greek word “Octo” meaning “eight”. The number eight is also the infinity symbol. This symbol is created by twisting a circle in half revealing an infinite path between two worlds. These two worlds can be seen as two sets of fours which represent “foundation”. This dynamic flow between the worlds has set mankind on a continual course of self-discovery. The month of October hosts two holidays that represent the beauty of this flow between worlds.

The “New” World – Columbus Day (Oct 10th) - honors Christopher Columbus who is credited with discovering the America’s on October 12th, 1492.  What he actually discovered were the Bahamas which he names “San Salvador”. He named its inhabitants “Indians” because he mistakingly thought he had landed in the East Indies. His discoveries began the Spanish and European colonization of the “New World”, which was already populated with sophisticated cultures that had been here for thousands of years. 
The “Old” World – Samhain/Halloween (Oct 31st) - began as an ancient Celtic European holiday that honored the thinning of the veils between day and night allowing for souls to reconnect and wishes to be heard before the great darkness of winter sets in. The Celts honored the harmonious flow from dark to light, understanding that in the silent darkness life prepares itself for new beginnings. This “Old World” holiday is now one of the most popular Holidays in the United States as children dress in costume going from house to house trick or treating for candy.

Our circular nature – mankind originally lived in a circular multi-dimensional world. The stars, planets, moon and sun acted as celestial compasses as they traveled out of Africa and populated the world. Each symbolized a different dimension of being. The stars represented ancestors and the time to come. The planets were guide posts for the stars and soul families. The moon was directly related to water and the monthly cycles of life on earth. The sun provided life-sustaining heat and light, it was also the primary directional guide as the sun rose and set each day. Early man lived with multiple compasses in the form of lunar, solar and star calendars along with the directions of the winds. Each held a set of guidelines to live by, each culture made it their own.

3000 BC – Stonehenge and Newgrange are built as circular compasses in England for ceremony to honor solar and lunar cycles and the seasons of the years. The Celtic Cross symbolizes these eight aspects of the Celtic/Solar year. The four primary directions are based on the Solstices (Winter and Summer) and the Equinoxes (Autumn and Spring)

 

Celtic Cross/Sun Cross - South - Summer Solstice, Southwest - Lammas, West - Fall Equinox, Northwest - Samhain, North - Winter Solstice –Dec 25th, Northeast - Imbolc, East - Spring Equinox – Festival of Eostre, Southeast - Beltane – May Day

In 1150 BC – King Wen created the fixed Bagua - which became the foundation of Feng Shui (Wind Water) as a compass for the placement and flow of life force energy. The Bagua is based on information from ancient diviners known as the WU Shamans. They created a cosmology based the marriage of heaven and earth and the forces of nature.

South – Father Qi’an Heaven/Sky, Southwest – 1st Daughter Xun Wind/Wood, West – 2nd Son Kan Water, Northwest – 3rd Son Gen Mountain, North - Mother Kun Earth, Northeast - 1st Son Zhen Thunder, East - 2nd Daughter Li – Fire, Southeast – 3rd Daughter Dui Lake/Marsh

The first portable compass was created in China around 200 BC - based on the use of lodestones in combination with the Bagua. Lodestones are naturally occurring minerals that align themselves in a North-South direction.

The modern-day version of the Feng-Shui compass also incorporates the directions of the twelve zodiacal signs. These celestial star formations are found within the eliptical ring of the Earths orbit around the Sun.

The Beginning of the Western Compass

The Four Directions or Forces of Nature, 1500 BC - According to the book of Ezekiel, found in Jewish and Christian teachings, the Merkaba is created by the “Chayot”. They are angels that look human, but each has four faces corresponding to the four directions. The faces are that of a Man – East/water, a Lion – South/fire, an Ox – West/earth and an Eagle – North/air. These four angels represent the natural elements that created the world.

The Four Winds, 800 BC - Homer the Greek philosopher, wrote of four chief winds: North – Boreas (The Bear/North Star), East – Eurus (Sunrise), South – Notus (Opposite of the Bear), West – Zephyrus (Sunset). These “winds” created the foundation for the four cardinal directions

Aristotle, 355 BC - adds a fifth element of nature he calls Ether, which is manifested in the stars and planets. Ether moves in the perfection of circles which he sees as the place of ultimate creation. He goes on to create the word “katholikos” which means “throughout the whole” or “the principal winds/directions/forces of nature”. This word many centuries later is used to define the Catholic Church.

Latin Wind Rose Compass, 159 AD - was developed to indicate the directions of the winds (used in both Roman/Latin and Greek cultures). The term “rose” comes from the figure’s compass points resembling the petals of a Rose. North – Septentrio (Latin) Aparctias (Greek), Northeast – Aquilo (Latin) Boreas (Greek), East – Eurus (Latin) Apeliotes (Greek), Subsolanus (“to Roman sailors”) Southeast – Vulturnus (Latin) Euronotus (Greek), South – Auster (Latin) Notos (Greek), Southwest – Africus (Latin), Lips (Greek), West – Favonius (Latin), Zephyrus (Greek), Northwest – Caurus (Latin), Argestes (Greek).

Italian Compass, 1200 - Flavio Gioia is credited with inventing the first refined compass. The magnetic compass was developed by combining the Latin Wind Rose with the Chinese Lodestone.  A wind rose was glued to the top of a lodestone and placed in a covered container of water. Later, oils were used instead of water to stabilize the compass disk from erratic movement. From this device the Compass Rose evolved.

The Compass Rose, 1300 - appeared on charts and maps since the 1300′s in the Portolan Charts of Portugal and Spain. The points of the compass rose were inspired by the directions of the eight major winds. These directions were commonly known throughout the Mediterranean as North – Tramontana, Northeast – Greco, East – Levante, Southeast – Siroco, South – Ostro, Southwest – Libeccio, West – Ponente and Northwest – Maestro.

On Portolan charts you can see the initials of these direction labeled around the edge as T, G, L, S, O, L, P, and M. In the earliest charts, North is indicated by a spearhead above the letter T for Tramontana. This symbol evolved into a fleur-de-lys around the time of Columbus, and was first seen on Portuguese maps.

Also, during the time of Columbus, the L for Levante on the east side of the rose was replaced with a cross, indicating the direction to Paradise thought to be in the east, or at least to where Christ was born, in the Levant (Levantine). This is because in relation to Western Europe, Jerusalem was in the East and therefore East was considered the primary direction.

Germanic/Contemporary Compass, 1400  - was based on the Italian compass and the Compass Rose. It was created in correlation with the translation of the bible from Latin to German. South (suden) is root to Sun itself, thus “the region of the Sun”, the root, the basis. West (westen) from a word for “evening”. North (norden) from a root ner- “to the left of the rising Sun”. East (osten) from the word for dawn. Ēostre, new beginnings – a new dawn.

Earth as a giant magnet, 1600 – English physician and natural philosopher William Gilbert. He was also the first to define the North Magnetic Pole as the point where the Earth’s magnetic field points vertically downwards to the South Pole. This creates the pole on which our earth rotates. Without the magnetic field our earth would cease to exist.

The infinity symbol can be seen in the above illustration - as the North and South poles – polar opposites work in harmony to keep us upright.

Moral compass - is anything which serves to guide a person’s decisions based on morals or virtues. Many cultures have used the concept of the circular compass as a way to guide them on their spiritual journey through life.

Buddhist Eightfold Path, 588 BC – The Wheel of Dharma (Dharmachakra) Buddhism begins, Siddharta Guatama achieves enlightenment, the eight-fold path resembles the spokes of a wheel. Creates a moral compass the Wheel of Dharma.

South - Right Livelihood, Southwest - Right Effort, West - Right Mindfulness, Northwest - Right Contemplation/Concentration, North - Right View/Perspective, Northeast - Right Intention, East - Right Speech, Southeast - Right Action.

Native American - Medicine Wheel – Hoop of Life

Great Lakes and Plains Medicine Wheel - South – Red – Childhood, Serpent (Turtle), West – Black – Adolescence, Bear  (Wolf), North – White – Adulthood, White Buffalo (Wolf) (Bear), East – Yellow – Death and Re-birth, Eagle, Below – Mother Earth, Center – Yourself, Above – Father Sky, All – Awareness of the Sacred Hoop of Life, Great Mystery.

Cherokee Medicine Wheel - South – White – peace; Summer for peace; happiness & serenity, West – Black – death; 
Autumn the final harvest; the end of Life’s Cycle, North – Blue – defeat; Winter survival and waiting, East – Red – success; Spring re-awakening after a long sleep, 
victory over winter, Below – Mother Earth, Center – Yourself, Above – Father Sky, All – Awareness of the Sacred Hoop of Life, Great Mystery.

From this place we come full circle….traveling through time and cultures understanding our circular roots and the directions or winds we have traveled to bring us to where we are at this moment in time.

As we celebrate Columbus Day on October 10th, let us honor the Native people of the Americas who tended this land with beauty and grace for thousands of years before the “New World” found them. Let us come in harmony with the lessons of their cultures as we all become caretakers of this precious land.

Let us reconnect with our ancestors on Halloween/Samhain October 31st. They hold space for us to honor and learn the lessons and wisdom teachings.

I share with you this chant for Samhain from the Old World to the New World: “A year of beauty. A year of plenty. A year of planting. A year of harvest.
 A year of forests. A year of healing. A year of vision. A year of passion.
 A year of rebirth. This year may we renew the earth.
 Let it begin with each step we take. Let it begin with each change we make.
 Let it begin with each chain we break.  And let it begin every time we awake.” 

Quotations on Infinity

“Meditation is the dissolution of thoughts in Eternal awareness or Pure consciousness without objectification, knowing without thinking, merging finitude in infinity.” - Voltaire

“The meaning of life is contained in every single expression of life. It is present in the infinity of forms and phenomena that exist in all of creation.” - Michael Jackson

“To see a world in a grain of sand and heaven in a wild flower Hold infinity in the palms of your hand and eternity in an hour.” - William Blake


Posted in Sending Peace | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

September/Light

Posted on August 26, 2011 by

“If we have no peace, it is because we have forgotten that we belong to each other.” - Mother Theresa

September 11th, 2001, a day that changed our world.

The day after 9/11, I was inspired to begin researching the origins of world belief from 20,000 BC to present day, in search of our shared roots. The Tree of Life became a touchstone for my personal healing and the archetypal journey of mankind. Along the way, the number seven became a guiding symbol, which curiously is what September is named for.

This year, on the tenth anniversary of 9/11, the full moon of this “seventh moon” month falls on September 12th, 2011. September 12th was the day that marked the beginning of my healing journey toward peace, that quickly became my passion. The Full Moon is a beautiful reminder that we are one, as we connect with the larger family tree we all share.

So what does the word September mean?

September is originally from the latin word “septum”, meaning “seven”.  It was used to describe the “september mensis” or “seventh moon month”.

Lunar calendars are still in place, based on ancient traditions and sacred time.  Within the Judaic and Muslim community, the lunar calendar plays a primary role in everyday life. Christians use it to determine the date of Easter, a formula created by the early Roman Church, so it would never coincide with the Jewish Passover.

The roots of the Monotheistic Family Tree:

Abraham is seen as the father of all three monotheistic beliefs (Judaism, Christianity, and Islam), which basically means the belief in one God. Up until the time of Abraham, there where multiple beliefs with Gods/Goddesses that represented ancestors, elements of nature, the sun, the moon, the stars etc… Each continent had its own unique belief system based on the natural world around them.

Abraham was born in Sumeria around 1800BC, the area we now know as Iraq. He traveled throughout the Middle East as a merchant with his wife Sarai. He began following the guidance of a voice that came from the beyond, a voice he named YAHWEH, who he saw as the one and only creator God.

Sarai, Abraham’s wife, was not able to bear him a child, which Abraham desperately wanted. During a merchant trip through Egypt, the Pharaoh gave Sarai a female companion named Hagar. Sarai then gave permission to Abraham to conceive a child with Hagar.

Abraham’s firstborn son was named Ishmael. A few years later Sarai surprisingly gave birth to Isaac. Eventually Sarai became concerned that Ishmael would inherit his father’s wealth instead of Isaac. She asked Abraham to cast Hagar and Ishmael out to the desert, a place now known as Mecca in Saudi Arabia.

What happened is interpreted differently by Judeo-Christians who follow the Book of Genesis and Muslims who follow the Islamic Qur’an.

According to the Book of Genesis, Hagar and Ishmael are cast out to the desert when YAHWEH speaks to Hagar letting her know that Ishmael will be the father of a great nation. Later, Abraham is asked to prove his loyalty to YAHWEH by sacrificing his favorite son, Isaac, on Mount Moriah, in Jerusalem. After Abraham binds his son with a rope he is told to stop because his loyalty to YAHWEH is proven.

According to the Qur’an, Abraham is asked to sacrifice Ishmael, his first-born son, in Mecca. The story is similar to the Book of Genesis, same outcome, different son, different place and a different name for God, Allah.

Both stories demonstrate the shared lineage of Abraham and his loyalty to one creator God. His family tree continued to grow through the legacy of his sons, who went on to become the fathers of the Ishmaelites (Muslims) and the Israelites (Jews) and also (Christians) through the Jewish lineage of Jesus.

What is most interesting is that Moses, an Israelite married Zipporah, an Ishmaelite. Moses is a central figure in all three monotheistic beliefs. The Qur’an speaks of Moses more than any other Prophet or man. Moses is seen as the great Prophet and lawgiver for all three beliefs. In actuality Israelites and Ishmaelites worked together and fought together for thousands of years.

On the Seventh Day he rested….

(The seed of life, sometimes referred to as the creation matrix, contains six circles representing the six days of “creation”. The middle circle is the “resting” point or seventh circle)

Monotheistic cultures see the number seven as sacred.

Judaism - “It will be a sign between me and the Israelites forever, for in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, and on the seventh day he abstained from work and rested” - Exodus, 31:17

Jews recognize Saturday as the Sabbath, the day of rest. The word Sabbath means completion, to cease or to rest. It is from the root word for “seven”.

Christianity – “And God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it he rested from all the work of creating that he had done.” - Genesis 2:3

Christians define this day of rest as Sunday. Sunday was named by the Romans long before Christianity was created to honor the Sun, but after the Roman Empire converted to Christianity they replaced the concept of the “Sun God” with the concept of Jesus being the “Son of God”.  This was also another way to separate from the Jewish Sabbath (Jesus was Jewish, as were most of his early followers) from the newly forming Roman Catholic Church.

Islam – “He who created the heavens and the earth in six days, then established Himself on the Throne. He knows what enters within the heart of the earth, and what comes forth out of it, what comes down from heaven, and what mounts up to it. And He is with you wherever you may be. And God sees well all that you do” – Qur’an 57:4

Muslims do not recognize an official day of rest, but they do observe Friday as an official day of prayer and assembly called Jumma.

In summary, all three faiths agreed on the concept of the seven days of creation but they each interpreted and created a separate day to honor it: Judaism – Saturday, Christianity – Sunday, Islam – Friday.

So where exactly did the idea of seven come from?

Among the ancient Babylonians and Egyptians there were seven planets that could be seen with the naked eye. They included the Sun and the Moon along with Mars, Mercury, Jupiter,Venus, and Saturn. This observation formed the concept of seven as a sacred number, especially among the Western mind. The seven days of the week were then named after these seven planets based on Greco-Roman translations: Sun – Sunday, Moon – Monday, Mars – Tuesday, Mercury – Wednesday, Jupiter – Thursday, Venus – Friday, Saturn – Saturday.

In Hebrew the number 7 means Sheh-bah, which means completion. Hence it is the root of the word Sabbath, the seventh day of rest.

To the Greeks, 7 was referred to as Hepta or the seven sided Heptagon. From this came the creation of the Heptatonic Scale which was based on seven musical notes. The Greeks also held the belief that their were Seven Sages or Wise Men that lived before the great flood. These seven sages influenced Judaism and subsequently all three monotheistic faiths.

Judaism - the Seven Branched Menorah, is “a light unto the nations.” – Isaiah 42:6.

Christianity – the number seven is used more often than any other number in the Bible except “one”. “When thine eye is single, thy whole body also is full of light” – Jesus – Luke 11:34

Islam - “Allah is the light of the heavens and the earth. Light upon Light!”
 - Quran 24:35  

During Muhammad’s “Night Journey” he traveled through the Seven Heavens of the Tree of Life and received the word of Allah, through the Archangel Gabriel.

So why does “light” play such an important role with the number seven?

Light has always been connected to the concept of God, whether it is the light shining from the Sun, the Moon, the Stars , a Fire. Light is life-giving. Our modern understanding of light and color begins with Isaac Newton in 1672AD. He was the first to understand how to refract white light with a prism into its component colors: red, orange, yellow, green, blue and violet. Due to pressure from the church, Newton followed the pattern of seven based on the seven days of the week and the seven notes of the musical scale. He then identified a seventh shade called indigo that fell between blue and violet.

Modern day artists use the color wheel originally set up by Isaac Newton based on the original six colors. The seventh “color” is actually white “light”. The absence of light is the color black.

(The “Color Wheel” as the “Seed of Life”.)

Ancient Hindu yogi’s identified another sort of “Sacred Wheel” they called a ”Chakra”. The Chakras are seen as energy centers within our body that are affected by emotional and physical factors. The goal of the yogi was to clear and open these chakras so that the life force energy would flow unobstructed allowing for spiritual union and physical health. These chakras also work in harmony with the concept of seven, the colors of the rainbow, the musical scale and white light.

So where is the all leading?

During the last ten years of research and pondering how we are all one, I have created a way to look at the number seven in combination with world belief and our energetic body. I like to refer to this as the “Tree of Life” within us.

There is also an eighth chakra that surrounds us reminding us that we are “one”.

1. Red – Root Chakra – Indigenous Belief/Feeling Grounded

2. Orange – Sacral Chakra – Taoism/Harmony of Opposite Forces of Nature

3. Yellow – Solar Plexus Chakra – Hinduism/Life Force Energy

4. Green – Heart/Soul Chakra – Buddhism/Love with no Conditions

5. Blue –  Throat Chakra – Judaism/The Power of the Spoken Word

6. Violet – Third Eye Chakra – Christianity/Inner Knowing and Trusting our Intuition

7. White/Light Violet – Crown Chakra – Islam/Connection to Source

Tens years later….a vision of oneness for the future

May we begin to see how we can sing a new song, paint a new picture, and create a new story of peace within ourselves and each other for the next seven generations…

May loving kindness be what guides us….

For more information visit www.treeoflifeawakening.com

Posted in Sending Peace | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

August/Prayer Beads

Posted on July 18, 2011 by

“The mystic discovers symbols. . . symbols are windows through which we can view the essential nature of our being.” – Ngakpa Chogyam

It is always an amazing journey when weaving together the linear left brain of our Western mind with the circular right brain of our Eastern mind. In doing so, we see the beauty of being fully human.

August in the Western Mind

The month of August is named for Augustus, Julius Ceasar’s grandnephew, who defeated Marc Antony and Cleopatra, becoming the emperor of Rome. 

The Roman Senate decided that he too should have a month named after him. Not only did the Senate name a month after Augustus, but it decided that since Julius’s month, July, had 31 days, Augustus’s month should equal it: under the Julian calendar, the months alternated evenly between 30 and 31 days (with the exception of February with 29), which made August 30 days long. So, instead of August having a mere 30 days, it was lengthened to 31, (they shortened February to 28) preventing anyone from claiming that Emperor Augustus was saddled with an inferior month.

August in the Eastern Mind

The “August Ones” also known as the Three Sovereigns (2852 – 2205 BC)  were mythological Shamans or Sage (wise) Kings. 

In the Taoist creation myth, the Supreme Unity or Wu-ji, is limitless and produces the delimited. The Tai-ji divides into heaven (Yang) and earth (Yin). Heaven and earth then rejoin each other through human (male and female) form and experience supreme unity. This is a circular creation story where one can not exist without the other. 


Tao or Dao means “the way” and embodies the harmony of opposites. Taoists believe that nature is a continual balance between yin and yang, and that any attempt to go toward one extreme or the other will be ineffective, self-defeating, and short-lived. Yin and yang are often described in terms of sunlight playing over a mountain revealing what was obscured and obscuring what was revealed. The appearance of “things” is considered to be Yin, and their resolution back into their more subtle “no-thing” is Yang. 

The August Ones

Heavenly August One – who represents the “light/masculine” or Yang energy

Earthly August One – who represent the “dark/feminine” or Yin energy

Human August One – balances the Yin and Yang energy through human form

            Man – Yang on earth – creative, hard, solid, aggressive

            Woman – Yin on earth – receptive, soft, fluid, yielding

“When the world began, there was heaven (yang) and earth (yin). Heaven mated with the earth and gave birth to everything in the world. Heaven is Qian-gua, and the Earth is Kun-gua. The remaining six gua are their sons and daughters”.

Together this creates a family of eight or “Ba”. “Gua” is the word for aspect.  The Bagua began as a practice of divination by casting bones. This system is the foundation of both the I-CHING and FenG Shui. 

I – Ching/ Feng-Shui Coins – A Chinese coin that is round with a square hole in the center representing the union of heaven and earth (the circle represents the heaven and the square represents the earth). The yang side has 4 characters while the yin side has 2 characters.

Coins are generally arranged in sets of three, tied together with a red ribbon, symbolizing the unity of man, earth, and heaven. Some have theorized that counting prayers naturally evolved from the abacus, the Chinese counting instrument that also used round beads or coins.

Prayer Beads and Knots from around the world

sha sha - The first beads were grooved pebbles, bones, and teeth made over 40,000 years ago and had talismanic and symbolic meaning. “Sha” is the Egyptian word for luck.  These beads were used as a way to pray or divine by casting them on the ground or wearing them for good luck. Divination was man’s earliest way to communicate with spirit. Stones, beads, sticks, shells, leaves, metal coins etc…were all used as tools for divination. Eventually divination gave way to prayer beads or talismens that people could wear and carry with them. 

japa-mala - Means “muttering chaplet,” which refers to a prayer beads function as a means of recording the number of prayers said. In addition to helping keep one’s place in structured prayers, prayer beads also symbolized the commitment to a spiritual life. With their circular form, a string represents the interconnectedness of all who pray.

 

Mala – Buddhists and Hindus use 108 beads divided into four sections of 27 by three resting beads. The mala is used for counting mantras, chants or prayers. Preferred woods are sandalwood or sacred wood from the Bodhi tree. The Meru is a larger bead, not part of the 108. It is not tied in the sequence of the other beads. It is the guiding bead, the one that marks the beginning and end of the mala. It also stands for the wisdom that comes with emptiness. Mala means “rose” or “garland” in Sanskrit. The earliest known mala is around two thousand years old.

Shiva Malas have beads made from rudraksha (Shiva’s eyes). Vishnu Malas usually use beads made from the tulsi (Holy Basil) The 108 beads represented the cosmos, in which people multiplied the sum of the twelve astrological signs by the nine planets.

Twenty-seven-bead smaller wrist malas were created to prevent the prayer beads from touching the ground during prostrations.

In Tibet, malas of inlaid bone originally included the skeleton parts of holy men, to remind their users to live lives worthy of the next level of enlightenment. Today’s bone malas are made of yak bone, which is sometimes inlaid with turquoise and coral. The 108 beads represent the number of worldly desires or negative emotions that must be overcome before attaining nirvana.

Baha’i  - consist of either 95 beads or 19 beads strung with the addition of five beads below.

Chinese Su-chu – Chinese Buddhists and Taoists use a 108-beads, which has three dividing beads, so the su-chu is divided into three parts of 36 each.

Jewish Tallit – Jewish Prayer shawls are made of wool and linen or silk with fringe all around its rectangular shape. Five knots that create four tassels called tzizit are attached to the four corners of the shawl.

The tallit indicates obedience to a passage in Numbers 15:37-41. “Speak unto the children of Israel, and bid them that they make them fringes in the borders of their garments throughout their generations, and that they put upon the fringe of the borders a ribbon of blue: And it shall be unto you for a fringe, that ye may look upon it, and remember all the commandments of the LORD, and do them; and that ye seek not after your own heart and your own eyes, after which ye use to go a whoring: That ye may remember, and do all my commandments, and be holy unto your God.”

Catholic Rosary – The person widely believed to have introduced prayer beads is Saint Dominic, after he had a visitation by the Blessed Virgin Mary. And Thomas of Contimpre first called them a rosary, form the word rosarium or “rose garden,” since the faithful used strung rose petals and beads made of crushed rose petals to count prayers. A rosary is divided into groups of 10 beads, called decades, a Catholic repeats the “Our Father” and “Hail Mary” prayers as he or she marks off the beads with the fingers while meditating on the life of Jesus and Mary. 

Roman Catholic rosaries have 150 beads, the same number of psalms in the Bible. In the twelfth century, religious orders recited together the 150 Psalms as a way to mark the hours of the day and the days of the week. Those people who didn’t know how to read wanted to share in this practice, so praying on a string of 150 beads or knots began as a parallel to praying the psalms. It was a way that the illiterate could remember the Lord and his mother throughout the day. 

Eastern Orthodox – use knots and beads. Shorter knotted ropes are worn on the wrist. Often made of wool, the Greek prayer ropes – called kombologion have 33, 50, or 100 knots. Russian chotki have 33, 100, or 500 knots. Sometimes the faithful use bead strands resembling a ladder (each end of a bead touching two parallel strands), which signifies the soul making its ascent to heaven.

Islamic Tasbih/Masbaha/Subha – Islamic Prayer Beads consist of 99 or 33 beads. During the Prophet’s time, date stones, olive seeds and pebbles were used to make tasbish beads. Muslims use strings of 33 or 99 beads with one “leader” bead, which represents the 99 names of Allah found in the Koran and the one essential name.

Muslim prayer beads include markers after the 33rd and 66th beads representing the word “praise”. Masbaha or subha is from the Arabic word “to praise”. Often subha are made of wood, or from date pits produced in the Islamic holy city of Mecca.

Native American - first used seashells, bones, wood and quills for their beadwork. These tiny beads were called “little spirit seeds” by some tribes, who felt that they were a gift from the gods.

African - beads represent the qualities of spiritual wisdom, the power of the gods, and the gods themselves. The Yoruba believe that using beads in ritual or on ritual objects will enhance their power. Diviners wear special bead necklaces that identify them as spiritual leaders and enhance their power.

The Masai find beads so meaningful to their culture that their language includes more than 40 words for different kinds of beadwork.

Huayruro Seeds – (Ormosia amazonica) plant is native to Peru, and has been an important part of Peruvian culture for centuries. Huayruro seeds are found in pods in the tall trees of the Peruvian rainforest. The solid red seeds are seen as feminine, the red and black seeds are masculine. Together they bring balance, prosperity, health and good luck.

Watana – Peruvian glass beads thread along a braid of seven colors of the rainbow. It represents our journey from being human to being a star person and back to human. The beads are set on each side representing our true nature as having both masculine – father and feminine – earth mother energies.

Connecting to our circular nature allows us to open our hearts and minds to the unlimited potential of what came before and what lies ahead. I encourage you to create your own unique set of “beads” as you reconnect to the sacred circle.

“If the only prayer you said in your whole life was, “thank you,” that would suffice.”  ~ Meister Eckhart


Posted in Sending Peace | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Summer Solstice/June

Posted on May 23, 2011 by

Summer Solstice - June 21st -  love blossoms as Summer begins.

The Summer Solstice is also referred to as the Midsummer Solstice because it falls between the planting and harvesting of crops and marks the time to celebrate the union/marriage/balance of the feminine (mother/earth/moon) and masculine (father/sky/sun) energies.  

The Summer Solstice represents the longest day of the year in the northern hemisphere. As we enter into this time of blossoming, those living in the southern hemisphere are going within, by honoring the longest night of their year with the Winter Solstice. A continual reminder of how we live in balance on this earth. 

In Celtic tradition the first full moon in June (June 15th, 2011) is called the Honey Moon because this was the best time to harvest honey from the hives. Mead was made from honey collected on the “honeymoon” and later used as a part of wedding ceremonies. 

The month of June itself is actually named after the Roman goddess Juno. The Romans identified her with the Greek goddess Hera, and she took on many of Hera’s attributes, roles, and myths. Juno was the wife and sister of Jupiter, the chief Roman god, just as Hera was the wife and sister of Zeus, the chief Greek god. As worship of Juno spread, she also came to be considered the principal goddess and protector of the Roman state. Eventually, she became a sort of female guardian angel, representing the female principle of life. In Roman belief every person was thought to have a personal protective spirit; a man’s was called a genius, and a woman’s was called a juno.

This celebration of the union of the Archetypal Feminine with the Masculine is symbolic throughout all world beliefs. In Taoism it is seen as the balance of the masculine yang energy with the feminine yin energy.  “When the world began, there was heaven (yang) and earth (yin). Heaven mated with the earth and gave birth to everything in the world. Heaven is Qian-gua, and the Earth is Kun-gua. The remaining six gua are their sons and daughters”.

In Hinduism it is the sacred Sri Yantra for the Mantra of Aum, depicted as intersecting male (upward/heaven) and female (downword/earth) triangles.

Indigenous cultures see it as the marriage of Father Sky with Mother Earth which creates all life. This is also the place within our hearts that helps us soar like an Eagle to see the bigger picture of our lives. From this place we can fly above the stories that hold us and admire all the beauty in our lives as well as the ability to smell the flowers we have grown.

In sacred geometry the Summer Solstice can be seen as the Flower of Life. This pattern is created when the seven circles of the Seed of Life blossoms to become the Flower of Life revealing thirteen interlocking circles representative of the feminine energy and the cycles of the moon. 

  

Another symbol associated with the Summer Solstice is the Merkaba, which represents the joining of the masculine and feminine energies in the heart chakra. The Merkaba itself is mentioned in Judeo-Christian texts as a circular vehicle that helps to transport people between the heavens and the earth.

 

A beautiful way to celebrate this sacred day is with dancing, drumming or sitting around a fire. Some believe that if a couple in love jumps over a small fire on this night their love will last forever. Either way, it is a wonderful time to reconnect with the people you love and the love that is blossoming in your heart and the world around you.

“Whatever is dreamed on this night, will come to pass.”

- William Shakespeare (From A Mid-Summernight’s Dream)

Posted in Sending Peace | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment