By Esther Frances
This month’s theme: Redeeming the Dark, Birthing the Light – in honor of the Winter Solstice taking place on Sunday, December 21st.
Dark has been the repository of the projection of what we have collectively deemed bad, unethical, frightening or lacking in integrity. I propose we redeem the dark by becoming aware of how we have been “programmed” to distort our experience of the dark, so that we can shift away from being manipulated by fear into being empowered by awareness.
The projection that uses the word dark as an all-encompassing term for what is “not good” is differentiated from the term dark when it is used to refer to that which is hidden, as in that which is kept “in the dark,” making sure that it can’t be seen for the purpose of concealing that it is not in harmony with the well being of those it is kept from.
Manipulation is possible by being kept “in the dark,” as in the maintainance of secrets hidden from the light of public awareness. I invite us to shine the light of consciousness onto our unconscious conditioning, and stop using the word dark as a synonym for evil.
The Divine Feminine, Being, the yin, unconscious, the principle of rest, absorption, and receptivity are devalued as part of the demonizing of “the dark.” I see a correlation between a collective language that deprecates “dark” with prejudice against peoples of dark complexion, discomfort in the night, fear of the unknown, and lack of respect for women and Mother Earth.
When we choose to no longer go into unconscious compliance with this association, we can liberate and redeem the dark, and free ourselves from the fear and manipulation possible when we fall into the false hypnotic belief that dark is frightening, fearful and unsafe.
The conditioning to disparage the dark while equating white and light with purity and good actually conflicts with what is now being unveiled about the nature of the Cosmos.
Physicist Nassim Haramein, responded to a question that I asked him about the relationship of the dark and light to the whole as follows:
“In this view, the vacuum which appears to us as intensely black is actually light and the source of infinite knowledge– all knowledge and information. The light we see is actually the resultant of it. The two are infinitely linked and can’t be separated.”
Photo credit: NASA
From this perspective a black whole is at the center of every star, planet, atom and galaxy! The visible starlight that we see is the emanation from the black whole. The black whole is the womb/tomb from which all emanates and to which all returns.
At this Equinox, coinciding with a new moon in Capricorn, we can restructure our thinking to align with Nature and help to restore a balance and harmony needed for us to live in health and peace in our communities and on our planet. Our awareness can birth an awakening that transforms us personally and collectively!
We all have all twelve archetypal energies. I invite you to read all of the signposts and see where you resonate the most.
ARIES: This is a time to gather your courage, to invision an action that will initiate a momentum toward the fulfillment of one of your dreams. The dark is the perfect place from which to point your arrow of intention. On the solstice you can release it into the new tide moving toward the outer world of visibility.
TAURUS: Venus, your parent planet is in Sagittarius. I invite you to take this as an opportunity to stretch your comfort zone, and venture into the territory of possibility. There is much more going on then is evident with the five senses, dare to open your inner eye and take a look around.
GEMINI: Words and concepts are creative. Our beliefs become filters through which we see and experience the world. Words create worlds…check it out….I invite you to wake up to what you are telling yourself, about yourself and the world and if you don’t like the story change it!
CANCER: The womb is invisible to the naked eye, yet is the site of the creation of that which is to be born. Native peoples regarded black as the Divine Mother, the All That Is, The Great Mystery. I invite you to regard the dark this way for a month and discover if anything shifts for you as a result of the practice.
LEO: You may have heard of the experiments where basketball players rehearsed making shots in their imaginations. The results showed that their performance was equal to the players who did the physical practice on the court. With Leo going retrograde on December the 8th, I invite you to try out some inner rehearsals. Imagine your life as a stage and see, feel and actively dream that which you want to “come true.”
VIRGO: You are gifted with the capacity to discriminate between what is true and what isn’t. The Buddha instructed his followers to question everything, including his teachings. We need not be like an elephant conditioned to stay, tied to a rope that has no power to restrain it. Your invitation, is to dare to review and evaluate what you’ve been told. If the shoe no longer fits, discard it!
LIBRA: The North Node, now in your sign, is saying cooperate, collaborate and co-create a new way of being based on the realization that we are in relationship to everyone and everything. Without social justice how can there be peace? I invite you to summon up the courage to take at least one step in your life, this very month, that is in alignment with this awareness.
SCORPIO: My Dad used to sing a hymn, “Power, power, power, wonder working power….” I remember the joyful feeling that affirms that there is a spiritual power. Scorpio, It’s time to assert your power. Despite all the hideous happenings in this life, you can choose to remember that you are an infinite Being, symbolized by the number 8. You are the 8th sign. No longer let yourself be hypnotized with the notion that you are powerless! You are invited to a daily practice of reminding yourself that you do have options, and are a powerful, limitless being having a 3D human experience.
SAGITTARIUS: On the 4th there is a trine between Venus in Sag and Jupiter in Leo. Saturn comes into Sag. on the 24th. The invitation is to weave your love of freedom, adventure, and wisdom into a grounded structure where it can be rooted into new depths of Being. This is a great time to bring more concentrated focus into your “broad band consciousness.”
CAPRICORN: This year’s Winter Solstice also coincides with a New Moon in Capricorn. As the Yin energy culminates in the maximum amount of darkness, the tide turns and the journey into greater light begins. This is a perfect time for us to energetically seed our intentions for the coming spring. You are invited to create an itinerary, a plan, or a goal. Conceive your intention in the womb of the dark and set it on its way with the turning of the tide. Remember, all great travelers know that the map is a valuable tool but it is not the journey!
AQUARIUS: Mars moves into your territory on December the 5th. Community is more key for our well being than ever. A key to a great community is the knowing that The One diamond of unity has many facets. Your invitation is to be really conscious of how you are served by diversity. What are the gifts that have come into your life because of belonging to groups where people are different that you are?
PISCES: Compassion continues to be the focus: Compassion for yourself and for others. However, compassion doesn’t mean putting up with behaviors that are detrimental to yourself, your community, or your planet. Sometimes we are called to speak for those who can’t, to feed those who are hungry, to see those who feel unseen. Complacency isn’t compatible with true compassion. Your invitation is to take action that is in alignment with your compassion. Dare to give your compassion the guts i needs to go with the heart, so it can be the healing it yearns to be.
© Esther Frances
