~Jake Sully, Avatar

The movie Avatar is action packed, drama filled, and best of all has an excellent story line with meaning.  I didn’t know anything about what the movie was based on, but it looked intriguing so I decided to go see it.  And, man was I impressed.  If you haven’t seen the movie then this entry might be a little confusing to follow, but I hope you give it a read anyway!  I don’t want to give the whole story-line away, so I’m not saying what specific characters do.  Honestly this entry only grazes the surface, but I wanted to point out some of the things that stood out most profoundly to me.  (My favorite part is the Soul/Body discussion.)  Please comment and discuss your views of the movie.  I’d love to hear what you think! (It’s fine to discuss specific events and characters in the comment section since other readers can just skip reading the comments if they haven’t seen the movie yet).

Focus on the Planet as a Mother:  One of the most obvious spiritual dynamics in Avatar is the native peoples’ belief in their deity.  The planet of Pandora is inhabited by the Na’vi people and their deity is Eywa.  Eywa is the living consciousness of the planet, the energy that permeates all things, creatures and people.  The Great Mother.  Eywa connects all things and keeps the balance of life.  

The roots of the plants and trees have an advanced network of roots that allows them to communicate with each other.  Most amazingly, the Na’vi can literally “tune in” to the planet through a physical link.  Every Na’vi has what looks like a sea-anemonea like extension that comes out of the end of their hair braid.  They can connect this extension to certain trees that act as “download” points on the planet.  Two such tress mentioned in the movie are the Tree of Voices and the Tree of Souls.  At the tree of Voices the Na’vi can hear the memories and voices of their ancestors.  Even though the bodies have passed away, their spirits return to Eywa and therefore never truly leave the Na’vi People.  The Tree of Souls is the place where the People can connect directly to Eywa.

The Na’vi are also able to connect with animals in the same way.  The animals have the same tentacle extension that the Na’vi do, allowing them to form a bond.  When the bond is established between Na’vi and animal, the Na’vi is able to communicate telepathically with the animal.

Soul/Body Differentiation:  Now this is the part that I LOVE.  The movie Avatar clearly illustrates that we are a soul, not a body.  The body houses the essence of who you are and allows you to have the experience of talking, moving, etc.  But that is not who you are.  YOU are a soul.  When you leave your body you do not cease to exist, you merely leave behind your physical form.  

In order to properly discuss this, I’m going to have to give some of the key points of the movie away!

First lets look at the significance of the movie name.  I’m taking the definition from Wikepedia because I like how it’s explained. “In Hinduism, Avatar refers to a deliberate descent of a deity from heaven to earth, and is mostly translated into English as ‘incarnation’, but more accurately as ‘appearance’ or ‘manifestation’” (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Avatar).  In the movie an avatar is a body that has been grown with a mixture of Na’vi and human DNA.  A human can then “go into” his avatar body through a mental link.  His human body lies immobile while his consciousness inhabits the avatar.  

Of course this link is done through extremely advanced science.  BUT THEN….the power of Eywa is used at the end of the movie to actually transfer the life of one person from their human body into their avatar body.  The human body dies and soul moves into the avatar body.  

This was just amazing for me to see in a movie.  The differentiation between body and spirit couldn’t be made clearer!  

There are so many other wonderful aspects of this movie that I’d love to discuss.

Please share your thoughts!

Good bye to 2009 and hello 2010!  I have a wonderful feeling about 2010 – how can I not when there are so many wonderful things lined up to usher in the new year (and the new decade)?!  

First off, tonight is a Full Moon which means that there is a lot of energy bringing the new year in.  But EVEN BETTER is the fact that it is the SECOND full moon of the month – a Blue Moon!!!  Blue moons are very rare and are extremely powerful.  Blue moons bring luck and create an atmosphere filled with Magick.  You can use this energy to manifest a year that is wonderful beyond anything you can even imagine.  

Looking at the year numerologicaly we see that 2010 is a 3 year.  (2+0+1+0 = 3)  Three is a very significant number of cycles and completion.  It is the first number that has a beginning, middle and end.  Think of the spiritual significance attached to the number such as the Holy Trinity and the Triple Goddess – Maiden/Mother/Crone (each phase of the goddess signifies the human life stages of Birth/Life/Death).  

3 is also a number that relates to creativity.  

Now lets take a quick look at the significance of the day of the week.  January 1, 2010 is a Friday!  The year begins on the day of the week that is ruled by the planet Venus!!!  The year (and decade) begins on a day whose properties include love, friendship, peace and harmony.  How wonderful!

The Universe is giving us a great start to the year and decade – let’s make the most of it!  Lot’s of blessings )O(

LYRICS:

Chorus:
Enter the night and you’ll find the light,
That will carry you to your dreams.
Enter the night, let your spirit take flight,
In the field of infinite possibilities

On the longest night we search for the light,
And we find it deep within.
Open your eyes to embrace what is wise,
And see the light of your own soul shining.

(Chorus)

Music by Lisa Thiel

Yule Pentacle

The Winter Solstice, or Yule, is one of the major Sabbats in the Wheel of the Year.  Yule is the first Sabbat after Samhain.  If you’ll remember, we talked about how Samhain is a time of endings and beginnings…almost Void-like in quality. We can reflect on aspects of our lives that need to be released in order for there to be rebirth.  It is the season of “death” that is needed in order to make way for new life.  This new life is celebrated during the sabbat of Yule!

The Winter Solstice marks the shortest day of the year.  On this day the god (the Solar force) is reborn and his arrival brings the gradual lengthening of daylight.  Many cultures and religions have belief systems that recognize the birth of a god during this time of year.  

When Christianity gained a foothold, many of the various pagan Solstice traditions were incorporated by the Church.  This explains the many overlapping traditions and symbols that are used during Christmas such as the Christmas Tree and Mistletoe.  In many cases, these traditional Christmas symbols stem from the stories of pre-Christian gods.  (Please check back soon for another post discussing these gods and symbols).  This by no means negates the validity of any one religious path; rather it enhances the significance of this time of year – a time of joyous rebirth.  

As light returns to the world, so to does it return to our lives.  We have passed through the Sabbats that deal with endings.  Now the focus is on using the spark of rebirth to bring new vitality and accomplishments into our lives.  Yule is when you meditate and consult with your Higher Self about what your focus should be for the upcoming year.  Set goals for yourself and know that this is the perfect time to expect miraculous beginnings.  

Yule is such a joyous time of year – celebrate!  Gather with your friends and family to sing and eat together.  During one memorable Yule celebration, Mermaid, myself and several of our friends did a candle ceremony and then kept the festive energy going by singing “Walking in a Wiccan Wonderland!”  I have no idea who wrote the lyrics, but it was so much fun to take a popular winter song and use it in our Yule celebration.  

This is a time when blessings increase – open yourself up to receiving them.  Love and Joy to you on this wonderful day.

Blessed Be.

God Exists Quietly

God exists quietly.

When I sit still and contemplate
the breeze that moves upon me
I can hear Him.

For hours I would lay
flat upon the meadows
stare at the
endless field of blue sky
and revel in
the divine placement of all things.

I would walk alone
in the woods and let my mind wander
freely, stumble across theories
on the origins of myself
and all things.

In nature I knew all things had
their place. None supreme,
none insignificant and so
great peace would come to me
as I fit neatly in the folds
between dawn and twilight.
Living in sync with the rhythm
of the earth, eating what
we grew, warming
ourselves by the coal fire,
creating
myself in the vast silence that existed
between the wild mountains of Alaska
and our front porch.

I grew to love the
Nature of god.
I knew Him best not in churches, but

For more of Jewel’s poetry, check out her book, Night Without Armor:  Poems, written by Jewel Kilcher in 1999.

Where do you connect most with a Higher Power (God, the Universe, etc)?  Do you feel the most spiritually aware in communal worship in a church setting, or by alone in nature?

In your outer life

If you can feel

consciously and soulfully happy

Even while doing

Ordinary, mundane things,

God will consider this

Your real meditation

~Sri Chinmoy

We all go through rough patches.  Life gets busy and stressful, and that can affect our ability/desire to meditate.  Worrying about work or school, trying to stave off a cold, and trying to plan life in general, does not exactly create a Zen mood that is conducive to meditation.  So maybe you tell yourself that you’ll meditate when you “have more time.”  Go ahead…raise your hand if you’ve done that.  *raises hand!*  Well, like me, you’ve probably found that this can lead to loooong periods of not meditating at all because you keep thinking you’ll be able to find time the next day.

What would really help, is if you do something simple every day (or every other day) to keep your spiritual life healthy.  So, the next time you get stuck, try using some of the methods discussed below to help maintain your meditation practice. 

• Work with something that you connect with easily and that you enjoy using. For me it’s usually crystals and tarot. Even when I have trouble meditating, I just lay down with a crystal (or several) and let them do their thing!  When you are stressed, try not to do too many actual tarot readings because it’s hard to stay objective; and you might just end up confusing yourself more. Instead, you can pull a card each morning and meditate on that card. It helps give you some focus and guidance during the day.  (If you aren’t comfortable using the Tarot, you can purchase Oracle cards.  Some of them have messages written on them are especially good for daily guidance.)

• Light candles instead of turning on the lights.(But make sure you don’t end up straining your eyes.  Go ahead and use a lamp if you’re going to read!)  Candlelight is always so soothing, and it puts you into a relaxed and receptive state. So even if you don’t meditate, your consciousness is still being brought into a state of openness and creativity. Just think of the Goddess Brigid’s flames of inspiration. 

• Write in your journal, or write a letter to God/dess or your Angels.  It’s a wonderful way to sort through your thoughts.  Write what you are grateful for, what you are nervous or fearful about, what you need guidance about.  Write about the big things and the little things.  Just let it all out.  It’s between you and your Spiritual Team (and they love you and want to help you!  Just ask!)

• Listen to music and dance.  Sound is such a powerful tool.  Ohm:  the sound of creation.  So listen to music that soothes, uplifts and empowers you. Listen to songs that you connect with good memories that’ll make you laugh!  And dance!  Your entire being (including your body) is a manifestation of Spirit’s creative force.  So using your body as a way to connect with the Divine through dance is not wrong.  Dance like a god/dess.  Dance like you are the wind soaring over plains.  Dance like you are a thunderstorm.  Dance by yourself, with your partner, with friend…just dance!  (And of course playing an instrument falls under this category!!!!!!)

• Pray.  Say the prayers or invocations that make you feel reassured.  Say the Rosary, recite mantras, read the Charge of the God/dess, state affirmations, read from Sacred Texts.  Write your own prayers

• Make sure you bless your food and water. It really helps. Appreciate and be aware of the food you are putting into your body.  I personally find tea to be incredibly comforting. Plus I love the blend of water and earth! The way the herbs infuse the water and transform it into something else entirely is a magickal process – alchemy. 

These methods don’t require a lot of time, and they can help you regain and maintain your spiritual, emotional and mental balance.  Give it a try!

What other methods do you use to maintain your meditation practice?  Comment below!

Life is always lived at risk.
We may grow complacent
And not realize it.
We may not snell the fresh sweat
Of anxiety or excitement,
But what are we breathing for?
Touch the nerve of passion
And live for greatness.
Fear of failure stops many,
But Death stops everyone.
So love without restraint,
Create the New,
Follow the courage of your highest dream.
Fate favors your daring.
Risk surrounding to Love,
And gain your Soul.

From the book “Art Psalms” by Alex Grey. Pg 87

What is your reaction to this week’s poem?

Today there are so many resources from which to get your horoscope that the validity of this practice is easy to call in to question. How do you know who is telling you the most accurate horoscope? The truth is you don’t, unless you study astrology and plot everything out yourself. I would suggest taking a step back from this approach though. Perhaps there is no concrete validity and different sources just speak better to different people. Some may prefer the two sentence blurb about their day on Yahoo or in the local newspaper (I checked these daily for many years) while others prefer the in-depth monthly horoscope from Astrology Zone (a website that many of my friends and I currently use). Whatever it is, there might be a reason you are reading that specific one. You connect more with the author, much like a good book makes you want to read the rest of a series.

What is important with horoscopes and astrology in general is that you remember not to take them too seriously or as definite predictions. You should look at them more as a general overview of the possibilities of the day. It is a summary of the types energies surrounding you and which ones are the strongest at that particular time. Each energy has the potential of attracting an action or event but you must take into account free will and what is going on with you personally already. If you are concerned with the validity of your source, try reading your horoscope at the end of the day and, without stretching details to make things corroborate, see if it was accurate. Many believe those who read horoscopes in the morning live their day so that it will be accurate, reinforcing their beliefs. This would be a way to keep yourself in check. There is nothing wrong with a healthy dose of skepticism every now and then.

I personally read my horoscope every morning from an iPhone app that I have found to be scary-accurate for my days as well as how the people around me will be acting. I use it as a sort of back-up plan to my intuition, which is at times annoyingly strong.

Also, if you like horoscopes, I would suggest looking up free birth chart calculators. Once again, you may or may not find it to be accurate, but if nothing else it could be some fun reading material.

Where do you go for your horoscopes? What do you think of the validity of astrology?

Source of all art,

Forgive my shirking

Your gifts.

I have received your visions and songs,

Been inspired by your

Angelic emissaries and

Carried aloft by your grace

And yet have not fulfilled the mission

You’ve given me.

I’ve operated below my potential.

I’ve been distracted by unworthy matters,

Wasted precious time.

I promise to work harder

And devote my life

To sharing creations that cause minds

To catch fire with

Your gifts.

Grey, Alex.  Art Pslams.  Berkeley:  North Atlantic Books, 2008.  p 79.

Any reactions?

One way is to simply remember them.  Sit outside one  chilly morning (remember to dress appropriately–no need to sacrifice your health) and look around you.  Observe the different animals you see and the difference in their actions from when you see them in Spring or Summer.  Look at all the trees.  Observe the beautiful colors of the leaves and even the glory of seeing the bare trees standing against an overcast sky.  Take in the beauty of the cycle of life and remind yourself of how all things must come to an end–and that there is beauty, too, in death.  Observe the clouds and the misty coldness of the air.  Breathe it in and feel it fill you with the spirit of the season.  Yule will be here soon.  Feel the air getting crisper, almost clearer.  Listen to the wind whip around the bare trees and play with the leaves as they fall to the ground.  Now, open your heart and give thanks to all of those beings that are providing this scene to you.  Give thanks to the Universe for allowing you to witness this beautiful cycle and for allowing you to understand the significance of beginnings and endings. 

Other than simply acknowledging their existence, you can still set out bright and shiny things for the faerie folk.  If you are baking cookies for Thanksgiving or Yuletime, set one or two aside out on a plate for them.  Fill them with Love and Thanks.  Then, either discard them or eat them after 24 hours.  You can also crumble them up and spread them around your house or around particularly beautiful foliage of the season.  Pouring some cider or wassail as an offering is another way to show your gratitude for all of the work being done by unseen forces.  The important thing is to remember that even though it appears that life is slowing down, a lot is happening behind the scenes that we tend to forget about. 

Have a blessed Winter!

How do you give thanks during the Winter?   Do you have any traditions that are simply associated with the season (and not a specific religious holiday)?  Please share!