Yin Yang
The Cosmic Weather Channel
We have all checked a daily weather forecast at some point. Will it be hot or cold? Will it rain or snow? But did you know that a different kind of ‘weather’ affects our lives just as much? We are also impacted by the ‘cosmic weather’ – the astrological positions of the planets and other heavenly bodies, as well as related phenomena, such as eclipses, solstices, equinoxes, aurora borealis (Northern Lights), solar flares, and meteor showers.
The recent “Great American Eclipse” was a large-scale event which many people observed. But what did it mean? Solar eclipses represent the shadow of the Moon (the yin, feminine, and intuitive) obscuring the Sun (yang, masculine, and logical). An eclipse therefore creates the illusion of twilight in the middle of the day. From a metaphysical perspective it is the perfect time for added insight, previously hidden knowledge, and inspired ideas. Continue reading
Finding A Snow White Feather
Some time ago, I was sifting through my box of notes and papers collected over the years, and among all the documents and media cuttings, I found a list which describes the symbolic meaning of various colored feathers. Finding the list was a lucky coincidence. Or was it?
My husband and I live in a rural area outside a small town in South Eastern Spain. The people here are very friendly. Yet, without intending any disrespect, it is unlike many beautiful Spanish towns. I guess you could say that ours is somewhat soulless? It certainly is devoid of much in the way of any natural beauty, or cultural architecture. Another thing we don’t see much of either, is bird life.
More recently, I was thinking hard about an upsetting situation, while leaving the town hall. The outlook of the problem I was dealing with seemed bleak. But, as I left the building and turned a corner, I looked down and there was a beautiful snow white feather! A sign, or another coincidence? Continue reading
The Yin Power Of Acceptance
In today’s society people often view acceptance as resignation, giving up, cowardice, retreat, or other unappealing descriptive words. The society that worships, praises, and publicizes Yang energy, the energy of ‘doing,’ typically has little understanding for the power of Yin. Yin energy imagines, envisions, perceives. Yang manifests. We need both.
Yin is a warrior’s path. It is the path of acceptance, before reaction. As an example, the martial art Aikido is defined as a way of unifying with life energy or “moving Zen,” or as “the Way of harmonious spirit.” Aikido is an art that practitioners use to defend themselves, while also protecting their attacker from injury. Continue reading
The Power Of Yin In A Yang Society
In modern society we are all about ‘just do it’ and ‘no fear.’ We worship Yang energy – the energy of doing-ness. The power of the flow, the wisdom of psychic guidance is the opposite – don’t just do something, sit there! The problem is, we are afraid that if we hold still we are quitting, resigning, giving up, procrastinating. So we live in a culture that prefers to emphasize the Yang, and shy away from the Yin.
Have you ever tried to get through to a friend who will just not shut up? That is how it is for Spirit, God, Source, the Universe. When we don’t hold still and shut up, nothing else can come in to guide us. We are then at the mercy of our crazy, human mind with its puny imagination, limited by the imagined boundaries typical of earth plane thinking. Continue reading
Too Much Yin
Humans have an electro-magnetic energy field, which is why we have medical technology like magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans. In Chinese philosophy and Taoism it is believed that this energy field consists of the dualistic energies of Yin and Yang. They are direct opposites, but also interdependent and complimentary to each other. We need good a balance of the two for optimal well-being, happiness and personal fulfillment.
Yang energy is the electric, active energy, full of outward movement. Too much Yang can make a person overbearing, impatient, impulsive. American culture tends to worship Yang energy. Think of slogans like “Just do it” and “No fear.” Continue reading