traditions
The Year Of The Dog
As an aficionado of all things metaphysical, from auras to a zebra jasper crystal, I have always found Chinese Astrology particularly fascinating. I’ve read any and everything I could lay my hands on and ultimately, I believe, I have come up with my own fundamental basic understanding of it.
I’m a simple woman and as a writer I have found the simple approach is best. Chinese Astrology is based on 12 different animals, and the traits of each species defines the characteristics of each Chinese Zodiac year. If you understand the animal, then you understand the Chinese astrological sign associated with it. You might say it is an easy key to understanding what may initially seem complicated.
According to Chinese Astrology we are entering the Year of the Dog this month. Associated with the element of Earth and the season of Autumn, the closest Western Astrology signs are Scorpio and Libra. Continue reading
Spiritual Rituals Provide Sacred Space
Spiritual ceremonies, where humans gather together in a circle, are especially potent. An energetic hoop gathers over the circle to assist in the endeavor for the gathering, whether it be for the purpose of celebrating a new birth, honoring a solstice, or to express anything of importance to humanity, as individuals, or as a group.
Altars are also powerful. They are a gathering place for spirits to provide protection and shielding, to aid in a calling or, perhaps, to provide a sacred place for the energy of one who has crossed to another dimension to gather and connect. Or, we might choose to build an altar dedicated to providing an anchor for our business when we are away, the same as when we are present. Continue reading
Good Old-Fashioned Dating Before Your Commit
Some of my most treasured moments have been the conversations I’ve had with folks from my grandparents’ generation. I especially like to ask elderly couples what their secret is to a long-lasting marriage, or relationship.
Their answers always put a smile on my face. Usually they would say that they slowly got to know each other, to see if they had the same values and decide if they were compatible.
Sadly, much has changed over the years. These days people no longer seem willing to put in the work and commitment it takes to build a strong foundation for a healthy, enduring relationship. Instead, we rush into romantic connections without thinking and seldom questioning the other person or their motives. Continue reading
A Symbol To Know The Unknowable
This morning, I ran into one of my friends in our little Spanish town, and we decided to grab a coffee and catch up. I was delighted at how she took an interest in my Om/Aum pendant. She commented on how I seemed to treat my pendant as something rather sacred, and with respect – an interesting observation! She loved the flow of the shapes, and asked if the pendant had any specific meaning.
I had to remove the pendant and study it closely to try and remember what I was taught years ago, in order to give her a brief description to the best of my ability. One by one I tried to connect with each swirl in the design and was surprised that I had remembered quite a lot of what my mentor had taught me. It was a long time ago, when we used the Om/Aum chant in our meditation sessions.
With my pendant on the table I began to explain the meaning of the dot at the top of the symbol, and recalled that this related to the silence after chanting Om/Aum. It represents the Enlightened Self, and is known as the transcendental state of Turiya. Continue reading
The Art Of Palmistry
Palmistry, chiromancy, or palm reading, is one of the oldest methods of foretelling the past, present and future, by reading the lines of the hand. It is a form of divination practised all over the world. The earliest recorded evidence of this divination technique has been found in Asia, from where it spread to the rest of the world.
Each person has unique lines and shape of hand. Thus the use of fingerprinting in identifying individuals. In palmistry, the lines and shape of the hands indicate a person’s character, marriage, how many children they will have, as well as the foreboding of positive and negative life events. Continue reading
Psychic Plants
Plants are everywhere, even in urban environments – from the windowsill potted plant to the hundred-year-old oak in a city park. What you may not know is that plants, just like people and animals, are psychic and react strongly to the energies around them.
In a well-known experiment, scientist Cleve Backster, who was at the time working with police departments to develop polygraph (lie detector) machines, attached a plant to one of these machines. He found that the plant detected intent. For example, the plant reacted with humanlike responses, such as fear and anxiety, to his thoughts of burning the plant.
The plant also showed an empathic response to pain, such as when Backster cut his finger. The results were even the same when he directed his thoughts toward the plant from some distance away. All this from a common potted plant found in an office! Continue reading
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