This Sunday in the Church of Our Lady of Perpetual Succour, we lighted the last candle to herald in the coming week of celebration of baby Jesus Christ.
This is also the time for Winter Soltice, the shortest day of the year in the Northern Hemisphere. Soltice means "sun stopping" in Latin. The sun reaches its highest position in the sky and the axil of the earth is at the maximum of 23° 26'. This year, it occurs on 21st December 2016 at 10:44 GMT or 22nd December 2016 12:49 SGT.
Could it be that there is some universal spiritual order is in place for divine beginnings at Winter Soltice?
Perhaps Winter Soltice is a special time that we will experience a new birth, a new beginning?
Here is my understanding as gleaned from "The Meaning of The Winter Soltice" in the book "The Path of The Spiritual Sun" by Belsebuub & Angela Pritchard 2011.
Light is born in darkness
In the bible, it is written.."In the beginning, God created the heaven and earth. And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters. And God said, Let there be light: and there was light. And God saw the light, that it was good: and God divded the light from the darkness. And God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And the evening and the morning were the first day." Genesis 1:1-5
As the sun rises out of the darkest day of the year on Winter Soltice,
it echos the birth of light from the dark void on the first day of
creation. So the connection between the winter solstice and the birth of
the sun is at the dawning of creation.
Physical Sun & Spiritual Fire
The Genesis creation story of the natural is mirrored in stories
of other spiritual cultures of the supernatural phenomenon. The sun
that exists in the physical world also
exists in the higher dimensions as a spiritual fire. The spiritual sun
is a living and divine fire, and the highest source of all creation.
The
birth of the sun also represents the birth of the spiritual sun within
an individual in the process of enlightenment. Just as the physical sun
is born in the darkest hour gives life to the external world, the
spiritual sun gives life to the individual.
The creative process which gives birth to the universe, also gives birth to the spiritual within a human. The divine savior is not just born into the world, they can be born within us - the spirit entering the body.
Winter Soltice In Other Cultures
Separated by vast space and time, it appears that at least three
civilizations had celebrated the birth of a divine child and saviour
during this time of Winter Soltice.
- among the Druids with the birth of Alban Arthan
- in ancient Egypt with the birth of Horus
- in Bethleham with the birth of Jesus Christ.
Potential Of Consciousness
Every human is a latent spiritual potential that is asleep. But once we choose to search for it, we will always discover our true purpose for being here and realize our potential. The work of enlightenment is found written in the cosmos in the movement of the sun and the stars, written in ancient texts and spiritual monuments to always point towards enlightenment.
Cultures Evolve Around The Sun
As
the sun rises out of the darkest day of the year on Winter Soltice,
it echos the birth of light from the dark void on the first day of
creation. So the connection between the winter solstice and the birth of
the sun at the dawning of creation is why the ancient Egyptians aligned
their Temple of Karnak, the largest temple in the world, to the winter
solstice sunrise and dedicated it to their supreme creator God Amun.
This temple was devoted to creation, and was even expanded upon
according to the Fibonacci sequence, which is a mathematical principle
found in the growth and expansion of life.
Chinese Yin and Yang at Winter Soltice
In Asia, the Winter Soltice Festival or Dōngzhì Festival (Chinese: 冬至; pinyin: Dōngzhì; literally: "the extreme of Winter") started from the Han Dynasty (202 BC - 220 AD) and thrived in the Tang and Song dynamics (518 - 1279).
The Chinese believe in the theory of Yin and Yang. Yin is feminine and represents the dark while Yang is masculine and represents the light. At Winter Soltice, the Yin is at its peak and will disappear. The Yang will appear at Winer Soltice and grow stronger day by day. If Yin-Yang is balanced, there is equilibirum, but when one breaks off, it signifies the start of a change. The Yang energy at Winter Soltice will give birth to creation, light, positive energy. This can be why we see energy fluctuations in the Cosmo during this season.
Chinese Yin and Yang at Winter Soltice
In Asia, the Winter Soltice Festival or Dōngzhì Festival (Chinese: 冬至; pinyin: Dōngzhì; literally: "the extreme of Winter") started from the Han Dynasty (202 BC - 220 AD) and thrived in the Tang and Song dynamics (518 - 1279).
The Chinese believe in the theory of Yin and Yang. Yin is feminine and represents the dark while Yang is masculine and represents the light. At Winter Soltice, the Yin is at its peak and will disappear. The Yang will appear at Winer Soltice and grow stronger day by day. If Yin-Yang is balanced, there is equilibirum, but when one breaks off, it signifies the start of a change. The Yang energy at Winter Soltice will give birth to creation, light, positive energy. This can be why we see energy fluctuations in the Cosmo during this season.
The Chinese believe that the Winter Soltice is an auspicious date of celebration. Everyone is believed to grow a year older on Winter Soltice and is advised to turn to good behaviour after this. It is interesting that the ancients link new birth to new year of life at Winter Soltice.
While most of this knowledge has been lost, the Chinese keep up the festive food celebration. Even today in modern China, Japan, Korea, Vietnam and parts of Asia where there are Chinese, it is celebrated with a family gathering where a sweet dessert made of glutinous rice balls tangyuan (湯圓) is served. Everyone grows one year older and the sweets remind us of a new way of life - never-ending love, warmth, happiness, reunion, good fortune and abundance.
So let us remember on this Winter Soltice to seek a new birth and enlightenment to our spiritual life!
