Spring Equinox 2014
On Saturday 22nd March, eighteen of us gathered at Green Dragon Barn to celebrate the Spring Equinox – equal day and night – a time when there can be both great balance and violent polarity! The sharing around the Wisdom Pot was heart-felt and moving. We had three newcomers who were welcomed and felt at ease immediately.
Sam spoke of the path we had taken through half the cycle of the year from hearing tales of the prehistoric mother goddess at Samhain, through the Sumerian myth of Inanna at the Winter Solstice and we arrived now at the ancient Egyptians, via a wealth of stories at the Winter Festival for Imbolc.
Sue told the epic tale of Isis and Osiris, starting with the creation and separation of the goddess of the sky, Nut from her beloved Geb, the earth. Isis goes on a long quest to find her dead lord and to prepare his body for burial and the afterlife. His body is trapped in a jewelled casket cast upon the waters, which becomes wrapped completely in the roots and branches of a tree so that is is hidden from view and is taken to the King’s palace to be a pillar in his throne room.
Isis is relentless in her search, but she spends time beside the water, weeping, causing the Nile to flood and spread fertile silt on the land to the delight of the farmers and also in deep contemplation, learning through rumour and vision the fate of Osiris.
The story continues as her husband’s murderer finds the corpse again and cuts it into 14 pieces, scattering them across the land. Isis must once again search to make her husband whole….. the story provoked a lively discussion about sexuality, power, rape, emasculation, the quest and courts of law!
The guided meditation took us into our own bodies, piecing them together into wholeness. After a period of quiet time, we sat again around the Wisdom Pot and found the astonishing depth of collaborative wisdom when we open our hearts and share.
This was followed by another Wood Sisters feast of fabulous food – a bring and share delight of spring colour and abundance enjoyed by all.
For our crafts we took white eggs, blew them, dyed them , painted them, decorated them, in so many different ways – here are just a few:
We finished the day with a collaborative ceremony of hanging eggs on the tree and casting stones into water with our pledges and wishes. At the end of the day no-one wanted to go home!
Those on the Slow Cook course did stay on for an evening of sharing our experiences of the spiritual practise and Bardic Tasks which are accompanying our journey through the Western Mystery traditions. Working with the directions of the compass and the elements, there was deep sharing of explorations of our early lives and all that we were bringing to consciousness. We sang and danced to end this extraordinary evening and felt blessed to be there.
After a small libation of sloe gin, Wood Sisters wended their way home under the starry sky after a full and magical day.