Monk: What happens when the leaves fall and the trees are bare?
Union: The golden Wind, revealed.
Hegikan Roku the blue cliff record.
Yoga through the seasons Sandra sabatini,
In Buddhism the Golden Wind is a metaphor for the reality that you can only experience and which we call God.
From midway between Samhain and winter solstice, so the end nov 26th or beginning of advent
Slow down, release grip, let go, make space, fall into arms of earth – savasana
Drawing in.
Turning in.
lie fallow – land ploughed and harrowed left for a period without being sown in order to restore its fertility
Fallen leaves mulch and melt their goodness down into the earth
Rest in the beauty of the naked tree with nothing to hide (not having to run from any parts of yourself) here I am! In bare beautiful nakedness. There is an exposure, our internal exposure to ourselves truth to be faced without green cloak of leaves to hide behind. Acknowledge the reality of your situation with kindness and compassion, befriend inner critic. Witness with curiosity what becomes exposed as the leaves drop, without bolting. Let go of the fear of not being good enough. maybe when you sit with yourself you may not be all you wish you would be but neither maybe will you be as bad as you fear. who knows what treasures you will find.
Body scan giving awareness breathing in and feeling the holding and releasing it. Finding the hurting, the disliked, the unacknowledged, acknowledging it, giving it attention vs fighting/ bracing against witnessing it, seeing it, facing it, in entirety what actually does it feel like? Seeing with compassion what it is here. Get perspective, the good bits as well as the more challenging – yin yang it’s whole circle vs stand alone negativity and insodoing allowing yourself to soften into the edges, flowing tensions, density, holding, pain out into the earth, to disperse .
Over the next few weeks the dark will be deepening until the waning cycle of the sun which will reach its fullness at the Winter Solstice, at which point we will start to welcome back the return of the light.
Drop out the bottom into silent darkness from 26th November/start of advent til twelfth night 6th jan. Surrender Stay here floating in silent darkness
In many traditions this point where we enter the darkest phase of the year, is seen as a new beginning rather than an ending. We pass through the darkness only to be reborn into the light at the Winter Solstice. Just as we began our lives in the darkness of our mother’s womb and the oak tree started out as an acorn buried in the darkness of the soil.
Each new day begins and ends in darkness at sunrise and sunset. Every month, before the new moon is reborn into the night sky, there is a period of darkness, when the moon is not yet visible. Similarly, or exhalation and inhalation Every ending is a new beginning.
Bottom of exhalation, Midnight, Dark moon, Winter solistice,
The yang dot in the middle of the the yin. The movement of the breath through the body when completely resting. Surrendered, suspended, floating
Advent to winter solstice drawing in and down into deep darkness . Drawing into centre
Advent to twelfth night 6th Jan deepest darkness
Drop out the bottom of the exhalation into silent darkness, last few days before and first couple of day of period
Stay here float in emptiness not knowing, trust, just be. Here in the Pause at bottom of exhalation.
Joy!
Winter (Water element) is the most ‘yin’ time of the year. Meaning it’s the best time to withdraw from excessive activity, to sleep more, eat more, slow down instructions and spend more time in self-enquiry.
Traditional Chinese Medicine focuses on the Bladder and kidney meridian and organs during winter and the Water element. According to Michael Hetherington, The kidneys, in Oriental medicine, are one of the most important organs and energies of our system for the kidneys store the vital energy, known as Jing Qi. Jing Qi is our most potent essence of energy that trickles out throughout our lifetime to bring us a long life. When we run out of Qi, we die because this vital life energy has run out. We can easily and prematurely use up this Qi through excessive activity, excessive stress, worry, drugs, alcohol, stimulants, addictive behaviors and by generally not taking enough time out to relax and regenerate. This is what the winter energy is all about -to take time out to replenish and regenerate so that when the other seasons come around, we have a healthy source of energy to work with.
Adrenal fatigue and chronic fatigue are common occurrence in our western fast-paced society, and these conditions are signs that we have taxed the kidney’s energies too much and have not taken enough time out to relax and regenerate. If we keep running ourselves into the ground, we will end up very miserable, depleted, fatigued and likely to die at an earlier age. Deep, achy pains in the lower back, poor bone health (weak bones, tooth decay), hearing loss, weak knees and fatigue are all signs that the kidneys are depleted and need some love. The kidneys and bladder are all about nourishment and replenishment on all levels.
Winter solstice meditation – As the sun reaches its shortest day we focus on allowing our Self time to dwell in a safe and relaxing space.Developing a deep learning connection with Nature is a lifelong relationship, allowing us to dwell and simply be our Self.
This is the space between the ending and the beginning. A still point which contains not the absence of life but the presence of life. In the dreaming, life considers the regeneration and conception of itself.
Be nourished by the silence of earth Decomposing leavesDelivering the rich fertility to nourish and regenerate the roots and bulbs. Death on the outside nothing happening but all going on on the inside
imbibation – the seed swells and chemical processes hormone gibberlin working – so as in deep sleep all the processes Growth hormone levels are increased during sleep and peak immediately subsequent to sleep onset [3, 4]. In a previous study, growth hormone levels, measured every 30 s during sleep, increased significantly during slow-wave sleep (SWS) compared with stages 1 and 2 and REM sleep [5].
https://www.gardenmyths.com/seed-dormancy-are-they-really-dormant/
Staying present in the moment enables us to find the beauty and richness in the decay. Juice up. Dream. Enjoy all the creative potential contained within the darkness
Birds dance
Starling roosts generally start to form in November, though this varies from site-to-site and more starlings tend to gather as the weeks go by. The murmurations often go on into January or February, so there’s a nice open window of time for you to see one!
It’s best to be at the location a bit before dusk – that’s when the starlings will start to gather for the night and you’ll start to see a murmuration forming.
Muladhara chakra
In many traditions this point where we enter the darkest phase of the year, is seen as a new beginning rather than an ending. We pass through the darkness only to be reborn into the light. before being born into the light of the world, we began our lives in the darkness of our mother’s womb. An oak tree started out as an acorn buried in the darkness of the soil. Each new day begins and ends in darkness. Every month, before and as the new moon is reborn into the night sky, there is a period of darkness. Similarly, the year ends and begins in the darkest phase of the year. the Sun reborn at the Winter Solstice in December. Every ending is a new beginning. Stay quiet, stay still. darkness offers us rest, regeneration, and renewal. Julio shipway yoga through the year
As winter solstice the turning of the seasons once more, from waning sun to the new rise, winter solstice beckons in the return of the sun midnight
Winter solstice to Twelthnight 6th jan empty, the Belly releases for new air to enter the space
January 1am
the cold of winter softens the shell of the seed allowing it to root and then Shoot in the spring.
21st January 2am
Are you a Winter woman, at home in menstruation, and in the visioning phase of a creative project (or do you skip over the empty space and leap into action?). Stewing all the ideas, juicing up, creating imagining. Nourish . Feel most comfortable in solitude
Late winter
February Late winter
3am. Imbolc Candlemas – Candles out
You’ve seen my descent now watch my rise Rumi
Imbolc early Feb – first stirrings Winter beckons to spring, moving out of the dark quarter the return of the light.
In the belly – Hara – Svadhisthana chakra
Breath/ energy starts to rise. set intentions of how you want to deploy your energies this year. Letting LOVE love start to love through you. Love is the basis of courage
Reemerging light but without warmth
Gentle stirrings Quiet reawakening
Valentines
Darkest hour just before dawn coldest days 17th to 20th Feb
Crackle spit fizz whistle
Morning fire
The gentle clack of tinder wood
The magic fizzle of pine needles
Talons of flame clutching at logs
Chins of coal tickled pink by red hot fingers
Heat Rising from a burning rook pool inhabited by fire anemones
Later I hear the metallic tinkle of the iron ores
