Friday 21 December 2012

Happy Winter Solstice!


Around the world today, people are celebrating a forgotten, ancient celebration that marks the shortest day of the year. People who have returned to pagan rituals and beliefs, or have shed hard core religions for something more environmentally spiritual, are dancing around Stonehenge as I write. The more I think about it the more I kind of like the idea of having an environmental “religion”. After all, I worship nature every day! It would be different from paganism – something more in keeping with the times - no flowing robes or sacrificial offerings. I like the idea of the outdoors being my church, the flora and fauna my congregation, the sound of birds singing and creeks flowing, my hymns. Solstice is Latin for “sun stands still”, marking a day when the sun is closest to the earth. Tomorrow, much to my delight, the days will begin getting longer as I look forward to spring. I can’t think of a better time to celebrate than that. Ancient civilizations had it right! 

Today also marks the day the Mayan long count calendar ends, and many believe that this, according to ancient Mayans, may signal the dawn of a new era. I hope so, and I hope it’s a better one. Environmental destruction, global warming, plagues, famine, drought, flooding, overpopulation, extreme weather, war, disease, financial collapse, species extinctions, terrorism, and mass shootings of little children. All of these things are too common in the news, and all, preventable. Eventually, human civilization will be wiped out by one apocalyptic event or another. Mother earth, however, will always be here - evolving her landscapes, spinning, sputtering and being - just as she has for billions of years. One could argue that earth created us, and potentially, has the power to destroy us. Could the planet itself be “God”? Maybe not, but if I’m going to worship anything, earth is it, and it seems just as fitting to me to celebrate planetary cycles as anything else.

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