living eye to eye with ancient wisdom
How many times have you pressed the Apple command key today?
Well if you're sitting in your office and thought you'd escaped Halloween then think again. Because apart from the humble fruits ties to the festival, so too unbeknownst to most Mac users has Apple's ⌘ Command symbol.
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Landscape Painted on the Double Ninth Festival by Shitao (Zhu Ruoji) dated 1705. Public Domain Met Musuem.
Happy Seniors’ Day! Since 1966 the Double Ninth Festival has celebrated Senior members of the community. The ‘Double Ninth Festival’ is also known as Chong Yang Festival; which burrows its name from the calendar date meaning the ninth day of the ninth lunar month in the Chinese calendar. In Chinese ‘Chong’ means ‘double’ and ‘Yang’ is a nod to the number nine (9) which is the highest Yang number. and its also known as as the Chrysanthemum Festival. This year the festival falls on Sun 22 Oct 2023, in the Universal calendar.
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Amen by Micadew via Flickr CC BY-SA 2.0
At sunset on Oct. 31st, the transition point between two luminaries will exchange the baton from day to night. Forget midnight, it’s sunset that marks the close/ beginning of a Celtic day in their calendar. The last day of Oct. is Hallows Eve, (Hallowe’en) a significant Celtic/Pagan festival marker that’s believed to have marked Celtic New Year’s Eve*. While 1st Nov. is Samhain (or Púka’s day). Folks domicile in the S.H shall be celebrating Beltaine’s Eve. Both markers represent two major festivals or Witches Sabbaths; either the beginning of Summer (S.H) or the beginning of the opposing season of Winter in the N. Hemisphere.
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image by Katsushika, Hokusai, 1760-1849 via public domain
Bats and Halloween have a ubiquitous relationship. It’s most likely due to the nocturnal habits of the bat, that link the two - after all Hallow’s Eve is a festival that’s celebrated at nightfall. Spookiness aside, the winged creature is known to conjure up high levels of anxiety, day or night, for folks with long hair! (Myth No. 1, they don’t get tangled in your tresses). That said, without doubt that humble Bat is steeped in myth, negative omens and superstitions. Yet in some cultures, the omen is of an auspicious nature.
Read moreLast year’s rollercoaster ride eases as Wood Snake’s tenure commences on 29 January. Snake continues to do Dragon’s bidding donning the Little Dragon moniker, partnering with yin wood brings insights and adaptability. Serpent sits at the midpoint of Earthly Branches — the pendulum oscillates — destiny hangs in the balance. Will 2025 restore equilibrium, equate, renew, unify or play with fire?
Read moreDepending on your persuasion, the wheel of the year is prefixed by many names — Celtic, Druid, Pagan or Wicca. The familiar graphic has near cult status, bedecking the walls, altars and journals of devotees of the cosmos. In more recent times the ubiquitous image has expanded and morphed into a mystical symbol shrouded in layers of occult, spiritual and religious mystery. Freed from the shackles of cultural and metaphysical associations the Eightfold wheel is more universally appropriate and immediately demystified as sun’s celestial journey mirrored via seasonal cycles.
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