First Week of Advent, Friday: Create Life Anew

In the Heart of Winter: A Meditator’s Guide to Advent
Advent coincides with Winter Solstice and an abundance of myths from many times and cultures which provide an entry into 'sacred time,' an opening into the deep, spiritual significance of this time of the year, this time in our world, in our lives and in our consciousness. The Hopi in the Southwest celebrate Winter Solstice each year as Soyal or Soyalangwul which means “Establishing Life Anew for All the World.” Traditionally the first part of the ritual celebration begins underground as cleansing and preparation for the recreation of the world and the celebration to follow. How inspiring it is to consider that the new life we seek is not our own, but a new life for the entire world.

In modern life many have lost contact with the 'sacred time' dimension of the holidays. There is an attempt to celebrate something momentous at Christmas without the essential inner journey which precedes it. True celebrations are organic–they are in harmony with the times, with nature, with God, with our own soul. And as an organic process, true celebration tends to unfold from within and move through a natural cycle. To authentically celebrate the return of light, we must be open to the darkness–willing to enter into the mystery of this sacred time, to the possibility of leaving the old behind and creating life anew.

Practice:

Engage in a simple, prayerful ritual such as lighting a candle, washing your hands and feet in preparation for meditation or chanting a prayer. When you engage in the ritual, understand that the purpose of spiritual ritual is to provide an “entryway” to the liminal, the numinous, spiritual consciousness beyond ordinary mind. Bring your heart and mind to the action; feel that you are lifting your consciousness to abide in the awareness of the presence of God.

In one of Rumi’s poems, he speaks about the practice of True Ablutions and advises us to be aware that such an action is not just a matter of washing our hands and feet. Instead, we should recognize that the ritual of washing hands and feet before prayer and meditation gives us time to turn our awareness away from the world and toward God. He offers the prayer, “Time to say within your heart, I am now going to establish a connection with God.” Whatever ritual you choose, do it to establish that connection.

Contemplate:

No heaven can come to us unless our hearts find rest in today.
Take Heaven! No peace lies in the future which is not hidden in this present little instant.
Take Peace!
The gloom of the world is but a shadow. Behind it yet within our reach is Joy.
There is radiance and glory in the darkness,
could we but see – and to see we have only to look.
I beseech you to look.

–Fra Giovanni, excerpt from a letter written in 1513

Reflect: What is the life I would create anew for all the world? How does that begin with me today?