Spiritually, the energies of the Sagittarius New Moon on December 4th are inspirational for expanding our horizons and challenging our old beliefs systems. Sag’s free spirited and fiery personality characteristics, magnified by a solar eclipse has the potential to ignite radical changes in our perspectives, and chart new pathways of thought. It will be harder to stay stagnant, as movement towards breaking out of our comfort zones will feel natural and needed. It is as if the Universe is asking us to come to terms with our inner truth and take some risks for the sake of personal and collective growth. As bitter as this pandemic is to the taste, can you see how the virus has been pushing humanity further into the uncertainties and unknowns of a New Aquarian Age and Paradigm?

A Full Cold Moon sits on the horizon on December 18, 2021, followed by the Winter Solstice a few days later on the 21st. Like all full moons, this one goes by many names but this name traces its roots to Mohawk Indigenous Peoples. Here in Maine, the Indigenous Western Abenaki name is Winter Maker Moon. As many of you already know, the Winter Solstice is the darkest day of the year in the Northern Hemisphere. Our ancestors noticed this phenomenon, and observed that Nature signaled a green light to begin coaxing back the light. It is a good time to venture yinward, go into deeper meditation, introspection, contemplation, rest, sleep and go into your cave for inner exploration and self discovery. In the Southern Hemisphere, it is the opposite. It is their Summer Solstice, where the light reaches its zenith, and the amount of light in a day starts slowly waning thereafter. Conversely, this is a time to be more of a social butterfly, festive and outwardly expansive.

Artwork by Barbara Merlotti

Mountain Lion guides us toward a Full Cold Moon

with subtle leadership through gradual softness.

These are the coldest, darkest and longest nights of the year.

It is time to coax back the light, and look forward to brighter days,

as we climb the mountain toward energetic alignment again.

Our spirits can get cold after a long December . . .

But we can climb down into our souls, and connect in our hearts together

Picture a Mountain Lion to come down from the

mountain to live with the peeps in the valley.

Be a unique cat, and lead by example

Do you look to others to tell you about who you are?

Or are you finding out about what makes you your own person?

In a world full of loud leaders pounding their chests to be seen and heard . . .

Mountain Lion embodies a gentle roar quietly leading by example

But in authentic feline fashion, your leadership will probably go unnoticed by many

Know that your personal power makes you a cool cat commanding the call of respect

A Full Cold Moon signifies the coldest, darkest and longest nights of the year –

Especially on the Winter Solstice, where the dark night of 

feminine-yin energy reaches her energetic peak

Following that, we start coaxing back the light as the days slowly become longer

as the sunlight of masculine-yang energy gains momentum

On the opposite side of the same coin –

our friends in the Southern Hemisphere experience peak light as

masculine-yang reaching its zenith on the Summer Solstice

Now their days will slowly become shorter as movement into the dark grows in power

True power builds gradually like water

But the attached price-tag of responsibility need not make you hiss

Mountain Lion is king of playing situational football at its finest –

Know in your personal authority that you have the ability to effectively

adjust your game plan at any given moment and respond accordingly

Do you remember the power of our tribal African shamanic brothers and sisters?

Fly away and meditate on the elemental forces of water and darkness for a spell . . .

How many times have we feared our own primal, dark and feminine nature?

The power of the internal martial arts is cultivated gradually

A cumulative effect of simmering softness of feminine energy has risen again

Commentary:

Cats are curious creatures, and will take their time observing, watching, and exhibit stealth before they pounce onto a scene. Jurisprudence and the ability to delay gratification are dying traits that are critical to remember as we move forward in our personal and collective evolution.

In our modern world, we often think of power as a position of leadership that basks in the limelight. We often look for those in positions of leadership to the answers and solve our problems. Yes, we do need movers and shakers to share access to resources and do their part with the right intention. But we all have a natural humble leader on the inside. Like an ocean bowing to the rivers that flow into it, the energy of Mountain Lion is quiet, yet powerful spirit guide to tap into. In terms of a popular leader, the Dali Llama symbolizes this kind of power. He represents the wave of the future when it comes to an embodiment of egoless power and a good role model. This is the kind of power, though radical humility, that you can relax into by just knowing that it is there for you and society to share. But don’t go looking for awards, accolades or special recognition. Because this kind of cat is working in hidden shadowy caverns and crevasses more than out in broad daylight.

Slavery has arguably been with us since we humans were created. But there is nothing more degrading than working on command and living a life that you were not authentically meant to live. I think about our primal human nature, when our ancestors sat around fires, playing music, and spitting lyrical poetic prose to the beat of universal drums. This is part of our creative nature.

We live in a world that has programed us into buying into a membership has its privileges mentality, that the squeaky wheel gets the grease, etc. But a different kind of power does exist. In a New Aquarian Age Earth, we are awakening to a vibration and dimension that rises up from the kill or be kill, dog eat dog, social darwinism survival of the fittest cannibalism of the oppressive old world. Leadership doesn’t have to be a bullying top down, hierarchical system. Cats have a natural Tao-centered way of living. Yeah, cats are predators, and are capable of killing indiscriminately, often apparently just for the pleasure of toying with their prey. But when they are left alone, and allowed to be who they are, cats tend to take the path of least resistance, and are incredibly affectionate creatures with amazing psychic abilities, and a penchant for being present and still with their surroundings. Human beings are evolving into less like sheep, and more like cats. Might as well learn to understand what you might have once feared. Cats embody mystery, which merely reflects our deeply mysterious Universe. That isn’t so scary when you start  embracing your dark, feminine, yin part of your nature. Paradoxically, there is lightening up of your energy field the more you relax your resistance to that truth. 

Take care of yourselves everyone,

Ari 

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