The precise theme for our Soul Work in March has been ebbing and flowing in my mind, and that perhaps that itself is a portent of the theme and how it may require fluidity and flow throughout the month. There are so many energetic influences in March, such as the flowing creative energy of the Pisces New Moon, the celebration of International Women’s Day on March 8th, and the balanced duality of the Equinox coming on March 20th @ 15:33 UTC. But I knew I would find a commonality in these energies.
I tend to think of the Equinoxes as times of balance, as day and night appear equal around the world. But that can word includes many perspectives of balance such as equality and parity (curiously, a word that also refers to giving birth) within our Self and with others, being again in Right Relationship.
In this year’s IWD2022, the theme is #BreakTheBias. Per the IWD website:
Imagine a gender equal world. A world free of bias, stereotypes and discrimination. A world that's diverse, equitable, and inclusive. A world where difference is valued and celebrated. Together we can forge women's equality. Collectively we can all #BreakTheBias. Celebrate women's achievement. Raise awareness against bias. Take action for equality.
The Duality of the Equinox
Let us dig a little deeper into the March energies and dualities, which ebb and flow constantly within us . . . but are all a part of our Wholeness, containing all components, all elements. Every part supports us, at times drawing on the outward energetic manifestations and at other times the inward energetic manifestations.
The March equinox marks the solar/astronomical waxing energies of Spring in the Northern Hemisphere and the waning energies of Autumn in the Southern Hemisphere. No matter where we are in the world we can tap into the duality that expresses itself in so many ways including: Yin and Yang, waxing and waning, giving and receiving, return and descent, Divine Masculine and Divine Feminine, light and dark, beginnings and endings, (re)birth and death (embodied in tales such as that of Persephone and Inanna). And in many theologies around the world, their God is reborn or rises at Spring (e.g. Easter in Christian faiths). And the dualities are also connected by the Seed itself which manifests in both Spring and Autumn in different ways.
I love how Glenys D. Livingstone describes this duality in her 2013 article The Equinoxes as Story of Redemption: Sacred Balance of Maternal Creativity:
Both Equinoxes celebrate a sacred balance of loss and return which are inseparable, and they may both be understood in the Mystery of the Seed. The Seed essentially is, and represents, deep Creativity, that manifests in the flower of Spring and the fruit of the harvest in Autumn: seed becomes fruit, fruit becomes seed, as is commonly spoken in Pagan ceremony [see following note], and illustrated in the diametric slicing of an apple which reveals the core – the Kore, understood as the Daughter-Self within the Mother, in the heart-intelligence of the Mother, illustrating the continuity of the life thread.
The “seed becomes fruit” chant is from a ritual in Starhawk’s book The Spiral Dance: A Rebirth of the Ancient Religion of the Goddess: 20th Anniversary Edition using an apple to represent the fruit of life and a pomegranate to represent the the fruit of death:
Here is the circle of rebirth. Through you (the Priest) all passes out of life, but through Me (the Priestess) all may be born again. Everything passes, changes. Seed becomes fruit; fruit becomes seed. In birth, we die; on death, we feed. Know Me, and be free of all fear. For My womb is the cauldron of rebirth, in Me, the circle is ever turning.
By the way, I share an apple ritual in my Spring Equinox and Autumn Equinox courses, both of which will be coming out of the vault by March 10th, and will now be open all year so that you can celebrate both Spring and Autumn whenever they arrive in your locale. Stay tuned for more info on release dates and cost in the Inner Journey Events newsletter (click here to subscribe) and in the Home Page of our website.
These factors and correspondences have lead me towards a theme of:
Create Wholeness by Embracing Duality
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