Winter Solstice - approx. December 21st

Archetypes

Astrological Sign: Capricorn

Capricorn is the energy of manifestation. It wants to plan and build and create success. Ambitious and industrious, this energy will have you focusing on your life path and creating a lasting legacy.

Out of balance, though, the energy turns narcissistic and self-serving – seeking to amass wealth and prestige and reputation regardless of who must be tossed aside or trod upon. Your life’s work and desire to make a positive contribution to this world takes a back seat to your ego’s need for recognition and satisfaction.

Chakra: crown

The Crown Chakra is your connection to Source energy. It’s the energy center through which the soul enters the body. Balanced, it helps you to feel connected, part of a whole, and spiritually grounded. The guidance perceived through your third eye enters your energy  field through the crown chakra. Imbalanced, narcissism and a god-like complex can develop. This is where the ambition of the Capricorn energy can go awry. If you are not spiritually grounded, understanding yourself as a small but unique and important part of the universe, then you can begin to see yourself and your desires as all that matters. A greater purpose is lost, so you turn to satisfying the needs of the ego.

Tarot: the devil

The Devil is the perfect personification of an imbalanced Capricorn or Crown Chakra – the narcissistic, self-serving egoism that convinces you there is nothing greater beyond you and your needs. The classic story of the fallen angel who challenged the creator for supremacy.

The Devil is trying to teach you an important lesson – the power of free-will. You are given a choice of whom to serve – others or yourself. In a balanced state, the choice to serve others comes naturally. You are so energetically attuned to the world around you, you cannot help but see yourself as a part of its intricacies. And so you want to support that world as it, in turn, supports you.

Without that balanced state, you will find yourself out of alignment with nature and with your experiences. Disconnected to the life that is happening all around, instead of being a part of it all, things begin to happen to you. So you strive for control of those external factors. This is the first step towards service to self as you begin to trample on others’ free-will in pursuit of your own desires.

The Devil is the imbalanced representation of the Capricorn energy. The archetype of the balanced Capricorn is the Horned God – masculine energy in connection to the natural world. A bestower of abundance, protector of life and animals, he wandered the wilds, perfectly attuned to the rhythms of Mama Gaia. From this balanced state of spiritual connection, the ambition of the horned god brought fertility and wealth to all he touched. He was generous with the gains of his ambition and cared for those who were in need of aid or protection.

Exercises

Body: R&R

Take a cue from these short days and long nights – rest. It’s a time for planning, not action, so this should leave you plenty of time to kick back with that book you’ve been meaning to read, take those afternoon naps you love, and maybe reel in your caffeine consumption. (If you are like me and LOVE the taste of coffee, decaf can be your best friend – just make sure it has had the caffeine removed through the Swiss water process and not through harmful chemical solvents.)

Every day during this six-week period, set aside one hour of your day for rest and relaxation. Meditate, do a gentle yoga practice, read, nap, whatever R&R means to you.

Emotions / mind: entitled or blessed?

How do you feel about the things in your life? Are you owed something? Do you deserve this or that? Or are you blessed with the things you have?

An attitude of gratitude versus a feeling of entitlement can transform your emotional landscape as well as how you interact with the Capricorn energies during this time. Entitlement stems from the ego and will feed the “devil.” Gratitude is an awareness and recognition of the interconnectedness of everything and strengthens the energy of the “horned god.” Do you feed the ego, or do you recognize your higher self?

In this same vein, what is driving you? Fear or trust? Is your ambition rooted in scarcity or abundance? How you feed this Capricorn energy will determine whether the ego will direct your ambition, or if your Higher Self is able to guide you. Both may produce “success,” but only one will nourish your soul and the world around you.

As you enter this “planning” phase for the coming action-oriented Spring, it’s time to get clear on what you want. In order to distill the insecurities of the ego from the urgings of your higher self, it’s important to focus on the outcome.

The outcome isn’t something physical – a bigger paycheck, a new house, a family – it’s the feeling those things give you. Security, warmth, love, connection. Focusing on the feeling will help you clarify what it is you really want and allow for the magic of the universe to give you things you may not have expected but that will better satisfy your needs. And in this process, what you may discover is you already have everything you need and can rest in contentment and gratitude.

It can also help redirect some of the ego’s demands into more beneficial goals. Revenge is really the ego trying to find peace. If peace is your desired state, what other paths might you take to get there that don’t bring more pain into the world?

Spirit: spiritual grounding

Spiritual grounding requires functioning root and crown chakras. Together these connect the energies of the Earth and the Universe, the divine feminine and masculine, Shakti and Shiva. It is the ascending of kundalini to the sweet nectar of the thousand petaled lotus at the top of the head.

This is an empowering place where an “awakened” human being can consciously create their reality, manifesting their best life through compassion, unconditional love, and service to others. The key here is to discover and commit to your path of service. Whom do you serve? People? A specific demographic? Mothers, children, women, the elderly? Perhaps your service is to animals – volunteering at shelters or rescues, fostering, creating your own sanctuary. Or maybe it’s to serve Gaia, bringing her healing and support from the higher realms. Once you discover your path of service, it’s much harder to get lost or stuck. You simply ask the question – what can I do to serve xyz?

If you are blocked in any other areas, especially the third eye and heart chakras, then accessing the information of your life path will be difficult. You may have to put a pin in this exercise and come back to it next year, after you’ve done more work in other areas of your life. And that’s ok. That’s the way it’s supposed to be. Don’t try to force an awakening or a realization. Forcing it can be painful and filled with unforeseen consequences. Let your life’s path play out in divine timing. With a commitment to discovering it, you absolutely will, in perfect time.

SPIRITUAL GROUNDING MEDITATION

Find a comfortable seated position with a straight spine. Close your eyes and take a few moments to concentrate on your breath. When you feel focused and centered, begin to visualize yourself as an energy conduit, connecting the heavens and the earth. See your spinal column the path through which the energy passes.

Visualize a bright white light beaming down from the heavens into the crown of your head. See this white light passing through each of your chakras until it exists through your root chakra. Follow this beam of light as it continues downward, connecting to the heart of the earth.

Now see a beam of light from the center of the earth begin to travel upwards, entering through your root chakra, ascending your spinal column, and exiting through your crown. This beam of light continues upward into the heavens.

Feel this energy coursing through you, both the energy from Spirit and the energy from Mama Gaia. Feel anchored to the earth while also reaching up and expanding infinitely into space.

Remain here as long as you like. When you are ready, shift your focus back to your breath and physical body. Begin small movements until you again feel fully present in your body. Then gently open your eyes.

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