Image courtesy Crow Wing Crest Lodge, Walker, MNhttp://www.crowwing.com/
The change of seasons is an amazing cycle that we all depend upon and expect to happen like...well...the change of seasons. I think we would all agree that, regardless of our wishes or actions, time will march on. The cycle will continue.
The ouroboros is an age-old sign of this cycle of birth, life, death, and rebirth. It's typically illustrated as a serpent swallowing its own tail, and has been used since ancient Egyptian times (approximately 1600 BCE). Even Cleopatra drew the Ouroboros in her alchemical journals.
This symbol is widely-accepted, too. Close variations of the ouroboros are found in Indian, Native American, Japanese, Chinese, Norse, Hindu, Aztec, Tibetan, and many more ancient mythologies.
Ouroboros. Image courtesy Wikipedia
Typically, the ouroboros is colored half light and half dark, as well. This is thought to symbolize that, along this infinite cycle, there exist balanced and opposing forces of light and dark. Be careful of equating "light" and "dark" to "good" and "bad" though, because your "good" might be someone else's "bad" and vice versa. Think of it more as daytime and nighttime. This inherent pattern of our planet is what we've come to require in order to survive. Nighttime is not "bad," it's just "dark!"
This thought is also behind the origin of the "yin-yang" or taijitu symbol. Literally, taijitu translates to "diagram of the supreme ultimate." This balance of energies is the basis for many schools of both Eastern and Western philosophy.
Taijitu.
Image courtesy Jung Tao School of Classical Chinese Medicine
As a matter of fact, you may recognize the symbol below. It's called the "lemniscate" (Latin for "ribbon") but is typically referred to as "infinity" and signifies just that--an unbounded limit--in mathematics.
Infinity.
Courtesy Conservation OnLine (CoOL), Stanford University Libraries
While its actual origins of the lemniscate are still unclear, the connections between this symbol for infinity and a variation of the ouroboros (and maybe even the taijitu, as well) are rather straightforward, as illustrated below.
Image courtesy Alchemy Lab
http://www.alchemylab.com/
The ancients were aware that we are a part of an infinitely vast dance of creation and destruction. That death brings about the opportunity for life.
But I've come to realize that death is not "The End," rather it is only an end. Like the ouroboros and the lemniscate, what we perceive as death is only the completion of a cycle that marches forward toward infinity. It's a cycle in which we are active participants, not bystanders.
In my work as a medium, I spend a lot of time with people who are grieving the loss of loved ones. This aspect of death is a part of my job. Although the amount of learning and growth that this cycle can offer us is great, it's only our choices that truly affect our experience here.
I recently did a reading for a woman at a gallery event. Her daughter had passed and came through powerfully. I got the feeling that I had a lump in my throat and that words were left unsaid. Important words.
It turns out that, because of an argument, this mother and her daughter chose, however emotionally, not to express their mutual love when they parted one day many months ago. Minutes later, the woman's daughter was dead. While the torment of the subsequent months certainly provided an opportunity for learning, I don't think any of us would consciously choose to receive messages of love through a third party. But we seem to always think there's a "tomorrow" or a "next time."
Thankfully, the mother in this case was able to get a clear message of love from her daughter at the gallery event. That doesn't always happen, however diligent we mediums are. Whether to act, to express your feelings, to forgive, to leave--the choice is always there. Always.
Choice is one of the main engines of our physical reality.
So I urge you to choose to talk to your loved ones. Ask them how they're feeling. Choose to tell them how you feel. Hug them. Love them. Do what you can do TODAY to help them feel precious. For they are precious, just as each and every one of us is precious. And they are loved, just as each and every one of us is loved.
But don't stop there. We're all vital parts of this never-ending cycle of birth, life, death, and rebirth. As such, all entities on this planet are our siblings.
While we may not yet be able to stop or reverse this cycle of renewal, we can make choices that enrich the journey for all of us. We can choose to love rather than hate. We can choose to inquire rather than to fear. Tolerate rather than vilify. Soothe rather than injure.
Collectively, we are one. The choices we make affect all others.
Love them spring, summer, fall, and winter.
