Winter Solstice marks the moment of ‘deepest yin’ in the solar calendar.
| ‘Yin/Yang’: We’ve all heard the term, and have probably used it more than once in passing, yet what does it mean? Simply put, Yin-Yang is a metaphysical perspective, derived from ancient Taoist cosmology, that can be used to understand the circumstances of our lives, and the world we live in. |
You could also think of Yin-Yang as an ‘inner compass.’ A way to know where you are at any moment in your life, and how to make the changes each moment calls for.
In that regard, please accept these small gifts intended to inspire a meaningful moment, or two —or more, as we all celebrate the superb juncture at which we find ourselves at Winter Solstice: Being Alive!
The important thing to remember health-wise this time of year is this: CONSERVE your energy—your Chi; by doing so, you’ll INVEST in your HEALTH.
Understand YIN
To be able to sink … fluidly and gracefully … into the Yin … one must understand one’s own Yin, and the Yin of Nature.
Yin needs to be understood and experienced so we know how to moderate our lifestyles during the cold, depleting months of Winter. With this knowing we bolster ourselves, and in the process, make real our dreams of Spring Coming
YIN: A Time of Receptivity
In the Yin time of year—from Summer Solstice to Winter Solstice—to be in BALANCE, one must recognize and practice the dynamic of RECEIVING.
Seasonal changes are like changing tides: One tide has been high & begins to flow out … as the next season’s energy flows in …
Half our lives take place in receptivity: INHALE … receive … EXHALE … create … Winter Solstice … A new beginning …
Conserve Your Reserve
Health-WISE, we have recently received the bounty of yang energy we call ‘The Harvest.’ As well, our bodies have been warmed and strengthened by Summer, and are now better prepared to combat the microorganisms trying to infect us through our LUNGS in Winter.
Seasons change & your body changes with them. Oriental Medicine uses seasonal awareness to balance your body’s energy to stimulate health.
Like our ancestors, who understood the necessity of storing as much of their harvest as possible, we need to CONSERVE the Energy … the Chi … we’ve cultivated throughout Spring and Summer so that we have an energy RESERVE to receive from, now that the easy energy of Summer and Autumn has passed and cold and darkness expand.
Winter Solstice is a time to become aware of and feel the dark, still aspects of your Self that come into focus at the beginning of Winter.
Bear hibernates; Tree gathers energy in roots. Get in sync with Winter energy by sinking into the deeper parts of yourself.
Winter Solstice
A time of Deep Stillness.
Turn things off,
Listen …
The Shortest Day
And so the Shortest Day came and the year died
And everywhere down the centuries of the snow-white world
Came people singing, dancing,
To drive the dark away.
They lighted candles in the winter trees;
They hung their homes with evergreen;
They burned beseeching fires all night long
To keep the year alive.
And when the new year’s sunshine blazed awake
They shouted, revelling.
Through all the frosty ages you can hear them
Echoing behind us – listen!
All the long echoes, sing the same delight,
This Shortest Day,
As promise wakens in the sleeping land:
They carol, feast, give thanks,
And dearly love their friends,
And hope for peace.
And now so do we, here, now,
This year and every year.
Welcome Yule!
— Susan Cooper
