Darkness: Three Ways

Image by Carolin Pimenta from Unsplash

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“In the midst of the cacophony of outrage and suffering in the world at this moment, I find myself turning to the rhythms of the earth as my guide and teacher, as I’ve done for decades.” Joanna Powell Colbert

In my prenatal yoga teaching I encouraged my students to see this gestational darkness as a mysterious blessing. We don’t specifically know what’s going on in our wombs at any point in time, but we do know that our bodies are creating something miraculous. In that nurturing darkness from which we all arose, fully formed and ready to experience the world in all its glory and deprivation, our bones, organs and souls were expanding into our Selves. This epicenter of originality coaxes perfection from our cells and we enter the world through an intimate travail shared with our mothers and no one else. The journey isn’t so much away from the dark and towards the light, but an expansion into our divine dharma or purpose. We bring that sense of perfection we realized in that uterine darkness, from the Divine Feminine as she inhabits the world, into our human existence and base the life we have chosen to lead on that awe and wonder.

The darkness of winter, the early nightfall, the dark dawning of the day, the sleeping world reinventing itself under the snow-covered ground. This daily rhythm and yearly cycle of light and dark turns the wheel of life and harbors the lifeblood of all beings as it rests and readies itself for its emergence again when the light calls it forth. We honor the Divine Feminine’s imminence in our world and follow Her directions to rest and rejuvenate our own bodies, minds, and hearts.

“There’s a term in the Inuit tradition called “qartsiluni” that translates, “sitting quietly together in the darkness, waiting expectantly for something creative to burst forth.” That is the place the world finds itself right now, waiting in the quiet, listening for the Divine Feminine to show us the way to bridge this chasm of disconnection to our world and each other. In this darkness we come to see how all things are connected, and we wait to feel, hear, and experience this perfection of existence. Can you find these moments in time in which the world, She, comes to our aid, and brings the compassion, knowledge and spaciousness that creates possibility from despair, abundance from perceived lack, and love from the missing connection to our own hearts, and the hearts of all people? This is the solution to the problems we face in our lives….to pause, to remember, and to open ourselves to the life we are meant to live.

Where are you on this continuum? Have you felt the inklings of love and wonder? Are you confused about your reactions? What is your plan for your future and the expansion of your heart? I look forward to hearing your thoughts.