This meditation is dedicated to Mother Earth,
The Mother of us all,
And to the equinox,
The vernal equinox in particular.
Of course,
The equinox is a global moment.
On this particular time,
The Sun rises due east and sets due west,
And day and night are roughly equal.
The vernal equinox usually comes on or around March 20th in the northern hemisphere,
On or around September 21st in the southern hemisphere.
And it's that point at which we tip into the light from that point of balance,
From this point forward.
Day will be longer than night.
And it's often observed as the beginning of spring,
And sometimes celebrated as Ostara,
And many other observations,
I'm sure.
Persians observe this as the New Year,
Nowruz.
The sounds you're hearing in the background are spring peepers in a pool in Maine.
These are a type of frog.
Their chirping is said to mark the beginning of spring.
They start up as soon as the ice melts in the wetlands.
Thank you to Bud Gillette for the recording.
So for this meditation,
It's best to sit comfortably with an erect spine.
We might begin with a little spring cleaning,
So to speak.
Just taking a deep breath in through the nose and exhaling quickly through the mouth a few times.
And then let your breath settle into its natural rhythm.
And gently bring your attention to your breath,
Just to observe the breath,
Just to see what it's like,
How it is.
Notice the circular,
Cyclical nature of your breath.
Draw a breath in,
Letting breath out.
The cycle of our breath is similar to the cycle of the earth,
Moving around the Sun.
Days are getting longer,
And days are getting shorter,
And days are getting longer again.
Breathing in,
Breathing out,
And breathing in again.
Our inhalation is similar to the lengthening of days,
The waxing of the light.
And the vernal equinox,
Well,
That's that moment right in the middle of the inhalation,
A passing fleeting moment when your lungs are half full of air.
Springtime.
It's kind of like the inhalation of the earth.
Of the natural forces that have been slumbering through the winter,
Kind of curled up tight and ready to spring forth.
That's why we call it spring.
And at this moment it may feel like an inhalation before the great burst of activity,
Of new life.
So that inhalation in our breath could be an analog to springtime.
What can we learn from it?
What wisdom can we find in our inhalation?
With each breath we're accepting air into our body,
Into our lungs,
To become part of us.
With each inhalation we're drawing something from outside of us into our very being.
We can cultivate this kind of acceptance intentionally in our meditation as we observe our breath.
Maybe there are other thoughts,
Distractions,
Feelings,
Sensations that arise.
We can accept all of these inputs,
All of this stimulus,
All of these thoughts,
Feelings,
Emotions.
We can greet them with an open-hearted spirit of acceptance,
Without judgment.
We can accept whatever arises within our experience.
Simply return our attention gently to the breath again and again.
At the moment of the equinox we might see it as a special invitation,
Not merely to practice this acceptance,
But also to reflect on what it means to accept and even to exercise discernment about how we live our lives and what we welcome in to our lives,
What we accept,
What we take in to our bodies,
To our minds,
To our being.
In our daily lives,
Not just in meditation,
But when the meditation is done,
How will we carry the spirit forward?
What will we accept?
What will we bring in?
If we think of the air that we're breathing,
We want the air that we breathe to be pure and clean.
And in the same way,
In much of our life we might examine our choices to see if we're bringing into our lives that which will make us healthy,
Happy,
And which will help us thrive.
Sometimes this is paradoxically through a process of subtraction.
We might be inspired to give up unhealthy habits,
Habits of mind,
Habits of body.
We can affirm our desire to make healthy choices,
To make happy,
Responsible,
Ethical choices in our life.
We can affirm even with each breath,
You might simply think of a word or a phrase affirming your resolve,
Affirming your desire.
With each breath,
Wellness,
Happiness,
Or a phrase,
Desire make healthy choices.
And if you'd like,
You might even visualize these intentions as something that you can hold,
Cupped in your hands,
An egg,
A symbol of life,
A symbol of new life,
A symbol of spring,
Fragile and yet strong at the same time.
You're holding your intentions gently,
Carefully.
Bringing them to life.
Carrying them forward into your life,
Your best intentions for this day,
For this season.
And finally,
It's always appropriate to remember our gratitude for receiving this moment,
Our gratitude to our ancestors,
Both material and spiritual.
To all our friends and fellow travelers,
Thank you.
And I wish you a happy Astara and a blessed Vernal Equinox.
Thank you.
