Here is a new video I've just made entitled "Vassilissa the Beautiful: A Russian Folk-Tale for Us Today."
Growing up, I loved the Russian Folk-Tales (or Fairy Tales, as my book of Russian Folk-Tales called them).
Today, I would like to read the story of Vassilissa (sometimes spelled Vasilisa or Vasilissa) and add some commentary on the ancient wisdom preserved in this tale.
You can find an older version of this same story beginning on page 109 of this collection of Russian Folk-Tales published in 1915 and reprinted in 1916.
The point of December Solstice has now passed -- and now we enter the momentous "Three-Day Pause" before the Sun's journey back towards the north is really appreciable, and during which all the world seems to hang in the balance, awaiting the great rebirth of the annual cycle.
If you have not yet gone back to re-read my earlier post entitled "The Three-Day Pause," the next few days might be an opportune time to do so.
In that post from 2016, I wrote in part:
[. . .] there is a kind of "hang time" at each of the solstices, as the sun is "reversing its course" from proceeding "downwards" (lower in the sky, and further and further south in its rising and setting points) to proceeding "upwards" (higher in the sky, and further and further north in its rising and setting points).It is a kind of "pregnant pause" -- full of anticipation -- when the sun's azimuthal rising direction barely changes at all (as opposed to the equinoxes, when the direction to the sun's rising point on the horizon is changing by a full degree every couple of days [. . .]
But the December solstice yields a harvest as bountiful as that of the equinox and the horizon. It shows soul at the nadir of its dip into matter, and all its implications bear immediately and weightily upon the human situation. [. . .] At equinoxes light and dark are equal in quantity and sovereignty. But at the solstice the two powers are stabilized for the period, albeit in unequal relation. [. . .] Heraclitus adds a most pertinent observation: "The harmonious structure of the world depends upon opposite tension, like that of the bow and the lyre." Stability is gained only by the mutual annulment of two opposite forces. The planets swing in fixed orbits because of the exact counterbalance of centrifugal and centripetal energies.
The significance of the solstice (the word meaning "sun standing still") lies in the fact that for the time both light and darkness stand still in relation to each other. The basic feature is motionlessness. Neither is losing or gaining. They are stabilized. [. . .] So the Christ was born in a stable. 475 - 477.
These days of "standing still" anticipate the moment of midnight after the third day of pause, when the Sun is at its metaphorical "lowest point" -- because at midnight, the Sun can be seen to be completely entombed and obscured by the entire bulk of our Earth, which is entirely between our point on the globe (wherever we are) and our solar star.
It is at that point -- midnight on the night of the third day in the Three-Day Pause -- at which the Sun is esoterically figured to begin its motion back towards the "upper half" of the year. It is at this moment, in some cultures, that the oldest daughter in the family places the effigy of the Christ Child in the manger scene: at midnight on December 24.
This point esoterically marks the return or arrival of Self -- Self who is so often hidden and suppressed due to alienation, but to whom we all have access.
And thus this Three-Day Pause is an opportune interval for us to pursue that appearance and return of Self from whom we become so easily estranged, and to resolve to enjoy that presence of Self more and more during the year ahead!
We are rapidly approaching the moment of December Solstice for the year 2021!
Earth will reach that specific relationship with the Sun when our southern pole is pointed "most directly" towards the Sun about eight hours from now (as this is being published), at 7:58 in the morning on 21 December (Pacific Time), which is 10:58 in the morning on 21 December (Eastern Time in North America), which is which is 1558 Greenwich Time on 21 December.
The four great stations of the two solstices and two equinoxes frame the annual cycle of our Earth's relationship to our Sun -- and they also form the structural frame of the system of celestial metaphor for the world's ancient myths and sacred stories, including the stories in the Bible but also the myths and sacred stories of cultures around the globe.
The December Solstice holds particular significance within this great esoteric framework, because it was associated with the "second birth" -- the spiritual birth -- and the re-awakening to Higher Self, from whom we so easily become estranged and alienated during the life in this world.
Above is a short excerpt from a much longer and more detailed conversation on this very subject, a conversation which took place between myself and Kesenya of Guiding Star Astrology on December 4th of this year.
This excerpt contains some discussion of the importance of the December Solstice, when the sun's path reaches its lowest point, from the perspective of an observer in the Northern Hemisphere -- as well as some discussion about why the birth of figures representative of Higher Self in myth are sometimes associated with the point of midnight, three days after the day of December Solstice.
Here is the link to the short excerpt above, and here is the link to the entire conversation with Kesenya from earlier this month.
Here is a link to an earlier blog post entitled "The Three-Day Pause," which I published in 2016 and which is pertinent to the subjects discussed in both the shorter and longer video selections above.
The theme of recovery of and reconnection with Self runs through the world's ancient myths -- and is closely associated with this very specific point of the December Solstice in the annual cycle.
I sincerely hope that this December Solstice of 2021 will be a joyous and a meaningful one for you, and thank you for your interest in the work I am doing exploring these ancient treasures given to us for our blessing today -- and every day.
An Ash I know standing It is called Yggdrasil
A high tree sprinkled with shining drops
From there come the dews which in the dales fall
It stands ever green above the Well of Urd (or "Above the Well of Weird")
images: Wikimedia Commons (top image, bottom image).
Is Yggdrasil an Ash, or a Yew?
The debate continues to this day, but I am quite sure that the mighty World Tree is found in the Invisible Realm and is seen in the celestial realm, rather than the terrestrial.
Above are two descriptions of Yggdrasil from the Poetic Edda, one from the Voluspa and one from the Grimnismal.
Images: Wikimedia Commons (top image, center image, bottom image).
I am very excited to announce the launch of The Undying Stars Academy: systematic and comprehensive online courses teaching step-by-step the ancient world-wide system of Star Myth Astrotheology!
The first two courses are intended as "foundational" courses to lay the groundwork for later courses which will dive into specific mythologies from around the world (such as an upcoming course which offers a celestial tour of the Bible, and future courses on the myths of ancient Greece and on the Norse myths and on myths and sacred stories from other cultures on our Earth).
These two foundational courses give a framework which will help you get the most out of all the other courses to follow -- and these two courses are:
Celestial Mechanics and the Myths
and
I hope you will enjoy these courses if you choose to take them, and that you will find all positive things inside!
Warm thank-you goes out to my friends (who are also amazing researchers and experts in their own respective fields, and profoundly creative and interesting thinkers) Scott Onstott and Geoff Fitzpatrick of the Sacred Geometry Academy for inviting me to have a conversation with them on the Geometer's Compass Podcast.
Welcome to any new visitors checking out this site after hearing about it through Geoff and Scott!
Above is the video of our discussion, which was recorded on 06 December 2021. The full webpage for this episode of Geometer's Compass can be found here.
In this episode, we range over a variety of fascinating subjects, and Scott and Geoff respond in ways which provide new insights and perspectives on the myths and the stars and their meaning for our lives right now.
Scott Onstott is (among many other accomplishments) the creator of the Secrets in Plain Sight series of videos, which you can find linked on the full webpage to our conversation, linked above, and which has literally many millions of views and contains information and analysis which is almost incredible and unbelievable, but which is also undeniable and completely verifiable!
Geoff Fitzpatrick is (among many other gifts and talents) a teacher of Holotropic Breathwork and a maker of Mandalas, and leads others to make Mandalas as part of powerful shared creative experiences.
You can see more details about Scott and Geoff and the many amazing learning opportunities which they have to offer at this "About the Founders" page at the Sacred Geometry Academy website.
I very much hope that you will enjoy this conversation, and that you will explore more of the work Scott and Geoff are doing with their project!
Please drop them a note to thank them for all the time and energy that goes into what they are bringing to the world, and share this conversation with anyone for whom it might be positive and uplifting in some way.
Welcome to any new visitors coming here for the first time after seeing the latest video from Kesenya at Guiding Star Astrology -- and welcome back to returning friends if this is already your second visit (or more)!
Above is the video of my most-recent conversation with Kesenya, recorded yesterday which was 04 December in California (although already 05 December in Australia). Here is a link to the video for ease of reference.
This conversation has a special announcement towards the very end that you won't want to miss!
But do also please watch the rest of our conversation, which explores the Solstices, ancient Winter Solstice observations including Saturnalia, and the entire framework of the ancient system of celestial metaphor used by the myths and sacred stories from cultures on every inhabited continent and island of our Earth!
If you have not already seen it, you may want to go back and watch my previous visit with Kesenya, from September of this year: here is the link to the previous blog post about it and here is the link to the video from September 2021.
I very much hope you will enjoy our conversation and that something you find there will be a blessing to you in some way.
Thank you again to Esoteric Thoughts for having me over for a conversation about myths and stars and their meaning for our lives.
This is "Part Two" of our conversation, in which we are discussing the well-known episode found in Genesis chapter 9, of Noah and his sons after the Flood, in which Noah plants a vineyard and makes wine, resulting in drunkenness and embarrassment.
Here is the link to the Esoteric Thoughts channel, and here is the link to the above video about Noah's drunkenness.
Here for convenience is the link to my blog post about the first part of this interview on Esoteric Thoughts, which contains a link to the video of "Part One" (and here is a link to that Part One video for ease of reference as well).
This discussion contains evidence which argues that the story of Noah's drunkenness and nakedness, and the subsequent actions of his three sons Shem, Ham and Japheth, is a celestial story and one that is built upon a foundation of metaphor involving specific constellations which we can still see in the night sky. The conversation was recorded on 16 October 2021.
I hope you will find something in this video which will be positive to you in some way: please share as appropriate and please give Esoteric Thoughts some encouraging feedback for all the hard work which goes into the production of the Esoteric Thoughts channel in distributing this type of information to the world.
Big Texas-sized "Thank-you" goes out to Brandon Thomas of the Expanding Reality Podcast for a fantastic conversation about stars, myths, ancient wisdom, the "Orpheus" myth-pattern world-wide, the crossing of the Red Sea, some important lessons for us from the myth of Perseus and Medusa, and a host of other related topics and fascinating tangents that I hope you will enjoy very much! I certainly did.
Here is the link to the above video of our conversation for ease of reference.
This interview was recorded on 13 November 2021.
I know you will enjoy Brandon's insights and personality and approach to podcasting -- please give him some positive feedback on his hard work, and share as appropriate!
You can also find the file at Apple Podcasts using this link (and provide Expanding Reality with a positive rating while you are there) and on Spotify using this link.
Thank you for watching and I hope that something in this video will be a blessing to you in some way!
A big equator-crossing "Thank-you" to the editors of New Dawn Magazine for including two of my articles in their most-recent Special Issue!
You can find the complete table of contents for this issue (Volume 15, Number 6) listed here.
You can purchase this issue from the website at the link above -- I hope you will enjoy it if you do! I myself have the physical print edition and it is quite nostalgic to actually sit down with no screen and flip through a glossy magazine!
Cheers!
This video consists of a guided tour through one of the most dramatic parts of the heavens, now rising into view in the month of December.
It explains some of the "landmarks" I use to identify the various constellations and other celestial features in this section of the sky.
In the video, we walk through the constellations of Orion, Taurus, Auriga, Gemini, Canis Major, Canis Minor, Perseus, Andromeda, Cassiopeia and Pegasus. We also touch upon the Hyades and the Pleiades.
I hope you will have an opportunity to go outside and see them in person, if at all possible! Thank you for watching.
