Summer Solstice

The Summer Solstice is a magical ‘holiday honouring the sun as he turns the wheel of the year. This is an abundant time for the fruits and fertility of the land. This is the mid way of 2017, the Sun is now at the peak in the shortest day and longest night. As the Sun peaks. it is also a time of reflection for the year so far and now the turning point towards the darkness in the 2nd half of the year.

This week is especially interesting in 2017, because we honour both the light and dark, the masculine and the feminine. Summer Solstice is honouring the Sun, which is considered masculine, as he’s penetrating, out there, hot, and permeates everywhere. And then on Friday it is the Super New Moon (super as she’s close to the earth) in Cancer. The moon is considered feminine, because she’s fluid, flowing, receptive and sometimes hidden. I also liken these to the Shiva Lingham, the Lingham masculine is out there and seen, whereas the feminine yoni is more hidden and dark and receptive.- Do you see this?

 

“in summer, when your gaze dissolves in the endlessly clear sky, penetrate this light that is the essence of your own mind….” Vijnana Bhairava Tantra

 

I invite you into the ritual of the Summer Solstice as I share wit you the symbolism of honouring the sun through Surya Namaskar, which is Sun Salutations.

 

Summer Solstice Ritual 

For Summer Solstice, I always practice 108 Surya Namaskars, I will be teaching this as the sunsets today in Barbados. The 108 is symbolic and I’ve written about it in my blog 108 before.  For me the 108 reflects the male beads, or prayer beads that contain 108 + the guru bead. So as I practice 108 Sun Salutations my body becomes the mala, every breath, and every movement becomes the offering to the Sun, Surya, which is the Universal fire of the earth. When you combine an intention, the practice becomes an embodied prayer…

108 = sacred number in Hinduism and yoga. read more on my 108 blog

The guru bead, named Mount Meru around which the other 108 beads turn when used in the hands, is like the planets around the sun.

A mala represents life as an endless chain of events and bought together by the guru bead, Mount Meru. Mount Meru symbolises that you can rise above any of your perceived limitations and free them from the heart.

Meaning of Summer Solstice

 

Honoring the Solstice is a reminder just how precious each day and season is…as we turn the wheel of the year we arrive at Midsummer… The Summer Solstice is a magically time to celebrate the light of consciousness within yourself and within each and every person.

The journey of the sun throughout the year symbolizes the process of attaining enlightenment, and the Summer Solstice is the top of this journey as the day of most light in the year. I invite you to reflect upon the potential for consciousness to achieve its own awakening….your own awakening!

A prostration, also known as a pranama (to “nam” or bow to the life force) this great posture of healing and peace.

‘Namaskar – the simpliest form of yoga is Namaskar. Put your hands together and untie the polarities within & without’ – Sadhguru

A pranam brings about a natural letting go that anyone can experience, it represents the power of renewal that is inherent in life, a humble strength that we can give to the earth, while receiving from a deeper ground of energy that is greater than one’s individual self. This embodied ritual movement instinctually transforms us, releasing tensions and awakening us.

 

108 Surya Namaskars for Summer Solstice

If you ask anyone who has practiced 108  Surya Namaskars they will tell you, they hit a wall, their ego rises, as the practice churns you. That is the point! The practice is teaching you to deepen connection to your clear awareness. This short snippet of a longer mythical story might help you…it’s about Lakshmi, the emergence of beauty and auspiciousness and also really about Shiva!

 

Once upon a time a very long time ago, or maybe not so long ago as this story is happening right here potential right now with you….

 The demons and the gods were at war with one another and the demons were taking over the universe, the gods were fearful they go seeking answers to restore order and seek the Amrita of life.

• the demons represent conflict or competition or separation so ultimately they attack and are the darker side of everyones nature. they rush forward to be first.
• the gods are the lighter aspects of everyones nature, they are more awake, loving, kind, compassionate and liberating.

So they were in competition and trying to find the exilir/amrita of life, and weren’t succeeding so then they said to each other okay let’s work together…. so the story goes a started to churn the ocean… they used a mountain, Mount Meru (remember the Guru bead of the mala) and a serpent (shakti) and the ocean started to become wild and stormy, the waves were huge. Everything was turbulent. The ocean began to release toxins and poisons called halahala and they were about to destroy everything. The only person who could save the day was Shiva!

Shiva comes in and he absorbs all of the toxins… he just opens his mouth and takes a deep breath in and sucks all the halahala. Shiva is the transformer and so powerful he could transform anything

Shiva has this infinite capacity to absorb.

What has this to do with Summer Solstice Surya Namaskar practice you might ask?

When life, and the oceans and the 108 sun salutations becomes challenging i.e. when the shit hits the fan, this is when you see your habits, your patterns, your feelings that you suppress and these can feel toxic and you doubt why you ever started…

Note Shiva breathes in and pauses.

When anything and everything surfaces it is time to pause, breath and FIND YOUR SHIVA. This is the part of you that is able to stay present with the feelings, Shiva’s presence, your awareness or consciousness, the infinite space in your self that just allows you to be. Shiva nature helps you to stay present in the storms, in the toxic live, the sticky points in the 108 Sun Salutations.

Back to story… then there is this pause after Shiva absorbs it all… in stillness and in the pause, the ocean became even more still and out of the stillness rose this most beautiful radiance luminous goddess, the goddess Lakshmi, the most beautiful woman that anyone had ever seen and in her hand she held a vessel and this vessel contain the Amrita

Here’s your Practice at the Summer Solstice or anytime

 

when life challenges you, connect with your Shiva Nature, the transformer, the One who holds space, the ground of your being.  As You connect with Shiva, drink in the poisons and then you pause, after while the stillness comes – this pause, the stillness, this void is the potent medicine it is the impregnated void and then the beauty arises the Amrita of the practice….

Awareness is like the sun, when it shines on things, they are transformed ~ Thich Nhat Hanh

Remember the pause, most overlook it!

ps I’d like to honour my cat called Surya, Summer Solstice is his birthday and he reminds how to shine with love. And he choose his name from a pack of Hindu gods and goddesses pack, I think he chose well no? xx