Musings: Living in the Age of Aquarius
Congratulations! You've won the lottery!
More than one contemporary writer describes living in this era — the magic, much prophesied dawning of the golden Age of Aquarius — like winning the lottery. Despite the seemingly random measures of comfort and chaos doled out to people around the world, all seven billion of us here on Earth are lucky ticket holders to what may possibly be humanity's most shining evolutionary moment.
Over 2100 years ago, sophisticated Maya astronomical calculations identified December 21, 2012 as the date when the winter solstice Sun would align with the bright band center of the Milky Way galaxy, a fact scientifically catalogued today as part of the 26,000-year cyclic procession of the equinoxes. Spiritually the Maya conceived of this alignment as the union of the great cosmic mother Milky Way with the great cosmic father Sun. They foresaw in this auspicious event — which happens to coincide with the end date of the Maya Long Count calendar, just one of many calendars created by the Maya — the end of a decaying, corrupted cycle of human activity and the emergence of a new human era of galactic proportions, however, not without the death and rebirth that accompanies such glorious transformation.
It's not surprising many folks are contemplating doom and destruction scenarios heading into 2012. We have much to be gloomy about: serious threats to our ecosystem, looming food shortages, climate catastrophes, economic collapse, social chaos and worldwide political instability, and a plethora of daunting acronyms: GMOs, EMFs, IEDs, PCBs, GOPs and PSTD, just to name a few. Today's gross imbalance in the distribution of global resources is both brutish and unsustainable. "We strive for larger televisions, DVD screens in our cars and the perfectly grilled tender steak while billions die for a glass of clean water or a bowl of rice," writes former head of Greenpeace Paul Gilding in his latest book, The Great Disruption: Why the Climate Crisis Will Bring On the End of Shopping and the Birth of the New World (see review this issue). Planetary alignments, ancient prophecies and current events all suggest that if ever there was a time for humanity to shape up or ship out, that time is now.
While the convergence of celestial signposts with increasing planetary chaos may be creating a sense of doomsday urgency, it is also triggering an evolutionary response in humanity. Whether this is genetically encoded in our DNA, written in the stars or a conscious choice of free will, we are discovering our multidimensional nature allows us to heal our own bodies, readily access higher intelligence and plug into the power of group consciousness, the touchstone of what it means to be fully human.
Intuitively we know we are endowed with these greater abilities to learn, heal, communicate and create beyond what today's limited science and reason tell us is possible, but first we must be willing to think differently about ourselves. In "Visionary Solutions to Current Earth Changes" this issue, Vywamus, a teacher of higher consciousness says, "Humanity's great challenge now is to learn to receive into your everyday reality the help you are always getting from your larger selves and from other beings at higher dimensions of reality. This will help you move easily through the current time of transition. You must go to the numinous [spiritual] level of your larger selves in order to deal with the changes that are occurring now. There is no other way for you to survive."
Astrologer Eric Linter notes that Neptune re-enters Pisces on February 3, 2012. The mysterious planet will remain in the sign of The Fishes until 2026. During these years we can expect advances in healing and medicine, expanded social consciousness and greater spiritual awareness, so the timing is right for this quantum leap in evolution.
Will it be ecstasy or apocalypse? Birth requires the ending of one cycle and the beginning of something new, often a traumatic process. How ready are we to abandon cherished beliefs and institutions in science, commerce, religion and education that have been the bedrock of our lives but have divided humanity against itself? The struggle to let go will be as defiant as Earth's bedrock itself, requiring a powder keg large enough to blast through to a new awareness. A serious disruption to our power grid is a likely source for such a spark; Aquarius is said to rule electricity.
Writing in The Great Disruption, Paul Gilding notes: "We are an extraordinary species, and we are capable of great things. History is full of evidence that when our backs are against the wall, all the great qualities of humanity — our compassion, our drive, our technical brilliance, and our ability to make things happen on a massive global scale — come strongly to the fore. We will change at a scale and speed we can barely imagine today, completely transforming our economy, including our energy and transport industries, in just a few short decades."
With so much cosmic excitement on the horizon, don't forget that winter is the season of turning within, contemplation, healing and quiet nurturing. Relax into your own inner medicine and follow herbalist Rosemary Gladstar's excellent advice in "Winter Medicine Chest" this issue: "Whenever you get confused, unsure of what step to take next, just pause, relax, and sit down for a moment. Put your bare feet on the ground consciously connecting with the heart of the Mother. Breathe in and out until you feel the earth answering your questions. It will tell you which medicines to use, how and when. This winter listen to your body."
Carol Bedrosian is the publisher of Spirit of Change holistic magazine. Visit www.spiritofchange.org.
