What is the Winter Solstice?
Today is Tuesday, December 22nd, 2015 – the Winter Solstice.
It is the shortest day and longest night of the year, when the sun’s daily maximum elevation in the sky is the lowest. The interpretation of this day varies by cultures but for more than 5,000 years, people have welcomed the winter solstice because it’s a new beginning, a time of rebirth, creativity, and celebration.
The Winter Solstice is a magical day to release 2015 and make space for 2016.
What do I Release?
- Any toxic thoughts that will impede your progress and keep you stuck in fear.
- Any experiences that you are done with – positive or negative, so that you may have space in your life to welcome and receive this new experience and information.
- Write down everything on paper that you are done with – judgments, stories, beliefs, successes, failures, fears, resentments, disappointments, excuses, opinions, guilt, or relationships.
How Do I Release it?
- Spend a moment in quiet reflection.
- Burn all the papers in a Burning Bowl ceremony.
A Burning Bowl Ceremony is a ritual of letting go old hurts, resentments, disappointments, or successes – anything that we are holding on to that we need to release in order to make space for our new intentions. We let go anything that is keeping our good from us.
Fire is a symbol of transformation and power. The act of writing down what you want to release is an important part of the letting go process.
I burn my slips of paper in a clay bowl on our gas grill. You can shred them too.
As you burn them recite the following poem by Sylvia Boorstein:
May I feel protected and safe
May I feel content and pleased
May my physical body provide me with strength
May my life unfold smoothly with ease
Results
This action leads to realigning yourself for present-moment awareness and qualities such as:
Freshness: not being overshadowed by the past
Openness: being free from expectations
Innocence: no judging from old experiences
