Shamanic Peoples in their Circles everywhere know Winter Solstice is a time for gathering, listening within the Silence of this Longest Night, Lighting our Candles or our Fires, lifting Prayer for Each and All with whom we share this Mother Earth…and special prayers for this very Earth Herself.
This year of 2012 also brings us wondering was their something the Mayans knew to which we should attend. Some have read the Mayan Calendar as telling us the Earth will end; while others of us understand it is the end of one cycle and the beginning of another.
Certainly do events of this year signify the tottering of some old ways and the challenge to find a Way in which our Collective Life respects and honors every Voice…winged, finned, leafy & flower beings, four legged, two legged and all others that crawl, slither, or walk this plant….and, indeed, the waters and the ground covering Earth’s Skin.
Always does the Winter Solstice deliver to us the singular question of: “How are we tending the Light and Life of Others with whom we share the Earth Community”.
Thus do shamanic Circles gather in Prayer and Ceremonies with intention to assist and pray for All in this Season when shelter, food, and kinship is essential for surviving Winter---being able to greet Spring’s arrival.