09 Aug Dream Temple ~ Solar Eclipse in Leo- August 11th, 2018
We Dream — It is Good We Are Dreaming
by Emily Dickinson
We dream — it is good we are dreaming —
It would hurt us — were we awake…
On August 11th, 2018 there will be a partial Solar Eclipse in the sign of Leo. Eclipses have a fearful reputation because they accelerate the speed of your personal development as well as your spiritual understanding.
When the Sun is in Leo, you are urged to feel warmth and gratitude for whatever health, wealth and vitality you currently have. The Sun in its rulership is radiant and life-affirming, reminding you to open your heart to the beauty of life. With such wisdom in mind, expect this Solar Eclipse to inspire a creative shift in the way you feel about your current circumstances.
But since it is playing — kill us,
And we are playing — shriek—
As the wisdom of Heraclitus repeats, there is nothing constant but change. This is exactly what eclipse seasons will remind you of. Try not to let any glorified memories of the past obstruct your growth. Your story must evolve to reflect your age and experience.
The alternative is to cling to the past, letting a memory of who you once were utterly destroy you. That’s the very dark side of Leo, best avoided. If you are having a hard time with the shift that’s upon you, then let this eclipse be an opportunity for healing.
What harm? Men die — externally —
It is a truth — of Blood —
This summer’s transformative wave has been edged by a wicked rip current.This season of retrogrades and eclipses has been very hard on most people. If you feel lost or discouraged, don’t assume you are succumbing to a terrible fate.
But we — are dying in Drama —
And Drama — is never dead —
Fortunately, this eclipse in the sign of Leo carries the revitalizing rays of the Sun to help you heal. It will light a fire in your heart, inflaming you with a renewed sense of purpose and mythos. If you heal your story then you can heal your whole life.
With the Sun, Moon and Mercury retrograde all in Leo, you will hear your soul calling from deep within. Moved by your soul’s yearning, you will feel inspired to put more of your heart into whatever it is that you must do.
A Solar Eclipse is like a super radiant New Moon, representing the start of a fresh cycle of creative and emotional energies. In the garden of your mind, New Moons are usually quiet times for planting seeds and dreaming your future into being.
A Solar Eclipse is also a time for planting seeds, but it arrives in a circle of drums and fire. Know that this a potent magical time. Seed as much love, inspiration, and health into your future as possible.
In astrology, the Sun represents your sense of self and your purpose. It is the radiance of your divine light. But when the Sun is eclipsed by the Moon, the dream world of myth and magic fully emerges. In psychological terms, Solar Eclipses throw open a window into the subconscious, facilitating miraculous insights, healing, and creative inspiration.
Cautious — We jar each other —
And either — open the eyes —
This Solar Eclipse will also be conjunct to Mercury Retrograde, opening another pathway of communication between conscious and subconscious. Because of the deeply internal focus at this time, the most healing and transformative powers of this eclipse will likely come through in dreams.
It is in your dreams where your soul speaks freely. In honor of how much you have already learned from dreams, let the energies of this eclipse be devoted to this ancient way of knowing.
Lest the Phantasm — prove the mistake —
And the livid Surprise
In most cultures throughout the ancient world, dreams were believed to offer access to the divine. So many stories, from the Iliad to the Bible, describe dreams as direct messages from the gods.
Cool us to Shafts of Granite —
With just an age — and name —
The prophetic and healing power of dreams were honored in the tradition of Sleep Temples, which seem to have originated in Egypt with the legendary priest Imhotep. As servant of the Sun god Ra, Imhotep commissioned elaborate temples where the sick would be healed during their nightly descent into darkness.
And perhaps a phrase in Egyptian —
It’s prudenter — to dream —
Whether it was for physical or spiritual maladies, people that arrived at Sleep Temples were ritually bathed in incense, incantations and symbols that, like Egyptian funerary rites, prepared them for their journey into the dreamworld. This practice was called, Dream Incubation.
As the scholar Sarah Jane describes in her article Dream Incubation in Ancient Sleep Temples:
“The activities of the patient during waking hours were carefully designed so as to connect with the unconscious mind, the soul, the psyche. When the time eventually came for the sacred sleep, and it was the turn of the unconscious to dominate real healing could occur.”
This practice of sacred sleep flourished far and wide, becoming a glorified practice in ancient Greece inspired by the god of medicine, Æsclepius. Like Imhotep’s connection to the Sun god Ra, in Greece, Æsclepius was described as being the son of the Sun god Apollo.
The ruins of the Temple of Asclepion in Epidaurus (420 BC) reveal an elaborate complex for healing body, mind, and spirit. This temple included a large amphitheatre, because in ancient Greece music, myths, and drama were all categorized as healing arts. Aristotle famously believed that drama had the power to produce catharsis, thereby cleansing its audience of their passions.
Though these magical sleep temples no longer exist, you can exercise the cathartic power of this eclipse by immersing yourself in healing arts. For the few days surrounding the eclipse, spend extra time preparing yourself for meaningful rest, illumination and healing. Like the ancient priests of Imhotep and Æsclepius, you may use the elegant architecture of myth and magic to open a dialogue with the divine in your dreams.
Whatever your symbolic language might be, before you fall asleep at night, imagine the golden rays of the Sun shining upon your inner world. Feel warmed, loved and healed.
Like Emily Dickinson said….
And perhaps a phrase in Egyptian —
It’s prudenter — to dream —
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