December Solstice 2010 happening

Conclusion

The day of silence concludes with Caroling reading a quote from Ibrahim Farajaje* (via Azima Lila Forest)

"May we all strive to move into the spaces beyond limited consciousness: may we move beyond duality, to move towards radical openness to the Reality of the Oneness of all being, to move beyond apparent opposites, to move from 'Yes, but' to... 'Yes, AND'. May we whirl about the Heart beyond the borders of either/or. May the shells of our limited consciousness be cracked open so that the sweet fragrance of the cardamom of things and realities and ways of being which we have not even ever imagined might 're-mind' us of the bliss of the ONE, insha'allah! Now breathe in an out with that/Inhale and hold; exhale and hold and repeat; send the blessings of this into every corner of the Universe".

* Azima Lila Forest says "This is a Sufi quote from Ibrahim - he's a Sheikh in the Ashki-Jerrahi order, and Provost at the Starr King School for the Ministry (UU), as well as Director of the Starr King Luce Project for Multi-religious Theological Education".

Lunar Eclipse

After the day-long silent meditation retreat on Dec. 18, the Emerald Coast Meditation Society invited all to view the lunar eclipse the night of the solstice on December 21 from Seaside beach (entrance west of Bud & Alley's) on the Emerald Coast of Florida. Of course you can see it anywhere in the world where it is night at 8:16 UT (give or take a few minutes). The full moon is darkest at 2:16 a.m. in the Central time zone. Come to see all or part of the earth's shadow moving across the face of the moon from 2-2:30 or 1:30-3 or 12:30-4 or whatever you wish.

We meditated from 2 - 2:30. Brought warm wraps and something to sit on. Caroling and Nancy from the Emerald Coast Meditation Society were there from about 1:30 till 2:45 a.m. enjoying the clear dark sky, sparkling and shooting stars, and the sweep of the milky way over the Gulf of Mexico. The star Sirius glittered ahead. I'm working to develop the vision that came (the Wholeo year 2011 is to be the year of the pineal. Lookin, not Lookout).

Three-fold special: December solstice. Full moon. Total lunar eclipse. These events have not happened together for over 300 years. Is it worth staying up? This video by Virginia Harold expresses it beautifully.

On the longest night/shortest day of the year, the full moon, earth and the sun are lined up with the center of the galaxy.

Penumbral Eclipse Begins: 11:29 p.m. (the night of Dec. 20)
Partial Eclipse Begins: 12:32 a.m. (the morning of Dec. 21)
Total Eclipse Begins: 1:40 a.m.
Greatest Eclipse: 2:16 a.m.
Total Eclipse Ends: 2:53 a.m.
Partial Eclipse Ends: 4:01 a.m.
5:04 a.m.

Penumbral - barely visible. Partial - earth's shadow covers part of the moon's disk. Total - earth's shadow covers all of the moon, lasting over an hour.

Detailed page: http://www.mreclipse.com/LEdata/TLE2010Dec21/TLE2010Dec21.html.

Solstice

Schedule prepared for local observation and panorama. See sun and moon.

Dec. 20

Moonrise: 4:18 p.m. CST
Sunset: 4:47 p.m. CST

Dec. 21

Sunrise: 6:35 a.m. CST
Moonset: 6:50 a.m. CST
Moonrise: 5:21 p.m. CST
Solstice: 5:38 p.m. CST

See also Day-long silent meditation retreat or 12 solstices and equinoxes.