Stonehenge: The Summer Solstice 2008 By: Nadiya Shah c.2008
For thousands of years
people have gathered at Stonehenge to welcome the Sun on the Shortest
and Longest days of the year. The most famous land zodiac, and a wonder
of the world. A monument to our connection to the sky, and I was there!
It was so great, and so powerful. I stood in the rain and cold UK night
for 10 hours, and I wouldn't trade this experience for the world-
another dream come true!
I
knew I had to wait until I went to Stonehenge for the summer solstice
before I could write this month’s personal message. Perhaps I set up an
expectation for myself, that it would be profound and moving, as I am
sure it has been for many others over the thousands of years that this
annual ritual has take place. It was certainly significant, but not in
the ways I expected.
Before I even came to England for
graduate studies, my friends in Toronto were insisting I attend this
event. I knew I would. All spiritually minded people are aware of the
significance of the solstice at Stonehenge. I knew before even coming
here that it was something I had to do. It is the only time of the year
when the stones are not behind a stiff rope, when a person can walk
right up and touch the stones. It is the only time that one can go
within the inner circle and feel the intersection of lay lines beneath
one’s feet.
So after months of being in the UK, the time of
the solstice grew near and my anticipation grew by the hour. I made the
pilgrimage to the stones via public transit. 5 hours each way was part
of the ritual. Meeting some truly amazing people from all over the
world was another rite of passage that went successfully well. Walking
2 km to the site was also an important part of the process.
And then I got to the stones.
I
was there before the sun had set. I walked right up to them and into
the inner circle. There were drums of all kinds playing. I closed my
eyes, lost myself in their rhythm and moved. I felt my feet stamp and
the lay lines in my heart, and I moved. I would open my eyes from time
to time and look up at the stones and smile. It was a dream realized.
Me, the stones, the night, the celebration of this monument to our
connection to the cosmos.
With all the revellers and all the
parties going on in different circles, I made my way around the site
and found fellow celebrators to exchange the sacredness of this moment
with, but I always returned to the circle and to the drums.
Just
before sunrise I squeezed my way back to the centre. The Sun was behind
a mask of clouds, mist, and rain, but the joy was immense. Rain or
shine, the Sun is always there waiting to share its warmth and
knowledge. The light within us is connected to the light that shines
in the cosmos, and on this day, it got the kind of reception most
fitting.
Before I left, I touched the stones one more time,
thanking them for being here through all these millennia, to remind us
that the world and every inhabitant is alive, breathing, beating, and
wise.
Now, after a few days, I feel changed. I felt the power
of the rocks. I felt the energy of the earth beneath my feet. I felt
the joy of remembering that we are all intimately connected to our
larger world. What is in me is the same stuff that the Universe, with
all its love, purpose, and wisdom, is made of too.
I understand why I have always been an astrologer.
