Beyond the Threshold

4 January 2020 – “Speaking with the stars”: The red supergiant Antares, brightest star in the heart of the Scorpion,  is having a conversation with the red planet Mars, as Earth comes into perihelion, its closest approach to the Sun for the year, here on this the 11th Holy Night:

Constellation of Taurus, Bull (ruling the neck & throat/larynx ) The Sphere of the Holy Spirit –

Congratulations Dear Holy Nights traveler – you have made it beyond the threshold – past the 9 Angelic realms, into the Sphere of the Holy Spirit!

It may seem odd at 1st that this Divine Realm is represented by what appears to be such an ‘earthly’ image – Taurus the Bull!? But we only need to contemplate the image of the sacred cow, with its potent digestive activity which is vast like the universe – & trace this imagination into the astral cosmos – which reveals its true form – as the dove! Rudolf Steiner encourages us to see that, what is astral in the Dove, becomes physical in the cow/bull.

Our ancestors of ancient India, Egypt, Babylon, Greece & Asia Minor, knew this, & made the cow sacred – revealing the significance of the cult of the bull or calf. The occult knowledge of this connection can be seen in Egypt for instance in depictions of the Sun-god Ra in the aspect of a falcon, bearing on its head a solar disc, sitting between the 2 horns of the heavenly cow; or in Babylon, with its images of the winded bulls (Shedu).

From Spiritual Science we know that the principle of the Holy Spirit works thru the sphere of the Moon, & the Son-principle works thru the sphere of the Sun. So the bull reflecting the activity of the Holy Spirit is connected to the Moon gods & goddeses – like the Sumerian Moon-god, pictured with the body of a bull.

In the Mysteries of ancient Egypt, the image of Isis arose out of the union in the lunar sphere of 2 cosmic streams coming from the heavenly regions of the Virgin (the constellation of Virgo) & the Bull (Taurus). When the influence of Virgo prevailed, then the image of Isis, usually seen holding her son Horus, out-pictured the energies of the Divine Sophia or World-Soul (Moon) a pre-figuring of The Virgin Mary. But if the Bull prevailed, Isis was depicted with the Sun disc between the bull’s horns, showing her connection with the World-Spirit (or Sun aspect).  The relationship of Isis with Osiris, a pre-figuring of The Christ, further indicates the transition from the Lunar Logos to the Solar Logos, which corresponds to the shift from the 3rd to the 4th cultural epoch, when The Christ is born on earth.

(It’s important to note that on Old Moon the Luciferic principle chose not to evolve to the Sun-Sphere, but wanted egoistically to remain behind in the Moon Sphere, yet cut off from the true Holy Spirit. We see this debased, Luciferic representation of the Holy Spirit, which does not seek to find The Christ, in the Greco-Roman era as the cult of Mithras -the god whose task was to slay the bull of passions & egoism, & in the time of Moses, as the cult of the Golden Calf)

At the baptism in the Jordan, it is the Holy Spirit which enables the descent of Christ, to be ‘born’ into the Sun-Soul of Nathan, in the body of Jesus. The Holy Spirit, emanating from the region of the Bull, was seen by John the Baptist through the agency of his angel, in the form of a Dove above the head of Jesus. (John 1:32-34) Then John gave this testimony: “I saw the Spirit come down from heaven as a dove and remain on him. And I myself did not know him, but the one who sent me to baptize with water told me, ‘The man on whom you see the Spirit come down and remain is the one who will baptize with the Holy Spirit.’ I have seen and I testify that this is God’s Chosen One.”

Geeta Vazer

There is another significant aspect which connects the influence from the region of the Bull, which rules the larynx, giving us the gift of speech, with the future working of the Holy Spirit. Speech connects us with others in a loving marriage of souls, & Rudolf Steiner takes this metaphor even further  to say that the Larynx will one day not only speak forth words, but will become a creative organ, a higher version of the organs of reproduction! “…we must understand that the larynx in its full transformation, when man has become chaste again, will turn like a flower to the spiritual Sun. The calyx of the flower, when the larynx is pure, becomes a chaste chalice, ready to be fructified by the Spirit, to be offered to the ‘Holy Lance of Love’. This is a symbol of the Holy Grail, its highest Ideal” (GA 98 May 11, 1907)

Lori Madsom

May we begin this transformation of our speech NOW, in order to bring to birth the Spirit of Christ, as a moral creative force, within our human soul. This will fructify the soul of our communities (Think Whitsun), & pollinate the Soul of the Earth.

Barbara Holden

Freed thru the working of the Christ-Impluse in the soul of humanity, the Luciferic principle will turn from being adversarial, to becoming the servant of the redeemed Holy Spirit, The New Isis-Sophia.

Tota Han

May we ride the Bull in full consciousness & peace

Xox  ~Hazel Archer Ginsberg

 Jan de Kok

Virtue: Equilibrium becomes progress

***

Image result for large community circle logo

As of yesterday there were 855 folks from all over the world registered for ‘May Human Beings Hear It! the Anthroposophical Society in America’s first online Holy Nights program. After the call, The Rudolf Steiner Branch takes up our own study of the ‘Laying of the Foundation Stone’ from The Christmas Conference 1923/1924. (There are copies of ‘The Red Book’ in the Library)
 
TONIGHT: Saturday 4 January 2020 – Cultural Ages in their Zodiacal Sequence from the Time of the Fall, with Astrosopher Brian Gray

Sunday January 5 – A Three Kings Play from the Gospel of Matthew with the Central Regional Council. This is the final Holy Night, & you are especially invited to come out to Branch to witness or participate in our eve of Epiphany pageant.
 
If you have friends who would like to register, forward this email! The registration link is here. 
 
When you register with Zoom, you receive a unique log-in link from Zoom in your email inbox. Use this same link to join the calls each night.  If you cannot join us live, don’t worry! Each night, please go to www.anthroposophy.org/holynights to listen to your recording.

Here is a tutorial on how to join a Zoom meeting at this link.

Zoom Call-In information for those using the phone: 

Telephone: US: +1 646 558 8656 or +1 669 900 6833 
Meeting ID: 732 983 394

3 thoughts on “Beyond the Threshold

  1. Hello Hazel and All,

    I am searching for more insight and understanding regarding the “Hidden Holy Night”; and am hoping you may shed some Light on this mystery.

    Loving Gratitude,
    Dusty W

    1. Greetings Dusty –
      Here is a quote that I have handy:
      “On New Year’s Eve, The hidden Holy Night, our folk soul briefly releases us & consequently what we then think is perceived by the highest hierarchies & has the power in it to be brought into reality” ~Rudolf Steiner in conversation with H. Hahn, reported in Das Goetheanum, # 3, Jan 4, 1990

    2. Steiner speaks about NYE as a time out of time, where as initiates we can percieve the Sun shining thru the earth…

      Behold the Sun
      At the midnight hour;
      Build with stones in the lifeless ground,
      Thus in decay and in the night of Death
      Find the Creation’s new beginning,
      Young morning’s strength;
      Glory in the heights the eternal Word of Gods;
      Shelter in the depths the Powers of Peace.
      In darkness dwelling, create a Sun.
      In matter weaving, know the joy of Spirit! ~Rudolf Steiner Schmidt Number: S-1456

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.