In the belly of the mother

The portal of Imbolc is upon us.

The seeds within the earth are stirring, the sun is returning, and new life is growing. There is something happening, a palpable magic that can be felt by those in tune with the earth’s rhythms. The dark fertile void of winter merges with the bright expansion of spring. A moment of transition, as the in-breath of yin energy becomes the exhale of yang. A spark in the dark, a portal of conception.

Imbolc is the cross-quarter holiday between the Winter Solstice and the Spring Equinox. For some, it is acknowledged as the first day of Spring. Common translations of the word Imbolc include: ‘in the belly of the mother’ and ‘ewe’s milk’. During this early phase of spring, my Celtic ancestors would have been delighting in the onset of their sheep’s lactation. This fresh milk would have brought much-needed nourishment after a long dark winter. Imbolc was a time of celebration for the new life and food that would be awaiting them in the months to come.

In modern times, it may seem like we no longer need to pay attention to the earth and her cycles. We can get almost anything we desire from the grocery store at any time of the year, weird. We have light in our homes at any hour that we desire it. Even when we find ourselves disconnected from seasonal local foods and the natural amount of light, we have to admit that we are intricately a part of the land that we inhabit. We are nature, and what happens to her, happens to us. Just ask the women who bleed with the moon.

When the earth rests, when the day grows shorter, so too are our bodies longing to lie down and to lay to rest some of our responsibilities. And when the earth begins to wake, and the sun begins to shine again, our hearts and minds come alive with dreams and visions. We begin to conceive of new ideas and plans for what we will birth into the world in the year to come.

In this portal of Imbolc (February 1-3), I invite you to connect to the rhythms of the earth as she awakens. What is beginning to bloom near you? Perhaps the crocus, then the daffodil? What wild foods are becoming available? What foods are being sold at your local farmers market?

I invite you to explore how this time of awakening is making you feel? Are you feeling inspired? Turned on? What dreams have impregnated you? What visions for your year are stirring within you?

Imbolc is a beautiful time to begin asking your heart what it is yearning for. It is a time to listen deeply to what our inner intuition is guiding us towards. Here are a few practices and rituals that can help you deepen into this connection with conception.

Journal / Vision Board: Write down any ideas you have for what you want to feel, experience, and create more of in the coming year. Let this be a free-flowing practice of playing - bringing collage materials, music, or paint to this process. Allow yourself to tune into the longing of your heart. Now is not the time to formulate an exact plan but to just invite in new visions.

Creating an Imbolc Altar: Bring forth anything that represents this special time of awakening. Lots of candles! A chalice of milk, a bowl of melting snow, freshly-picked flowers, whatever it is, make space to honor Imbolc in your home

Into the Belly of the Mother - Ritual Conception

Put on a theta meditation playlist, close your eyes, and allow your breath to deepen. Imagine yourself deep within the earth, in the womb of Gaia. Feel into this darkness, this stillness. Dissolve into the fertile void. After a while in this space, feel into a sense of yearning in your heart. What is your heart most longing for? Try not to judge what comes up, just allow yourself to sit with it, and breathe deeper into it. Feel this yearning as a powerful pulse, a magnetic force that is pulling in that which you are longing for. Start to see this yearning made manifest in the form of light coming towards you, slowly at first and then fully illuminating the void space you have found yourself in. Can you feel the dynamic energies of expansive light merging with the inwardly pulsing darkness? In this merging, comes conception. What has been conceived for you? Write down what you have received.