Aries New Moon Meditation for 2005:

Feeding the Birds: Nourishing Spirit and Nature.
by Jean Hinson Lall

Again this year the Aries New Moon involves an eclipse of the sun, this time in the 20^th degree, for which the Sabian symbol is "A young girl feeding birds in winter." This image doesn’t seem particularly apt for the season of spring, but if we delve into the underlying meaning of Aries we may find the connection.

Aries as the first sign of the Zodiac and the Cardinal Fire sign represents instinct and the life force. It is the fundamental impulse to get up in the morning, to venture forth in search of food, to fight for one’s life, and to seek a mate. In order to survive, flourish and reproduce, creatures become fighters, explorers, hunters, lovers, actors and artists. Each animal and plant species develops an astoundingly complex and specialized anatomy, physiology and repertoire of behaviour that equips it to meet its unique requirements.

So far as we know, other living beings fulfill their instinctual lives without analyzing them. The human animal is embedded in the world of instinct, but also observes and reflects upon it. Where does this capacity and need for reflection come from? It is often imagined as originating somewhere outside or beyond the natural world, in Heaven, the Deity, or a transcendental realm of Mind. Or we might understand this impulse as a part of our natural endowment – a philosophical instinct, a drive to think, to understand, to transcend.

However we account for it, our destiny as thinking beings is inescapable. It is also inextricably rooted in our animal existence, for without our bodies we would have nothing to think with (and precious little to think about!). All the great achievements of mind and spirit are forged in the fire of instinct. Culture itself is built upon the refinement, dedication, and ritual expression of instinct. To say this is not to deny that culture and the human spirit also have "roots in Heaven," but to affirm that nature endows us with the capacity and the urge to reach Heavenwards, just as plants grow toward sunlight. The bird, a creature of instinct which can soar to the heights, often symbolizes the mystery of our apparently dual nature.

To give due value and proper place to our animal being is no simple matter. The discovery that we can mentally stand apart and make choices for the rest of creation has led, in our civilization, to an ever-widening separation from the instincts, our own and those of our fellow creatures. We have reached the point where we no longer sense ourselves as part of a living world, but as executive technicians in a dead universe, administering and profiting from natural resources. The cosmos has become a mere storehouse of supplies to be used at our convenience.

Even in our own bodily life, despite the apparent hedonism of the consumer society, we do not give due reverence and respect to instinct, but instead treat it as another natural resource to be exploited. Traditional societies have rituals and festivals through which the instincts can be expressed, regulated, and connected with the life of spirit, all in the service of community and cosmic order. Modern consumer society turns this cultural and spiritual process inside-out. It encourages, for example, converting the reproductive drive into a set of personal needs called "my sexuality," for which, in the interest of personal wholeness, I have to acquire supplies in the form of ego-validating sexual experiences and "having a relationship." This is completely different from dedicating one’s body, passion and desire in the service of the greater whole.

The image of the young girl feeding the birds in winter points toward another way of living with instinct. Children can of course be destructive and heedless of other beings, but often they also have a ready empathy with fellow creatures and a capacity for nurturing and caring. The fascination and joy children show in the presence of animals, their endless imagination regarding animal life, suggest that they still feel themselves to be part of the web of nature, related to feathered and furry and slithery kingdoms. For a grownup, one of the great gifts of having children in one’s life is that their delight in animals may reconnect us with our own love of all that swims, growls, hops and flies, and thus restore the dignity of our animal selves and our original piety toward our mother the Earth. When we are feeding the birds with our children, guiding the tiny hands as they first reach out to touch the rabbit’s fur, or gazing up in wonder at the elephant, we are no longer disembodied minds surrounded by "the environment." We have come to ground in our full humanity as citizens of a blessed world.

2005 Jean Hinson Lall
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