SECTION IV - ASK AUNTIE AHN

Ask Auntie Ahn
By Ahneke Greystone

Our first question comes from an older person. He has struggled with depression coming out of Winter, and is seeking some suggestions to alleviate that.

The second is from a very young person who is new to the pagan path and is studying Wicca. She is seeing a thread of connection running through her experiences being raised as a Christian and her thoughts on the Wiccan God.

We are thus reminded that that we are all learning, no matter where we stand on the path. I think of these two as walking along, hand in hand, the elder and the child … with the beautiful Mystery surrounding them that neither is the wiser of the two.

As always, I can be reached at AuntieAhn@aol.com and look forward to hearing from our readers.

Ahneke Greystone, who is Auntie Ahn


Q. I have been a pagan for a very long time. It has given me reason to feel very connected to Gaia and it has brought me great happiness. However, I still find myself very as Spring begins. Do you have any suggestions to help with this seasonal depression?

The ancient Romans had a celebration which must have been very powerful in addressing this issue. When they celebrated the Feralia (in the middle of February), it was officially the last day of the cycle in which they honored the dead. They intentionally switched their focus at that point to the living

There is a switching of gears that takes place at this time of year. It can be challenging. We are at the same time eager for the change that Spring promises and frustrated that the changeover isn't as smooth as we would like. This moment, poised between stillness and action, can be a most challenging of times.

We may not have solidified the goals to which we aspire. Did we fall into a kind of inertia over the Winter? We take that season to reflect, and our natural inclination is to be introspective. We now need to move outward and forwards. Indeed, change the metabolism of our soul. We may need to formalize the way forward. Meditation for centering and focusing may help. As well as the simple act of making a written list, and even going so far as prioritizing it. It is not, after all, as though we can go charging forth into Spring and accomplish everything by Summer's arrival. Enthusiasm will carry us for a while, but realistic goals are critical.

If we are impacted by the darkness of Winter, we may not have absorbed enough of the returning light to energize us. We can help this along by being out of doors often. We have probably developed routines that are suited for the "cave." Reading, writing, meditation and perhaps spending more time on the computer. We need to "wake up" our awareness of what is around us by stepping out of our Winter home into the bright Spring meadow. This can take concerted effort, especially if we have been reclusive over the Winter time. Have you taken to doing ritual indoors over the Winter? Then take them back outside. It will reconnect you to the open air and the cobwebs of your Winter shelter will be blown from your mind.

Sit quietly and listen. The air is filling with the sounds of birds. The scent of new blooms is on the air. Even the returning hub-bub of city and town is a invigorating sign of rebirth. The drone of peoplenoise as we return to the streets is as much a part of Spring as the honking of the geese flying overhead.


Q: Some of my pagan friends have made fun of me when I told them that Jesus reminded me of our pagan God. They said I must leave all knowledge of Jesus behind if I am to become a Wiccan. What do you think?

First, I’d have to tell you that if you are involved with any group of people who are telling you to leave behind anything which is part of your spiritual history and which speaks to your heart, you need to separate yourself from those people and their energy.

Myths of resurrection are something we see predominantly at this time of the year. Rebirth is apparent in the natural world, which logically leads us to thoughts of spiritual rebirth. Shared amongst so many cultures and across faiths are tales of sacrificial death and resurrection. Spring, when the world, seemingly dead, is miraculously reborn, has been a symbol of Universal Truth throughout human time. The beautiful Truth that nothing dies. That change, evolution and rebirth are the nature order of things.

When the love of Isis brings Osiris back from death and when Ishtar sacrifices all for her love of Tammuz, we are taught the Eternal Truth of the bond between lovers. When Cybele mourns her Attis and when Demeter roams the underworld in search of Persephone, we are taught the Eternal Truth of the bond between mothers and their children. The myths of sacrifice and the salvation of Pure Love are many and varied.

In this light, the story of Jesus becomes another story of sacrifice and love. In the Circle of the Cosmic Muse, Maria Kay Simms says: “Jesus the Christ can easily be seen as both Bright Lord and Dark Lord. Here is the Sun/Son born of the Virgin Mother, destined to be the deliverer of his people. He reigns brightly for his season, spreading his message, and then becomes a willing sacrifice for the sake of the people… He dies, goes into the underworld (cave) for three days (symbolically similar to the three months of the winter quarter), and then is resurrected to “shine” even more brightly.”

As a Wiccan, I do not see Jesus Christ as the son of God, but as my faith puts love and connection to the Earth and to each other as foremost, I can understand the Eternal Truth of Love as illustrated by all myths of death, hope, resurrection and renewal.