Vernal Equinox (Chunfen), starts as the sun crosses 0° Longitude (0° Aries). Please join the thousands of practitioners worldwide who will usher in this event by practicing the Vernal Equinox Empowerment. 

The next seasonal phase begins at the Vernal Equinox—that astronomical event that lends its name to the upcoming phase. Vernal Equinox represents the fourth stage of Spring. The theme of springtime is new possibilities and the excitement they generate. Over the next fifteen days, as this seasonal phase unfolds, nature will undergo changes and reveal new qualities that you can awaken in yourself and use to align with the movement of life.

In the last seasonal phase, Awakening of Insects, you “charged” your springtime vision with the energy of excitement—an emotional quality associated with the liver, the internal organ linked to Spring. If you’re attuned to the energy of the season, you may now feel yourself welling up with anticipation and energized to manifest your vision. In this edition of the newsletter we will examine the significance of the next seasonal phase and explore ways you can use the seasonal energy to propel your life forward.

Picture yourself standing in an open field, facing east, right before dawn. The sky is still dark but the grip of night is already loosening. A halo of brightness grows in the distance highlighting the horizon and painting the sky purple and red. Then, unexpectedly, a brilliant point of light punctures the muted colors. It grows rapidly, and within minutes, a ball of dazzling light is floating in the light blue sky. The sun has risen; day has begun. If we set the daily and the yearly cycle side-by-side, then Vernal Equinox corresponds to sunrise. We have reached the “good morning” point of the year. Good morning!

The Vernal Equinox is an astronomical event. The day before the equinox, night is still longer than day. The day after the equinox, day is longer than night. Over the past six months Yin dominated. Over the next six months Yang will dominate. The scales of Yin and Yang tip during this seasonal phase. Cosmologically, this event is of dramatic importance. But what does this mean for you in practical terms?

Yin and Yang are the two dynamic principles used that organize the universe in Chinese cosmology. Yin is the principle that drives energy and action inwards (physically, emotionally, mentally, and spiritually). It is associated with “darkness” because the kinds of processes that gravitate naturally towards darkness also tend to draw us deeper into ourselves. Consider sleep, meditation, and contemplation. With darkness, we tend to venture deeper within into the realm of Yin where the imagination, dreams, and mysteries become increasingly tangible. Yang, on the other hand, is the principle that drives energy and action outwards (physically, emotionally, mentally, and spiritually). Yang is associated with “light” because the kinds of processes that gravitate naturally towards light also tend to draw us out into the outer world. 

Picture yourself asleep. You are like a ship adrift in an ocean of dreams, far from the shores of reality. A warm ray of morning light breaks through the curtains and caresses your face. The dream fades. You open your eyes and the light of dawn reels your mind back into the outer world. In four words: darkness introverts, light extraverts. 

Neurologically, over the next six months, relatively more daylight will flood your brain than darkness. So at a fundamental level, nature is going to favor and support your expansive, outgoing side. The universe will privilege the extraverted aspect of your personality—the part of you that is rearing for action. And during Vernal Equinox, as the scales tilt, this dynamic will be especially strong.

Let’s ground this idea with a concrete example. Picture a tiger crouching behind a thicket, motionless, eyeing his prey. Outwardly he is still, but inwardly he is concentrating energy intensely. This inner process represents the Yin force in action. As the tiger releases the potency of the concentrated energy, Yang takes over and he leaps through the air. As he springs enthusiastically towards his goal, he is enacting a Vernal Equinox moment. 

In the last seasonal phase, Awakening of Insects, you assumed the posture of the crouching tiger by concentrating the Yin force of enthusiasm to your springtime vision. Now is the time to unleash the energies you have been accumulating! If ever there was a time to seize the moment and “spring forward," this is it!