It’s Spring! Or it’s very close to Spring, depending on your geography and the vagaries of global warming effects. As I thought about it, the concept of sacrifice really doesn’t go with Spring and new life. Yet, I note that many Christians sacrifice before Easter, and of course, the death Jesus is seen as the biggest sacrifice of all. Traditionally, Passover included The Passover Sacrifice, symbol of another big sacrifice, Abraham willing to sacrifice his son in death. Islam has as a “Festival of Sacrifice” or Eid al-Adha in August of 2019 but the second most important holiday. Hinduism celebrates Holy – marking the arrival of Spring and the destruction of evil and the triumph of good. No sacrifice. Different Buddhist traditions celebrate different holidays, but all traditions celebrate the Spring/Vesak/April 14 holiday – the birth, enlightenment, and death of the Buddha. Pagans celebrate the Spring/Vernal Equinox – joy and the fertility of Mother Earth.
Celebrating a sacrifice sounds a bit like an oxymoron, the unification of opposite meanings. However, to each her own, to his own. In the pagan tradition, I like to celebrate the Verna Equinox (March 20 ESDT this year). I am drawn to the birth of Spring, the promise of fertility in all areas of my life, and new growth. Sacrifice does enter in as we sacrifice the Winter, the old ways of doing things and of living our lives. The original definition of sacrifice was “to make holy”. (This would be before the patriarchy got its hands on it and made sacrifice into the slaughter of people or animals to satisfy their sky god.) In truth, we must give up something we have, do, think, or carry – in order to make room for the new.
We sacrifice former beliefs, former theories, and former patterns of behavior when we realize they are no longer working for us. We let go of our cars, homes, clothes, books and “stuff” when we realize we longer need those things, that they no longer work for us. We realize we are different than when we chose or bought those things. We have grown into someone new, different, and still unknown – always becoming. Sometimes, we realize that those we thought of as friends no longer really value us. We notice it is only us putting the energy into the friendship. We let the friendship go. It no longer works for us.
In the letting go, the sacrifice, and the making holy, we honor all these events, people, things, and ways of thinking and behaving. We let go with gratitude and grace. Once we are aware that the expiration date is up, anything kept longer becomes a burden, a resentment or a sense of sorrow.
May you let go of all burdens and celebrate the Return of Spring with the New Life that she brings!
Peace
Gabrielle Jarrett
March 15, 2019