The sun depicted on Japan’s national flag represents the
revered sun goddess Amaterasu. It is
said that the imperial family members are her descendants. Amaterasu’s mythological story begins with being
born from her father’s left eye while her one brother is born out of his right
eye and her other brother from his nostrils.
While her father assigns her to rule the sun, her other two brothers are
assigned to rule the moon and the storm clouds.
When her first brother’s dark side emerges because the moon’s light reflects
the sun and doesn’t shine from within, a family feud ensues.
Ashamed not only by the actions of her two brothers, but
also her own destructive rage, Amaterasu retreats to a cave and blocks the
entrance with a boulder, leaving the land in complete darkness for about a year.
After countless attempts by the other kami
(divine beings), to coax her out of the cave, Omoikane, the Shinto god of
wisdom, decides to appeal to Amaterasu’s curiosity and threw a big party. The sound of the music and dancing eventually
enticed her to return to the mouth of the cave where an eight-fold mirror had been
placed to reflect her beauty and light. In
realizing her true light once again, sun was restored to the land.
Amaterasu’s story has been an inspiration along my personal
healing path as the practice of Reiki reminds you to shine your true light in
every aspect of life. As spring emerges
after a long and hard year for many, it feels like something is breaking open within
the collective and a new energy is emerging that will sustain the transformation
to help us heal and evolve.
Just like seeds planted in the dark earth, there’s a desire
to break open our shells to welcome the sun back into our lives. However, for some the moment of breaking open
can be the hardest part. I know for
myself, while I love change and growth, the initial pivot hasn’t always been
the easiest. I remember when I first left
home, I would cry every time I said good-bye to my parents. Yet, once my bus hit the highway, I would be
fine. It was a time of transition from
childhood to my adult life and I knew life was never going to be the same. Yet, I was also looking forward to what the
future had in store.
Deciding it's time for a change is one thing but making the
first move can indeed feel like you are breaking open. When embracing life’s number one rule that
the only constant is change, sometimes there’s no choice but to allow the shell that keeps
you contained to break open.
It can mean shedding the parts that once kept you feeling
safe but as you emerge from the container of safety you learn just how bright
your light is meant to shine not only for you, but for those around you. Every sprout has its vulnerability, but as the
unshakable light of the sun continues to coax it to keep growing, it eventually
transforms into a strong plant. When we break
open and allow the light of our true nature to shine, we know that no matter
how uncertain life may feel, the cycle of rebirth will always come back around.
