Preparing for February

If you've seen my latest videos, you will have noticed that I'm bundled up in hat, scarf, coat, etc. The weather is wet and windy, with storms raging across the country. Still, the temperature seems to be quite mild. I expect the weather is going to get colder, and hopefully we'll have some snow soon! The beach looks amazing when it's covered by a fluffy white blanket. It never lasts very long but it's so ethereal when it happens, I really am looking forward to it.

You might be mistaken for thinking that the shortest day of the year ought to have been the coldest day of the year, but this isn't so. The temperature takes some time to cool down, and so there is something we call a "seasonal lag". It's only after the Winter Solstice that we begin to experience the lowest temperatures. In fact, January and February are the coldest months of the year in England. And so the night of February Eve can be thought of as the middle of the coldest time of year. This is also a hopeful time of year because we can see with our eyes that yes the days are growing longer, and this is proof that spring will come! 

The word February means "purification" and is named after an ancient Roman festival, the Februa. This was a time of ritual washing in preparation for the spring. The month of Februa was personified as the god Februus, worshipped by Romans and Etruscans. Februus was the god of purification, the underworld, death, and riches. He was equated with the Roman god Pluto, stern ruler of the Underworld. We might imagine him casting a blanket of snow over us as a final effort to wash away the old and make way for the new.

February was also the month of the Lupercalia, a festival of the god Lupercus, "he who wards off the wolf". During his festival, priests dressed in goats' skins would use strips of goat hide to whip a congregation of women who believed the lashes received would prevent sterility, ensure fertility, and ease the pains of childbirth. The goat foot god's dominance over this time of year is reflected in the fact that the Sun appears to travel through the constellation Capricornus, "the goat". 

There are so many different mythologies we can draw inspiration from at this time of year. What is most poignant is that Winter is a time of death, but also a time of renewal. This is a time to travel within, to our personal Underworld, which is the hidden depth of our consciousness. It is deep within ourselves that we find the seeds of inspiration. We must purge ourselves of that which no longer serves us, that which holds us back from living our dreams. As we purge and purify, we make way for new shoots to spring forth.  This is indeed a very exciting time of year.