Mid-July, after dark. On the hike up to my hut, the brightest night sky object I'd ever seen caught my eye. Brighter than Venus. Brighter than Sirius. Could be Jupiter, but why did it look so huge? I pulled out my star tracker and saw it was not just Jupiter. It was Jupiter and Saturn nearly aligned, creating what looked like one massive glowing orb to the naked eye. And for the first time on this island, the dark, moonless night so clear I could see a faint, dusty brush of the Milk Way band stretching across the sky.
Not too many days later, the night sky still clear, I crossed the island on the single two lane road that cuts through the jungle hills. No lights near the peak, only stillness. My eyes locked in wonder. As above, so below. The axiom, an ancient echo, a whisper of truth. I continued down the winding road to a beach on the far northeast side of the island. One of the few remote beaches accessible by road. Faint, unrecognizable music drifted from one of the seaside cafes. A few dim lamps lit the beach. Empty and dark. And much like those nights I spent on that beach at northern tip of Borneo staring into the darkness above me, the world fell away.
From here, nothing remains except the motion of stars across the night sky. Suspended in timelessness, tapped out and tuned in. I want to stay here forever, but I can't.
Daylight breaks and I'm back in the world again. I maintain my practices and diligently stay focused on my work. The urgency to anchor and focus lets me know something is happening. To be here on this small tropical island, away from the intense energy and general madness of the world, is not something to be squandered. I write. I make progress. I breathe. I take steps in the right direction.
Connect with the cosmos and anchor down. As above, so below. To stay vast and light in a heavy world is the only way I can exist--it's the only way I can write and connect and know. Uncertainty may reign (as it always has), but at least I have a compass.
My posts are few and far between these days, and that's okay. I know this phase won't last forever. More adventures are on the horizon, but for now, it's a season for anchoring and focusing.
What does as above, so below mean to you? Do you ever connect with the cosmos and anchor it to earth? If so, how has it served you?
