Rekindle

Rekindle. Even the word is lovely . . . burn and begin again, come back, rise and survive. The phoenix, a mythical sacred firebird originating in Phoenician, Egyptian and later Greek mythology, possesses colorful plumage and a tail of gold and scarlet (or purple, blue, and green according to some legends. It has a 500 to 1,000 year life-cycle, near the end of which it builds itself a nest of myrrh twigs that then ignites; both nest and bird burn fiercely and are reduced to ashes, from which a new, young phoenix or phoenix egg arises, reborn anew to live again. The new phoenix is destined to live as long as its old self. In some stories, the new phoenix embalms the ashes of its old self in an egg made of myrrh and deposits it in the Egyptian city of Heliopolis (sun city in Greek).

"In everyone's life, at some time, our inner fire goes out. It then bursts into flame by an encounter with another human being. We should all be thankful for those people who rekindle the inner spirit." ~ Albert Schweitzer

AGNI . . . destructive fire, ever young and immortal, necessary for ancient, giant Redwoods to grow and reproduce . . . an apt metaphor for our lives, for survival, possibilities for love and life, for strength gained through purification by fire. Burn, and live. Destroy weakness. Save our souls.

Many cycles of legend, and of nature, are duplicated within human function. We are creatures of and from the earth . . . given a divine spark and an opportunity to be worthy of it. The fire burns within, propelling us toward and through our journeys, bestowing passion and drive, alternately scorching and warming, ever smoldering when we have no voice or power to unleash it.

So that the genuineness of your faith, more precious than gold, which though perishable, is tested by fire... 1 Peter 1:7 . . . much symbolism regarding the power of purification by fire exists today as testimony to the concept of emerging from fire revived, undamaged.