Ode to Apollo
“Look
What happens
With a love like that,
It lights the whole sky.”
― Hafiz
“If I had to choose a religion, the sun as the universal giver of life would be my god.”
― Napoleon Bonaparte
“Your thoughts are your message to the world. Just as the rays are the messages of the Sun.”
― Amit Ray, in his book: Meditation: Insights and Inspirations
The Sun.
A quick search and a scan through the infinite number of quotes on the sun and these three stood out for me in particular.
Life revolves around this glorious star, ball of fire, bringer of light. Without the sun there literally would be no life, or very little at least, and certainly no life as we know it.
I felt an urge to write about the sun and explore my thoughts and feelings on this on my first evening back in the UK upon returning from our four-month European trip, a veritable sun-chasing expedition…. a subtle dance with our Lord of Light - first us chasing him, and then at the peak of the heatwave this summer, him seemingly chasing us as we sought out shade as much as we could, not an obvious task in places like Matera and the Alentejo.
We arrived in the UK by boat, at night and were pleasantly surprised by a sunny morning the next day. It’s always been an issue for me returning to the UK after time spent in sunnier climates; that grey, heavy sky, cloaked in clouds and impending rain. But I do have to say that when it’s sunny in the UK, it’s glorious, especially in my home region of Sussex, and nowhere more so than in Brighton (I may be slightly biased, but roll with it).
After a pleasant day of settling back in and preparing for our next adventure - housesitting in the UK - I went for a walk on the seafront, in Hove, actually. And what a walk! I’ve always loved the promenade in my town, such a vibrant yet peaceful part of the city and at one with nature, at times soft lappings of the waves upon the shore, other times crashing and roaring cascades of choppy waves reminding us who is Mother.
I was walking in an Eastern direction and I started to notice people stopped, staring, or quickly brandishing their phones to take that photo that will be cancelled later on as nothing compares to It in reality. I turned around and there It was, currently hiding behind a fluffy cloud but illuminating its lining, not creating silver but a lining of red hot gold.
“Look mummy, it’s creating lines of light around the cloud”, a little boy said with such de-Light in his eyes.
And sure enough, there it was. I’ve included a photo here, but it really doesn’t do it justice and every time I see these marvels of nature, I regret not taking my reflex camera with me, for these photos ultimately only look good on the small screens we have become all too accustomed to. Damn these smartphones, luring us into the laziness of convenience.
A moment before it had been illuminating the sky and everything else around it in a warm glow, a favourite time for photographers and lovers alike.
Sunset.
It happens at the end of every single day, but we never seem to tire of it. And there seems to be a much-needed moment of stillness and silence when the outside rim of the sun begins to touch the horizon as it begins its final descent, leaving the scene, making way for the Lady of the Waters, our beautiful Moon, who then takes centre stage.
I too stop to better take in this special moment - my first sunset back in the UK and as I do so, I can’t help but notice the people around me. I was certainly not the only person to have this urge. A soft light is cast upon our smiling faces, slightly squinting eyes, staring into the big, red ball fast leaving us. In vain, phones come out of pockets and pixellated photos are taken in an attempt to immortalise the moment. But we can’t, can we? Some things we just have to let go of the need to have, to own, to keep forever and to allow ourselves to merely experience. Writing this reminds me of a brilliant anthropological book I’d read many years ago, that struck me in many ways - Mediated: How the media shapes your world and the way you live in it by Thomas Zengotita. Ultimately, sometimes the best way to keep something forever is to truly experience it, be present in it, BE.
Yet I too reach for my phone. What can I say? Apple is not just the fruit of temptation in Eden. It’s a good reminder to carry my real camera with me though. Watch this space…
Many ancient traditions worship the sun, and the moon for that matter. These form a fundamental part of many spiritual practices too, with sun deities playing an important role in cultures across the planet and throughout the ages, such as the Egyptians, with their sun temples dotted along the length of the nile and depicted by their deity, ‘Ra’ (sun) to ancient Celts, who worshipped Grannus, god not only of the sun but also, rather aptly, of wisdom. We can use the sun to navigate and to tell the time, as many of our historical sundials will attest to. It seems our ancestors were more knowledgeable than we are today, despite all our technology and ‘advancements’.
We as a modern society profess to know and understand what the sun is and its effect on us, but I have serious doubts about this. It seems to me that in times gone by, people were far more connected with the astral planes and the luminaries above us than we are today, if for any reason, for the fact that we are so much more distracted now by mod cons, screens and even just by the apparent shelter of our streetlights. I’m sure I’ll be reminiscing back to the canopy of stars that lay above us in less inhabited places we travelled to this summer, like the Alentejo.
And yet, despite age-old practices and beliefs of worship surrounding the sun, despite an intuitive pull within us that unites us to the wonder of this life-giving force in our universe, modern society seems intent on hijacking It. It seems to me that the Sun has been getting a bad rap and I’m no longer so sure we should heed the official health advice with such blind faith. When you learn that many sunscreens, including Neutrogena, Coppertone, Aveeno and Banana Boat, were recalled by the FDA - sorry, correction, were ‘voluntarily pulled from market shelves’ - after testing revealed they were contaminated with high amounts of the carcinogenic chemical, benzene, and you see a worrying rise in skin cancer in these modern times, surely we should be asking ourselves some questions before coating ourselves in it all summer long - or even throughout the winter as some as even now suggesting? Are we potentially exposing ourselves to more toxins and also preventing ourselves from absorbing the one true source of Vitamin D our bodies need, vital to a healthy immune system?
The sun is healthy for us, - it’s vital - despite the modern world trying to make us fear It, as if it's toxic or harming you. Is perhaps what is really harming us the many medications and pills that are high in chemicals that make us prone to sun sensitivity, such as certain birth controls, antibiotics and antifungals?
There are many who believe that natural sun exposure is best and I am prone to agree myself, but I am lucky in that I have a dark complexion and it takes a lot for me to sunburn. I did some research and there are much more natural ways of protecting ourselves from the sun, if a natural form of SPF is desired, by using ingredients such as coconut oil, avocado oil and zinc oxide, among others.
Or, we could just be more mindful of how much sunlight our skin can take and not spend all day, every day, on our summer hols, laying like a beached whale, in search for that all-time summer glow? Some can take it, some just can’t and perhaps shouldn’t? Just a thought.
A few observations of this photo above: all in good shape, not particularly overweight; no cell phones and lots of chatting; no sunglasses; no lines in the sky and I do wonder if they were wearing sunscreen…
We could spend a long time exploring the Sun, and indeed, many have in all aspects of our history, culture and society. I do sincerely hope that these uncertain times lead to more awareness about life in general, it certainly has had that effect on me and I see it in many around me too. We are all starting to ask much-needed questions and I feel it is important we also ask questions about our Sun. If the billionaire, software developer (aherm) turned ‘philanthropist’ Bill Gates is financially backing the development of sun-dimming technology all in the name of ‘battling climate change’, I would be very concerned and demand for answers from anyone in a position of authority, able to enact some of these dystopian endeavours.
I often turn to music for inspiration and it’s no coincidence that the first piece that popped up in my mind was Soundgarden’s “Black Hole Sun”. In this interesting interview on how that song came about and its meaning, the late Chris Cornell, said, “It’s really difficult for a person to create their own life and their own freedom. It’s going to become more and more difficult, and it’s going to create more and more disillusioned people who become dishonest and angry and are willing to fuck the next guy to get what they want…”.
Sounds a bit like a lot of our society today, especially among the higher echelons and ruling elites, doesn’t it?
In closing, I’d like to share the verse lyrics to a song I wrote, which inspired the title to this piece. It’s a song I wrote a number of years ago with Rotary Finger, inspired by a dear friend, a brilliant guitarist, no longer with us. It speaks of a life journey. It speaks of a Crossroads, as this previous article of mine explored.
An Ode to Grace - Sing it loud and proud - Your Ode to Apollo
It led me to this concluding reflection:
I think it’s safe to say that we pretty much all feel a strong pull towards the sun, be it at sunset, sunrise or in our mind’s eye. It means a lot to us and it’s something we must surely feel deep in our DNA, in the ancestral wisdom within us. Perhaps if we can tune into that wisdom, we can hear our song, find our journey and shine the light of our Inner Sun, so we can illuminate the way for others too? Standing, silently, together in reverence for our one and only Sun.
tis a beautiful piece - keep em coming.