Stars have long been spiritual symbols of divine guidance and protection for many religions all over the world including the star of Bethlehem which we also know as the Christmas star. In Christian tradition, the Star of Bethlehem, revealed the birth of Jesus to three wise men who followed it to meet the new King.
Stars have the ability to leave us steeped with awe and wonder. How many of us have experienced a sense of inner peace when staring up into a clear night’s sky all the while becoming aware of our absolute insignificance at the same time. Stars are majestic and untouchable it’s no wonder they have constantly been an inspiring sight for humanity.
Ancient philosophers, deemed the world was made from the four elements – air, fire, water, and earth. They also believed that when these elements were in harmony a fifth element appeared. These early theorists used a geometric five-point star as an image to symbolise this. To these philosophers the peak represented Quintessence, which literally means “fifth essence” and the other 4 points denoted the elements. Quintessence stood for total perfection, the absolute purest something could be, to surpass all limitations of earth. This meant the epitome of human imagination, intelligence and attainment.
As a culture, we intuitively understand that the star symbol represents excellence. The original reason for this is rooted in early civilisation.
Personally, stars have always been a symbol of a guiding light for me, the way the light of a lantern or a beacon guides one through darkness. When you consider that stars are essentially enormous balls of gas held together with nothing but the power of their own gravity, you could say that they are the ultimate representation of self-reliance and resourcefulness.
So, in that way, I have learned that my guiding light is not external to me but rather, it resides in me. Like the Magi, our destination may be off in the distance, too far for us to see, but they were inspired to pursue this goal, until they reached it and that is what we are doing too. What star are you following? Where are you being guided?
Perhaps like me, you don’t see the end destination but you stay on your journey, gathering inspiration, information and ideas from external beacons, and then going within to find your strength and ability to move forward.
“there is a voice in each of us that is unburdened by fear and untouched by insecurity, that has utter calm, that emanates love for oneself and others.. That’s our inner guidance system. ”
-Tara Mohr, Playing Big
So, while astronomers continue to study the appearance of the Christmas star and attempt to link it to unusual astronomical events at the time, such as the alignment of Jupiter and Saturn, the occurrence of a supernova or more likely the passage of a comet, I take from that the message to seek within when we look for our way, and the starry sky is there to remind us how small we are in this Universe. Every star has a purpose, and each of us has one too.
I’ve enjoyed each post so far. Thank you for bringing these wonderful stories and the historical background of the variety of practices around the world. Interesting how our cultures interconnect some how.