he Lodges of Grand Lodge, Ancient Universal Mysteries, perform an annual cycle of ceremonies pertaining to the solstice and equinox periods to which non-Masons are invited. These we call "Open Ceremonies." These ceremonies are not to be confounded with the Degree ceremonies of the Craft, but are important events in that they mark specific sequences in time and space that enable us to cooperate with the "cosmic" ritual of the heavens, and thus participate in the universal religion of Deity. Thus it is that the brethren of AUM are most happy to extend this particular aspect of their work to invite non-Masons as guests, for its significance pertains to us all. The beneficent powers invoked through these ceremonies are therefore open to all who care to attend, and the details of each event pertaining to each Lodge (and perhaps one local to you) may be requested from the email link under the name and information of each Lodge.
     These ceremonies mark the "angular" points of the zodiacal Cardinal Cross, signified by the astrological signs: Aries, Cancer, Libra and Capricorn, and thus also define the solstice and equinox points. Symbolically speaking, each of these points indicates a doorway in consciousness where time and space "meet." It could be said that extremities of "time" distinguish solstices, and equanimities of "time" distinguish equinoxes. The great circle on the celestial sphere that lies in the plane of the earth's orbit is called the plane of the ecliptic. In the annual ritual of the heavens, because of the earth's yearly revolution around the sun, the sun appears to move in an annual journey through the heavens with the ecliptic as its path. The ecliptic thus symbolises time, for it designates the path of a spiral-cyclic forward-motion process of the heavenly bodies. The ecliptic is the principal axis in the ecliptic coordinate system.
     The two points at which the ecliptic crosses the celestial equator are the equinoxes, (meaning equal night and equal day). The obliquity of the ecliptic is the inclination of the plane of the ecliptic to the plane of the celestial equator, an angle of about 23.5º. The constellations through which the ecliptic passes are the constellations of the zodiac. The equinoxes are either of the two points on the celestial sphere where the ecliptic and the celestial equator intersect. The Vernal equinox, also known as "the first point (or degree) of Aries," is the point at which the sun appears to cross the celestial equator from south to north. This occurs about March 21, marking the beginning of spring in the Northern Hemisphere. At the autumnal equinox, about September 23, the sun again appears to cross the celestial equator (at the first point of Libra), this time from north to south. This marks the beginning of autumn in the Northern Hemisphere. On the date of either equinox, night and day are of equal length (12 hours each) in all parts of the world. The equinoxes are not fixed points on the celestial sphere but move westward along the ecliptic, passing through all the constellations of the zodiac in 25,868 years. This motion is called the precession of the equinoxes.
     In the cyclic division of a year, the "extremities" of time in space-solstices-are symbolic of an 'entrance into something, as a doorway or portal,' presenting an opportunity to the developing consciousness. They mark a spiritual opportunity. Through the 'open door,' indicated by the signs in the heavens, an opening into deeper aspects of consciousness or awareness is facilitated, permitting a momentary transcendence of the time-space illusion (or conceptual limitation), whereby greater or more spiritual modes of being, existence and awareness may be cognised, realised and cooperated with. They are also indicative of 'open doorways' that actually admit the passing and re-passing of certain Beings and Existences.
     The "equanimities" of time occur at the points of intersection between the ecliptic and celestial equator, and facilitate the impulsive charge to the interchange between time and space, or that which is to be given spiritual expression in manifestation; one ignites the initiating energies, the other brings these energies to a point of balance, prior to their transformation or reabsorption as sanctified essences.
     The powerful influences flowing through this cardinal cross of light transmit certain decisive and determining energies to the spiritual awareness of the person upon the path of returning consciousness. This "path" has been designated-since time immemorial-the Way of Initiation.
     As the wheel turns, so likewise do our ceremonies, relating the East and the West for their underlying, interdependent spiritual significances. The two Equinox ceremonies are decidedly "eastern" in style and implication; the two Solstice ceremonies are more particularly "western." But both sets of ceremonies together complete a whole (fourfold) picture, and the drama of the evolving consciousness and cyclic opportunity is universally one and the same.

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