I can feel it in the air.. ever since I woke up this morning. I feel it deep within my heart of the power within this day. Having practiced dabbling in numerology, I have learned that the numbers of today’s date (2/2/2022) added together totals the number of ten (10).
The number one (1) signifies new beginnings and moving forward. Also, the placeholder, zero (0), is an amplifier of the number it sits next to.
It’s a beautiful and powerful day of new beginnings!
It’s also Groundhog Day, which from what I understand is always on February 2nd each year.
Several cultures have celebrated this day in unique ways and one of which has brought a certain custom to the United States.
Enter…the groundhog. A humble burrowing animal that hibernates during the winter.
Tradition has it that the groundhog will resurface to predict the arrival of spring by whether or not it sees its shadow. Seeing its shadow and going back into the den would of course mean a longer winter.
An interesting tradition that has been highlighted in several TV shows as well as in the infamous movie “Groundhog Day” all with the spin on re-living the same day over and over.
Could you imagine waking up to the exact same day as yesterday? That would be quite an experience!
In reflecting about this upcoming day, I became curious about the message within it. This also inspired the question of how the groundhog became the mascot in this tradition.
I wondered about two main things:
a) What message is being brought to us through this animal?
b) What is the significance in the concept of living the same day again?
Perhaps there’s more to this tradition and phenomenon than meets the eye? I invite you to join me as I go beneath the surface to uncover the deeper meaning of this significant day.
This Day in History:
For centuries, several cultures have celebrated the halfway point between winter solstice and spring equinox, which happens to be on the second day of February each year. In Celtic culture, this day was celebrated as Imbolc – a festival highlighting the arrival of springtime.
Additional cultures throughout Europe celebrated this time of year as a feast called Candlemas. Some even thought that a sunny Candlemas meant several additional days of winter.
In the German culture, this custom was gauged by an animal such as a badger or other small animals seeing their own shadow.
German settlers in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania, brought this custom with them and chose the native animal of the land, the groundhog (woodchuck), as their forecaster.
On the first groundhog day celebration, the local newspaper editor, Clymer Freas, brought forth this idea to the business men and groundhog hunters in town. Thus Groundhog day was born.
In learning about the history of this infamous day, I became curious about the symbolic meaning of groundhogs. I ventured into my Animal Speak book by Ted Andrews for a closer look into the spirit of this animal.
The Groundhog and Symbolism:
The groundhog is a burrowing rodent known for its digging and tunneling ability. It lives in a humble abode within the edges and open areas of forests. They create elaborate dens with a variety of exits and storage rooms. Symbolically, their tunneling mastery reflects the ability to go deep within an area of interest.
They’ll commonly eat tons of food in the summer and late fall prior to going into hibernation – spending around four to six months in that state of being. Curling up in a warm chamber, their body will proceed to go into hibernation mode.
Internal temperature dropping from its normal 96 degrees to around 40 degrees, breathing slows to one breath per minute and heart rate dropping from 110 beats per minute to about 4 or 5.
Hibernation is also reflected as a time of initiation and symbolizes opening fully to dreamtime. This allows for more powerful experiences during deep sleep including an opportunity to increase the ability to lucid dream.
In various cultures, shamans, yogis as well as mystics have taught methods for slowing down the body’s metabolism – creating trance conditions for meditation. This could facilitate healing for the body or be directed toward transcendental meditation.
In this type of meditation, you can:
- deeply connect with your intuition and spiritual guides
- receive inner guidance from spirit
- experience the feeling of oneness
- feel the presence of the most loving energies
I myself have practiced transcendental meditation and have had the most profound experiences which have helped guide me in the best direction to move forward into. Plus, I have received beautiful energetic cleanses from my spirit guides upon my permission and intent prior to and during meditation.
And…repeat:
Another aspect of this infamous day I’ve always found interesting is the concept of waking up to the same day on repeat or experiencing similar situations over and over until something finally clicks.
This has been featured in a variety of films including the main film “Groundhog Day” as well as several TV shows that take their spin on this phenomenon.
There is a lesson learned from the similar situations the characters experience and they can move forward into a new day once they learn that lesson.
As we’ve been shown this idea through film, perhaps there is a bit more to this idea than we realize.
More than simply happenstance..
What if a repeating pattern of experiences is actually an opportunity or gift for us to grow at soul level? By showing up as having similar dynamics with others that can feel a bit challenging.
If you’re thinking “that’s not the kind of gift that I want” and “where’s the gift receipt?”, I understand just what you mean. I have been there and I can see clearly now how the experiences have helped me grow at a deeper level.
On one hand, this may show up as people mirroring to us (showing us) through their actions an aspect about ourselves for our own personal soul growth that would be wise to go within and review.
On the other hand, it may be an opportunity to see how we are perceiving others, why we are perceiving them the way we are, and look at how we can adjust our perspective to that of compassion for others as well as ourselves.
And let me tell you, this opportunity of growth can show up in the most creative and benevolent ways. Through relationships with our loved ones, coworkers, acquaintances or simply those we happen to pass by in the store.
I personally have experienced this repeating experience concept from those who have a very strong and powerful energy about them. As being empathic, I must admit that at times I felt slightly intimidated by the energy of a few individuals which made our interactions quite challenging for me.
After practicing going within (using muscle testing and checking in with my heart), I have since learned how they were actually showing to me my own powerful energy that I had subconsciously ignored.
I was simultaneously blown away and empowered by this realization! I took this opportunity to claim my power and I now see the oneness in all others.
Common folklore has brought to us the ideas of tuning into the natural world around us to predict the arrival of spring (also symbolic of new beginnings). Additionally, we’ve been shown through the world of film and our own repeating experiences that we have the opportunity to become aware of what we may have been missing so we can move into new beginnings of our own growth.
In my own experiences, I’ve found that it’s helpful to take a step further and find the deeper meaning and connections by going within. When we experience similar repetitive dynamics, we can utilize the groundhogs’ powerful lesson of going into stillness through meditation. In this space, we receive the messages from our hearts as well as from our inner guidance with clarity and ease.
May you have an extraordinary and the most joyful experiences on this powerful day!
Until next time, peace be with you.
Stay Tuned for more from The Empowered Hearth…
Wanting to read more like this and not miss a post? Feel free to follow The Empowered Hearth where new posts will go directly to your inbox!
And be sure to sign up for the Monthly Newsletter where you’ll receive special empowering and mindful tips each month!
The Empowered Hearth 