Speaking of Spirit

  Nine Muses by Royer   Ever wonder why certain numbers appear over and over in sacred texts?  For our ancient ancestors, certain numbers...numbers found in nature...were sacred and carried with them mystical powers. For instance, the number nine, which is the length of time in a novena, (the word novena comes from the Latin word for nine) was believed by the ancients to represent wisdom, leadership, Universal love, creation, and service to name a few.  These beliefs in the sacred number nine come from many cultures. There are nine muses in Greek and Roman mythology. There are nine forms of devotion and nine treasures in Hinduism. There are the nine gifts of the Holy Spirit as well as the nine levels of Heaven along with the nine choirs of angels. In the Mayan and Aztec cultures, there were nine levels in the underworld. The significance of the number nine as a sacred number can truly be found worldwide. Therefore, when we come to our ninth day of ref...

Photo Credit: (c) 2018 Linda M. Rhinehart Neas When I was, as my mother would say, a wee sprout, I had my first experience with hearing that soft whisper that has warned me, inspired me, and on occasion, nagged me. Perhaps because I was raised in a household where being "fey" was looked at as normal, I never questioned that this was not real.  I can't tell you what the first thing I "heard" was, but I do remember talking to my mother about it when I was about six years old. We had had a lesson in school where sister had told the class about a saint who heard "the whispers of the angels." I asked Momma if that was who was speaking to me.  I still remember her looking very seriously into my eyes and saying, "Lindy, it might be angels, it might be what artists call the muse, or it might be what some people call, 'the voice of your ancestors or guides.' I don't know, but I do know you need to listen and pay attention to what you he...