Catriona MacGregor – The spiral is one of the most powerful and beautiful patterns in nature. Spirals are everywhere, from luminous spiral galaxies ablaze in dazzling colors to the tiny spirals at the tips of our fingers. The spiral is simultaneously a structure and a movement.
As a dynamic movement, the spiral can be creative beyond measure or devastatingly destructive, as exhibited by tornados or tsunamis. As structure or design, spirals are the form that animate and inanimate things take. The fact that the spiral form is found throughout the great diversity of life and beyond speaks strongly of an underlying unity in the universe, shared among all creation.
Human movement, at its best, follows a spiral pattern. Movements that manifest the spiral energy within us are more powerful and graceful than movements that are not in alignment with this inner spiral pattern. Aikido (a Japanese martial art) takes ultimate advantage of the grace and power that exists within the spiral.
Even the pitch of a professional baseball player uses the same dynamic movement to throw a fastball. Many great works of art similarly depict the human body in a subtle spiral or helix position, known since Greek times as an S-Curve. In fact, most classical sculptures depict their human figures posed in an S-Curve.
Plants grow in slow-moving spirals toward the heavens, water spins in spiral and circular shapes within ponds and streams, and flowers and snail shells have a spiral pattern of growth. Even our very bones grow in spirals. While spirals may go unnoticed by our conscious mind, we are subconsciously aware of the naturally occurring symmetry that is all around and pleasing to us. This is why we so often seek to replicate symmetry and balance in things that we create, and why we feel more comfortable and relaxed in an environment which reflects balanced proportion.
Spirals and other naturally occurring, proportionate patterns nurture an inner balance and har- mony within our very being. This is one reason why we enjoy the beauty and harmony of nature. Being in nature helps to establish an equilibrium within our body and mind.
It is the spiral that connects us to every other life form on Earth: the blueprint for all life on Earth exists in a spiral! Deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA), which contains the genetic instructions needed to create the components for cells, proteins, and RNA (ribonucleic acid) molecules of life forms, is shaped like a spiral. Thus, the spiral is the very fundamental expression of movement and shape of life, and within the spiral exist the deepest secrets of creation.
The predominance of the spiral in the physical world is echoed in the invisible, energetic, and spiritual worlds; spirit and energy also move in a spiral. Since the spiral is the intrinsic pattern of creation from which all things grow and evolve, spirals are frequently displayed in ancient drawings, sculptures, and other works of art found around the world. It is also found at many sacred places worldwide.
For example, the spiral is a favorite sacred symbol of the Maori in New Zealand; it is also found in sacred uses in Africa, and its form is carved into the ancient rocks at Newgrange, Ireland. Neolithic peoples understood the power and prevalence of this living symbol, and they captured its essence in their designs, and in their rituals and spiritual gatherings. People from many cultures wished to depict the dance of the universe through the power, symmetry, and beauty of the spiral.
Ancient cultures knew that the spiral was the expression of their link to the rest of life and even the larger cosmos. The spiral itself is infinite, which links it to the Creator (who is also infinite), and yet the spiral is also found throughout the universe in all “limited” life forms. Thus, the spiral, in effect, is capable of going from the physical realm of the material world to the world of spirit, and ultimately the birth- place of all creation. The spiral unites us with all life, with the Creator, and ultimately with our deepest selves.
The spiral dance that we observe in nature also takes place within our own psyche. Many creation stories have cyclical or spiral patterns, reflecting that human psychological and spiritual growth follow a spiral path. Human nature is constantly enlarging as it adapts to the outside world and that there is an ongoing internal learning that takes place because of this interaction between the world and inner psyche.
As we “transcend” psychologically and spiritually, we build upon previous value systems much in the way that a tree grows around its central core: ever-expanding outward and upward, the inner rings of its being serving as a foundation for growth. Like a tree, once a per- son grows in their psychological development, it becomes a part of the inner core of their being. This inner growth then supports future evolution and transformation.
By understanding Natural forces like the spiral, and working them, we shift the outcome in our favor. Ultimately, the spiral teaches us that our path is the same as the path of all living beings, a path of evolution, unfolding, and transformation. When we enter the sacred realm of the life-generating spiral, we find the Holy Grail: we discover the intimate secrets of life itself.
Catriona (Gaelic for Catherine) is a scientist, mystic and adept environmentalist and Nature Guide who seeks to heal the broken relationship between humankind and Nature by revealing the sacredness of all things.
Catriona is the founder of Nature Quest and has led Vision Quests and Nature Quests for twenty years. She has been called a shaman and a Celtic Mystic for her deep understanding of the natural world. Learn more at catrionamacgregor.org
Shift Frequency © 2021 – Spiral Dance:
An Evolving Movement