passing out of dark and into light

Well the spring equinox, the vernal equinox has come and gone, the first day of spring to some, just another day to others. I remember the day I learned that the full moon rose each month with the setting of the sun. I was completely bewildered; the full moon rises as the sun sets? I would watch for the day to come, marking the passing of the full moon and other celestial events.

The Vernal equinox is just as cool in many ways as the full moon rising with the setting sun, it is one of two days out of 365 in which the day has 12 hours of both light and dark, the day is as long as the night. Light and dark are balanced, good and evil, right and wrong, yin and yang.
People have been marking and celebrating the Vernal Equinox since the dawn of history. The Neolithic monoliths located at Stonehenge mark the position of the rising sun on the Vernal Equinox; as do many other monuments of antiquity, including the Great Sphinx on the Giza Plateau in Egypt, which faces due east on the Vernal Equinox. In Central America the Ancient Mayan Caracol Tower and Temples of the Sun and Moon also have alignments that coincide with the sun’s position on the Vernal Equinox.

People all through history have been watching the skies, and they must have done it over and over again, day after day through countless years, and began to realize patterns. “Dude, did you realize that yesterday the day was as long as the night?” “No dude, what do you suppose it means?” “I don’t know dude, but its kind of creepy, don’t you think?” “I don’t know dude.”

Most historians believe that this knowledge was important to ancient cultures though all we are left with is speculation as to why. In Iran they celebrate Norouz (which roughly translates to “new day”) on the Vernal Equinox. In China they celebrate Chunfen on the Vernal Equinox. In ancient Europe they celebrated the arrival of the goddess of spring Ostara on this day. Ostara was also known as Ostera and Eostre in different parts of Europe. Eostre is where we get our modern word for east; she is associated with the roman goddess Aurora, the goddess of dawn.

I suppose one could argue that the light bulb killed sky watching, thought the need for the almanac predates the light bulb. I would guess that people in cities stopped watching the skies because the information was no longer relevant, and to those few in the country that still relied on the information gleaned from the skies, i.e. when to plant crops, when to harvest. The information was passed down through lore, until it passed into myth and legend, only to be rediscovered, and reforgotten countless times and in countless cultures.

Perhaps the most bizarre twist is how some dates remain, some celebrations persist, while others fade away until all of the actions have lost their meaning, all gestures are futile, and even these pass away, like giving gifts at Christmas, or hunting for Easter eggs… While those that remain are etched into the very fabric of our lives like watching the skies for a full moon or catching a glimpse of the calendar and realizing that you are passing out of the dark of night and into the light of day.