Contemplative Christmas

Friday, January 3

The Ninth Day

Reading:

Symbols, like poetry, express what cannot be said. [1]

Reflection:

In the song, the gift of the 9^th day of Christmas is nine ladies dancing. Nine refers to the nine fruits of the Spirit: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.[2] Dancing is an expression of joy and celebration. Together, they hint at the joy awaiting for those living in ways consistent with the promptings of the Spirit.

Numerically, nine represents the completion of the first cycle in our base-ten counting system. As with numbers ending other cycles (i.e., 3 for life-phases, 4 for seasons, 7 for days in a week) 9 represents the completion of a cycle, not a termination. Such end numbers symbolize a type of coming full-circle and reapproaching where we began, with the implication of an imminent new beginning and the opportunity to begin again with a new focus. It invites us to pause, take stock of where we’ve been, and prepare for the next round. As such, nine often symbolizes transformation.

            Understanding the symbolism of images and numbers is a science, but not in the way we define science today. For starters, there are no firm or final answers in symbolism. Its benefits come in the form of non-verbal hints or intuitions that lead to greater, but never complete, understandings. As we learn that our conscious awareness – thoughts, dreams, and images — comes from somewhere outside our body (no one has ever found a single thought, image, or dream in any part of our body), we can better understand that we are constantly engaged with otherworldly (non-physical) sources of knowledge and wisdom. Most of what enters our conscious awareness is familiar. Much more exists in relative proximity to what is familiar, which allows us to expand our understandings. Infinitely more exists in what Carl Jung termed the collective unconscious, which I sometimes imagine to be the mind of God. The entire history of created life, symbolized in part by the twelve days of Christmas, is stored in divine consciousness, and although symbols may seem trite to our daily awareness, symbolism does speak to and connect with us from deeper levels of consciousness.

Closing Meditation:

Silently reflect on areas where you are being encouraged to transform in this phase of your life.

Journal the thoughts and feelings that arise.

This daily series, Contemplative Christmas, is replacing my weekly Life Notes until January 6, 2025, when my weekly blog will resume. The thoughts expressed here are mine. To engage with me: ghildenbrand@outlook.com.

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[1] Paraphrase of statement by Ami Rosenberg, The Book of Symbols, TASCHEN, 2010, p. 8.

[2] Galatians 5:22-23