The spiral as symbol in Amara's quilt

 As symbol of renewal, the ancient spiral form invites a sense of hope through completion and return, as do the phases of the moon. The name chosen by Mel and Leo for their little girl was Amara, meaning ‘moon’ in Arabic, and if anything is symbolic of life renewing itself the phases of the moon are a very real monthly reminder, tied as they are to women’s menstrual cycles.  It hadn’t occurred to me before that the umbilical cord takes the form of a spiral, a physical connection to the Great Mother, She who gives life and takes back in death, ready for the next manifestation. Though feeling completed now, this little piece was very much a work in progress, took on a life of its own as I felt my way through what will be a healing for us all – a shape shifting into another phase as the Wheel turns. 

Shapeshifting is brought about by the Goddess energy - or that of the Great Mystery spiralling through our lives. In Eastern Europe it was personified in the playful faeries known as Vila, women who showed up unannounced in forest places – maybe even natural bush landscapes! When I first heard this term in relation to the Goddess stories and legends of old, it had literalness about it. Now that literal understanding has shifted to another realisation applied to our personal lives, when we are pulled up short by a sudden, unexpected, harrowing, or maybe joyful event. To learn the art of shapeshifting is how we find our personal pathways through life’s shadows, and access the means to gain new insights, to encourage new growth. It brings the gift of an expansion of awareness that Life is our lived experience and everything comes into being through us, and what it is to just ‘be’ with that process.

The triple spiral, found on the kerbstones of the building at Newgrange in County Meath Ireland, was carved into rock deep in the chamber at the centre of this pre-Celtic mound, and is believed to be the oldest ‘sundial’ in prehistory. At the dawn of the Winter Solstice the sun shines down the length of the underground tunnel, similar to the birth canal, to reveal an intricate, beautiful triple spiral lit up by the rising of the dawn sun. It heralds the sun’s traversing over the seasonal year, and the return of the life cycle in nature, agriculture and animal life. It is also a reminder to be open to change as the most constant quality of Life: change, as demonstrated by the seasons, is the most essential quality of Life, and is part of coming to terms with and making meaning of the many seemingly inexplicable events that inevitably crop up and transform our lives. 

The spiral form is found in other ancient dwellings and sacred spaces, such as the underground Goddess Temple, the Hypogeum of Malta. Estimated to have been built about 6000 years ago, it is one of the world’s most prehistoric sites, only recovered in 1902. Much like Newgrange, its purpose tended to be described as a burial chamber for those awaiting rebirth. Other ideas, based on small clay figurines of reclining women found within the red-painted caverns of Maltese temples, suggest the temples may have been where women gave birth, in safety and with blessings from the being in the womb of Mother Earth. The spirals at this site are two-fold, that is one links back into the other, and has been interpreted as an emblem for the tree of life, its branches and roots deep in the earth, and the return to the womb of Earth after death. 

Then there is the labyrinth, another prehistoric, but well-known spiralling form because so often embedded in the floors of large Christian churches. Chartres Cathedral in France is one very well known example, walked by many a pilgrim and visitor. It reveals the path of the spiral to wind our way into the centre and then return, though changed, by the same path, inviting contemplation and with the intention of changing, of renewing and revitalising our inner self, a magical path to insights, healing and growth – of shape shifting by bringing together the rational and the other intuitive level of consciousness.

After weeks of uncertainty and searching for the best technique to attach by stitching the cut-out triple spiral motif I finally took the plunge, deciding that whatever approach I took it would not be perfect. To hand stitch or machine stitch these small, closely spiralling circles was the question, long pondered for the difficulties and effects of different

methods. Even though each of the symbols has been attached using fusion fabric it is necessary to secure them by stitching. I was finding it difficult to make the decision, partly because of uncertainty about my skills, and probably more so because I was still in the process of mourning, grieving, remembering the first time I heard Leo utter those words. 

Sig Lonegren wrote a very comprehensive, hands-on book on labyrinths in 1991 (Gothic Image Publications,UK) - not to be confused with mazes:  "Labyrinths: ancient myths and modern uses" - complete with instructions and work pages on how to design one!

Next post: the butterfly over the moon!