Fire Blessings

 

FIRE. 

The word conjures up thoughts of its beauty and warmth, and of its potential to destroy.  It burns. Almost all life is susceptible to fire. The smoke, the flames and the heat capture our imagination and draw us in.  Occasionally we hear of other natural states related to fire such as a volcano about to erupt, a tree struck by lightning, solar flares, and every year there is news covering forest fires from California to the Cape Province. Firefighters and volunteers rush out to help save people, animals and property while we watch in fascination.

And fascinating it is. It’s a theme that’s been used in countless movies. Sitting around a campfire or in front of an open fireplace; we find ourselves mesmerised by the yellow, orange, gold, and by the red glow of the embers. We’ve all been around a fire, toasting marshmallows, having a braai (similar to a barbeque), gathered for warmth, singing songs, or swopped tall tales. For as long as man has been able to make fire, it’s been a place where memories are made, social connections are formed and communities have gathered. This is one thing all humankind, regardless of geographic origins, has in common.

We associate fire with one of the five points of the pentacle (or pentagram, whichever you prefer), it sits south in a circle and in feng shui it represents inspiration and expression. It is affiliated to the zodiac signs Aries, Leo and Sagittarius and is one of the five Chinese elements. Religion uses fire on the one hand as a threat (you’ll burn in the fires of hell), and on the other, it’s used to light incense to purify the space and congregants. In numerology, it is given the number nine, which represents endings. Personally, my brain associates the number nine with the protea and phoenix, both are destroyed by the flames, and both rise again from the ashes.

I think it’s interesting to note the colours associated with fire, yellow, orange and red are also the colours of the base, sacral and solar plexus chakras. These deal with stability, community and identity.  

On a practical note, man has taken something once feared and learned to control it, mostly. We’ve turned it into something we can use. It cooks our food, warms our bodies, wards off predators, is used to forge tools and jewellery, and to light candles and incense for meditation. 

The idiom “Fight fire with fire” means to use the same methods against your enemies that they use on you. I think it comes from the method farmers and fire departments use by creating fire breaks to prevent fires and to control wildfires. Some other idioms and phrases are:

-          Burning to say something

-          Fire away

-          Add fuel to the flames

-         Blazing a trail

-          Burning bridges

-          Light a fire under someone

Our ancestors learned to use and appreciate it in spite of their fear, and without them doing so life would be much different. To a large extent, fire was instrumental in our evolution and there’s no denying it’s made our modern lives much more comfortable.

I think it’s inspiring that our ancestors faced their fears, and this year I’m going to try and do the same. I’m hoping to conquer my fears and use them to my benefit, or I’ll get burned in the process. Either way, it’ll be a life lesson and have value.

May you always have fire in your belly, just enough irons in the fire, and be capable of firing on all cylinders!

Photo by Tomáš Malík from Pexels