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The
Roebuck hides in the thicket and the cuckoo utters, “where” ? The
Roebuck hides at the apple tree – the noblest tree of all, it is the tree of
immortality through wisdom, the wild apple tree of the Sacred Thicket, the tree
that hides the Roebuck.
The
Muses promise to the poet is …
“Seek
patiently, and you shall find.”
The clue to the secret of the apple is to
be found hidden within the apple.
When the apple was cut cross-wise by Cuchulain’s sword, ”night
fell”. For
when the apple is cut cross-wise each half shows a five pointed star in the
center, emblem of immortality, which represents the Goddess in Her five stations
from birth to death and back to birth again.
Birth,
Initiation, Consummation, Repose, Death
“I
am a lure from paradise”
The Story of the Apple - A Promise Kept
Once upon a time, a very long time ago, when the Earth was very young, there
lived a people, who were also very new to the Earth. They spent their days in
lovely sunshine with abundant food and water, so that life was very good and
they were very happy.
One day,
when they woke up in the morning, the sky was not blue, but had turned dark and
gray and a fierce wind was blowing all around. They had never seen anything like
it and they were very afraid. The air was no longer warm and they were very cold
and scurried around looking for something to keep them warm.
On the
next day and the day after that, they awoke and found that the skies were still
dark and the winds cold. They also saw that the beautiful green leaves were
falling to the ground and they were very, very afraid. They had never
experienced anything like this before and began to be afraid that all that they
knew was ending.
Just at
that moment when they were the most afraid, they looked above them into the
clouds, and a beautiful spirit, came down to them traveling on a ray of
sunlight. She was so beautiful that it took their breath away. She spoke to them
and her voice was soft and kind.
She
said, "Do not be afraid, my children. What you see is not the end, but
merely a changing of the seasons. It is time for the Earth to rest, to be still
for a while, so that it may replenish itself and grow strong again, so that when
it is time, once more, she will give you fruits and grains, and rich tasty food
to eat and warm sun upon your backs."
I
give to you this promise, that all this will come about, but I do not wish for
you to be afraid. Therefore,
I will share a sign with you, so that each time you feel a little bit
afraid, you may look and see that what I say is true."
She
reached up into a beautiful tree and plucked from the branches, a rich, ripe,
red apple and brought it down before them. She took her blade and sliced through
the apple and twisting it apart, she said. "I give to you this blessing,
that all life is eternal, that what is born will fade away but will return
again, as life renewed."
She held
the apple up and showed them. In the very center of the apple there was a star
and as they looked with amazement, she told them, "Each time you see this
star, remember my promise, all life is eternal and everlasting, each ending is
really a beginning and my love remains with you forever.
“Behold
the Sacred Promise"
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