Year of the Fire Horse Ley Lines

"With a skin shed
Fire led
Revelation abounds
Seeds emerge from anonymity

The lunar year is upon us (2/17) marking the threshold for the year of the Fire Horse. From an ancient Celtic lens, we are also nestled in the seasonal portal of Imbolc meaning “in the belly” and accompanied by the light of Brigid, “exalted one” and her offerings of possibility, healing, and inspiration as the grip of old lady Winter, the Cailleach, begins to slowly, hesitantly retreat.

I am finding myself drawn to notice the rousings of my heart for this next cosmic, earthy, benevolent cycle. I think it's part of the season of "in the belly"- allowing oneself to be touched and gestated by the rhythms, currents, and musings; the amniotic sac.

February's fleeting moments of warmth and energetic birdsong have begun to thaw and enliven pathways within me. Pathways that feel like rivers, carrying me home alongside eddies of becoming.

Amid the varied themes that are emerging, there is a common thread that connects them all- fire (hello year of the fire horse).

And some ancient ley lines that feel like guide posts for 2026 have appeared regarding the medicine of fire.  

Tapas; Hestia, Hearth, Hridaya.

Tapas
In the grounded practice and philosophy of Yoga, there is the teaching of tapas, oftentimes translated to mean something along the lines of discipline. Tapas is also considered to be a flame- the flame of tapas that refines, transforms, burns away.

Discipline as a practice doesn’t automatically sound enticing and can be quite harmful when practiced in a rigid, abusive, harsh way.

I recently heard someone etymologically break down the word discipline to disciple and that reframe sparked something for me-

To genuinely engage in the practice of discipline as a transformative, therapeutic, soul evolving agent is to be a disciple.

What are you a disciple of [deep down in your marrow, core, heart; when no one is looking; when you feel safe enough]?

I am a disciple of the infinite and its many manifestations that our threaded throughout existence- the pantheon of wise, whole, well-meaning gods and goddesses [archetypes] across time and space; the cosmos; the earth; the soul; the heart; the body; interdependence; liberation; mythopoetics.

Identifying this orients my behaviors, actions, thoughts, and beliefs; it informs how I engage with life; it becomes a compass, a desperately needed compass in the wilderness and chaos of becoming that is currently playing out on a stage where violence, injustice, falsehood, distraction, disconnection, oppression, and hurt are widespread.

It is a question I am dipping into often as I move though the ups and downs and one I want to invite you to explore if it feels resonant.

Discipline/discipleship is the fire that burns away everything that is not you, to reveal the divine spark that has always been. Now for tending it...

Hestia, Hearth, Hridaya
I didn’t know much about the Goddess Hestia until recently. But her core tenets struck a chord within me-

The necessity of maintenance, tending, attentiveness.

“First was the hearth. The beating center. The heart pulse of the home and temple, when once they were one and the same. The hearth was the crucible of communion and the oven that nourished both children and gods.” -Gabriela Gutierrez

Hestia is the hearth that demands our attention in the name of continuity. For though the hearth is steadfast, it is not without condition- it requires our participation.

Hestia invites us to tend the hearth; to tend the of cave of the heart or Hridaya in Sanskrit that houses the unwavering flame of the sacred that lives inside all aspects of creation.

To tend is to continuously return to center, to remember the sacred, interdependent, collaborative nature of life through the repetition of daily living and seasonal rhythms; attentiveness as a spiritual practice, attentiveness as inner and outer ecological sustainability, attentiveness as fertilizer for becoming.

As steadfast, Hestia cannot be displaced and so she heals the parts of us that have been displaced by systems rooted in authoritarianism, colonialism, oppression- systems that thrive on othering and fragmentation.

To participate in the maintenance (the conscious remembering) of heart, hearth, center, the sacred is to dismantle that which disconnects, displaces, and disempowers; that which impedes soul becoming and collective liberation. The message-

Tend, daily, rhythmically
Action, word, thought
Sacred kindling."
-Ashlyn

What practices, actions, thoughts, relationships, and images bring you back home to the hearth of your heart, the sacred steadfast flame within you?

For me, there are many, but nature, breath, intentional movement, writing, curiosity, meditation, compassion, the night sky, music, sacred texts, and beauty are constants.

Lastly, as I start to feel the onset of this new year and cycle I want to take a moment to express my appreciation for each of you. Some of you have been around for awhile, some are rather new, but all of you make this work possible. Inner Woven has seen me through many seasons, not all pleasant, but it has continued to be a portal for the finer things in life- meaning, depth, becoming, interdependence, hope,  mystery, practice, healing, expression, togetherness.  Thank you thank you for your presence! Stay tuned, *beautiful things are brewing*.

May the year of the fire horse be one of discipleship to heart and hearth tending for individual and collective well-being.
xx Ashlyn Miller