The timing was exquisite – timing fit for a King, or a Queen, or a Pharaoh, as fate and circumstance would have it. Just as this trecena was starting to come in late last night (April 3rd) Egypt staged a spectacular royal “Golden Parade” as the mummies of 18 kings and four queens – Egypt’s royal ancestors – were transported from Cairo’s old Egyptian Museum to the new Grand Museum in Al-Fustat, three miles away.

Click here for the Podcast to accompany this trecena.

They were transported, accompanied by glorious music, each in special capsules inside gold adorned coffin/ boxes, each borne by a gold-bedecked vehicle attired in Pharonic motifs, each with the name of the king or queen it was carrying inscribed in three languages on its sides. A “cast of thousands” participated in the ceremonial pagentry that accompanied this historic event, which included horse-drawn Pharonic-style chariots, “maidens” carrying something that looked like “moon baskets”, and a 21-gun salute as the royal mummies arrived at their new home. But who, if any, would have known about this timing?

As it happens, this event occurred in the last few hours of the B’en (“personal authority”) trecena, just as the energies of 13 Chikchan (“transformational lifeforce”) were being replaced by the energies of One Kimi, the “initiation of death/absolute foundations”, the point needed for regeneration. Indeed Kimi has a way of stripping things down to the foundations, in order to engender new life.

The first day of this time frame is symbolized by a skull, representative of that general “return to Source” idea, and it is often intriguing to see how often events that take place under this influence can reflect that very idea of going back to “bare bones” foundations. The principal patron of this time frame was seen as the Conch-shell Lord known as Tecciztécatl, who sacrificed himself to become the Moon. He is often seen accompanied by Tonatiuh, God of the Sun, so here we have the Moon and the Sun working together to generate new life.

Since this generally represents the idea of “returning to source” in order to regenerate, there is often a “letting go of restrictions” aspect to this time frame, in order to achieve a higher level of evolution.

In ancient Mesoamerica the power and potency of One Kimi were such that a great feast day often accompanied the arrival of this trecena, often beginning the evening before, so it was truly awesome that the grand ceremony in Egypt took place at precisely this time, just as One Kimi was starting to come in. There is a “bare bones” aspect to this as well, in addition to the idea of these royal personages truly becoming “immortal” through the nature of this re-entombment. Through the timing of all this we have a great opportunity to see how these energies apply to the world at large, regardless of cultural traditions. In addition, this grand event took place just a few hours before Easter Sunday, which is also oriented around Death and Resurrection.

In addition to all this, this trecena is bringing other significant death-oriented events into focus, from both past and current cycles.

First and foremost, of course, is the pandemic, with the case numbers still extraordinarily high. By the start of this trecena there were over a million cases in at least 23 countries in the world. In many countries, such as Brazil, health care systems are in meltdown, vaccination programs are either chaotic or non-existent, and death rates continue to climb at high rates. Despite the fact that millions have now been vaccinated, and masks and social distancing have become the “new normal” for millions, there are still far too many who flaunt these simple measures, thereby adding to the problem rather than contributing to solutions. This is still highly problematic, and is compounded by the fact that a “grief pandemic”, a “mental health pandemic” (caused by isolation), and economic downturns are causing untold amounts of pain and trauma for much of Earth’s population at the moment.

All this in addition to a number of recent events that have compounded the sorrow, such as the train crash in Taiwan just before this trecena began that killed at least 50 people and injured at least 156 more when a busy passenger train carrying 490 people derailed when it collided with a truck that fell onto the tracks. This coincided with the start of the Qingming, Tomb Sweeping Day (Ancestor’s Day) public holiday, a time when many travel to cemeteries to sweep tombs and pay respects to deceased family members.

Some people are dealing with these kinds of tragedies by working together to create memorials to loved ones, such as seen in The National Covid Memorial Wall being created along the southern bank of the River Thames outside St Thomas’ hospital in London, on a wall facing the Houses of Parliament in Westminster, where people are painting some 150,000 red hearts in memory of those who have died. The mural, set up by the Covid-19 Bereaved Families for Justice group, is expected to stretch for hundreds of metres.

Currently in the US, the focus is on such things as the trial associated with the death of George Floyd, and the significance of this in term of law enforcement in that country, particularly with regard to racial inequities. And then there is the issue of security overall, including in Washington DC where another violent attack on the US Capitol has sent more shockwaves through the community, this time at the start of the Easter weekend, as another police officer was killed and another was injured by an attacker. All this is in focus again exactly one cycle after the death and memorial events last summer associated with civil right activist and “Conscience of the United States Congress” John Lewis, who devoted his life to fighting for social justice.

While it is true that in the past this trecena has been associated with a number of natural disasters and even knee-buckling events that have forced people into positions of profound loss (as when Puerto Rico suffered the full force of Hurricane Maria), such losses have also brought many to the point where the only option available was to “start again”, pushing them to build new foundations in order to “regenerate”. This can happen on both personal and global levels, and there are times when, ultimately, the new foundations that are being established can have significant long range benefits, as when the first meeting of the World Anti-Slavery Convention was held during this trecena in 1840, and when the Treaty of Versailles between Germany and the Allies was signed during this trecena after the conclusion of World War I. In 2016 it was this trecena that brought the signing of the historic global climate change accord.

Currently as we go through this energy zone many will again be forced to take a good hard look at many aspects of their own lives. Many will have no choice but to reassess their values and priorities, to make hard decisions about changes (and even sacrifices) that may be needed. Many will have to think about restructuring on various levels, including personal, local, national, and international, as well as on mental, emotional, and spiritual levels.

As always, Kimi represents a key genesis point for regeneration. This is a time frame that tends to bring things “back to basics” so that restoration and renewal can be addressed. It is for this reason, as difficult as it may seem at times, that this trecena has often been associated with “luck” and even good fortune as it presents an opportunity to “pause and regroup”, to review one’s overall “state”, and even to clean out whatever is not wanted or needed in order to set up new foundations for what you want to rejuvenate or bring into your life. The developments that may arise from all of this will be life changing for millions of people, hopefully setting the framework for the restoration and renewal that is so greatly needed. During this time these are the energies that will come into play:

1 Kimi (April 4th) – the “initiation” of “death/return to Source” foundations, marking one year exactly since China held a nationwide day of remembrance for the more than 3300 people in China who had died of Covid-19 during the first few weeks of the pandemic, including 14 medical workers. At that time everything came to a halt for a three-minute silent tribute at 10:00 local time; in Wuhan all traffic lights in urban centres turned red and traffic ceased.

In the US at that time the dumpster was aggressively pushing for Americans to start taking certain anti-malaria drugs — particularly hydroxychloroquine — despite the fact that such drugs has not been approved for treating COVID-19. By then over 310,000 cases had been reported in the U.S. and that country was in a mad scramble to try to find respirators and protective equipment for medical workers. Now one year later, the US still ranks as the highest in the world, by far, for Covid cases, numbering well over 31 million. However, with an aggressive vaccination program currently underway, more than 56 million people in that country are now fully vaccinated, and over 100 million partially vaccinated, so significant progress has been made on that front since Joe Biden took the helm of the presidency just over 10 weeks ago.

As it happens, this “return to basics” energy was the energy in place in 1972 when a much younger Joe Biden first defeated an older, more established candidate, as he won the race for the US Senate, for Delaware. Given the incredible mess that now-President Biden inherited when he took office he is going to need every ounce of the experience he has amalgamated since then in order to deal with it all.  Given all he has accomplished in the short time he has been in office, it appears that all that experience is serving him (and the country) well.

Currently this is both Easter Sunday and the day of China’s Qingming (“pure brightness”) Festival, aka Chinese Memorial Day, Ancestor’s Day, or Tomb-Sweeping Day, an important day for remembering ancestors. And in Egypt this is exactly what they will be doing on this day as the mummies of the 22 royal personages that were ceremoniously transferred in an elaborate “Golden parade” from Cairo’s old Egyptian Museum in Cairo to the new Grand Museum in Al-Fustat, starting at sundown the evening before, continue to be the focus of considerable attention as they are being prepared to take their places in the new Royal Mummies Hall that will be their resting place in this impressive new structure not far from the Great Pyramids of Giza.

This is also World Stray Animals Day, a day to remember that there are many homeless animals who could greatly benefit from human kindness and assistance.  Click here for a  lovely story about how a stray dog got adopted after he kept stealing a stuffed unicorn.

2 Manik’ (April 5th) – a dynamic type of energy aligned with the idea of reciprocity, which can sometimes tilt towards “polarization”, coinciding at this time with Easter Monday, on the third day of Italy’s Easter shutdown. One cycle since the historic launch of the United Arab Emirates’s Amal (Arabic for Hope) mission to Mars, its first interplanetary mission, the first of three missions to Mars that launched during this trecena last summer.

3 Lamat (April 6th) – the “activation” of the “bright star” heralding energy often associated with leadership, particularly in a “signalling capacity”; one cycle since a global team of astrophysicists released the largest ever 3D map of the universe, marking the culmination of 20 years of cosmology surveys with the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS)
On that same day the US House of Representatives held a moment of silence for John Lewis, the first of several memorial events in his name that took place during this time frame.

4 Muluk (April 7th) – a “defining” day associated with the shape-shifting energy of water, one of the 5 energies at the centre of the Aztec Sun Stone, coinciding at this time with World Health Day, with this year’s theme being “Building a fairer, healthier world”.

This is also the third Gregorian anniversary of the launch of Green Shirt Day relating to Organ Donor Awareness, which is commemorated in Canada by the donning of green hockey shirts and providing support for the organ donor campaign.

Sunset brings the beginning of ceremonies associated with Yom HaShoah, Israel’s Holocaust Remembrance Day, which continues into the following day.

5 Ok (April 8th) – the “blessing of love”, also associated with fire, protection, guidance, and justice, coinciding with the full day of Yom HaShoah, aka Holocaust Remembrance Day or Martyrs’ and Heroes’ Remembrance Day, Israel’s day of commemoration for the approx. 6 million Jews who perished during the second world war’s holocaust. At 10:00 am an air raid siren will signal the start of two minutes of silence across the country. At that time cars stop, and people stand at silent attention in remembrance. One of the traditions associated with this is the lighting of special yellow candles that include Star of David logos.

At this point it has been one cycle since 48 senators introduced legislation in the US to restore the Voting Rights Act after it was gutted by the Supreme Court in 2013. The lawmakers called the bill “The John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act”, named after civil rights icon John Lewis, who had just died. The bill would require that any state with a history of voting discrimination within the past 25 years seek federal approval before making any changes to its voting procedures. And it would mandate that any state, regardless of its history, obtain clearance from the Justice Department or a federal court in Washington, DC, before making any changes that would tend to burden voters of color, such as strict voter ID laws or closing polling places in areas with large numbers of minority voters. The previous December John Lewis had presided over the Democratic-controlled House as it passed identical legislation to restore the VRA. But Republicans have refused to take up the bill in the Senate.

6 Chuwen (April 9th) – a “six directions” type of energy aligned with creativity and play, but sometimes associated with the unexpected, coinciding at this time with Vimy Ridge Day, which commemorates the deaths and casualties of members of the Canadian corps in the Battle of Vimy Ridge during World War I. One cycle since the launch of China’s Tianwen 1 mission to Mars.

7 Eb’ (April 10th) – a “self-generating stream-of-consciousness” type of energy; a revitalizing force representative of the fertile “mid-point” in this trecena; sometimes a turning point towards the opening up of new possibilities.

Two cycles ago a judge in New York ordered the dumpster to pay $2 million in damages for misusing his charitable foundation, referred to as “a shocking pattern of illegality”.

8 B’en (April 11th) – the “resurrection” of personal authority, on the scheduled day for the first test flight of NASA’s 4-pound Ingenuity helicopter on Mars, which will be the first human-made device to fly on another planet. This flight is to test the possibilities for flying this kind of drone in the perilously thin Martian atmosphere. The final day of this trecena marks one cycle exactly since the Ingenuity departed from Earth, as a key component of NASA’s Perseverance mission.

This is the day when voters in Chile will be voting to choose the 155 people who will make up the convention to draw up their new constitution. This is also National Pet Day.

One cycle since the first of several commemorative events last summer pertaining to the life and death of Congressman and civil rights icon John Lewis.

9 Ix (April 12th) – an “outwardly projecting” type of energy often associated with deep mysteries, coinciding with the beginning of Ramadan (in the evening). This is a time for prayer, for fasting from dawn to sunset, for personal introspection, for charity-giving, and for attending to traditional Muslim spiritual practices, which continue for 30 days. As happened last year services in many places of worship may likely be limited or suspended due to the coronavirus, but Ramadan will continue to be a time when Muslims will direct their attention towards helping those in need to get through the pandemic. This is the International Day for Street Children, which has been celebrated globally since 2012.

Events that take place under this energy influence can have long range consequences, as when President Lyndon B. Johnson signed into law the Immigration and Nationality Act under this influence in 1965. This marks five cycles precisely since Puerto Rico took the full force of Cat. 4 Hurricane Maria, “the storm of the century” in 2017, delivering a devastating blow that killed over 3000 people, shattered homes and infrastructure, and completely destroyed the power grid.

This is the 40th Gregorian anniversary of the first launch of the U.S. space shuttle Columbia, the first of the fleet, representing the beginning of the Space Shuttle era.

It has been one cycle since John Lewis’s “Final Crossing” of the infamous Edmund Pettus Bridge, in a processional ceremony that preceded his Lying in State at the Alabama State Capital.

10 Men (April 13th) – “foundational higher vision” – a Burner Day aligned with “taking the fire” in conjunction with the “high vision” of the Eagle, a strong energy that has the potential to open up far-reaching possibilities, coinciding at this time with this first full day of Ramadan and with the beginning of Songkran – the Thai New Year national holiday and water-throwing festival (representing purification and the washing away of bad luck). Although it was not celebrated last year, it is apparently going forward this year, but with strict public health protocols in place.

The Dai 3-day Water Splashing Festival is due to begin at this time as well. This is a traditional festival celebrated by the Dai people in China to mark their lunar new year and exchange wishes for good luck, health, and happiness. It is likely that this will also go forward this year, again with strict public health protocols in place.  The New Year’s festival of Yugadi (aka Ugadi) is also celebrated in some parts of India at this time.

Israel’s Yom HaZikaron (Memorial Day) begins at sundown.

This marks one cycle since the first of two days for John Lewis’s Lying in State at the Rotunda of the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C. last summer.

11 Kib’ (April 14th) – an energy that can be either change-oriented or “inspirational” (or both), often aligned with Kib’s orientation around shedding a kind of “first light” on things, coinciding at this time with the second day of Songkran in Thailand and with China’s Double Third (or Shangsi) Festival that involves the invocation of cleansing rituals to prevent disease and get rid of bad luck. The festival is also known as The Banquet of Peaches of Immortality.

The evening marks Israel’s full Yom HaZikaron (official Memorial Day for the Fallen Soldiers of the Wars of Israel and Victims of Actions of Terrorism) and, at sundown, the beginning of Israel’s Independence Day celebrations (Yom Ha’atzmaut in Hebrew), with the ceremonial lighting of twelve beacons (representing the 12 tribes of Israel) at Mount Herzi, Israel’s national cemetery.

This also marks one cycle since the second of two days for John Lewis’s Lying in State at the Rotunda of the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C. last year.

12 Kab’an (April 15th) – a “dedication” type of energy associated with movement. Aligned specifically with “Earth movement”, this is often a powerful energy associated with moving new ideas forward. In North Korea this is the scheduled day for the public holiday known as The Day of the Sun, an anniversary of the founder and first leader of North Korea, which is generally celebrated with a large military parade. However, whether this will happen this year is unknown.

And speaking of military parades, this day marks three Calendar Rounds precisely (3 x 52 years) since the Grand Review of the Armies in 1865, when Union Army troops paraded down Pennsylvania Avenue (Washington, D.C.) to celebrate the end of the American Civil War (also the following day).

It has been six cycles since U.S. intelligence agencies released the report that described Russia’s sophisticated cybercampaign that was directed towards discrediting Secretary Clinton and undermining the U.S. democratic process during the 2016 election campaign.

One cycle since John Lewis’s Lying in State at the Rotunda of the Georgia State Capitol in Atlanta last summer prior to his Celebration of Life and interment the following day.

13 Etz’nab’ (April 16th) – “transformational flint”, a “heavy-duty” (and often “dazzling”) force for change. Back in 1861 this was the Maya calendar energy in place when Abraham Lincoln appointed General McClellan to lead the Union Army forces, at the start of the U.S. Civil War. Currently this day marks three Calendar Rounds precisely (3 x 52 years) since the second day of the Grand Review of the Armies in 1865, when Union Army troops paraded down Pennsylvania Avenue to celebrate the end of the American Civil War.

To put things into perspective, given Israel’s Memorial Day and Independence Days that would have just taken place (see 11 Kib’ above), this day marks two cycles exactly since this energy was in place in Nov., 2019 when there was heavy fighting between Israel and Gaza just after Israeli forces killed a top Islamic Jihad commander in Gaza, who was among a total of 32 Palestinians killed at that time. This was seen as the “most violent assault in months” by Israel as they carried out more than 50 air raids and 21 artillery attacks that targeted Palestinians homes, farms, and positions belonging to the “resistance”. The president of the Palestinian authority called on support from the international community to put pressure on Israel to stop its “continued aggression” and violation of international law.

This marks one cycle since the launch day of NASA’s Mars 2020 Perseverance rover when it began its 7 month journey to the Red Planet. Seven cycles ago, in 2016, this was in place at the signing, by 175 nations at that time, of the historic global accord to fight climate change (the Paris Climate Change Agreement).

This is not only civil rights icon and long-serving Congressman John Lewis’s Maya birth energy, but it also marks three cycles since the introduction of the John Lewis Voting Rights Act (aka H.R.4) on Feb. 26, 2019, which is designed to restore and strengthen parts of the Voting Rights Act of 1965. Later that year this bill was passed by the US House of Representatives, but it has not yet been passed by the Senate. Given that there are some 250 bills in 43 states that are currently being put forward in efforts to restrict voting rights, the John Lewis Voting Rights Act is greatly needed.

One cycle ago exactly this was the energy that was in place on the day of John Lewis’s final Celebration of Life, followed by his interment. This was the final day of tribute for this heroic soul, whose passing occurred just three trecenas (39 days) after the funeral for George Floyd. John arrived in this world under the dazzling and transformational influence of 13 Etz’nab’, departed under the high energy influence of 13 Chikchan (transformational lifeforce) just before the start of this Kimi trecena last summer, had his signature legislation introduced into Congress on the fifth day of this trecena, and went to his final place of rest on the last day of this trecena, under auspices of that same transformational 13 Etz’nab’ force that ushered in his arrival.

So what does this energy frame have in mind this time round? Perhaps we should keep in mind that about this time billions of cicadas (known this time as Brood X) are set to emerge across the eastern US, after 17 years underground, in at least a dozen eastern US states. It is possible that this might be about the time when they might begin to make their presence known.

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[Please note that the brief descriptions of the days provided above are only “thumbnail sketches”. Much greater detail can be found in Manual for the Soul: A Guide to the Energies of Life.]