The Moon, Ariel and The Goddess of Dreams
Long, long ago, before there was light in the night sky, there was a lovely young maiden who lived in the Land of Wishes. Her name was Ariel.Ariel was very happy in the land, but she had one wish which did not come true. She had long wished for music and the ability to dance. She could run; and she could play; but, try as she might, she could not find music in this land. And, as time passed, it made her very sad.
One day she heard a strange sound that she had never heard before. It was coming from beyond the meadow...beyond the forest...beyond the mountains. It drifted on the wind like the soft scent of spring flowers and touched Ariel's ears ever-so-lightly. She followed the sound, but couldn't get near it. The closer she got, the farther away it seemed to retreat.
Day after day, Ariel sought the strange sound. The greater her quest, the sweeter the sound. Finally, one evening, after fording streams and climbing hills, in complete exhaustion, Ariel spoke to the Goddess of Dreams.
"Goddess", she said, "what is that sound, and why does it elude me so?"
"Ah, my child", said the Goddess, "that is the sound of music. You wished for music, and I have given it to you."
"But it is so far away. Why can't I reach it?", cried Ariel.
"You lust for it too strongly", replied the Goddess evenly. "It obsesses you. You must let it go, in order to have it."
"But how can I do that, Great Lady? I have wanted to hear music, and to dance, for so very long. It has become my passion~my raison d'etre!"
"Go home, my child", instructed the Goddess. "Chop wood and carry water. And when the time is right, I will give you music and you will dance into eternity."
Sadly, Ariel did as the Goddess said. In a Land of Wishes, Ariel certainly thought she was being deprived of her one greatest wish. She focused, instead, on her menial daily tasks, all the time remembering the music in the back of her mind. Ariel chopped wood and carried water for the next seven years.
Then, one day, as Ariel was tending to her tasks, the Goddess of Dreams appeared before her.
"Ariel", she said, "You have done well. And what have you learned?"
"I have learned that there is pure joy in every moment, no matter what the task, if we would but see it", replied Ariel.
"Then", replied the Goddess, "I have one final task for you. And then I will let you dance into eternity."
"And what is that task?", queried Ariel.
"You shall weave the web of life, weave into it the understanding of the precious nature of life, so all will understand."
Once again, Ariel did as the Goddess instructed, weaving light and dark strands into the unending web of life.
The Goddess was pleased with Ariel's work and proclaimed, "Now you shall have your greatest wish, my wise and beautiful child. I shall set you in the heavens, where the birds and angels will serenade you and provide music for your feet. I give you this cloak, made of the very strands of dark and light that you have woven into the web of life. And you may dance in the heavens for all eternity."
On that day, so very long ago, the lovely Ariel became the Moon Maiden, dancing and swaying, wrapping and unwrapping her cloak around her as she moves to the song of the Universe. And that, my dear, is why the moon waxes and wanes. Ariel the Moon Maiden is swaying in the night sky, to and fro ~ light to dark...dark to light...light to dark...dark to light.
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