I remember looking up in the night sky as teenager. I was on a camping trip with my family and had ducked away from the late night campfire to catch a few moments of solitude up high in the North Carolina mountains. Just far enough away from the glow of the campfire, I was in enveloped in total darkness. I looked up, as I always am drawn to do. And the stars were breathtaking. There were so many. And I immediately felt so little and so significant all at the same time. I noticed the constellation Orion, locating his belt of 3 stars. (I’d been a weather, space, star freak since I was a kid… taking after my dad). And, in that moment, looking at Orion’s belt, something in me felt something. A connection. Inspiration. Magic. Mystery. A sense of knowing. That night, my intuition whispered to me that these stars, especially one, Mintakan, in this constellation, would always let me know where my home is.
Of course, I didn’t grasp my whole intuition thing when I was 16-17. But I did already know that I was deeply moved by all things spiritual + mystical. So, I trusted that overwhelming, soul-filling feeling. Doing nothing with it, just feeling it + accepting it + basking in it.
For 30 years now, I am constantly reminded of that magical moment in the midst of the wild night, and I feel the same sense of home + power + magic as I did then. I can never describe it succinctly or properly. But that’s ok. It’s an empowering moment that I relive every time I look up + see Orion… wherever I am in the world.
Turns out, the 3 stars of Orion’s belt have names and have been known + observed by astronomers and scientists and wise mystics since ancient times all over the world. The farthest right star is called Mintakan. The same name ont he card that I pulled for today. And, interestingly, there are astrological (not astronomical) stories associated with that star. Ones that I had no idea about until I pulled this card.
Once I found out that Mintakan is a star in Orion’s belt, I knew that this card’s symbolism + message would be something special.
Mintakan is said to be an old, ancient home to lightworkers (spiritual souls) who are now on earth. Now, I’m not really into all of that other earth stuff. But, who am I to say what doesn’t exist or is or isn’t possible? But, I can’t help but admit that this story is interesting, especially considering the experiences I have had with Orion’s belt throughout my entire life since that magical night camping.
Those spiritual souls from Mintakan are here to bring messages of light + love to earth. Souls put here to spread a message of pure goodness. Positive, optimistic, idealistic, aligned souls with a vision of the goodness of the world. But, the thing that stands out the most to me is these souls’ sense of homesickness. Of not belonging. And yet, belonging everywhere all at the same time. Theirs is a desire to nest + create + be at home wherever they find themselves. But, there is always a sense of connection or pull back to that cosmic home in Orion.
If I am totally transparent, once I read all of the characteristics of Mintakans in as many places as I could, I have to admit, I identified deeply with them. It is as if I am reading about myself every single time I encounter more information, scientific, spiritual, astronomical, or astrological about the star and the symbolism. And I don’t know what that means. But. I don’t care. I know what touches my soul + inspires me. And, if there is one thing I’ve learned, I know who I am, how I am, and to trust my intuition to reveal my soul, my path (past or present), and the deeper meanings found in the heavens, on earth, and within my spirit.
So, home. The home thing associated with Orion + Mintakan inspires me to think more widely about what home really is. So, it really doesn’t matter at all about this star stuff. It is just a catalyst that brings a message of what it means to create our own home.
I’ve moved a lot. Literally creating new homes over + over again. But, even before that, I spent my teenage years feeling not at all at home in my own skin. I felt different. I was different. I didn’t belong, except with only a rare few. But, I always lived in my own sort of world. Wanting desperately to be in everyone else’s “regular” teenage world. Until, the day that I somehow understood that who I am, how I am is exactly who + how I am supposed to be. And, even better than that, I would uncovering + discovering + peeling back new layers of my soul as each year passed. Becoming more + more aligned with my soul. Blooming + blossoming into, well, me. More at home in my own skin.
You see, I was always looking for some place outside of myself to be my home. Thinking that if I just moved here or there that I’d be satisfied. that I’d find the place where my soul felt free.
Turns out, the place that I needed to look was inside. Now, I did move around a lot, as I said before. And while there was no one place that suddenly felt like home, my physical moving + living in different places, did help me begin to turn inward. And, after years of moving around, and aging a little, gaining some wisdom + life experiences, I finally understood that my home is within.
Yes, there are countries + cities that I connect with more than others, but of all the places I’ve been to so far in my life, I know that my true home is always with me.
Mintakan souls do long for their home in the star on Orion’s belt (as I have read). But, they also intuitively create a sense of home all around them. They are homebodies, craving a sacred space of their own, and creating that sanctuary in their own physical homes. Nesting, decorating, and filling their spaces with beautiful, inspired, spiritual things.
I am writing this post on Tuesday night. On my sofa. With a glass of wine beside me. Running back + forth to the cellar to check on the laundry when my alarm goes off. Standing to gaze out the living room window every now + then. Taking in this home that I have created with my wife. This very quiet, simple, beautiful, artistic, sacred place of soulful retreat.
We are here on this earth during our lifetimes. At times we feel belong. And at other times, we don’t feel like we belong anywhere. But we do. We are each here to live out our life, to embody our message, to reveal our soul. The cosmic inspiration we may feel when we look at the stars is there to remind us that there is more to us that we could ever dare to understand. That we are tiny + insignificant, and yet we are great + mighty all at the same time. We are, at once, divine spirit + sacred flesh. Humans living out a mystical, spiritual life right in the middle of the most ordinary, everyday stuff. Incarnate. Embodied. Earthy.
This is our home right now. Now, put your hand on your heart. And breathe in deeply + slowly. This is your true home. It doesn’t matter where you are. Who you are with. This, your soul, your energy, is your home.
xoxo. liz.
Orion was my first constellation and will always be my favorite. That familiar belt changing slightly through the seasons… I, too, have longed for a home, a place that calls to me. I’m learning that it’s within. ♥
Thank you for sharing! I find comfort in your words and similarities in my experience. The description of Mintakan from this card gave me chills and a deep sense of knowing that called to my soul.
Oh, I am so touched and grateful to hear that you found comfort in this post and that it spoke to your soul. Isn’t the idea of Mintakan just magic?! Thank you so much for your comment. xo
I too pulled this card in a reading. I have struggled with the sense of not belonging and longing for my true home. And I do feel that the home I have created here is my safe place- my sanctuary. I have been getting more in touch with the earth and grounding. Thank you for sharing and being and showing me I have brothers and sisters here who feel like I do.