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Free Online Talk & Ritual Workshop · At the Crossroads of Flame & Scale: From Wood Snake to Fire Horse with Selena Madden
Monday, February 23, 2026
7pm ET (NYC time)
Free! RSVP with email at checkout
Ticketholders: A Zoom invite is sent out two hours before the event to the email used at checkout. Please check your spam folder and if not received, email hello@morbidanatomy.org.
As we cross the threshold from the Year of the Wood Snake into the Year of the Fire Horse, we move from subtle shedding into visible momentum, from quiet wisdom into embodied force. This one-night lecture and ritual workshop explores the mythic, elemental, and psychological symbolism of this rare transition through Chinese cosmology, comparative mythology, and archetypal psychology. Together, we will honor what has been outgrown, illuminate what has been learned, and consciously step into the volatile, passionate fire of the Horse year ahead.
This gathering blends scholarly context, guided reflection, and gentle ritual practice—offering participants a grounded, meaningful way to mark the Lunar New Year as a true threshold of transformation. In Chinese cosmology, each year carries a dialogue between animal archetype and elemental force. The movement from Wood Snake to Fire Horse marks a profound energetic shift:
- from internal gestation to external motion
- from strategic stillness to bold propulsion
- from quiet discernment to visible risk and desire
The Snake is associated with wisdom, shedding, secrecy, and transformation beneath the surface. Wood emphasizes growth, patience, and organic unfolding. Together, Wood Snake years often ask us to molt identities slowly—to compost old skins without spectacle.
The Fire Horse, by contrast, is restless, charismatic, volatile, and fiercely alive. Fire accelerates, illuminates, and sometimes burns. Horse energy moves fast, demands freedom, and resists containment. Historically, Fire Horse years have been viewed with both awe and apprehension—seen as periods of disruption, rebellion, and intense creative force.
In this workshop, we will explore:
- Chinese elemental theory (Wood → Fire) as a cycle of becoming
- Snake and Horse as cross-cultural archetypes of initiation and power
- Fire as both sacred catalyst and destructive excess
- What it means to cross a year-boundary consciously rather than reactively
The evening culminates in a simple, optional ritual of release and ignition, designed to help participants:
- honor what is being shed
- clarify what must not be carried forward
- name what seeks motion, courage, and embodiment in the year ahead
No prior knowledge of Chinese astrology or ritual practice is required. This is a space of curiosity, reflection, and mythic literacy—not prediction or fortune-telling. Optional ritual items include a journal, totem or talisman, candle or incense. Details will be provided upon registration.
—
Dr. Selena Madden holds a PhD in Mythological Studies with an emphasis in Depth Psychology. She is a mythologist, ritualist, and educator whose work bridges ancient symbolic systems with embodied practice and contemporary psychological insight.
Her teaching weaves together goddess traditions, comparative mythology, archetypal psychology, somatic ritual, and creative reflection. She has taught extensively through Morbid Anatomy and other institutions on topics including Divine Eros, shadow work, dark goddesses, witchcraft, and mythic embodiment. Her work invites participants to meet myth not as metaphor alone, but as a living, relational force that shapes identity, desire, and transformation.
Monday, February 23, 2026
7pm ET (NYC time)
Free! RSVP with email at checkout
Ticketholders: A Zoom invite is sent out two hours before the event to the email used at checkout. Please check your spam folder and if not received, email hello@morbidanatomy.org.
As we cross the threshold from the Year of the Wood Snake into the Year of the Fire Horse, we move from subtle shedding into visible momentum, from quiet wisdom into embodied force. This one-night lecture and ritual workshop explores the mythic, elemental, and psychological symbolism of this rare transition through Chinese cosmology, comparative mythology, and archetypal psychology. Together, we will honor what has been outgrown, illuminate what has been learned, and consciously step into the volatile, passionate fire of the Horse year ahead.
This gathering blends scholarly context, guided reflection, and gentle ritual practice—offering participants a grounded, meaningful way to mark the Lunar New Year as a true threshold of transformation. In Chinese cosmology, each year carries a dialogue between animal archetype and elemental force. The movement from Wood Snake to Fire Horse marks a profound energetic shift:
- from internal gestation to external motion
- from strategic stillness to bold propulsion
- from quiet discernment to visible risk and desire
The Snake is associated with wisdom, shedding, secrecy, and transformation beneath the surface. Wood emphasizes growth, patience, and organic unfolding. Together, Wood Snake years often ask us to molt identities slowly—to compost old skins without spectacle.
The Fire Horse, by contrast, is restless, charismatic, volatile, and fiercely alive. Fire accelerates, illuminates, and sometimes burns. Horse energy moves fast, demands freedom, and resists containment. Historically, Fire Horse years have been viewed with both awe and apprehension—seen as periods of disruption, rebellion, and intense creative force.
In this workshop, we will explore:
- Chinese elemental theory (Wood → Fire) as a cycle of becoming
- Snake and Horse as cross-cultural archetypes of initiation and power
- Fire as both sacred catalyst and destructive excess
- What it means to cross a year-boundary consciously rather than reactively
The evening culminates in a simple, optional ritual of release and ignition, designed to help participants:
- honor what is being shed
- clarify what must not be carried forward
- name what seeks motion, courage, and embodiment in the year ahead
No prior knowledge of Chinese astrology or ritual practice is required. This is a space of curiosity, reflection, and mythic literacy—not prediction or fortune-telling. Optional ritual items include a journal, totem or talisman, candle or incense. Details will be provided upon registration.
—
Dr. Selena Madden holds a PhD in Mythological Studies with an emphasis in Depth Psychology. She is a mythologist, ritualist, and educator whose work bridges ancient symbolic systems with embodied practice and contemporary psychological insight.
Her teaching weaves together goddess traditions, comparative mythology, archetypal psychology, somatic ritual, and creative reflection. She has taught extensively through Morbid Anatomy and other institutions on topics including Divine Eros, shadow work, dark goddesses, witchcraft, and mythic embodiment. Her work invites participants to meet myth not as metaphor alone, but as a living, relational force that shapes identity, desire, and transformation.