Easter should actually be celebrated around the spring equinox. Between 21 and 23 March, the day light is exactly in balance with the darkness of the night. But because the determination of the exact day of this festival is based on the lunar calendar of the pre-Christian Jewish tradition, Easter is often celebrated many days after the equinox. Nevertheless, its spiritual meaning is closely linked to the symbolism of this balance between day and night.

The night symbolizes our daily life: as long as the Light of the true Soul has not yet dawned in us, we live as an outwardly focused human being - the personality - in a deep, spiritual darkness. Unfortunately, most people do not notice this darkness; they believe that the natural light of the human mind has already dissipated all darkness. The subtle Light that shines through the world of the true Soul can therefore not penetrate into the personality. What is light for the personality is darkness for the Soul and what is Light for the Soul remains darkness for the personality.

In the Jewish tradition, Easter is associated with the exodus from Egypt where the chosen people live in slavery. Symbolically speaking, everyone in whom there is something from the Light of the Soul, belongs to this chosen people. Egypt represents the world of darkness in which the outer man is enslaved to all earthly pleasures, so that the true Soul cannot develop.

Moreover, this story shows a second important meaning: we cannot be redeemed from this darkness on our own strength, based on our personality’s features. We need help from the divine world of the true Soul. But this help can only save us if we are willing to die with regard to the world of Egypt, the natural soul; that is, if we allow ourselves to no longer be led by our daily thoughts, feelings and desires. Yes, this means that we have to be prepared to go through a process of ‘dying daily’ because only that process allows the Light of the world of the Soul to penetrate more and imbue us with Light and Spirit. In other words, we must be willing to sacrifice ourselves for the sake of the life of the true Soul.

So, time after time, the Easter festival confronts us with the necessity of the purification of our heart. Only purification enables the heart to become the place in which the crucifixion of the personality and the resurrection of the true Soul can take place.