One People, One Planet, HON!

Earth Day Poster

1972, poster, pen and ink, 21¾”x 16½”

This poster was designed for the 1972 Earth Day originally celebrated annually on the Vernal Equinox. The original Earth Day was founded on the Vernal Equinox, March 21, 1969 by John McConnell of World Equality (WE). The following year, Senator Gaylord Nelson took it on as a personal cause and promoted Earth Day in April, believing that warmer temperatures would invite wider and greater participation. McConnell’s World Equality group continued to urge celebration of Earth Day on the sacred day of the Vernal Equinox, and commissioned Hieronimus to design a poster advertising their original date for the celebration. Hieronimus was a fan of McConnell’s Earth flag, and agreed that the powerful energies available at the Vernal Equinox should be part of the philosophy behind Earth Day. He signed on as World Equality’s Symbolic Consultant in 1971, and raised funds with the sale of these posters.

Hieronimus advocated for Earth Day to be linked to the Vernal Equinox because it is one of the four most sacred festivals of the world. Together with the Summer and Winter Solstices and the Autumnal Equinox, the Vernal Equinox marks the day when the balance between day and night shifts. On or around March 21st of every year, the daylight period becomes greater than the length of night, and from that point on, daylight increases until the Summer Solstice, when maximum daylight is experienced and the nights begin to grow longer. Symbolically this allegory relates the idea that light has triumphed over darkness, knowledge has triumphed over ignorance, truth has triumphed over falsehood, and the God within man has triumphed over man’s lower passions.

The allegory being related in the story on this poster is that we are One People on One Planet. The action starts at the top, where Aquarius (symbolic of altruism, brotherhood, and the love of all humans for one another) is pouring out its energies over a very ancient glyph. This ancient symbol is deliberately the central focus of this poster because it was designed for Earth Day 1972 and the “minute for peace” which took place that year on March 21 at 1900 Greenwich Time, when people all over the world observed a minute for peace. The symbol of 6 overlapping circles with one in the center is one of the most ancient esoteric symbols known to man. Around the central 7th circle, the 6 overlapping circles combine to create a 6-petaled lily, a symbol for purity. All 7 circles are encompassed by a larger circle. The circle symbolizes spirit and infinity, that which has no beginning and no end. It could be called the spirit of God which manifests on the physical plane in many forms. Six is a symbol of harmony, balance and beauty. The 7th circle symbolizes the 7th day upon which God rested. The 7th day is a day of peace and therefore our symbol relates “a minute for peace.” Seven is also a symbol for victory and is repeated throughout the sacred literature of all nations. The larger 8th circle represents the number of regeneration -- as in the 8th sign of the Zodiac, Scorpio. The process of the 7 circles (peace) is therefore the process of regeneration or rebirth.

The “minute for peace” symbol is resting upon the temple of Stonehenge, which, at the very least, was an astronomical computer, computing solar and lunar eclipses even to this day. It is an Earth temple with a foundation dating to at least 8,000 B.C.E. Stonehenge rests upon yet another ancient temple: the Great Pyramid, which was constructed, according to the ancients, to measure all the heavens and Earth. It was a temple of initiation used by the mystery schools in Egypt, and like Stonehenge, is oriented toward the Vernal Equinox.

To the right of Aquarius is the planet Jupiter symbolizing expansiveness, and therefore philosophy and religion. Jupiter is considered symbolically to be the great beneficent of the planets. To the left of Aquarius is a galaxy much like our own. Within it are contained millions of other inhabited planets like Earth. A galaxy like the Milky Way can be used as a symbol for a path, a bridge, or a road to the Deity, Cosmic Consciousness, or the God within. It symbolizes the bridge to a higher state of consciousness. Aquarius looks toward this galaxy spreading altruism throughout the Cosmos. Below the galaxy, we see the planet Mars. Mars is a symbol of activity and energy, and therefore courage and strength. The “waters” of Aquarius reach out toward Mars, just as today, the nations of this world are reaching out to this planet in space exploration, trying to find the waters of life. Below Mars is the Moon, symbolizing the Divine Feminine. The “waters” of Aquarius are surrounding it, feeding it energy, and activating it.

The words written down the sides of the Great Pyramid say “Earth Day” in 25 languages. The lower portion of the Pyramid contains the words “Vernal Equinox” in the same 25 languages.

All people should celebrate Earth Day as a day to unite all humans in altruism and pay tribute to our mother, the Earth.