t’s been an intense last few days. On my heart and mind has been the idea of breathing more space into restriction, and just the other day, as I was cleaning up my rock garden, I spotted a really long snakeskin. My husband and I had just been remarking how Read more…
It is robin nesting season and for the past few days this little bird has been attacking its own reflection in our west-facing windows. It does this for hours, starting at 5am. I’ve seen it resting in our maple and dogwood, but can’t find the actual nest. I don’t have Read more…
In an exchange with @lauraleerussell on my last post I remarked how my encounter with the swallows and the eagle the other day evoked something my Akashic Records asked me years ago about why I kept choosing to be a hummingbird when I could also choose to be a condor, lord Read more…
Like a seedling waiting to be put out after the last frost, all spring I’d been craving a day warm enough to spend fully outdoors. Yesterday I finally got my wish, and as I was staring at the sky admiring some swallows, I caught sight of a huge blur in Read more…
Here is the audio of the extended version of my call to the four directions. (9:55)
You may want to strip it down to the essence and/or build upon this framework, swapping out aspects of it (e.g., using a different set of power animals, adding sacred plants, assigning different symbolism to each direction, etc.), or changing the starting point and/or the direction you move through each point. (more…)
Upon returning from my trip to Peru, I started a practice of calling to the four directions because doing so engaged my heart, got me immediately grounded and centered, and made me feel embraced in a very supportive atmosphere. I got really curious about it because I noticed that the way my shaman opened sacred space seemed a little different from the method attributed to the Q’ero (here in Spanish and in English). This makes sense considering that practice is rooted in various indigenous communities around the Americas, so there isn’t one consistent way of going about this. I noticed that where people started their circle (some in the East, others in the South), and also what they called in (animals, plants, elements, attributes) differed depending on how a tradition constructs its medicine wheel. Aside from the First Nations of North America, versions of this prayer practice is also found in among Andean, Mayan, Nordic, Siberian, and Celtic communities, as well.
Faced with all this variety, I got a little overwhelmed. When I asked my Akashic Records about the best way for me to go about doing this for myself, they responded that I should keep doing what I was doing: letting my curiosity lead me to different versions of the prayer, trying each one out, and noticing what portions of each prayer seem to connect to my heart. They said that eventually I would find my very own way of doing it. (more…)