Undo what has been done Step back and see the sun Let go of all that which keeps me bound Create space for what is, for what I’ve found Along the way, day after day The veil thins, and I pray: “Oh powerful creator – Free me of burdens and pressure To be, something other than, Myself fully. Lift my spirits, and Clear the smoke from in front of my eyes. Bless my body, bless my home And bless my loved ones, all beings of earth. So that we may shine and share our Truth For the betterment and ascension of this planet. Thank you, I salute – To the sun, moon, stars, sky and earth East, south, west and north. Thank you, I pray – Help me to see another day Help me to serve my people Help me to heal and grow Until it is my time to go Thank you for all that you do May it be so – Thank You and I Love You.”
A Shaman in its most fundamental and westernized terminology means Healer. However, all Healers practice different modalities, and some may not resonate with Shamanic specific techniques. Therefore, not all Healers are Shamans. This word is used often, especially in Boulder County, which in most cases is a great thing (as it speaks to the ancient practices being revolutionized to fit our changing world!), but it can also be a bit confusing. No, Shamans do not have to be from indigenous societies to be powerful practitioners and healers, although there are many that are. Shamanism stems back hundreds of thousands of years. We do not know exactly how far back, but it is shown in prehistoric cave drawings that there was reverence for the animals and people in the community.
Shaman also means “one who sees in the dark”. Shamans are frequently referred to as hollow; they act as channels for high vibrational Spirit energy to move through them for a specific purpose and intention. Shamans clearly see and heal through their ability to be heart-centered, present and open, yet humble and honest. Acting as hollow vessels for frequencies that we are typically closed off to in our everyday lives, Shamans are bridges between this world and the spiritual worlds. Shamans work closely with Spirit helpers and guides, power animals, angels, ancestors, nature beings and invisible forces to serve the highest good and benefit of all. They are highly intuitive and open to their psychic abilities by being connected to that which is greater. It is their mission to bring enhanced balance and ease to the people and life forms of Earth. It is also common for Shamans to work closely with herbs, rocks, minerals and other earthly spirits. A shaman knows and feels that there is a Spirit in all things and works to build “right” relationship with each.
Shamans understand the importance of ritual, community, ceremony and rites of passage. They were the original doctors back before we had Western medicine. Those in need would visit the Shaman for healing from everything and anything: physical symptoms, emotional pain, mental instability and more. Shamans understand that illness, disease, imbalance, pain and suffering are more complex than our modern society likes to think, however I do feel that this is changing. Shamans treat illness and imbalance on subtle levels, because they know that all physical things have a spiritual root. We would be silly to ignore the power of Western medicine today, but Shamanism can offer a deeper and adjacent route to address the ailment and provide positive, healthy change.
My Smudging Fan for Healing Work
There are many practices and techniques, including: Shamanic Journeys, Transmissions, Extractions, Soul Retrievals, Power Renewals and more. They also have many tools in their toolbox, not limited to: medicine songs, healing words, buffalo drums, rattles, feathers, herbs, plants, crystals and more.
Shamanic principles, practices and tools are available to all of us. You do not have to be called a Shaman to embrace the benefits! It is a way of life – to bring in greater harmony, respect, connection, truth, love and energy into the everyday. It is the path of direct revelation, meaning each person who lives a Shamanic life has their own unique experiences within it. It is not limited; there are no rights or wrongs; there are no rules. It is that of meaning and that of liberation. You and Spirit lead the way together.
I hope this information was valuable to you!
Wishing you a blessed & safe holiday, new year & new decade!XOXO, S
I came across this Universal understanding and participated in the Collective opening over the last weekend…I was blessed to have attended a powerful Womens Retreat in the mountains of Estes Park, led and organized by a great friend and gifted yoga leader, Brooke Coletta. The retreat was filled with Healers, Teachers, Mothers, Daughters, and Students to SHE (the Wild Woman). The group theme was all about deepening our relationship the Feminine, while letting ourselves nourish and nurture from the inside out. Shout-out to Brooke for being the fiercely loving and authentic leader that she is! I had the honor of facilitating a group Shamanic Healing with mini personal readings during yoga, as well as leading the Full Moon Ceremony & Journey on Sunday night (picture of altar above). WOW – I am still blown away by the depth, connection, and sisterhood that develops when we truly LET OURSELVES LOVE.
What is your relationship to LOVE? Is it easier for you to give than receive? Do you find yourself receiving more than you give? What would it take for you to deepen your relationship with this equally Earthly and Cosmic force that connects us to all that is? Where do you feel these words in your body?
To quote the Beatles…“All you need is LOVE.”
I hear you… “But isn’t Love supposed to be shared?” “What if I don’t have a partner to express my Love to?” “I feel numb inside…how am I supposed to fill up with just the energy of Love?”
Truth is, Love is a Universal energy that is available to us in every moment.
You can experience Love within the rhythm of your breath, especially receiving it as you drink in each inhale. Have you ever stepped outside and invited a BIG breath of fresh air deep into your lungs, heart and body? That’s Universal Love! You can bathe in the Love of Grandmother Moon as she radiates power in the night sky and encourages you to release and let go of your uncertainty, fears and doubts. Have you ever gazed in wonder at the moon and stars as they appear as light sparked in the darkness…or at the rays of the sun as they penetrate and illuminate the clouds? That’s Love!
You have all the power you need to feel Love in every action you take, every step you walk, even every physical experience you have through manifested form. This is the gift of being human. We are able to use our senses, inner and outer, to perceive and experience the Love of Life. Sometimes, because of conditioning and embedded non-truths, we forget.
Have you lost your sparkle that glistens in the early morning as you wake, emerging into the dawn of a new day? Have you forgotten what it feels like to be grateful as you close your eyes and rest at night, drifting into the dreamtime? Have you unintentionally deemed Love as something that is irrelevant and insignificant to your everyday Life?
Once felt, Love is expressed through the different actions we take – admiring nature, purchasing flowers, vocalizing feelings, showing up for someone in need, snuggling with a loved one or pet, and yes – through sex. But Love is not limited. It is not able to be contained or boxed when we are experiencing it through the unconditional, dynamic and infinite eyes of the Universe. The process of opening to Love is a constant.
In what ways can you open so that you are able to let MORE Love in?
This is definitely a vulnerable state to be in – to say the least – AND it is a practice that shows us something more, again and again. Our society likes to tell us that we must be tough, strong and closed-off, while hiding our authentic selves, in order to be accepted and loved by partners, friends, communities and the greater world. This is simply not true. Also, we have many celebrity rockstars leading the pack (like Billie Eilish and Lady Gaga) that give me hope for the changes that are occurring in our society.
Humans are on a desperate search for connection. We hold within us an innate, heart-felt desire to connect…to something!
Truth. Love. Energy.
These 3 Shamanic principles are coming through big time for us as both human and spiritual beings, crocheted into the collective Web of Life. We are all works in progress. You owe it to yourself, over anyone else, to let some Love in – as it is right for you!
Love is all around you – waiting patiently – for the Divine moment to crack you open in ways that you have only dreamt about. It is also true that any heartbreak, loss, grief, desperation, abandonment, etc. hollows you in a way so that you can eventually experience MORE Love, because there is newfound space for it to enter Mind, Body and Spirit. I personally believe that although these are generally undesirable pathways to get there, devastating emotions are some of the most effective conduits for connecting us to something Greater.
Your entire existence is rooted in Love. Can you let it in?
It is my sincerest wish that we all Love and let ourselves be Loved – by Earth and nature, by ourselves and each other, by the greater Universe and the Web that connects us all. And So It Is!
Recently I attended a beautiful Sound Healing where I set intentions to be open to receive any healing messages for myself, for those I love, for the greatest good of our planet, and for the greatest benefit of Life on Earth. My promise that evening was to act as a completely open vessel for truth, sight, love, and energy. It is also a very good reminder that we always have the ability to receive guidance from our helpers in the “unseen” worlds. With my intention, the messages certainly came through!
“Float, Don’t Fight. Think,
Don’t Sink.”
This was one of many that came
through that evening from Helping Spirits like Bear, the Elemental
Spirit of Water, and even Celestial Beings like Angels.
These Spirits are wanting to help provide a greater sense of ease on Earth as
they assist us during this intense time of transition, evolution, and change.
We can interpret this time personally within ourselves, outwardly in our
relationships, and even globally throughout the world.
Living
on Earth is certainly a beautiful miracle, but it does come with conditional
challenges, waves, and cycles. As I have spoken about previously, Life is
not linear. Over the past month, and specifically in the last week, it has
become very clear to me that we are all riding the waves of our emotions
and of our lives.
It
is up to us if we choose to float with the current, fight against the motion,
or sink into the depths.
In the Native traditions that I have studied and intuited, West and Water andBear are all united. West is the place where the sun sets every evening, promising us a chance to rest in darkness and renew in peace. The blackness of the sky is subtly illuminated by the nightlight of the moon and stars. This provides us a time to sleep, to recover, and to even shine glimmers of light on karmic patterns/beliefs/stories that are no longer encouraging the coming dawn of the next day – aka our Path/Purpose/Future in Life. Water as an Elemental offers us the potential to rejuvenate, cleanse, and wash away what is not in alignment with our true Self. Bear as the Spirit Guardian of the West provides us with the promise of the natural cycle of hibernation and reflection. Bear promises us a chance to go within to rest and heal, while also being protected, nurtured, and held safe while doing so. Perhaps you can feel for yourself how interconnected the “medicine” (or the teachings) of these are.
I saw clearly, and I feel
strongly, that this is playing out right now within us and all around us.
There
is profound opportunity and potential for the closure and finalized healing of
certain dated ways of living and being that no longer serve our coming
future.
These karmic bonds are being
loosened and are asking for our awareness and acceptance in order to fully heal
and close the cycle. During this process, there is potential for the opening of
new doors and ways to shine our intrinsic Lights, all while staying grounded
and rooted as humans of Earth. We have the ability to free ourselves from our
pasts and create opportunities for our future, if we are willing to bring
awareness around the ways that we may have encouraged those patterns to
play out in our Lives until now.
We CAN clear and
release karmic cycles, IF we allow ourselves the permission to ride the waves of our
emotions, express how we feel, and ultimately trust in the flow that is always
carrying us through.
Water wants to help us do this. As an ally, water can indefinitely guide us into a place of authentic truth, fluidity, and clear expression of who we are, how we feel, and what we are here to “do”.
We are aligning so that we may ride the waves of our lives in a more compassionate, balanced, and harmonious way with not only ourselves, but also with each other and the greater Mother Earth.
—
Honoring the waters with presence and movement in CO.
Home Practice: Working with Water
*Bring awareness around water’s
abilities while you are washing your hands, doing dishes, cleaning laundry, showering,
etc.
*Offer
gratitude for and mindfulness towards the water you drink and interact with
each day.
*Honor the waters of the Earth and Sky. Spend time next to a local body of water/stream or collect fresh rain water outside – keep it in a special place in your home to remind you of the fluidity and help you are receiving!
*Take a rejuvenating Salt Bath. Epson/Mineral Salt combined with hot water in a bath helps to universally cleanse Mind, Body, & Spirit in an enjoyable and ease-filled way. Add essential oils or light candles to continue to create a healing space for yourself. I also like to call in healing energy from my Guides to help do this. Make it what you want! You may also want to try out this incantation: Speak out loud with conviction “Into the water and down the drain, goes all my worries, goes all my pain.” while you are exiting the bath, watching the water go down the drain. Repeat at least 3 times. Notice how you feel after!
*Listen to your intuition and respect how
YOU are guided to work with Water!
