session 4: EARTH
Cead mile failte. A hundred thousand welcomes. Thank you for your dreams of EARTH.
It is so interesting for me to hear Dreams from people I know intimately and people who I have never or only just met. I find that once a Dream is shared, it belongs once more to the collective psyche, and plays out in the world in myriad ways.
Over the last 4 weeks, We have called in an etheric circle, invoking qualities of inspiration (AIR), initiation (FIRE), emotion (WATER), and manifestation (EARTH). In this dream oracle session, we will explore a dream of EARTH.
we dream of EARTH
I am walking along a path through a lush valley with a group of people. As we journey, people begin dropping off - walking or even passing away. I pause to bury something in the earth and build altars over it. I walk back, and tell my friends there is something hidden in the earth for them. They kneel and begin digging in the mud with their hands, uncovering sticks and stones. I continue along the path, hand in hand with my beloved. At the end of the path, we are the only ones left. We find ourselves in a secret garden in the early night hours surrounded by sculptures of rock and moss.
the EARTH oracles
Avebury...sacred site, sister to Stonehenge
This walk through the valley feels like a metaphor for the Life Path, the Soul’s Journey on Earth. Walking, step by step along the path, we feel and breathe in the sacred landscape - allowing the beauty of the natural world to work on and through and for and with us.
We sense this world first through our bodies. Dr. Clarissa Pinkola Estes identifies the body as the loyal consort of the Soul. As we feel our feet on the EARTH, we receive the ever shifting consciousness of the landscape, and our intuition (that deep felt sense of knowing) grows stronger and clearer.
Consider your life path…Where have you been, where are you now, where are you going?
The companions on this path are significant: friends, lovers, learners, seekers, wanderers…One raison d’etre of an embodied life is relationship. We are here together, in relationship with those from our past, our future, and our present…some may stay until the end, others will come and go:
"Some people come into our lives and quickly let go. Some people stay for a while and move our souls to dance. They awaken us to a new understanding and leave footprints on our hearts and we are never ever the same" (Flavia Weedn).
Step by step, the path is found/walked. The wisdom here in this dream is to not leap ahead, but to be fully present through each step, pausing a moment to kneel and pray, then continuing on.
Give honest, full attention to the journey/process unfolding beneath bare feet (soles) - open, receptive Souls. This is a journey into wholeness, where the masculine and feminine are together, yet individuated through the end.
Who is walking with you on this journey?
Along the way, something is buried in the EARTH: What is it? What is hidden? The Feminine grows in the Darkness, the Unseen. She does the inner work of creation. Beneath the surface, within a seed. She possesses an innate knowing of when it is time to uncover and reveal. She cannot be forced or sped along by any outer influence. To her, the darkness is a sacred place of nourishment and nurturance.
We bury the dead. We bury treasures. We bury seeds. And…We bury hopes. We bury dreams. We bury any chance at happiness. Isn’t this true?
What have you buried? What is hidden? Is it time to uncover, to reveal, to share and bring forth that which is within you?
To share with friends our stories and treasures, whether sacred or profane, marvelous or mundane, is one way to heal - bringing light to the shadows in a safe and loving way. A good friend of mine gave me this beautiful tidbit of wisdom last week: “Only share your vision with people who will pray for you” (thank you Justin Michael Williams). These particular fellow travelers are the Soul Companions - our anam cara, our kalyanamitra…
Who are the people in your life that will pray for you? Who will pray for you in times of need/grief/sadness/despair/heartache/anger? Who will pray for you in times of celebration/hope/love/joy/empowerment/success?
Altars are spaces we go to pray, places we turn to with deep reverence of and for the Holy. We place upon the altars images and symbols of our devotion. Altars help ground the numinous, creating true Sacred Space. Ancient ones built circles of standing stones, pyramids, and temples to mark these places on the EARTH. We can build them in nature with piles of rocks. We can build them in our homes, offices, and studios with candles, crystals, images, and flowers. We can build them in our bodies, and bow to the Wisdom and Love within.
These altars within are some of my favorites:
- the altar of my womb: a dark secret cave of creativity and power
- the altar of my heart: a shamanic drum, beating and governing the flow of the red waters of Life
- the altar of my mind: a crystal temple with a throne holding the pituitary gland - seat of intuition, insight, inner sight.
We kneel at the altars of the most Holy, in whatever form he/she/we/it/they appear(s).
What is uncovered? What is revealed?
What are these sticks and stones that are unearthed? In Dream exploration, things are rarely meant to be taken literally…
“Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me.” Do you remember that childhood sing-song? I recall days and nights of saying this, over and over again, trying to convince myself that this was true…that the words spoken to me on the playground did not hurt me. But words did and do hurt, bruising and cutting deeper than many will ever acknowledge…
Can you track within your body and identify any “stick and stone” words (spoken to you by yourself and others) that have wounded or scarred you? Can you acknowledge them, and maybe accept them as gifts?
At the end of the journey, we arrive at the secret garden, ancient and mysterious. Soon, a full moon will rise, reflecting at a Cosmic level, the beauty of Wholeness. There is a feeling of deep abiding peace. We happen upon this place holding hands, whole, masculine and feminine, anima and animus, body and soul, together.
Paying attention to the old wisdom of the unconscious through Dream exploration opens us to wisdom as ancient as the rocks, the earth, the trees…and as vast as the waters, the ocean, the Universe...Generations upon generations of Life are living and breathing and speaking through us.
So, keep faith with yourself and those things that may or may not be immediately visible. The treasures are within. The body is a sacred consort to the Soul.
radiance sutra:
This body is made of earth and gold,
Sky and stars, rivers and oceans,
Masquerading as muscle and bone.
Every substance is here:
Diamonds and silver, magical elixirs,
Ambrosia that gives visions,
Herbs that nourish and heal.
The foundation of the planet,
Immortal magnetic iron,
Circulating in the blood.
Every element in you loves the others:
Earth loves rain, sky loves sun,
Sun loves the space it shines through,
Space loves everyone equally.
In meditation, luxuriate in knowing this deep and simple truth.
Every cell is an organ of sense
Infused with majesty.
(Lorin Roche, The Radiance Sutras, Yukti 24)
an open call for Dreams!
We have now cast a circle for Dreaming - the first week we called in Dreams of AIR, the second FIRE, the third WATER, and now the fourth EARTH. This etheric sacred circle is a transformative space for deep healing and accelerated alchemy that will continue to hold us as we journey further into the realm of Dreams. I welcome your Dreams, and the wisdom you carry in your Soul.
dream tip: nourishment
Nourish yourself deeply during the day. Drink good water. Eat good food. Surround yourself with Beauty. Sometimes dreams ebb when we are physically, mentally, emotionally, or spiritually depleted. So, practice self love and compassion on all levels of your being.
EARTH blessing
Stand with your bare feet on the earth. Kneel in the grass. Place your head down and reach your arms out in a gesture of full surrender. Be here. Listen. Receive the Wisdom of the EARTH.
Blessed be.
sweet dreams…
JML
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Copyright © 2015, jennifer marie lane, All rights reserved.
