LESS EGO / MORE SOUL

Since I first heard these ideas two months ago, my appreciation for Water and life has expanded in a very beautiful way. This is why I have taken the time to pass on this important message, channelled through a great teacher I found here in Israel. His name is Shir and his words run deep. Here I have put together the essence of his inspiring message. Enjoy.

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It is important to understand the role of Water in our life. Science has proven that Water receives energy and holds memory. We know this, yet so often we forget the importance of this finding.

Consider this: approximately 65% of each and every one of us is made up of Water. That’s more than half of our bodily composition.  The fact that Water is so receptive and open to programming by intention offers a great opportunity for self-creation.

The Water Spirit is a traveller. It cycles through the planet, from the underground spring, to the cloudy sky, falling back down with the rain to join itself in the rivers and oceans of our planet. This cycle of reincarnation continues again and again throughout eternal time and space.

One could even say that Water is the “collective consciousness” incarnate as it travels around the globe, communing every single living being. On the first day of creation, Water arrived on earth and took on the biggest, highest responsibility to care for all of the creatures of this earth. Without Water, life would not exist.

Today there is the same amount of Water on earth as there was on the first day of creation. Science has even proven, that not a single drop has disappeared from the face of the earth since the dawn of time. Over the millennia it has just recycled throughout the complex life systems that support its journey across earth.

As we know, Water holds memory, and memory is information. As Water travels, it collects memories, gathering together a huge bank of information, documenting all of life’s history and evolution. As we drink from the same Water and allow it to pass through us, we both receive and contribute to the distribution of this information.

Being 65% Water, means we have access to all of the information in the world, within us at all times. However, most of us are not really used to listening – and I mean, really listening – enough to understand the wisdom Water is so willing to share with us. Instead we play games of guess and check, questioning our inner knowing, not believing that we can know all those things until we see some physical “proof”. Then we are suddenly surprised when we have a “new idea”, when in fact, we are just remembering – or acknowledging this information that is being shared with us, always.

Unfortunately, Water is something we tend to take for granted. We have been conditioned to expect that when we turn on a tap, Water will come. But this is merely a convenience of the modern world and we must recognise this for the luxury it is. If there is no Water in your taps tomorrow, perhaps you wouldn’t freak out immediately. Instead you would go to the supermarket and buy some bottled Water. But what if that was unavailable also? Okay, so you would find another beverage to quench your thirst. But how long could this really sustain you?

We need Water; pure Water, to grow into fully conscious human beings.

Always remember, that without Water, life cannot exist. If we stop drinking Water we get dry. When we get dry, we get weak. When we get weak, we die and like this, we return to the earth. They tell us there are places where there is “no Water” but there is not a place on earth where Water does not exist. At the very least, the spirit of the Water is in the air and when we breathe with conscious awareness of this, we drink.

If you think that we humans treat the Water with respect, then you are very much mistaken. Perhaps personally one by one, yes, but as a society, there is very little respect for the Water that sustains us so generously.

When you turn on the TV and you see moving pictures of a boat with a motor and oil driving around the Kinneret, you may realise with alarm What? We are suppose to drink this Water? (The Kinneret used to be the biggest source for drinking Water in Israel, until recent years as it has become polluted.) This is our disease as human beings – we don’t take responsibility for our own Water.

Today, as you read these words, I am calling out for your awakening. Take care of your own Water. Give intention to your Water. Love your Water. Give thanks for every drop that graces your reality. Know that when you speak to the Water, directly to the molecules, it listens. Likewise, as you drink, you open yourself to receive to the Water’s message. For as we approach Water with love and respect, we prolong the relationship. Yet if we continue to make Water feel disrespected and unwelcomed on this planet, one day it will surely leave us.

The Water asks for love and we give love through our appreciation. That is it. Imagine when you are parched and those first drops of Water touch your tongue. This is the gratitude we should feel with every sip, acknowledging that without Water, we would not be alive.

So give thanks for the Water and use Water with divine intention.

When you drink, say thank you.

When you bathe, say thank you.

When you flush the toilet, say thank you.

When you turn on the taps to run a bath, or wash the dishes or Water your plants say thank you.

When it rains, say thank you.

Realise the role Water plays in your life and give thanks, because Water is Spirit.

With the awakening of this realisation, you will begin to open and become more receptive to its knowledge and wisdom.

Bless the water.

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Last week I had the privilege of both witnessing and participating in the manifestation of an event of a lifetime. Inspired to help support the healthcare of sick, orphaned children in Israel, a friend of mine – lets call him Al – put together a DIY fundraiser.

Over the course of two weeks, what started as a “nice idea” became a full-blown reality. This was manifestation at its best.

Hailing from Brazil, Al had bought with him Ayahuasca, the sacred medicine of South America. His idea was to put on a three-day retreat that exemplified a really high-quality way of life. His vision included three days of workshops on nutrition, yoga, healing, sweat lodges and medicine ceremonies. As he began to discuss his vision with others, inspiration took on momentum and it was not long before many came together to help make it happen.

Land was donated for the week, along with infrastructure to make shelters, compost toilets, showers, a kitchen, sweat-lodge and ceremonial space.  Food was donated by each of the 200 participants who came through over the three day period. This assured an abundance of nourishing wholefoods. Healers, yoga teachers, storytellers, an NLP guru and even a magician came together to share their crafts. The result was three days of deep spiritual work, and I can tell you now, it really has changed my life.

The whole event was run entirely by donation, and by the end of it all, 25,000 Israeli shekels were collected - all of which went straight to the children. The fact that such an epic event came together in such a short period of time, (and based entirely on donation!) is a truly inspiring example of collaboration. Add to that the intense healing that benefited all participants, makes this a fundraiser “pure genius” in my books.

The Sweat Lodge…

On the first evening, I joined 40 others to partake in the first sweat.  “We come together in this womb to pray together and our prayers are the songs that we sing…” said Matias, the facilitator, as he opened the ceremony. He was an interesting character with long brown dreads, clear blue eyes and a muscly body, heavily tattooed in sacred geometric symbols. A stranger may have been intimidated by his stature and alternative image, but when you heard him speak, his words were so full of love – his kindness undeniable. “Family is everything and the children are our future, and let us not forget that we are all children at our essence…” he reminded us.

One by one, we each held our hands towards the fire before crawling beneath the low ceiling of the makeshift cave. Inside we sat shoulder-to-shoulder loosely holding knees to chest. The women sat on the right, the men to the left. In the centre of the lodge was a dirt pit. One by one the stones were taken from the fire outside and gently stacked in the pit.

The smell of cedar filled the air as it seared upon the rocks. Once the entrance was closed, everything became dark. Voices hung loosely in the air, without bodies to ground them. We were no longer individuals, but a metaphor for disembodied consciousness. As the heat gently wrapped its warmth around me, I welcomed the steam into every cell of my body. It was comforting and I felt safe to melt into the darkness without having to project any self image. In the dark, I could pull any face I wanted, feel happy or feel sad, smile or cry, without worrying about being “appropriate” in the moment. In the dark, my feelings were mine to feel. Matias began to sing, shaking his rattle to the tune, heya heya heya heaya ho… Gradually more voices joined united in the darkness, improvising on his melody.

The ceremony was split into four parts, each representing the opening of a spiritual doorway in alignment with each of the four elements. After each segment, the door was re-opened and more hot rocks were added to the centre. After the opening of the third door, we were given the opportunity to share one of our own songs with the group.

Now I love to sing, but I can still have a lot of blockages when it comes to singing in front of others – especially acapella. Despite my inhibitions, I figured here, in the dark was the best time to conquer this fear. Though it took several false starts, I eventually found my voice, singing a simple portugese medicine song that I had learnt while traveling around South America.

Com suas flores, limpe o meu coração

Com tuas águas limpas a minha alma

Hey mama…hey mama Oxun.

This song is a prayer to the water goddess, Mother “Oshun” and roughly translates to “with your flowers, cleanse my heart, with your waters, cleanse my soul.”

I had hoped others would be familiar with the tune and sing with me. In fact, my biggest fear was that I would be left to sing alone. So guess what? This fear was quickly realised. It seems to be true – that which we fear, we become. Nonetheless, fighting my ego, I  continued to sing the song a few more rounds until, gradually more voices joined me.

When the third door was opened, a crystal jug of water was blessed and then passed around the circle.  More prayers were sung, more sweat released, and two hours later, we emerged together, dizzy beneath the moonlight.

The whole experience was intensely spiritual. Much more real than any other (non-psychadelic) religious ceremony I have experienced. Before the sweat, Matias told us “this is where we come to pray,”  and I get it now, I really do. However, prior to entering this sacred womb, I didn’t really have a reference point for what true prayer is particularly as I never connected to this idea of prayer as “asking God for stuff…”

In the hot, damp, darkness, sit bones in the mud, I realised that prayer is really about coming together, celebrating life and surrendering to the discomfort as the mundanities of day to day living dissolve. Singing together is a powerful way to pray and I am learning more and more every day about the spiritual power of music. It blows my mind.

Overall, this whole experience left me wondering why it took me so long to brave the heat and darkness, considering the numerous opportunities I’ve had to participate in sweats around the world. Contrary to my apprehension, the  perceived suffering of the mind is nothing compared to the benefits I reaped, because when I sweat, I find my answers.

…To be continued…

I’ve been thinking a lot about the wisdom of trees lately. My experiences in working with Ayahuasca only confirmed my long-time suspicion that within each plant lies a sentient being.

To me, they represent one of the purest states of consciousness, remaining so still and open energetically, as if in a constant state of zen meditation.

In a previous post I used the metaphor of an apple tree as being the epitome of unconditional love. It bears it’s fruit so generously without expectation or concern for who or how it is consumed.

Recently I was standing at the edge of a forest, admiring nature’s wild beauty when four colourful parrots flew over my head and landed in a nearby tree. They were gorgeous creatures of red and blue feathers and I considered how cool it would be to have them come to me. I stood there meditating, connecting with them for a few moments, setting my intention. When the time was right, they flew toward me, but all I could do was flinch, duck and laugh at myself.

I can only begin to imagine what it would be like to be as energetically open as a tree.

One of the many lessons nature has taught me along my journey is that one of the keys to life is to make others feel welcome – particularly through sharing.

Tarot talks about the wisdom of being the fool – to be open and open and still open to life, no matter the potential for pain and suffering. This allows one to maintain the innocence and fearless enchantment of a child.

In my mind, trees demonstrate this beautifully as the forest shares everything – it is open and open and still open like a fool. Friend or foe, a plant does not show any fear – whether its approached by a tree-hugging hippy, or a ferocious chainsaw. It stands before both, radiating isness as if to say simply: “I am, until I am not.”

At times we might fear the dangers of the outside world, but despite it all, trees stand strong and tend to live long. Their resilience to the fear mentality that imbues our human condition inspires me, reminding me of the world I knew in my younger days, where fear was no thing and the possibilities of what I could do and create with my life were limitless.

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A friend of mine once pointed out to me, “you know all they want is your appreciation” and so I make a point to give it to them. They give us so much after all – food, shade, oxygen, and if you are willing to listen (as they whisper ever so softly) wisdom.

“Awake.

Shake dreams from your hair
my pretty child, my sweet one.
Choose the day and choose the sign of your day
the day’s divinity
First thing you see.

A vast radiant beach and cooled jeweled moon
Couples naked race down by it’s quiet side
And we laugh like soft, mad children
Smug in the wooly cotton brains of infancy
The music and voices are all around us.

Choose they croon the Ancient Ones
the time has come again
choose now, they croon
beneath the moon
beside an ancient lake

Enter again the sweet forest
Enter the hot dream
Come with us
everything is broken up and dances.

Indians scattered,
On dawn’s highway bleeding
Ghosts crowd the young child’s,
Fragile eggshell mind

We have assembled inside,
This ancient and insane theater
To propagate our lust for life,
And flee the swarming wisdom of the streets.

The barns have stormed
The windows kept,
And only one of all the rest
To dance and save us
From the divine mockery of words,
Music inflames temperament.

Ooh great creator of being
Grant us one more hour,
To perform our art
And perfect our lives.”

- Jim Morrison, Ghost Song

- Don Miguel Ruiz, The Four Agreements

Surrender your soul to the waters of time

The truth that all is transient

Floating freely down the canal to rebirth

Cling to nothing; but delight in the ride

The truth is discovered now

Naked and bare

Raw to the eyes of the blind

The discovery

Of what it feels to be free

Unburdened

Not wet yet nor dry

Exist in this space

As you dwell in this place

Let feelings guide your reactions

For nothing is right

And nothing is wrong

Spare the truth of your own moral compass

Remember now

What you knew all along

The truth

Your soul

Is now opened

And with no remorse

Abandon your thoughts

And live freely

On instinct and feeling.

Q: Who am I?

A: Who cares?