Meditations :: Emotional Healing
Breathe deeply…feel your breath on your top lip as you exhale. Inhale…as you exhale, empty your lungs
completely. Inhale…fill your lungs with life giving air. Exhale. When you are fully relaxed…
In your mind’s eye, see a path laid out before you. Notice: what is the path made of? Dirt, stones, is it paved? How is your path formed? does it wind and curve or is it straight ahead? What time of day is it? high noon, the dark of night? What are your surroundings? Are there fields next to your path? Trees? What do you hear? Birds chirping? Animals scurrying toward you? What season does it appear to be? Lush spring? Chilly winter?
Now take the first step on your path. Extend your leg and let your foot fall. As you step further into your vision, what do you see? How do you feel? Safe and welcomed or a bit leery of what is a head? Know that you are safe in the arms of the Goddess and continue walking ahead. Continue to notice how the air feels on your skin. Are there warm breezes? Is it humid or dry? Take complete notice of your surroundings…soak in all that you can observe. Do you smell anything? Flowers blooming? Fresh grass?
Walk down the path. Notice that it begins to decline. Follow the path and allow yourself to be lost in the vision. Ahead, the path turns into a set of steps. Step onto the first step. Is there a change in the atmosphere? In your emotional state? Continue down the steps…notice on each any changes that may have occurred.
You are heading underground. The air here is cooler, swirling around your feet as you descend. A tree branch forms a railing for you to hold on to…go ahead and use it. How does it feel in your hand? Walls of brown earth rise on either side of the stairs…you can see the life giving roots from the plants above in the walls. Earthworms crawl through the dirt, creating air pockets to feed the plants above. Take time to observe and become immersed in your vision.
You are reaching the bottom of the stairs. Above you, the ceiling is made of earth, but it is still bright enough for you to see ahead. Step down to the final step. Let go of the railing. You are now underground, in the belly of Mother and you are safe. Before you go forward, notice the air. Does it smell organic and life giving? or dank and stale? Is it colder or warmer down here?
A torch shines ahead, lit for you by previous explorers. Take it with you if you wish, to light your way. You are not the first to venture into the belly of the Mother. Know that others have traveled their own paths to reach the same place. Each person must confront their own inner depths in their own time. This is your time. You are here to confront your emotional past, to own it and accept what you have done without judgment or shame.
Another torch ahead illuminates a long hallway. On each side of the hall are doors, each one leading to a different emotional event in your life. When you open the door, you will see the event played out in its own time. If you were a child then, you will observe yourself as a child in the complete setting in which the event took place. Open the doors you feel drawn to, one at a time and observe the event inside. Take your time at each door.
You are no longer a participant in the occurrence, you are an objective observer. You may empathize with the people, places, or animals you see. Notice these feelings but you can not be overwhelmed by them. Mother keeps you safe. Watch each event for as long as you like, take your time to understand your past choices and actions as well as those of others. After you are finished, close the door, return to the hallway, and breathe deeply as you are drawn to another door.
Open as many doors as you feel comfortable with. You can always return to open others when the time is right. When you feel you are finished, turn back toward the staircase. Leave the torch burning for the next seeker. They will have their own confrontations in the future. Take the first step. As you ascend the stairs, notice the walls again. Have they changed? Do you feel differently about being underground? Hold the tree-railing and feel the bark under your fingers. Notice now, that the steps are well worn by other travelers. Take comfort that others have come to the same place and have left as you are leaving now, more whole, more understanding, more forgiving of yourself.
The light from above breaks through the darkness. You are almost back on you path. Take the final step onto your path, back to the upper world. Pause and notice all the things you noticed before. Has anything changed? What grows on the ground? What is your path made of? What season is it? Do you hear anything?
Follow your path back to your conscious mind. You are slowly waking from your meditation. Become aware of your breathing again. Inhale deeply and let it go…Open your eyes when you feel ready. Journal any feelings, images, events, smells, sounds in as much detail as you can remember.
To give credit where it is due, this meditation is my personal variation on a meditation led by teachers of a class I took. For those who wish to explore the class, it is given by collectives of the Reclaiming Tradition and is called the Pentacle of Iron. It is a secondary class with one prerequisite and is a paying class with fees based on a sliding scale.
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