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1
Circle to the Center with a Labyrinth
Labyrinths provide great mini-retreats from the frantic rush, and offer meditation in movement for those who find it hard to sit still. Unlike a maze that leads to confusing dead ends, a labyrinth sets a single, unobstructed path that circles inward to the center. Labyrinths can be found in public parks, universities, churches, and hospital courtyards. The American Psychological Association, headquartered in Washington DC, created one in its green rooftop meditation garden for employees and the community.
The John Hopkins Bayview Medical Center built a fifty-two square foot outdoor labyrinth for patients, surgeons, students, and faculty. One hospital uses its courtyard labyrinth for hospice patients and created an annual celebration of remembrance to honor families and their deceased loved ones. An officiant guides participants to release the grief of their losses through a ceremony that includes a walk inward to let go of pain, and the walk out from the center pays tribute to the departed.
While there’s no specific way to walk labyrinths, experienced walkers suggest beginning at the threshold with a pause and slowly entering on the inward path with the intention to release anxiety, worry, and fear. The path sometimes may appear to go straight to the center before weaving back out near the outer rim, but finally it leads to the core. At the heart of it, pause. Anchor in the center of your being. Open up to receive and be present. Some people leave a physical object behind as a symbol of letting go of an obstacle or attachment. On the return path contemplate an action plan, renew, and reenergize for your reentry into the world. Walking one may take from fifteen to twenty-five minutes. Walkers say labyrinths provide an alternative to sitting meditation and a place where they find solutions to problems, feel soothed, and become more creative.
Some historians believe that walking labyrinths, like the one in Chartres Cathedral in France, represented a symbolic pilgrimage to the Holy Land, while today’s walkers use them as a pilgrimage to the sacred Self. Ancient labyrinths are found across the globe from Crete to Java and are made from a variety of materials including stone, sand, turf, and pottery. Some labyrinth lovers also make them using canvas, pebbles, or even string for quick, easy setup. A labyrinth may be found near you by checking www.labyrinthlocator.com.
If you don’t have time to go out, but still want the benefits of a left-right brain balance and a mini-pilgrimage, order a wooden desk-sized version of a labyrinth and let your fingers do the walking on the path, or print out a copy of the Chartres Cathedral labyrinth and trace it meditatively with a pen. An anonymous visitor to the APA labyrinth left her reflections about the benefits she gained in the outdoor waterproof journal: “In the midst of working, going to school for my doctorate, helping raise a six-year-old, planning a wedding, and trying to stay sane, the labyrinth gave me twenty minutes to focus on one thing I’ve forgotten lately—myself.”
2
Transform Yourself through Ritual
Rituals have been a vital part of man’s spiritual quest since the beginning of time. Rituals relating to solstice, equinox, religious beliefs, births, coming of age, marriages, deaths, and building dwellings all helped to deepen meaning and provide insight into the purpose of these life-changing moments. The word “ritual” derives from an Indo-European root that means “to fit together.” According to Barbara Biziou, author of The Joy of Ritual, “Engaging in a ritual allows your mind to expand, your mood to change, and your spirits to rise.” While Thomas Moore wrote in Care for the Soul, wrote that rituals are “any actions that speak to the soul and the deep imagination.”
In Europe rituals with roots in ancient traditions continue to play out in the piazzas and public squares. In Locarno, Switzerland, around mid-January, bands of children and adults group together and march around the town banging tin cans with sticks to chase away winter. In Zurich, the ritual takes place in March and includes burning an effigy of “old man winter” in the form of a papier-mâché snow man. Whether the weather changes or not, the air feels lighter and the antics bring people worn down by the long dreary days to smile a little and turn their minds toward spring. Banging the pots literally seems to clear the air and break up heavy thoughts and dreary sentiments that hang around weighing everyone down.
In the south of France, the Fête de Saint Jean (Festival of Saint John) coincides with the summer solstice. Residents erect logs for huge bonfires on the open squares and light a blazing fire. When the flames die down to a manageable height, the more adventurous people line up to jump over it. While this event may correlate to ancient pagan summer rites to thank and worship the sun and its fire (and was later co-opted as a saint’s day by the Catholic church), today it plays a role in bringing communities together and helping people build courage and confidence as they leap over the flames. The circle of people who crowd around the fire gain a sense of unity reminiscent of early tribal gatherings.
The scientific mind often denigrates these acts as meaningless and unimportant. It denies that rituals have any impact on the human psyche. In reality, rituals weave together the various levels of consciousness. In India, breaking a coconut at the shrine of Ganesha, the elephant god who removes obstacles, represents sacrificing the ego for the higher good. In the Christian tradition, taking communion of the wafer and wine symbolizes integrating the Christ-consciousness and becoming more Christ-like—compassionate, tolerant, and loving. Rituals can make conscious the innate desires to elevate the mind to the spirit. They can be used to let go of obstacles and attachments, honor relationships, and mark the passages into various stages of life. Some people also participate in ritual blessings of their animals by priests as a way to honor and love them.
Croning has become a popular contemporary ritual with women at menopause. Women around the world have begun to gather in private ceremonies to honor this new phase of their womanhood as they move out of childbearing age into the age of wisdom and feminine power. In the croning ceremony, a woman who’s no longer of reproductive age helps other women to embrace this new stage of life and move comfortably into the freedoms it brings.
Creating Your Rituals
When I wanted to make the career transition from the corporate world to the writing life, I used a ritual to help me gain courage to make this scary step. Despite frequent business travel, I hated flying. I told myself that if I could face my fears and parachute out of a plane, I could also make a leap of faith and move out of the corporate life to write. The jump required getting strapped to a guide and plunging from 14,000 feet. It seemed to me one of the most terrifying things I could do and still survive. I did it as a symbolic leap of faith, survived the exhilarating experience, and two months later the company phased out my job and offered me the opportunity to take a new position in another division or break my existing contract with compensation. The jump gave me the courage to take the money and run. It magically opened doors to the creative life in unexpected ways. Parachuting as a ritual signaled to the universe that I was ready and willing to take the next step and grow. When I made the steps, all the pieces came together.
Simple rituals can also be very transformative. When I traveled to Egypt, I took a trip up the Nile on a paddle-wheel boat from Aswan. I decided it was time to release all of my attachments to the old role of business executive, which I’d just left, and fully embrace the writing life. While standing alone in my small cabin on the boat, I stood near the porthole and swept my hands from my feet to my head and imagined collecting all of the suits, briefcases, reports, and everything related to my business career and dumping it out the window into the Nile. A sense of relief flooded in.
But it can be difficult to change from the comfortable and familiar to the new and unfamiliar. A few days after I returned home to Antibes, I awoke in a panic. In a dream I was back on that same boat tugging frantically at a thick rope. At the end of it, deep in the Nile I saw a dead business woman wearing a suit. I worked hard to pull her up and revive her. But the captain stood beside me on the deck looking calm and collected. “Help me,” I pleaded. “Help me pull her back up. I’ve got to save her.”
He stood with his arms crossed placidly and said, “Leave her. She’s dead.” When I awoke with my heart pounding, I recalled the ritual and the business woman I’d left in the Nile. The simple ceremony, using only imagination and no props, spoke deeply to my psyche, which revived it through symbolic images in my dream. The day before the dream, I’d been struggling and worrying about money and wondering if I should go back into business rather than write. The answer here came with a resounding, “No.”
If you would like to create a ritual around your work, the loss of a friend, a new marriage, a new home, or a changing role, first take a moment to go inside and reflect. Don’t seek mentally, but hold the intent in your heart while you’re sitting for a designated period. Next note any impressions or ideas at the end of the fifteen or twenty minutes of silent contemplation. If you find it hard to sit, try walking in a park or find a labyrinth. Cultivate a playful, imaginative frame of mind. You may want to research history and cultures to discover different approaches to a given ceremony. Write out and collage or draw your ritual as you imagine it and then try it out in a trial run. Do it with all of your heart and devotion to the divine. If you repeat the ritual on a regular basis, keep the awareness focused on the present movement and words. Don’t let them become automatic and devoid of feeling. Performed with faith, rituals will transform your heart and mind, as well as the space and the environment around you.
Rituals may be as simple as starting or ending the day with a prayer or a conscious intent. What kinds of rituals would you like to explore and create? Consider the rituals that bring meaning to your life and examine how you would consciously like to use them to enhance your spiritual life. You may want to consider ways to ritually start or end your work period, begin a meal, inaugurate a new home (some people do a sort of christening of new building sites), and honor relationships or mark their dissolution.
You can also transform the energy of a place through ritual and prayer. Places where crimes and accidents have occurred may be in particular need of the transforming energies of rituals. Hospitals and assisted living communities also can benefit from them. A group of friends might perform a circle of light ritual at a local airport to bring in light to travelers. This is done by joining hands and imagining a ray of light filling the circle and spreading out to the entire building, landing strips, and out to the city. Use your imagination for whatever ritual you choose and invite in goodness and guidance.
3
Make a Pilgrimage
Pilgrimages once sent seekers walking and sailing thousands of miles to shrines and holy temples. Taking a sacred journey remains popular today as seekers yearn to be in the presence of relics of saints or visit holy places like Lourdes, Jerusalem, Rome, Lhasa, Cairo, or Mecca to imbibe sacred feelings. In Europe, many people have renewed ancient pilgrimage routes through France and Switzerland, walking hundreds of miles over the Pyrenees Mountains on the Way of Saint James to reach the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela in Spain. Shrines to the saints, cathedrals, and hostels dot this footpath, which pilgrims have walked since the Middle Ages. The pilgrimage takes seekers into the presence of the holy relics of James, Jesus’s beloved apostle who, according to tradition, is interred in the cathedral.
Though many of today’s walkers claim not to be religious pilgrims, they find this step out of their ordinary world an invitation to contemplate the spiritual path and commune with their personal sense of the sacred. Katia, a lawyer and an agnostic, took to the path of Saint James during a period of midlife transition. On her walk, she met and made new friends, but she also passed long periods in solitude seeing no fellow travelers. When she lost her way or found herself farther from a hostel at dusk than expected, she would often meet kind women who offered a ride. One day while walking in a particularly isolated and remote area on the Way of Saint James, she felt deeply moved by a benevolent presence walking with her, but said she saw nobody. Yet she knew and felt deeply that she did not walk alone. The walk didn’t bring a lightening burst of transformation, but rather slowly built her trust in the divine and synchronicity. She returned home knowing that it was time to change careers and she began to train as a therapist.
A pilgrimage is a conscious journey to bring the sacred more fully into life. It requires setting an intention and moving into contemplation on the life journey whether it’s to a sacred site or simply to work. Mythologist Joseph Campbell wrote of the structure of the journey as described in myth and story through the ages. The hero moves through a process of separation, initiation, and return. She travels out of her ordinary, familiar world into a new adventure of self-discovery to return home more complete and whole. Some aspect of the old self must die for her to become complete and reborn into a new role and a more unified Self.
Understanding the steps of the journey can also help us to know what stage of life’s expedition we’re on. The first stage is the ordinary world. In this place where we’re comfortable and familiar, we begin to feel dissatisfied and become aware of a problem. We receive a call to adventure, a call to change our lives that may manifest in a desire to take a pilgrimage or go on retreat, but often we refuse the call and try to remain entrenched in our usual, familiar, and often painful existence. Those around us may also put up obstacles to our change and warn of dire consequences if we try. Finally, a guide or mentor may nudge us to take the first step over the threshold out into the new, unfamiliar world. Think of this not only in mythological terms like Odysseus setting out on an adventure, but consider changing jobs or moving to another state or country as the beginning of your adventure or journey. On a spiritual journey, it may mean testing new boundaries and exploring new terrain.
Tests, allies, enemies, and obstacles become part of the scenery and help us strengthen our resolve to continue and move to new levels of self-discovery, self-confidence, and self-doubt. As in most stories and journeys, there’s an ultimate test or battle where inner demons and doubts meet up with the power of the spirit. If the hero is successful, she conquers her inner demons, which often manifest in some external force like a harsh spouse or a tough boss. She returns with an elixir or gem of wisdom to share with her community. This may be a real item, self-knowledge, or experience that she can share with others. There is also a death of old roles, attitudes, or habits, and a rebirth into the new Self, new attitudes, and roles. This loose description of the journey can be explored more deeply in Joseph Campbell’s work The Hero with a Thousand Faces, or in Christopher Vogler’s work The Writer’s Journey.
Contemplate your spiritual path and where you are. Have you started the journey? Are you daring enough to cross over the threshold out of and away from your ordinary, familiar world? Joseph Campbell wrote, “That step, the heroic first step of the journey, is out of, or over the edge of, your boundaries, and it often must be taken before you know that you will be supported.” Do you feel the need to take that first step toward change?
Rainer Maria Rilke, mystical poet and author, wrote, “There is only one journey. Going inside yourself.” Consider the pilgrimage as an inner journey. How far have you dared to travel on this sacred inner path?
If you cannot go on a pilgrimage, turn the day into one. The word “journey” derives from the French word for day, une journée. It refers to the time traveled between sunrise and sunset. Set the intention to discover the divine presence through the journey of your daily life. Awaken with renewed excitement and anticipation of seeking the sacred in all surrounding you from morning until night. See with renewed eyes as you walk out to a park, a place in nature, an inner courtyard, or some other place you discover where you feel yourself in the presence of the divine. Contemplate your steps, breath, and heartbeat, and feel God. Imagine the benevolent divine presence walking with you to support you on this journey. Turning each day into a pilgrimage transforms life into a spiritual hero or heroine’s journey and uplifts the mind to the sacred.
On the Way of Saint James, the scallop shell became a symbol for having made the voyage and returned home safely. The shells were found on the seashore not far from the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela and pilgrims who returned to the interiors of Europe took home these shells as souvenirs and to signal to others they’d arrived at the destination. Inspired by this practice, you may want to find a symbol for your journey. It needs only to hold significance for you. What will it be?
4
Grow Your Secret Garden
In the Middle Ages and into the Renaissance, Europeans built secret gardens as refuges from the madness, chaos, and disease of the time. Inside the protected walls, medicinal herbs, exquisite roses, and trees grew. Fountains gurgled in the silent center, and people took refuge there for safety. These secret gardens were considered spaces for healing and spiritual communion and a place to escape from plague, war, and confusion. Initially they symbolized sacred feminine spaces often associated with Mother Mary. These gardens continue to remain profoundly engraved in European culture and often people will suggest exploring something in your jardin secret in France. Or in Italy they might advise you to keep an idea to reflect on in the quiet of your giardino segreto. Over time, the meaning has changed from a physical place to a symbolic one inside oneself. As a universal symbol, the garden also appears as a powerful place to commune with the gods in Chinese lore as well as in many other cultures.
The secret garden symbolizes the sacred, protected garden of paradise within us. Take a moment to rediscover and explore your secret garden. Find an inner courtyard, a meditation room, a library corner, or a place at home where you can retreat into your personal inner sanctum for a few minutes. Enter into a reverie or a brief meditation. You may want to use some serene background music without words to transport you. Imagine yourself walking down a path toward your secret garden. Take in the view, the path, and when you see the garden gate, find the key in your pocket. Open the gate and enter. Walk around and explore this place. What does it look like? What colors and scents do you perceive? Spend some time discovering your refuge. This is your secret, sacred space, a creative place to renew yourself. When you’re ready to leave, return to the gate, cross the threshold, and walk again into the ordinary world.
After the visit, make a drawing or collage of your secret garden or find an image that reflects it. Keep the image in view to remind you of this beautiful place where you feel at peace. Put pen to paper and write about your experience in this sacred space. Both the images and the writing will anchor the experience and help you return to it later on. In a rough encounter, in the heat of a disagreement, or in the heart of the noisy city, recall this place and let the natural peace resurface. You don’t need to take a long trip to a retreat. It’s right there inside of you, easily accessible, and you can return again and again when you remember it. Watch your inner garden grow and transform. It may even begin to show up in your dreams as flowers spring up, trees bud or die, pests and serpents enter, and weeds grow.
By taking a real break in the middle of the day and moving inward rather than chatting with colleagues or having lunch at your desk or usual place, it’s possible to reenergize. Seek out a place where you can enter into a reverie and revisit this sacred interior. You’ll be renewed for a better second half of the day. Enjoy the quiet and calm you discover inside your garden. It’s better than a spa and often as good as a healing massage. Revitalize in your private inner sanctuary and watch how it blossoms and grows as you cultivate it with spiritual practices.
Grow a Garden
If you’re lucky enough to have some space, get your hands dirty, plant some seeds, and watch your garden grow. If you only have an indoor area, try potting herbs, aloe, or other plants. Planting and growing trees, flowers, vegetables, and fruits outdoors or in can be a rewarding practice and a nice parallel to cultivating your inner garden.
5
Catch Dreams
Picture a vast university that contains all the knowledge and wisdom available from the beginning of time and extends into eternity. Libraries extend in all directions filled with sage texts and videos on every subject from what’s wrong with your computer to the mystical properties of the universe. It’s also possible to access an archive of past events and peek into the future. In this place you can find answers for many of life’s big questions. Would you like to visit? This place is inside of you, and dreams open doors and give access to this knowledge and wisdom.
Dreams unveil a deeper part of human experience. From early indigenous cultures down through history, humanity’s unending fascination with dreams continues to grow. Dream temples in Egypt invited those seeking direction and answers to come pray for dreams and sleep inside the temple. Priests interpreted the symbols and scenes on waking. But dreams are not only relegated to ancient cultures. Contemporary writers, scientists, mystics, and business executives have all relied on dreams to help them be more creative and find solutions to challenging problems. Mary Shelley dreamed Frankenstein before writing the book. Stephen King dreamed the setup of his book Misery. Elias Howe dreamed the solution to a problem that stood in the way of creating the modern sewing machine, and Dr. Jonas Salk used dreams to spur his imagination to help find cures.
Dreams also influenced many religious traditions. In the Bible, they foretold disasters and the birth of Jesus. They warned the pharaoh about future periods of bounty followed by famine, and they communicated to Joseph, Mary’s husband, about what course of action to follow. Mohammed, the founder of Islam, related a series of dreams called “The Night Journeys” as a profound element of his spiritual experience, and the Babylonian Talmud contains many references to dreams and divination.
Freud related dreams to desire and sex while the Swiss analyst, Carl Jung, studied dreams as a step toward self-realization. Jung’s work encouraged individuals to become whole through using dream work to understand other perspectives of ourselves and balance the masculine and feminine energies. He viewed dreams as a way to shine light on the “shadow,” or darker side of human nature, and make a step toward self-understanding.
Following dreams means more than simply chasing aspirations and desires. Dreams that emerge from sleep can provide insight into our nature and the world. While they may reveal hidden desires, they can also contain messages from the soul. At their best, dreams give guidance and information that help to heal, protect, warn of challenges, and indicate changes that need to be made in behavior and lifestyle. Dreams reveal intuitive information that includes everything from what you should (or shouldn’t) eat to right decisions about relationships, jobs, and creative projects. By taking a few minutes to write down dreams first thing in the morning (or whenever they occur during the night), you may find solutions to problems, gain knowledge of future events, better understand how to cope with a difficult relationship, find a better course of action, and save a great deal of time later on.
If you would like to begin exploring this vast untapped resource, catch your dreams by keeping paper and pen or a recorder by the bed and record the scenes, words, or feelings immediately when waking. Keep physical movement to a minimum until the dream is captured or it may slip away as the dream consciousness fades into waking awareness. Before going to sleep, make the suggestion to yourself to recall your dreams. You can also seed dreams and ask for a solution to a particular problem by simply requesting help before going to bed. Say a prayer of protection and request that the divine may accompany you into your sleep and bring the messages you need.
Some people meet a threshold guardian in initial dreams. The guardian may warn of dangers in exploring this new territory. One dreamer’s husband appeared in a dream scene and forbade her from opening the closet doors to this world. He felt threatened by change and he represented a side of herself (probably the ego) warning her not to alter herself in any way and especially not to explore what he perceived as dangerous territory because he wanted to maintain his power. Dare to face the guardian and move past him to reach the jewels inside you.
Not all dreams are valuable. Some dreams may be gibberish, brought on by bad food, too much media, or medications. The most precious dreams come from the teacher within us. This teacher knows us intimately and shows us the truth about ourselves with the intention of helping us grow. She has access to many levels of consciousness and offers guidance and counsel on all areas of life from the material to the spiritual. But sometimes this teacher takes on the role of trickster to test and play. The trickster may give you a dream foretelling that you will win a million dollars. This is more likely an example of ego desire rather than an actual dream of premonition.
Other dreams open up profound contact with God. These dreams leave us in awe, often bathed in light or tears of joy, and a deep sense of peace. They can also predict events as simple as a friend stopping by later in the day and as big and complex as a stock market crash. By working with your dreams, you’ll begin to know which ones come from a source inspired by the spirit, how to interpret your dream symbols, and how to respond to their guidance.
In dreams, the soul speaks in the language of symbols. Just like any other language, we need to make the effort to learn what our symbols mean and interpret them so they can be used to enrich our lives. There is no single one-size-fits-all answer for a symbol’s meaning. No symbol dictionary will have the answers, though they may provide clues as to what they’ve meant in some cultures and historically. Be very wary of any dream guides that give a single, absolute definition for specific images, animals, insects, or places.
Explore your personal language of symbols by making collages, drawings, or collecting images from magazines that connect with your dream scenes. Note the characteristics and qualities of the animals, plants, insects, birds, machines, and people who appear. Are they slow sloths or busy bees? What qualities or weaknesses do the people show? Is Uncle Bill renowned for being lazy? Did your old classmate, Jackie, make a point of smoothing over differences and helping people out? Make note in your dream journal and you may want to create a dream symbol dictionary to help you define and explore what your images and scenes mean.
Become aware of archetypes like the mother, the father, the harlot, the baby, and the mentor. Getting to know the qualities or weaknesses associated with each will help you to identify the roles and characters played out in dream scenes. The settings within dreams can also reveal clues to their meanings. Kitchens may be related to cooking something up, such as new creative projects, a product, or art. An office or factory may relate to work life, and classroom scenes could indicate there’s something to learn or you’re entering a learning phase. Consider also the sayings that relate to the images. Getting into bed with someone in a dream may represent partnering with them in a business relationship or merging with and taking in the qualities of the person you’re in bed with rather than a sexual tryst.
Watch the interplay between the levels of your mind and daily activities as the unconscious begins to become conscious. In a series of dreams where serpents appeared, I understood that they represented energy and how I used it. I often saw snakes in unusual places during my waking activities as well. Of course they appeared on the French pharmacy signs as the caduceus—the two snakes winding around a staff—and a powerful symbol of health and vitality. More directly, one slithered across a sidewalk in an unusual place and another perched on top of a hedge. On another day when I awoke with a warning snake dream, I nearly stepped on a viper during a hike in the Alps. It marked a very real reminder to not abuse the energy as I’d done the day before. On another occasion, a water snake slithered to shore on Lake Lugano, a symbol to me of the energy becoming spiritualized. All of these incidents connected dreams and internal work with vitality, health, and the powerful kundalini energy—the vital energy lodged at the base of the spine that brings spiritual awakening when it rises.
To deepen work with dreams, write them down as soon as you wake up and reread them before going to sleep again. Work to interpret what they mean to you. Very often they will reveal if you’re aligned with your highest aspirations. Defining guiding values will help with this. Interpreting dreams requires a great deal of courage, honesty, and inner strength because it asks that we face the realities of who we are in our entirety. We know people and ourselves by our actions, and we also are subject to the universal law of “like attracts like.” Identifying the qualities that our friends and people in dreams mirror back to us—both weak and strong—brings a great deal of humility. Dreams are not meant to condemn or judge the self or others. They are given to us as aids and guides on our journey. Act on the dream guidance you receive when appropriate. Dreams are there to help you and put you in touch with your Inner Teacher, the higher, wiser part of you.
Some Tools
Native Americans used dream catchers as a type of protective amulet placed above or near the bed to capture nightmares and prevent evil from entering dreams. According to the Native Languages of the Americas organization, the Ojibwa (Chippewa) tribe originated the practice, which spread to other tribes, including Cherokee, Navajo, and Lakota. The Ojibwa made round or tear-shaped wooden hoops usually wound with sinews or thread; the interior resembles a woven spider’s web with feathers dangling from the bottom. The dream catchers can be found in Native American arts and crafts shops and on many Indian reservations. Using one may give you more courage to open this door to your inner self.
You may feel inspired to create a dream journal to help you to remember the basics. Make room at the top for a title to identify each dream. Record the events in present tense and leave some space for sketching and collage. You may also want to leave an area in the back to list common symbols that appear—use your imagination to define them. Adding encouraging and inspirational quotes among the pages may help keep you motivated.
In ancient Egypt, priests invited initiates who desired dream guidance to enter a dream temple to aid them in dreaming. You may want to imagine your bedroom as a dream temple. Purify it by saying a prayer to call in light, love, and protection while you sleep. A simple prayer, like the Our Father from Christian traditions, repeated three times to attune body, mind, and spirit, or one of your own creation will do. You may wish to make a symbolic offering of flowers, incense, stones, or a poem to your Inner Teacher and place it on your altar or bedside. Whatever you’re inspired to offer with reverence and devotion will be right.
Keep your notebook, pen, and possibly a small night light or candle by the bed to record dreams if you wake up at night. As you fall asleep, imagine entering into the heart of your dream temple. If you awaken with dreams at various stages of the night, make the effort to write them down immediately. Review them the next day and hold the images and scenes in your heart to contemplate over the coming days. Ask your inner guide to help you to identify the meanings and understand your personal symbols. Review them before falling asleep the next night. Pray for understanding and conscientiously work to discover your personal language of the soul. This work is not a goal to achieve and cross off of a to-do list, but is best approached with patience as an ongoing learning process that continues to unfold over a lifetime. It’s one of the most exciting adventures you can take into the final frontier—the one inside of you.
6
Create Sacred Space
“A shrine is a little place for magic, or for converse with divinity,” writes Joseph Campbell in his book Primitive Mythology, which explores sacred spaces in various cultures across time. His intriguing definition invites in the mystical by creating a place apart from the mundane. The word “altar” means “to elevate or raise up.” Originally intended for sacrifice or making offerings to God, altars provide a space to symbolically sacrifice ego desires and elevate the mind to the divine. Throughout history, sacred spaces have appeared in homes, workplaces, groves, and forests, as well as organized religious spaces. Today they’re experiencing a revival in houses, gardens, and offices. One can manifest as an elaborately designed area or be as simple as a shelf or the corner of a desk.
At an altar you can turn your mind to God, regain calm, and remember the passing nature of the events that challenge and trouble you. It can become a place to find peace, healing, and forgiveness. Use your altar on a regular basis to unify your body, mind, and spirit. Sacred space, such as an altar, speaks to the elevation of the spirit. Joseph Campbell called it a “place for creative incubation.” He wrote, “At first you might find that nothing happens there, but if you have a sacred place and use it, something eventually will happen. Your sacred space is where you find yourself again and again.”
Think of this sacred space as the altar of your heart where you can unburden yourself to God and leave behind cares and worries. The more you use it, the greater its positive charge will be. Like ancient cathedrals, temples, and ruins, the prayers and power of devotion that have gathered over time lend an air of peace to the environment. It can be a place to come “home.”
Build an Altar
While God is everywhere, creating an altar helps focus the mind. To create an altar at home, in your work space, or in an appropriate place, collect sacred objects and images. Contemplate what “sacred” means to you and select items that reflect your personal view. These may include feathers, stones, photos, statues, or whatever moves you to embrace and focus on God. Take a few minutes over a period of days to design and realize your sacred space. When it is finished, let your spirit revel in the place you’ve created. You may wish to consecrate it with prayer and invite the presence of God to fill it.
If it’s at home, if possible choose a place where you will not be disturbed by phones, television, noise from the household, or movement in a nearby passageway. One woman redesigned and renovated an attic space specifically for meditation practice. It sat beneath the roof and its open round window created the perfect space for gaining a higher perspective. Some people create a personal sacred space at the office or in their work area as a reminder of what’s essential to them throughout the day.
A low table covered with a beautiful brocade or silk cloth may be perfect for some while others may choose a desk-level space. Include images and objects on it that evoke a response to the sacred within you. A candle creates a nice central focus and activates the space with the element of fire; stones like quartz, amethyst, or pebbles from a beach or mountain may remind you of communing with nature. Invite light and love by asking in prayer that your space be purified.
Using your altar for mediation, contemplation, and as a space for spiritual reading and writing will make it holy; if it is saved solely for your practice, the place will begin to resonate with the stillness of ancient cathedrals and churches. A Buddhist lama kept an elaborate, multi-tiered altar with images and photos of all of his revered teachers and parents. Covered with silk embroidered fabric, it became a beautiful repository of memory and gratitude to those dear to him. On it stood several candles and sticks of burning incense in special holders to collect the falling ash.
For your own altar, reflect on the places that have felt sacred to you. If you’re inspired by churches or if the scent of incense burning in a Catholic cathedral sends you immediately into the sanctum sanctorum of your soul, you may wish to find that type of incense. Some like to include elements of fire, water in a small bowl, fresh flowers as offering to the divine, and even food. Asian restaurants often have an altar with food offerings to deities. Use the altar frequently and well. Enjoy this place. Each time you see it, let your mind turn to the divine and remind you of your soul’s purpose.
7
Collage a Bridge to Your Soul
Sometimes we maintain distant relationships with our spirits and need to build a bridge to the soul in much the same way we would put energy into building a new road or developing a relationship with a new friend. The soul speaks in the language of symbols. It talks in images and through dreams and visions or by drawing our attention to some object or animal that may intensely attract or repel us. By working with images you can begin to develop a deeper relationship to the soul and its intuitive, feminine language and balance it with the more masculine, analytical mind.
One good way to begin this is to work with pictures and images through collage. Used by artists and in crafts for one hundred years or more, collage is an art form that invites play. The word comes from the French word coller and means simply “to glue.” I like collage because it becomes a meditative, light, childlike way to experiment with images and doesn’t require any particular artistic ability. Start by collecting a pile of magazines that you’re willing to cut up. You may find them in recycling areas, or ask friends to contribute. Put on some music that appeals to you. (I prefer music with no words to keep it “right-brained,” which is more creative and loose, rather than “left-brained,” which is more word oriented.)
Gather scissors, glue or rubber cement (which lets you slide images around or remove them easily for adjustments), colored pens, and some blank paper. If you’d like to work in a big format, buy some large sheets at an arts and crafts store or use a sheet of newspaper and cover it over. Five-by-seven-inch index cards or even playing cards can make great backgrounds to hold your small creations. Large rolls of white paper give flexibility to create big scenes or storyboards; you may choose to cut out circles, triangles, or whatever form pleases you.
Leisurely begin to peruse the magazines. You may have an idea or scene in mind when you begin, or you may discover the scene as you go. Tear out images, colors, words, and shapes that attract your attention. Let the focus of your eyes and face relax. You may wish to start with meditation and invite in light. Let your eyes and hands play as they wander through the magazines in search of adventures. Try to stick to images rather than words, and don’t let them encroach on this playtime; save any articles you’d like to read for later. In this space of exploration and discovery, collect your images and glue them onto one of the formats you choose. Keep some colored pencils, markers, and crayons around to add touches of flair and draw in additions. It’s also fun to add ribbons, dried flowers, and other items that may appeal.
If you have scenes or objects from dreams that you’re particularly fascinated with, making a collage to manifest the images in a conscious way will help you to work with and understand them. Once your scenes come together, take a moment to commune with the image you’ve created. Grab pen and notebook and start a dialogue to deepen your understanding of them. Ask the image questions that you would like to explore. You may want to change hands (using the nondominant hand) for the symbol’s response. You might also change positions or chairs as you assume the role of yourself as the asker followed by the role of the symbol or scene that responds.
In a recent series of dreams, I looked hugely pregnant. One day while standing in the shower I noticed my body felt achy and swollen as if reflecting this dream image. While I knew I was not pregnant, I decided to explore this curious symbol more. I drew and collaged a pregnant woman and then started a dialogue with my belly.
Me [to my belly]: You’re so taut and huge. What do you hold?
Belly: I hold your future.
Me: What does it look like?
Belly: It looks rosy and pink, all aglow. Pretty as a button. It’ll be marked with bawling sometimes, but mostly you’ll be happy with your new children.
Me: How can I help ease the birthing pains?
Belly: Relax and enjoy the growth. The rest happens of its own volition. Give birth to a new life.
I’d not expected my dream belly to be so articulate and reveal such things. This is a fun part of the process. As a child I’d often said I’d give birth to books rather than babies. I was writing this book when the dreams occurred and I was symbolically very pregnant with it. I later found an image of a pregnant Madonna to keep in my office.
You can repeat this process as often as you like to build the picture dictionary of your soul’s lingo. It’s ideal to stay in a playful frame of mind and not seek to accomplish a goal. Remember how you played as a child and time could pass so quickly as you created a play world? Returning to this playful place will help you to connect and deepen the relationship with your spirit.
8
Build Self-Confidence
“At the center of your being you have the answer; you know who you are, and you know what you want.”
—Lao Tzu
When the world shifts dramatically, a relationship falls apart, a job disappears, and there seems to be no one around to turn to, faith in your inner Self becomes essential to survival. The word “confidence” is derived from two Latin words, con fidentia (con fiducia in Italian), which literally means “with faith.” Developing faith in the Self—one’s inner capacity and strength—can be done easily by identifying with God and knowing that you and God are One. This sense of faith comes from effort, listening to conscience, grace, and knowing that divine energy animates and inspires the heart. Putting faith in outer things engenders fear and insecurity. None of the things outside of us endure, but Self-confidence is like a mountain that stands solid and enduring in rough winds and turbulent times.
Steps for Building Esteem and Self-Confidence
Self-confidence is required to accomplish any task. Work to identify with the divine. Develop the faith that the Great Spirit is above, below, beside, all around, and in you. It can be heard through the inner voice that speaks with a quiet, soft demeanor. It can be easily ignored, missed, or yelled over by other mental chatter. Some people call this voice the conscience. Some people feel it as a chord of rightness that resonates throughout the body, mind, and spirit as if a note of truth has been struck and reverberates within them on every level with a resounding “YES! That’s it!” This inner voice is the sound of your wisdom. It empowers you and helps you to build Self-confidence. But when the mind chatters so much, how do we know which voice is the right one to follow? Here are some keys:
1) Become conscious of your desires and know your guiding values. Your better angel or conscience will nudge you to align with these higher aims.
2) Be practical! As you grow on the spiritual journey, examine your experiences and use them wisely.
3) Follow a regular meditation practice that focuses on listening to the spiritual heart.
Meditate on these questions:
1) Does the inner voice separate you from your highest spiritual aspiration or move you deeper into harmony with it?
2) Does it bring together good thoughts, good words, and right actions into one unified whole?
3) Does your inner voice suggest you harm yourself or others? Unless you’re acting in self-defense, it is not the voice of your wise Self. Love protects and promotes peace and nonviolence.
4) Does your inner voice guide you to be more kind, loving, patient, and selfless?
5) Does it help you to become conscious of your inner motives?
6) Does it make you more tolerant?
Through listening, practice, and observation you will become aware of the subtle differences between the chattering mind full of wants and the still small voice of your spirit. The mind is an instrument of arrogance and the soul acts with humility. Holding this reflection, do your actions and choices reflect the mind’s attitude or the soul’s higher purpose?
Self-confidence means putting trust in the part of you that is divine and eternal, and knowing that the divine guiding hand is moving the strings that make you dance. It means identifying with the sacred and the spiritual. The material world will never give permanent satisfaction. Life will be a continual ride of pleasure between two pains. By adjusting your focus and anchoring your faith not in the world, but in your Self—the unchanging, eternal spirit that pervades all—you will be well prepared to weather the storms. Live in the awareness of the divine presence within and all around you. It animates every heart and soul and will never fail you.
9
Make a Spiritual Retreat
A spiritual retreat is a way to step back from the world and just focus on where you are, where you come from, and where you’re going. It gives an opportunity to reflect on life’s purpose and do inner housekeeping. The word “retreat” comes from the French word retirer, and means “to move away from,” or “to pull away from.” In a very literal sense, retreats offer an opportunity to pull away from the concerns of the world and just be with yourself. Very often a retreat will include periods of meditation, silence, spiritual teachings, and nature walks. They may take place at a monastery; Buddhist, Christian, or other spiritual centers; or they may be entirely of your own making at a place by a lake or the sea or some other place where you find natural, undisturbed calm. A retreat may be alone or with others who hold the same intention. The focus ideally remains on cultivating the connection with your divine Self.
Retreats allow for time away from secular responsibilities and duties related to family and work. They make room for contemplation of the spirit and give a chance to reconnect with God. They also serve as opportunities to observe oneself, listen to the inner workings of the soul, and watch the mind. Often retreats allow for time and space to clear out inner garbage and return to a place of serenity.
Without connections to outside demands, including telephone and Internet, the daily rhythm can turn to interior silence. Each retreat will vary. Some retreat centers focus on meditation practices while others may unfurl in total silence. Some will combine spiritual teachings and group discussions with service activities like kitchen, yard, and gardening work. The quiet environment at retreats may make us more acutely aware of inner mental chatter and magnify our fears and weaknesses. Contrasted with the stillness, the mental chatter can sound loud and distracting. We may become conscious of our criticism and judgment of ourselves and others. Dawning awareness of these traits presents an opportunity to observe, accept, and begin to transform. The silence can also provide moments to identify our qualities and gain self-esteem that comes from an inner, immutable source.
The choice of where to take a retreat will depend on your spiritual tradition and need. Some Catholic monasteries allow non-Catholics to spend time in contemplation within their walls. They often allow visitors to participate in services and hear their chants. Even if one is not Catholic, being in a sacred environment where others devote their lives to the experience of God inspires the spirit to soar. Many Christian groups also organize retreats. Buddhist retreats can be found around the world and some Indian ashrams also open their doors for retreat seekers. Steeped in spiritual traditions, these sacred places can inspire a change in heart and bring healing. Sai Baba’s Indian ashram, Prashanthi Nilayam, or “The Abode of Infinite Peace,” receives visitors from around the world and welcomes people of all faiths and backgrounds. “A Muslim should go away a better Muslim. A Christian should go away a better Christian,” says Sai Baba. Beds and meals cost little, and no charge is ever made for teachings.
Retreats at or Near Home
If you’re not able to afford the time and cost of taking a retreat, schedule a day out in nature or organize to housesit for friends while they’re away. Moving out of the usual home/work environment is essential to opening up the experience of retreat. At home the daily chores and demands continue to pull one back into the world. The aim of a retreat is instead to take an opportunity to step out and away from these daily activities to gain perspective. Set aside a time to escape from busyness. Stop “doing” and rest in quiet contemplation. Retreat centers and chapels or sacred spaces reserved for contemplation in these centers can help you to move into a sense of peace and connection with spirit.
10
Learn Your Soul’s Language
Symbols are the language of the soul. They point to deeper meanings and contain emotional power when we’re open to them and pay attention. When we’re cut off from symbolic sight, we remove ourselves from a vital, creative source of information. When we attune to the energy of symbols, we can use them to find solutions to problems and understand ourselves and the world in profound ways. Perceiving with symbolic sight means keying into the images that communicate in subtle ways. For example, a bird on a park bench or a gold pen on a table may draw attention and somehow relate to your activities during the day.
Learning the language of symbols isn’t unlike learning another language. It requires practice. Symbol dictionaries can help you to understand potential meanings of a bee or a cat, but understanding exactly what a particular symbol means for you demands effort. Symbols have a fluid quality. They transform in meaning as we grow and change through life experiences and often this is reflected through the way a symbol appears. For example, a tree in blossom communicates something much different than a dying tree. One may relate to a period of flowering while the other may be a warning.
Symbols may be personal or universal. Personal ones speak uniquely to your individual experience, while universal ones may communicate across cultures and be understood in similar ways by people across the globe. In Star Wars, symbolic characters Luke Skywalker and Darth Vader resonated with people around the world. Skywalker was associated with the good hero struggling to overcome the evil influence of Vader, Skywalker’s father. Houses may be universal symbols for protection and safety, and around the world marriage generally signifies union between opposites. On the other hand, a peach pit might be a personal symbol for illness because it relates to cancer-stricken Uncle Ned who left partially eaten peaches around the house when he was dying.
Symbols grow and contract as we go through periods of blossoming and change. They may reflect our inner state, reveal our deeper feelings, and help us weave together the fragmented pieces of our self into a rich, beautiful tapestry that integrates both darkness and light. Learn to see with symbolic sight. Most of the time we take things literally, but seeing symbolically means seeing beyond the superficial and daring to delve into the depths. Hearing a hawk cry or seeing one circle in the sky at a significant moment may mean to watch for the signs. A purse as a symbol may represent your wealth. A baby may attract your attention and represent giving birth to a new project or a new part of yourself.
Paying attention to symbols also means coming face to face with personal demons and angels. Through symbolic sight, an inner, miraculous play is set in motion that transcends and balances out the strong emphasis on the rational, concrete perspective of the masculine mind. This rational side relies on analysis, reason, and deduction. The feminine side integrates and embraces intuition, spontaneous knowing, and insight. Cultivating a symbolic view extends beyond dreams and can begin to enter into career, relationships, and every aspect of life. Pay particular attention to experiences that hold strong emotional charge. Some scenes that you live through can be seen symbolically—and hold hidden messages that ask to be deciphered.
Developing Symbolic Sight
When the Berlin Wall fell in 1989, its demise reverberated around the world. Why? This symbol of containment, oppression, and repression was torn apart piece by piece by crowds of unyielding people no longer threatened by the guards in turrets or the mines set in the “no man’s land” that separated what was once a unified country. Tearing down the wall represented not only the failure of repression, but it also tore down barriers within the human psyche.
Ever consider why terrorists sought the destruction of the World Trade Center? It represented the United States as a worldwide financial power even more than the White House or the Pentagon. Destroying it and watching it crumble financially and shut down Wall Street for days sent a message to the rest of the world that the United States was weak, vulnerable, and would crumble if it kept its focus on money. The destruction of this symbol of financial power was meant to mark a shift in power. For citizens within the country, it united people around national symbols like the flag, a symbol of unity; the eagle, a symbol of freedom; and the Statue of Liberty, a powerful image of liberty and the welcoming nature of America.
To begin to practice symbolic sight, be alert and see what images attract your attention and contain emotional power. Is it a pen, telephone, school bus, airplane, or something at a restaurant? Make a note and write down what the symbol might mean for you. Watch to see if it pops up again over the next days and weeks. Look around and be aware of what symbols stand out today. One way to begin to do this is to collect images that speak to your soul and move you—even if the movement is one of fear. By becoming conscious of the image that creates this reaction you can explore more deeply what’s beneath the surface of your feelings.
You can enhance understanding symbols by working with dreams and searching for their meaning. The soul often takes advantage of this mental downtime—when the rational, ego-protective self is asleep—to stir up images that awaken us to inner feelings and outer realities. The scenes very frequently relate to events that took place during the day and will let you know if you did the right thing or not. Very often sleep is a time when the conscience can speak loud and clear. It’s a good idea to listen, because the messages will likely be in your best interest.
If scenes seem too wacky or wild, then try to relate to one image or one piece of it. In a recent dream I entered a kitchen and found the counter tops chin high. I needed to reach into some deep blue cabinets, but I felt like a child standing on tiptoe and unable to get to the good stuff. When I awoke, I knew it related directly to my work. To write well, I needed to reach into the higher part of my inner Self, but I felt too small to attain it. When I sat down in meditation, I revisited the dream image and found the solution to the problem. I grew! I took a deep breath and allowed myself to expand and I literally and quickly grew up in the inner image. I could easily reach all that I needed to complete the writing over the next weeks.
Sometimes it’s fun to act out symbolic scenes as well. By working with imagination in this way, life becomes a playful, joyful process. You may also want to pay attention to the songs or phrases running through your head at certain times. They may clue you in to symbolic views and help you to understand a situation or how you feel. When approached with symbolic sight, life suddenly takes on profound meaning. Make an effort to learn the language of your soul and understand its messages. It not only turns life into an adventure, it will also help you to grow! With a child’s attitude of play you’ll figure out the significance through drawing on the guidance and wisdom of your heart. If you feel a need for some additional guidance on dream analysis, a Jungian analyst may be of help.
One way to play with dream images is through creative play with cards. I love to make symbol cards to help me understand images. If you’d like to play with this, start with a standard deck of playing cards. On a sheet of paper, create a window the size of the card by tracing around a card and cutting it out to create an open area the size of the card. You can then go through magazines and use the “window” to determine the size of images, trace around them, and cut them out. Glue them on the cards with rubber cement and in no time you’ll have a deck of symbols to play with.
In workshops I place the cards around the room and people collect one or two cards that they feel attracted to in a deeply emotional way. I ask them to engage in dialogue with the image and ask it what it wants to communicate as if it’s alive or sentient. If the image is troubling, like a serpent, and they can’t face the creature, then I suggest they talk to the gardener, or someone else in an imaginative scene that includes the serpent, and let that character speak about its qualities and what it’s trying to communicate with them. In Jungian circles (where followers are inspired by the work of Carl Jung), this is called active imagination—where the soul Self takes over and communicates with us through play, images, and words.
11
Explore Your Spirit
through a Vision Quest
A vision quest is the Native American version of a retreat, but it’s often more physically demanding. True to its name, the one who goes out into the forest or onto a mountain top seeks a vision of guidance from the Great Spirit. The seeker creates a sacred circle around her, drawing it with corn meal, stones, or something similar. Prior to the days of the quest, she may prepare by holding a question or a yearning at heart. Some people enter into the quest by fasting during the duration. The seeker may take along a talisman or items of significance. This may be an image, a blanket, a feather, or something that speaks to the questing individual. It’s a good idea to determine in advance the amount of time to dedicate to the quest. Given the rigorous nature of the quest that leads people into the wilderness under challenging conditions, it’s often helpful and may even be necessary to be accompanied by an experienced guide.
The quest is preceded by a symbolic purification and often completed by a similar rite. In a traditional American Indian quest this may include a sweat lodge, which is a circular hut covered with canvas or hides that encloses hot stones and may be equated with the maternal womb. The seeker would enter the lodge before making the trek out as a way of offering the purest self to the Great Spirit, which she may encounter on her venture.
The quest can be done at home by creating a sacred circle and determining a time to remain in it while yearning and praying for a vision of guidance and assistance. When practicing a vision quest, find a place and time where you will not be disturbed by outside influences. Ideally no one will be able to interrupt you during the designated period; this may be an hour, four, eight, or more. Consider what your heart yearns to know. Make preparations by bringing a notebook, images, photos, or other things you feel will be useful to have at hand.
At the time of the quest, prepare with a shower or bath as a rite of purification. This may include using a few drops of essential oils that elevate and stimulate, such as lavender or eucalyptus. You may wish to recite mantras or pray. Picture anything that may separate you from your vision washing away down the drain leaving you free to receive. Create your sacred circle with stones or corn meal spreading them out at a large enough circumference for you to move around comfortably inside the circle, but still near enough to give you a sense of being in the center.
Remain inside the circle, a symbol of wholeness, during the time that you designate in advance. Leave only to go to the bathroom or take care of necessities. Ideally, eliminate eating for the chosen time and focus solely on the Great Spirit. When your designated time draws to an end, note any insights or impressions that arise. A vision may arrive in a powerful, overt way, but it may also be very subtle and barely perceptible. Sometimes the quest is also part of a learning and self-observation process. At the end, offer the quest to your image of the divine and return to your world with wisdom and insights. Carry the realizations into your daily life and apply the insights that lead you in the direction of your highest aims and values.
12
Discover Crystals for
Beauty, Calming, and Healing
Crystals, quartz, amethyst gemstones, and diamonds have incited desire in human hearts from the beginning of time. Created in heat and pressure, these gems embody beauty formed through powerful forces of nature. When brought to light out of the dark heart of the world, the play of sunlight falling through the facets of theses stones attracts the eye and inspires the spirit. Their various colors correspond to the colors of the chakras. They’re found in all colors of the spectrum and can bring soothing influences to body, mind, and spirit. Clear diamonds are believed to bring clarity to the mind, while violet amethysts emanate soothing properties.
Some areas, like the Swiss Alps where quartz crystals can be found in abundance, seem to vibrate with the powerful energies of these stones. In Asia, the navratana, or nine gem necklaces derived from Vedic astrology, use different precious stones that correspond with the planets for balancing their influences and harmonizing the body, mind, and spirit. They include pearl, diamond, blue and yellow sapphires, red coral, emerald, hessonite, and tiger’s eye or chrysoberyl. The nine stones are often mounted in a circular-shaped pendant and worn as a talisman.
The healing power of gems and crystals first appeared to me in a dream. I’d not considered them as more than decoration and I didn’t have any particular desires to wear them. But one morning I awoke with this: I see a round faceted stone that’s violet and I know it’s an amethyst. A voice tells me, “This will be beneficial for you.” Perplexed by the idea and dubious that any stone could help a body, I nevertheless had decided to work with my dreams and went in search of the gem of the approximate size and shape I’d seen in the dream. Unlike many dreams, I recognized this one to be literal rather than symbolic and I acted on its guidance.
That night I went to bed wearing the ring I’d found. In that in-between state just before sleep takes over, a tingling energy arose from the stone and filled my arm, neck, chest, and body with soothing vibrations. I felt surprised that a seemingly simple stone might give off such comfort to soothe the nerves. I still wear the ring years later and have added a necklace of amethysts as well. To learn more, I began to research the esoteric power of crystals and found Edgar Cayce’s work referred to properties of some stones for healing and soothing.
Azurite, a deep blue stone, is said to aid some people in meditation, but it will affect each individual differently. I found the vibrations too intense and distracting. Lapis lazuli may contribute to spiritual Self-confidence. Its deep blue color may help an individual attune to the spirit on higher levels. Deep ocean blue is often associated with high spirituality and expansiveness. Rubies, given their deep red hue, may aid in keeping a body grounded. I find the blue obsidian’s watery appearance very beautiful, but its strong vibration makes it uncomfortable to wear. It’s a volcanic glass formed by molten, red-hot lava.
Rose quartz feels appropriate for helping open the spiritual heart, which I associate with the pink tone. Amethyst is my stone of preference because it helps soothe sensitive nerves that are often overwrought or working hard to adjust to the energies that come in through meditation. I love to keep the raw, uncut, unpolished amethyst crystals by the bed and also on my altar. Pearls also can have a soothing effect. Pearls result from the secretion that forms around a grain of sand that irritates the interior of the oyster. I associate pearls with the creative process, particularly in relation to writing and the arts.
Choosing Your Soul Stone
The best way to decide what, if any, gems would be helpful to you is to consider their colors and properties, where they came from, and where you are in your spiritual growth. If you feel a need to be more connected to the heart and caring, perhaps green-colored stones like malachite or emerald will aide. One Indian teacher gives diamonds to some of his students and refers to them as “die-minds.” Diamonds have two essential qualities: clarity and brilliance. They may serve in aiding mental clarity and quieting the chattering, muddled mind.
If you’d like to learn more, Judy Hall’s book The Encyclopedia of Crystals is a comprehensive starting point. I also encourage you to trust your hands and use them to scan stones and sense how different crystals make you feel. Hold the gems and stones before buying them. Relax and see if your body, mind, and spirit respond. Unpolished stones sometimes are preferable. Experiment by buying small stones first. There’s no need to make a big investment. Because stones may lose their energy or pick up unwanted vibes with use, it’s ideal to cleanse them by placing them in salt water and then recharge them in sunlight.