This is the 4th blog on the Elements and Nature

The Ancestors

In Zimbabwian culture the Nyami-Nyami is a powerful snake-like water spirit that resides in the Zambesi river. 

All Southern African sangomas know that in order to be initiated one has to go to the "water" to engage with the water spirit. In Zulu it is called the Unzunzu. Below is a Shona soap stone rendition of the serpent Nyami-Nyami.

 In Yoga the Kundalini experience has sometimes been described as like drowning in water. This is tantamount to engaging spiritually, fully with the Shakti, femine like energy that is key to mobilizing the Kundalini. When the Shakti, feminine, Kundalini rises up the spine and meets with Shiva, the masculine principle at the crown chakra a Oneness Experience or Unity Consciousness occurs. This is when the OBSERVER - THE OBSERVED & THE PROCESS OF OBSERVATION fuse into just one thing (Samadhi to the Yogi.) Many of us have had what Maslow called a Peak Experience which is like a "mimi" Kundalini. The Kundalini is described as a serpent coiled at the base of the spine or first chakra, and is key to the enlightenment process.

The sangoma who is initiated is certainly liberated in a different way after encountering the water spirit - Unzunzu or ? the Nyami-Nyami.

In the Yoga system of Chakras each has an increasingly fine vibration as the Kundalini energy rises upwards through the different chakras and their elements.

In Isaiah's vision of the Six directions, each direction; North, West, South and East has a respective element; Water, Earth, Fire Air and Archangel; Uriel, Gabriel, Rafael and Michael. In addition all Four directions have a river, wind, color, animal and "being" (growing, still, talking and wild as one travels anti clockwise from North to East.) Shechina - the feminine aspect of the Divine is above. 

This is the Third blog on connecting with the Elements and Nature - Water, Wind (Breath) and Oneness

The top Sephira or energy center on the Tree of Life is blue in color and represents the element of water as well as undifferentiated light and thought or wisdom (fantasy, imagination or if you like the Einstein archetype.)

(These sacred rivers today are thought to be the Tigris, Euphrates, Ganges and Nile.)

We are all animated by the breath of the Creator and as Kabir said; "What is God? The breath within the breath." Furthermore 80% of our bodies are water so that there is, in a sense, 

a river running through us. Spirit and Breath of the Creator permeate all Four Beings - Still, Growing, Wild and Talking.

and...

"We are all one, though not the same." The Ancestors

There is no duality and 

"The fundamental delusion of humanity is to suppose, I am here and you (or they) are out there!" Roshi

 The same life force; breath, prana, chi, ruach (Hebrew,)  moya (Zulu) runs through all the beings, just giving each a different vibration. Even the still beings are "alive" with the Creator's breath.

The Ancestors

CONNECTING WITH  THE ELEMENTS IN TERMS OF;

THE STILL BEINGS, (earth, rocks, mountains,) THE GROWING BEINGS (plants, trees,) THE WILD BEINGS (& THE TALKING BEINGS)

A consequence of this connection can be a sense of equanimity, inner peace and harmony or "Wilderness or Nature Rapture. To connect we to have an inner intention rather than being externally or goal oriented (photography, working out, high tech outings such as climbing, kayaking etc.)

The principles of being "Inward Bound" and having deep rapturous experience in nature are simple; 

Do it for its own sake as spiritual practice & not to perform or look good on Facebook or elsewhere 

Find nature or wilderness where you are most comfortable. Physical challenges can often lead to more self mastery and self esteem but possibly at the expensive of a spiritual deficiency.

Go alone if possible or walk alone in silence.

Don't get hung up on hard skills & fascinations - high tech gear, cameras etc.

Take the bare minimum & have as little separating you from nature as possible but still be warm, dry, well hydrated and fed as well as not lost.

Remember that...

Its still possible to communicate if we slow to their vibration; slowest in the case of the still beings and from there on up to higher vibrations with the other beings.

THE NEXT FEW BLOGS WILL BE ON THE SACREDNESS OF THE ELEMENTS

This week's is on the Oneness of Creation 

We are all made in the image of the Divine. As above so below, as is the microcosm so is the macrocosm, as is our body so is the universe. The world was created with all the elements coming together - animated by the Breath of the Creator. 

"What is God? The breath within the breath." Kabir

Kabbalah talks about the Four Beings; still, growing, wild and talking. We are all animated by the same breath but have varying  and different levels of vibration.

The early Druids recognized this and embraced our connection with  the elements and all of nature.

According to The Ancestors there are different ways to connect with the various Beings all according to their vibratory level. 

"FINDING OUR MYTH,"  or ARCHETYPE, 

and GRATITUDE

Albert Schweitzer said; "I don't know what your destiny will be but I do know that the only ones among you who will be truly happy are those who have sought and found how to serve."

This has a lot to do with finding what Campbell calls our "myth," destiny or archetype and as Ryff describes "living virtuously." This,  essentially is the hero/ine's journey where one comes back with the grail only to give it away and serve other beings - the still, growing, wild or human.

Thurman would say this is what it is "to come alive"  which is usually to find that unique gift we were given that no one else can do.

The hero/ine's journey involves fear, taking a chance, "leaping off the cliff," doing something that is not necessarily safe physically and or psychologically. It means separating from one's conventional security and going into the cave or forest to confront the "dragon," the success of which results in attaining this gift. 

The process  can be subtle or profound. We come back from the adventure to incorporate the result into service for others. Equanimity and gratitude are the result. This can be done anywhere and with any encounter but nature and especially wild places are often the greatest catalyst. 

Since life is so complicated these days, for many of us this requires living in two worlds. We keep our day job which attends to our survival needs but follow our myth for our spiritual and growth needs - whether we get paid for it or not. 

If it does not make us content and grateful we can be assured we are on the wrong track.

There are basically four archetypes each of which can take many forms. Some of us are a mix of all four but there should be one predominant one; Healer, Teacher, Warrior, Visionary. There are many ways to teach and heal. The Warrior can be a businessman, attorney, politician or soldier whose interest is in others and not him/herself. The Visionary can be a musician, author, poet, artist, shaman, or elder. The Warrior is also often a Visionary and the Healer often a teacher and vice versa. 

Jung said that it is useful to look at what we wanted to "be" when we were a teenager or even younger. Many of us get distracted from our dreams when young by parents, peer pressure or financial restraints. We may need to go back to who we really wanted to be when we were much younger.

FINDING GRATITUDE IN HIDDEN  AND EVEN PAINFUL PLACES

These are some of the simple exercises used in the gratitude research that caused such astounding results

Neuroscience has also shown what the Ancestors affirm; "What you resist will persist, what you defeat, defeats you, what you destroy, destroys you." It is better to go into the pain and experience it than try and shut it out. Practice (as in meditation) makes perfect, and Vipasana meditators have been shown to be more skillful in handling pain when subjected to painful stimuli than non meditators.

 There are many who would agree about going into the pain in order to let it go more quickly. Forgiveness goes hand in hand with this, if required, either for oneself or for another.

At the end of the day it is often the most painful situations that wake us up from our complacency such as; loss of a loved one, job or health and that put us on a spiritual path. Even if we cannot be happy about the event we can still be grateful for the growth outcome. In studies on patients who have had catastrophic illnesses one often hears that they would not have chosen to be sick but later became grateful for the inner gifts the crisis brought to them. This was true even in those who eventually succumbed to the illness.

Neuroscience is again coming into alignment with ancient wisdom. Robert Evans and Michael McCullough using gratitude journaling and exercises have shown what taking gratitude to heart can do for us.

 The Ancestors

What they showed was that gratitude, by increasing dopamine and serotonin, had an effect equal to that of an antidepressant . It also  increased neuronal density in the prefrontal cortex on FMRI studies much like that seen in advanced meditators. 

Gratitude is spiritual practice!

This also applies to our spirit guides. We stand on the shoulders of others and shamans and those who work with spirit are only as powerful as the guides that are linked to them.

...since it is often life changing events that are not positive such as loss of a job or a loved one or a debilitating illness that we need to be grateful for. Without them we would not have had the growth we needed at that time.

These were some of the other effects that the researchers found with their study: