Feel the thrill of the winds of change blowing through your hair. Smell the new blessings whispering from around the next corner. Sense that you are being summoned to level up to something magnificent. You don’t have to do anything rash like giving notice at your job, leave your relationship, or vacate your residence. This might just mean it’s time to get curious about an improved version of yourself. Meditate on how you can best align with the higher levels of wisdom, blessings, gifts, energy now emerging through you, and infuse that awareness into your here and now.
Mantra :: I release all that no longer serves me, so a better version of me can emerge.
Artwork by Rassouli
The Hero’s Journey dream oracle, by Kelly Sullivan Walden
You might have been taught that creativity is something you have to work hard to access, or that finding your life purpose is so difficult that you must search high and low for it. Yet what you are is within you and wants to come out at every available opportunity! You don’t have to struggle so much. It is more about allowing space for it to manifest and let the energy flow. The real struggle is not in finding something. It is more about letting go of the idea that you need to search for your path in the first place. You see, the process of activating your life path is a natural one. The effort is in getting out of the way, not in making something happen.
As for being yourself, that is the foundation from which your true life path will reveal itself. Being yourself becomes easier when you give yourself permission to love, honor and accept yourself in all circumstances, especially the ones where you might be more tempted to reject and judge. Give the sacred rebel within the opportunity to decide your values – irrespective of whether they meet with general social acceptance.
What you are dreaming of or seeking to do, create, live or manifest, is actually very natural for you. That is why you want to do it.
If you experienced controlling or manipulative forces as you were growing up, you could have found it hard to access your natural state at the time. You would have been too busy trying to adapt and get through the trials of childhood.
When you finished navigating childhood and started to let go of who you were taught to be in order to become who you really are, you may have found your life path was not easily accessible. That is simply because your true and natural self was covered by layers of shame from the early conditioning that you had to be other than you are in order to win love or be acceptable.
However, the natural self hasn’t gone anywhere. It is still there within you. Now it is just chipping away at the walls of shame, perhaps with a defiant, “Who the hell cares, I am here and I am going to love myself anyway.” This allows you to risk bearing the feeling of any shame that arises as you release old emotional wounds and break away from any restraints to unconditional self love. The scared rebel within can empower you to love yourself no matter what, simply because you want to. You might decide to declare, “I am still loveable – so put that in your pipe and smoke it!” This will send an energetic message to whoever shamed you in the first place, whether they meant to or not. You can be freed to realize that the shame is just an emotion, not a truth, and you can defy any hold it has ever had on you and your ability to love yourself.
You are now powerful enough to break the cycle. It is time to stop the shame and claim yourself with love instead.
What you want to write, sing, dance or become, is you. It is natural. Drop your defenses, get into the grit and confront the power that any old shaming has had over you. It’s finished now. It is time for you to be naked with yourself, acknowledge how gorgeous you are and get on with your work. What you want to create, wants to be created. The world wants to be written. You just need to let go of any remnants of the past that have been in your way. Step firmly over them and on to your path.
Healing process :: Say aloud, “I now choose to forgive and release any person, situation or circumstance that has ever been a source of shame or shaming for me, whether conscious or unconscious. I now release this from my body, mind and heart, through unconditional love. I choose to claim myself instead. I love, accept and claim all of me under the loving protection and wisdom of life. I choose to live as myself. Now. I call on the unconditionally loving assistance that life wishes to send me for this journey now. I honor my creative power and my innate worth. So be it.”
Be kind to yourself. Say this every day for the next few days or however long it takes for you to believe it. You are worth the effort.
Neuroplasticity happens when connections are made across the neural network in our brain. Essentially, our brain creates super-highways that it travels quickly in response to outside stimuli. Thought patterns that are repeated often create massive highways that the thought travels on. The more the thought occurs, the more it will occur.
One of the most effective ways to reprogram the mind, to reformat the consciousness, is through using affirmative statements. I share with you examples that you may find helpful should you wish to use them to assist in reformatting the thinking mind.
I am committed to my growth.
My success is meant to be.
I let go of limited thinking.
I am open, and receptive to a bold life.
I invite what I wish for to come into the space I have provided for it.
I surrender my forcefulness, even for just this moment.
I allow what I want to come to me.
I relax.
I have faith that what I wish for will soon be here.
I feel the energy I wish to attract.
I embrace the power of magnetism.
Faith is enough.
I have many friends and supporters in the unseen.
My willpower gains supply by the power of life itself.
I accept my position in this life.
I am protected.
I am imbued with an inner knowing.
I receive assistance along my path, even while it seems I am alone.
There is something grander than I am able to imagine happening now.
“And forget notthat the earth delights to feel your bare feet and the winds long to play with yourhair.” ~ Kahlil Gibran
A forest fairy wanders through the forest with a white owl. Gyana is a mythical creature in a green dress. Artistic Photography, Public Domain
“Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life. It turns what we have into enough, and more. It turns denial into acceptance, chaos into order, confusion to clarity. It can turn a meal into a feast, a house into a home, a stranger into a friend.” ~ Melody Beattie
If you think about it, you have an unending list of things for which to be grateful. The secret to having more isn’t in strategizing on how to get the green grass on the other side of the fence. Radical gratitude is about beholding the miracle of the grass growing on your side of the fence. To rise to a higher level, you may even add your challenges and struggles to your gratitude list! With radical gratitude, you realize you are more abundant than you ever could have imagined. Gratitude is a magnet. It will bring you the best things in life, and give you even more to be grateful for.
Mantra :: I am an attractor beam, magnetic to the best thing in life!
Artwork by Rassouli
The Hero’s journey dream oracle, by Kelly Sullivan Walden
Neuroplasticity happens when connections are made across the neural network in our brain. Essentially, our brain creates super-highways that it travels quickly in response to outside stimuli. Thought patterns that are repeated often create massive highways that the thought travels on. The more the thought occurs, the more it will occur.
One of the most effective ways to reprogram the mind, to reformat the consciousness, is through using affirmative statements. I share with you examples that you may find helpful should you wish to use them to assist in reformatting the thinking mind.
I release any thoughts of deserving punishment. There is no shame in my process.
I leave behind the need to compete.
I embody the light of peace.
I do what feels truthful.
I live in wholeness to my best ability.
Everything I need for success is within me.
The next phase of my life will naturally happen.
I welcome a return to Divinity.
All guilt or shame I’ve embodied around having needs, I release now. I move beyond it.
I accept the gift of happiness.
I nurture harmony in my life.
I ask that the beauty in my life be shown to me.
I use my words in a constructive way that supports sweet relationships.
I allow my creativity to come alive.
I honor the path of my love.
I release false belief.
I take steps that will bring me closer to my dreams.
Let go of the past, and breathe in your new incarnation.
Dawn and resurrection are synonymous. The reappearance of the light is the same as the survival of the soul. ~ Victor Hugo
In every moment you can begin anew. With this next breathe, know that you are wiping the slate clean and releasing any baggage you’ve been carrying thus far because you no longer need it. Exhale the past completely. And as you inhale, open yourself to a whole new vista, a whole new incarnation, a whole new story of who you are and why you are here.
You are always at a crossroads. There is always a choice. The reset button is in your hand. What new story would you like to tell? Who will you be today? What if the entire world is conspiring for your greatest good?
What might happen if you choose to see everything as a blessing?
Mantra :: I open my heart and let myself be reborn daily, so I may revel in a new, improved, lighter and brighter version of who I am.
Artwork by Rassouli
The Hero’s Journey dream oracle, by Kelly Sullivan Walden
Neuroplasticity happens when connections are made across the neural network in our brain. Essentially, our brain creates super-highways that it travels quickly in response to outside stimuli. Thought patterns that are repeated often create massive highways that the thought travels on. The more the thought occurs, the more it will occur.
One of the most effective ways to reprogram the mind, to reformat the consciousness, is through using affirmative statements. I share with you examples that you may find helpful should you wish to use them to assist in reformatting the thinking mind.
I am Divine. A magnificent life experience is my birth-right!
I leave behind what has been.
I give my heart reins over my mind.
I will play.
I live life spontaneously.
I am a Sacred Warrior.
No-thing is more important than love.
I will not give fear refuge in my heart.
I meet chaos with compassion.
I respect what I feel. I call upon unconditional love morning and evening.
Friction between myself and others is transmuted into productive energy.
That which is rewarding takes time to develop. I have everything I need. I am moving into the new.
I trust in life and my own inner growth.
Harmony and comfort enter my body, my mind and my heart.
I envision beauty in many ways. I contribute to its life.
I passionately love my existence.
All that I need comes to me.
I embrace my tenderness. A new life is being birthed for me now. I give it my awareness and I participate fully.
When you were little, were you afraid of the dark? Most of us were.
And I doubt we ever thought to question this fear. We were almost naturally taught to be afraid of the dark, because the dark is full of unknown things that might hurt us.
But what usually happened when you turned the light on? You learned the unknown things were not so scary. And they were not so unknown. They were just part of the environment.
We learned to associate darkness with scary and unknown, and we learned it’s better not to speak with our dark thoughts and emotions.
Turning the light on our emotional shadow is a lot more challenging than flicking a physical light switch on. So we avoid it. Superficiality is easier. But this darkness of our soul has a life of its own which thrives, whether or not we choose to acknowledge it.
It’s there, and it’s powerful.
Understanding Darkness
This fear of our emotional complexity grew as we grew, and with time became our shadow.
It’s a hidden part in us that influences our choices more often than we are aware.
In truth, much effort goes into repressing and hiding it from ourselves and others. It’s our dark side. The parts we are ashamed and afraid to show. But through denial, we fail to see that in the obscurity of darkness also lay our strengths.
For reasons originating in the past, we have decided to negate and hide this dark side without exploring it further. And so in return it keeps us distant from truly expressing ourselves.
In many ways, hiding our shadow can be considered the highest form of betrayal.
By concealing this part of us, we are saying we don’t deserve to show our complete selves, thereby betraying ourselves. In return, secrecy, manipulation, and pretending take over large parts of our lives from fear of being ‘exposed’ and rejected for the part of ourselves we are hiding.
As mentioned, our shadow can show itself as weakness or strength. Becoming aware of our complete self allows us an opportunity for expressing strength. Ignoring these qualities, however, will always produce a damaging result.
The more we repress these dark corners of our being, the more we face disorder in our personality.
This can manifest as,
addiction
anxiety
intentionally failed relationships or jobs,
…or other behaviors that cause destruction to ourselves and others.
To become aware of our shadow is to shed light on our earliest wounds and to give ourselves a chance for healing and transformation. But as long as we choose to close our eyes to this, the wounds will continue to decay while emitting poison into our lives.
To Deepen Our Spirituality, We Must Pass Through the Shadow
Any spiritual work must entail exposure and understanding of our shadow.
Solely focusing on finding our light keeps us away from places of shame, guilt, jealousy, greed, competition, lust and aggression. But it is these very emotions that must be worked through first before coming near our lighter sides.
Even certain spiritual practices like meditation can become difficult when we try to ignore our shadow self. Its repression shows up when we shut our eyes, and we’re left with only our thoughts.
As with all strong emotions, what we don’t want to look at always keeps us contracted and in rejection. Deep down we know these qualities and feelings reside in us, and hiding them leads us to a life of in-authenticity and sometimes incomprehensible self-destructive behavior.
If our shadow is not acknowledged and embraced, the depth of our spiritual and personal growth is limited. Denying to look at the darkness is rejecting ourselves the need to be received in totality by others.
We start to over-identify with the side of ourselves acquired through our own perception of reality. This in turn shapes our personality, the superficial side of us, which the world meets.
Our roles and personality try their best to help us feel worthy and lovable. For some, it is by being intelligent, successful, and powerful while for others it is the opposite. In whichever way our personality tries to control life, it remains just another attempt to be loved for something we know we’re not.
As long as this partial picture of ourselves is kept intact, we create separation.
The message is,
“I don’t want to look and feel certain parts inside me and I prefer to judge others for showing and living what I choose to reject”,
…hence choosing separation, inside and out. It is a painful cage of continuous isolation.
Embracing The Complete ‘You’
The way to our light is through darkness.
Whether we want it or not, the dark side in us is very active even though it is concealed and not evident to the outside. But we know it’s there, continuously asking for recognition.
The shadow should be met in a safe and loving environment. Otherwise, it is too afraid that its face will cause devastation and result in further isolation. When it’s safe we can start looking, seeing, and expressing what has been hidden from our awareness.
There are many unpolished diamonds of strength, creativity, and beauty, which we’ve kept limited so that others close don’t feel small, intimidated or scared. Speaking to our shadow is an immense step towards healing and self-love.
Initially, when we embark on this exciting and necessary journey, we may not be sure who we really are. But this is only because we are so used to our masks that expressing our true self is like meeting a familiar stranger.
Soon new possibilities, choices and, perceptions appear.
Suddenly we can face the many question marks in our life from a place of strength and authenticity. We strengthen our capacity to be in this world more fully and completely.
