Come with Respect
When approaching any spirit being, it is good for you to be mindful of your position. If you are approaching a deity or higher Being of Light, then remember that these are ancient beings that are much stronger and wiser than we are. Approaching them with humility and respect will go a long way toward having them respond to you when you request to contact them. Imagine how mindful you would be in approaching a head of state or a world spiritual leader. You are not worshiping them; you are merely giving the respect that is due for someone of that station who carries so much responsibility. For the spirits of the dead, or Guardian Ancestors, who are also known as Hupia in my tradition, approaching them with a good attitude and with honesty will go a long way toward them being receptive to you when you ask them for help.
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The Realms and
What You May Find There
The alternate reality of the realms, the space where we journey, is made of four “worlds.” Several of my Medicine Teachers insisted upon developing precision in journeying. Just like you wouldn’t think about driving a car without knowing how to operate it and safely navigate it from point A to point B, they insisted that the shaman know and understand how to safely journey between the realms. When you journey, you’re going into the Dreamtime. In Native American culture, Dreamtime is known as alternate reality. Although each realm is composed of numerous levels, I will stick with speaking of the four major areas. I use the words kingdoms, realms, and worlds interchangeably.
Each realm vibrates at a unique frequency, and certain beings are native to each one. Becoming familiar with what to find in each world will make it easier to know where to journey to find certain types of information and to find appropriate energy as you need it.
The Lower Kingdom:
The Realm of Deeper Earth
The first realm is the Lower World. It has nothing to do with a sinister netherworld nor infernal regions as it does in other cultures. Here is the place of deeply connecting with nature and finding your private personal sacred space on the spirit side. Some of the beings that reside here are Power Animals, Ancestors of the Land, and different types of elemental spirits.
The information and energy that are found here would be harnessed by a shaman in order to help a person Walk in Balance in both their physical and spiritual lives. It is a place to journey and to learn about one’s own personal Power and how to responsibly use it. The Lower Kingdom is a place where you can go more deeply within yourself and understand how your current existence connects to your Dreamweave. The Dreamweave is the fabric of reality that is created through the will, karmic lessons, and the Power of the Great Spirit. It is also influenced by the results of our free-will choices as we interact with those lessons and the soul agreements we make not only with the Creator but with each other. The dreamcatchers that are so popular are one symbol of the Dreamweave. In the Lower Kingdom you can also gain insights to how a person’s personal Dreamweave interacts, influences, and is influenced by the greater Dreamweave of the collective. Healing comes from the integration of the sacred seen and unseen within the self.
The Realm of Deeper Earth is a place where one can recover and become restored from the demands of everyday life.
Journey to Your Sacred Space
Just as you have places in the everyday world to relax and recharge, so it should be that you have safe places on the spirit side. This is the place where you can always go in order to reflect, receive counsel from your Guardian Spirit, or deeply connect with your Power Animal. It is a place for your own spirit to recover from the demands of life. Most commonly, it is a place found in nature. However, I’ve had several students over the years find a place on the spirit side that mirrors a place from this world that is located in a natural setting. The important thing is to not have a preconceived notion of what your sacred place might be. This will be your first journey to Deeper Earth, and not only is this where you will find your first sacred place, but it is the easiest for you to reach when first starting out. Focus within your Heart on how you want your sacred place to make you feel. It should make you feel Balanced and at peace. It is your private safe haven.
Go through the steps I mentioned in chapter 3 for preparing for a journey. When you are within the Fire of Your Heart, ask your Guardian Spirit to take you to the Lower Kingdom. Feel and envision yourself going safely into the earth like water drifting underneath the surface. If you like, you can imagine touching and following the roots of a tree going underneath the earth. Breathe deeply and allow yourself to go further. When you arrive, pay attention to what type of landscape you have landed in. Here I use the term landscape loosely, for your landscape could be in the skies of the Lower World, deep beneath the ocean, or in outer space looking at our Earth Mother. What matters is that you will know it because it will resonate deep within you. Since you are in a safe place, permit yourself to open every fiber of your being to connect with your sacred space. Let the energy of your sacred space on the spirit side flow and strengthen your life force on this side. Allow yourself to completely be in the moment.
As it becomes time to return, express your gratitude and begin to journey back to this Middle Realm. Record what you have experienced. It is a good practice to keep a journal to chronicle your travels on the spirit side.
I recommend visiting your sacred place at least once a week. Each time you return there, feel free to explore more and more of that territory. Remember that your Guardian Spirit is ever with you to help keep you safe. This is not meant to be simply a beginner’s journey but a lifelong practice that will keep your spirit strong and healthy in the years to come.
In Native American spirituality, things must be both practical and spiritual. Just as you have begun to establish your sacred space on the spirit side and visit it routinely, make sure to make the same effort to visit a place in nature that gives you peace here in this Middle World. It can be as simple as walking through a park. The important part is to connect with nature in a mindful way. Walking as a shaman means consciously moving in the physical and spiritual worlds every day.
What Is a Power Animal?
A Power Animal is a spirit being, an animal of this natural world of earth or a mythical beast that is so filled with the sacred Breath of the Great Spirit that it has supernatural wisdom and abilities. I often get asked what my totem is. If I were to speak as a tradition keeper, technically, unless you are of Native American descent, you cannot have one. That is because a totem animal is a sacred creature who has divine connections with a specific tribe and bloodline. Claiming a totem would be very similar to someone walking up to a European person and saying that they would want that person’s family crest and last name as their own because they find it pleasing. In the twenty-first century, the term totem animal is often used as a generic term meaning an individual’s personal Power Animal, but they are different.
All people, regardless of heritage, have a personal Power Animal. The ancient teachings say that your personal Power Animal is the form that your soul would take if you did not have a human form. Any animal can appear to you from around the world. The myth that I would like to dispel is that somehow the animal itself has to be something big and powerful like a predator in order to have more Medicine. That is untrue! The spiritual leader and chief of the Taino has a black cricket for his personal Power Animal. It is not the physical raw strength of an animal that determines how much Breath of Creator it can carry. How far its essence or soul has evolved from a primal state determines how much Power, wisdom, sentience, and strength the Great Spirit will allow it to bear.
The more that you study your personal Power Animal, the more you learn about yourself. The more you interact with your personal Power Animal, the greater the connection with the sacred energy of that particular spirit being and your sacred self. Consider, for example, that the survival strategies of the wolf would be very different
from the survival strategies of an ant or of a rabbit. All strategies are valid because they allowed that animal to adapt and thrive in its habitat. The reason for studying its natural behavior is that its survival strategies and what it needs to thrive very much mirror your own. Also study its environment in addition to its allies and enemies. Taking active steps in order to preserve the environment so that your personal Medicine can survive is a way of deepening your connection as well as showing honor and respect.
Mythical beasts upon very rare occasion can be the personal Power Animal of an individual as well. In these cases, study more about the lore and history of this mythical animal in order to understand its significance. Take for example the dragon. Dragons are found in every form throughout the world. The disposition of an Asian dragon is a highly intelligent, divine, and benign primal force connected to the movement of wind and water that brings good fortune to the righteous. In contrast, the dragon of Europe is one that could be good or evil. Like in Asia, they are very powerful Medicine, though in Europe they would call it magic. If they are good, then they are protectors and in certain European cultures can bestow magic upon those they favor. If this beast is evil, then it is an aggressive bloodthirsty monster with the desire only to conquer and to hoard treasure.
When I was younger, I adored tigers. They are graceful, powerful, exotic, and a symbol of leadership. In Indian and Asian traditions, they are revered and respected because they are seen as evolved beings. I desired those qualities so much that I wanted Tiger more than anything else to the point that I had thoughts of no other animal. At that time, I was studying with the Iroquois and the Seneca Nations. For these nations, the Wolf spirit is a very prevalent, Powerful teacher and totem to one of their clans.
When I journeyed, instead of ending up in the jungles, I ended up in the forests that were around me. What came to me was a Wolf. In my youthful ignorance, I was disappointed because I thought wolves to be so common. At that stage of my life, I wanted so much to stand out. I had the audacity to deny my first Medicine! Thank heaven that the Seven Arrows, the Sacred Ancestors, and my Medicine Teachers were so patient. My teachers at the time smiled and reminded me that the Medicine chooses you, you do not choose the Medicine, and in the end, I would surrender to it.
I was very stubborn and resisted it for a long time. The Wolf spirit found many ways to demonstrate that it was to be my teacher and my Medicine. One time we were almost run off the road by an eighteen-wheeler. The company that it belonged to? A company with wolf in its name. Another time I was going to buy food in town, and I almost tripped over a young boy at the entrance of the market who was selling popcorn. As I looked down to apologize, I saw that he was wearing a Cub Scout uniform with the wolf cub’s head prominently showing on his kerchief. On yet another day I turned on the television and there was a nature program about wolves.
And so it went that I was hounded in this world and on the spirit side until I surrendered . . . just as the elders predicted. How glad I am that in the end the Wolf spirit did not give up on me and instead became one of my greatest teachers. With the guidance of the Wolf and my Medicine Teachers, I was taught the traditional ways and grew on the path of becoming a shaman, tradition keeper, and seer.
I share this story to reinforce that you should not have preconceived notions about which animal may choose you. You must surrender whatever prejudices you have, even if some of them come from a culture. For example, in the Western world, the snake is looked upon as a symbol of evil and deception. I think this odd, as in Western culture the symbol of medicine, the caduceus, is a staff with two snakes entwined around it. In most Native American traditions, no Medicine is all good or all bad. How and what you manifest with a Medicine reflects what is in your Heart and determines if it will be good Medicine or bad Medicine. The old teachings say that the Great Spirit intentionally created all the Medicines to have strengths and weaknesses. The Creator did this so that we have to be interdependent as a global family. We need each other, so do not look at disadvantages as handicaps! What one does not have, you do. What you do not have, another does. And so it is that we enter into a community both in this physical world and in the realm of spirit. There is a healthy strength in Balanced diversity.
So how do you find out who is your personal Power Animal? Perhaps you already know. It could be that you are irresistibly drawn to a specific animal species. Perhaps you notice that a particular type of animal has been drawn to you. Understandably, you may find it hard to distinguish if you are drawn to the animal merely because of your love for it or if the animal is actually your personal Power Animal. To remove all doubt, I will guide you on a journey to find out.
Journey to Find Your Power Animal
Now you are ready for your second journey into Deeper Earth. Prepare yourself for journeying as I have described previously: make sure that your space has been blessed off as explained in “Purify Your Space by Smudging” in chapter 4, that you are well connected with your Waterfall by performing the exercise found in chapter 3, and that you are in a good space mentally and emotionally. Connect with the Sacred Fire of Your Heart as you have done previously in the section on journeying found in chapter 4. Set the intention of this journey by focusing with your Heart and your mind that the goal of this journey is to discover your personal Power Animal. Ask your Guardian to escort you and journey to your sacred space within the Lower Kingdom. Once you are there with all your being, call out to your personal Power Animal. Remember, do not have any expectations!
This animal may or may not choose to approach you the first time. Please do not be discouraged if you cannot see it clearly initially. When it does appear, it will show itself to you several times. In my tradition, we say your personal Power Animal will appear four different times to honor the Four Directions in order to demonstrate that it is coming to you in a sacred way. Ask permission of your Power Animal to approach it. At this point, I would like to say something to dispel another myth that I have run into, which states that any insect you see is an evil spirit. That is foolish! The most abundant animals on this planet are insects. We would be lost without them. So, do not reject insects even if you do not like them. Welcome a spider or a bumblebee warmly if one appears as your personal Power Animal. Connect and touch your Power Animal, note its gender if possible, and let it take you where it resides.
The place where your personal Power Animal resides will be your second sacred space within the spirit realms. Truly become one with it. If it is a bird, try flying with it in the boundless sky; if a fish, swim with it in the clear running waters; if a deer, bound with it through the pristine forest. You might even spontaneously shape-shift into that animal. If you do, congratulations! This is a sign that you are attuned to your personal Power in perfect harmony. When it is time to return, allow your Medicine Animal to connect to your Heart and be within the Fire of your being. You will know that it is time to return because you will feel like you are being dismissed from the Lower Kingdom or your Guardian will tell you that it is time to go. Make it a habit to return through the Sacred Fire of Your Heart before opening your eyes and becoming completely present in this world. Return with your animal into this world. In a way, you are not truly retrieving anything that has not been with you since your beginning. You are merely strengthening the bond with your personal Power Animal. As you learn the shamanic ways, this is your second safe, open, and stable connection between this world and the realm of the spirits.
Interpreting Your Power Animal’s Meaning
Here I will briefly interpret what each of these types of animal means:
Bird: If you found that a bird came back with you, then you are connected more with the Sky Realm. You have a natural gift for seeing things from a bigger picture, which helps you solve problems in a practical way while preserving the essence of a project or relationship.
Aquatic: If an aquatic animal, including crustaceans, returned with you, then you are connected stro
ngly with the element of water. You have an empathic ability and can sense what lies within the Hearts of people. You can “hear” what words cannot express.
Reptile: If a reptile followed you, then you will have easier access to ancient memory and understand the movement of primal forces within a person or situation. You will have a gift for creating ritual and preserving traditions.
Insect: If an insect chose you, this means that you have the ability to see things without the complications of emotions and are more readily able to see the process of how things can work. You will have the gift of sensing and interpreting global energy and connect to the collective consciousness.
Mammal: If a mammal went into your Heart, then how to live fully in this Middle Kingdom will be one of your strengths. Mammals focus on a specific character trait and how best to identify growing into your life purpose. You have the gift of being grounded and are able to communicate more easily with the beings that live in the Middle Kingdom.
Mythical: If a mythical beast responded to your call, this means you will have an easier ability to channel spiritual gifts but may have a difficult time grounding in this Middle Kingdom. You have an instinct for knowing what inspires people and carry catalytic force for change within you. You can’t help but stand out in a crowd.
Crossover: The final classification of animals that I would like to cover is what I call crossover animals. These are animals that belong to more than one type. They have the advantages and disadvantages of both classes. Take the bat, for example. This is a mammal that flies through the air. The bat is a mammal that symbolizes being able to “see” and navigate through the darkest times of our lives. It does not use its eyes but sonar. It is very much like when we are going through difficult times and our normal ways of navigating or “seeing” our way through do not work. We must use other means to get through the hardship. Since the bat also has wings, it has an element of being able to connect more with the higher spiritual realms. In this case, the bat also gives us the gift to fly and navigate perfectly through unknown territory during the darker times in our lives. The bat is one of the helpers and perfect guides during times that are painful and require courage to go beyond where we have been. Ultimately, this animal will guide you from the darkness into the light by leading you to insights to explain why you are going through this experience and what lessons it holds. Although the bat may look scary, it will protect you in your hour of greatest need. It encourages us to use senses beyond the normal or go beyond comfortable thought patterns. It allows us to maneuver with as much grace as possible through unknown territories, especially through the dark night of the soul. The bat is the teacher of positive transformation through properly moving through adversity or the ending of an old life.
Journeying Between the Worlds Page 6
