Journey into Your Past Life
Let us begin your next journey into the Middle Kingdom. It is time to journey to the past life that has had the most impact on this current incarnation. I would like to mention, however, some sacred teachings and taboos in relation to past lives. Looking at past lives strictly for entertainment is forbidden. For although you would be looking at part of your own soul, it is still considered to be disrespectful to the dead. Whenever you journey to past lives, it must always be done respectfully and with a clear purpose. One does not disturb the dead lightly.
Each past life is like its own separate book in the greater collection of your soul’s journey. They hold the lessons and experiences of the particular karmic lesson that Great Spirit is having you learn. You are to observe and not to relive the sorrows or joys of the past. I would also like to mention that initially, you might only get impressions. That is okay. As you connect to a past life and begin to link those memories with your current self, you will find that memories begin to pop up as time goes along. Different reflections, preferences, and prejudices of your past life will gently start coming into your consciousness, so be patient with yourself and let time unfold naturally as the memories come back to you.
Go to a quiet space and make sure to bless off yourself and your space. Make yourself comfortable and call your Guardians. Focus and strengthen your Waterfall. Relax and allow yourself to completely connect with Great Spirit within you, Earth Mother, Sky Father, and All Your Relations. Allow the sacred flow of life and Power to flow from your feet through your legs, filling your body, to the crown of your head and back again. Strengthen this divine flow so that you can really feel and envision this sacred light, the divine fire within your own Heart and soul. Strengthen that fire and let it fill every part of you. Call your Guardians to be with you in this sacred space. Focus your Heart and your mind, and focus on the purpose of the past life that you wish to visit. Ask your Guardians to take you to a place in this Middle Kingdom, back to the time you existed in relation you what are seeking to know. Open your Heart. See what impressions you have and if possible, see who and what is in your environment. Focus yourself in order to become oriented. Here are some questions to ask yourself:
Are you human?
What is your gender?
How old are you?
What are you doing?
What time period and part of the world are you in?
Ask your Guardians to take you to a significant moment in that lifetime. Pay attention to how you were feeling, who was around you, and the elements that led up to that event. If you find that you are having difficulty sensing what is going on, then connect more deeply with your Power Animals. Since your Power Animals live in the realm of spirit, connecting with them will enhance your own spiritual senses and perceptions on the other side. After that, ask to be shown what significant lessons or talents in your current incarnation are from this past life.
Sometimes, if a memory is too painful, your soul will block it out. Do not push it! It is more important that you understand the lesson and the action surrounding that lesson than that you see the actual event. When you have seen and felt all that you are permitted to, your Guardian spirit will begin to call you back. Give thanks for what you were allowed to see. Come back with your Guardian Spirit and your Power Animals. Return into the Fire of Your Heart and this present time. Feel your body; breathe deeply and naturally. Allow your Waterfall to Balance and ground you back into your body. Be open to your Guardian and your personal Power Animals so that they may strengthen you and bring you back completely into this current time and space.
Study what you can from your past life. What era was it? What was your station in that life? Did your gender have an impact on what roles you were allowed to play? How much power did you have over your destiny in relation the culture? What fears, likes, and talents from that lifetime are different from those in this one? You will know that you have hit upon things correctly when they resonate deep within you. It will ring like a bell and feel like the truth. Do not make judgments on yourself from the past life. Understand it is a point of reference and meant to be a source of encouragement of where to grow. It can indicate which talents in this incarnation give you the most benefit to develop.
Use this technique if you wish to understand different aspects of how you behave or certain reactions that you have in this lifetime, especially if it does not correlate logically or psychologically to anything that you have done so far. I know that there are others who say that one can do releasing work in order to absolve oneself from past karmic debts. On the Good Red Road, we do not believe this. Life lessons and unfinished lessons are nothing to run away from. They are opportunities for your soul to grow and for you to develop your character. Embrace these lessons in a loving way by integrating what is useful. You will become spiritually healthier, and the wisdom ultimately will allow you to release the karma in a beneficial way since you will have mastered the lessons.
Sometimes people say that after they journey to a past life, they have a sensation connected to a certain part of their body or even to a condition that they have now. Your physical body is a recordkeeper of your soul. As you are aware, the body does hold memory. It holds the current embodiment of all the lessons and achievements from this incarnation and the past life they correspond most closely with. Although it ages, your body mirrors your choices to grow and evolve. If you are curious about a lifetime that might have caused a current manifestation or condition within your body, focus on that part of your body or condition as you begin to journey. You will begin to see the lifetime that created this imprint in your current self.
At times you might find strong emotions following you from that past life into this one. Acknowledge those emotions and try to understand what memory they were connected to. It can help with processing the emotions so that they can move on. Once again, do not force it if you cannot see the memory. You can also move the emotions along by acknowledging them and then doing things that make you happy.
A practice I learned when I was first starting on this path is to go for a walk and look for a stone that will bear your burdens. When you find it, ask if it would be willing to help you. If you do not feel a negative energy in response to your request, then that stone has agreed to assist you. Breathe whatever sorrows or emotions are unsettling you into the stone. The rock will hold and carry that emotion for you. Fling the stone safely as far away from you as possible. It should release you from the emotion or at least the strongest edges of it.
When you are done studying this lifetime, as always, it is important to say a prayer of gratitude and to release it. I recommend studying only one past lifetime at a time. Working on multiple past lifetimes simultaneously will make you scattered. It can become very confusing in addition to being very draining.
The Sky Kingdom: The Realm of Higher Beings
The Sky Realm is the one with the highest vibration. It is the most beautiful and the vastest. In this world can be found many ascended beings, such as Beings of Light, Star Nations, angelics, and Sky Teachers, who are known in other cultures as ascended masters. Since the realm’s vibration is so high, it takes training and dedication to be able to maintain focus and stamina there. It would be very much like going into the upper elevations when mountain climbing. The oxygen is markedly scarcer up there than it is in lower elevations. It is important in this practice to take your time as you go into the Sky Kingdom. Just as if you were high in the sky, you would be able to see the whole horizon and a greater picture of how everything interacts, so it is with this kingdom. Here one can journey to see the Dreamweave. A shaman would journey to the Sky Kingdom in order to see and understand the karma of an individual. Here you can see how the lives of an individual and a collective interact with each other to create the Dreamweave. Each and every one of us, and everything in Creation, is a thread in the Dreamweave. Since it is a place so unlike our own h
ere in the Middle Kingdom, those of you who do not feel attachment to this earth nor to this life may find it very tempting to go into the Sky Realm and remain ungrounded upon your return.
Say, for example, that you are trying to understand a past life. In the Lower Realm, you would see the different Powers that had assisted you in that incarnation. In the Middle Kingdom, you would view that life in first person. The Sky Realm shows you that same incarnation from a third-person, panoramic view of how your life fit in with the greater picture by allowing you to observe how your life affected those individuals whose lives you touched. From the Sky Kingdom, you can also see how a past incarnation impacts this current one.
However, because things come from the greater perspective, sometimes even from a grander cosmic perspective, it can be difficult to grasp and properly interpret what you receive here. The same is true with the beings that you find in the Sky Kingdom. Pretend that there is a problem that you are having in regard to a friendship. Although tremendously helpful with greater issues of soul development, understanding divine law, and karmic Balance, a higher being who has never incarnated, such as an angelic, would be very ill-suited to understanding the nuances of human relations in such situations. You would do much better with an Ancestor spirit because since they have incarnated at least once on earth, they would have a better understanding of what is involved with the subtleties of human communications and interactions. In short, these beings of the higher realms are unparalleled in understanding the bigger picture and the Balance of incarnations within the greater context of the Dreamweave, but they would not be as helpful as one of your Sacred Ancestors, who once lived within the Middle Kingdom, with understanding what it is like to deal with the daily pressures of human existence.
It is good to have allies in the Sky Realm. The beings that inhabit it are highly evolved and can help answer questions and give insights to deeply spiritual or karmic questions. Keep in mind, however, their limitation: although they may understand the workings of the divine and teach you about divine law, they are sorely unable to understand and relate how things work here in this century. Here is when your Guardian would act as your interpreter, to assist you in communicating with this divine being and help you gain insight on how to apply what you’ve received. Typically, Sky Beings, which also include gods and goddesses, are spirits of great compassion and wisdom. Before you journey, think deeply about not only how you want to grow on your spiritual journey and on this shamanic path but also what your true motives are. The reason is that if you do not know your own Heart, it might be difficult to understand why a specific divine being is aligning itself with you. It is proper to present this to them when you are requesting for one of them to have the compassion and patience to become your teacher. Yes, it is true that you can contact divine beings for information and answers as you need them, but here I am trying to teach you as I have been taught, which is to approach these divine beings with respectful mindfulness and with the intention of creating a lasting relationship that will grow as you grow.
Purification Ritual: How to Prepare Yourself for a Sacred Ritual
When I was taught, I was made to undergo a purification ritual before going on to the Sky Realm for the first time. I recommend that you do the same. It does not need to be complicated. I had to take a purification bath and fast. If you choose to perform these, only do them if you know that you are medically cleared to do so. For the purification bath, draw a bath that is comfortably hot. Poor a half cup of mineral salts into the water, and as you swirl it around so that the salt dissolves, ask Grandmother Ocean to send her energy into the water. The reason we ask her is because as a kind Grandmother, she helps purify us while connecting us with the energy found in the rhythm of her waves. This begins the process of synchronizing us with cycles greater than our own.
Set a timer for twenty minutes. Soak in the water and allow any of the tensions and concerns that have been burdening your Heart and body to go from you into the water. It is not uncommon to see the water turn very inky or cloudy. After twenty minutes, give thanks, drain the water, and shower off like normal. I will give you a friendly warning though: this purification bath is very relaxing! I do not recommend planning any activities after it. If you also choose to fast, only do so if you have consulted with a physician. You do not have to fast for a long period of time; it could be waiting to eat a meal until after you are done. I myself was made to fast for a day. You could also do what is known as a light fast. This is when you eat and drink just enough to keep your blood sugars at a safe and constant level but not enough to make you heavy or overly full. You do not need a purification ritual like this after your first journey to the Sky Kingdom.
Journey to the Sky Realm
Since the vibrational rate of the Sky Realm is so different from ours here, I would like to offer you this exercise that might make it a little bit easier for you before you actually go on your shamanic travels. Go outside and look up at the sky. Gaze at it both during the day and at night until you feel one with the sky. It is best if you are able to recline or put a blanket upon the ground so you can lie flat on your back and look upward. As you gaze upward, allow your Heart and mind to be open. Feel the winds as you observe the clouds. Let yourself become one with this element of heaven. At nighttime, behold the twinkle of the stars and the gliding of Grandmother Moon across the sky. The energy of the night air is different from that of the day, but the openness of the sky is universal. Permit yourself to go upon the winds, and, as I like to say sometimes, it may feel as if you are “falling” into the sky. Let yourself be free! Relax and breathe the air deeply. Connect with All Your Relatives of the sky, such as the birds if by day or the bats if by night, as they fly by. Once you feel that you truly have a rapport with the elements of the winds and of the sky, you will be ready to journey. Remember that upon the Good Red Road we always give our gratitude at the beginning and the end of every exercise.
Some of my Medicine Teachers used to say that it is sometimes easier to journey to the Sky Kingdom when listening to wind instruments such as the Native American flute. If you choose wind instruments instead of, or in addition to, a drum, make sure that it is gentle music that is strictly instrumental. In my tradition, we sit facing to the north because it is said that north is the direction that holds the pathway to the sacred realms in the sky. If you do not know your orientation or if it is not possible to face north where you are sitting, that is okay. Connect with your Waterfall and the Fire Within Your Heart. Focus that sacred energy to make stronger the Fire Within Your Heart and remember your connection with the sky. Ask your Guardian spirits to go with you at this time, and then remember and focus on the fact that the purpose of this journey is to introduce yourself and ask a Sky Being to become one of your teachers and allies. Walk into the Sacred Fire into a place within this Middle Kingdom where the view of the sky is uninterrupted. It could even be the place where you were practicing connecting with the heavens.
Open your Heart and open your mind, unite your energy with your Guardian and your Powers, and feel yourself becoming lighter than air. Feel yourself floating upward like smoke or like a feather gently carried upon the winds. Remember that you are safely supported as you go higher and higher. As you ascend, concentrate on the energy within your Heart and mentally voice your request for a sacred Sky Being to speak with you. As you go upon the winds, you will see a sacred mountain. In my tradition, we say the mountain’s color is turquoise. Go upon the sacred mountain to give your gratitude.
A protector of the mountain may be waiting to meet you there. Go with your Guardians and with the sacred guide of the mountain. Ask to be taken to a meeting place at the top where you may speak with a Sky Being. Breathe and focus. Let the energy of the Sky Kingdom fill you. You will come upon an overlook. Be seated and be still. Gaze upon the sky and the realms beneath you. Be there in a state of oneness, peace, thankfulness, and humility. If there is a Sky Spirit there, bow your head to show
your appreciation and your respect, and introduce yourself. Be open to what this divine being has to say. Feel the energy of this sacred spirit. Ask if this divine being would be willing to be one of your allies as you continue to go about your spiritual growth and life journey. Connect once more with the energy that is the essence of this Sky Spirit. Just as you identify those whom you love by their energy, so will you begin to identify those of the spirit realm who interact with you. Ask this Sky Teacher for a name if you do not already know it or for a way to identify this spirit. Most of the communication may have been through feelings and a sensation of the Fire in Your Heart growing stronger rather than some sort of verbal communication to be understood by your mind. Be at peace in this place, for what is happening is not only a journey to meet your Sky Teacher but also an attunement to be able to Walk more easily within this higher realm. When you are dismissed once again, give thanks for being permitted to be in this divine place. Come back down the path and return at once to the place where you started upon the mountain.
Go with those who Walk with you through the sky and float back down like a leaf landing gently on the Middle Kingdom. Once you are here again, feel the good earth beneath your feet as you go back into the Fire of Your Heart. Breathe deeply. Feel yourself being completely back in your body. Give thanks. Know that this divine being with whom you have connected will now begin to guide you and teach you regardless of if you are in the realms of journeying or here in your everyday life.
Divine Beings
Just as you did your research when you discovered your personal Power Animal, so too must you do your research here. Learn more about the type of being that has chosen to become one of your spiritual mentors. For example, an angelic would have a different disposition from a god or goddess. Understanding what each of them watches over and what their area of knowledge is will help you a great deal. Commonly, a divine being will choose to interact with someone who is in alignment with their purpose or cause. Say, for example, that a Being of Light whose purpose is to help bring peace on earth chooses to speak with you. This being would help bless and enhance the peace within you and around you in addition to teaching you the ways of helping to bring more serenity to this world. It is a sacred exchange. You are gifted with peace, and in return as you live these practices, you help promote the mission of this divine being.
Journeying Between the Worlds Page 8
