The Shaman's Compassion

In all the work the shaman does, it is her compassion that weaves through the energies and brings a calming essence, a loving presence and a wisdom surrounded by beauty to her client. Without compassion we do not see the heart of our client clearly, we do not understand the pain fully, and we cannot identify the loss specifically. A shaman is able to bring healing and return of the lost soul through the realms by holding this energy tenderly in an embrace of compassion. Compassion is a vital ingredient that is necessary when one is in service to others. It is the bridge that makes the connection. It is the medium that helps soften what has been made hard with time. It is the balm of understanding and witnessing. A shaman knows this and brings her compassion to each interaction she has.

Compassion is not to be confused with being soft, quite the contrary. Compassion, when mastered and understood, can be the strongest tool one has. It breaks apart untruth, it burns through judgements, it pries open blockages and it can fiercely stand up to anger and fear. Compassion, when understood and used properly, helps bring clarity and perception to the situation.

Soul work requires a good deal of understanding of the energies that we surround our lives with. Additionally, there are the universal energies that interact as well. Often times, the misunderstanding of these energies will create confusion and fear in someone. They will feel shame for not knowing, experience blame for not being able to master the events of their life and will often shut down. A shaman can bring the key of compassion to this work and is able to open what has been closed off. Compassion along with the many other skills and tools acquired through her training and experience, become effective ways to restore and heal the energies of the soul by the shaman. Gently, with compassion, yet powerfully with understanding of the work done within the realms, the shaman's perspective sees all the possibilities.

Blessings ~ Lisa

©COPYRIGHT 2013 Lisa Meade

Cleansing

Many times the change of seasons inspires me to do a physical cleanse of my living space. A good cleaning, a removal of what does not serve me any longer, a reorganizing of space and a redistribution of belongings to awaken energies and to bring brightness into some dark spaces is important. So it is also with my soul space. My energetic fields benefit from being cleared of the old, releasing what is no longer of any need and making room for what is to be brightened. This means taking the time to recognize what thought patterns need to be refreshed, any baggage that needs to be released and any fears, worries or pain must be swept away for the freedom of my energies to circulate again and my consciousness is able to grow. It takes awareness of what is authentic to my truth, my story and my vision.

There are many methods that can be used to cleanse one's energies from breath work, cleansing of the chakras, drumming, power dance, chanting and more. How you choose to do so is a personal choice. I like to switch it up and do not use any one method. I have also learned over time that certain cleanses work better for me depending on what needs my attention. But regardless of the way in which you do it, the important fact is that you do it!

Deliberately setting the intention and creating the space to cleanse one's energies is an important part of one's spiritual practice. We all need to be attentive to our soul's needs. Remembering that we are faced daily with outside influences, other energies, challenges, conflicts, and relationships, not to mention the ongoing world wide events that surround us, we have a responsibility to our relationship with Source and our soul to be mindful of its needs. Once done, everything feels lighter, more vibrant, in alignment and free. I feel open to what is next on my path, I have the room to receive it and the clarity to see it.

Blessings ~ Lisa

©COPYRIGHT 2013 Lisa Meade

Today's Soul Work

I had a client recently who came to me and asked if there were anyway we could work on a plan to help her clean up the messes in her life so that she could then begin to do some work with her soul. She felt there was just no time in her life to even consider working with her soul and its needs. I gently told her that the working with her soul could be a part of working with the mess and the time could be found there. She was puzzled, genuinely, and said she thought her life had to be in a much better state before she could ever begin to start something as sacred as getting to know her soul. Quite the contrary, I told her, and so we began. There will never be an end to the "To Do" list in our life. And even as we complete task after task, take on challenge after challenge, we do not get a big prize at the end of the day because we have finally cleaned up the junk drawer or paid our bills or sorted through the basement, other than our satisfaction. The ordinary life and its messes will always be there and to put off the sacred work of our soul just does not make sense. Especially because this work can be found within the ordinary of our day, within the tasks at hand and the satisfaction at the end of their completion. I often say doing the dishes can be a sacred act if you approach it that way!

Sacred work is in the present, the here and now. It is in the regular routine parts and pieces of our life. When we can find the sacred in our everyday, even when we are up to our elbows with life's challenges, we discover a new way of moving through our life. Our perspective changes, we hear things differently and our approach is impacted. We learn the importance of the sacred in our life, and so we set out to embrace it in the ordinary of our life. To show up day after day we recognize the importance of soul care, of self care, of quality over quantity and then what we value shifts.

Waiting for the perfect day to address her soul's needs quickly got tossed out the window for my client. We dove in. She began to understand that her intentions were often fueled by her inspirations. Her inspirations were gifts of her soul. She began to give them the attention they needed to become a reality in her life, a force to dip into when she needed a recharge, a beauty to be recalled when she felt overwhelmed. She began to recognize her soul's needs. For her, quiet space and time were a big part of what she was hungry for. The desire to feed that hunger gave her the energies and insights as to where this quiet time could be found in her busy life. She creatively set out to claim ways to begin embracing this in her life.

Working with your soul need not wait until the perfect day, the right moment or when all conditions have been met. That day will never come! Working with your soul happens here and now, it can be done while we are in the mess or in the beauty of life. The soul will respond to our attention, regardless of the life events that surround us. It is waiting for our touch, our call and our awareness. It will respond with delight, inspiration, beauty and wonder. And with that new energy brought to our day, life's flow will shift in our dance.

Blessings ~ Lisa

©COPYRIGHT 2013 Lisa Meade

Grace Filled Blessings

Of all the different things that we share with each other grace is one of the most beautiful. Each of us is bestowed with grace. It does not need to be earned, it is not gifted due to favor, it is not based on our spiritual practice, our good deeds or our sacrifices. Grace is a blessed upon all. How we choose to live a life that is grace filled becomes our most important daily choice. To be filled with grace in life we need to be aware and present for it. By doing so, we then see opportunities where grace is present or can be surrounding us. What are examples of grace that may be manifesting in our life that are going unnoticed? Grace is the customer in front of us in the check out line allowing us to go ahead of them and we get to our appointment on time instead of late. Grace is the beautiful gentle rain that waters our garden. Grace is the friend calling us that we have missed dearly on a day when we are feeling a bit down. Grace is hearing about a perfect job position from a neighbor that we bump into at the library.

Grace is also found in forgiveness, in releasing resentment or bitterness. Grace is found in the love of a family. Grace can be felt when we enter a home and there is respect, appreciation and compassion for those that reside there. Grace flourishes when we give unconditionally of our self, our time or our belongings. Grace can be found within us when we learn to be present and authentic. We are always able to access our grace. Each day we can make the choice of how we will live a grace filled day.

When this choice is made, we accept the fact that we have all been blessed by this grace. We begin to live a life that is filled with compassion, we become more generous, less stressed, more flexible, even more resilient. Living this way allows us to trust more and worry less. We see the good in others. We find our relationships expand and grow. We are able to release and let go with more ease. We find the beauty in life and in those around us. Our perspective changes, our actions respond and our life becomes full of beauty, wonder, softness and awareness. When we embrace our grace we cannot help but make choices that will reflect it in all the fibers of our being and in all the layers of our life.

Blessings ~ Lisa ©COPYRIGHT 2013 Lisa Meade