I am not a medical professional or an expert on epidemics. I leave the critical information in those important fields for the experts who have the appropriate training to help us get through the coronavirus pandemic. Even though I do not possess medical knowledge, as a shamanic practitioner, I believe I can try to humbly offer some insight into the spiritual significance of the pandemic that is spreading rapidly through much of the world. We are all navigating challenges as a result of COVID-19. Whether those issues are health related, economically related, or otherwise, we are being given an opportunity for growth.
Scientists say that the bat is the likely origin of the coronavirus near Wuhan, China, but humans are to blame for the spread of the disease. In the shaman's world everything happens for a reason -- there are no accidents. Furthermore, everything that happens in the physical world has its ultimate cause in the spirit world. So, what is the spiritual significance of the bat coronavirus? Bat represents rebirth, transition, and intuition. Bats often represent death in the sense of letting go of the old, and bringing in the new. They are symbols of transition, of initiation, and the start of a new beginning.
The word "medicine" in shamanic practice refers to the healing aspects that a particular animal brings to our consciousness. When bat medicine appears in our life, it is a call for the end of a way of life and the new beginning of another. This transition can be very frightening for many. But we will not grow spiritually until we let go of those old parts of us that are no longer needed. Success depends on our willingness to plow old habits into the soil in order to cultivate new patterns that enhance our natural growth. By facing the darkness before us, we will find the light of rebirth.
The bat is a symbol of death and rebirth because it is an animal that lives in the dark underworld of the Earth. From caves in the Earth Mother's womb, it emerges every evening at twilight. Thus, from the womb it is symbolically reborn every evening. Bat medicine embraces the idea of symbolic death in which the personal ego identity and the old ways of life give way to the new.
The Dismemberment Journey
In shamanism, there is an archetypal visionary experience known as the dismemberment journey. The student or practitioner of shamanism recognizes an illusion or fear that impedes the expansion of their soul. The practitioner prays for this flaw to be healed and, in doing so, surrenders to the wisdom of the higher powers of the universe to remove the impediment. In a classic dismemberment journey, the petitioner witnesses their own body being torn apart and perhaps completely destroyed. The individual dies a symbolic death and is then restored and brought back to life, whole and empowered, the fear or illusion vanquished.
From a shamanic perspective, the global coronavirus pandemic represents a mass shamanic dismemberment -- the experience of being taken apart, devoured, or torn to pieces on a global scale, allowing for a shift of awareness and transformation of collective consciousness. At its deepest level, the dismemberment experience dismantles our old identity. It is a powerful death-and-rebirth process. The experience of being stripped, layer by layer, down to bare bones forces us to examine the bare essence of what we truly are.
The viewpoint emerging from the shamanic community suggests the times we live in have a theme of planetary and cosmological initiation. Shamanic initiation is most often precipitated by physical, psychological, emotional, or spiritual events that force the ego into submission. Who we believe ourselves to be is not who we truly are. No matter how many years one has been developing their consciousness, no one is exempt from this shamanic death-and-rebirth. This is a shamanic initiation on the grandest cosmological scale.
The times we find ourselves in are like a great river in flood. We can try to hold on to the shore to save ourselves from being swept along with the current. But this is a futile effort, for nothing can resist the great tide of change that is sweeping through and forever altering life as we have known it for millennia. Instead, we are being challenged to let go and go with the flow. We are being given the opportunity to surrender to the current of change so that new dreams and visions can emerge.
As humans, we are being asked to go within and search our hearts in order to change those patterns of thought and behavior that work against us. It is necessary to still the mind and quiet the emotions so that inner knowing and intuition can emerge into our consciousness. Personal isolation and contemplation help us gain deeper insight and clarity of mind. Bat medicine gives us the wisdom required to make the appropriate changes for the birthing of our new identity.
Scientists say that the bat is the likely origin of the coronavirus near Wuhan, China, but humans are to blame for the spread of the disease. In the shaman's world everything happens for a reason -- there are no accidents. Furthermore, everything that happens in the physical world has its ultimate cause in the spirit world. So, what is the spiritual significance of the bat coronavirus? Bat represents rebirth, transition, and intuition. Bats often represent death in the sense of letting go of the old, and bringing in the new. They are symbols of transition, of initiation, and the start of a new beginning.
The word "medicine" in shamanic practice refers to the healing aspects that a particular animal brings to our consciousness. When bat medicine appears in our life, it is a call for the end of a way of life and the new beginning of another. This transition can be very frightening for many. But we will not grow spiritually until we let go of those old parts of us that are no longer needed. Success depends on our willingness to plow old habits into the soil in order to cultivate new patterns that enhance our natural growth. By facing the darkness before us, we will find the light of rebirth.
The bat is a symbol of death and rebirth because it is an animal that lives in the dark underworld of the Earth. From caves in the Earth Mother's womb, it emerges every evening at twilight. Thus, from the womb it is symbolically reborn every evening. Bat medicine embraces the idea of symbolic death in which the personal ego identity and the old ways of life give way to the new.
The Dismemberment Journey
In shamanism, there is an archetypal visionary experience known as the dismemberment journey. The student or practitioner of shamanism recognizes an illusion or fear that impedes the expansion of their soul. The practitioner prays for this flaw to be healed and, in doing so, surrenders to the wisdom of the higher powers of the universe to remove the impediment. In a classic dismemberment journey, the petitioner witnesses their own body being torn apart and perhaps completely destroyed. The individual dies a symbolic death and is then restored and brought back to life, whole and empowered, the fear or illusion vanquished.
From a shamanic perspective, the global coronavirus pandemic represents a mass shamanic dismemberment -- the experience of being taken apart, devoured, or torn to pieces on a global scale, allowing for a shift of awareness and transformation of collective consciousness. At its deepest level, the dismemberment experience dismantles our old identity. It is a powerful death-and-rebirth process. The experience of being stripped, layer by layer, down to bare bones forces us to examine the bare essence of what we truly are.
The viewpoint emerging from the shamanic community suggests the times we live in have a theme of planetary and cosmological initiation. Shamanic initiation is most often precipitated by physical, psychological, emotional, or spiritual events that force the ego into submission. Who we believe ourselves to be is not who we truly are. No matter how many years one has been developing their consciousness, no one is exempt from this shamanic death-and-rebirth. This is a shamanic initiation on the grandest cosmological scale.
The times we find ourselves in are like a great river in flood. We can try to hold on to the shore to save ourselves from being swept along with the current. But this is a futile effort, for nothing can resist the great tide of change that is sweeping through and forever altering life as we have known it for millennia. Instead, we are being challenged to let go and go with the flow. We are being given the opportunity to surrender to the current of change so that new dreams and visions can emerge.
As humans, we are being asked to go within and search our hearts in order to change those patterns of thought and behavior that work against us. It is necessary to still the mind and quiet the emotions so that inner knowing and intuition can emerge into our consciousness. Personal isolation and contemplation help us gain deeper insight and clarity of mind. Bat medicine gives us the wisdom required to make the appropriate changes for the birthing of our new identity.
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