Vernal Equinox 2019

At the Vernal Equinox, we begin a new cycle on the Medicine Wheel of Life, entering the East -- home of the rising sun, morning, birth, beginnings, and the spring season. Spring arrives when the earth is tilted so that the sun is directly over the equator. In the Northern Hemisphere, the first day of spring is on or about March 21. This is the day of the Vernal Equinox. Vernal means spring; Equinox means equal night. Night and day are the same length, each lasting exactly twelve hours on this day. It is at this time when light and darkness are in balance. The forces of feminine and masculine energy, yin and yang, are also in balance at this time, providing a unique opportunity to tune in and find our inner balance, harmony, and alignment. The 2019 Vernal Equinox will occur on Wednesday, March 20, 2019, at 5:58 P.M. EDT.

Throughout human history, people in the northern parts of the world have celebrated the Rites of Spring, marking the end of earth's winter sleep and the start of spring when everything is reborn. Ancient cultures connected spring with the return of life to the earth. The return of spring in ancient times was of more consequence than it is to us today because winter food and fuel storages ended, inclement weather waned, and crops could be planted. Pagan customs such as lighting fires at sunrise for renewed life and protection of the crops still survive in South America as well as in Europe.

 

In China, the Vernal Equinox has always been celebrated as the time of new beginnings, of action, of planting seeds for future grains, and of tending gardens. Spring is a time of the earth's renewal, a rousing of nature after the cold sleep of winter. The life energy, symbolized by thunder, erupts from the depths in early spring to awaken the dormant seeds to new life. The yearly cycle begins in the spring when thunder quickens the renewal of life. Winter still has its grip on the land, but the days are lengthening and the light is growing stronger by the day. Spring is almost here... I hope we can be inspired by nature's reawakening to renew our own lives.

Understanding Trance Journeys

Shamanic journeying is not an exceptional skill reserved for certain people, but knowing what to do with intuition, how to respond to it, and how to integrate it into day-to-day life is an exceptional skill that can, and should, be learned. It is important to release any expectations you may have about what a journey should be like. Too often people reject what they are legitimately experiencing because it does not fit their expectations of what should be happening. The key is to trust that what is happening is exactly what is meant to occur at that moment in time.

Like the shaman, you will find the spirit world to be a fountain of wisdom and power. It is understood that what takes place in the journey world will follow in ordinary reality. Insights gained there shift thinking and behavior here. Healing which transpires there creates healing here. The most empowering gift shamanic journeying offers each of us is direct revelation that manifests as visions, inner voices or experiences with our own spirit helpers.

To better understand your journeys, I recommend recording your experiences in a journal as soon as you have returned to ordinary reality. Trance experiences, like dreams, tend to fade quickly from conscious awareness. Journaling is a contemplative practice that can help you become more aware of your inner life and feel more connected to your experiences and the world around you. Keeping a journal provides a record of your spiritual growth and allows you to reflect upon and better interpret journeys. In some cases, your journey experiences will be clear and easy to understand. At other times, your journey may be dreamlike and full of symbolism. Interpret such journeys as you would any dream. Look for possible associations related to each symbol or image. Do not overanalyze the journey, for its meaning will become clear at the appropriate time.

Not every journey you undertake will necessarily be coherent, vivid or powerful. Still, no matter how esoteric or random the experience may seem, it augments your shamanic skill and knowledge. Seemingly insignificant events in a journey or vision may manifest in a powerful way in your ordinary state of awareness. Be on the lookout for synchronicities, for they confirm that your shamanic work is producing effects beyond the bounds of probability or coincidence.

The more you practice shamanic journeying, the better you will get at it. Nothing may happen on your first journeys. You may not be able to turn off the mind chatter or go anywhere. When this happens, simply try again at a different time. Eventually you will be able to take a rapid inner journey anywhere or anytime the need arises. The regular practice of journeying into the spirit world changes you. It broadens your viewpoint, helps you to let go of judgment, encourages you to value yourself more and makes living your life more manageable. It gives you equilibrium. Try a shamanic journey.

The Therapeutic Effects of Shamanic Flute Music

The Native American flute, a traditional ethnic wind instrument developed by indigenous Native American cultures, is an end-blown flute fashioned either from cane, hardwood, or softwood. The instrument evolved from traditional uses in courtship, treatment of the sick, ceremony, signaling, legends, and as work songs. During the late 1960s, the United States saw a roots revival of the flute, with a new wave of flutists and artisans. Today, Native American style flutes are being played and recognized by many different peoples and cultures around the world.

The Native American flute is sometimes used by music therapists. Because of its simple and accessible design, virtually anyone can play the flute. A recent study exploring the therapeutic effects of listening to the Native American flute found that flute music decreases anxiety and increases perceptions of interconnectedness in individuals diagnosed with a trauma related disorder. Flute music facilitates perceptual experiences of integration related to trauma, as well as expanded consciousness. The use of music with issues of trauma, as well as facilitating unity consciousness, appears timely. Music can reach where nothing else can and perhaps when nothing else can. Poets, philosophers and musicians have expressed what most people have experienced, that music has the power to deeply touch the heart and the soul, and the capacity to transform and transcend. To learn more, read "The Effects of Sacred Shamanic Flute Music on Trauma and States of Consciousness."

"Twilight Owls" Music Release

Twilight Owls combines trance-inducing drums, flutes and nature sounds in a rousing celebration of shamanic music. Shamanic music is a way to evoke and internalize animal archetypes. An animal archetype represents the spirit and attributes of the entire species of that animal. Shamanism is the endeavor to cultivate ongoing relationships with power animals to gain insight, healing methods, and other vital information that can benefit the community. Owl medicine includes prophecy, wisdom, stealth, silence, intuition, clairvoyance, clairaudience, shapeshifting, and keen vision that can pierce all illusion. Call upon Owl to unmask and see what is truly beneath the surface -- what is hidden or in the shadows. Owl is a messenger of omens who will call out to let all share in its vision.

A shamanic performer uses various instruments to communicate with the spirits. The first instrument you hear on "Twilight Owls" is the Native American Flute, an ancient wind instrument used to announce to the spirits that ceremony is beginning. Its sound represents the voice of the birds, the voice of the wind and the voice of the soul -- those things that are free to move and fly. The next instrument you hear is the drum. Its steady beat is akin to the primal pulse, the heart, throbbing within all that exists. The shaman uses the drum to create a bridge to the spirit world and summon the healing power of spirit. Drum and flute merge with Tawny Owl calls and the sounds of nature weaving the musical fabric of the song. Available on iTunes, Amazon and CD Baby.

A Bridge to the Spirit World

In oral/aural cultures, sound is regarded as one of the most effective ways of establishing connections with the spirit realm since it travels through space, permeates visual and physical barriers, and conveys information from the unseen world that underlies our physical reality. Tuvan shamans of Siberia believe that the spirits of nature create their own sound world, and it is possible for humans to communicate with them through the sound of the drum. A ritual performance often begins with heating the drumhead over a fire to bring it up to the desired pitch. Shamans may strike certain parts of the drum to summon particular benevolent helping spirits who give them knowledge and assistance. It is the subtle variations in timbre and ever-changing overtones of the drum that allow the shaman to communicate with the spiritual realm. The shaman uses the drum to create a bridge to the spirit world while simultaneously opening the awareness of all the participants to that bridge.

All elements of drum music such as timbre, rhythm, volume and tempo play an important role in shamanic ritual. By using different parts of the drumstick to play on different parts of the drum, different timbres can be produced for transmitting different meanings. Different rhythms transmit different meanings and enable the shaman to contact different beings in different realms of the cosmos. Volume and tempo arouse feelings in the listener and communicate symbolic meanings directly as aural sense experience.