Oct 6th, 2012Forest Ma and Little Ma hang quietly on the edge of the
main path. As I greet them and momentarily connect, they offer images of other
resting spots in the forest.
Following their directive, I walk toward the Council of Trees. Stepping off the main path and onto the small animal path, I approach respectfully, stepping carefully over roots and ferns, and avoiding disturbing the mosses that cover a large portion of the centre of the Counsel. I greet Ma of One Root, Many Branches, and also Ma of Many Roots, One Path, offering smoke from the obkuryuvannya and feel a shift within me as the scent and smoke lazily coil around the vines of Ma.
“Teacher of my heart and relationships, I am here to ask guidance about my path of heart, as well as my path of life.”
"Fallen Ma told you last weekend to feel into your heart to know what directions to follow," Many Branches replies. She has one vine that rises up from the forest floor and splits into two vines about 6 feet off the ground. One of the branched vines splits again into a third vine just above my head-height. All three branches twine around the trunk of their companion fir tree, reaching high into the canopy.
Many Branches says, "I am not the one to ask. I have many branches. I will only offer you many options to consider. If you are looking for a clear answer, speak to Ma of Many Roots, One Path."
I walk to Many Roots and hold her. She has a massive tangle of braches and roots that find their home on a stump. From this mass, one vine emerges and seems to make a miraculous leap 30 feet up the companion tree to its nearest branch.
Many Roots begins to speak immediately. "Do not compromise yourself. Follow your heart. It is the only true path."
Then, shifting into practical suggestions, she offers: "Go to the next level of teaching. Apprenticeships, mentorship... Find someone who will shadow you, learn from you, learn these ways."
Mole silently runs past me on the ground, seeming to glide effortlessly across the forest floor, under branches and over leaf litter. Her little body moves with acute agility in her sightless world. "Follow the path of least resistance," mole says, "where there is ease in what you do." She disappears into the piles of branches and leaves.
I thank Many Roots and ask her about the pathway of my heart. She redirects me back to Many Branches.
Reconnecting with Many Branches, she pauses for a moment as if scrutinizing me, and then offers, "How can you possibly grow the new if you are still holding onto the old energetically? It no longer fits you, you know this, and yet you have not let it go. Empty your heart."
Two little birds catch my attention at that moment. One is twittering and chirping, searching for bugs in the bark of a nearby tree. Its companion flies to a nearby branch. I watch them for several moments. When they have space from one another, even just a few branches-distance from one another, they twitter happily. And when the companion comes too close, the first bird becomes annoyed and flies further away with chirps of frustration. I watch as the companion chases after the first, and watch the repeated pattern of annoyance and flying off. This happens several times in the course of a few minutes.
Ma speaks up. "Give yourself some space. Do not chase after the Beloved."
Then peeper frog begins to croak, calling out to another frog some distance away, who responds with his own peeps and croaks. They sing: "Just call out from your heart – just call out from where you are."
Many Branches chimes in again, "And then wait for the Beloved to find you. Then you will be certain, for the Beloved will have sought you out." I thank her. "Do not forget your lessons," she says as I turn to leave.
I pass by I See You Cedar Tree. His presence is very strong – my heart feels seen even before I connect with him. I ask, "Do you have anything to offer me?" He replies, "Do you have anything to offer ME?"
Feeling a little foolish for forgetting formalities, I reach into my Ladanka and take out the hair offering I had collected the last time I braided my braids, and tuck it into his bark. "May you always see and know my heart."
I then offer more herbs to his base, and ask for guidance about my path and heart. He replies, "Travel with me."
"Am I to go to your roots or branches?" When I travel with trees, I usually follow their roots to the lower realms, or I travel with their branches to the upper realms.
He only offers, "Travel with me here, in the middle realm.”
I close my eyes, touch his bark, then lean my forehead against him. In my mind’s eye, I follow the roots, just to be certain I understand him fully – there is no access, like walking into a wall. I follow the branches up to the sky, but once I arrive, it is clear there is no purpose.
He repeats, "Be here, with your beloveds. Teach amongst the beloveds. There is nowhere else to go right now."
He gives images of walking the forest, and then shifts to feelings of connection with those who will shadow with me.
I thank him, picking up some dried branches of Cedar from the forest floor, and then continuing on my way. I exit the Counsel with the same care that I entered it, aware that the Counsel prefers to remain hidden from view, without obvious pathways or visitors.
Walking the longer route, I enter an area I have only visited once before. Wandering off-path to the hidden knoll of Fairy-Land, I feel a pull to visit Enchanted Ma. The last time I was here was high mosquito-season. I have the luxury today of taking my time to connect with this place.
As Fairy-Land comes into view, I pause to let my eyes feast on the sight… The many hanging vines that drape from the multi-trunked tree speak as one spirit with many voices, welcoming me.
I greet Enchanted Ma in return, knowing that I am already full with information. “Ma, I am here seeking quiet time to digest. Thank you for your welcoming presence.” A gentle breeze wafts through the branches and vines, and I walk to where it blows from. The small clearing just beyond Fairy-Land is a perch on a high cliff, overlooking an arm of the ocean that is sandwiched between this and the opposite mountain. Along the slope of the cliff are rocky out-crops interspersed with mature forest. I sit on the edge of the perch in the golden sunlight, looking out over tree-tops to the glistening water below. As I pull out my journal and begin to write, words and heart-centred directions for the next few years begin to pour out, and with these words, clarity begins to form.
~*~
I am preparing for a burning this evening, and dedicating the fires to the emptying of my heart. I pull out old photos of a time in my life that I know is complete, and yet I still have remnants I am holding onto. I gather herbs and the Cedar I had picked up in the forest, along with oil and honey, and also a bundle of obkuryuvanya. I then find an old deck of divination cards I had worked repeatedly with during a particularly challenging time in my life. Please represent all I am letting go of… Burning these cards seems respectful and useful in this case – ask the fires for transformation, burn the cards to ash, and allow the absolute clearing of my heart.
It is dark when I set the fire. The fire is very hot, and as I place photos in the flames, my hands sting from the heat. I add offerings with each photo, and once the photos are complete, I toss the cards into the fire. Using a stick to poke at them to make sure they burn completely, I lean back as smoke and heat begin to sting my face and eyes. More offerings follow, and I notice that the pile of ash being produced is quite large. It feels so good to release and let go. I have done many release-burnings in my life, though it has been a while since I have done a deep-release ritual with the burning of objects. Familiar, and much needed.
As the flames die to embers, I wonder to myself – am I actually fully willing to empty my heart and let go of the old – fully release into my own inner fires? Living aligned with this will be a true act of myself as Mol'farka.
Following their directive, I walk toward the Council of Trees. Stepping off the main path and onto the small animal path, I approach respectfully, stepping carefully over roots and ferns, and avoiding disturbing the mosses that cover a large portion of the centre of the Counsel. I greet Ma of One Root, Many Branches, and also Ma of Many Roots, One Path, offering smoke from the obkuryuvannya and feel a shift within me as the scent and smoke lazily coil around the vines of Ma.
“Teacher of my heart and relationships, I am here to ask guidance about my path of heart, as well as my path of life.”
"Fallen Ma told you last weekend to feel into your heart to know what directions to follow," Many Branches replies. She has one vine that rises up from the forest floor and splits into two vines about 6 feet off the ground. One of the branched vines splits again into a third vine just above my head-height. All three branches twine around the trunk of their companion fir tree, reaching high into the canopy.
Many Branches says, "I am not the one to ask. I have many branches. I will only offer you many options to consider. If you are looking for a clear answer, speak to Ma of Many Roots, One Path."
I walk to Many Roots and hold her. She has a massive tangle of braches and roots that find their home on a stump. From this mass, one vine emerges and seems to make a miraculous leap 30 feet up the companion tree to its nearest branch.
Many Roots begins to speak immediately. "Do not compromise yourself. Follow your heart. It is the only true path."
Then, shifting into practical suggestions, she offers: "Go to the next level of teaching. Apprenticeships, mentorship... Find someone who will shadow you, learn from you, learn these ways."
Mole silently runs past me on the ground, seeming to glide effortlessly across the forest floor, under branches and over leaf litter. Her little body moves with acute agility in her sightless world. "Follow the path of least resistance," mole says, "where there is ease in what you do." She disappears into the piles of branches and leaves.
I thank Many Roots and ask her about the pathway of my heart. She redirects me back to Many Branches.
Reconnecting with Many Branches, she pauses for a moment as if scrutinizing me, and then offers, "How can you possibly grow the new if you are still holding onto the old energetically? It no longer fits you, you know this, and yet you have not let it go. Empty your heart."
Two little birds catch my attention at that moment. One is twittering and chirping, searching for bugs in the bark of a nearby tree. Its companion flies to a nearby branch. I watch them for several moments. When they have space from one another, even just a few branches-distance from one another, they twitter happily. And when the companion comes too close, the first bird becomes annoyed and flies further away with chirps of frustration. I watch as the companion chases after the first, and watch the repeated pattern of annoyance and flying off. This happens several times in the course of a few minutes.
Ma speaks up. "Give yourself some space. Do not chase after the Beloved."
Then peeper frog begins to croak, calling out to another frog some distance away, who responds with his own peeps and croaks. They sing: "Just call out from your heart – just call out from where you are."
Many Branches chimes in again, "And then wait for the Beloved to find you. Then you will be certain, for the Beloved will have sought you out." I thank her. "Do not forget your lessons," she says as I turn to leave.
I pass by I See You Cedar Tree. His presence is very strong – my heart feels seen even before I connect with him. I ask, "Do you have anything to offer me?" He replies, "Do you have anything to offer ME?"
Feeling a little foolish for forgetting formalities, I reach into my Ladanka and take out the hair offering I had collected the last time I braided my braids, and tuck it into his bark. "May you always see and know my heart."
I then offer more herbs to his base, and ask for guidance about my path and heart. He replies, "Travel with me."
"Am I to go to your roots or branches?" When I travel with trees, I usually follow their roots to the lower realms, or I travel with their branches to the upper realms.
He only offers, "Travel with me here, in the middle realm.”
I close my eyes, touch his bark, then lean my forehead against him. In my mind’s eye, I follow the roots, just to be certain I understand him fully – there is no access, like walking into a wall. I follow the branches up to the sky, but once I arrive, it is clear there is no purpose.
He repeats, "Be here, with your beloveds. Teach amongst the beloveds. There is nowhere else to go right now."
He gives images of walking the forest, and then shifts to feelings of connection with those who will shadow with me.
I thank him, picking up some dried branches of Cedar from the forest floor, and then continuing on my way. I exit the Counsel with the same care that I entered it, aware that the Counsel prefers to remain hidden from view, without obvious pathways or visitors.
Walking the longer route, I enter an area I have only visited once before. Wandering off-path to the hidden knoll of Fairy-Land, I feel a pull to visit Enchanted Ma. The last time I was here was high mosquito-season. I have the luxury today of taking my time to connect with this place.
As Fairy-Land comes into view, I pause to let my eyes feast on the sight… The many hanging vines that drape from the multi-trunked tree speak as one spirit with many voices, welcoming me.
I greet Enchanted Ma in return, knowing that I am already full with information. “Ma, I am here seeking quiet time to digest. Thank you for your welcoming presence.” A gentle breeze wafts through the branches and vines, and I walk to where it blows from. The small clearing just beyond Fairy-Land is a perch on a high cliff, overlooking an arm of the ocean that is sandwiched between this and the opposite mountain. Along the slope of the cliff are rocky out-crops interspersed with mature forest. I sit on the edge of the perch in the golden sunlight, looking out over tree-tops to the glistening water below. As I pull out my journal and begin to write, words and heart-centred directions for the next few years begin to pour out, and with these words, clarity begins to form.
~*~
I am preparing for a burning this evening, and dedicating the fires to the emptying of my heart. I pull out old photos of a time in my life that I know is complete, and yet I still have remnants I am holding onto. I gather herbs and the Cedar I had picked up in the forest, along with oil and honey, and also a bundle of obkuryuvanya. I then find an old deck of divination cards I had worked repeatedly with during a particularly challenging time in my life. Please represent all I am letting go of… Burning these cards seems respectful and useful in this case – ask the fires for transformation, burn the cards to ash, and allow the absolute clearing of my heart.
It is dark when I set the fire. The fire is very hot, and as I place photos in the flames, my hands sting from the heat. I add offerings with each photo, and once the photos are complete, I toss the cards into the fire. Using a stick to poke at them to make sure they burn completely, I lean back as smoke and heat begin to sting my face and eyes. More offerings follow, and I notice that the pile of ash being produced is quite large. It feels so good to release and let go. I have done many release-burnings in my life, though it has been a while since I have done a deep-release ritual with the burning of objects. Familiar, and much needed.
As the flames die to embers, I wonder to myself – am I actually fully willing to empty my heart and let go of the old – fully release into my own inner fires? Living aligned with this will be a true act of myself as Mol'farka.
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