Blooming in my garden.

Five Quick Reflection Questions for Using the Energy of the Equinox for Life Balance

Each element will bring you insightful guidance in this powerful window if you take just a few minutes and honor them with listening. Simply ask the question and then tune into the answers. You may want to write the answers down to work with them over the next few days.

Earth: Connecting to your physical body and ask where do I need more balance in my earthly physical world?

Water: Connecting to your emotions and feelings and ask in what ways do I need more balance in my relationships?

Air: Connecting to your breath and asking how do I balance my time in the fresh air of nature with my time with technology?

Fire: Connecting your life force energy and ask how do I bring more balance to my actions?

Spirit: Connecting to your essence and ask what do I need to balance my spiritual life with all I need to do in the physical world?

Take a moment to thank the elements for their assistance.

Additional ways to work with the elements if you want more connection:

Creation Journaling: Equinox is a great time to begin one or add to the one you have. Free video on how to create a creation journal.

For more ceremonial ideas or an online ceremony: Become a Natural Rhythms Community Member.

For a free 6 part Elemental Forces of Creation mini course sign up for the Aspire Subscription listed in the side bar.

Use this powerful rhythmic timing to boost your life!

Many Equinox Blessings, Lisa

Diving deeper into my inner awareness, I realized this five month ritual was creating more space internally for my intentions to flourish. Doing it over the five moons means that I work with a moon of each element, therefore clearing each realm (emotional, energetic, mental, physical, and spiritual).

Last night I did the first one with great results and on the way home I was guided to share it with you in case it can assist you in any way.

First of all it is important to remember that anytime you want to create something new it helps if you clear the area first. Just like a garden, it flourishes best if you have an idea (intention/plan) of what you want to plant & where. Then you clear and till the soil, adding any amendments that will boost growth.

This metaphor makes a big difference when it comes to expanding your capacity in any area of life. The further you choose to express in the outer world, the more you need to clear and strengthen from the inside.

I’ve been focusing on increasing my business abilities for well over a year now and for the past few months I’ve known that I had another layer of clearing work to do in my second chakra around it. I had been listening for guidance as to the best way to do it, and in February, I was nurturing myself with some of the Sacred Dance Guild Board of Directors, after an intense week, at this amazing spa called JeJu, in Duluth, GA.

As I was relaxing and going deep inside my I received the plan. I was to come back to the spa alone for five new moons and spend time deeply relaxing and nourishing myself, then do a “hip bath” with the intention to clear.

Yesterday on the Pisces, watery, emotional, dream realm new moon, I had my first time at JeJu scheduled on my calendar. I had almost decided the day before that I just didn’t have time to go based on my work load but in the dream time I heard that it was most important that I take that time for myself and go.

In my dreams that night I also received several messages around the clearing needed. As I began my inward journey I found a previously unseen, very deep layer of emotional insecurity that stemmed from childhood that had been impacting my progress. I also saw the influence this pattern had as it subtly played out in different parts of my life over the years.

During my work day, I allowed this to float around in my consciousness as I did what I needed to do. Once I arrived at the spa I took my time and allowed myself to slowly unwind into the clearing space I needed. I had a relaxing dinner, laid in the salt, gold & silver, gem stone, charcoal, jade, mud, and cool kivas. Then soaked in the hot pools before proceeding to the hip bath.

My intention was firmly in place from several hours of connecting with my body and listening to my guidance as I began the hip bath. Almost immediately I saw where the imprint of the emotional wound stemmed from and I had an even deeper realization of how delicate the emotional body is during childhood.

Now many people have experienced wounds to their emotional body some during childhood and some later in life. I was recently talking with a therapist who has been working with post war military emotional trauma. This type of wound can come from many things and in different degrees of severity.

The question is how do we uncover it, heal it, clear it, and release the hold the pattern has on our lives. The emotional body very much responds to ceremony and ritual. It needs a space and a place to consciously release and honor the journey. That is why we have ceremonies such as funerals or weddings. We need them emotionally.

As I sat there I realized the childhood emotional insecurity that was stored in my second chakra came from spanking. It was a common practice as I was growing up and it deeply impacts the first and second chakras. As a child there is no way to know this, nor how to release its impact.

It is only later in life when there is enough skill in working with the elemental realm of water that the clearing can be fully done in a sacred way, free from blame, judgment, or victimization. Simply creating a ritual to release the trauma in the emotional body and sending much love to all.

I felt amazing when I left JeJu last night and so grateful that I listened to my guidance and took the time I needed to clear. Rituals and ceremonies to help the emotional body can be created anywhere and anytime. And if you want extra guidance and an energetic boost choose a watery new or full moons.

If you want to learn more about working with each of the elements (Earth, Water, Air, Fire, and Spirit) and their corresponding realms, several of our facilitators are starting in-person Natural Rhythms 100 Foundation Power courses soon and, on April 3, I am starting the very first NR100 on-line home study course. So no matter where you live, what your budget, or what type of learning environment is right for you, we have a way for you to access the potent elemental teachings that have helped so many.

Click on the image to begin the presentation.

Welcome to this free experience of the Elemental Forces of Creation.

This program will take you approximately 35-45 minutes depending on the time you allow for connecting and receiving guidance from each element.

You will want to have a pen and journal or paper ready before you begin the program.

This presentation is created for you to access a right brain experience of the elements. Take the time to breath into the pictures of nature as you experience the spoken word.

We appreciate comments about your experience. (To leave a comment if you are not already on the comment page, simply click on the number beside the word comment under the title and you will be directed to the comment page.)

Many elemental blessings, Lisa

Midlife Chrysalis
Moving from Crisis to Creation

The natural life cycle brings some powerful physical transformation points that also function as initiations into a new phase of consciousness. Coming of age, stepping into adulthood, child birth, and menopause are all doorways into another aspect of the self. These can seem like purely physical changes but the physiological transformation that accompanies them are just as vital to the next phase of life.

Unlike our ancestors that lived in a closer relationship to the natural world, modern life gives us few clues as to how to navigate these life altering passages. Unless someone around you could explain what happens in a transformational initiation you probably entered and made your way though without much guidance or support.

If you lived in a time or community that consciously engaged these life initiations you would understand that these soul passages melt your former self down for you to emerge into an entirely new way of being. While knowing this might not make the passage any easier, at least you would know you weren’t crazy and the people around you could support your journey in a way that was actually effective.

Instead of just being the rebelling teenager, the hormonal pregnant woman, or the unstable hot flashing menopausal manic there could be support for the depth of inner physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual changes occurring. Knowing that all aspects of your former self will dissolve into a glob before you re-form into the you that will emerge from the chrysalis, helps in some strange way.

Consciously participating in the transformational process moves you from engaging it as a crisis to intentionally crafting the next version of yourself. At midlife an additional and powerful aspect of integration happens along this journey. Each individual thread of learning and knowing you’ve gathered in your life gets evaluated, sorted, and spun into a new creation during your time in the chrysalis. You begin to weave the treads of your life together into a tapestry of inner wisdom.

Threads that seemed like separate streams of life get woven together into a deeper matrix of wholeness at midlife. This weaving gives you a more stable awareness of your inner truth and the unique wisdom that is yours to carry. While the treads are the same as the previous individual strands, when woven together they create an entirely new fabric of expression for the next phase of life.

How empowering it would be for young women to know that they won’t simply be growing older with each passing year but truly wiser. That there will come a time when all of their experiences will merge into an awareness of life that has the capacity to significantly bring wisdom and creative expression into the world.

With this awareness the passage of time and the portal of menopause and midlife takes on a deeper meaning. Grey hair and laugh lines symbolizing a vibrant wise woman, with a zest for life. The wisdom gained during the passage a reason to mentor and assist others by being a supportive guide through their transformational journey.

Collectively we need the wisdom of the midlife woman. And we need the women who’ve woven their tapestries to join together and to sew the individual patches of wisdom into an enormous quilt. Creating one large enough to wrap the world in the warm embrace of the wise woman.

Wrapped in this embrace of wisdom there is…

• support for creative pursuits.
• a place for feminine and masculine values.
• a world wide circle of wise women to go to for guidance.
• honoring for your personal journey.
• a way to support those in need.
• a heart centered awareness for life.
• respect for nature and her guiding wisdom.
• valuing of the natural rhythms of life.

To take part in the global honoring of the wisdom of midlife women…

• find time to listen to those around you who carry this wisdom.
• ask what they have learned that could be of value to you.
• seek out women of various cultural backgrounds from which to learn.
• connect to the wise woman within and help bring her clarity out into the world.
• honor women when they are willing to share their teachings.
• appreciate the natural aging process while continuing to increase vibrancy.
• form circles of women so that women of all ages can learn from one another.
• find a midlife or older mentor to support your next passage.

To assist your own midlife journey and the development of your inner wisdom…

• be in silence some portion of your week to strengthen your inner guidance.
• spend ample time in nature to access the forces of creation.
• pay attention to the rhythms of nature to develop a deeper awareness of right timing.
• spend some time in the company of other women.
• allow space in your life to weave your inner treads into your wisdom tapestry.

And finally take the time to enjoy the wisdom of midlife.

Two weeks ago, I entered the doorway of the beautiful Goddess Temple of Orange County, California. I heard about the temple the week before from a lovely woman, Vajra Ma, sitting next to me on the last day at the Woman of Wisdom Conference in Seattle.

She had also presented at the conference and as we discussed our love of dance and where we were traveling to next we discovered we would both be in Southern California. She told me about the Goddess Temple and her presentation about the Natural Spiritual Authority of Woman. I was thrilled when I realized I could be there.

As I toured the temple, the thing that impacted me the most was the beauty everywhere. There were lovely Goddess meditation rooms, luscious places to sit, and visual representations of the Goddess all around. The temple is a sensual feast for the eyes and soul.

The temple was not only exquisite, it was also well organized and professionally well run.  It is supported by local volunteer temple priestesses who assist with events and temple duties. They have a weekly Sunday service and many other special dances and events.

The temple founder and centerholder, Ava, manages the temple with grace, clarity, and purpose. I was able to spend a few moments talking with her afterwords. One of the things she shared was that she had three different marketing companies take a look at the feasibility of a temple like this being supported in the area and all of them came back with no the area couldn’t support it. However, after their first year they had to move to a larger location, and now after four need more space again.

Clearly the Goddess needs room to spread out, grow, expand, and flourish.

Vajra Ma’s talk was filled with insight, wisdom, and reminders of the innate power woman holds in her creational womb center. She and her  husband Wolfgang founded the Southern Oregon Temple of the Goddess in Grants Pass, (southern) Oregon in spring 2007. It is inspired by and modeled in many ways after Ava’s GTOC.

I came away from the evening so excited and uplifted to see what these amazing women have created. It forms a powerful model for any city.

If you go to the Los Angeles area, you owe it to yourself to take the time to visit this lovely place, The Goddess Temple of Orange County. They have a wonderful list of Other Temples on their website if you are traveling and want to see what else might be in the area.

Last night, as I began writing this blog on the Goddess Temple I opened Iris Stewart’s fabulous book Sacred Woman Sacred Dance right to this paragraph…

“Dances of Goddess energy can be done by anyone of any faith. These dances are not “religious,” as we know the word. They are a method of getting in touch with the flow of grace; they are a movement meditation and opportunity to share in community.”

The Goddess Temple of Orange County embodies this flow of grace and is an inspirational model and a feast for the heart & soul.

Description from TED talks…In this passionate talk, Eve Ensler declares that there is a girl cell in us all — a cell that we have all been taught to suppress. She tells heartfelt stories of girls around the world who have overcome shocking adversity and violence to reveal the astonishing strength of being a girl.

Eve Ensler created the ground-breaking Vagina Monologues, whose success propelled her to found V-Day — a movement to end violence against women and girls everywhere.

Direct Link http://www.ted.com/talks/eve_ensler_embrace_your_inner_girl.html

There was one line in the blog that as I tossed and turned kept surfacing in my mind…Dance is a primary form of worship of the Goddess. I realized as twilight dawned that a part of me, even after 11 years of being a high priestess and facilitating over 30 priest/ess circles, was still afraid of publicly making such a statement.

At each new level of development as I have made my way through the years of being a priestess I have had to clear old fears and internal patterns. Cellular memory runs deep. I have found the years of persecution as patriarchy took over the Goddess temples and imprint of the burning times were layered in my consciousness. And they have gotten released and healed one layer at a time.

Even after so much inner clearing work I found another layer of fear residing around my love of the Divine Feminine, the Goddess. For me she isn’t a replacement for the Divine Masculine or God, I love and appreciate the masculine tremendously. But the Goddess, the Divine Feminine essence, nourishes me as a women differently than the masculine does. She feeds my soul in so many important ways.

Through connecting with her I have found deeper value in my own presence as a woman. I have come to appreciate the feminine force in creation and the ways it shows up in the women and men around me. My body is enlivened as I dance to honor her Divine essence. My inner wisdom and knowing strengthened as I drink from the deep well of the Goddess within.

Today I clear another old layer as I share this with you. If you find this speaks to you take a look at the video blog below I have posted about the Dancing Priestess process starting in two formats in 2010. And soon, I will be blogging about my recent experience in a beautiful Goddess Temple in Southern California.

And whether you are a man or a woman may the essence of the Divine Feminine, the Goddess, bless you and enrich your life with her precious grace.

Illustration by Prescott Hill

For the first time ever there will be a process starting that will help you increase your body’s ability to bring spirit into matter and your consciousness to more fully connect to the Divine. In the Practical Dancing Priestess process you will activate the inner priestess (or charge her more fully) and connect to the sacredness of dance to increase your capacity to channel Divine Essence into your life.

This creates powerful authentic movement to unify the desires and dreams of your spirit in order to manifest them into physical form. Find out more by watching the presentation below…

It seems it was produced from 10 years of the music from this conference. I remember thinking when I received it how wonderful the conference must be, now I’ve been blessed with experiencing it.

While the conference had two powerful and wonderful national speakers, Donna Eden and Joan Borysenko, currently it mostly draws local presenters and participants. This conference has nourished the local women in a strong way over its 18 year herstory.

I found the conference founder Kris Steinnes, the support staff, the other presenters, as well as the participants I meet to be interesting, insightful, fun, and wise. The conference creates a great model for other cities, as well as national expansion.

I came away with new friends and nourished deeply from my time spent with these lovely women in Seattle. There were so many wonderful resources that I connected with  and I want to share just a few with you today…

Kris Steinnes has produced a beautiful book entitled Women of Wisdom. It’s full of stories to support women stepping into leadership and fulfilling their dreams.

The opening night of the conference an amazing singer graced us with her voice and then her side splitting comedy routine, Celia.

She was accompanied by Donna Eden enchanting dancing daughter Titanya.

Donna Eden’s workshop was a blast and gave me a host of new energy techniques to strengthen the physical body. If you are looking for ways to increase your vitality her book Energy Medicine for Women is a must.

At the entrance to the conference stood a lovely woman Katya Taylor with her clothing collection Renaissance Rags. A true textile artist, her creations bring out the goddess in the women adoring themselves with her special pieces.

This rich conference brought more gifts than I can possibly share this morning before traveling to Los Angles. There were so many fabulous ceremonies, dances, songs, musicians, stories, presenters, and people. Thanks to all those who made the Women of Wisdom Conference a pleasure to attend!

Sometimes expanding your capacity means doing deeper inner clearing of old energies that are ready to be released. Other times it may mean actively focusing and targeting your energy and actions in order to reach your destination.

As you tune into this, I would love to hear what kinds of things you feel you need to fully activate your capacity to create, in any or every area of your life. Please comment and I will connect to the messages as I craft ways for Natural Rhythms to assist you in the days, weeks, and months ahead.

Many seed stirring blessings for you today, Lisa