I was at the end of my life. Lying in a hospital bed. Tubes up my nose. Wearing a white hospital gown with tiny blue flowers. Standing beside me was a male figure, but I couldn’t discern who he was. His presence felt affectionate— loving, caring and warm.
I hardly recognized myself. Unkempt gray hair in a bob. Skin aged by the sun. My body was tired and frail. It’s not how I thought I’d go, though I hadn’t really imagined what my death would be like. I certainly didn’t expect to live until 102 years old.
At the moment I left my physical body, my soul shot up straight through the sky. I felt a sense of freedom, expansion, and joy. I landed in a room to meet my Council of Elders. I was now at my present day age, with a sense of humbleness and innocence. In a circle, I sat among my Japanese ancestors. They were dressed in formal gray kimonos, wearing tabi socks and zori (sandals). A Tibetan Lama of high status entered the room wearing traditional regalia of yellow and red. A warm breeze floated in through the open air wat (Thai temple). It was a defining moment of my ancestors and my past lives all gathering together at this meeting.
A small white scroll tied with a red ribbon was placed in my hands. It was in response to a question I had about a challenge in my present life. I was also given a wand that I could protect, bless, and clear my energy with. I waved the wand over me, giggling as stardust sprinkled out. I then returned back to my chair, my room, and my body.
This is an excerpt of a 10 minute experiential session I attended last month on Zoom, led by Illi Adato, a Family Constellation trainer and hypnotherapist who works with past lives, future lives, and life between lives. The intention was to 'travel' to the point of departure from our current incarnation in order to meet our Council of Elders. It was there that we could retrieve what was needed to integrate back into our consciousness and present life.
Any person can access non-ordinary states of consciousness. This is quite natural during meditation, yoga nidra, a shamanic journey, or while dreaming. The body is at rest, the mind is aware, and we transcend beyond time, space, and the 'logical'. When an intention is set by the facilitator and/or yourself (the participant), the experience can be rich with meaning and information intended especially for you. This is meant to merge the conscious and unconscious together to serve you.
It can be beneficial to experience ourselves from outside our ordinary consciousness to get out of our own way— the beliefs, narrative, and ego that we have been living with. It's been stated that we are here to heal, to evolve spiritually— not ignore pain or trauma, but not dwell in it. If we look at our healing journey as a spiritual journey, this is what a spiritual awakening is. The catch is to allow for greater and greater interconnection back in our own life, to the many roles we have, to the situations we are in, to whomever we encounter.
Be well,
Tammy