Create the Life You Imagine

“If we have no peace, it is because we have forgotten that we belong to each other.” Mother Teresa

As George Floyd’s life breath was being pressed out of his body by the police on the streets of Minneapolis, he called out in his final moments for his mother. As we consider the deep state of suffering, trauma, grief, outrage and unrest in the world today, I can’t help but to see his cry as a spiritual metaphor—as a call for the presence of the archetypal “mother” energy and for a rebalancing of our world by calling in the feminine energy in our personal and collective lives. Archetypally, the energy of the mother is a universal symbol for the feminine energy. The mother energy provides the safe womb for our creation, brings us into life through the difficult labor of birth, and stands by watchfully throughout our lives as a fierce and steadfast source of nurturing, protection, love and support. We energetically reach out for the mother energy or the feminine energy when we are sick, struggling, scared, alone, sorrowful or suffering. We seek the energy of the feminine when we need the presence of connection, tenderness, kindness, gentleness, empathy, compassion, acceptance and love.

While our western religious traditions have largely presented a masculine image of God—God the father, the bearded man on the throne watching and judging from the distance in heaven—it is imperative that we remember that the energy of the Divine is both masculine and feminine and that we need both the masculine and feminine energies or currents operating in balance to create the spiritual conditions we need to thrive and flourish. While the masculine energy is active energy associated with the elevated energy of Spirit, the feminine energy is receptive energy associated with the embodied energy of the earth. Father Spirit calls us to rise up and transcend our human experience, while Mother Earth calls us into deep and sacred relationship with our bodies, with each other and with the planet as we bring spirit into form through our embodied lives.

Eastern, Celtic and Indigenous religious traditions offer many more feminine images of God, but even in our western traditions we can find the imagery of the feminine. In the life of Jesus for example, we see the feminine energy standing by during the pivotal experiences of his life. We see his mother saying yes to the angel Gabriel hazarding her social status and safety by conceiving and creating the Divine life in her body, making a treacherous journey while pregnant and giving birth in the manger, looking frantically for her son in the temple to bring him home when she thought he was lost, and standing at the foot of the cross, bearing witness to his suffering and death as his life was pressed out of his body by the authorities of the day.

But we also find the feminine energy at the empty tomb as Mary Magdalene bears witness to the resurrection. The feminine energy in this form recognizes the transformation underway that may not be seen by others. The feminine energy does not stand at a distance, watching and judging us, but rather surrounds and supports us through the messy and difficult experiences of life with a deep and embodied awareness and sacred presence. The feminine energy is strong enough and wise enough and close enough to hold and transform our suffering, and to stretch and breathe, and moan and weep with us like a good midwife as we give birth to something new.

The present conditions of our world remind us of our need for the energy of the feminine. The masculine energy out of balance with the feminine has produced systems of racial, gender, religious, political, social and economic injustice which deaden us to our deeper spiritual calling. We see the evidence of this imbalance in the suffering on our streets and in the suffering of our planet. The imbalance threatens to press the life out of our humanity and out of the earth. We must all cry out now for the energy of the Mother and for the balancing feminine current of the Godhead to help us heal and to help us see, recognize and support the transformation that is underway.

Whether we are male or female, we all need to strike that balance between our masculine and feminine energies. Engaging our feminine energy can be a challenge if we haven’t had deep experiences of that energy in our lives. Even if we had the privilege of a “good mother” energy in our lives, we have been steeped in a world that runs on masculine principles. The masculine energy focuses on the external life encouraging action, productivity, accomplishment and outcomes, and largely ignores the inner life of stillness, quiet, reflection, awareness, connection and deeper consciousness. The masculine energy runs on surface time and we all know the never enough feeling of living in surface time. The feminine energy runs on deep time and is rooted in the timelessness of the present moment and the knowing that life is a deep and sacred process that we must participate in with all of our awareness. Much of our outer life is driven by our unconscious participation in surface time, caught up in the busyness and distractions of life moving so fast that we can get caught in patterns of callousness and insensitivity to our own suffering and to the suffering of others. When we ignore our suffering, it eventually wells up and erupts in ways that damage ourselves and our relationships with others.

It takes intention and practice to slow down and intentionally engage the feminine energy of our inner life. If we have feelings of sadness, disappointment, anxiety, anger, grief or suffering, it often seems easier to stay busy, to distract ourselves from our feelings and to ignore the signs that our life is getting out of balance as a consequence. But if we intentionally engage our Soul and our feminine energy current, we can access that deeper wisdom that is needed for our own healing and balance, and for the healing and balance of our families, communities and planet. We cannot be a source of lovingkindness, compassion or healing for others, unless and until we can regularly practice taking time to connect with our Source and our Soul to access this energy of healing in our own lives.

If we can engage the mother wisdom of our feminine energy and remember that we are all connected, we will access the power to transform and re-enliven our personal lives, our collective lives and the life of our planet. If we can engage the wisdom of our feminine energy, we will listen deeply to our own suffering and take time to tend to our wounds and to heal our broken spirits. If we can engage the wisdom of our feminine energy, we will listen deeply to the suffering of our black and brown brothers and sisters and surround them with love and compassion rather than tanks and teargas. If we can engage the wisdom of our feminine energy, we will ensure that we care for the vulnerable, sick and dying with love and tenderness, rather than callously standing by as economic, social and global health conditions threaten our loved ones and our communities. If we can engage the wisdom of our feminine energy, we will seek out those who are lost, alienated, disconnected or disenfranchised and bring them home into communities of belonging. If we can engage the wisdom of our feminine energy, we will listen deeply to the suffering of our planet and take action to protect and rebalance the health of our earth. If we can engage the wisdom of our feminine energy, we will all rise up and demand a world grounded in connection, tenderness, kindness, gentleness, empathy, compassion, acceptance and love. If we can engage the wisdom of our feminine energy, we will remember that we all belong to each other, and say yes to conceiving and creating a world that demonstrates and reflects that sacred truth.

Wishing you the blessings and light of the soul, as you create the life you imagine.

Tracy

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STEPPING STONES:

Here is a guided meditation for the week to engage the healing power of the feminine energy. The Divine feminine is always present and always waiting to surround you with her love and care.

In your meditation practice this week, find a quiet place to center down for a few minutes. This may be in a special corner of your house, in a quiet place in nature, or in your car by the side of a river or lake. Wherever you are, gently close your eyes or center your gaze on these words, and begin by breathing in and out intentionally and mindfully from your fourth chakra heart center, allowing the energy of love and compassion to begin moving throughout your body on the breath. Imagine breathing in the calm and peace of your upper triangle Soul, and breathing out the anxiety, distress and discomfort of your lower triangle small self. Feel the energy of lovingkindness moving and expanding in your heart center, slowly opening a channel at the top of your chest that flows from the top of your head through your heart, and down through your diaphragm to the bottom of your feet. Imagine that channel filling with swirling glistening light that is flowing down from the crown of your head. With each breath in, draw that light down through your head and neck, through your chest, arms and torso, into your abdomen, pelvis and legs, and moving that down and through your body until it flows down into the earth through the bottom of your feet. Continue visualizing your body filled with light, as you continue to breath in and breath out, until you notice a feeling of calm and peace beginning to flow throughout your body. Allow yourself to feel held and anchored in the love and compassion of the heart center and allow every cell, tissue, tendon, muscle and organ of your body to feel peaceful and relaxed.

Now take some time to check in on your lower triangle small self. What experiences of the week are needing time and attention to process and move? What fears, anxieties or insecurities are rolling around? What feelings need to be expressed? Create a few minutes of stillness and just listen quietly for anything that comes up. Try not to censor, judge or silence the small self, just listen and breathe, holding it all with lovingkindness and compassion. Notice how the turmoil in the world right now may be activating old worries or fears. Notice any worry, sadness or grief that might be rising in response to the chaos in our cities or to the COVID-19 virus in our communities. Notice the discomfort that might be experienced just through the practice of stillness. Continue to breathe in and breathe out, moving the light through that channel from the top of your head and out through your toes. Allow yourself to release the experiences and the feelings that have surfaced and imagine all the stress and discomfort being gently carried away through that channel of light and moving out of your body and into the earth through the bottoms of your feet. Continue to breathe in and out, sitting quietly and calmly with your small self until it becomes calm and relaxed just by your gentle and patient presence.

Now take three deep breaths in and out. On the first breath bless your body and your lower triangle small self for spending time clearing the energy of the day or week, on the second breath bless your upper triangle Soul for its ever present wisdom, compassion and guidance, and on the third breath bless the Divine Source for the gift of life and the opportunity to learn and grow through every experience of our journey. Feel the energy of these triangles connected and supporting you in all that you do. Take this energy of peace and calm with you throughout your day. As you move throughout your day you might notice others that are suffering right now and in need of your compassion and lovingkindness, and gently offer a smile of kindness and understanding, and a silent prayer for their healing and well-being.

Namaste