ABOUT DARKNESS

Wishing you all good Full Moon time! There is increased sense of darkness in this time, and I would like to send you these supportive and loving thoughts concerning the darkness.

I have a very peaceful and centered feeling when I am writing about darkness to you.

I sense that there are at least three different kind of types of persons, how one reacts to darkness. There are people who enjoy and love it. Then there are people who get depressed, lonely, or anxious about it. And then there is a group of people, who are afraid of the dark. It might also depend on the situation and kind of darkness, how to react to it.

Shamanic Vision Quest at night-time:

There is one shamanic method that is wonderful on exploring the nature of our mind. It is called Vision Quest. It is a practice, where we sit alone in the middle of nature and stay awake through the whole night, observing both the inner and outer nature, as well as their relationship. Some people have practiced vision quest so intensively, that they are able to do this even for 3 nights or more.

Encountering the outer nature, we can learn a lot about the nature of our internal world. Exploring the darkness of the thick wild forest in the night time, we can sense what is going inside our own head; How much the darkness, illusions, obscurations, or fear are limiting our mind and blurring our vision.

What we think is there in the dark? What is darkness in nature? What are we afraid of?

I have been contemplating about the darkness today. The shamanic work is much about looking directly, with the bare-naked truth, to the darkness and seeing with clarity, what is in there. That is why a lot of shamanic work is greatly misunderstood, as the energy of it points to the truth. So much truth is in the shamanic practice, that people might fear that truth. What is the truth to be feared at?

The truth is, that there is light and there is darkness in the world, and in each of us. The famous Chinese symbol called Yin-Yang is perfect to illustrate the nature of reality. However, this darkness here is not something evil or difficult. The darkness is seen as the womb of the mother, where we rest as new-born souls in the very beginning of our re-birth.

The shamanic practice of Vision Quest is about finding our own center of power, perseverance, courage, and clarity. As we are ready to encounter and face our own fears and limiting views, we are ready to liberate our being for our higher potentials. For exploring the core of our being, we can increase our sense of empowerment and happiness of our lives. We feel that our core is so strong, that the winds and other people’s expectations, opinions, ideals, and views don’t shake us away from our path. We become the creators of our own lives.

At the Vision Quest, you are practicing mind training for building your stamina and patience for sitting and observing yourself. You sit in one place without moving, and you are in a very raw way present to yourself. You need to have a lot of patience, to face it all. From that patience starts slowly to unfold something truly beautiful. The liberated sense of self, that is part of nature.

I have been participated and organized vision quests in very different kind of environments. Each environment has had new teachings, new aspects to look at during the night time. We see things at nature during the night time, that we are not able to see in the light time or day time. We learn more about our own unique self and about the nature of our mind through this observance.

Starting the practice:

The way to start practicing for vision quest is to start building stillness through meditation practice. As we enter now into this season with increasing darkness here in the Northern hemisphere, we become enveloped by the meditative stillness of nature. It is so beautiful. It is time to start observing, how the light is starting to change with this season. Observe, where you see light. Observe, how the darkness is arriving. Today, already at 14.00, it starts to come. I can see it.

Look at the trees, the bushes, the earth, as the darkness arrives. Are there clouds on the sky, or can you see the starts tonight?

We start building our path for our Vision Quest, when we are ready for it. We start this winter to look at the darkness with completely new eyes. We start truly seeing the darkness: Not avoiding it, not escaping it, but calmly witnessing it. It is wonderful mind training and practice, that is available to us in each day from now on. Just observe and breath. Stay calm and listen to the silence. Look at what is staying, what is not moving, and look at what is changing. Just be the witness.

As I complete this writing, it is 15.15 and it is already dark outside. We share this darkness, it is similar to all of us, despite our individual level of comfort concerning it. Lets look at this, what we share.

Thank you for being so courageously you, for being part of this nature, and being yourself! Big love to you in this full moon time!

(Photo: This is a some years old photo from a cave, together with a Nordic sister. Here we are drumming in the darkness too, and you are welcome to listen, to this ancient sound of the mother…. <3 )