The other night I felt drawn to go to a shamanic circle that Sara, another Reiki master I know, told me about. I met her there, and then the coolest thing happened.
First, we did a visualization, and then each person in the room (about thirty of us) said one word to describe how our own energy felt in the moment. The word that came out of my mouth was “connection.”
Then it came time for everyone to journey. The shaman explained he’d beat a drum while we visualized ourselves going down into the earth. We’d then ask for a guide to show up and take us to a message. The shaman kept insisting, “There’s no right way to do this.” I kept thinking, isn’t the saying “there’s no wrong way to do this”?
Then the shaman dropped the bomb: We were to ask the guide for a message for someone else in the room, and we won’t know who it’s for until we pick a name out of a basket after the journey.
All of a sudden, I felt pressured. I haven’t journeyed in years. What if I’m rusty? What if what I get doesn’t make sense for the person? And what if I fail that person?
When I entered the journey and asked for a guide, a black panther showed up. I asked him to give me a message for someone in the room, and he took off running—through a cave, then a clearing, then down a waterfall. In the end he gave me a message about the person getting clarity and that there is great support carrying them. And at every turn, I questioned if what I was seeing was right (or crazy) and then told myself, “Who knows? Just keep going.”
Afterwards, I was so curious who in this room full of strangers my message was meant for. When it came my turn, I spoke of the clarity and support that came through and picked a piece of paper from the basket. It read “Sara”—the person who had led me to the circle in the first place.
When I told Sara I saw a panther, she gasped and said that’s her spirit animal. When I told her about the cave, the clearing, and the waterfall, she said “You visited my inner sanctum!” Turns out those are the settings she visits with her panther when she meditates.
Now I love the phrase “there’s no right way to do it.” “Right” has nothing to do with it. Showing up and surrendering to Spirit’s help is all the intention you need.
And letting go of the “rightness” opens the door (or the cave, or the waterfall) to that connection that spoke to me from the start.
It’s all about the magic. 🙌