For the shaman, visioning the path ahead is a daily practice of prayer, offerings, and meditation. I’ll be honest and share that sticking to a daily ritual has always been a challenge for me. I’m not sure if it’s my rebellious aquarian spirit, laziness, overwhelm, or otherwise.
Though I don’t normally create a list of resolutions, I do love to set goals, and one of mine this year is to stick to a daily visioning practice. Why? Because it makes a HUGE difference for me to stay in the smooth flow of synchronicity. It lowers my stress, keeps me on point, and increases my productivity. My commitment to a daily practice means setting foot on the earth, with hands full of offerings, praying aloud, and blowing my gifts on to the earth herself. EVERY SINGLE DAY. And you know what? Now I’ve told you, and now I feel even more accountable.
If you’d like to join me in a daily (or even weekly) visioning / goal setting / intention practice, know that this can unfold in numerous ways. Some people love keeping a journal and the written word is their medicine. Others enjoy quiet and peaceful meditation (unlike us shamans with our rattles & drums!!). For those of us that live by our technology & devices, a daily typed to-do list can become a sacred goal setting practice.
Whatever you may choose, I invite you to add a layer of the sacred that I find is often missing from some intention practices: the offering of exchange. In my practice, offerings are given with every prayer spoken & every intention set. This is an exchange of ayni, of sacred reciprocity, with spirit. We give in gratitude for what we already have and we also give before we ask to receive any more. The offerings can be so simple. I carry a blend of sacred plants…tobacco, sage, roses & lavender and that is what I gift to pachamama.