Is anyone else out there mesmerized by Ducks?  I remember when Ted Andrews said, in his book Animal Speak, that “many psychologists and therapists could do no better than to have a duck as a totem to assist them in helping others move through their emotional tangles.”  Given my experience as a clinical social worker, passion for the healing arts and my own journey in healing, I couldn’t agree more.  In fact, I have called on Duck many times for protection in navigating the depth of my own emotional waters.  As such, Duck assists me in helping myself and others stay afloat in Our own apparent ocean’s abyss.  Moreover, I view Duck energy as somewhat akin to the Law of Attraction, in that they offer Us glimpses of the signs and syncronicities that bring together like-minded folks, a la “birds of a feather flock together”.

Given the Spirit of the season, I’ve been enjoying spending time with my webbed foot comrades in the elements.  I’ve swum alongside them, watched them walking along land and soaring through the air.  In paying attention to Duck’s capacity to move freely and effectively between these realms, I remember the ongoing process and importance of striking a balance and adapting to life’s changes in my daily walk.  Although this way of living can be “continuous and sometimes tenuous”, taking flight in this light is the “only path I know worth pursuing”.  If We allow for it, Duck can help us sort through the muckidy muck and more gently propel Us through the challenging emotions that accompany the surface.  In this way, Duck may guide Us as We venture into the depths of Our Inner Peace, Inner Voice and Deepest Feelings.

Speaking of balance, I would like to share a powerful Chakra balancing meditation that I learned from Wisdom of the Shamans at the Four Winds Society in the Andes.  In the Spirit of “we are the one’s we’ve been waiting for”, I have noticed the positive cumulative effect of doing this mediation as part of my daily “puree” and inner/outer reflection.  It’s a great way to start and/or end the day and you can do it pretty much anywhere . . . out in Nature is amazing and before bed makes for a relaxing way to retire.  Chakras are spinning discs that are part of our energetic bodies.  Ideally, this is where we want to address our health, starting at the energetic level.  First, relax, focus on your breath and put your hands in the prayer position and open them up like a peacock to open up Sacred Space.  Next, visualize your luminous energy field (a white mist around your spirit body in front of you).  Next, visualize your spherical Root Chakra that is Red in color and is located around the base of your spine.  Take your right hand, placing it in that area, in front of your body and slowly spin your hand around in a counter-clockwise direction 10 times to unwind your Chakra.  Release any unwanted energy to Mother Earth to be cleansed and composted.  Then spin your Chakra 10 times in a clockwise direction to re-balance it.  During this process, just watch and notice whatever comes up for you and gently let it pass without judging and/or labeling it.  Continue along in this way with the rest of your Chakras . . . your Sacral Orange is about 2 1/2 inches below your belly button, Personal Will/Self Esteem(Yellow) is at the base of your breastbone, Heart Chakra (Green) is in the middle of your chest area, Throat Chakra (light blue), Third Eye (Indigo) in the middle of your forehead just above your eyebrows and finally Crown Chakra (Violet) at the top of your head.

After You have had some time to get comfortable with the above Chakra meditation, please consider trying the next two more advanced forms.  First, visualize a Golden spinning disk like halo (like you’ve seen in renaissance art, perhaps) a couple of feet above your Crown Chakra.  This is the eighth Chakra.  Finally, the Ninth Chakra, the realm of Spirit is everywhere, but I like to think of it as “the Spirit in the Sky” where We become One with Everything.  I perceive my Eighth Chakra taking off like a disc shaped spacecraft and flying to and merging with the Ninth Chakra, Great Spirit.  Has anyone out there seen the movie Powder?  I like to picture the final scene in the film when Powder’s energy breaks out everywhere to conclude this meditation.

I Hopi You are well,

Ari