Moving through the story - Ceremony and fire

We all get a little stuck sometimes, and more often than not its because we are holding on to a story about ourselves. This back drop that we hold in our awareness can cause us all kinds of discomfort or keep us trapped.

 Fear is the number one problem in many cases. Built up through our experiences and beliefs. We can become accustomed to viewing the world in a certain way because events previously confirmed our worst fears. The hippocampus is understood to be involved in our personal manifestation of reality (Faw & Faw 2017). The beliefs and thoughts that we hold interact with our experience and ongoing interactions with the world. Stress interferes with the hippocampus. 

Our ability to allow stressful feelings to be experienced and let go of is essential to wellbeing. When we block or hold feelings they can become trapped emotions. Toxic emotions and long held memories have been recognised to be held in the limbic system. The center of conscious and unconscious functioning.

My love for ceremony and burning old worn out beliefs on the fire isn't just fun, it actually holds the key to deep transformation and change. Alberto Villoldo talks about the fact that it is through ceremonial conscious release that we can sometimes heal deeply held emotion. Often as a part of other interventions, it can be very powerful. The limbic system is primitive in nature, and through ceremony and connection to our deepest selves we can rewire aspects. It is through sacred and meaningful acts of love and forgiveness that we can heal. 

If this fascinates you read up on Alberto Villoldo, he has taught me so much. He also points out the importance of the gut. If it isn't balanced (gut flora) we cant connect deeply with ourselves and tune into gut instinct accurately.

As we hold intention to forgive and to love, and engage in ritual where we watch old beliefs or hurt burn on the fire through ceremony, we rewire our brain. The shamans really do hold deep wisdom and the ceremonial activities hold opportunity for deep change. As we hold intention to grow from experiences and invest time and energy in forgiveness we activate a growth and integration experience, rather than a suffering response.