Wisdom from cats in a dream

My beautiful silver tabby Losha was having some stress-related skin problems and so I asked for wisdom from cats in a dream about what was the cause. I asked "What does my cat need to be happy?" and the answer was so profound I feel it applies to all of us. There were three things required.

The first happiness was belonging to a place.  The dream image made it clear that this belonging was not necessarily to humans, but to a location.  I think we all need to be attached to a place that is a good fit with our temperament, our values, the "colour" of our coat.  The seasonal changes and elemental forces of a place nourish some and challenge others.  What a blessing to be at home in a place.

The second happiness was having food provided.  The dream image was not just about having food, but about having it provided.  When I try to think of what it would take to feed myself without the dubious support of our modern agriculture and transport systems, I quickly realize that I would be in deep trouble until I learned how to forage and scavenge and trap.  And that even with excellent help from  Unlearn, Rewild by Miles Olson, I probably would not be able to learn fast enough.  

The third happiness was a safe place to sleep.  The key image in the dream was about safety more than about sleeping.  We need to be able to relax completely into the certainty that we will be held safe by our place of rest.  

After this wisdom from cats in a dream, when I think of the approaching Remembrance Day holiday, I think of more than honouring brave death on foreign soil. I think it is a day to remember what we all need to be happy, and what many humans and creatures do not yet have: a place to belong to, food provided, and a safe place to sleep.  Blessings on Remembrance Day from the Journey Oracle.

Journey Oracle card reading for a new drum

I made this new drum yesterday during the energy of Halloween, the ancient holiday when the veils are thinnest between all the versions of reality.  Because of this special energy I decided to do a Journey Oracle reading for this shamanic drum companion, asking, "Who are you in this world?" I drew four cards.  This first one represents "the situation" which I understand is being born as a drum on Halloween.

 

I see an otherworldly creature, whose eyes cannot yet see this human reality.  It looks a bit startled and on guard, as if wondering, "How did I get here? I cannot sort this out."

 

This second card represents "the experience" of the drum; the story the drum is living at this moment within the situation.  I see a baby deer who is both trusting and at the same time paying full attention.

The expression is wide awake, as if wondering, "Do I have first aid?"

 

This third Journey Oracle card represents "change."  That moment in the situation when something decisive happens or something changes completely.  I see a magical turkey-like bird, which is called the "give-away or thanksgiving eagle" in some indigenous communities.  This is the transformation the drum is experiencing as it dries, and its unique voice and purpose is revealed.  Although this drum is on my smallest 12" hoop, it clearly is showing a big heart full of gratitude.  So this is "Why did I return?"

 

This fourth card represents the final solution to the situation, what the drum wants as an outcome.  I see two magical eyes, each able to see a different reality and yet looking out from the same face.  I think this is the drum's purpose: to be able to be a guide in both this world and the spirit world, so the drummer need never wonder, "Have I taken a wrong turn?"

 





The meaning of rain in a dream

I am now back on Cortes Island, on the rain coast of British Columbia, after several weeks spent hiking in the desert and dreaming of rain.  Here is my understanding of the meaning of rain, using the Dream Journey reading I am developing for the new Journey Oracle cards.

The setting of the dream

A dream begins with a setting that shows the protagonists, and sometimes the time.  I understand that when rain is present, spirit is present.  Rain is life being blessed.  When it is raining in a dream the spirits are blessing everything. 

The experience of the developing dream story 

As a dream progresses it contains complications, tensions, uncertain outcomes.  In a dream of no rain, all the edges are sharp and painful and too bright.  In a dream story of rain, the experience is soft and watery, like the very air is green but maybe poisonous. 

The culminating moment of change

There is a moment in a dream when something decisive happens or something changes completely.  In a desert dream of no rain this moment is stark and unyielding, in a forest dream of rain this change is hidden and then sudden.  Both create revelation.

The dream's solution most desired by the dreamer

The desert is all about finding rain, and escaping the heat from no rain by finding shade.  The northern forest is all about rain, and escaping the wet of too much rain by finding sun. 

So what is the meaning of rain in a dream?  It means a blessing that grows everything, the nourishing and the poisonous alike.  It means a veil that lifts to revelation,  it means waiting for the sun.

Obstacles to choosing a path of spiritual practice

I have been hiking in the Palm Springs, Desert Cities area, and while walking on many different kinds of paths, I have been thinking how a hiking trail is a metaphor for obstacles to choosing a path of spiritual practice.  The first thing I noticed is that three mental states get in the way of being present to the path I am walking on.  The first obstacle on the path is assumption. The assumption that what I see is where I will be going.  Often the path never leaves the forest, even though the mountain beckons.

When I focus too much on the distant view, I do not see what is beautiful and special right in front of me.  This walk along the Ernie Maxwell trail outside the mountain village of Idyllwild  never rose to lofty heights, but always gave an easy slope and shade from the high mountain sun. 

The second obstacle I experienced was complacency.  This hike along the Pacific Crest Trail in the San Bernadino Mountains seemed an easy stroll, with nothing much to be concerned about.  But then the trail abruptly took a turn and presented a new view.

Sometimes our spiritual practice can lead us right to the edge of a dramatic new experience or sense of self, and if we are not paying attention, we miss where to step next.

The third obstacle I discovered to choosing a path of spiritual practice is what I call false courage.

Highway 74 is a winding switchback road into the Santa Rosa Mountains with many spectacular curves and overlooks.  And yet if one speeds through this terrain as a spectator, the real courage it takes to put one foot in front of another becomes instead just exercising the car.

These switchbacks on the Pacific Crest trail, as it drops down into the Whitewater Canyon Preserve is a wonderful confirmation of all these obstacles to a spiritual practice overcome.  The journey is in each moment,  each step requires our full attention,  the courage is in doing the work ourselves.

 As I was experiencing these hikes as metaphors for obstacles in choosing a path of spiritual practice, I kept thinking of a quote in Philip Ferranti's excellent hiking guide for the Palm  Springs area that he titled The Prayer of the Tired Walker:  "If you pick 'em up, O Lord, I'll put 'em down."
May you have a happy path,  from the Journey Oracle.

Go on a shamanic journey in the desert

I am hiking in the Coachella Mountains near Palm Desert this week, and was thinking about how to go on a shamanic journey, when I noticed that the desert plants were teaching me about how to do this.

Respect the landscape you are planning to enter.  The spirit world, as well as the desert, is a place where inattention and disregard are costly.  

Go with a friend, a helper, an ally who can show you where it is best to walk and where not to. 

In the desert another person with you is the best protection, as well as paying attention to the critical necessities like enough water and a map.  In the spirit world an other-than-human creature who knows who and what is safe is the best protection.

Be alert for the Mystery is whatever form it takes.  In the desert as well as in the spirit world a never-before-seen thing is waiting for your notice, and will reward you with magic--but only if you are awake to detail and subtlety.

Let your presence in the desert and in the spirit world be something beautiful.  Pick up trash in this world; ask how you can be helpful to the creatures and forces who have come to your call in that world.

Build learning from each experience in the desert and in the spirit world, so that each time you go you are more wisely prepared and well provisioned.  Let your experiences become the bones that remain long after the day's hike, and the shamanic journey, have shed their reality for memory.
Go well and be happy, Blessings from the Journey Oracle.