rebirth
Follow Your Passion And Truth
In Native American tradition, human existence and well-being is based on the Medicine Wheel, also known as the Sacred Hoop, that consists of the Four Directions, Father Sky, Mother Earth, and the Spirit Tree. Together these ‘spokes’ of the wheel honor all aspects of human existence, growth, balance, and well-being: physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual.
In each lifetime, we are destined to achieve progress in one or more of these areas until, finally, after many incarnations, all the ‘spokes’ of our wheel are complete – all the way from the inner hub to the outer rim. At that point, we have completed our various missions through many incarnations in a myriad of schoolrooms, and we finally achieve ascended mastery.
When all our spokes are complete, we leave this dense, earthly dimension and arrive at the highest plane of existence, the realm of the Great Spirit, traditionally known as the ‘Hunting Grounds of the Ancestors,’ and since the arrival of Christianity, as ‘Heaven.’
In this state we never need to descend again, and will remain infinitely in the higher dimension. We are liberated from the endless cycle of rebirth and reach a new level of consciousness and enlightened existence, known as nirvana in Buddhism, moksha in Hindusim, and eternal life in Christianity.
As a result, from a spiritual stand-point, we are offered a smorgasbord of options and choices that we may need for our particular journey in this lifetime. The enthusiasm and passion we feel when we are guided to a particular path is spirit directing us toward the ‘curriculum’ we need to complete in order to achieve our ultimate goal of transcendence in one or more spokes of our wheel.
Two White Butterflies From Spirit
We receive many signs from spirit, sometimes without realizing it. Most often these signs are from our loved ones beyond the veil to reassure, guide and comfort us. Sometimes they are from our guides or angels.
I frequently do readings for clients who suspect they have had such an experience, but they still seek confirmation that it was real when they are not sure if it may just have been their imagination.
Sometimes a client will also ask for my interpretation of a repetitive sign they have been noticing. They seek information about who it might have been, or they wish to know if spirit is trying to warn them, or teach them something.
Signs can take many forms. It usually presents in a way that will appeal to you personally, based on your personality, lifestyle, and spiritual beliefs. It might be a bird repetitively showing up to tap on your window, or frequently seeing butterflies or dragonflies. Another common sign is repeatedly seeing the same numbers, words, or names.
Last weekend, I asked for a sign of confirmation from spirit. With all the energy shifts currently happening in my life, it’s reassuring to know I have the support of my guides, angels, and loved ones on the other side.
I asked for a sign early Sunday morning, before I set out to walk my dogs. I did not have to wait very long! Minutes into the walk, two beautiful, white butterflies appeared, as if from nowhere, and remained within arm’s reach. They were doing a cheerful dance in line with my heart center for the remainder of the walk, and they only left once I had reached the gate to my home.
The True Meaning Of Judgment
Judgment is card 20 in the Tarot’s Major Arcana. Arcana means “hidden things, mysteries,” from the Latin arcanum meaning “a secret, a mystery” and arcanus meaning “secret, hidden, private, concealed.” Arcana are therefore “pieces of mysterious knowledge or information.”
In a standard Tarot deck, there are 21 Major Arcana cards. They define The Fool’s journey (the first card) through life and all of the life lessons we encounter along the way. As one of the final stages in The Fool’s journey, the Judgment card represents having learned sufficient lessons to now awaken from the illusion and limited perceptions.
The most well-known tarot deck is the Rider–Waite. Pamela Coleman Smith, aka “Pixie,” was a British artist who illustrated the deck. She deserves much credit for the brilliant way she captured advanced spiritual concepts in the deck’s artwork.
The Rider–Waite Judgment card depicts three resurrected figures, a woman, man, and child, reaching up to an Archangel overhead blowing a trumpet as a wake-up call. The scene is based on Christian imagery representing the Resurrection and Last Judgment. The flag of St. George hangs from the trumpet, which references 1 Corinthians 15 in The Bible.
The Judgment card reminds us that no matter what our background may be, we can rise up and transcend any trauma or adversity in life, regardless how challenging the situation. We also have the power to see through the illusion of life and wake up to the truth.
Frog’s Wisdom To Adapt To Change
I must admit, when I initially discovered that my spirit animal is the frog, my ego took somewhat of a dive! The frog is such a small, insignificant creature that is mostly overlooked, and certainly not the most attractive of species.
In had secretly hoped my totem animal might be a majestic, powerful animal that commands attention and is admired, even adored. But here was the tiny frog, my spirit guide.
However, once I uncovered some of the spiritual symbolism of this amazing little being, I soon grew to embrace its guiding presence in my life. Frog has in fact been teaching me much about myself, my path, and my place in the world.
The magnificent little frog’s most prominent attribute is its ability to adapt and transform. Frogs are all about change and new beginnings. They are also associated with purification, rebirth, and welcoming luck and abundance into your life. Frog is therefore the ideal power animal for anyone going through major changes in their life.
In my case, it was the opposite. Over the years, I had gradually developed a worldview that was somewhat stringent, restrained, and resistant to change. My inability to communicate with grace and clarity further complicated this outlook by causing me to become frustrated, and sometimes even angry and resentful.
The fact that I chose to perceive life in a self-limiting way was not apparent to me, until frog showed up. But with frog’s inspiration the realization started to sink in that it was not that the world was not kind, patient and accommodating towards me, but instead that I was creating resistance and that my needs and expectations were not always clearly expressed to others.
Life Lesson From A Resilient Robin
A few days after I saw a robin attempting to build a nest on a neighbor’s balcony in my apartment building, I spotted another robin with a chest covered in mud. I was thrilled, as I knew this meant a little miracle of life was going to happen. And, it did. Three days later, she laid her clutch of tiny blue eggs in a nest built in a perennial shrub, next to the complex entry way where residents come and go all day.
Her strategy for building the nest in such a busy location became apparent two days after she had laid her eggs. A pack of savage crows descended on the nest, tragically cutting her clutch in half. Unlike the other robins, she had built her nest here so that she could potentially depend on human activity for added protection. Sadly, her plan failed.
Crows are one of the most intelligent bird species on the planet. They know and remember their potential enemies and prey. She may have cleverly built her nest here, hoping to avoid them because there are constantly humans around, but keeping crows away can be a real challenge, because of their intelligence and their adaptability. Things that scare them off at first, soon does not bother them anymore.
The crows were however the least of the strategic robin’s problems. After the crow rampage, the landscaping crew came through the property, using a weed whacker on the shrub where her nest was located. I later found her outside. Assuming she was traumatized and stress-foraging, I felt really sad for her. But she stared at me questioningly, then flew into a tree, while I feebly tried to console her. “All your efforts have been in vain,” I sadly thought while looking at her.
Why Do Old Souls Return To Earth?
Evolved souls have many options to choose from when they reincarnate, so why do we choose to come to this world? After all, planet Earth is a highly challenging environment for advanced soul growth.
The energy conditions here offer an excellent spiritual ‘classroom’ for younger souls. Earth offers many experiences to learn from. Justice and injustice. Love and hate. Pain and joy. Feast and famine. Wealth and poverty. The magical experience of having children is also very appealing and unique to Earth.
These learning opportunities are a strong pull for young souls, but for the older soul the physical experience here tend to be frustratingly slow and dense. Existing in a frail human body is an added challenge.
There are other planes of existence where a physical body or constant efforts to maintain a raised vibration are not at all needed. In those higher dimensions there is no time-space limitation, nor dense material form. There is only pure consciousness. There are also other planets in the Universe, beyond our solar system, where the energy vibration is much higher and lighter, and the expansion of consciousness much more evolved, and less taxing.
So, why do some old souls choose to repeat the human experience once again, and sign up for another difficult life journey in such a spiritually inhospitable place here on Earth?
The Mystery Of Past Life Memories
Reincarnation and past lives continue to captivate the metaphysical community, while skeptics believe it’s mumbo-jumbo. As a certified hypnotherapist who does past live regression work, I am a strong believer in past lives. Based on my experience, I have no doubt that past life phenomena are real. However, what I am not entirely certain of is its true nature and origins.
For example, if I do a past life regression with a client and she recalls the execution of Joan of Arc in 1431, does that mean she was actually present at that event? If so, who was she at that time? Was she the subject, an observer, or an agent. In other words, was she Joan of Arc herself, one of the crowd, or the executioner, clergy, or the British soldier who gave Joan the impromptu crucifix for her to hold?
There is growing evidence in the science of epigenetic inheritance that our genes may have imprinted ancestral patterns, specifically due to the effects of trauma. Researchers have not only found that events in someone’s lifetime can change the way their DNA is expressed, but this change can potentially be passed on to future generations. Evidence for this has been found linked to traumatic events like famines, wars and genocides.
It is therefore possible that my regression client is not seeing events from her own past life, but instead an imprint from her ancestry. It could be that she did not experience the event herself, but that she is merely consciously recalling an unconscious imprint of a traumatic event one of her ancestors had experienced.
Interestingly, most past life memories tend to be of violent deaths. Young children between two to five years old especially seem to remember such past life deaths. Some also have recurring dreams of the tragic events. There have been many cases reported where further investigation confirmed the historic facts of the child’s unusual memories.