When I became sick about 15 years ago, everything I had known about my spiritual practice slowly went out the window. It was a gradual slipping away of all my usual routines, and in turn the foundations and way of life that kept me sane, healthy and strong.
Eventually my conscious mind realized what was up. However, I was so far down the road from the initial trauma point, that I did not see that the slipping of my spiritual ways through my fingers, may have been the cause of my slow downhill slide into instability.
Well it was a new time and a new day, and I was ready to get back to work.
There’s a multitude of ideas that I came across that pointed me towards needing to get back in my spiritual routine, but these were the Top 2. These are not new ideas, but they are new, for me, in this type of application.
Main takeaway: Use your spiritual ‘muscles’ and they will be there, ready for action, when you need them. Use em’ or lose em’.
1) Muscle memory
Muscle memory is a form of procedural memory that involves consolidating a
specific motor task into memory, through repetition.
Muscle memory gives you the ability to do the practiced thing without much conscious effort. An example is the concept of when driving a car, and you see a stop sign… you don’t have to consciously think, “I am now going to place my foot on the brake pedal.” The act of doing this task over and over again, makes the action a reflex. it has now become instinctive, automatic and happens before you think.
It is what top athletes, musicians, artists, etc call being in The Zone… the ‘Flow State’. All those hours of repetitive practice and self-discipline paying off in tangible results.
What effect would this type of reflexive response have on my spiritual practice?
On my emotional and mental well-being?
2) Spiritual Warfare
Spiritual warfare is psychological warfare. In my view, these are two sides of the same coin. With everything that has been revealed over the past year and a half, I think even the most oblivious can assess that psychological tactics are being used on the minds of the people. Don’t care if it’s just ‘harmless advertising’, or all the way up to the deepest darkest conspiracy theory, stuff’s going on. People may disagree on the levels, but not of its existence.
So I now propose that if you believe you have a Soul, what effect does the mind have on it? IMO, the mind is the gateway to the soul. Emotions are influenced by directly affecting one’s personal perceptions/your mind. Emotions are what either wear down, or foster well-being for the Soul.
Today, in these crazy times, I think I can safely say that I/you/we could all use a little lot of instinctive, holistic, spiritual defense for our Souls.
I am in charge of what touches my Soul.
So if you are still with me here, (hahaha) here are 9 Spiritual Muscle Builders that I’ve used and am using to get my spiritual soul guns back on flex. 😀 A little spiritual warrior daily workout, if you will. Now these are just some quick ideas I came up with on the fly. Nothing overly complicated. I needed simple things to fit in easily with my challenging days. I’d usually do 1 or 2 of them for 30-60-90 day time periods… or whatever worked.
My hope is that they may INSPIRE.
[Resource/Link List at bottom]
1) Light a small birthday candle every morning
Do this in the morning (or what ever time works for you) as you are getting ready for the day. Use sand in a shallow dish as a holder, or melt the bottom of the candle and stick to a small tea light glass or saucer. As you are able, stare into the flame thinking of your intentions for the day. Can use the Color Correspondence link below to add further detail to this exercise.
Goals: increased focus, flame reading skill
2) Use ordinary everyday items and transform them into a spiritual objects.
Set them in places around your room or house, so that when you see them, you are reminded of your spiritual strength.
Something like:
- Bottle caps with melted wax encased herb. Think of some meaning the bottle cap imagery, color, name and herb can have to imbue your new object.
- Produce bag-ties from the grocery store wrapped around a bit of paper napkin housing a special herb or simple words written onto it.
- A found rock with a symbol drawn on it, maybe previously soaked for a prescribed amount of time in herb infused oils.
Goals:
- spontaneous spiritual work
- creativity ‘on the fly’
- understanding how your mind and soul connect and work together
- able to see tangible forms of your spirituality daily.
3) Wear a color of the day.
Use traditional correspondences, or intuit your own. Use it to remind you throughout the day of your being a spiritual soul amidst the chaos of life.
Goals: bringing your spirituality with you, integrating all aspects of yourself in your daily life. May be
secretive, which can be a learned form of power.
4) Practice the observation of everyday symbols.
Notice odd occurrences of animals, numbers, cloud formations, etc. Everything does not have to be speaking to you, however. Use it more as a study tool and a way to get accustomed to the signs.
5) Install an app or follow an astrologer on social media that gives out daily planetary alignments and aspects.
Take notes at the end of your day of anything that resonated with the forecast. Keep a log in your journal or start a new one specifically for this purpose.
Goals: learning about the World/Universe around you, and any influence it may have on your life. Getting experiential experience to see what is true and what is not for you.
6) Record your dreams.
Either in your regular journal or one specifically set up for this purpose, log all dreams as soon as you wake up. Keep the journal beside your bed with a pen. Don’t worry about writing neatly, just get all the information down. Use a Dream Dictionary, traditional folklore, and/or a dream definition website. Pull out key imagery, colors, objects, events, (etc) and make note of the meanings. Use as a reference for any relative events going on in your life and see if there are any messages there for you.
Goals: to see if there is a connection between your dream and waking worlds. Be it the subconscious, or signs from The Ether, a physical log can help you make sense of it all. Can help you clearly receive any messages that may be trying to surface.
7) Follow the moon cycles and phases.
Learn to use the assigned phase energy’s to coordinate, and plan your events and outlooks for the day. Can also mark out on a calendar the cycles for incorporating into your practice as observances. Log and keep track of any outcomes and realizations.
8) Once a week create some form of art.
Make something that expresses your feelings about the preceding week. Write a song, a poem, put together a piece of collage… whatever it is, do not judge it. Do not tie yourself into any type of critical limitations.
Goals: recognizing your spirit/soul’s expression without expectation of outcome.
9) Make magical meals.
Add different spices to your meals with consideration of it’s ‘spiritual’ characteristics. Inventory your kitchen spices and their correspondences. Keep list on an index card. Or if you can, tape a written chart to the inside of your cupboard door. Note this isn’t necessarily about ‘influencing’ others, it’s just a little nudge in creating a mood… a little ambiance. 😀 I always have the thought in my mind “for the greater good of everyone who partakes”, and that I am shaping MY environment.
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I have found that in addition to all the other great and wonderful things I experience while IN my practice, the most amazing is the deep connection to the Real World that will begin to open up to you. It is the real stabilizing force. It’s honest and real, and it is what it is.
Also remember… DOING is the thing. You have to do it. There’s no getting around it. If you want to have a spiritual practice, you have to be IN the practice of the Spiritual.
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Hope this is of help to someone who needs it.
Best,
Tru
Resource/Link List:
Color Correspondences
http://www.witchipedia.com/table:color-correspondences
For regular planetary transit updates
@starheal on Twitter
Apps— Time Passages and Transits
(Disclaimer: have not tried either of these apps… yet)
Crystal/Stone Meanings
http://www.crystalearthspirit.com/crystal-meanings.htm
Dream interpretation based on Jungian concepts
https://dreammoods.com
Phases of the Moon
@phasesofthemoon on Twitter
Phases of the Moon App
Animal Meaning and Symbolism
http://www.whats-your-sign.com/animal-totems.html
Alphabetical List of Healing Herbs
http://www.witchipedia.com/main:herbs
Candle and Flame Reading
(Ceromancy/Pyromancy)
https://anamericanwitch.wordpress.com/tag/candle-flame/
{The links below are Amazon Affiliate Links. Please go here for my full disclaimer.]
  Yehuda 3 Hour White Sabbath Candles, 72 ct |
  Autumn Moon Journal (Diary, Notebook) Hardcover |
[photo credits:
Kolleen Gladden, Alexis, Janko Ferlic, Jake Hills, Brooke Lark]
