Water Songs

      GUIDED VISUALIZATION: ENERGY FLOW : Water Songs*
                                              
      Stand loosely, knees slightly bent, feet a bit apart.  Close 
your eyes and begin to breathe in deeply and out slowly in a calm, 
relaxed manner. Breathe in through your mouth, feel your abdomen
expand with fresh energy;  breathe out slowly through your nose as 
you feel your limbs,  body, neck and face relax.  You are breathing 
in fresh clean energy, nourishing your body, and breathing out stale
breath, stress, tension and pain.                                   
                       
      You are feeling comfortable and at ease with yourself as you
continue breathing smoothly with your eyes closed.  Breathe in
slowly, deeply.  Feel yourself relax as the oxygen refreshes you. 
Breathe out slowly, exhaling carbon dioxide, wastes, and toxins. 
Relax...   Rest... Breathe in life until you are completely full. 
Rest..  Breathe out slowly, exhaling everything your body does not
need...   Breathe in energy.....  Breathe out cares..... Breathe in
life..... Breathe out worry....
 
     Take some moments now to become aware of  your inner body. 
Follow your breath into your lungs, then into your blood and  on to
your heart and then throughout your circulatory system - the life
energy flowing from your heart through your body, into your arms,
legs, fingertips, toes, stomach, chest, face and top of your head. 
Feel your body alive and awake to the energy in the fluids
circulating in  your arteries, veins, and cells.  Be fully present in
the flow of this life energy.  Allow your breathing to weave with the
universal life energy - the Chi, as the Chinese name it. Let your
conscious thoughts drop away so that you can experience an emptiness,
... a lightness,... a sweetness of the mind.  Rest in this blissful
open space for as long as you need to feel connected to your inner
silence........     

     Now imagine yourself near a body of water,  at a forest lake or
river, at the sea or near the ocean.  Choose a body of water  that is
familiar  to you or attracts you in  some way.  See it at first as if
through a telescopic lens - the panoramic view .  Use all you senses
to be fully there: what are the sounds...the tastes...the colors... 
the smells? Then choose a spot where you can feel a deep connection
with the water : a particular boulder or rock... the edge of a
cliff... the end of a dock.....a hidden cove..... a sandy beach spot
shaded by bushes or trees, a grassy patch overlooking the water.  
Sit or lie down in the spot you have chosen.  Let your eyes drink in
the scene, feel a warm breeze  caress your skin, listen to the sound
of the water breaking in waves on the beach or lapping the river bank
as the water courses downstream .... let the sounds and feelings
soothe  you....

     The waters of our Earth contain many voices to sing her
mysteries.  There are lilting rhythms and powerful energies in her
songs.  These songs  well up from the consciousness of our planet. 
They express the multi-glories of creation.  They express the wonders
of humanity.  Songs of peace, agony, excitement, adventure, passion,
abundance, suffering, relaxation and high play.  The ebb and flow of
the waves are like the tension and release of human living. 

     Take time to recognize and acknowledge the feelings stirring
inside you now.  What songs do you hear in your heart?  Let the
sounds of Earth’s songs  bring to life the deep resonance of your
present life - the life you are living now.  Is this a time of
reflection and peace? Of illness? Of challenge?  Of confusion?  Of
expansion?  .....What do you seek from these waters?  Healing? Peace?
Vision? Understanding? Cleansing? Patience? Clarity? Forgiveness?   
            
     Take all the time you need to let the breeze and flowing waters
wash over you, knowing that the gifts you seek are already present in
your heart..... Feel yourself become one with the wind and the water
and the Earth.  Feel the wonders and mysteries of the Earth.  Feel
the wonders and mysteries of your heart.  Know that these wonders and
mysteries are one and that they come from the same universal
source...

     When you are ready, become aware again of the beach.  Look
around you.  You will notice shells and stones and driftwood of all
sizes, shapes and colors.  Get up and roam around the beach or the
bank of the river,  looking until you find an object that seems to be
in harmony with what your heart is seeking at this time in your life.
You will feel yourself being drawn to this concrete object near you.
Pick it up and explore it in your hand.  Notice its texture, size,
color, shape, smell.  As you open your senses to the object, be
attentive to the message it holds for you.  Take all the time you
need for this.....

     Now walk to the edge of the water.  Look out  or down across the
water all the way to the horizon.  Feel the object in your hand.  You
may throw the object into the water as a prayer-offering and gesture
of oneness with the universe or you may want to keep the special 
object with you.  Linger awhile there, feeling the wind on your skin
and in your hair, smelling the air, listening to the water, and
looking at the water, sky, and earth.....  

     When you feel ready, walk back slowly to your original location.
Slowly become aware of your own physical body.  Stretch your arms and
legs, flex your hands and feet and very slowly  open your eyes.  You
are relaxed and peaceful. You feel good about yourself and your
abilities. Notice how relaxed and powerful you feel.  Notice that you
feel lighter and stronger and more energized. Reflect for a few
moments on how you feel right now.     

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