After over eleven years of living in Arizona and many trips to Sedona, Gary and I decided it was high time to take one of the vortex tours in Sedona. I have started work on a new set of guided journey CDs and am collecting medicine wheel photos to use for cover art. So we decided that a medicine wheel and vortex tour would be fun.
A good friend recommended Earth Wisdom Tours (www.earthwisdomtours.com) to us, so I called and arranged the tour. Gary and I made an overnight trip and spent Friday evening enjoying some quiet time together and window shopping in Sedona (town closes down between 5 and 6 pm).
Saturday morning we met up with our tour guide, Clint, to begin the day’s adventures. When we introduced ourselves, we discussed our reason for the tour, and Clint commented that just last week someone had asked him to do a voice recording of a medicine wheel ceremony. Spirit had certainly aligned us with the right guide, as would be expected.
We hopped into the open jeep and set out for a journey. Riding in the jeep was like riding in the back of the pickup as a kid. It was a whole different perspective from our other trips to Sedona. Throughout the day, I was able to see and chat with the guardians who protect this sacred area of Mother Earth.
Gary, Clint and I chatted about our work on the way to pick up the other couple who was going on the tour. Clint, Gary and I were all on the same page and bonded well. We had lived and travelled in many of the same places throughout the years. Turns out, he also does guide work (http://sedonasacredearth.com/) and also follows a very shamanic path as well as his “Sweetie” (as he says) leads shamanic tours in South America. It’s always so much fun to meet other travelers along the road. And, we know our paths will cross again.
Our first stop for the day was at an overlook where we were given a geology lesson. Along the way, we all talked about the importance of this area to the Hopi. They see this as the birthplace of the People. Then, off to Red Rock Creek Park and the vortex area around Cathedral Rock. Here we crossed the creek and after a discussion of the vortexes for the uninitiated, we went off to experience the energy, which for us meant “journey time”. What follows is my journey with the Hopi that day.
As I laid on the rock in the beautifully Arizona sunshine, I called upon my guides to ask for guidance on my medicine wheel CD project. I found myself at the walls of Cathedral Rock, being drawn in by the energy, like a tractor beam from Star Trek. As I stood looking at the wall, an entry way appeared, and before I entered, I found I had shape shifted into Bear. Bear is one of my animal spirit guides or totems. Now, in bear form, I was permitted entry into the vast cavern inside Cathedral Rock. Inside this huge room, I was greeted by many Hopi Elders. I made my way around the circle introducing myself to each elder as I went along. Once the greetings were complete, I was asked to step into the center of the circle and asked why I had come.
I stated that I had come to ask for their guidance and blessing on the project that I was birthing and also seek permission to photograph the medicine wheel that is under their stewardship. As soon as my purpose was stated, I found myself again in human form, standing in the center of the circle, naked as the day I was born. (What I find when working in journey space is that nakedness symbolizes vulnerability and lack of protection. In this case the lack of protection had more to do with my own defenses.)
As I stood there naked, the Elders examined me, looking deep into my soul…what was my intention, was I pure of heart, why was I engaging in this work, checking my integrity. Each answer stripped away layers of my being, until all that was left was my pure essence, kneeling in the center of the circle. (This was dismemberment from a totally different level … but this is the subject of another Blog). I must have passed all their tests. At this point, each Elder came forward, placed their hand on my head or shoulder and each bestowed me with a different blessing. When they were done, they moved, silently and in single file, deeper into the vastness of the cavern.
My essence rekindled, I dressed and moved through the door, out into the sunshine of the canyon, back to the physical plane, changed and renewed by the blessings of the Hopi.
I invite you to check out Clint’s website and look him up when you are in Sedona for a fun and informative jaunt into Arizona.
Until next time –
Mitakuye Oyasin ( A Lakota prayer as a reminder that we are all related),
Debbie