Designs, rituals and stories to model off and provide inspiration

One friend’s story: Having determined that a part of his life wasn’t working right, especially in relationships, he determined to undertake the process.

He sat down in a quiet part of his yard and prayed for guidance and gave thanks in advance for whatever the outcome. He continued to sit in meditation and a vision came to him of a circle he was to prepare.

He was drawn to a local park were he gathered pine cones, and from his backyard, four house bricks were collected. Then he went to his shed and pulled out a tarp and an old abalone shell that had belonged to his grandfather.

The tarp was placed on the ground and the cones laid in a circle about twenty feet in diameter. In the center he placed the bricks, making a square with the points directed toward the compass points. He was drawn to place cones in a line from these points, out to the circumference, creating four wedges. In each corner of the brick square he placed a candle.

A little sand was put into the shell, as insulation on the bottom and white sage herb placed in it.

Now that his circle was ready, he prepared himself by lighting the sage and smudging himself and the circle. The smudge was then placed in the middle on the bricks to provide smoke to carry his prayers heaven ward.

He was drawn to sit quietly in the northeast corner and wait. After about thirty minutes his grandfather appeared to him and revealed or rather reminded him of some forgotten parts of his childhood. These were not good memories, but they were now there to be discussed between them, healing the issues.

Now with this understanding and wisdom he could see the blocks he created in relationships and how he would now conduct himself in a different manner.

After a while he thanked his grandfather and Great Spirit and his guides and exited his circle, which he then dismantled.

As you can see from his story your circle and ceremony can be simple. Or you may go on to make it as complex as you desire.

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A simple crystal circle was created by a client to overcome his depression. Many times a month he would bring them out and rearrange them on his lounge room floor. A task completed with lots of reverence. Sometimes he would just sit within, and other times he would chant or drum. After a couple of months he found his depression lifted and now when he feels it’s descent he seeks out his crystals and sits within for healing and the return to happiness.

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One morning an obnoxious and hard woman in her late 50’s arrived at our centre for healing. She had been diagnosed with terminal cancer and was told she had six months at best left to live. Talking with her for just a short time, I thought ‘to exist and wallow’.

She was disappointed when told there was little we could do physically, but probably much we could do for her disposition. We then conducted a session in our healing circle at ‘Akasha Keep’, and advised a course of action.

Over the coming weeks she spent several hours a day at the beach, where she gathered up 32 stones to be used in her own circle. This was laid out on her back patio or veranda, with 7 stones placed in the middle, an outer circle and 4 spokes coming into the center.

Daily she would come to her circle and having smudged, she would sit on a chair on the outer perimeter. Here she would do her best to clear her mind and prepare for her journey into her circle. Once she felt the right vibe she would enter and sit on her chair taken in with her until she was advised by those present with her to leave.

After a couple of weeks she was coming to terms with her prognosis, but more importantly was undertaking a massive journey of forgiveness and the allowance of grace. Following instructions received within her circle, she set out to contact and make right her grievances with family, friends and associates. She was not actively seeking their forgiveness, but where given it was gladly accepted. In all cases though she was there to forgive them the trespasses, real and imagined, she perceived were against her.

Drawing on her early upbringing, she daily began reciting “The Lord’s Prayer’ just before entering her circle. On one of her visits with me she told me of her understanding of these words and what they meant to her and the way she now lived her life.

Her “Healing Circle” certainly did that. Her last months were full of joy and she used all her energy to express the best of what she had to offer. She was no longer that mean, horrible women, that no one had time for. A person afraid of her death for she had a great fear of living, transformed to a wonderful human being, prepared for her transition into the next life.

One day, sitting in her circle, she changed her overcoat. The physical pain in those last days, one would imagine to be bordering on intolerable, yet she passed fully at peace with herself and her world due to the energies of her circle.

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A bag of pebbles is used regularly to create a circle, by Jonathon, a sales rep who spends most of his time on the road. He said he needs to travel light, so pebbles are ideal for his purpose.

In his travels he will often replace one with another from some new location. He does this as he is inspired to do so, conducting a little ceremony of thanks for the one being replaced for sharing part of the journey with him, and to welcome his new companion.

This changing of the guard, so to speak, he believes keeps introducing new and interesting energies and personalities into his energy sphere.

He likes to meditate and give thanks on a daily basis and finds that when he does so inside his circle set up on a motel floor or a local park, his efforts are all the more profound. When I fail to do this I find I lose the sacredness and strength of connection, he said.

Also my energy is maintained at a high level due to my ritual which helps to keep me at the top in my profession. Interestingly I haven’t had a ‘sickie’ over the years since I started meditating in my circle, he said.

Ron Windred

We talk of building or constructing a healing circle or wheel, when in truth this is more an act of creation. In this act we will be drawing upon the best of ourselves physically, emotionally, intellectually and spiritually; especially spiritually!

As mentioned in part one – The objective to building a medicine wheel or healing circle is to provide a space which allows us to transcend our normal self and to gain access to our higher self or beyond, in order to facilitate healing and greater self understanding and knowledge.

The success or otherwise or your healing circle will depend in no small measure upon these key elements. 1) Your intention. 2) Respect and Understanding. 3) Rules for conducting your circle. 4) Rituals. 5) The materials used. 6) Your expectations.

You will also need to consider whether you are going to build a temporary or permanent circle, as this will determine its location, its size and also the materials used.

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1)  Your intention. One of the key elements in creating your circle will be your intention – meaning more than just the function for which you are building it. It is here that your metaphysical desire is foremost. This is easy to understand with the adoption of the creed, “That all you are doing in this project is to be completed and conducted for the highest good of all concerned,” By commencing with this thought or prayer and holding it in the forefront of your Attention as you go about your work, it will help to keep the process centered and on track.

Another part of your intention is your desire for healing and understanding. Is this something you are prepared to accept?

Are you open to new knowledge and understanding?

Are you prepared for contact with your Higher Self, Spirit Guides and the Ancestors?

Are you really willing to be open and receptive to all that may be offered?

Is your circle purely for personal use, or is it to be open to others?

These are all important considerations in establishing your intention and outcomes.

Part of your intention will include your personality. Are you able to free flow and do your own thing or do you require set procedures and the comfort of conformity to design? If the latter you will benefit from looking up and following established examples.

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2) Respect and Understanding. Here we are talking about history, tradition and beliefs. There are as many systems for conducting healing circles as there are native tribes and shamanic groups. Many of these are steeped in traditions and rituals and rules going back for millennia, and if you were to use their systems of conduct, you should stick to these out of respect. But here we are seeking to establish our own tradition.

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3) Rules for conducting your circle. As you are establishing a circle for your own healing and enjoyment, it is essential not to get bogged down in rules of conduct, but rather to be free flowing and experiential. But this one rule you must keep! – To at all times conduct yourself and your circle with respect and honour, drawing on the best tradition has offered, while adapting it for your personal use.

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4) Rituals. These are the rights and ceremonies you will undertake to achieve your objective. I suggest you keep these loose and free, adopting what you perceive you need at the time. However you will probably find that certain things get repeated and start the foundation of your own ceremonies or rituals.

Here are some suggestions to get you started. These are some of the things we do at our place.

Naturally some of this will depend on whether your circle is permanent or not. If temporary, now is a good time to build it, and for this refer to the section on the materials to use.

Having chosen your spot and determined the size of your circle, you could place an object at each of the directions

Dedicate your space each time you use it. One way is to walk around the circumference three times, while praying to Great Spirit, God, or whoever your Supreme Being or Deity is, asking for the circle to be protected and that all that takes place within is for the highest good. You may also do this whilst drumming, shaking a rattle or ringing a bell.

Smudge your circle and yourself with white sage.

If you have ash available from a previous fire, you could smudge or smear some of this onto your face and arms or any exposed skin, to act as a connection to the spirit realm and to provide protection.

You might chant and dance or sing along to a favorite recording, something appropriate of course. You could drum, or clap two sticks together, or shake a rattle. The object here is to help get your mind out of day to day concerns and bring you into the groove of elevated states of consciousness.

At some stage you might like to sit quietly in deep meditation, or listen to a guided visualization.

Consider burning some herbs in ceremony. These can be broadcast into a fire, or burnt safely in small quantities in a fireproof container indoors. Large seashells and ceramic dishes are suitable.

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5) The materials used. This is really a matter of personal choice and what is available. You could just imagine a circle drawn on the ground, and with the right focus this would be more than appropriate.

Another fast and easy way to establish your circle is with a circular carpet used for the purpose.

A candle in a safe container can be used to establish the centre. Out doors you could use a brazier or drum to contain a fire if you can’t establish a fire pit or equivalent. A circle of stones or rocks is also appropriate to house your fire.

To mark out your circle circumference you could use candles, tealights are good. Outdoors you could use oil lamps. On grass, mow the circle to mark it out. Stones or rocks can be laid out. Crystals may be used, clear quartz points circumscribe a magical energetic circle, but any may be used, just go with what appeals to you.

A permanent circle may be planted round with gardens. Consider potted plants for temporary or indoor circles.

Your circle may only have a few elements or many, this is a matter of choice as well as making the most of what is available. EG with just four stones you could place one at each of the compass points or directions. Or with more you could fill in the whole perimeter.

You will probably want to invoke symbology into your circle to enhance its magic for you, like we did in the one we built at “Akasha Keep”. (Detailed in part 1).

Remember that while the materials, their number and exact location are important, the essential factors are your intention and attitude! Use what is available to you and go with the flow!

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6) Your expectations. This is an interesting area to look at, as it is a bit of a paradox. You are entering into your circle and ceremony with a high expectation for good and seeking an outcome, but often the tension created by this pushes the results you want away. So it is important to just relax and allow, simply enjoy the process without requiring a result. And this is the paradox; the more you can do this, the greater your results.

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Pulling it all together. You may be thinking that specific information and detail up to now is a little thin. This has been deliberate on my part, as the key to your success is in creating a healing circle in your own fashion and going through the process. This journey will subsequently lead to your own healing.  A big part of the process is to learn to trust and follow your own intuition and have fun with it.

As stated before, if you want to be more formal in your conduct and operate in accord with a specific tradition, then it will be necessary to learn all about it and align yourself with it.

In the next installment we will look at some specific designs, rituals and stories to act as examples to model off, and to provide inspiration.

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Healing circles or medicine wheels are conducted all around the world, some in an informal fashion and others with a great deal of formality and ritual and observance of long standing tradition.  The common objective though is to provide a space which allows us to transcend our normal self and to gain access to our higher self or beyond and to facilitate healing and greater self understanding and knowledge.

"Akasha Keep" Healing Circle

Some are constructed on a purely temporary basis, to be used for the one session and then dismantled, while others are built as permanent sites to be used over and over as and when required. Some of these are located on natural energy vortexes and so have the added benefit of high natural energy emanating from Mother Earth. (This however is not a requirement).

The more these permanent ones are used the greater the energy builds and this is often felt by visitors as they enter its domain. In all events this is part of the objective, to so raise the vibrational frequency to allow for ascension into healing and understanding. This heightened energy also facilitates psychic communication allowing easier contact with guides, angels and the ancestors, who are only too willing to pass down wisdom and energy to be used for our greater good.

Healing circles are known by many names and are used by all native cultures throughout the world.  They also vary in size from small diameter circles; usually used by an individual, through to very large circles that can also be used individually, or used to accommodate large gatherings. To discuss all of the variations available is beyond the scope of this article. So I would like to talk about the one I am familiar with and that’s the one in my own back yard.

At first our circle was of an informal nature, at first just a few of us gathered around an open fire in the middle of a paddock. We had gotten together to share a meditation under the stars and to make use of our newly made Native American Healing Drums. It was such a great experience that we wanted to repeat it again. It was decided that once a quarter at the beginning of the new season we would gather and share and heal together.

The next time I paced out the circle and circumscribed it with lamps and an aboriginal friend smoked the circle and played his didgeridoo to energetically clear this space. I also walked the circle and prayed to The Great Spirit for protection and grant that this be a special and sacred space, especially for healing and higher communication and that no energies be allowed into this space unless they were for the highest good of all.

In the mean time I found it to be a very comforting spot to just go and sit in and meditate. At our next circle another friend versed in Native American culture assisted us to invoke the sacred directions and call in the ancestors and to dedicate our circle and provide protection and undertake our healing with the use of prayer ties, sacred herbs and ceremony.

As our place is a full time healing and teaching centre we decided to make the circle a more permanent feature, so that apart from our seasonal invocations and healing sessions it could be used at any other time by all who needed to make use of it.

We were told by one associate that what we were doing was not in strict accord with how a healing circle should be conducted according to their tradition and design. So we decided our circle would be a generic circle, drawing upon them all, but most importantly, creating a space that would allow all who entered to reach deep within and communicate on this higher plain to achieve their objective. And this is the real objective of all circles or medicine wheels.

As we undertook the creation of this medicine wheel or healing circle we provided the following features:
It sits upon a natural energy vortex. This was stumbled upon by accident (or was it really divine design) and confirmed by divining.
It is 52ft in diameter, with each foot representing one week of the year.
It has a large ironbark (this is a local hardwood tree predominant in the area) post standing on the circumference at each of the compass points, for each of the sacred directions; East, North, West and South.
The East pole is coloured yellow and sitting on top of the post is a Citrine gemstone as these are appropriate representatives for this location or direction.
The South pole is coloured red with a Carnelian gemstone on top.
The West pole is coloured black with a Black Onyx gemstone on top.
The North pole is coloured white with a Clear Quartz gemstone on top.
Each of these poles also represent the races of man being; yellow, white, black and red and unifies them within the circumference of the circle which itself represents the Oneness of All.
There is a fire place in the middle, encircled by small rocks, and it represents the centre where, above, below and within are represented.
Without is represented in the area that immediately adjoins the outer perimeter.
Within this circle, the fire when lit represents Great Spirit or the God of your understanding.
The smoke from this fire is used to carry your prayers into heaven.
The circle is outlined with four crescent shaped gardens fitting between the poles and allowing room for entry and exit from the circle. The gardens represent the four fazes of the moon. These gardens are bordered with small rocks and planted with polygalas (these plants carry no special significance, save that they grow well and look good with little to no attention). There are forty around the circle and these represent the 40 weeks of gestation for a human being.
There are four entries and exits to the circle and these represent the four times of day; Sunrise, Daytime, Sunset, Night time and the four seasons; Spring, Summer, Autumn and Winter.

"Akasha Keep" Healing Circle

At the edge of the circle grows an ironbark tree that stands sentinel over the circle, as well as providing an intrinsic link to nature and reminding us of our connection with her, along with the grass and plants that are also there to symbolise growth.

This all seems to come together in a way that works extremely well. At any time you can enter the circle and feel a calming soothing energy, that at the same time contradicts itself by being invigorating and uplifting. It is wonderful to sit in this quiet, peaceful energy and just allow it to envelop you. Naturally this is a superb spot to sit and meditate.

To gain the most from this experience all you need do is enter with an open mind. Because of the energy vortex that has been created, many people find this sufficient unto itself.

However if you are in need of more, this is where healing ceremony and other Shamanic practice comes into the picture. This will be explored next month as we continue our visit to a healing circle; we will also explore how to make a circle of your own.

Ron Windred