Love Taught me how …
Love taught me how to make peace with all the women I once was.
As Emory Hall so beautifully writes, make peace with all the women you once were, lay flowers at their feet, offer them incense, honey and forgiveness, honour them and give them your silence and reverence and recognise they are the ‘rivers of wisdom leading’ you towards a great ocean of bliss.
I’ve made offerings of flowers, poured honey and waved incense sticks to what feels like thousands of women within myself over the years.
I’ve sat with the woman who felt alone. She helped me to recognise my desire for union and ways I can honour my precious desire for connection. If I feel separate, I now know its my desire for connection and love.
For the woman who doubted herself. One of the ways she has gained presence in my life is through chanting sacred beej mantras. These immediately bring about a tangible feeling of sacred vibration into my body.
For the woman who felt unseen or unheard. I’ve sat and listened in Self-inquiry as her story unfolded allowing me to see a deeper layer of her experience and how it shaped who I am today.
Are you aware of the ‘1000 women’ within you who have shaped your journey?
David Frawley says, “ Through consciousness, we relate to the world and the world relates to us, not merely superficially but at a heart level. Through love's capacity of sympathy and rapport, consciousness creates devotion and compassion, the guiding powers of the spiritual life”.
As you can probably read, there are a number of ways to worship and come to know the 1000 women in our lives.
I’ve found Satsang, sitting with my beloved Guru and the spiritual/yogic community is a very personal haven.
Learning to sit and to recognise the Shakti’s vibration as I navigate my relationship with myself is integral to my spiritual growth which means coming to understand and see all the parts of myself with more self-acceptance and compassion.
Engaging with sacred mantras and having regular Self-Inquiry sessions also supports me.
I’ve become aware that all the 1000 women have an asana, a place to sit and rest within me, after all, they are me. I now recognise they are the many faces of the Goddess, leading to the great rivers of wisdom that carry me to a great ocean of bliss.
Here are some journal prompts for your practice:
To honour the 1000 women within - how can you honour and offer them flowers, honey, and a sacred space?
Maybe you would like to reflect on one of the 1000 women within you and write to her?
How has your relationship with self-care, ritual, and devotion evolved through your journey?
How do the thousand women within you shape who you are today?
