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juniper stokes 6/18/22 juniper stokes 6/18/22

3 Creative Ways to Celebrate Summer Solstice

Summer Solstice, Litha, Midsummer, or whatever your word of choice, is celebrated in many wonderful ways throughout the world, including dancing around bonfires, seasonal feasts, visiting sacred wells and waters, and leaving offerings for the fae. I’ll be dipping my toes into all of the above this solstice, as well as a few new activities I encourage you to try…

Summer Solstice is celebrated in many wonderful ways throughout the world, including dancing around bonfires, seasonal feasts, visiting sacred wells and waters, and leaving offerings for the fae.

I’ll be dipping my toes into all of the above this solstice, as well as a few new activities I encourage you to try…

1. Watch the sunrise and sunset with a grateful heart

Watching the sunrise and sunset has many benefits for our minds, bodies, and souls—what better time to intentionally set aside time for both than the Summer Solstice? On this day, allow the time, energy, and intention you give to witnessing the sun’s cycles connect you with its divine solar energy.

2. Collect the morning dew for magic and healing.

This idea came to me from Betsy Bergstrom, and I love it so much I wanted to share with all of you :)

If you’re in an area where lots of dew accumulates, you might be lucky enough to be able to fill a small jar with the dew of the solstice. Shake off leaves and tip full flowers into your vessel. This will be magically potent water that you can use for rituals, healings, and spells throughout the year.

If this means of collection is challenging, you can also soak a cloth in the dew of the grasses. Your cloth will become a healing cloth for the next solar cycle. You might lay it upon injuries or use it in rituals.

3. Take a prophecy walk.

One of the assignments I give to my Rewilding the Spirit students is to take a quiet, intuitive walk with the intention of receiving omens from nature. This walk can be in the woods or simply your neighborhood—often, closer to home is even more impactful because of your ongoing relationship with the spirits of your land.

As you walk, try not to talk or listen to podcasts or music. Set the intention to receive guidance about something that’s been on your mind, and then open your awareness to signs from the universe.

Betsy also mentioned that Solstice gives us a beautiful opportunity to set the intention of receiving prophecies for the year to come on this walk.

Remember, the universe communicates in symbolic language. Think of the messages from your walk as a dream to unravel over time.

How will you celebrate Summer Solstice this year?

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juniper stokes 5/1/22 juniper stokes 5/1/22

5 Steps for Communicating with The Spirits of Nature

The spirits of nature are always around us. You’ve probably sensed their presence on occasion. A tingling in your spine. A breeze that you just knew had a message for you. A stone with a face so clear it could not be ignored. It is absolutely possible to drop into deeper communication with these nature spirits. All it takes is a heartfelt intention, patience, and practice. Here are five steps to get started.

The spirits of nature are always around us.

You’ve probably sensed their presence on occasion. A tingling in your spine. A breeze that you just knew had a message for you. A stone with a face so clear it could not be ignored.

It is absolutely possible to drop into deeper communication with these nature spirits. All it takes is a heartfelt intention, patience, and practice.

Do you want to start communicating with the spirits of nature? Here are five steps to get started.

1. Slow Down

Feel into the pacing of your life. For most of us, a sense of tension or frazzled energy arises. Why? We’re moving at a rapid pace that is foreign to our natural way of being.

When you’re tied to your to-do lists and glued to multiple screens, it’s next to impossible to be present. But the present moment is exactly where you’ll find the spirits of nature.

While most of us love the idea of a slower paced life, actually getting there is another story. It’s actually an act of revolution.

You can begin by carving at least a bit of time each day to pause and focus on the present moment. Go for a meandering walk. Meditate for 10 minutes. Anything that helps you just be is welcome.

Then start bringing slowness into more of your life as it is. When you’re preparing food, for example, really be present. Remind yourself that the rush is often self-imposed. Put on music you love, delight in the colors and flavors and creativity and nourishment unfolding on your cutting board.

As a slower pace of life becomes more natural for you, your energy will shift into greater attunement with the pace of nature. This alone opens the door to communication with nature spirits.

2. Harmonize with Nature’s Rhythms

Similar to slowing down but just a bit more intentional, harmonizing the rhythms of your life with the rhythms of nature is another powerful way to cultivate the ability to communicate with the spirits of nature.

Here are a few simple ways to explore living in alignment with the cycles of nature:

Watch the sunrise and/or sunset each day. This has powerful impacts on your physical body and spiritual well-being.
Practice moon gazing. Spend a few minutes gazing at the moon each night. Over time, you’re body will start syncing with lunar cycles. Notice the unique ways this affects you physically and energetically.
Eat seasonally. Do you know what’s in season when where you live? Or better yet, do you grow a bit of your own food? Eating seasonally doesn’t need to be extreme—I certainly still eat salads in the winter! It can become an intentional way to connect with the seasons though. What does your body crave right now?

As you track your energy levels, moods, and physical body throughout these cycles, you’ll begin to learn more about what your authentic self craves. Then, as you make adjustments based on this information, you’ll find that the voices of nature’s spirits become even louder in your awareness.

3. Tune into Your Body

Our bodies are of the earth, and they are powerful vessels for receiving the earth’s messages.

Remember, the spirits of nature don’t necessarily speak English as a first language ;)

One of the most common ways for the spirits of nature to communicate with us is through our bodies. This usually comes in the form of feelings and sensations.

Trust what you feel—even if you don’t know what it means right away. This confirmation of spirits’ presence is the first step.

Then, over time, you’ll start unpacking the messages you receive in ways that are unique for you.

Some will see images, others will hear words, and still others might just have a knowing. Regardless of how your communication comes through, know that it will happen.

You can use your breath to begin attuning your body to receive nature’s wisdom. Follow your breath into the present moment. Then bring your awareness to your body. Notice the sensations without judgment. Then expand your awareness beyond your body to the nature spirits around you. What shifts? What sensations can you start associating with their presence?

Another way to prepare your body for communicating with nature spirits is to drop a grounding cord deep into the earth. This attunes you our mother’s energy and keeps you grounded as you open your intuitive sight.

4. Start Where You Are

All of us cohabitate with numerous land spirits. This includes the ones we can see—the trees and stones and birds—and the ones that exist just parallel to our 3D reality—the fairies and devas and ancestral spirits.

These beings are well aware of your presence.

Forming relationships with the beings you already live with is a beautiful way to show respect to the more-than-human world. You’re life already impacts these spirits of the land, and when you become more conscious of this, these spirits will often respond quite clearly.

It’s important to remember that this is true even of those who live in apartments or in areas that seem more separated from the spirits of nature. These beings live everywhere, and they don’t view property lines in the same ways that we do.

One beautiful way to begin cultivating a relationship with the spirits of your place is through a sit spot practice.

Simply find a place that you visit regularly—once a week at minimum.

Then, spend some time there regularly. Notice the plants, stones, and animals that frequent that place. Observe how it changes throughout the seasons.

Practice slowing down, opening your senses, and tuning into your body.

Notice where your thoughts travel while you’re here, or insights that might arise throughout your life because of your sit spot time.

This is nature communicating with you.

It’s not uncommon to receive a gift after several visits to your sit spot. If you’re so lucky, be sure to give thanks and treat this gift with the reverence it deserves.

5. Reciprocity

Perhaps the most important thing anyone who wants to communicate with the spirits of nature can do is practicing reciprocity.

The earth gives us so much. And it restores divine order when we give back.

What does reciprocity look like? There are many ways to nourish a reciprocal relationship with the earth. Here are just a few ideas, and I encourage you to practice all of them!

Love and gratitude. Offering your heartfelt love and gratitude for the simple presence of nature’s spirits and the earth herself is invaluable. The earth feels this gift from your heart. Intention, focus, and authentic love are all that’s needed. If you’re really dropping in here, you’re eyes will probably start to water from the power of your gift and receptivity of the earth.
Picking up trash. We’ve probably all come across the random bit of trash on a hike or walk in nature—some places with more than others. The spirits of nature are truly harmed by this litter, yet they rely on us to remove it for them. Bring a bag with you wherever you walk or hike and pick up garbage as you go. This act alone just might accelerate your ability to communicate with nature spirits faster than anything else.
Offerings. Giving physical offerings to the earth and her inhabitants, especially when you’re gathering her gifts, is greatly appreciated by the spirits of nature. Just be sure that the gifts are appropriate and won’t disrupt the natural ecosystem (when I visit the delicate desert ecosystems in Canyonlands I only offer love). Small crystals, a strand of hair, cornmeal, dried plants, or fairy foods are all common offerings.
Lifestyle. Is your lifestyle ecofriendly and sustainable? Are the products you use natural? The deeply ingrained structures of modern life make it next to impossible for us to live as sustainably as we wish we could. But even if personal lifestyle changes seem like drops in a bucket for the challenges our earth faces, what you do matters. The spirits of nature are watching, and they are far more willing to communicate with those who show them love and respect through daily actions and choices.
Earth Tending. As your nature spirit communication deepens and your spiritual skills grow, you may feel called to the art of earth tending. This involves spiritual and energetic practices that actively support our earth. Energetic and crystal grids, soul retrieval for the land, clearing dense energies, and transfiguration ceremonies are just a few of the potentials in this realm.

It’s more important than ever for all of us to learn to communicate with the spirits of nature and the earth herself.

Not only do these beings need us to show up and act on their behalf, they can guide us safely through the turbulence ahead in exchange.

And the more you tend to the wild spirits around you, the more in touch with your own wild spirit you become.

The world needs our wildness awake and alive.

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juniper stokes 4/20/22 juniper stokes 4/20/22

8 Benefits of Partnering with the Spirits of Nature

Why working the elements, the fae, and other spirits of the land is the key to making magic and miracles happen.

What are the benefits of working with the spirits of nature?

All of us co-exist with a wide variety of nature spirits—some we can see, like trees and stones, and some are best met through our other senses, such as fairies and elves.

When we enter into conscious relationship with the seen and unseen beings all around us, miracles begin to unfold in our lives.

Why? Because our connection with these beings influences every part of our lives, whether we’re aware of it or not.

Many of the nature spirits around us are very aware of our presence, our behavior, and our intentions.

When we ignore them, which honestly they’re used to at this point, at best they ignore us as well. But depending on the type of spirit and our behavior, we could find ourselves experiencing lots of unhelpful blocks or trickster energy.

Still others are basically asleep to our human world. We’ve ignored each other for so long that it’s as if we’re both living our own parallel yet separate dreams.

This separation is an illusion though. We co-exist and do influence each other. When we “wake up” these beings through the loving intention to create a reciprocal relationship, an immense amount of spiritual support becomes available to us.

Anyone who continues to deepen their relationship with the natural world will experience gifts across the spectrum of life. Here are a few…

1. Spending time in nature is good for our health.

There are entire books written on the physical and psychological benefits of spending time in nature—The Biophilia Effect by Clemens G. Avrayis one of my favorites.

From the way our coevolution with plants makes them potent sources of medicine, to the healing terpenes found in summer forests, to the countless studies that show seeing greenery and growth alleviates depression, and so much more—spending time in nature is critically important for our health.

2. The nature spirits can offer us unseen support for all of life.

The better relationship we have with those we live with, the happier our lives will be—this is equally true for people and spirits.

Just as nature spirits can create obstacles or have trickster energy, they can also remove obstacles and create seeming miracles in our lives.

Cultivating a strong relationship with the spirits of nature where you live can help you be at the right place at the right time—even if it seems unrelated to being in nature. Meeting important people, finding the new opportunities, and experiencing greater abundance are all natural outcomes of right relationship with nature spirits.

3. You and your property will experience extra protection.

One particular area of support nature spirits can share with us is that of protection—for yourself, your loved ones, and your property.

When I lived in Denver, porch pirates were rampant in my neighborhood, and other theft wasn’t uncommon. Every single day, I would partner with the spirits of nature to surround my property and home with spiritual protection—and we never once had anything stolen.

I want to be clear that there are no guarantees here—sometimes shit just happens. But I absolutely know that we were supported by the spirits of our place in this way. (I mean, I ordered a lot of boxes…especially during the pandemic. this really does seem miraculous to me!)

4. Deepening your relationship with nature leads to magical and practical gifts.

The more you engage with the natural world, the more the natural world will engage with you. At a basic level, this can be seen in the joy of a successful garden, finding “treasures” on your walks and hikes, discovering secret spots in nature, amazing animal sightings, and intuitive hits on which plants to turn to for healing remedies.

I spent about a decade deepening my relationship with the nature spirits of the Colorado Rocky Mountains, and sooo many gifts emerged over our time together—including lots of fun animal encounters, which I pretty much live for.

But the one animal I always wanted to see but never had was a big bear. Over the years, I saw moose, fox, elk, mountain goats, tons of birds, and many more…but in all my time I’d never gotten to see a bear.

On my final trip to my favorite spot in the mountains before moving out of state, I finally saw a huge brown bear. It sauntered right by me, no more than 20 feet from where I sat. It took years of love and dedication, but I know this sighting was a true gift from the nature spirits there.

5. Partnering with the spirits of nature is key to our survival.

At this point, when we look at the massive changes and imbalances on our planet, this shouldn’t come as a surprise. We must start listening to the needs of nature if we’re to have any future at all.

Partnering with the spirits of nature is how our ancestors survived, and it’s time for us to do the same.

When we learn to really listen, we tap into a hidden resource for navigating a rapidly changin world We intuitively know how to prepare for extreme weather events, how to plan for seasons and crops, when to move, where to find the medicinal and edible plants, and so much more.

Please understand that this doesn’t mean we’re immune to the collective effects of natural disasters and climate change. No one, no matter how beloved you are to the earth, can escape the effects of our collective actions, not to mention there’s a lot of mystery and karma involved here.

It does mean though, that you will absolutely be better prepared and supported for navigating the times ahead.

6. You’ll be able to work magic with the elements.

I’ll admit it: One of my pet peeves in spiritual communities is the tendency to cry out for “rain dances” in times of drought and fire, or to perform collective ceremonies to stop flooding, to ask the wind to blow another direction and soften its gusts.

Yes, working with the elements is important and possible. What drives me crazy, however, is the idea that we can ignore the elements, abuse the earth, and then simply decide to “do ceremony” for the weather when it suits our needs. Nope!

Being able to perform weather magic and work with the elements is a privilege that comes from taking the time to establish a long, secure, reciprocal relationship with these powerful energies.

But when you really take the time to come into deep relationship with the elements, everything becomes possible.

The elements are the building blocks of our world and carry immense power beyond our comprehension. Working with the elements is the key to making magic with real-world, miraculous results, both in your personal life and in service of our collective.

7. Partnering with the spirits of nature helps you rewild your life.

We evolved in intimate connection with the land, the seasons, and the more-than-human world. Returning to these natural connections restores our essential nature—the truth of who we are before society and culture tame our wild spirits.

Your true self is uniquely gifted to fulfill your role on our planet. When you tune into your true nature, you’ll find that you already know what to do and when to do it. You’ll find joy and wholeness are already within.

Rewilding takes us out of chronos time and into kairos time, a circular wild world where anything and everything is possible.

The wild spirits of nature remember how to be wild. They can help you remember, too.

8. You’ll experience greater fulfillment as you expand your circle of compassion.

Partnering with the spirits of nature opens you to an entire new world of meaningful relationships, and you’ll soon discover that you’re never really alone.

Nurturing these relationships opens us to more meaningful dimensions of life and brings deep fulfillment on a soul level.

Want to learn how to start working in partnership with the spirits of nature? Here are 5 Simple Steps.

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Why working with the elements, the fae, and other spirits of the land is the key to making magic and miracles happen.

juniper stokes 3/30/22 juniper stokes 3/30/22

The Protection of the Goddess: Evaluation of Past Life Vows

What happens when you’ve made a past life vow to a goddess? How our past life experiences with goddesses can both protect and empower us, as well as prevent our spiritual evolution.

moon goddess, goddess of the hunt — (image: Diana Hunting, Guillaume Seignac)

Have you ever felt inexplicably drawn to a particular deity?

Many women today have past life connections with goddesses that greatly influence our current lives.

If, in a past life, you were part of the cult of a goddess, worshipped in her temple, or prayed and made offerings to her frequently, it's likely that your bond extends beyond one lifetime. She is most likely still here, with you, supporting and loving you in this lifetime.

There are a few goddesses that I've had lifelong connections with, and over time, it's been fascinating to uncover more dimensions of our history together. Freya and Isis are two of my most steadfast allies, as is Diana....

Artemis to the Greeks and Diana to the Romans, this goddess reigns supreme over the hunt, wild animals, the wilderness, fertility, and the moon. An eternal virgin (which really means complete and sovereign in this context), Artemis-Diana has remained a powerful ally for many modern women today, acting as one of the primary goddess of witches and Wicca practitioners.

While I've felt connected with many goddesses over the years, I came to explore the fullness of my relationship with Diana relatively recently. (Interestingly, though I'm usually drawn to the Greek pantheon, it was always clear that my vows had been made to Diana rather than Artemis - perhaps a clue to when and where our lives together took place.)

Through a series of profound spiritual experiences, I discovered that I had been a priestess of Diana in many lives. Realizing my deep relationship with this goddess has been incredible empowering - and it has explained a lot. My natural ability to communicate with wild animals, comfort spending days alone in the wilderness, fierce protective instinct for women's sovereignty...

Under the Protection of Goddess Diana

Diana came to me full force during a shamanic initiation with a teacher who unfortunately was under the influence of her own shadow. (I didn't realize it immediately, but she was targeting me psychically and caused me real damage for many years.)

During one of our sessions together, she told me that it was time to break my past life vows with Diana. That whatever vows I made in the past were holding me back from my path in this lifetimes.

At the time, I really trusted this teacher. But my whole body screamed NO to the idea. I checked in with Diana and my other guides for perspective. They showed me that my vows to this goddesses were of love and freedom, they provided me with her protection and power but in no way held me back from anything my soul was called to do.

If I had allowed this teacher to break my vows, I would have been released from the protection of Diana. And it turned out, I really needed her protection around this teacher.

The Need to Reevaluate Past Life Vows

I do believe it's important to examine the vows we make in past lives, as not all of them are supportive. For example, had my vow included certain caveats, like remaining a virgin or rejecting wealth, I would likely suffer the consequences in this life - perhaps through relationship or financial challenges. It's always good to examine the agreements and vows we've made.

But whether to break your vows is always your decision — never let a teacher tell you what's best for you. By developing your own relationships with spirit guides in your life, and by learning to activate and trust your intuition, you will know what's best for you. This is one important element of cultivating your personal sovereignty.

Activate Your Own Connections with the Goddesses

Which goddesses do you feel a pull to? What clues to past life connections can you see? Do you sense any vows that it is now time to break? To rekindkle?

Leave a comment if so. I'd love to hear from you.

Want to deepen your connection with Diana? The Diana-Artemis Goddess Activation workshop is filled with practices and rituals and recipes and meditations and more.

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juniper stokes 3/17/22 juniper stokes 3/17/22

Mythoanimism: An Emerging Spirituality

Every day, more people are awakening to our interconnectedness, the symbolic language of the universe and the divine, the spiritual gifts within each of us, and the importance of cultivating a strong relationship with the natural world. Now, with both religions and alternative spiritual communities dissolving, as we live in times of collective reckoning around power dynamics and the crises facing our mother earth, a few important spiritual trends are emerging…

As a universal and emerging spirituality, mythoanimism is welcoming to people of all backgrounds, and when practiced with care and intention, frees us from the trappings of outdated power dynamics, fears around cultural appropriation, and more.

Modern mystics no longer enjoy the trappings of organized religion. And they no longer can separate their spiritual practices from the earth that sustains us.

Spiritual Movements of the 20th Century

While there have always been spiritual explorers, the twentieth century catalyzed widespread radical leaps in consciousness. Largely thanks to the consciousness work of Jung and discovery of psychedelics in the first half of the century, the decades that followed saw a mass exodus from the organized religions of the West toward Eastern spiritual practices. Teachings from the worlds of yoga and meditation expanded the spiritual awareness of countless seekers.

Parallel to the influx of Eastern wisdom in the West was the rising of earth-based practices. Pagan rites and celebrations, women’s circles with witchy leanings, the Gaia hypothesis, and ecofeminist understandings of our interconnectedness, prolifically written about by Starhawk, greatly impacted mass consciousness.

It’s no wonder that Western shamanism also arose during the seventies and eighties, as shamanism involves trance states (such as those attained with psychedelics or meditation practices) and deep relationship with the earth (as was also cultivated by other earth-based spiritualities).

Looking back at spirituality in the West, it’s safe to say that between the 1940s and 2010s, massive shifts in spiritual awareness impacted our collective consciousness in profoundly beneficial ways.

2000-2022: A Time of Reckoning

Unfortunately, humanity had not yet transcended the need for intermediaries with the divine. While hippies may have turned their backs on priests, many still welcomed gurus with open arms.

In the past decades, gurus have fallen. And they’ve fallen across the board—yogis, meditation teachers, spiritual guides and healers of various sorts have all had their shadows exposed. I think of the sexual assult charges of John of God and K. Pattabhi Jois. The rise and fall of Doreen Virtue. Bizarre cults like NXIVM.

Even more recently, a growing reckoning of power dynamics and cultural appropriation has bubbled to the surface of our collective conversations, leaving many modern mystics faced with difficult questions around what elements of their spiritual practices are still welcome, and which might be inadvertently causing harm.

Current Trends in Spirituality

Today, with both religions and alternative spiritual communities dissolving, as we live in times of collective reckoning around power dynamics and the crises facing our mother earth, a few important spiritual trends are emerging:

People are seeking spiritual equality and sovereignty. They want to experience spirit directly for themselves and to know that they can trust their own intuition.
People care about our earth. The climate crisis is forefront in their minds, and forming meaningful connections with nature has taken on a sort of spiritual urgency.
People are rebelling against old power dynamics—especially patriarchal and colonial ones. Calls to end oppression and center previously marginalized voices have become intertwined with spiritual practice.
People are called to connect with their ancestry and ancestors. We’re here because of the ancestors that have survived challenging times before, and there’s a growing recognition of the wisdom we might find through ancestral work.
People are creating a psychedelic revival. The shutdown of psychedelic research in the seventies was clearly meant to cut us off from cultivating their own direct spiritual connections—and therefore our ability to think for ourselves. Now, we’re reclaiming our right to research and use psychedelics for healing and connection.
People are re-engaging with Jungian thought. More and more people are finding meaning in the transpersonal realms of archetypes, omens, symbols, mythologies, and dreams—acknowledging that the universe is always communicating with us if we’ll listen.
People are embracing animism. With the climate crisis more pronounced than ever, more and more people are recognizing the need to shift out of human-centric worldviews and into an appreciation of the inspirited nature of all things.

These trends are universal and important, yet until now, we have not had language that clearly encompasses all of these components.

Witch, priestess, animist, earth-medicine practitioner, akashic record reader, starseed, energy healer, and lightworker are bandied about—and all are lovely words. Still others, feeling the limitations inherent in any of this language use the term “spiritual”—which is still too broad to convey much meaning.

In truth, there is a deep layer of vast yet cohesive spiritual wisdom and truth that connects all the spiritual qualities listed above…

This is where mythoanimism comes in.

Mythoanimism—A Spiritual Path for These Times

Animism nods to the inspirited nature of the universe—and not only to the spirits of nature we know and love. True animist practice acknowledges that even concepts and objects can have their own vital energy.

Mythos reminds us of the poetic, non-linear, symbolic, and archetypal reality of the universe. This invites trance states, direct revelation, and ancestral wisdom into our spiritual paths. Mythos also allows space for the non-embodied dimension of spirit—deities and beings of other realms are acknowledged and brought into relationship in this non-human-centric practice.

Together, these words give us mythoanimism. Mythoanimism is contained enough to have identifying characteristics, yet broad enough that each person can walk the mythoanimist path in their own unique way.

As a universal and emerging spirituality, mythoanimism is welcoming to people of all backgrounds, and when practiced with care and intention, frees us from the trappings of outdated power dynamics, fears around cultural appropriation, and the often overly individualist qualities of the spiritualities that have come before.

As we embark on this new—yet in truth ancient—path before us, let’s look more closely at the qualities held within mythoanimism.

1. Spiritual sovereignty is our birthright.

Those on the mythoanimist path are waking up to an important truth: spirit is within. And while teachers on the path are valuable guides, we must never give over our own power and knowing.

With so many realizing their own divinity, we are experiencing a zeitgeist moment in the realm of spiritual sovereignty—the idea that we can have our own direct connection to spirit, uninhibited and uninfluenced by outside forces.

This concept has rippling effects on our lived experience: When we understand that we are divine and that we have the power of spirit within us, we realize that we must take on a new level of responsibility for our lives. We must care for our health, our communities, each other, and our great earth.

We must love life itself as much as the great spirit that created us does.

Spiritual sovereignty, which sounds quite individualistic, actually brings us into greater relationship with all that is.

2. Animism is the truth of our natural world.

We must view the earth as alive. And we must understand that all beings—from birds to trees to mountains and stones—have consciousness and are inspirited.

Our ecological crisis requires a cosmological solution.

This is a vast departure from the human-centric worldviews of the past. And, while many people are waking up to the spirits inhabiting our natural world—those found in animals and plants—mythoanimism takes this even further: All is inspirited.

We recognize the spirit of concepts—such as hope or money—as well as the spirit of objects. If you’ve ever talked to your car in a moment of desperation, you’ve tasted the relationships that are possible here. This may prove to be an essential shift for a world in which AI plays an active role.

When we truly integrate an animistic worldview into our consciousness, everything changes. We form new relationships with the land we live on, the food we eat, and the things we consume. We also become empowered to work with the energies in our lives—around wealth, habits, dreams—in new transformative ways.

3. We are a web of equality and oneness. And we are individuals, here and now.

Spiritual sovereignty tells us that spirit is within us, and animism tells us that spirit enlivens all things. This framework gives way to the universal understanding that we are all one at the most fundamental spiritual level.

Where there is oneness, there is no dualism and no hierarchy. With this understanding, no longer can we unconsciously treat that which is outside ourselves as lesser than or disposable. No longer can tribalism, us vs. them, and outdated power dynamics guide our consciousness.

Returning to regenerative living and creating circular economies become spiritual imperatives.

And at the same time we acknowledge our oneness, we also recognize that we are having individual incarnations. We are souls, with our own energy, karma, and life experiences. Holding multiple levels of seemingly conflicting awareness is a key part of the mythoanimist path.

4. The universe communicates with symbolic language and archetypes.

As mentioned earlier, Jungian psychology is undergoing something of a revival right now. Jung understood that we are all connected on subconscious levels. Interestingly, when Stanislov Groff did his LSD studies, he also found that not only did various layers of consciousness exist, but another layer not previously understood (in the West at least) revealed itself: the transpersonal.

Groff found that while in a trance state, people could experience universal symbols and archetypes—even connecting with beings and deities from cultures with which they had no previous connection or knowledge. There truly is a universal, symbolic language that we can tap into.

The universe is far more vast and interconnected than we could ever imagine—yet we’re not left in the dark. Our dreams contain important insights and revelations beyond our personal processing. Omens, often in the form of nature’s messengers, are waiting for our attention. Mythology from cultures around the world contains universal archetypes and clues for understanding our human experiences, here and now.

5. The true nature of reality is far more layered than our consensus reality.

Mythoanism pulls us out of our limited understanding of consensus 3D reality into an undefined and more expansive understanding of the true nature of reality. While you’ll find some new age teachers referring to this as “5D”, I personally find even that term too limiting.

Many layers of reality exist beyond what we can validate with our five senses. Energetic blueprints and systems underlie our physical bodies. Various disembodied beings—from deities and angels to the recently deceased and fae—exist alongside us, just on the other side of our veils of perception.

This understanding opens us to possibilities that might otherwise seem like magical thinking or miracles. We know that healing happens on energetic and spiritual levels in addition to physical, emotional, and mental ones—and we can engage in a wide variety of practices and techniques to work in partnership with the other realms and their inhabitants.

As we recognize that the “rules” we’ve been taught might not be set in stone, we can welcome energy, healing, and creation into our lives through radical new pathways.

We can also learn to communicate with the various beings who reside in slightly different dimensions from us, opening us to new empowering relationships with real impacts on our 3D existence.

This is also where altering our consciousness, or entering trans states, becomes important, as doing so can help us navigate the other dimensions of reality. While this can happen with psychedelics, there are many pathways available—breathwork, meditation, yoga nidra, music, and more.

6. Our ancestors are allies—and so are our descendents. (And our ancestry is more complicated than many people realize.)

Throughout the world and throughout history, ancestors—the well and good ones, at least—have been our primary allies. This is because of the deep care and trust built into these relationships.

As we navigate the many dimensions of reality, not all beings we encounter are trustworthy or benevolent. Our ancestors, however, always have our backs, and we can check in with them when meeting someone—or something—new.

Our ancestors have unique abilities to help us in challenging times. They knew how to survive, and they can help us do the same. Remembering ancestral skills, rituals, and ways to care for our bodies, homes, and families nourishes us on many levels.

As we engage with ancestral practices, it’s important to remember that our ancestry is much more vast than our current known DNA lines. Yes, our blood lineage is often a primary influence on our current life—but it’s not the whole story. Spirit is far too expansive to play by any set of rules we humans might like to make up…

Which also brings us to our descendants. In kairos time, we are not tied to what we view as the past—it’s likely all our lives are happening simultaneously, and we can connect with our descendents just as we connect with our ancestors.

When you think of a descendant a powerful exercise is to see if you can imagine how many different bloodlines from throughout an ever more connected world converge into that one magical being.

As a note—you do not need to know your bloodline or have your own offspring to work with ancestral and descendent energies. There’s no way for our human minds to trace all the blood connections we form throughout time, and there are universal ancestors and descendents who are also here to offer us guidance and support.

7. We are children of the earth and the cosmos.

At the heart of mythoanimist practice lies a foundational relationship of reciprocity with the Earth. We have an unshakable knowing that we are born of the earth (and the stars) and we are also caretakers of the Earth and all her inhabitants.

A deep love and reverence of the earth is perhaps the most central quality for all mythoanimist practice. This love might manifest indifferent ways for different folks—some may engage directly with the earth through with rewilding practices, herbal medicine, permaculture, and other such practices. Others may simply feel the presence of earth wherever they are, honoring her through ceremony and ritual, the arts, or advocacy.

Regardless of the particular way one engages with the earth, cultivating an ever-deepening relationship with her is of primary importance for all who walk this path—this is one of the key factors that sets mythoanimism apart from other spiritual paths.

While our deep relationship with the earth keeps us grounded, mythoanimism also invites us to expand our awareness into the cosmos. The stars, starbeings, and great mysteries of the skies are just as much a part of our consciousness as our lives here on earth. Just as we cross beyond the boundaries of human-centered cosmology, we invite ourselves to step into unknown territory beyond the world we know.

Being of Service in the Aquarian Age

By now you probably realize that mythoanimism offers us a beautiful individual path to connect with the earth, the cosmos, and spirit. Yet what’s also important to remember is that this path brings us into service, in whatever way aligns with our souls.

Perhaps this is why mythoanimism and all the trends that lead up to this path are emerging now, more strongly than ever. We are just entering the Age of Aquarius—a time of radical shifts in consciousness, more humanitarian and collectively focused service, and innovation that supports healing and equality.

“Mythoanimism offers us a beautiful individual path to connect with the earth, the cosmos, and spirit.”

— Juniper Stokes

Cultivating an internal spirituality rooted in mythoanimist principles gives us a profound foundation for showing up in the world. We heal ourselves, illuminate our unique gifts, and find clarity in our personal soul-led paths.

Does this resonate? Are you part of the growing number of mythoanimists who will change our world? Drop me a comment and let me know.

(And consider joining Rewilding the Spirit—a transformative course rooted in mythoanimist principles.)

An important request: Would you like to use the term mythoanimism in your own work or practice? I would love to see this term become widely used.
Since is this the first published work (other than my website content) to use and introduce this term to our collective, I would be deeply grateful if you would please reference me as originating this term.
I asked, prayed, meditated, brainstormed, journeyed, and opened myself to spirit again and again before this word arose in my consciousness. Thank you!!!

Mythoanimism—A Spiritual Path for These Times
*Animism* nods to the inspirited nature of the universe—and not only to the spirits of nature we know and love. True animist practice acknowledges that even concepts and objects can have their own vital energy.
*Mythos* reminds us of the poetic, non-linear, symbolic, and archetypal reality of the universe. This invites trance states, direct revelation, and ancestral wisdom into our spiritual paths. Mythos also allows space for the non-embodied dimension of spirit—deities and beings of other realms are acknowledged and brought into relationship in this non-human-centric practice.

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juniper stokes 3/7/22 juniper stokes 3/7/22

What Happens When You Watch A Sunrise?

What are the benefits of watching the sunrise?

One of my personal favorite ways to tune into nature’s rhythms is to watch the sunrise or sunset each day—or ideally both! Here are a few of the benefits: - Researchers have found that the wavelengths at sunrise and sunset have the biggest impact on

I recently taught A Shamanic Guide to Illness & Health. I absolutely loved meeting everyone who came! What a treat it is to gather in community with others who are also open to the more than human world, even if via Zoom :)

During the class, I shared my personal breakdown of the five main causes of spiritual illness, and in my view, one of these causes is disconnection from the natural world. We can restore this connection in part by more consciously syncing our lifestyles with the rhythms of nature.

One of my favorite ways to tune into nature’s rhythms is to watch the sunrise or sunset each day—or ideally both! The benefits of this practice are many…

Researchers have found that the wavelengths at sunrise and sunset have the biggest impact on the brain centers that regulate our circadian rhythms, as well as our mood and alertness.
The colors of sunlight at rise and set are especially helpful for activating the pineal gland—a portal to divine wisdom.
Being intentional about watching the rise and set of the sun brings about mindful awareness, helping you find peace and presence as you begin and end your days
On deep, subconscious levels, witnessing the sun’s cycles restores faith that all will be okay. Though we enter darkness, light comes again. Though the light feeds us in many ways, we crave the rest of dark. And so it continues.
Pausing in our busy lives to enjoy nature’s natural beauty is the ultimate form of sacred self care, a rebellion against the hustle culture that binds us, and a celebration of the feminine energy seeking restoration in our cosmic consciousness.

This time of year, when days are shorter, it’s a bit easier to witness both the rise and set of the sun. Though I prefer this as a daily practice, even if you can only squeeze in a couple times a week you’ll receive benefits.

What can you do to create your own ritual around the great solar blessings of our sun?

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juniper stokes 12/8/21 juniper stokes 12/8/21

Healing Pumpkin Soup with Cozy Autumn Spices

An easy, healthy soup to warm your body and boost your immune system this season.

This year, Mike and I had a pretty epic harvest of various winter squashes—lunga di napoli (scroll down to see crazy pics here), red kuri, spaghetti, cinderella, blue hokkaido, pumpkin pie, delicata, and a few mystery hybrids all graced our little backyard in the city.

Now, as temperatures fall and pumpkin spice fills the air, I find myself experimenting with endless plays on basic pumpkin soup. This particular version, which I'll share with you now, has to be one of my favorites so far. It's rich and creamy, full of medicinal herbs and warming spices, and so easy. Plus vegan and paleo so you can serve it to all your friends.

A few notes on the recipe:

I used some of my giant lunga di napoli for this recipe, but any kind of winter squash would work well—I think butternut or Cinderella pumpkin would be especially good.

I'm pretty loose with my spices, dumping whatever I feel like into the pot like a mad scientist. Take the following as suggestions, but keep tasting and adjusting to your liking. Also, this might look like a lot of garlic, and it is! Hehe. I loooove garlic and add a ton to everything. Feel free to start with less.

If you have the time and want even more flavor in this soup, feel free to roast the squash while you prepare the other ingredients. I needed an easy one-pot meal so mine went raw straight into the soup and was still delicious.

I used Elmhurst cashew milk for this recipe. It's my absolute favorite nutmilk—creamy and the only ingredients are cashews and water. Cashew milk was my choice because I really wanted the flavors to stand out without coconut undertones, but I think coconut milk would also work perfectly well.

The lemon juice really brightens this soup up. If you don't have fresh lemon on hand, you can substitute apple cider vinegar (fire cider would be even better!).

Why this soup works:

The garlic, onion, sage, and astragalus offer healing, anti-viral benefits
The winter squash and nettle are full of essential nutrients
The warming spices bring balance to your constitution throughout the fall and winter seasons

Healing Pumpkin Soup with Cozy Autumn Spices

Serves 6-8 as sides and 4 as mains.

Ingredients:

1 small-medium white or yellow onion, chopped
1 head garlic, minced and let to rest at least 10 min
1 tablespoon oil (avocado, olive, and coconut all work)
4 cups peeled and cubed winter squash or pumpkin
6-8 sticks astragalus
1/2 cup dried nettle
6 fresh sage leaves, chopped
4 bay leaves
lemon juice to taste (I used the juice of about 1/2 lemon)
4 cups broth or water
salt and pepper to taste
Plus...a bunch of spices totaling to about 2 tablespoons:
- cinnamon
- turmeric
- nutmeg
- mace
- cardamom
- powdered ginger
- star anise
- allspice
- cloves
- red pepper flakes
I also added a big pinch of finely ground rose petals, lavender, and orris root because I have them and I'm fancy. I'm not sure you could even taste them, but now you know 😛

Directions:

Sauté the onion in oil over medium heat until just turning translucent. Add the squash and garlic and continue to cook for another couple of minutes, stirring regularly.

Next, add all the spices, fresh sage, and salt and pepper. Continue to sauté until the squash/pumpkin begins to soften and most liquid from the vegetables has been absorbed.

Add the broth or water, bay leaves, astragalus, and nettle. Bring to simmer and continue to cook until the squash is completely done (about 20-30m). You can tie the bay and astragalus in twine to make them easier to remove, but I didn’t bother.

Stir in the nutmilk and lemon juice. Continue to cook for about 10m to let the flavors merge. Remove bay leaves and astragalus sticks.

Turn off the heat and puree the soup to your preferred consistency (I like mostly smooth but still a little chunky). You can use a handheld immersion blender, or you can carefully transfer the soup to a blender. If going the blender route, be sure to allow the soup to cool a bit first. You may need to blend in batches.

Serve warm and top with fried sage leaves and a sprinkle of paprika if you're feeling fancy. Tastes even better the next day.

juniper stokes 11/13/21 juniper stokes 11/13/21

Wild Mushroom Pate

Wild and organic mixed mushrooms make the perfect vegan pate. Seasonal, celebratory, and easy!

Wild Mushroom Pâté

Fall is for foraging mushrooms. The cool temperatures have laid most of our natural harvest to rest, but the moist earth continues to support the hidden treasures of the fungi kingdom.

Maybe someday I’ll actually gain confidence in mushroom identification, but as of now, I’m sticking to what I know and purchasing from local shops for as long as the season lets me ;)

If fresh wild mushrooms are difficult to come by, look for dried ones. They’re a great way to add that wild mushroom goodness when all you have is a pack of Costco creminis. That said, this recipe works beautifully even without any dried mushrooms at all. Simply omit that ingredient and you’ll be fine.

I’m addicted to mushrooms and always looking for fun ways to incorporate them into our diets. This paté has become one of my go-to recipes in recent years. Filled with the best umami and healthiest ingredients, it comes together quickly in a food processor and is another crowdpleaser.

Rich, vegan, and gluten-free—who can say no? Plus, the earthy flavor here is perfect for autumn and winter feasts. I’ll be serving this one at our Thanksgiving and Christmas tables!

Ingredients

About 4 tablespoons olive oil
½ cup sweet onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 pound mixed fresh mushrooms, chopped (cremini, maitake, oyster, enoki, chanterelle, trumpet, porcini , cinnamon cap…whatever you can find!)
1/2 ounce dried mixed wild mushrooms (optional)
1 cup water
1/2 cup walnuts (or more if you’d like, because really, I measure nothing)
2 tablespoons fresh herbs, chopped (sage, rosemary, and thyme)
⅓ cup red wine
1-2 T balsamic vinegar
Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
Truffle oil (optional)
Fresh parsley (optional)

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 and set water to boil.

Soak dried mushrooms in one cup boiling water for 25 minutes. Once rehydrated, strain, roughly chop, and reserve the liquid for later.

Roast the walnuts on a sheet pan for about 10 minutes. Check often - you’re looking for a nice toasty golden color. (Also, make extras - these warm walnuts fresh from the oven are so satisfying to snack on while you cook!

Heat two tablespoons of olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and cook for a couple minutes.

Add the fresh mushrooms and a pinch or two of salt and cook over medium low heat for another 10 minutes or so. You’re looking for the onion and mushrooms to become slightly caramelized.

Add the herbs, pepper, salt to taste, and cook for another two to three minutes.

Add about ¼ cup reserved soaking liquid and cook for another five minutes.

Stir the walnuts and two more tablespoons olive oil into the mixture. Transfer to a food processor or Vitamix. Add the optional truffle oil and process until the mixture's texture is to your liking—smooth or chunky :) You can add more olive oil or reserved mushroom water if needed.

Serve at room temperature with crackers, flatbread, veggie sticks, or whatever else you feel like. Top with fresh parsley.

juniper stokes 11/12/21 juniper stokes 11/12/21

The Best Wild Rice Salad

My all-time favorite wild rice salad, filled with seasonal ingredients that honor the Americas and will wow guests at your holiday tables.

Here it is—one of my all-time favorite recipes for the holidays (and anytime, really). This wild rice salad uses seasonal ingredients like winter squash, leeks, and cranberries, but add a surprising twist with fresh basil and rosemary. I found the original recipe for this salad from the talented chef at the HeartBeet Kitchen years ago, and I’ve been making versions of it ever since. Here is my favorite :)

Wild Rice & Winter Squash Salad with Cranberries and Maple Balsamic Vinaigarette

Serves 4 as a main, more as a side.

Ingredients

Dressing:

¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons pure maple syrup
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
½ teaspoon sea salt
½ teaspoon black pepper
1 tablespoon chopped fresh rosemary
2 cloves garlic, minced

Salad:

2 ½ cups peeled and finely chopped winter squash (butternut, pumpkin, etc)
2 tablespoons olive oil
sea salt
black pepper
2 bunches very thinly sliced kale (lightly massaged)
1 thinly sliced leek, both white and green parts (or any onion works — add to taste)
½ cup dried cranberries
¼ cup thinly sliced fresh basil
3 cups cooked wild rice

Directions

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Toss squash with olive oil, salt and pepper. Spread onto a baking sheet and roast for about 25 minutes, stirring once, until fork tender.

Prepare dressing by pureeing all ingredients with an immersion blender or by vigorously whisking.

In a large bowl, combine kale, leeks, cranberries and basil. Stir in warm rice and squash so that spinach wilts slightly from the heat. Stir dressing into salad; taste and adjust salt level if needed. Serve at room temperature.

juniper stokes 11/10/21 juniper stokes 11/10/21

Magical Bread Rolls with Pumpkin & Buckwheat

Vegan, gluten-free bread rolls - endlessly customizable and so good for you!

The bread rolls are magical. Really—they are endlessly customizable, filled with fiber and protein, the perfect way to use up veggies, and absolutely delicious. Plus they’re no-rise, gluten-free, vegan, and still have a wonderful texture.

The secret? Psyllium husk. Yup—this fiber-rich plant provides the perfect binder for the buns. Whip in lots of air bubbles while the psyllium-liquid mix is setting, and you’ll end up with fabulous balls of goodness.

Since these are no-rise and the psyllium husk is such a great binder, you have a lot of room to experiment with flours in this recipe. I always use at least some buckwheat flour, as it gives these buns an extra rich flavor, but I go crazy with the full mix—almond, chickpea, rice, coconut, cashew, sorghum, quinoa, cassava, oat, and amaranth have all made the mix at some point.

When selecting flours, I like to go for a good mix of high-fiber (like oat and sorghum) and high-protein (like chickpea and quinoa), with at least one nut (usually almond). But really, you could use a single flour, a gluten-free flour blend, wheat flour if you’re not gluten-free, or a little bit of everything*. These just work!

*I only make adjustments for coconut flour. It’s so absorptive that an extra fourth cup liquid can help.

Beyond the flour, the rest of this recipe is pretty flexible as well. Mix in wild greens (I made these with nettle puree in the spring), add spices (they’re amazing with sundried tomatoes, chopped olives, and red onions), stir in a cup of quick oats or nutritional yeast, or even swap out the squash puree with another veggie or fruit -- shredded zucchini, apple puree, mashed bananas...as long as the end texture is similar, you can get wildly creative with the “magical” buns.

Magical Bread Rolls

Makes about 18 rolls

Ingredients

3 tbsp psyllium seed husks
1 cup lukewarm water or plant milk
1.5 cups pumpkin or winter squash puree
4 tbsp olive oil (divided)
1 tsp sea salt
4 cups mixed flour

Directions

Set the oven to 375°F.

Add psyllium, water/plant milk, and squash puree in a large bowl. Stir to combine and leave for about 15 minutes to thicken. Then beat the psyllium gel vigorously—your hand and a wooden spoon is fine—to get as much air as possible into the gel.

Add salt and 2T oil and whisk for another minute or until all is combined.

Fold in the flour. I find that I need to use my hands and get messy to work the flour into a dough.

Roll the dough into 18 or more equal pieces (or 12 big ones, 24 little guys…whatever!) Dip your hands in warm water to avoid the dough sticking to them.

Brush with the remaining olive oil (optional but tasty) and bake for about 45-60 minutes (depending on the size of the buns and your oven). They are ready when the crust is just turning golden and firm and the inside sounds hollow when you knock on the bread. If they have a soft crust, they need more time.

Important—let these cool for at least 10 minutes before slicing them open—they’ll continue to cook inside, and if you open them too soon they could be a bit mushy.

Enjoy!

Me with my harvest of the giant lunga di napoli squash toddlers.

Slicing open the smallest of the bunch — still got enough to fill 8 gallon-size freezer bags!

Want to grow your own giant squash? I’ll include a few seeds with any purchase from my shop — just send me a note a checkout! (While supplies last, of course.)

juniper stokes 11/7/21 juniper stokes 11/7/21

Why Healing Isn't Personal: Diet, Control, and Our Collective

Food, control, and health. Why do we focus on diet to the exclusion of so many other causes when it comes to chronic illness?

I find it interesting that when any health challenge appears in someone's life, or in our own, the health-conscious, mindbodyspirit crowd has a tendency to immediately blame food. I’ve certainly been guilty of this myself.

Whether we encounter issues with our immune systems, chronic illness, joint paint, skin disease, depression, weight loss, or even cancer, the response is almost uniformly similar: Change your diet.

Go vegan and plant-based. This wouldn't have happened if you weren't eating junk food. Keto/paleo is life-changing. Processed oils, refined sugar, too many carbs, too much dairy, nightshades, mycotoxins, non-organic produce, meat, unsprouted nuts and grains...the list is endless.

Looking at our diets makes sense. We've been struggling with a conventional medical system that has completely ignored lifestyle and dietary changes while over-medicating us for decades. The food industry has bombarded us with fast foods and artificial ingredients for just as long. Most of us know the FDA is rife with problems and not a reliable source of protection.

But as helpful as dietary changes can be, our collective tendency to look to our diets for the pinacle answer to any health concern is problematic.

Deep down we know this. We know that stress is a massive killer. We know our environment is full of poisons. We know our air quality can be harmful and that we're surrounded with toxins in everything from our mattresses to our office carpets and more. Those of us who haven't been brainwashed by amazingly effective marketing campaigns for five-gee know that it's yet another assault on our health. We know that past trauma can influence our present health and all sorts of preconditioning exists in our DNA. On some level, we even sense the karmic and spiritual components that might be at play with any illness.

Despite all of this, so many people still focus on diet to the exclusion of all other contributing factors to our health. Why?

It comes down to control.

We can control our diets much more easily than any of the other widespread assaults on our health we face. Because every other contributing factor to our chronic illnesses requires change on collective levels.

The collective stress we're under needs collective solutions—our individual lifestyle changes will only go so far. We can try to avoid buying products with known toxins and living too close to cell towers, but this is a drop in the bucket compared to what we're exposed to on large-scale levels.

So we retreat to the comfort of what we can change—our food, feeling superior to those who sadly poison themselves with poor diets.

One danger in this way of thinking is that it can lead us to miss catching serious illnesses sooner. I can't tell you how many people have kept endlessly changing their diets in hopes of easing stomach issues or joint pain, only to realize that they had cancer, parasites, a genetic condition, or something else that required far more intervention than a new diet.

Of course, it should be noted here that dietary changes are actually not easy. Not just because of our emotional attachments to food, but because healthy food is still inaccessible to huge portions of our population.

Thinking that we can stay healthy because we have healthy diets, and healthy lifestyles in general, is a symptom of our individualist, easy-fix American culture.

“We're in charge of our own health. When people suffer, it's their fault.”

This is a myth. Every bit of our health is tied to the health of the collective. We exist in an ecosystem, not a bubble.

So yes. Eat healthy (doing so can actually help the ecosystem, too). Take care of yourself and your loved ones. But also have compassion for others—and yourself—when you're faced with illness, whether a cold or cancer. Even those who "do everything right" are never guaranteed endless health.

And do not ignore our collective struggles. All of us need to keep the conversations around our environmental and shared challenges at the forefront of any discussions on individual health. When enough of us put our shared needs forward often enough, the consciousness of our collective changes. And then the policies and products in our life change. And then we can all enjoy thriving together just a little more. At least that’s the hope.

juniper stokes 11/3/21 juniper stokes 11/3/21

Rooted: A Seasonal Grounding Practice

Autumn is a season for roots and rooting. We must sink our energetic roots into the earth before winter’s freezes arrive. You’re invited to try the following practice any time you’d like to ground and root into the earth.

Autumn is a season for roots and rooting.

Those of us who forage and wildcraft know that this is the time to harvest our wild roots—dandelion, chicory, salsify, osha (if you're lucky and it’s sustainable where you are), solomon’s seal, and so many more earthy medicines await. The gardeners among us might celebrate the carrots, daikon, sunchokes, beets, and other root veggies that will continue to nourish us through the winter months.

This is also a time of year for us to turn to our ancestral roots, as we celebrate Halloween, Samhain, and Dia de los Muertos with the thin veils of the season. For some, this rooting comes in the form of ancestral altars that are alight with photographs, candles, and offerings. For some, it’s as simple as tuning into ancestral rhythms -- preparing seasonal soups and herbal medicines to carry us through the cooling weather.

I find that this time of year lays the perfect ground for rooting into the Earth, as well—grounding ourselves, energetically as well as physically, to carry us through the holiday festivities to come. We tune into our root chakra and the land we live upon, sending energetic roots into the Earth while the ground is still welcoming and soft, before winter’s freezes come.

You’re invited to try the following practice any time you’d like to ground and root into the earth.

Root Chakra Grounding Practice

Find a comfortable seat. Take a few deep breaths and make any movements to get just a bit more comfortable.
Bring awareness to your root chakra. Feel the energy begin to grow. You might even see the color red become brighter as you energize this chakra with your attention.
Feel a cord of light begin to extend down from your root into the earth. You may see this as a glowing cord or the roots of a tree..
Feel this energetic cord extend downward until it meets the energetic core of the earth.
Feel your rooting cord sink into the core of the earth and begin to breathe this earth energy back up through the cord into your body.
Continue to breathe and feel the beautiful energy from the Earth’s core rise to meet your energy field and root chakra. Notice how this energy feels grounding, nurturing, and abundant.
Enjoy this feeling for several breaths, knowing you can return to this practice anytime you need grounding.

If you’d like more grounding support this season, check out my Rooted Magical Bitters, which are newly available in the apothecary. These bitters taste like a bitter, spicy root beer and contain herbs and flower essences to help you stay grounded throughout the winter.

Did you enjoy this practice? Please share on your favorite social accounts :)

juniper stokes 8/2/21 juniper stokes 8/2/21

Wildcrafting with Fireweed

Every late July and through August, the mountain meadows are dotted with neon pink blossoms. It's fireweed season ❤️ Both medicinal and edible, fireweed is one of the first plants to come back after wildfires. I've heard that the young shoots can be eaten like asparagus, though I've never tried. I do decorate summer salads with the blossoms, though…

Every late July and through August, the mountain meadows are dotted with neon pink blossoms. It's fireweed season.

Both medicinal and edible, fireweed is one of the first plants to come back after wildfires. I've heard that the young shoots can be eaten like asparagus, though I've never tried. I do decorate summer salads with the blossoms, however.

Fireweed is also an excellent tonic for the digestive system and has massive amounts of Vitamin C. When the blossoms are peaking, I like to either tincture or make a vinegar infusion with all the aerial parts to create a natural dose of Vitamin C throughout the year.

Fireweed also has anti-inflammatory and antibacterial properties, which make it wonderful to infuse in oils for healing salves (I made a limited amount of fireweed oil to use in my newest batch of healing salves this year—be sure to grab them while they’re in stock!)

One of my personal favorite ways to work with fireweed is with fireweed flower essence. The flower essence is one of my favorites for encouraging resilience, energy, and passion.

Fireweed is also a fairly common smoking herb, often used in herbal blends. Personally, I enjoy adding it to my wild smoke bundles for joyful wishes, to help carry our enthusiasm for all we wish to create up to spirit.

Fireweed grows abundantly almost all over North America, so it’s a great flower for foraging. Go out and see if you can find some!

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juniper stokes 7/22/21 juniper stokes 7/22/21

Bear Medicine

Meeting my first bear in the wild, understanding spirit animals, and knowing that we are not alone

We are not alone...

I saw this marking just two days before a huge brown bear sauntered right by me, maybe 20 feet away.

My eyes must have looked like a cartoon character's—I've waited my entire life to see a bear in the wild and I couldn't believe it had finally happened. For better or worse, pure ecstatic joy overrode any fear.

If you look up Bear as a spirit animal online, you'll find everything from bear signifying a cycle of hibernation coming, being courageous, motherhood, appreciating the sweetness in life, protection, and so much more.

When I encountered Bear, I knew the appearance was significant. I knew Bear was coming as a messenger from spirit—but I also knew that online animal references could not tell me the personal meaning of my experience. I believe that we must cultivate the ability to work with spirit without a middleman, the ability to find our own answers.

I felt that this bear's appearance was less about Bear medicine specifically, and more about me opening up to a new era of power.

I've just been through—well, I'm still in it really—an extremely challenging period of major transformation and initiation. Everything, in every part of life, has felt stuck, blocked , grief-ridden, unnecessarily difficult, and bizarrely bad for so long, despite my best efforts. But I've been making my way through, trusting in spirit and doing the work, and have finally felt a shift and a bit of levity enter back into my life.

The day before I saw this bear, I commented to my partner that a bear was the one animal I hadn't yet seen in these mountains that I wished I would someday, even though seeing one in the wild might feel a bit scary.

The timing of all of this feels like a pure gift from spirit, a sign of encouragement and confirmation that I am in touch with spirit and on my path. A confirmation that indeed, I have reached a turning point.

As I enter this new era, I feel Bear blessing me with power, protection, maturity, sweetness, rest, and so much more.

Many of these qualities of course overlap with what you might read online, and yet the major lesson and confirmation from my bear sighting had to come from my personal reflections about this encounter, my own intuitive perceptions.

Have you ever encountered an animal and wondered if it carried a message of some sort?

Animal sightings are one of the most common ways spirit communicates with us, and learning how to understand the omens and messages coming to you is an absolutely invaluable skill. If you’d like to learn more about how to interpret the animal messengers in your own life, be sure to take a look at The Spirit Animal Workshop.

This self-paced mini-class will teach you how to differentiate between animal messengers and power animals, and how to understand what animals mean without having to look them up in a book or online glossary. If you have any interest in spirit animals at all, then this is for you!

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juniper stokes 7/18/21 juniper stokes 7/18/21

Great Northern Bedstraw: A Beloved and Underrated Wild Plant

One of my favorite fragrances as I hike through the mountains is that of Great Northern Bedstraw. It smells of honey and fresh hay, and was often used as bedding because of of it's sweet scent.

One of my favorite fragrances as I hike through the mountains is that of Great Northern Bedstraw (Galium boreale). It smells of honey and fresh hay, and was often used as bedding because of of it's sweet scent. Some native tribes would even add it to perfumes.

Though it's not commonly used in modern day herbalism, northern bedstraw has a few important internal uses. It was traditionally made into a tea for intestinal issues and internal bleeding. It's also very mineral rich, so I like to infuse it into wild greens vinegar so I can have a wild nutrient boost throughout the year.

But before you consume―some literature suggests that great northern bedstraw was taken by indigenous people to prevent pregnancy. Though I haven't found much evidence on this, if you're trying to conceive, it's probably best to be safer than sorry!

Externally, great northern bedstraw can be used to soothe a variety of skin conditions—rashes, burns, cuts, eczema, and more. And, its roots make a beautiful red dye!

Energetically, great northern bedstraw helps bring about sweet dreams and deep rest. It can help cultivate feelings of love between partners, as well, and I recommend misting your bed with the flower essence before sleeping…or participating in other bedroom activities ;)

Carefully separating the delicate flowers of great northern bedstraw for perfuming tinctures.

During my most recent foraging adventures, great northern bedstraw gifted me with much medicine to share.

First, I carefully removed the delicate white blossoms from the green stems to make a tincture in organic alcohol. The scent is of fresh hay and delicate florals, a beautiful sweet green note that I can’t wait to share through new perfumes. Combining my own wildcrafted aromas with rare oils from around the world allows to me to create fragrances that you just can’t find anywhere else. They are beautiful and love making them and wearing them.

I also infused the entire areal plant into organic sunflower oil. Sunflower oil is a long-lasting carrier oil with a lovely texture, and infusing it with bedstraw gives the oil the same lovely scent as the tincture―with benefits! The potent nutrients fill this oil with healing benefits for your skin, joints, and muscles, so I’ve included it in this year’s healing salves.

You can also find this year’s harvest of great northern bedstraw in the psychic dreams smoke bundles, as well as in a flower essence.

Have you ever worked with this lovely plant? Send me note and let me know. :)

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Ethical Wildcrafting and Making Mountain Medicine

Every summer, I head to the mountains at about 10,000ft for my annual botanical medicine making retreat. I hike for hours each day, communing with the plants and making wild medicines. This medicine making trip is by far my favorite time of the year, in my favorite place in the world.

I've been cultivating my relationship with the plants and nature spirits at this sacred spot for nearly a decade now. My understanding of the unique gifts each plant offers, my ability to discern what is actually being offered and what wishes to remain untouched, has grown deep with time and intention.

There’s something about being at such a high elevation when I collect and commune with these plants. I know it’s silly, as spirit is within and around us always, but I do feel just a bit closer, as if the veils thin with the atmosphere. Plus, the resilience in these high-altitude plants is astounding―to survive the alpine winds and winters and then the scorching summer sun...they have so much to teach us.

As I've nurtured my relationship with the plant spirits over the years, I've refined the “mountain medicines” I'm able to share, as I call them. This year, I'll be adding new flower essences, teas, smoke bundles, elixirs, healing salves, and maybe a few tinctures to the apothecary, all full of wild botanicals.

All geared up and on the trail for some legit mountain foraging!

In order to gather the plants I work with, I hike for miles and miles everyday. This is in part because the plants I work with are spread throughout various micro-climates. But it’s also to support sustainability: When I make my smoke bundles, I clip only one or two sprigs from each Great Western Sagebrush. When I gather my resins, I take only what falls from a tree easily, so as not to hurt its defenses. Gathering this way might be a slow, laborious process, but it’s an enjoyable one. And the sustainability of the forest always comes first.

As interest in wildcrafting and foraging grows, attention to the sustainability of our wild places becomes ever more important. During my most recent stay in the mountains, I encountered another woman gathering rose petals. I must have come at the end of her harvest, because when I arrived almost no roses were left at all.

Part of me wants to give her the benefit of the doubt―it was the end of a bumper rose season and many hips had formed already, so perhaps there weren't many blossoms left to begin with.

Still…I have an especially protective instinct when it comes to wild roses. When I harvest rose petals, I do so very judiciously. The bees and pollinators need the flowers more than I do, so I want to make sure they have plenty to enjoy during the rose's short season. Plus, roses also turn into rose hips―one of the most important food sources for many animals during the winter months.

This is why when I harvest rose petals, I ask myself, "Could 10 people come to this same spot and harvest the same amount without making a visible dent in the blossoms?" The answer must be yes.

These sacred offerings are true gifts from the spirits of nature and provide us with a deeply wild healing—a healing so many of us could use these days. In a world where we’ve become overly domesticated, it’s critical that we remember to rewild a bit. When we touch into our innate wild natures, we tap into a well of resilience, sovereignty, and inner knowing.

Preparing a basket of mountain medicine ❤️

Whether or not you have the desire or the ability to escape into the natural world, I hope the wild offerings in my apothecary will bring the healing wisdom of nature to you. Each carries the energetic imprint of the wilderness, an imprint which is passed onto you when you use the products. Plus, wild plants are especially potent healers on the physical level. I really can’t say enough about how much these products have changed my own life.

As for those roses…

I have a longstanding love of rose medicine, which you can read about here. But what did I make with the petals I carefully gathered?

Wild rose elixirs! They are my favorites. Sweet and floral, these elixirs open and protect our hearts. To make the elixirs, I use wild rose honey with organic wild rose-infused grape vodka and wild rose flower essence. If you happen to grab one before they sell out, take one dropper full three times a day to bring more love and sweetness into your body and energy field. (Rose elixir is also delicious added to sparkling water!)

A strawberry cupcake? Nope! Wild rose-infused honey in the making :)

And, if this looks like way too many petals for such a small jar of honey…it is! I hike with only a small jar, cover the petals to preserve them, and transfer this to bigger batch of honey when I return home. But it is quite the image :)

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The Magic and Medicine of Elephant's Head Flower

Elephant's Head, or Pedicularis groenlandica, is one of my favorite mountain friends. I adore the magical little purple flowers and the "elephant trunks" they display. The beauty of this plant alone is enough to celebrate—but it also has awesome healing powers…

Elephant's Head, or Pedicularis groenlandica, is one of my favorite mountain friends. I adore the magical little purple flowers and the "elephant trunks" they display. While the beauty of this plant alone is enough to celebrate, its healing gifts bring even more blessings.

The tiny flowers look like elephant trucks!

The Many Benefits of Elephant’s Head Flower

Native to the alpine regions of North America, the Elephants Head flower has a long-standing history of medicinal use. You can tincture the entire areal plant, infuse it in oil for healing salves, or make a tea with just the flowers — a rare delight when I'm on my annual mountain medicine making personal retreat.

I love elephant’s head because it's so beautifully relaxing for mind, body, and spirit. Its calming and sedative properties have been utilized to alleviate anxiety, nervous tension, and promote restful sleep; while its analgesic and anti-inflammatory properties make it a valuable ally for releasing tension from the body and managing pain naturally. (It’s a key ingredient in my Tension Tonic tincture, which I created using organic grape alcohol and only wild mountain plants and those grown in my own organic gardens, all gathered by hand with reverence. There are a few bottles left at the time of this writing.)

One of my favorite uses for elephant's head is for smoke, and many people add this plant to smoking blends, as did Native tribes. I prefer to add it to my Dreamtime smoke bundles — burned before bed, they clear stagnant energy and welcome a peaceful night’s sleep. It's even said that elephant's head has almost hallucinogenic properties and can enhance lucid dreaming (I’ve added some to my magical Blue Moon Lucid Dreams tea if you want to try any!).

Elephant's head has so many uses that I'd love to harvest heaps of it. But I don't, and neither should you if you come across any. While it's not a threatened or endangered plant, it's not overly abundant either. And, elephant's head can draw poisonous components from other nearby plants into its roots, so you really want to know what you're doing in the plant world if you plan on using it internally.

I gather my elephant's head from a particular patch in a secret location, a place I've been visiting for years. I took the time to develop a strong relationship with elephant's head before ever asking it to share its medicine with me. Now, as I go back each year, I'm able to see that more elephant's head is growing than the year before, letting me know that my collections are sustainable.

Which brings us to the most sustainable and magical way to work with elephant’s head — the flower essence. I created a batch of essences on site in an elephant’s head grove, at over 10,000ft in the Rocky Mountains. This essence carries vibrational attunements to enhance clairvoyant gifts, astral travel, and intuition.

Have you ever worked with magic and medicine of elephant’s head flower? I’d love to hear your experiences in the comments.

the author gathering elephant's head high in the Rocky Mountains

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Daily Ritual to Unplug & Get Grounded

A simple daily ritual to help you unplug from technology and reground your nervous system.

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We are of the Earth. Our bodies and the Earth’s body are made of the same materials. When we’re in a healthy vibrational state, we resonate with the frequencies of the Earth. We’re able to remain rooted and grounded, and this supports our health in myriad ways.

Yet, over the course of our lives, many of us gradually get off balance and ungrounded, and one of the main influences on this ungrounding is our relationship with technology.

Giving so much of our attention to technological communication, social media, and entertainment can have very detrimental effects on our wellbeing…

Unconscious use of technology often leads to energy leaks, as we can easily become corded to other people and online groups.

Addiction to various media and obsession with information are also common, and both knock us out of alignment with the truth held in the earth.

Without discernment, we can become unwittingly programmed by ideas that do not serve our true nature—we become susceptible to whatever is in the field of mass consciousness and our decisions become driven by false fears rather than divine guidance.

Technology’s ungrounding influence doesn’t just happen through the information it allows us to receive, either—it also carries frequencies that our human bodies have not fully adapted to. The full impact of EMFs and other frequencies emitted by new devices are still emerging.

To be clear, the broad field of technology is neutral. Just within my lifetime I’ve seen developments that save lives, increase creative expression, and foster peace. I’ve also seen how it can be used to create chaos and inflict harm.

In either case, as technology’s impact on our lives continues to grow exponentially, we must more consciously adapt to the vast amount of new frequencies and information we’re exposed to.

When we take time to reconnect with the energies of the Earth, to ‘unplug” from tech energetically, we give ourselves the opportunity to reset our vibrational frequency to that of the Earth. We come into coherence, a state of health. This grounded state is our true nature.

Ritual to Unplug and Get Grounded

In our increasingly technological world, it’s more important than ever to energetically detach ourselves after a day in internet-land and reconnect with the physical and energetic earth. This is a beautiful ritual to end your work day with, or to do anytime you’ve just spent a lot of time online.

Find a comfortable seat or lie down.
Take a few deep breaths and bring awareness to the sensations of your body.
Bring your conscious awareness to a quiet place to rest, perhaps just behind your third eye.
See yourself and your computer or another device in your mind’s eye.
Notice any energetic cords that have hooked into you from your time online. Some might form as a result of interactions on social media. Some might be purely energetic. Knowing where they originate can be helpful, but isn’t necessary.
Witness each cord being unhooked from your energy field and returned to where it originated, flowing back into your device.
Ask for all other energy leaks, cords, or ongoing connections between you and your experience of technology to be completely severed. Feel any remaining energy entanglements draining into the earth to be cleansed and transmuted.
Feel the energetic body of the Earth rise to meet your energetic body.
Allow the resonance of the Earth’s frequency to reset your energetic system. This will happen naturally as you hold the intention to receive the healing.
Give thanks to the Earth and for the healing you’ve received.

Botanical Support

I find that using an intentionally charged aromatic spray or anointing oil greatly supports this ritual. Use one you have on hand, or visit the apothecary to check out my selection, which will be released in the coming days:

Cleanse & Protect is a good choice for supporting cord cutting and energy leaks.
Spiritual Light is a wonderful option for helping you remember your true nature.
Tree of Life helps you stay grounded to the earth while opening to divine inspiration.
Grounding does just what is says—an obvious choice for this ritual :)

Visit the apothecary to learn more.

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Earth Friends & Reciprocity (You Belong Here)

Sensitive souls feel the pain of how humans have harmed the Earth so deeply that they often feel, on a fundamental level, that we don’t belong here. Yet your “Earth friends” need you now more than ever.

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This weekend I escaped the heat and smoke of the city by heading to my favorite place on Earth—the Colorado Rocky Mountains in the traditional lands of the Ute and Cheyenne. My very generous extended family has a place up here, so I've been blessed with spending a lot of time wandering these trails and communing with mountains over the past few years.

This year, as we drove into the mountains, I felt my eyes begin to tear up. My friends were welcoming me home.

My friends. The mountains here are my friends. I feel their spirits and their love and our mutual delight in each other just as I would a human friend. The same with the trees, rocks, flowers, and animals. And with the unseen nature beings, ancestors, and land spirits that enliven and guard this place.

At this stage in our relationship, we recognize each other. I feel their warm welcome. I am overcome with heart-bursting love. And this is why teary waters stream down my cheeks.

Last night, I took a walk through the aspen after dinner. Sun was setting and the crepuscular animals were stirring. With every step, I felt the love of the earth rise to greet me. Any hint of fear gently left my being, replaced with a sense of belonging. Of reuniting with my kin.

I began to whisper, "I love you. I love you. I love you."

Reciprocity is important with the natural world. Humans aren't meant to take and take. Or even to only "receive". We are beloveds of the land, giving and receiving in the dance of life. We belong on this earth.

Our voices are powerful ways to offer reciprocity. Sing to the land. Speak your awe and your gratitude. Let the vibration of your heart dance upon subtle waves that meet with the spirits of the trees.

Near the end of my evening walk last night, after chanting my love to spirits here out loud, I rounded a corner only to find two giant moose enjoying their dinner of aspen leaves. I must have sat watching them for 20 minutes in a timeless state of joy. I find that even the smallest act of reciprocity, if infused with the purest of love, comes back tenfold. As I write this, a beautiful fox trotted out to hunt only 20 feet in front of me.

At this point, you might wonder, "But do we really belong here? We've destroyed this planet. And let's face it, the rise in fascism is revealing the stupidity of the populace."

It's true. But it's not humanity that nearly destroyed and wrought our earth with violence. It's the patriarchy. And we are dismantling it. Don't give up. Our Earth and her children still need us.

When those of us who deeply love the earth focus on all the harm humans have done, we begin to feel like we don't belong here. Think about this—we feel like we don't belong on the very planet that sustains us. Our sense of any home, of any rootedness or resting place, becomes fundamentally damaged.

In my recent post on food sovereignty, I discussed one way that our root chakras are damaged by being disconnected from the Earth. Well, this is another one. When we lack a fundamental sense of belonging on this planet, our root chakras are unable to fully function. We carry a soul-level feeling of unworthiness that makes it next to impossible to actually enter into reciprocity with the Earth.

We live in times so troublesome it's tempting to give into anger, fear, and apocalyptic thoughts. I'm certainly not immune. Yet the healing that comes from love, unconditional and divine love that cannot be broken no matter difficult our challenges, is what is called for now more than ever.

What words are you speaking? Can you be authentically angry and terrified and grieving, as well as authentically rooted and hopeful and grateful? Can you speak the truth with a vibration of love? Take the first steps of reciprocity with your voice. Begin shifting the vibrations that create our reality with your intentions and your words.

This is a gentle yet powerful step into reciprocity. And of course, I encourage more radical ones as well (like for real changing your entire lifestyle, but that's another post . . . )

We are not alone. The Earth is still our ally. And she needs our love.

Sit Spot Ritual

From Thoreau's observations of the natural cycles at Walden Pond to Monet's appreciation for the seasonal shifts in his own gardens, humans throughout the ages have deepened their relationship with the natural world through Sit Spot rituals.

A Sit Spot ritual is a wonderful way to cultivate your own relationship with the natural world and all the potential "friends" who reside there. To start a Sit Spot ritual, simply find a place in nature that you can visit regularly. This can be somewhere in the woods or outside the city, a park, or even your own backyard. Then visit this place as regularly as you can—weekly or monthly, preferably.

A few ideas for when you visit your sit spot:

Notice the seasonal and subtle changes each time—Who's blooming? What creatures are visiting? Who comes and goes throughout the seasons, and who stays?
Choose a constant nature spirit to connect with each time—a tree, a rock, a stream
Ask to feel the presence of the other spirits of the land—ancestors, fae, guardians
Learn a bit about the land you're on—Who were the original people of the land? How did it form? What brought you to this place?
Get grounded—Sink your energetic roots into the earth to strengthen your root chakra and sense of belonging.
Bring your journal or sketchbook—You can alternate between tracking what you see and feel, and allowing spirit to communicate you through automatic writing or drawing.
Use your voice—Speak to the spirits of the land and share all that's in your heart. Sing your gratitude for your relationship with them.
Bring offerings—seed crystals, feathers, a hair, flowers, mandala creation, healing rituals
Receive, as well—The land may offer you an extraction or cleansing, a blessing, messages, or even physical gifts.

You do belong here. You are important. Let the land show you how much your presence is needed.

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Who is your Spirit Animal? A 4-Step Guide for Understanding Our Animal Allies

How to understand the unique gifts and messages of your animal allies

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How often have you had an unusual encounter with an animal and immediately wondered, “What does it mean?”

Perhaps you saw an owl in daylight. Or you kept noticing images of elephants everywhere. Or maybe a huge spider appeared right in front of you on the sidewalk.

If you’re like many spiritually-inclined folks, the first thing you’ll want to do in these situations is google what that animal “means”.

I understand the temptation, but please—hold off!

The universe and spirit have many ways of communicating with us, including animal messengers. And the universe does not play by a set of preexisting rules. The messages each animal carries will be unique to you, and no book or website can tell you the full meaning of your encounter.

The same is true of power animals—spiritual helpers in animal form who share their gifts and medicine with us. While a bit of research can certainly be helpful, if you dive right in to other people’s interpretations, you’ll be more likely to miss important elements of your personal relationship with your power animal.

Animal messenger or “normal animal doing normal things”?

I can hear it now . . . Sometimes a bird is just a bird. It doesn’t have to mean anything.

That’s true. Not everything has to mean something.

But I have to be honest—one of my biggest pet peeves in spiritual communities is dismissing others’ experiences in this way.

Because the truth is, the universe is always communicating with us. Who are you to say what does or doesn’t have meaning for another person?

The great Advaita scholar Richard Miller, PhD, once spoke to this in a training while teaching us about the art of welcoming. As he explained, it’s too exhausting to keep trying to figure out which parts of life are trying to tell us something and which parts are so-called “normal life”, so he has the practice of “welcoming everything as a messenger”.

This practice of welcoming is a beautiful way to fall deeper into relationship with all of life. Every sensation, emotion, encounter, or insight can provide an opportunity to open to and learn from spirit.

If this sounds overwhelming, not to worry. This doesn’t mean you need to go through life looking at every little thing as a symbol to decipher or every animal as a messenger bearing life-altering news. Instead, it means that spiritual guidance is always available to us. To access this wisdom:

Relax. You don’t need to overwhelm yourself by seeing every little thing that happens as a critical message. You will notice what you need to notice.
If something does catch your attention, even if it’s something very common and “normal”, trust your intuition and recognize that you are noticing it for a reason.
You can also set an intention to receive a message from a spirit via the natural world. Bring your awareness into your heart, send your request to spirit, and then open your awareness, letting your attention wander and draw you to your answers.
Finally, once something does call your awareness, use the process outlined below to discover the meaning and messages it holds for you.

When to Pay Attention

Many teachers share that for an animal to actually mean something, rather than be a simple sighting, it must show itself to you four times. For example, let’s say you see a hawk on a walk, then on TV, then hear the word “hawk” in a conversation, and then find a hawk feather.

Still others will note that if an animal is behaving in an unusual way, it could very well carry a message for you.

If either of these happen, definitely pay attention.

And if you only see a normal animal doing normal things, but feel that there is a message for you, trust that too.

Maybe the Message is Love

Sometimes when our attention is drawn to something in nature—a beautiful flower, an animal sighting, or an unusual cloud—we’re receiving a blessing. In this case, you don’t necessarily need to go through the process below. Simply receive your hello from spirit and know that the “message” is love.

So, when you encounter an animal—whether a messenger in nature or an actual power animal—what are you to do? How do you figure out what the message is? How do you know what gifts your power animal carries?

Here’s the process I recommend for understanding your animal messengers and power animals. This is based on years of working with my own animal spirit guides and those of my clients.

Step 1: Journey to the Spirit of the Animal

Journey to the spirit of the animal. Ask them to teach you about themselves and your relationship. If you don’t have a journey practice, you can meditate on the following prompts.

If the animal in question is one you’ve encountered in ordinary reality, you might like to ask:

Are you here to share a message with me, or are you appearing to bring my awareness to a new power animal relationship? Or both?
What is the message you bring me?

If you’ve received a power animal, whether from a power animal retrieval or another means, you might like to explore some or all of the following questions:

What medicine do you carry?
What gifts would you like to share with me?
How may I carry your medicine?
What areas of life can you help me with?
Why are you appearing in my life now?
Are you a new power animal, or have you been with me for sometime?
May I have an attunement to your energy?
What name may I call you by?

If you don’t have a journey practice, or if you simply want support in going deeper, an experienced shamanic practitioner can help you discover personal gifts and messages from your animal spirit guides. This is one of my favorite things to do in a session ;)

Step 2: Use What You Already Know

After you’ve done your journey or meditation, think about any preexisting ideas or knowledge you already have about this animal. This process can provide many clues as to how the animal will support you.

Ask yourself:

What is my immediate reaction to this animal? Am I excited, fearful, surprised?
What symbology or associations do I think of first?
Are there any stories or myths that come to mind?
What character traits do I personally connect with this animal?

Then, reflect on what your answers might mean for either a message, or for unique gifts a power animal might share with you.

Step 3: Do Some Research

Once you’ve finished this personal exploration, it’s time to learn more about your animal in ordinary reality. Try to find out:

What do they eat?
Where do they live?
What is their social nature? Family dynamics?
What unique features stand out about this animal?
When are they most active? Quietest?
What are their biggest threats?
What do you find most fascinating about this animal?

Ask yourself how the following information might help you understand either the message or your power animal’s gifts.

Step 4: Access Our Collective Wisdom and Mythologies

Finally, go ahead and look up existing ideas, symbolism, and mythology about your power animal might mean. Even though we don’t want to fill our minds with other people’s and cultures’ ideas first, this information can be helpful.

As you explore, pay attention to a few things:

What feels right and relevant? Where do you get an immediate hit or “ah-ha” moment?
What doesn’t feel right or relevant? Not everything you read will relate your personal relationship.
Does the animal have any particular meanings within your own ancestry? What about within other cultures you feel especially connected to?*

*Make sure to explore a variety of cultural mythologies at this stage, as each might have quite different interpretations of your animal. For example: In North America, many indigenous tribes associate the owl with death. Yet in Greek and Roman mythology, the owl was a bearer of wisdom. Though in China the owl was viewed as an ominous creature, the Japanese considered the owl to be a sign of good fortune.

I’ll also encourage you to avoid the spirit guide websites out there—in my experience, many of them seem to exist just for profit and do not have the depth of meaning you can find in a book, such as Ted Andrew’s Animal Speak or Jamie Sam’s Medicine Cards. If you’re looking online, visiting sites that detail mythological or symbolic associations from more academic perspectives can be useful.

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Receiving messages from spirit through the natural world is a gift that has been bestowed on humanity since the beginning of our species on this planet. Be gentle with yourself as you learn to read the signs and deepen your relationship with the natural world. It is your birthright.

And, while the steps outlined here can initiate your journey into understanding your power animal, getting to know your power animal and its gifts is a lifelong journey. Revisit each of these steps often, and make sure to nurture your relationship with your power animal just as you would with a beloved friend.

Want more insights and guidance around spirit animals? Be sure to get your copy of The Spirit Animal Guidebook today.

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Animal messenger or “normal animal doing normal things”?

A Shamanic Guide to Illness & Health

Explore the five main causes of illness from a shamanic perspective―and how to heal them.

TAKE A POWERFUL STEP TOWARD THE LIFE YOU'RE HERE TO LIVE.

Step 1: Journey to the Spirit of the Animal

Step 2: Use What You Already Know

Step 3: Do Some Research

Step 4: Access Our Collective Wisdom and Mythologies

Download Your FREE Guide to Flower Essences

Download Your FREE Guide to Flower Essences