Flowering Tree Ceremony

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Walk out into nature with a notebook and your intention to make this ceremony. Give yourself time for this work, as long as you can but at least one hour.

You may like to smudge yourself first or light a candle to clarify your focus. Find a tree willing to do ceremony with you. Follow your heart, your belly, your deep body knowing. See what it is like to let go of your intellect in this process and be guided by something else.

Let the tree choose you, listen to the tree that draws you and calls to you and trust it when you find it.

Once you know the tree you are going to work with bring it a gift or honour it in a way that that is right for you. Give thanks for the land, the tree, the oneness. Ask for support from the natural world and any inner guides and teachers you feel connected too for your process and ask permission of the place to make ceremony there.

Find 4 stones and place them in the 4 directions.

Spend some time just sitting in silence with your tree getting to know it and your surroundings.

The Flowering Tree Ceremony

South

Start with sitting with your back against the tree facing south and close your eyes. Ask yourself........

  • At the deepest place inside me how do all the messages I have received about being a woman affect how I feel about being a woman?

  • What are my emotional hungers?

  • How do I use my feelings in relation to myself and others ?

  • Feel your intent to know more about this aspect of yourself.

Then open your eyes. Let go of your thoughts and become receptive to what happens around you and inside you. Don't try to think about the questions. Offer them up to the powers of the south and see what comes back.

Take your time. Don't judge what comes. Just be totally open to be surprised to learn something new as well as meeting familiar feelings.

Once the time you need has passed start to make some notes for yourself about the messages you received, whatever they were even if they make no sense to you at the time.

Write honestly and don't censor anything.

West

Continue in the same way facing west.

Questions to reflect on......

  • At the deepest place inside me how do all the messages I received about being a woman affect how I feel about being in my body?

  • How do I inhabit my body?

  • To what extent do I listen to my body s hungers needs and to what it feels?

  • How does my attitude to my body express itself in my everyday life?

  • How do I carry myself / hold myself in my body?

  • Again feel your intent to know more of this aspect of yourself, then open your eyes

Let go of your thoughts and again become receptive to all that happens around and inside you. Don't try to think about any of these questions just offer them up to the powers of the west and see what comes back.

Take your time and again be wary of trying to make it all nice or having it all sorted or predicting anything.

Be open to what is not what you want it to be and let go.

Be open to being surprised or learning something new as well as meeting familiar things.

Again once you have completed take time to make some notes for yourself on all you experienced before turning to the north.

North

Follow the same process here,

Questions to reflect on..........

  • How do all the messages I have received about being a woman relate to how I relate to my own mind?

  • How do I feed my intellectual hungers?

  • How do I express wisdom knowledge knowing?

  • How does my breathing and thinking relate?

  • How do I use my imagination?

  • How am I receptive to myself with my mind?

  • Feel your intent to know more about yourself then open your eyes as before. Let go of your thoughts and become receptive to what happens around and inside you

Don't think about the questions, offer them to the powers of the north and receive what comes back.Take your time and note what happened when you are ready.

East

Questions......

  • At the deepest place inside me how do all the messages I have received affect my experience in relation to spirit / spiritual experience?

  • How do I relate to my spiritual hungers?

  • What are my spiritual beliefs?

  • What really matters to me?

  • How do I express that in my life?

  • How do I hide it?

  • How does my relationship to this aspect of my life determine my life?

  • Again let go of questions and offer intent to gain understanding if this aspect of yourself to the powers of the east and receive what comes back. Take your time and only after some time make notes as to your experience

Centre

Go to the centre of the tree. Find a way of being in the centre of it and then reflect....

  • At the deepest place inside me how do all the messages I have received about being a woman effect who I am as a sexual woman?

  • What are my sexual hungers?

  • How do I use my sexual energy?

  • What is the quality of my sexuality?

  • How do I relate to my female sexual nature within myself?

  • When complete again make some notes about your experience.

  • Then when you are ready find a way to thank your tree and make a small offering.

  • Later take time to reflect on what happened and on the messages you received and consider.........

  • As a woman how do I feed myself?

  • What stops me from feeding my real hungers?

  • Where and how do I limit myself?

  • Where and how do I open?

  • Where and how do I close down?

  • Send me an email if you have any questions or sharings on this experience.

 

Blessed be, Jill Xxx