Spiritual Empowerment Resources Spiritual Retreat for Visioning and Prayer
In these important spiritual times, I hardly meet anyone anymore who is only walking one path, unless they are dedicated teachers within that spiritual path.
I have walked a blended-tradition Spirit Path all my life, even before I knew what that meant. Although raised in a fundamental Christian atmosphere, I always knew God could be found in any Spirit Path of the heart. Within the Native American teachings,
I learned about a valuable spiritual tool for empowerment, acceleration and visioning. It is called Sacred Moon Lodge. Please note that the information here is the result of my own dedicated practice of Moon Lodge and not at all representative of the traditional
teachings of any particular group of people.
I offer a free ebook on this site, which you may have seen mentioned on other pages. That spiritual prophecy came from my decision to start practicing Sacred Retreat in the way of moontime isolation. I consider moontime isolation to be one of the
strongest catalysts in my own spiritual development and awareness. It is one of the most powerful tools spiritual women have for enhancing intuition, dreamtime work, healing energies
and spiritual connection to source. A physical benefit I experienced, in addition to all the powerful spiritual benefits, was that I had a marked reduction
in PMS symptoms. Another unexpected and joyful result was that my creativity soared. In retrospect, this makes sense on a very practical level because most of us never take time
out from the daily grind for long enough to let our Divine Creative Juices get stimulated. Also, my
This information is included on the site for spiritual women who may not be familar with Moon Lodge as a spiritual tool. I offer the following information on
how I have conducted my own Sacred Retreats in the past, for those who might wish to introduce moontime isolation into their lives.
You are free to copy it and send it to friends
but this is part of a
copywritten book which I offer free of charge and cannot be sold without my express permission. Thank
you for respecting
my rights in this regard. I further ask that the information not be edited. If you wish to add your own comments, that is fine but leave the rest in tact. The following information is my give-away to
you:
One way to practice Moontime Isolation
Please note: As has been said before, and for complete clarity, please note that my experiences with moontime isolation and Sacred Retreat is
my own. It has been an intensely personal journey for me and I share it, not to say this is the way to do it, but this is one way it was done
successfully. You may want to
read
Buffalo Woman Comes Singing by Brooke
Medicine Eagle, or other resources on the subject. Please
disregard any suggestions that do not feel appropriate for you. I do not,
as yet, have an actual
Moon Lodge. I simply use the healing sanctuary in my home.
Take care in choosing your Sacred Retreat Location Consider noise levels
and house traffic, when choosing a room in the home for retreat. If you have more
than one bathroom, ask everyone to use one while the other is reserved for
your use only. Avoid
contact with others as much as possible, whenever you must exit the room
for any
reason. Another option would be to locate an organization that offers Moon Lodge Space or just
any retreat space where you could go and be left alone.
Commit to the silence When I am in Moontime Isolation, I do not speak with
anyone or answer the
phone. The only exception I make to that rule is if a Sister needs healing
or other help, while I am
in Lodge. Females may usually enter my Lodge and receive healing work, with
speaking held to
the absolute minimum. Contact with the outside world distracts and diffuses
focus, so I avoid it.
If I am led to sing or pray aloud, I do. Otherwise, I maintain silence.
Speak with your
family/roommates beforehand, explaining the need for and importance of
silence. This means no
knocking at the door with "just one question". If matters arise that demand
immediate response, a
note can be slipped under the door. In particular, avoid contact with
anyone who is male. Strong
yang energies are contra-indicated during Moon Lodge.
This is a time of renewal, not fasting I do not fast during Moontime Isolation.
I always take food into Lodge with me and I choose foods that I like. Foods that
are nourishing as well as comforting and enjoyable. If you are lucky enough to have
a mate who respects this time of Sacred Retreat, you can ask to have meals left at the door, with a single
rap on the door to let
you know, or take all the food you will need in beforehand. A Moon Lodge is
a time of renewal.
Fasting is neither required or recommended. There are other times for
suffering and sacrifice, but
this time is for nurturing.
Connecting with others strengthens Sacred Retreat Time Ask your
family and others of your spiritual circle
to pray with you, and connect with you while in Lodge. You will feel their
support and the
prayerful attitude will automatically keep noise to a minimum in the
house.
Focus on Renewal, Prayer and Visioning, Not Work I may do creative things,
such as painting or reading, but I do
no work in Lodge that is not renewing and enjoyable. The channeling of the
energies will be quite
demanding enough, without adding other chores to your time in Lodge.
Trust Non-Linear Time: I have
learned that whatever amount of time I
have for each Lodge, if I am willing to completely submit to it, is
sufficient. If it is three days,
then that is what is needed. If it is three hours, the work still gets
done. Spirit has no problem
compressing a great deal of Spirit work into a tiny smidgen of Earth time.
Time is our creation,
not Spirit's, and only restricts the work possible in Lodge if we expect it
to, worry about it, push
for results, or resent not having more time to isolate. Give yourself over
to whatever is possible
each month, commit to the process, and you will have the time you need. Be
gentle with
yourself--you are probably not used to living this way, and a period of
adjustment is
normal. Great Spirit understands that most of us do not have the luxury of
a community that supports our retreat time, and we must work within the
structures of our jobs, family commitments, etc. Just begin. It will be
enough.
Utilize the Potent Prayer Potential during Moontime Isolation Prayers in
Lodge are tremendously powerful and are always to include all others.
A Lodge spent only praying for yourself is not only counter-productive but
might actually be
impossible. The nature of the Moon Lodge energies--the feminine, receptive
energies of the
Divine Mother--automatically seems to pull the focus outward from selfish
concerns. I speak as
one who is not above selfish prayer. I can be as self-centered and operate
as stubbornly from ego-based needs as anyone I know. Yet, in Lodge, I find
that I rarely pray a prayer that is strictly for
myself. Some Lodges, I am so consistently praying for others that I have
little awareness of self
at all.
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A Potent Moontime Ritual Gifting the Earth
One of the moontime rituals I read about, I think in Brooke Medicine Eagle's book,
is the gifting of menstrual fluid to Mother Earth.
I had a very strong vision when meditating in moontime isolation and in that
vision, I was shown
the Subterraniums beneath the Earth. They were extremely busy, collecting
menstrual gifts and
taking them to under-nourished points on the Earth surface. Then, I was
above the Earth, looking
down and I witnessed flowing streams of women's issue crossing the surface
of the Earth, coming
from four directions and meeting at the top. As it traveled, the blood
burned the surface like
molten lead. As the parched and scorched "skin" of Earth peeled back, I
could see the New Earth
underneath. In honor of that vision, I make a blood offering (as a closing
ritual) at the end of
each Moon Lodge. It is a knowing in me that this is not just a symbolic
gesture but a powerful
practice that creates actual, physical Earth changes each time I (or other
women) do it. The
giving of the blood in this way is a genuine catalyst for healing the
planet.
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