Greeting Sacred Space
by Prem, Sibylline Shaman

The purpose of this ritual is an introduction to the land. It is for one or more practitioners to perform, and is useful as a means of getting to know an area and letting the area get to know you prior to consecration or inhabitation.

You Will Need

• The area to be met, it is the nature of the area with whom the working is performed.
• Running water for natural rhythm. If running water is unavailable, then any rhythmic noise-maker will work, the more natural, the better. Swirling round stones or marbles in a salad bowl filled with water will have the desired effect. This noise is a meditative and attunement aid. In warm weather, a rain shower is an excellent source of sound.
• Fresh dirt or sand. This should come from the place to be met, and should not require any digging or defiling to obtain. A handful of topsoil should suffice, preferably from the place where the working is performed so that it can be replaced when finished.
• Preparation of the site should include nothing other than preventing distraction. Do not rearrange the land, clear an area, or otherwise alter the place.

Ground and Center
Draw energy from deep within the earth and far into space. Join them, fill yourself, and feel the connection with the natural world.

Cast Shamanic Circle
Using the sound of the water or bowl instead of drums. Invite totems at each direction: east, south, west, north, above, below, and ancestrally. Take note of the totems that arrive, as some of them should be those of the area itself.

Building a Bond with the Earth
When the circle is complete, sit comfortably or lay down on the ground. Begin deep breathing. Relax. Find your totem and attune with them. Totemic guidance may be useful, as they can help make introductions where necessary. Breathe deeply and regularly. Listen to the sound. Feel your own heartbeat. If you're causing the rhythmic sound, let it taper off and end. Begin introducing yourself.

Draw energy from deep within the earth and mix your own with it. Feel the connection with the earth develop as some of your energy flows back into the ground and is replaced by the earth's. Charge yourself with it. Know what it is like to be a planet. Feel the ancientness. Feel the size. Let it know what it's like to be you. Send it a happy memory from your life and feel what it gives in return.

Pick up a handful of soil. Feel the ground itself. Rub it between your hands. Learn what soil feels like. Send your energy into it and draw forth some of its in return. Flow energy in circles between the soil and yourself. Mix the energies. Send soil another pleasant memory of a time you were close to the earth - a time you played in the mud, or built a sand castle, or slept on the ground. Let it know you and learn what it is to be it. When you have met, return the soil to the earth and feel its energy link back into the earth's.

Building a Bond with the Dwellers of the Land
Send your energy in a large sphere, extending it outward like shields, but feeling it touch everything it passes over. Feel the changes in your own energy as it becomes enriched by the others that mingle with it.

Reflect on your relationship to this land. Let your totems introduce you to the totems of the area. Feel the place as it lives in the spirit world. Touch all parts of the land with your energy and let it begin to know you.

THE TREES Their spirits are old and powerful. Introduce yourself to each one. Feel its particular energy learn the difference between the way an oak and a pine and a maple think and feel. Exchange energy with them. Let them know you and know about you. Send them your intentions for the land. Share with them your feelings and what is important to you. Ask them what is important to them.

THE ROCKS These spirits are more ancient than the trees, but also less like humans. They are hard to understand sometimes, because their energy is so different from ours. Try to understand them. Feel their needs and wants. Share your energy with them and explain what you feel and what you remember. Picture things only you can see - mountains in the distance, birds flying past, clouds, trees, grass, insects.

Cone of Power
Raise energy like a spider web. Feel it come from everything. Ask all things to give you a tiny bit of theirs in exchange for a tiny bit of yours. By now, your energy should be mixing easily and simultaneously with any energy that is given to you. Feel them each contribute a portion, and each time it comes to you, give a bit of your energy, replacing it with the energy coming off the circle. Send the energy into the earth.

Visualize
Picture a harmonious and long-lived relationship between yourself and this place. As the energy in the cone reaches its peak, feel it explode back out into the area, including yourself. Take some of the energy that was raised and focus it down into your intentions. Enact your dreams for the place.

Thanks
Thank the area for accepting you. Project your feelings of acceptance to the area and feel its acceptance of you. Thank the Totems, the Earth and the Dwellers of the Land for watching over you and being part of your introduction.

Ground and Center
Disconnect from the energy links you've made, but keep the energy mixed within you. Don't try to separate out your energy again. Make the energy you now contain your own by learning its differences and feeling your new strengths.

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