“The Tie that Binds”
by Guide
Chandonn
copyright 1998, all rights reserved.
first performed 9/9/98
[This group meditation focuses on the Web of Life and the connections
we make between us. Somwhere along the line it also started to turn into
a sermonette.]
Around you all is dark. But there is a strange white light here. You watch
as it beomes brighter. Soon it is white and cloudy everywhere you look. You
are in a dense fog bank and every direction looks the same.
You find a direction which feels safe to you and begin walking that way.
You may wish to call a spirit animal to walk with you. Something ahead of
you seems to call out to you as you travel. The mist begins to grow thinner.
You now discover that you are walking along a dirt path through a dense,
foggy forest. You hear the birds in the trees above you and you smell the
dew in the fog around you. It is morning here and the fog is just beginning
to rise. The cool morning air greets you along your journey. But there is
no breeze. All is still as you walk silently the path you have chosen.
You begin to feel a sense of purpose to your journey, as though you are nearing
a great destination. Bits of sky appear above you and above the tree-tops.
Gradually the dark shapes of the trees become clearer and their green leaves
become visible to you.
The fog is now becoming much thinner. Ahead of you the trees seem to thin
a bit and then there is a large gap, as though a field. Far away there seem
to be more trees, still caught in the foggy morning.
The sun becomes warm now, melting away the last of the fog. And as you come
to the edge of the forest you discover that the gap in the trees is a great
valley. The path goes straight down through the dense grasses and bushes
in the valley. You can't see the end of the path, for it bends around a hill
ahead of you. The feeling of destiny becomes stronger.
But why are you here? and where are you going? You look down at the path
and a small scroll is lying at your feet. You pick it up and unroll it. It
reads "Find the tie that binds".
As you look around you the fog is now gone and the trees and bushes shine
in the late morning sunlight. The air is warmer now and the breeze seems
to whisper your name, and call you forward.
You walk on down the path, nearing the bend around the hill. The smell of
the flowers is inviting, and the insects jump and play in the grasses around
you. Birds soar in the air above you and a cat briefly jumps out of a pile
of brush and pounces on an unsuspecting mouse before disappearing again into
the tall grass.
You arrive at the bend in the hill. The feeling drawing you forward is much
stronger here. And as you turn the corner of the hill you discover a lake
at the bottom of the valley. This is where your path leads.
You climb down the path and begin to get nearer the lake. There are many
animals here sharing the water: some drinking, some bathing, and some just
relaxing in the cool breezes which sweep across this lake. You watch the
ripples in the water as the wind gently blows.
As you climb down to the shore of the lake, a cow gently calls to you --
welcoming you to the water. As you watch, the animals carry on, each about
his own task.
You notice how each one does his own thing, yet they all depend on one another
to survive. You see lions and gazelles in the grasses. You see cats and mice
in the fields of grain. You see the birds, and the bugs, and the fish...
Every life feeds on another life. And each life supports the others. This
is the Web of Life.
Now bend down and share the water. Take a drink from the lake which feeds
these others. Feel the cool water flow to every part of our body. Nourishing...
Refreshing...
Now, as you watch, you see thin rays of light coming out of each creature
here. The light rays connect from one animal to another, to the plants, and
to the lake. The area looks light a giant web of misty light.
Here is the tie that binds -- the link between you and me,
the others, and the holy. The lake is sacred. The lake is life. And we all
share its waters. When one is born we bathe him in its warm waters. And when
one dies we cleanse the body here as well. And when one ray of light here
is gone others come to take its place. We celebrate the light that was and
we welcome the new light.
Your journey to find the tie has been successful. As you watch, the light
between all life grows brighter and the mist grows thicker. Everything is
enveloped in a white bank of mistiness, until at last you are standing in
the bright fog once again.
Created by Guides Chandonn,
Hypatia X, and
Sophia X Pharou
Last modified:
06/20/2009