Sitting With the Dead - April 11, 2020
Dear Friends,
Last week I was on the phone with Priestess Kimberly Moore of Motherhouse of the Goddess (who is also a member of our Temple here) and we were discussing the fact that the massive and swiftly climbing death toll from Covid-19 has created a great deal of restlessness and confusion in the space between life and death for many spirits.
Shamanically speaking, and according to the Tibetan dharma, spirits wandering in confusion who died suddenly or under traumatic circumstances need our love, help, and guidance to find their way home. Several members of our Temple have also reported to me that you are experiencing some of the signs of spirit activity, such as dreams, visions, a vague sense of presence, items going missing or moving around, hearing whispers, and sensing someone is watching when no one is there. These are all signs of heightened spirit activity.
To help with this stream of newly-dead souls who are making their way between the worlds now, Kimberly and I are inviting the members of our Temples to offer the following practice at your own altar every Saturday:
Sitting With the Dead
You will need:
Frankincense oil in a diffuser or Frankincense to burn in an incense burner
A candle
A glass of fresh water
A printout or e-copy of the following prayer by Appalachian Priestess Byron Ballard:
A Prayer for the Dead
You have come to the end of this pathway
In a journey to which we bear witness.
You have come to the end of a pathway
That is barred with a gate and a door.
May this door open swiftly and silently.
May this gate give you a moment’s grace
In which to rest your spirit before you venture through.
We stand here with you, as your companions,
As your family, for you are beloved.
But, for now, we must remain here.
We can not go with you to this old land.
Not yet.
For you will see the Ancestors.
You will see the Beloved Dead.
You will walk among the Divine Beings
That guide and nurture us all.
You go to dwell in the lands
Of summer and of apples
where we dance
forever youthful, forever free.
We can hear the music in the mist
The drums that echo our sad hearts.
We can see your bright eyes and your smile.
And so we open the gate.
We push back the door.
We hold the gate open.
We glance through the doorway,
And with love and grief and wonder
We watch you walk through.
Hail the Traveler!
All those remembered in love, in honor,
Live on.
Farewell, o best loved,
O fairest,
Farewell
The working is simple: each Saturday at any time of day, light the candle and incense, place the cup of water next to them, and then recite the prayer.
Afterwards, sit for as long as you wish, sending light to the spirits that might be confused, wandering, or stuck between worlds. If you are a medium or a deathwalker and you can actually see or hear the spirits, offer them counsel and comfort, and help them cross fully into the Oneness Light.
On the Saturday nearest the Dark Moon, Kimberly and I are going to try to arrange a Zoom or conference call with the members of both our Temples to do this working together and to discuss our experiences.
I hope this simple offering can help those spirits who were torn away from life suddenly, so that they can find peace and comfort 🙏🏼
Thank you for adding your prayers and energies to this practice if you feel so called. I plan to do this right before my weekly Tara Ritrö Loma Gyönma practice at 12noon Pacific each Saturday.
Praying, as ever, for the well-being and health of all,
Yeshe