MARCH- "I was feeling the Earth move beneath me..."

           I was on a trip to Machu Picchu in Peru with a retreat group. During one of our major hikes through the jungle we were traveling towards a sacred location in the ruins called Oola. When we arrived we prepared for a ritual where the ten or twelve of us made a medicine wheel out of our standing positions that faced North, South, East and West. We were all synced in meditation listening to the sounds of the chanting and drumming of the native shaman that led us to this location. Each of us had our eyes closed as we swayed together, trying to keep still in the hot, muggy, insect infested jungles of Peru. All of a sudden I was startled but the strong shift in energy of everyone around me beginning to dance wildly. I could feel and hear their stomping and forceful movements. I wondered if I had entirely missed an instruction from the shaman and the guides. I felt so confused so I peeked out of my eyes so that I could look around me. To an even greater shock, all I saw was the rest of the party standing silently and motionless with all eyes closed.  I looked behind me and there was nothing but empty ruins, and the jungle that enclosed this area that we were in. Nothing could be seen or heard apart from the chanting and drumming in front of me. So I closed my eyes again. Within seconds that powerful burst of energy flowed through me and around me, until I could feel the earth beneath me shaking with what I could only perceive to be the ceremonial dancing of the long deceased indigenous people of Machu Piccu. I began to lose the shock factor and allowed myself to let go and tap further into what I was experiencing. It was so invigorating to feel the presence of the people that used to also perform rituals and ceremonies in that very spot that we were standing. I was feeling the Earth move beneath me, the footsteps and rhythms intertwining with the planet's vibrations as well as the frequencies of those people around me, who dared to travel amazing distances to stand in that spot. When the ceremony was completed we moved on, and later that night by candlelight a young girl in my travel group began to describe a similar experience to mine, only she was able to tap into the auditory, tactile and visuals of the celebrating natives. She was seeing what I was feeling that day at the ruins, and I was so grateful to hear her descriptions of what the natives actually looked like to help me re-experience it all over again.

Anonymous- West Palm Beach, Florida

Artist- Veanne Cao, San Francisco, California    Veanne's Website