You have found your spirit or power animal, now what? (If you have not, follow this linkand get that done first.)
Well, one of the best things you can do once you have met your spirit animal, is to begin to embrace it into your life. First and foremost, you are going to begin to notice the animal every where you go. This can be by actually seeing the animal or by means of imagery or even by people talking about it. You can also begin collecting trinkets and tokens of your animal to carry to to place in your sacred or altar space. This animal is called your Power animal and has come into your life right now because it posses the qualities that you need, or rather, can teach you lessons that you need to learn. For example, my Power Animal the Stag had one message for me and has yet to move on to any others. He wants me to learn patience, (I just wish he’d hurry up already! Just kidding, ha ha.) So, by attaining imagery, trinkets or any other kind of this animal paraphernalia, you are going to bring this animal into your life by intention and be reminded of your lesson constantly. I have an appointment early next week for a fresh new tattoo, a fancy set of stag antlers on my wrist. I have this nasty habit of taping my fingers when I get impatient, do you think that will help? Methinks, yes.
There are other more spiritual ways that you can connect with your power animal, however. The first and most powerful way to do so is to Do the Dance of your Animal. This is a Shamanic (Neo-Shamanic) Practice and can be done in the comfort of your own home. To quote directly from Gail Wood and The Shamanic Witch, “Dancing the power animal will fill your body with the spirit of that animal and imprint it on your body, down to the cellular level”. And it does. It forms a blessed union between you and this sacred protector whom you have sought out, and who has agreed to be with you and protect you and teach you. Essentially what will happen in this dance, as you unit your soul with that of your spirit animal, you begin to mimic the animal behaviors of your animal, much in the same way as our ancestors have done for many moons.
Shamanic Journey: Dancing Your Spirit Animal
Before you begin, prepare your space. You want to make sure that you have complete privacy, particularly if you are someone who is self conscious about your body, or if you feel nervous about someone walking in on your while you are dancing like a wild animal. Cleanse your space. You can do this with grounding incense or the use of sage. Go around all four corners of your room and also around each door and window with the smoke. Light candles or anything else on your altar or your tools you use to center yourself. You can find a Shamanic Drum track on Youtube, Itunes or use the one I will post below and turn that on now.
Go to the center of the room, stretch your arms out wide and say, “My Dear, (your animal), please come an dance with me! My guide and Guardian, fill me with your spirit!”
If you have Shamanic tools such as a rattle, now would be the time to rattle it in each of the four directions. Keep rattling until you begin to feel the movement and rhythm within your body. I do not use a rattle. Instead I listen to the music and breathe deeply and focus on my Stag until my body feels enticed to move. Parts of your body will begin to move, twitch involuntarily and you will begin to dance on your own with needing to lead yourself. Your Spirit Animal will do this for you. At this time, you will be in a trance state, feeling wonderful and connecting with one of your greatest spiritual teachers.
Dance until you feel the energy begin to leave your body and slowly begin to bring awareness back to your physical self. I usually have a second track ready to play, a meditative track, and I sit down in a cross legged position to contemplate. And after such a dance I need a minute to breathe and slow my heart rate. This is also an excellent time to journal your experiences.
After your experience, you may notice that you feel more elevated and much more in tune with animals. You may also notice that animals come up to you out of the blue, or follow you around in public. This is okay and also a confirmation that you have successful united your spirit animal within you.
I am happy for all of you, and excited to hear about your journeys.
Namaste`