yin energy Archives - the Numinous

Reclaim your femininity and embrace your personal power with the aid of lily healing, says Camilla Blossom Bishop… Artwork: Dasha Lyskovets

I am a flower whisperer. And recently I have been hearing the voice of the lilies—the feminine flowers of rebirth—whose message is for us is to create our own lives, and in doing so create a new Earth. Lily healing wants us to treasure our unlimited creative potential and reclaim our feminine nature as sacred.

The power to create is the most beautiful energy on the planet—and it’s potent. Creation energy is a powerful force for good, and our bodies thrive when we express our creativity, artistically or otherwise. The lilies want us to celebrate this!

Lily healing and the lily flower deva, or spiritual icon, is inviting in a new way—a kinder, gentler, more loving and compassionate time. She wants to co-create with us to anchor new fields of expression on our planet, new paradigms. To allow our feminine intuitive selves to take the lead. And when our intuitive and feeling sense is the guiding force, nothing can be forced into being. Only presence will work in as we call in these new earth energies.

Lily power is gentle, subtle, fluid, and graceful. She works like a water Goddess to purify our emotional waters, especially regarding our sexuality, since sexuality and creativity go hand-in-hand. She can help us clear shame, guilt, and grief by connecting our heart and essential innocence with our sexuality.

I believe the lilies have chosen to speak to me now since our societies are missing important vibrational yin frequencies. For how can we express our true selves without access to our full sensual creative power? We can’t.

And the lilies want to help. Lilies bloom to remind us to take full reins of our self expression. To begin expressing ourselves to ourselves—and to then allow this to expand naturally out in the world. Accept this invitation and you will exude feminine self-love and self-worth.

Lilies blanket hills, hide in dark forests, and survive and thrive in severe weather conditions of Oregon where I live. Below are the messages these wild lilies asked me to pass on to you…

“Lilies give women permission to be women.”
Stop waiting for others to reassure you, notice you, or tell you how. You have PERMISSION to express YOU…even if others around you aren’t. Spend time feeling your own essence, listening to your womb, asking your heart what it needs, and following your intuitive guidance. Go within. Enjoy your unique feminine expression.

“Tears are your medicine.”
When I first met Avalanche Lily, a delicate white lily with petals that splay back, it was raining. All her petals were drooping with tears of rain. I felt so sad. I sat down on the wet forest floor and wept. Hard. Like the grief of womanhood had caught up with me. My frozen avalanche tears were thawing out and flowing again. This lily helped me cry. Avalanche Lily want you to cry, too. Let your tears flow. Let go of grief. Tears awaken your beautiful heart and purify your soul.

“Create! Women, Create!”
Bright orange with brown spots, the Tigress lily led me to tribal belly dancing to open up my hips and creative 2nd chakra. Tiger Lily tells you to fire up your sexual creative expression. Get those hips moving. Be wild, untamed, free.

“Create the life you want. You have the power to do this!”
I was hesitant to enter a relationship with Trillium because I was resistant to my own power. Trilliums are the midwife’s flower and hold the power of rebirth. Soul rebirth is never easy. Trillium holds you like a midwife when your soul is in labor pains. She whispers in your ear to keep going…you are birthing your sacred feminine nature. There is no going back. Let her energy move you along. It’s worth it. You’re worth it. Keep going.

“You can release the sins of our fathers.”
Queen Bead Lily is a stunning white beauty that glows in the dark forest at night. I was told: “Use this flower for the sins of our fathers.” It’s medicine has been a Goddess-send. The Queen helps you cleanse abuse trauma and cellular memory from your body with great compassion and unconditional love. Create a space of love so trauma can be released. Queen Bead Lily can offer you her compassionate presence and love.

“Do not be afraid to take up space.”
I was guided to drive up to Mt Hood when I spotted a statuesque white and pink lily. Mt Hood Lily’s heady fragrance is a delight. This glorious wild lily tells you: Be large. Take up lots of space and claim your full-sized energetic self. Make lots of room around yourself so your creativity can blossom. Spread your arms wide and say: this is my creative space! Be a glorious BIG woman.

***

Lily’s spirit is like an angel, and the lily devas will assist anyone who asks. To connect with her spirit yourself, meditate and ask the lily deva for an energetic transmission. Allow your body to receive her healing energy frequencies. Smell lily flowers, take lily flower essences, grow them in your garden, or visit them in the forest. Make lily art, poetry, books, dances, songs, and creative projects to connect with her more.

The lilies celebrate our rebirth. They celebrate our sacred bodies and the creative space we claim. The lilies offer their medicine and messages to help us realign with our innate feminine nature and self-worth. When we honor our beauty, we create a new world full of blossoming lilies. Our fragrance lingers on and touches all those who want to celebrate and reclaim the sacred feminine too.

Camilla Blossom Bishop is a catalyst for the mystical, an empath, fairy shaman, and flower essence alchemist. She has written and taught widely since 1997. She connects deeply with the spirit of nature and fosters relationship with the lands, waters, plants, nature spirit, devas, Ancestors, and nature elementals. Camilla’s products, including the White Lily Essence, are available at her on-line ETSY Shop: NatureSpiritMedicine.Or visit CamillaBlossom.com.

Elyssa Jakim’s monthly Temple of Venus column returns with some wise words on the practice of receiving… Artwork: Megan Thorp-Levitt

The paragon of the divine feminine, Venus is born of water. She, like water, receives, or takes in. Receiving then is the nature of the feminine, right? But paradoxically, we often talk about women as “givers.” The woman is the mother, the gatherer, the caretaker, the nurturer. And of course, we all give and receive, regardless of gender. But I want to posit that many of us, women in particular, are not receiving enough.

Especially if you’re an empath or a healer and a highly sensitive person, you may feel as if your tank is constantly empty. As if you’re “giving” all the time, in small and subtle ways – like giving up your ability to make decisions, giving up your lunch hour to a friend, giving up your freedom because of “should’s” or “supposed to’s.” Are you an over-giver? Venus is here to help!

The first thing to remember is that receiving is not about doing. It is about simply being and allowing. But society is set up for us to do, and do, and do some more. We’re taught to do our homework, to get good grades. We’re expected to be brilliant self-starters and become CEOs of our own empires. Our society loves masculine, Yang phrases that get us fired up like: “hit the ground running,” “just do it,” “get it done,” and “killing it.” And well, ehem, can I please get a “fuck that”?

Receiving is your birthright as a divinely feminine creature. Here are some ways to receive…

:: RECEIVE GIFTS ::

A receiving practice is really about cultivating deeper awareness about what you’re already receiving. By truly acknowledging what you receive, you can take this energy in consciously and use it to refill your tank.

A simple way to do this is to receive your gifts! Whenever someone offers to pay for you, cover the tab, or gives you some kind of gift receive it willingly. Say “thank you” with graciousness, and do not offer to pay instead. Feel into the sensation of receiving by taking a second to breathe in the kindness and the loving feelings it brings up. Visualize this feeling filling you up.

Now try it with praise. When someone compliments you, do not leap in to downplay your worthiness! Breathe it in. Receive this gift. It may feel awkward at first, but once accepted, it can feel so good. I’m going to give you one right now to practice: with “You are an incredible being, always doing the best you can. I love you and I see you.” No joke, that is the truth!

Another great way to receive more “gifts” is to ask for help and favors. Can’t reach a top shelf and a tall person is nearby? Ask them for help! This is a really simple way to receive and I’ve noticed in doing this that people really like being given a simple, discrete way to help out. Try it with kids. They LOVE it.

In fact, one of my favorite phrases about receiving is: “receiving empowers the giver.” So be a gracious receiver and empower the people who give to you. It makes everyone feel good.

:: RECEIVE THE PRESENT ::

The present moment is always ripe with abundance and possibilities, and so when we stop to just be, we get in touch with our receiving nature. We are “being” rather than “doing.” (NB: I have learned so much about this from my dear friend Lindsay Mack, who now writes the Numinous Tarotscopes).

A great way to be more present is to practice deep listening. Next time you’re in conversation, notice the cadence of your interlocutor’s speech. Notice each word. Take them in. This is deep receiving.

Is there someone in your life you can do a better job listening to? Make a commitment right now to listen more deeply in conversation with this person (I’m doing it too, believe me). Really receive his or her words, and see what you notice. Were you keeping yourself from receiving this person’s love in certain ways? How can you take in more of the love that’s all around you? Which brings me too…

:: RECEIVE NATURE ::

Nature is always waiting to shower you with her myriad gifts. So whenever your tank is really low, take any opportunity you can to find nature. Even an office plant or the sidewalk tree will help you to reset.

In many belief systems, nature is the feminine polarity of the divine — that’s why we call her “mother nature” and “mama earth.” By stepping out into nature, we are refreshed. We are filled to the brim with nature’s essence, which is a mirror of our own. We are reminded of our inner nature, which is peace, strength, love, beauty, wonder, and so much more.

An energy healing secret is this: when you’re tired, touch a tree. And on a long hike through rugged terrain, touch tons of trees! They will energize you. Once when I went out in nature with a teacher of mine, we were connecting with trees, and she was teaching me how to feel the spirit of a plant. I turned to a Ponderosa Pine and exclaimed, “This tree needs love.”

I put my hand on the tree and breathed into it. I let it take me on a little visual journey and it showed me how it was a mama bear. It grounded me. It made me feel safe. I laughed, telling her, “Obviously this tree didn’t need love. She just wanted to give me some of hers.” My teacher nodded: “That’s usually how it goes.”

It turns out, of course, Ponderosa Pine was exactly the medicine I needed for what was going on in my life at the time. So receive your dose of nature. Give your heart to the earth and she will give you so much it will bring you to your knees (in the rapturous way).

:: RECEIVE YOUR LIFE ::

This bears repeating: receiving is following your intuition. This section has fewer tangible steps, for it is intangible and highly personal – yet so many of us are striving to learn how to follow our intuition as one by one we “wake up.”

Difficult, since following your intuition may go against the Yang ways we have been taught (do your homework, go to college, no days off, time spent doing nothing is SLACKING). But this is needed in order to balance the energy on this planet right now. So, can we embrace the slack? In the Western world, we have been living in such a masculine paradigm, that it’s time to strengthen our other muscles – the intuitive receptive muscles. Yes, the pelvic floor muscles just to complete the metaphor!

So how can you be more intuitive, and open to receiving messages from spirit? Where can you put space in your life just to be and listen to your inner guidance? Here is the biggest secret of all: the Divine is standing right next to you, ready to guide you, ready to give to you every day if you let it.

So let go and let God. Do less to receive more (wisdom, love, creativity). It’s funny, it’s miraculous, but it works! And it feels damn good. Bowing to you, may you receive all the gifts and may you feel radiantly receptive, revivified, and rejuvenated.

Please note: this article is intended to be useful to all, regardless of gender. We can all use help with receiving.

Need more Venus inspiration? Check out Elyssa’s last Temple of Venus column on connecting to your inner child through crafting.

yin energy

FEMININE ESSENCE: THE POWER OF LILY HEALING

TEMPLE OF VENUS: HOW TO RECEIVE

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