The shaman arrived, looked upward at the
barren, cloudless sky, and said “Build me a hut right here, on this spot.” And
the villagers did.
When they were done, he said, “Now leave
me alone until I come out of this hut.” And they did as he requested—vacating
the area as he walked into the hut and closed the entrance flap.
After three days and nights, the old
shaman stiffly pushed the flap aside and peered out at the world around him through
squinting eyes, and smiled.
He then placed his mat on the ground in
front of his hut, and sat cross-legged, in deep calmness and repose. Shortly
after his reappearance from the hut, the clouds began to gather above him—a few
at first, very wispy and light, then more and more clouds appeared, until they
built one upon another and reached high into the heavens.
As the sky began to darken, all the
villagers heard it—the distant rumble of the Thunder Beings stirring to life.
The people came running to the shaman’s hut to see him perform his sky magic.
As they gathered, oohing and ahhing at
the ever-increasing clouds forming above them, the shaman sat quietly in
peaceful repose, smiling and saying nothing.
Soon a drop of water plopped down,
hitting someone in the head. The person squealed with delight, shouting, “RAIN!
It’s raining! He did it!”
Then a second drop plopped down on a
child’s eager face, looking upward at the precious water falling so delicately—teasing
them with promises of what might happen next.
And as the villager’s moods changed from
desperation and despair, to glee and anticipation, the heavens opened wide, and
the Thunder Beings let loose a tremendous roar with lightning flashes streaking
over the nearby mountain peaks. The rains began to pour forth over the land with
generosity and abundance.
The old shaman continued sitting serenely,
unmoving, unflinching, as the villagers danced all about him. They wanted to
hug him and thank him for his “magic” but there was something about the shaman
that made them stay away, even in their own jubilation. His power was
mighty—his reputation as the best weather shaman in the land was well-known by
all.
But today he didn’t look the part of the
fierce brujo he was often described as being, he was simply extremely composed,
serene, and at peace.
The villagers continued to dance about
him, in the now-forming mud, splashing and shouting, and hugging each other
until they were exhausted, collapsing on the ground around the shaman, still
singing joyfully with hoarse voices and slapping themselves through their soggy
clothes.
In a few more moments, all became
silent—as silent as the shaman still unmoving before them, and they bowed their
heads in silent prayers of gratitude and appreciation for all they had just
received.
The shaman opened his eyes, smiled
broadly, and gathered his “tools”—his feathers, his rattles, his sage, his
other special stones and sacred objects, and began to leave as the rains
continued to pour across his shoulders.
The village elder jumped to his feet
yelling, “Wait! Wait Great One! Come back! Let us celebrate! Let us pay you in
some way.”
The old shaman turned slowly back to the
people who sat staring in disbelief but appreciation at him, and said, “I am
NOT the Great One. I simply came back into balance WITH the Great One—Great
Spirit, and HE let the rains fall. I merely held the space of balance in the land for you, until you could hold it for
yourselves.”
Then he turned and walked away.
And
WHY did I tell this old story now?
Because that’s what we are trying to
do—all of us who attempt to hold a higher frequency in the midst of chaos all
around us. We are trying to bring the world back into balance. But it requires
more than trying to do so. It requires that we actually DO it.
And to bring this chaotic world back
into balance again, we first have to come into balance ourselves—to hold the
space for others to follow us.
For like the ancient shaman, it is better
cultivating our relationship with Great Spirit that paves the way for others to
offer gratitude and appreciation for the many gifts of this life that we
receive daily.
Give thanks joyfully and often.
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