Ancient tree wisdom by John Sjovik

ANCIENT TREE

S H A R E Y O U R W I S D O M W I T H U S

C h a n n e l l e d b y J o h n S j o v i k

Not far from where I live, there is a small forest. It reminds me of something from a Harry Potter film. The forest is crisscrossed by walk paths and dirt tracks. Yet, once you have entered it, it is quite possible to lose your bearings. Oh, I love to lose my bearings and indeed myself in the magic of that forest.

Some of the trees have become close friends. I make a point of visiting them regularly. I embrace them and give them healing. I speak to them and I listen to their wisdom. They soothe me and help me regain my balance.

There are several burial mounds in the area, dating back to Bronze Age or early Iron Age. The knowledge that there have been people living there for thousands of years adds a special feeling to the place. Human activities, feelings, thoughts, desires and all aspects of past cultures have left a memory.

If you stand very still and honour the sacredness of the place, you can pick up vibrations from past times.

We close your eyes, so that we can see more clearly We stop listening, so that we can hear the soft whispers from the past We drop to our hearts, so that we can sense the emotions of our ancestors We raise our hands in greeting to those that walked before us We realize that we breathe the same air, drink the same water, and gaze at the same stars as our ancestors did And The Seven Sisters of the Pleiades dance in the night sky and we watch in awe

One of the trees is intertwined with another from the ground up. The point where they divide into separate trunks has formed a little bowl. It is filled with water, that has transmuted into a tea coloured liquid from its contact with wood, bark, leaves, fungi and all that is living on and with the tree. I consider it “holy water”.

Each time I visit the tree, I perform a small ritual, where I dip my finger into the bowl and then smear a few drops of the water onto my forehead. It is almost as if I am receiving a baptism and becoming a member of the clan of the forest.

When I visited the forest last week, I leaned my head against the tree, closed my eyes and asked for guidance. The tree spoke to me and said that it is difficult to navigate when you are standing amongst trees and unable to realize the width and breadth of the forest. If you allow spirit to lift you above the trees, you will be able to view the great expanse of the forest. If you tread carefully, you may even be able to walk on the green floor formed by the collection of tree crowns.