Stillness in the Storm

An Agent for Consciousness Evolution

5 Ways a Parent Can be Like a Shaman

By Leave a Comment

Spread the love


(Bhavika) “There is no such thing as a perfect parent. So just be a real one.” ~ Sue Atkins Being a parent is not an easy task, we all know that. It is challenging, but at the same time it’s can be a beautiful rewarding journey. While we do our best to raise our child/children in the most suitable environment to the best of our ability, a shift in perspective can bring about a radical change in our approach to parenthood. During my early childhood teacher training at a Waldorf center, my entire perspective underwent a major transformation. I realized that our role as a parent can be compared to the role of a shaman, who guides people on their individual path. Children too are ‘little people’ who according to Rudolph Steiner have chosen their parents to help them find their true purpose.



Related: Shamanic Perspectives On Disclosure With Lujan Matus


Source – Fractal Enlightenment

by Bhavika, November 1st, 2017

Create the Environment

A shaman creates the environment for the individual to be completely immersed in their journey. During a ceremony the shaman will probably light candles, burn sacred herbs/incense, sing, drum, include elements of nature and so on. All this put together (along with other factors) creates the environment to do inner work. Similarly, parents have to create the environment for the child to flourish, nurture his developmental and spiritual needs. If the environment is conducive and healthy, the child too will become a balanced individual. Advertisements Children act like mirrors reflecting our emotions and moods. For instance, few months ago our 6-year old son was showing very cold behavior in school and at home, ‘I don’t care’ attitude, lack of reverence and not listening to his teacher or his parents. The teacher brought this to our attention and also asked us about his home environment. On introspection we realized that we were exhibiting the same kind of behavior at home (due to work and a financial situation), and this was reflecting on him. Children can sense much more than we can imagine and it doesn’t mean perfection, but rather honesty with ourselves and children sense that. When the home environment improved, so did his behavior. This was an awakening of sorts that made me realize the importance of being conscious of my actions, emotions and behavior.

Hold Space for your child 
“There are only two lasting bequests we can hope to give our children. One of these is roots, the other, wings.” ~ Goethe Parents have to hold space for the child, just how the shaman holds space for the participants in a ceremony. The shaman doesn’t give instructions of behaving in a certain way or being dressed in this fashion, but merely guides with his actions (of course there are certain guidelines before entering a ceremony). Nowadays parents are only heard giving instructions or sermons on how to behave or what values to adopt, do this, don’t do that, follow this etc etc. Children don’t need lessons, they imitate, they learn by observing the environment and people around them. Parents can only lead by example. “Compassion is not a relationship between the healer and the wounded. It’s a relationship between equals.” ~ Pema Chödrön Provide a compassionate support system that can give the child courage to bear the burdens that every one has to carry. Holding space is a valuable blessing. To feel what they should feel. Be open, attuned, flexible, and compassionate to our children and to ourselves. Guide them with modesty and thoughtfulness, just how a shaman would.

Sing to them on their journey 
Often shamans sing icaros and traditional healing songs during rituals that help the participants in his individual process. Similarly, a mother sings songs to her child while putting him to sleep to guide them to a different realm and space. This routine instantly comforts a child and takes them to their dream world. Even in their waking life, songs and music puts a child at ease and is a wonderful way to bond with the little ones. 
Keep the labels away 
“Your kids require you most of all to love them for who they are, not to spend your whole time trying to correct them.” ~ Bill Ayers A shaman is non judgmental and refrains from labeling the individual, no matter how he/she reacts in the ceremony. If parents do the same, life would become much easier for the entire family. Labeling a child naughty or good or bad is just the society’s way of ignoring the beauty and uniqueness of each child. Its not only restricting but can also have a detrimental effect on the child. Learn to embrace their uniqueness. Parents must offer support to their children while encouraging them to find their own path.

Working with the Inner Self 
Shamans have to do their own inner work which is always quite intense. Before they can heal others they have to go through years of initiation because only when you heal yourself can you heal others. Being parents gives us the opportunity to heal ourselves. Children have this uncanny ability to bring those repressed emotions or hidden wounds to the surface (yes, they do if you pay close attention). Better than any zen master or therapist, our children draw out our fears and anger. Only when we address those unhealed aspects of us that are buried deep within and transform them into something more meaningful can we be better parents. Each day is an opportunity for learning, growing, and loving more deeply. Don’t shy away from that intense inner work to not only become better individuals but also mindful parents.


About the Author


Bhavika is a nature-loving, spiritual being and co-founder of Fractal Enlightenment, who strives to help fellow beings re-connect with nature and their inner selves. Thank you for being part of this journey.

_________________________
Stillness in the Storm Editor’s note: Did you find a spelling error or grammar mistake? Do you think this article needs a correction or update? Or do you just have some feedback? Send us an email at [email protected] with the error, headline and url. Thank you for reading.

Notices and Disclaimers

We need $2000 per month to pay our costs. Help us one time or recurring. (DONATE HERE)

To sign up for RSS updates, paste this link (https://stillnessinthestorm.com/feed/) into the search field of your preferred RSS Reader or Service (such as Feedly or gReader).

Subscribe to Stillness in the Storm Newsletter

“It is the mark of an educated mind to be able to entertain a thought without accepting it.” – Aristotle

This website is supported by readers like you.

If you find our work of value, consider making a donation. 

Stillness in the Storm DISCLAIMER: All articles, videos, statements, claims, views and opinions that appear anywhere on this site, whether stated as theories or absolute facts, are always presented by Stillness in the Storm as unverified—and should be personally fact checked and discerned by you, the reader. Any opinions or statements herein presented are not necessarily promoted, endorsed, or agreed to by Stillness, those who work with Stillness, or those who read Stillness. Any belief or conclusion gleaned from content on this site is solely the responsibility of you the reader to substantiate, fact check, and no harm comes to you or those around you. And any actions taken by those who read material on this site is solely the responsibility of the acting party. You are encouraged to think carefully and do your own research. Nothing on this site is meant to be believed without question or personal appraisal.

Content Disclaimer: All content on this site marked with “source – [enter website name and url]” is not owned by Stillness in the Storm. All content on this site that is not originally written, created, or posted as original, is owned by the original content creators, who retain exclusive jurisdiction of all intellectual property rights. Any copyrighted material on this site was shared in good faith, under fair use or creative commons. Any request to remove copyrighted material will be honored, provided proof of ownership is rendered. Send takedown requests to [email protected].

What is our mission? Why do we post what we do?

Our mission here is to curate (share) articles and information that we feel is important for the evolution of consciousness. Most of that information is written or produced by other people and organizations, which means it does not represent our views or opinions as managing staff of Stillness in the Storm. Some of the content is written by one of our writers and is clearly marked accordingly. Just because we share a CNN story that speaks badly about the President doesn’t mean we’re promoting anti-POTUS views. We’re reporting on the fact as it was reported, and that this event is important for us to know so we can better contend with the challenges of gaining freedom and prosperity. Similarly, just because we share a pro/anti-[insert issue or topic] content, such as a pro-second amendment piece or an anti-military video doesn’t mean we endorse what is said. Again, information is shared on this site for the purpose of evolving consciousness. In our opinion, consciousness evolves through the process of accumulating knowledge of the truth and contemplating that knowledge to distill wisdom and improve life by discovering and incorporating holistic values. Thus, sharing information from many different sources, with many different perspectives is the best way to maximize evolution. What’s more, the mastery of mind and discernment doesn’t occur in a vacuum, it is much like the immune system, it needs regular exposure to new things to stay healthy and strong. If you have any questions as to our mission or methods please reach out to us at [email protected].

Reader Interactions

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.