According to the ancient Mexican tradition, Dias de los Muertos (Oct 31-Nov 2) are special days devoted to the dead, ancestors, and ancestral healing. Ancestral healing is about becoming aware of your issues, repetitive patterns and weaknesses that didn’t start with you but originated in your lineage. Reconciliation and healing across the generations, both living and dead, is possible, especially during the Days of the Dead. What we learned from the 2022 Days of the Dead is propelling our lives forward, while also uncovering more questions which deserve investigating.
Why is this a special time?
Celebrated worldwide, the famous Days of the Dead are a special time in which the veil between the physical plane and the astral plane is the thinnest, allowing for an exceptional exchange between the world of the living and the world of the dead. All Saints Day, or Dia de los Muertos, is the only time of the year when departed loved ones can join us for a transformative experience, transmuting mourning, loss and sadness into reconciliation, healing and joy. Around the world, people place candles and flowers in cemeteries and at the graves of their deceased relatives and ancestors to celebrate and honor them.
It is said that ancestors live on into future generations through bones and blood. The issues they could not resolve during their lifetimes are passed on to their children, and their children’s children, waiting to be healed. If an issue is not resolved in the lifetime of an ancestor, it can hopefully find in us worthy successors to bring resolution and peace to the issue for the highest good of all. This is the price we pay for the privilege of being incarnated.
This time of the year is an opportunity to discover who we really are beyond the multitude of roles we play in our lives such as parent, child, teacher, student, leader, follower, sister, brother, elder, youth, chauffeur, cook, to name a few. Ultimately, we are called into discovering who we are beyond karma. What is your real identity when you are not trapped in the wheel of karma?
The Days of the Dead are a great time to overcome issues which keep us trapped in the wheel of karma and prevents us from breaking free and rising to our highest destiny. This was the goal of the 3-day experience.
The 3-day experience
On Oct 31st, Nov 1st and 2nd, a gathering of seekers joined together online each day for one hour to invite their ancestors into their lives. “Days of the Dead: Ancestral Healing & Conscious Dying” explored this special time and what people could do to heal generational trauma.
In preparation, students made personal altars consisting of sugar, marzipan, and/or crystal skulls; votive candles; photos or names of ancestors; and other items such as flowers, salt, candies, and the favorite food and drink of their invisible guests. The role of the altar is to create a portal between the two worlds and facilitate communication between the students and their ancestors. (On the altar below you can see an orb of light on the wall – more about the orbs is coming below.)
Students prepared themselves for this unusual encounter by thinking about the healing they needed. They were invited to remember the lives of those who came before them and to notice the situations, patterns or health issues they had in common.
October 31st was about helping an ancestor or departed loved one find peace. Students chose an ancestor or departed loved one to support who’d had a hard life or a dramatic passing.
November 1st was about communicating with an ancestor, known or unknown, who could provide support or answers to a present predicament or question. Students chose an ancestor or departed loved one they would like to receive advice from.
November 2nd was about preparing one’s own death and letting go of the fundamental fear associated with it. Through a special Toltec practice, the students could train themselves to stay conscious during the dying process, which is known to grant many spiritual gifts for their future incarnation or next step.
What did we learn?
On the first day, we welcomed our ancestors who crossed the bridge from the world of the dead to the world of the living. This work is mystical but not imaginary or symbolic as shown by the many repercussions and synchronicities we observed in the physical plane at the time.
For some people, the ancestor they chose to work with on the first day clearly made their presence known. For others, a different, and often unexpected, ancestor showed up. Some people had more than one ancestor show up.
The students felt that during these three days they were in a place in between the visible and invisible planes, entering a process with their ancestors, constantly exchanging thoughts with them, and experiencing intense emotional releases. Mental activity and emotions were heightened by this unusual “stretch of consciousness.” They felt the support of the loving presences around them during their daily activities.
I happened to do a distant healing on one of my students at the time and received a distinct tap on the back from her ancestor. The ancestor was calling for my attention and wanted me to give confirmation of her presence to my student.
My personal experience on the first day was to perceive my ancestors as bright lights. My altar was beaming with energy and the other worldly support was heartwarming and unforgettable. When I was in conversation with an ancestor, I could see the variation of light in their energy field, less light when they were feeling disempowered by an issue, more luminous when they were having insights.
On the third day, I had the opportunity to connect with some of my students, who reported being very deep in their own ancestral healing process, having insights and being overwhelmed with emotions. Before the evening session, I went for a walk feeling quite emotional myself, realizing how many lives and souls were touched by this profound work. I was reflecting on the meaning of the third day as a complete letting go of the ego, a complete surrender of old internal structures like the breaking of a dam releasing uncontrollable waters. Suddenly my prayer bead necklace broke apart and beads started falling on the ground. I hadn’t touched the necklace – it just spontaneously shattered.
For most people, this intense work lasted more than the three days we were together. Ancestral communication and lessons continued, eventually dissolving until the connection between the living and the dead closed.
After the disconnection, it becomes very difficult to understand what really happened. Like a dream, this other worldly experience dissipates and can’t be understood in an ordinary state of consciousness. This is why it is recommended to journal everything that crosses your mind in Dias de los Muertos.
What about those dancing orbs of light?
The day after the last session (on November 3rd) we made a short video about the weeks ahead to show on the Inner Treasure Hunt website. Paula filmed me using her iPhone then posted the video on YouTube. It was at that point that we noticed something strange on the video.
There were small orbs of light dancing around me and the altar I’d made (which I hadn’t yet dismantled.) The lights were not visible to Paula or me while she was filming, but there’s no denying their presence onscreen.
Orbs of light like these have been described in the ancient Toltec tradition and are called Pipiltin. They are considered beneficial beings, like angels, that feed themselves on positive energy that can be produced by prayers, good thoughts, offerings, and love. They are nourished by our positive actions. By doing the work we did for those three days, we produced light which attracted this kind of life form.
The Creator made us all co-creators, meaning we have the ability to manifest things, including light. Actually, we are made of light, and even scientifically speaking, matter is condensed light (energy). This concept is known in every tradition, for example in India where chakras are known as energy centers that vibrate at different frequencies.
These light orb entities don’t just eat light, but they also transmit the energy of prayer from point A to point B. For example, if I pray for my father these beings of light may be helping the transmission of healing energy to him 5,000 miles away.
These beings of light are not taking energy from us and we are not taking energy from them. It’s more a question of resonance, supporting each other in a high frequency. These beings feed themselves on love, harmony, peace, and altruism. They vibrate at this type of frequency, which in turn maintains a very high frequency around us and encourages us to continue to vibrate at that high level. In a way, they feed us while we feed them, like a divine feedback loop.
The beings of light on the video were drawn to the energy on the altar, the fruits, flowers, food, incense, and candles. Then the prayers and love we provided expanded the field of the altar to include many more beings who were drawn to the glow.
Our experience with the orbs of light underlines the saying that we are never alone, referring to the fact that in the astral plane we are always surrounded by different kinds of life forms which resonate in accordance with our thoughts and emotions of the moment.
I’m not the only person this has ever happened to. By doing this work in your own space, you can reach a lot of energy beings that are not separated by space and time. Naturally, the field of light you create connects with the fields of light of other people around the world who are doing similar work, uniting with ancestors with love in the spirit of healing and reconciliation. The more people doing this work, the more we can use this time of the year to shift consciousness on the planet.
Orb update – They’re back! (or maybe they never left)
Two weeks after Dias de los Muertos and the orbs are still with us. On November 17 a few hours after this post was published, we recorded two videos. The first was a video for the WEEK AHEAD feature at innertreasurehunt.com. This time Paula was watching out for potential orbs and spotted some in real time that were captured on video. Interestingly enough, the two orbs both show up as I was saying some key words. The first orb flew up from my lap over my right shoulder as I was talking about how “when Jupiter becomes direct it is a flood of beneficial energy and good luck.” The orb appeared as I said the words “new job” and “prosperity,” hovered a moment over the mandala, then changed direction and flew up and away to the left as I said “abundance.” The second orb showed up as I was saying “flows in your direction.” These tiny energies seem to be continuing their eternal dance as we do this important work together.
You can watch both orbs in slow motion at the end of the this video.
The second video we recorded announcing the DEC 3 FULL MOON MEDITATION had a glowing comet streak down the screen at 0:09 as I was saying “a new direction.” And an orb showed up above the mandala at 1:45 when I was saying “prosperity and success” (in the same place as “flows in your direction” above).
How can I communicate with my ancestors?
What we learned from the 2022 Days of the Dead is that we could communicate with and heal our ancestors. Knowing what’s possible, you might ask yourself “How can I get in touch and stay in touch with my ancestors?” You can reach out to your ancestors at any time of year, not just during the Dias de los Muertos (however the veil between the living and dead is thinnest at this time of year).
Start by reading the blog post which explains more about this time of year and what is possible: “Days of the Dead: Ancestral Healing & Conscious Dying.”
Pay attention to your dreams. When ancestors have something to communicate with you, they often come in dreams. Write down whatever you can remember from your dreams and consider how the messages you receive might relate to your life or ancestral trauma.
Inner Treasure Hunt members can revisit the “Clearing Our Ancestors” session from February 20th, 2021 in the Meditation Library.
And you can plan now to take advantage of Days of the Dead in 2023 so you don’t miss this unique once-a-year opportunity.
– Suteja
Resources
Learn more about the Days of the Dead and ancestral healing by reading the blog post “Days of the Dead: Ancestral Healing & Conscious Dying.”
Learn more about the live and recorded three-session program Days of the Dead: Ancestral Healing & Conscious Dying.
Watch the dancing orbs of light at November 3, 2022 Weeks Ahead Message.
Watch more dancing orbs of light at November 17, 2022 Weeks Ahead Message. Both orbs are shown in slow motion at the end of the video.
Learn more about ancestral trauma and Transgenerational Epigenetic Inheritance, Mark Wolynn, Director of the Family Constellation Institute and his book “It Didn’t Start with You: How Inherited Family Trauma Shapes Who We Are and How to End the Cycle.”
Inner Treasure Hunt members can continue connecting with their ancestors by revisiting the “Clearing Our Ancestors” session from February 20th, 2021 in the Meditation Library.
Watch the inspiring and colorful movie “Coco” which is a great immersion into the Mexican tradition of Dia de los Muertos.
Learn more about natural healing and wellness at Wellness vs Mainstream Medicine, Lucid Dreaming Techniques from the Ancients, Powers of the Moon Series, 5 Ways You Can Build Resilience, Days of the Dead: Ancestral Healing & Conscious Dying, and Journaling Benefits.
Learn more about healing and consciousness at Inner Treasure Hunt. If you liked this post, you can subscribe to the Inner Treasure Hunt newsletter to stay informed about new posts, programs, and events. #innertreasurehunt
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