The Power of Sacred Trees: Part 3

How to enlist the help of the Sacred Yew Tree --
Soul Journeying to help you manifest your dreams
Last week we began our discussion of how to access the powers of the sacred Yew Tree.  We’ll continue this week with a few more preliminary comments.

1st It will be important to use all five of your internal senses.  Your internal senses parallel your five ordinary senses those that connect you to your physical environment.  The only difference is that your internal senses operate through your imagination.  They are not make-believe; they are real!  Your internal senses help you get and maintain your bearings in the unseen realms, a task that can be challenging at times even for most seasoned soul journeyer.
2nd It is important to set sacred space before you embark on a soul journey.  If you’re not sure how to do this, perform an internet search.  There are plenty of suggestions on-line.  If you have worked with me, do “ceremony.”
 
3rd Review the qualities of the Sacred Tree with which you’ll be working. 
Recall that that only the flesh of the berries (not even the seeds in the berries) could be safely used for medicinal purposes.  That it is an evergreen with red berries makes it particularly appealing for the time of the winter solstice other related celebrations.
Here are a few more bits of information about the Yew Tree: (a) it is associated with the Celtic Ogham of Ioho  which has the phonetic value of “i”.  The early Irish regarded it as one of the most ancient beings on earth and for pagans and Christians alike and it has been regarded as a natural emblem of everlasting life.  This is because of the unique way it grows.  Its branches grow down into the ground to form new stems, which then rise up around the old central growth as separate but linked trunks. After a time, they cannot be distinguished from the original tree.  There is also early an Christian tradition that has Jesus’ Cross of Crucifixion make from the wood of a Yew Tree.
.  Many believe the Yew Tree imparts healing qualities to the waters that run on or around it.  In the system of Runes from the old Northern Tradition, the Yew Tree is associated with the following Runes:
  • 9th (Hagal) -- which literally means “hail” which could destroy crops or property; this rune symbolizes the primal seed of structure and transformation, the sacred geometry whose forms underlie the universe.  Its numerical value (9) is the most sacred number in the Northern Tradition.  As such, it is considered the “Mother Rune.”  It represents those patterns of being which, although originating in the past, still remain active as a powerful if subtle influence. 
  • 13th (Eihwaz) -- Magically, the Yew Tree is revered as the “bleeding tree” because of the red resin that oozes as blood from a wound.  The Yew Tree’s protective function served both the living and the dead and it also provided access to the Unseen World.  This rune’s association with death contains within it an affirmation of continuity, endurance, resurrection, and new life.
  • 15th (Elhaz) -- this Rune denotes protection even in the most difficult of circumstances.  It symbolizes man’s ability to connect with the Divine.
  • 27th (Yr) -- which literally means “bow” and the best wood from which to make a bow has long been known to be the wood of the Yew Tree.  This Rune symbolizes being in the right place at the right time.
  • 29th (Ear) -- which means “dust” reminding us that our physical bodies will one day be reclaimed by the earth.  Symbolically it represents an “ending.”
  • 34th (Wolfsangel) -- not pictured in the above chart.  This is the Rune of blocking or restraint.  It stops the animal (within each of us) from doing harm to self and others.
4th Review the answers to the two guiding questions--What? & Why?[i]
 
5th It is helpful during a soul journey, as in a shamanic journey, to travel with one’s totem or medicine animal.  Sometimes this animal is a composite of two or more animals.  Think of the griffins in the Harry Potter movies.  It is your totem animal that heightens your instinctual awareness.  If you don’t know your totem animal relax you mind and think of an animal that would make an excellent traveling companion and request that that animal be your helper during your up-coming soul journey.  Ask yourself how that animal will make its presence known to you.  Quiet you mind, tune in with your internal senses and allow yourself to become aware of your totem animal’s presence.  Negotiate with your totem animal how best to communicate with each other.  You don’t want your totem animal to startle or scare you.  If you have a wolf, for example, do you want the wolf to communicate only from a distance or can the wolf walk by your side.  What with be your totem’s signals for danger, the coast is clear, etc.?  Your totem animal can be helpful in your every-day life but certainly remember to your medicine animal before embarking on a soul journey.
6th Journeys into the unseen realms often start by entering a hole at the base of a tree.  Our initial soul journey to commune with Yew Tree will not involve such a decent.

But if you decide you want to do further soul journeying, a hole at the base of a Yew Tree can give you added protection.  This added protection is valuable when leaving and returning to ordinary consciousness.  It is at such times that we can feel a little fuzzy and disoriented.  We’ll be using the hole at the base of the Yew Tree when we do the second part of next week’s soul journey meditation.
7th Use any of the images of Yew Trees (or the Sacred Tree of your choice) provided in this or the previous article to visually anchor the beginnings of your Yew-Tree soul journey.  Imagine sitting with the Sacred Tree much like you would with a cherished friend that you haven’t seen in a very long time.  Perhaps you’re facing the tree but more likely you sitting on the ground with your back propped up by the trunk of the tree.  Now just feel!  What do you sense?  What are you picking up from the Sacred Tree with your internal sense?  How is the tree feeling?  What does the tree tell you about how you’re feeling?  Make note of what you discovered, of the impressions, thoughts, and feelings you had while doing the exercise.  If you’re having a hard time using just the powers of your imagination (your internal senses), then practice with an actual tree on your property or one in a nearby park.
 
8th Voice to the tree the answers to the two questions that will be guiding your soul journey -- i.e. what it is that you wish to know and why you want to know that.  Be aware of the impressions that you receive from the Sacred Tree.  Remember that the Yew Tree in particular has a gift of long-standing knowledge.  This is excellent for tapping into questions that you might have regarding your lineage or ancestry.  I’ve used it to help get free from dysfunctional, debilitating patterns on all levels (spiritual, mental, emotional, and physical/genetic).  We do not have to stay locked into such patterns just because we started out with them in this lifetime.  It is helpful to phrase questions in an open-ended manner.  A good open-ended question to ask any Sacred Tree might be “How can you help me with_________ so that my highest and best good is ensured?”
 
This ends the preliminary comments on Soul Journeying with Sacred Trees, in particular the Yew Tree.  In the following article  we’ll launch right into the soul-journey meditation for connecting with the Sacred Yew Tree.

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[i]1. These questions and the guiding role they play were discussed in last week’s article.