The Test of a Spiritual Leader
The day had arrived for the apprentice spiritual leader of the tribe to take the final test to determine if he will be the next leader. The tribe gathered and followed the old wise teacher and leader to the testing spot for the young warrior who showed the potential and spiritual calling to be the tribes next Spiritual Leader. The test was an ancient one devised to test the faith and calling of the one called to lead the spiritual welfare of the tribe into their future.
They came to the sacred place where the test had been prepared. There was a large pit that was too large to climb out of in both depth and width. The young warrior was given a bag of water. The older one told him that there would be no more food or water. Either the young warrior would hear, see, feel and know how to leave the pit or it would be his grave. The warrior was lowered into the pit. The Leader said the sacred rite and then instructed the tribe not to return in the days to come. They all left and returned to the village.
The young warrior proceeded to use his training and go into the meditative state of awareness where the great father spirit could communicate and teach him the trick to getting out of the pit. He chanted and prayed and then was silent, waiting. Immediately an image came to mind to dump his water out. The spot to dump the water was lit in gold light along the edge of the pit. The warrior assumed this was a trick for why would he dump his water and then have nothing to sustain him during his prayers and trials he needed complete to leave the pit. In his mind he assumed he would be somehow elevated out of the pit on the spirit wind or by some other mystical means.
As the day went on in to night, he once again went deeper into his chanting and praying. Once again he asked for the answers on how to elevate himself out of the pit. Once again the only thing he saw was to pour the water on to that spot near the base of the pit. Once again, he did not believe that was the answer he was praying for but a trick of the mind.
He continued to do as he had been trained to do so he went on fasting, chanting and praying to the ancestors and the mighty spirits.
Days passed and then time ceased to have meaning to the warrior. His thoughts went to betrayal, to abandonment of the great spirits in his time of need. He knew that he would be taken up on a cloud of light and released from the pit; he just had to figure out how to accomplish this. He envisioned wings, he began to see things and hear things. His logical mind was sure of how this would be played out; he was powerful in his faith and belief of the Great Spirit. He continued to ask and the same message was always the answer. Dump the water out.
When he finally felt he had nothing left to lose, he was so weak, cold and hungry that he tipped the water to dump it on to that spot but there was no water left. Not even a drop.
The warrior did indeed get lifted out of the pit to the light upon his death. The pit became his grave.
The Spiritual Leader Test- In a different time and tribe or perhaps a parallel time line
The day of the test arrived. The time came for the test. The tribe followed the old Spiritual Leader and his apprentice to the sacred testing ground. The older Leader felt he had trained and taught this young warrior what he could. He saw great potential in him and hoped what he had taught would be enough for this young one to fulfill his destiny.
The warrior was given instructions and given the bag of water. The pit was wide and deep with no hand or foot holds to climb out. The older Spiritual Leader gave the young warrior his final instructions and then was lowered into the pit. The old Leader and the tribe performed the sacred rites and then started the journey back to their village.
The young warrior followed his teachings and very quickly went into his altered state of being where he went to find the answers. He chanted the ancient songs and called on the ancestors as he had been taught. He then asked what he needed to do to be taken out of the pit. The answer was very clear, “dump the water out” and a spot in his minds eye was lit up along the base of the pit. He had never heard the words so clearly before but this is all the water he had, why was he being told to dump it out? He would surely die if he did.
He centered himself again and went to the place where spirits talk and asked again. The same message was repeated but this time he stayed with the words and went deep inside to look for the meaning. A feeling of peace comes over him. The feeling was like being held in a loving embrace. He knew the message, even though it made no sense to his logical mind, was truth.
He decided to go slow, he did not dump all of the water out but slowly started to soak the area where he had seen the bright light. He dumped some and let it soak in and then used his fingers to rub it in. He put more water on it and let it soak in. He did this a little at a time with rubbing that spot back and forth each time he added water. The water was close to gone when he felt something under the mud. He used his fingers to dig out what was there. Sure enough a long dagger was revealed.
The young warrior quickly started digging hand holds and footholds into the side of the pit. He was strong and he was exultant so the digging out with this dagger went quickly. He made it to the top of the pit, breathless and rolled away so as not to fall back in. He pulled himself up and then started to run back to the village. He went silently around the rest of the tribe as they were walking back. He ran swiftly and went behind the old Spiritual leader’s tent and crawled under until he was sitting inside holding his dagger.
The tribe returned to camp and started going about their normal chores. The old Spiritual leader went to his tent to rest and pray. He went inside and gave a shout of surprise to see this young man there before him. There was shouting, laughter and celebration for a new Spiritual Leader was tested and chosen to guide them far into the future.
How many times have we ignored our intuition and our knowing in favor of our mind telling us it isn’t possible or isn't safe? Sometimes the answers are so simple we do not believe it can be that easy. One of our biggest challenges is to recognize and trust when our intuition is letting us know what to do. Intuition signals are different for everyone. It is a learning process to recognize the signs. It can be a tingle all over, goose bumps, tingle on the back of the neck or top of the head or simply a deep feeling of peace and well-being. The more you embrace that knowing inside of you, the stronger and easier it is to trust what information you are receiving and take action accordingly.
The first warrior that was tested did indeed accomplish his desire to be lifted out by the light. So in a way, he had the experience he in truth desired to experience. The 2nd warrior that was tested had the same thoughts of “if I do that I will die” but went further. He took the fear out of the situation, settled and balanced his inner self and let that deep awareness and peace fill him with the knowing. Learning how to filter out the fear and distractions to get to that place is a goal worth pursuing.
So let’s dump the water out and see what tools we find hidden within ourselves. Through the years this vision story has returned many times to remind me to trust my intuition and knowing. There are always solutions and choices being presented to us to consider if we only pay attention.
Consider asking for help when you encounter messages that either do not make sense or need help in interpreting what they mean. Help is an e-mail away.
In loving light until next time!
Janet Eileene
Starflowerconsulting@gmail.com