Rainbow Bridge Society Meeting Update


The third meeting of the Council for Self Governance of RBS took place on Gabriola Island, BC from the 20th-23rd of August 2008. Council members discussed and voted on issues such as organizational structure, website, mentorship, the newsletter and the upcoming publication of the book of RBS ceremonies. Members were blessed with a day devoted to an Earth Dance around a tree elevated on a little hill in a valley on the Gabriola property. A beautiful leather shield with representations of the eight directions of the Council was presented from some of our Calgary members and the ceremony was honoured with the arrival of no fewer than eight eagles circling above as well as ravens and turkey vultures. Prayers and giveaways were swept off on their able wings.
There was a sharing of many ongoing creations including:
Spirit Canoe: ceremonial journeys by canoe - Ontario
The beginnings of a Children’s Ceremonial Book - BC
The first Earth Dance - Ottawa region
Puberty and Elder Rites of Passage - Ottawa region
A Crossing Over Ceremony with Native Elders -BC
Reiki Spiritual Retreat - Alberta
The next CSG meeting will be from the 8th-11th of July, 2009. Any circle members who wish to do so are invited to come early and test-drive new RBS ceremonies from July 5th-7th. New members on the Council are welcome. If you are willing to participate on the Council, please write to rbstor@gmail.com.

Community News

Calgary
This active community has sweat lodges usually on the third Friday of each Month. Additional sweats may be held on the Solstices and Equinoxes, along with pipe ceremonies. For more information, contact rbscal@gmail.com

Ottawa Region
This community is active as well and holds a variety of sweats: community sweats for all, some specifically for men, and some specifically for women. For more information, contact rbsott@gmail.com.

Toronto
This community has had a number of meetings to review some of the teachings regarding self governance and the Twenty Count. It proudly announces that a sweat lodge was built on Thanksgiving weekend and that sweats are available most months. If you are interested, but have not yet been notified by e-mail of upcoming ceremonies, please contact the community at rbstor@gmail.com.
Another exciting development in Toronto is that the community has acquired a magnificent SunDance drum and has regular drumming evenings to work with a growing body of songs that are becoming part of the RBS lineage, some of which have been "pulled from Spirit" by RBS members. The energetic of these songs, along with that of the drum and other musical instruments, will serve as a pathway into self-exploration, healing, and journeying. The group is called the Thunderbirds. If you are interested in participating please send an e-mail to coyotenorth@gmail.com. New members are most welcome.

Vancouver Area
This community has a variety of ongoing activities and upcoming events. For more information write to rbsvan@gmail.com.

Featured Animal Totem


The Feathered Winged Serpent

This Totem is one revered by many different cultures, as far back as in ancient Egypt and Greece, as well as in Mexico, and Central and South America. It symbolizes the power of Creation, the cyclical nature of all things, the ending of one cycle and the immediate beginning of the next, the balance between the light and the dark, and the balance between the feminine and the masculine. It signifies personal power spiraling into infinity, and unites Heaven/The As Above (the feathers) with Earth/The So Below (the serpent). We invite you to simply sense this energy within you as it is already part of you, waiting to be reawakened.

Ceremony
Beginning in the East, sit in each direction, outside the candle, facing into the center. Close your eyes and picture your symbol of the Feathered Winged Serpent vibrating over your crown chakra. See it spinning in a counterclockwise direction. Visualize it descending down through all of your chakras until it reaches the area of your navel. Do this as you move into each direction as you look inside and identify what might be blocking you in the different aspects of your life. (See the descriptions below to see the focus of each direction.)

Once you have identified areas in your life where your energy is not flowing freely, before moving to the next direction, ask for guidance on how to get beyond this block. When you receive an answer, make a clear and specific statement aloud of how you will now connect, create and manifest with Spirit. See this declaration of your new intent fill the Feathered Winged Serpent with energy and power. See the Serpent change its rotation to a strong clockwise direction. Allow it to rise back up through your chakras again to continue rotating above your crown chakra, back to Source. Feel the integration of your new understanding. Forgive yourself lovingly for what has gone before, and resolve to act on what you now know. Take a few breaths and relax into this new knowing. Take a few moments to record what you learned in your notebook. Move to the next direction on the wheel using a figure 8 pattern - going from East to West to South to North.

Sit in the East - picture your symbol spinning there, stirring up memories and thoughts that show you what is blocking you from connecting more closely with Spirit, your own creativity, and your ability to manifest what you truly desire in your life. Is it a feeling of unworthiness? Is it fear of not being unique in your creations? What is it for you? Listen for the answer, watch for any visions you may receive.

Sit in the West - picture your symbol spinning there, stirring up memories and thoughts that show you what is in your daily life or with your physical body that is blocking you from manifesting what you truly desire in your life. Is it taking on too much? Not taking care of your own physical needs? What is it for you? Let your symbol spiral down in a counterclockwise rotation, as before. Listen for the answer, watch for any visions you may receive.

Sit in the South - picture your symbol spinning there, stirring up memories and thoughts that show what it is in your emotional life that is blocking you from manifesting what you truly desire in your life. Are you allowing old stories to run your life? What wounds from the past are holding you hostage and keeping you from choosing to redefine yourself or from becoming the authority in your own life? Are fear and anxiety your constant companions? What is it for you? Let your symbol spiral down in a counterclockwise rotation, as before. Listen for the answer, watch for any visions you may receive.

Sit in the North - picture your symbol spinning there, stirring up memories and thoughts that show you what it is in your mental thought processes that is blocking you from manifesting what you truly desire in your life. What old beliefs about who you are and how the world works are limiting you? Is your inner dialogue keeping you from a sense of inner peace? Is your mind so full that you have no space for new ideas? What is it for you? Let your symbol spiral down in a counterclockwise rotation, as before. Listen for the answer, watch for any visions you may receive.

Once you feel complete, thank and release all the energies that came to assist you in your ceremony, extinguish the candles, clear your
ceremonial space, and leave it in beauty. You may wish to post the symbol that you drew in a prominent place as a reminder of all you learned.


...............................................................................................www.rainbowbridgesociety.com ................................... Vol 1, Issue 1, January 2009

The intent of this ceremony is to discover the energy of this Totem within you and to journey with it to find those places within where you are blocking your ability to manifest in your life, to learn from the block, and to create a new way to manifest. As an image, we suggest that of the infinity symbol, but feel free to use whatever other symbol is significant to you that represents this energy.

Materials Needed:
Smudge mixture and lighter
4 tea light candles and small pieces of foil; (have extra candles nearby)
Blank sheet of paper; pencils, or coloured pens, if you wish
A small blanket of beauty
Note book and pen

Creating the Space
Find a place indoors in which you will not be disturbed. Place your blanket in the centre of your ceremonial space.
On the edge of the blanket, on the foil squares, position the four candles in each of the four directions, East, West, South, North.
In your own way, call in the energies of the specific directions. Light the candles. Take your blank sheet of paper and draw an infinity symbol, or your own original symbol representing the energy of the Feathered Winged Serpent. Place this symbol in the middle of your blanket. Smudge yourself and your ceremonial space.