Dreaming a New Dream for the World

I am often confused about the roles of men and women in today's culture and what balance between the sexes would look like within "modern" society. What does it look like for women to reclaim their power and what is the role of men in this quest? Equally, what does it look like for men to reclaim their power and what is the role of women in this quest? It's not about one becoming dominant over the other. How do we find the inner equilibrium that is necessary for us to reflect that out in the world? Each individual carries both within and it is time that we discover what this means, personally. Then, and only then, will there be true equality and peace.

As a grandmother of eight boys and two girls, I believe the Divine is offering me an opportunity to journey deeply into this quest. As I watch these little ones grow, I am constantly aware of the world they are growing up in and the choices they will one day make that will effect the world. Along the way they will have many lessons that will assist them in becoming adults and they too will have to choose to find balance within and without. 

Life has provided each of us with woundings that surface from time to time and we are triggered into questioning our self-worth. This is a natural phenomena and simply provides the opening to look at our soul's truth more deeply. 

I have been reading a book by Hank Wessleman, The Bowl of Light: Ancestral Wisdom from a Hawaiian Shaman. Dr. Wesselman shares the wisdom of the late Hale Kealohalani Makua, one of Hawaii's greatest ancestral leaders and shamans. There is much wisdom in the book but I am particularly struck by Makua's discussion about the power of women and men in co-creating a new world. He says,

"It is time for all the women to come together to generate a new vision. They must dream a new dream -- a new vision that must be about what they want for their grandchildren and for the next seven generations. Women [the feminine] are the keepers of the culture, the family, the home, as well as the foundation of the world. The lesson is that the women have to teach the men is how to be gentle. 

It's the women who are going to change the world now, and so the men have to protect them...The men need to follow the women for a change, because in doing so, men will become more selective. It's about discrimination, about learning discernment.

This is Mother Earth. It is not Father Earth. The energy of the Earth is feminine...and the lesson for the men is about gentleness. The job of women is to teach the men how to be gentle. So it's time for the men to sit down and listen, and it is time for the women to stand up and speak. It's the women who are going to change the world now, and so the men have to protect them." (pg. 142-143)

In other words, this is a time of authentic and unconditional reciprocity where both men and women find their own inner balance, their own gentleness, and then extend support to each other and to Mother Earth. The change begins within, establishing personal balance and harmony, and then we can become part of the new dreaming for our beautiful planet. When we are in this state of love we reflect that out into the world and things shift. 

In a recent dream I was with other women preparing for a sacred ritual. We were bathed and perfumed and dressed in white linen. Bouquets of flowers were given to each one of us as we lined up to begin the procession. In a solemn line, with musicians playing, we walked out into Nature. There was a sacred river that we had to cross and then a fire circle on the other side. As I approached the water I felt a sense of freedom in knowing that this part of the ritual would purify and heal each of us as we prepared for the sacred work ahead. The water wasn't deep and felt refreshing as I stepped into it and across.

On the other side, the women ahead of me had begun to create a circle around the fire and were singing so I joined them. I closed my eyes and connected to Source. I felt grounded deeply into Mother Earth while the Divine filled me and expanded outward from my heart chakra. I sensed all the other women in the circle doing the same. It was clear that our power did not come from any action that we might take but in being connected to Divine Love and Oneness. This is what we were to take out into the world. 

My dream for our world is that each of us would become connected to our inner divinity, that part within each of us that is a direct reflection of the Divine. We must all honor Mother Earth and take care of her. We must all learn to be gentle with her and the beings we share life with. She is calling each of us, both male and female, to dream a gentler world into being. 

It can be challenging to move out of our woundings and into a place of equilibrium but the gift is that we see the truth about life - it is a joy and a daily gift to be here. It is the responsibility of each of us, both male and female, to protect Mother Earth and one another. Then and only then will we see the divinity within each other and then consciously co-create a new world.