https://shopceremonie.com/blog/2017/10/31/how-did-i-become-a-shamanic-practitionerMany have asked me this question, or how did I choose to be involved with plant spirit medicine. As someone who has remained out of the public's eye, and has stayed quietly behind the Ceremonie brand, I am also beginning to become more visible, adding a distinct personal element to my work that didn't exist before. We learn so much from stories, including our own, and so I share it here:
It's has been a long journey that involves evolving through archetypes to develop an ever-increasing understanding of myself and the worlds (seen and unseen) around me. I come from a home where my mother is a devout evangelical Christian and my father, an equally devout atheist. The paradigm I was raised in was black and white - be it if it was rooted in science and the rational, or religious conditioning and tenets. Deep down, I had always connected with spirits and mysticism - my first friends, as a young child, were the great Cedar tree spirits - Grandma Tree and Grandpa Tree, as I had called them (and still do). I also spoke to fruits and vegetables (I even named a doll Celery). The rational world crept in, pressing me and I naturally lost touch with these allies for some time and became well versed and articulate in more widely-accepted world views. It can be easy to look back at those times as conforming, asleep, or a victim of patriarchy, but I also see those decades as preparatory, as many myths and archetypes that exist in Judeo-Christian were taken from older, pagan practices. In my own story, I simply learned them in chronologically reversed order, as many people today do.
After I gave birth to my first son, the Wild Woman stirred within. Some call her Lilith, some Kali, some gave her the generic name of Witch. I called her Jezebel. She frightened me. She asked all the right questions and didn't care that she didn't have a tidy answer. She was raw, brave, wildly intelligent, could smell lies from miles away, was fiercely loyal to her loved ones, and I was scared to death to even entertain a cup of tea with her. I was secretly afraid that she would somehow seduce some sense into me and I would lose full control of who I am. I knew that she, as the Destroyer, would kill me.
Simultaneously, my husband and I were wanting a second child, but had difficulty conceiving and keeping the pregnancies. The timing wasn't right.
The pangs for the shadow and unknown, like contractions, only became stronger. I began re-experiencing manifestations of clair-olfaction, sometimes also known as clair sentience (an intuitive gift I have had since my late teens, but had tried my best to ignore it and suppress it), the ability to smell things that aren't physically there, and then associating them with distinct messages from the spirit world. And it was a dark walk in the desert, for I had no teacher in the form of books or workshops. I searched for teachers who have this gift, but none came on my path. So I had no choice but to listen to Jezebel. She said spend time outdoors everyday. She said look for omens and symbols. She told me about Tarot, and I committed to learning the Tarot language, a visual tongue through which spirit allies can speak to me with clarity and precision. By then, we had stopped attending church, and were promptly ostracized for doing so. We kept two couple friends from that network of well over a hundred. They were the only ones who wanted to remain in our lives. (I later released this disappointment and remarkably, I am filled with so much love - even as I write this portion of my story). And so in many ways, certain things died within me - limiting, outworn beliefs, victimhood, the need to be perfect, and like a snake, I shed and emerged. I begun to understand that the Wild Woman is my greatest protector, advocator, and mother.
Fast forward a bit and I became pregnant again. At week 15, I began hemorrhaging, which only stopped when I reclined in bed. The first day of the bleeding, I heard the doorbell ring. When I opened the door, no one was there, but when I looked up, a large Great Blue Heron flew across me and into the expansive sky. I knew that the baby would live, despite any complications. The midwife sent me for a few medical tests and science couldn't tell me why it was happening. The instruction was to remain in bed rest until the baby reached full term.
I am a very active person, and to ask me to lie in bed for two days with the flu is a monumental task as it is. To be on bed rest for over 5 months was a demand that challenged me in a way that I had never experienced. The idea of being removed from the physical world was enormously difficult for a type A person like me to 'endure', though by week 2, I had sufficiently wrestled with this internally, that I finally said, "Oh, all right!!!! I'll start meditating, again." So meditating I began - longer and longer sessions each day. I would break them up with an online course on aromatics and skin (essential oils, plant extracts, and other natural compounds in the context of skincare), but I did meditate roughly for 5 hours a day on bed rest. It was an immensely productive and transformative use of time. I now see this as the Universe's gift to me.
One day, during a meditation, I traveled somewhere and met some talking creatures. They said some interesting and truthful things. When I came out of the trance, I knew that something remarkable had happened. I met ancient, powerful friends. I didn't yet possess the language, but I had journeyed to the Lower World and spoke with some spirit allies. It was my first shamanic experience, and though I tried, I didn't know how to return to that realm.
My second son, Kyo, was born in the spring of 2015. The name 'Kyo' means synergy. Back on my feet and enjoying mothering my newborn and 7 year old, I had banked so much energy while off my feet, that I had the momentum to create something that can be best summarized by the Ace of Wands coupled with the Queen (Mother) of Pentacles. I created a toning oil to help rid water retention and toxins from being immobile for so long, and the moms around me noticed, and asked if they could buy bottles to use it as cellulite oil for themselves. And so Ceremonie was born (then called Trimaran Botanicals, renamed last year). I would begin working with essential oils and enter into a conscious trance and basically was channeling their energies and personalities, and coupled it with my own trained knowledge, began formulating. It was truly alchemical. In the certified aromatherapy world, blends are termed 'synergy'. It is wondrous how Kyo helped me birth this.
While this was happening, I asked the Universe, almost as a joke (because I didn't believe it would happen), for a shaman to show up in my life to teach me. I knew it was highly unrealistic to travel extensively to Peru with two babes (and a mortgage) in tow, so I had asked Jezebel to send someone here in greater Vancouver where I live. And she did, one week later. My formal teacher was a female shamanic practitioner, named
Leona De Lang Boom. She is a second generation modern shamanic practitioner. She began when she was 18 years old, and her mother still practises it. Their specialty is in past life work and have taught me how to work with psychopomps (a spirit/creature/angels that are travel companions to afterlife as well as former lives). What's absolutely incredible is when I met mine for the first time, I fell so in love with him. He's a red crown crane, and is adorable yet strong. I didn't know it at the time, but later learned that many psychopomps are cranes.
Ceremonie began as a clean beauty label that is focused on shamanic skin and aura care. I make the products in ritual (a blend of trance work, shamanism, hedgewitch magick, crystal therapy and moon cycles). About a year ago, I also began offering Shamanic Beauty Sessions, which are shamanic readings in the context of beauty, as well as general shamanic readings. My greatest passion, though, are my conversations (online and offline) with my clients and other members in my tribe. This sisterhood of women (mostly women, but some men, as well), ignites me to never compromise on my deepest truth, to love myself with as much vigour as a Mother Wolf, and to see the incorruptible good in others (AND THEN TELL THEM!!!). In fact, later this week, I will be offering my first spirituality/plant spirit medicine workshop series at Nectar Juicery (a wellness hub here in Vancouver, Canada), titled 'Walking The Fragrant Path: Integrating Essential Oils with Crystals, Chakras, Mantras and More'. What a wild ride, this gift called life, stranger than fiction, and wondrously beautiful.
A spirited Samhain to everyone,
Mimi Young
founder + plant spirit medicine practitioner
______________________
I wonder if this Leona De Lang Boom is the same as Annalies Van Den Boom of Vancouver mentioned here
http://www.newagefraud.org/smf/index.php?topic=960.msg5024#msg5024______________________
The events are something else:
https://shopceremonie.com/eventsINTRODUCTION TO SHAMANIC JOURNEYING
Sunday, January 20, 2019
7:00 PM 9:00 PM
Zen Den (map)
SOLD OUT!
Shamanism is the oldest spiritual practice— anthropologists have found cross cultural evidence of the first shamans from over 40,000 years ago. Today, shamanic journeying suits the needs of our modern life; it is the path of direct revelation, and requires no outside authority or ideology. Shamanism gives us the tools to enter the spirit world and reconnect to our own power.
The shamanic journey is the art of using drum rhythms and intention to enter into altered brain states to access the spiritual dimension of life. Led by Mimi Young, shamanic medicine practitioner and ritualist of Ceremonie, you are invited to learn the basics around this safe, reliable, and effective practice to experience support, clarity, and lasting transformation.
Learn core shamanic journeying, including:
How to visit various spirit realms
Meeting animal allies
Meeting other spirit allies
How to approach allies with questions
This class has been deliberately chosen to be held the eve of the Full Moon, for maximum benefit.
What to bring:
Notebook and pen
Scarf / bandana / or eye cover
Rattle (optional)
A small Clear Quartz crystal (optional)
Investment: $45 early bird (up to one week before event); $50 general admission
>> REGISTRATION: Please book via the ZenDen app, under ‘Workshop’ and the date.
FOUNDATIONS TO SHAMANIC JOURNEYING FOR WELLNESS PRACTITIONERS
Sunday, March 31, 2019
7:00 PM 9:00 PM
Zenden Meditation (map)
SOLD OUT!
Shamanism is the oldest spiritual practice— anthropologists have found cross cultural evidence of the first shamans from over 40,000 years ago. Today, shamanic journeying suits the needs of our modern life; it is the path of direct revelation, and requires no outside authority or ideology. Shamanism gives us the tools to enter the spirit world and reconnect to our own power.
The shamanic journey is the art of using drum rhythms and intention to enter into altered brain states to access the spiritual dimension of life. Led by Mimi Young, shamanic medicine practitioner and ritualist of Ceremonie, you are invited to learn the basics around this safe, reliable, and effective practice to experience support, clarity, and lasting transformation. This class is OPEN TO ALL, though it will be geared towards those in the wellness industry; we will be learning how to travel within the body as well as the chakras.
Learn core shamanic journeying, including:
How to visit various spirit realms
How to visit energetic realms within the body
How to journey to specific chakras (energy centres)
Meeting spirit allies
How to approach allies with questions
This class is open to those new to shamanic journeying as well as those who have experience.
Investment: $50 early bird (up to one week before event); $60 general admission
What to bring:
Notebook and pen
Scarf / bandana / or eye cover
Rattle (optional)
A small Clear Quartz crystal (optional)
>> REGISTRATION: Please book via the ZenDen app, under ‘Workshop’ and the date.
ALTARS + ALTER EGOS: SHAMANIC SHADOW WORK
Thursday, April 4, 2019
7:45 PM 9:45 PM
Dharma Temple (map)
April as a month carries the energies of confidence and sovereignty. It is an auspicious time where we can step as definers and creators of our own lives. Working with April’s New Moon, we will harness the dark, the dormant and even the alter egos that lie within ourselves. These are the portals that invite us to access new potentials, and a new baseline.
This New Moon Temple, a monthly gathering at Dharma Temple, Mimi Young of Ceremonie will be leading an exploration on sovereignty and freedom through the shamanic shadow work. Learn from goddesses and archetypes, plant correspondences, and via a playful, group led shamanic journey, continue to cultivate the integration of our light and shadow.
Investment: sliding scale; more info to come
What to bring:
Notebook and pen
Scarf / bandana / or eye cover
Rattle (optional)
A small Clear Quartz crystal (optional)
>> REGISTRATION: Check back with us soon!
PAST LIVES + SOUL RETRIEVAL SHAMANIC JOURNEYING
Sunday, April 28, 2019
7:00 PM 9:00 PM
Zenden Meditation (map)
SOLD OUT!
“The past is never ended; it isn’t even past.” -- William Faulkner
The past is not always in the past. Many who have journeyed understand that linear time doesn’t really exist, and that everything is happening in the now. This means that the individuals you were in other lifetimes may be active in your own self right now, played out in your daily interactions. If you have experienced certain themes, patterns and situations that continue to replay no matter what you do, this is an example of an unresolved past life that is living in you. These wounds can sabotage you in the present-day, prevent authentic intimacy, create strong aversions/triggers, or other forms of unfinished business.
When a past-life has found closure and healed, your soul in your present life has no need to continue to re-experience the same themes. Instead, there is peace and a sense of vitality.
Delving deeper in shamanic journeying as an exploratory and healing practice, you are invited to join Mimi Young, shamanic medicine practitioner and ritualist of Ceremonie, to access your past lives, receive insights, and clear wounds that stem from beyond this present life.
Learn intermediate shamanic healing techniques related to past lives, including how to:
Identify which issues + dynamics are from past lives
Access your pages within the Akashic Records
Travel to past / parallel lives
Form closure with a past / parallel self
Retrieve a fragmented soul back into your present self
By popular demand, this course has been edited to include those with shamanic journeying experience as well as those new to the practice. Mimi will provide guided instruction, modifications, and other knowledge towards attendees with varying experience.
Investment: $50 early bird (up to one week before event); $60 general admission
What to bring:
Notebook and pen
Scarf / bandana / or eye cover
Rattle (optional)
A small Clear Quartz crystal (optional)
>> REGISTRATION: Please book via the ZenDen app, under ‘Workshop’ and the date.
SPRING SPIRIT MEDICINE RETREAT
Fri, May 31, 2019 4:00 PM Mon, Jun 3, 2019 11:00 AM
8505 Redrooffs Road Halfmoon Bay, BC, V0N 1Y1 Canada (map)
SOLD OUT!
At the heart of spirit work lays our connection to the Land and the Greater Reality. We see this in the spirit medicine we use to create real and lasting changes within our everyday lives. It is through this sacred, intentional practice of connection that we learn to walk between the physical and spiritual worlds, to experience complete acceptance, heighten our purpose, and access true power.
However, much of what gets passed off as shamanic / spirit / magick work is diluted as a materialistic / fashion trend. Where is the depth? Where is the efficacy? Where is the healing? Where is the soul?
If you are wanting a no-nonsense, inclusive, multi-faceted, and practical approach to spirit medicine and earth magick that is rooted in what is real, what is effective, what is respectful, then I invite you to consider attending this women's retreat to deepen and strengthen your practise.
SPIRIT MEDICINE + EARTH MAGICK: LEARN + REFINE
Universal Shamanic Journeying practices
Past Lives Shamanic Work
Plant Spirit Medicine
Dream work, Wuism (Chinese Shamanism) + Tarot
Additional modalities to deepen, accelerate, and empower
HONOURING THE MOON
Check in Friday, May 31, 2019
Check out Monday, June 3
As the Dark Moon will be on June 1-2 and the New Moon on June 3, we will be working with her energies for to clear past lives, to dream, and to manifest.
THE RETREAT AS A SACRED CONTAINER
The ENTIRE private beach front property at Halfmoon Haven will be available to us including 2 cottages, a dedicated sacred space yurt, and the outdoors.
There will be some non-instruction times to allow for reflection, rest, and time in Nature.
Catered meals, with options for all diets, including vegetarians, vegans, paleo, gluten free
Private sessions are available during non-instruction times in limited quantities at 25% OFF during the retreat for enhanced relaxation, alignment, and support:
One-on-one Heal Your Aura mini sessions
One-on-one neurofeedback sessions via Open Minds Performance
Please mention you would like to book upon registering
The retreat is limited to 10 women, to allow for maximum amount of personalized attention and to ensure the attendees of the retreat are held and supported.
Investment for the retreat is $1355 CAD plus 5% sales tax. Save $100 if you bring a friend!
>> TO REGISTER, of if you have any questions, please email Mimi at info@shopceremonie.com
Please note that with the exception of the organizer (me) cancelling the retreat due to extenuating circumstances, all transactions are strictly non-refundable.
