In the Current

Today was the day to sit in the Current Room. All day. I have never meditated so many hours in a row. Well, I didn't actually meditate all that time - my thoughts would come in and then wander, or I would nod off. But I haven't sat still for that long since I was a little girl in Catholic school, and probably not even then.

We got in line around 7:00 a.m. for the first current session, which started at 7:30.  Again, we sat together, four to a pew. Everyone who was either going to see John of God or headed to spiritual surgery would pass, in a line, through the room where we were sitting. We were instructed to keep our eyes closed, cross no body parts (no crossed legs, arms or hands), let light in and then send it out for everyone who would be passing through. Okay, got it.

They also explained that our sitting there, focusing and sending out positive energy, helps John of God stay in entity. They explained that when the spirit / entity enters his body, it takes alot of energy to hold the entity there, and that this works helps to keep him going so that he can see everyone in the line. I kind of liked that explanation; it made me feel like I was doing something to help.

We started with two prayers in Portuguese (Our Father and Hail Mary) and then settled in for an undetermined amount of time. There were enough fans blowing air so that it was actually a bit chilly. Spiritual music played over the speakers - not intrusively - and I was close enough to the main room that I could hear the other guides announcing John of God. I could hear them doing the introduction to the physical surgeries, followed by the instructions for people to line up. It helped me gauge our progress; there would be about four lines passing through, so everytime they called a line, it was like a tick on the clock for me. 

As we sat there, about every 45 minutes or hour, one of the leaders would say something encouraging or say a prayer to help keep us on track.

We sat for almost four hours; a long time, but surprisingly not unbearable. At the end, it was so quiet that I was a bit concerned that everyone else had left and I was still sitting there with my eyes closed!

When we were done, I was calm and ready to get up, and it actually felt pretty nice. Afterwards, they gave us each a glass of water and a bowl of yummy vegetable soup, and we returned to the pousada for lunch. 

After lunch, it was back to the Casa for round two. The group leader told us to expect a longer session in the afternoon, and emphasized 3-4 times that if we don't think we can sit for a longer session, to please leave now and give our seat to someone else waiting. I was tempted but decided to stay in the game. 

Turned out to be the same gig and same length as the morning session. It was harder for me to focus in the afternoon, but the time flew by. As tiny as this town is, it is noisy at night so I'm not getting alot of sleep. Since my eyes had to stay shut in Current anyway, it turned out to be a good chance to catch up on some shut-eye. I did try to stay awake, but later learned that most others in my group nodded off as well.

So it was a long but good day. It was nice to be able to send energy out and feel like we are supporting others here. And at the end, each time, we did about 30 minutes of healing meditation for ourselves.

We are on our own tomorrow. I'm hoping to get some sleep tonight.

I hope you had a wonderful week. 

Much love,

Marie

Spiritual Surgery and ICU

I am out of solitary confinement. Actually, it wasn't totally solitary, as my new girlfriend, Gloria, kept popping in to check on me.

But I'm jumping ahead. Along with about 7 others from my 17-member group, I returned to the Casa after lunch to receive spiritual surgery. We were led to a room that had benches, kind of like the pews in church, but with cushions on the seats and no kneelers. I sat next to Norma, from my group, on the end of the aisle about one row back from the front. You basically file in and don't really get to pick your seat. Everyone just sits shoulder to shoulder until either a row fills or until someone who looks like they are in charge points somewhere else for you to sit.

I'll describe my experience of it, though afterwards I learned we each had a different experience. We were instructed to put our right hands over our hearts, close our eyes, and pray for healing or for whatever it is we want, and pray to be open to it. There is music playing in the background - loud enough to hear but not intrusive at all. One of the group leaders prayed in English, and when she finished, someone else prayed in Portuguese. I noticed that the music in the background was a song I love from Deva Premal, and figured I would settle in for what would essentially amount to a meditation session. I listened to the second song that played (don't know what it was) and then, suddenly, we were told surgery was over and to open our eyes.

It felt like only minutes, but it was actually about an hour later. It reminded me of being under anesthesia, when I think, "I don't feel anything" and then suddenly, some nurse is asking me to open my eyes. Actually, they refer to it as spiritual anesthesia.

At this point, we picked up our post-surgery herbs and were to return to our rooms for 24 hours. We could go to the bathroom, and sit up to eat the meals, which were delivered to our rooms. Other than that, we were to stay in bed.

It was REALLY hard to do absolutely nothing for 24 hours straight. Gloria would sneak in to make sure I was okay, and to bring me green juice, but that was for only a moment at a time. 

I am not usually prone to headaches, but I had the strongest headache I can remember. The only one worse was after an epidural.

After about, oh, 12-15 hours, I got up to turn on the light and got back in bed. Then I noticed the ceiling fan, so I got up to turn that on, playing with the speed and direction of the blades. Then I got back in bed. Then I decided to go to the bathroom. Back to bed. Then, I thought, it would be nice to have some fresh air. 

When I started to get up to open the sliding doors (I'm on the first floor and have a little patio), I got a SEARING pain in my right side, like a knife stick. I couldn't move past it. So I figured, okay, I won't be opening those doors! I guess they really meant it when they said to rest.

All in all, not too bad. If this was spiritual ICU, the food was really good and I got to drink as much water as I wanted and have fresh air (I eventually was able to open the doors). I liked all that. Plus, no IV sticking to me. 

It gives you lots of time to meditate and listen to God and get some sleep.

I wanted to take notes on all the thoughts and things that were happening, but I wasn't supposed to write. I don't remember them all. Some felt truly hallucinogenic, some felt deep and insightful, and some were simply annoying. I imagine it is like doing mushrooms.

I got together with everyone tonight for dinner, where we compared stories. 

Tomorrow, we return to the Casa and I will sit in the Current Room. The Current Room is where you sit for hours so the entities can do more work. It is called Current because it is like an electrical current, with energy running through everyone. No one is to open their eyes or cross their legs or arms, as it interferes with the flow of energy. Gloria has done this already. She usually has back problems and can't sit for long, but the night before she went to the Current Room, she felt work being done on her back. Her current session was 3.5 hours and she was able to do the whole thing.

I love the energy here, though my body misses rowing. Alot.

Enjoy the full moon tonight! The constellations here look foreign to me, but I love that the moon is the same everywhere.

Blessings,

Marie