by Nirmala Nataraj
I am someone who does a lot of spiritual work.
This can look like anything from meditation, to saging every last square inch of my environment, to engaging in radically honest, radically compassionate dialogue with the various archetypes which have chosen my psyche as their preferred battleground.
I’m also someone who carries around with me an almost abnormal amount of anxiety.
Call it karma, call it nerves, call it what you will—it is a ubiquitous condition for me, a constant white noise that buzzes against the otherwise bucolic backdrop of pillar candles and harp music.
In other words, I’m someone who has felt “off” for a large chunk of my life. I’ve attributed my intuitive powers to this hypersensitivity, which has proven to be an unexpected resource in times of turmoil.
Most of the time, I have the energetic attunement of a virtuoso plucking the strings of a Stradivarius. Of course, this is often disconcerting.
Whether I’m noting a temperature change in the air or a subtle gesture unconsciously offered by someone in my vicinity, I’m an avid sign-reader.
In many ways, my early life depended on my ability to read the signs around me and interpret them with laser precision. This was, of course, a largely fear-based tactic, but it has been channeled into what I would consider some of my greatest strengths.
Emotionally, I’m a somewhat airy, high-strung person, and while this can sometimes result in a few nifty parlor games that make me an apt channel for etheric forces, it can also be a problem from time to time.
To some degree, all of us have the experience of acting as human telephones to different realms—whether they are interdimensional or just the no man’s land of a close associate’s crater-pocked mental state.
The reality is that it can often be hard to simply be at peace. This isn’t just because of past conditioning, but because of our mechanics. We are porous beings rather than self-contained pods of organs and sensations.
Even if we wake up feeling totally unfazed, chances are that our internal landscapes respond to even the most itty-bitty fluctuations in the ecosystem. In other words, if a storm’s a-brewing over there, I’m likely to feel it over here…sometimes, even before I realize that’s what’s happening.
One of my spiritual advisors, Elisa Romeo, introduced me to the notion of energetic codependency. This is an experience of energetic hijacking by another entity, whether a person, a place, a group, a spirit being, or a memory.
The experience can be extremely disorienting, because we often mistake the “violating” energy as being our own. For instance, if we had a parent who told us we were ugly and worthless in our youth, even if we experience the exact opposite reality in our adulthood, we may have internalized the voice of that authority figure who took a harsh battering ram to our self-esteem.
The insidious thing about this kind of example is that the rebuking voice in our heads is one that we normalize as being gospel truth rather than the residue of a toxic experience.
Of course, we run into all kinds of problems when we start to neatly categorize the influences that govern our lives as “ours” versus “theirs.” As most of us know, boundaries are permeable, and the voices in one’s head tend to be an amalgamation of many different things in the environment and in the deepest interior self.
I have learned to hold court with paradox. We are all connected, and yet we can still institute boundaries that enable us to maintain a healthy ego—even when there is no clear delineation between me and you.
There are plenty of gradations, however.
Some of the stuff that you projectile-vomit my way is clearly part and parcel of your issues, and your issues alone—while some of it definitely has something to do with me and my issues, and yet another portion of it constitutes things we co-created in relationship with each other.
We are constantly in a cycle of give and take, wherein we act and react on the basis of triggers in our environment. We can allow these triggers to pump us up or deflate us.
Much of this happens outside the purview of our control, and yet we have more control than we might admit to.
We have the ability to attune to a more harmonious “vibration,” if you will, rather than resigning ourselves to being yanked around by fate like a bunch of lifeless rag dolls.
As I’ve mentioned, sometimes the bad juju I pick up from my environment is giving me some critical information—i.e., I can’t trust what she’s telling me, or I should probably refrain from walking down that street at this moment in time.
Other times, things like the lingering sense of having woken up on the wrong side of the bed directly stem from an argument I had several years ago that never got resolved, or the fact that I’m unconsciously absorbing energy from someone else that is being shot like a heat-seeking missile my way.
Let’s face it—you’re encountering an energetic battlefield on all sides in most cases. So when it comes to finding your own internal equilibrium, how do you do it when chaos abounds? Here are some answers.
Surround yourself with grounded people and influences.
You’ve most likely had this experience before. You’re around someone whose serenity seems to have a ripple effect.
You might be feeling like sewer sludge before entering their presence, but then it’s like grace is being bathed benevolently over you.
Soon you are exuding that same kind of unshakeable peace, which is, of course, a godsend in the frenetic world we live in.
Let me be clear about something. When I talk about being around grounded people, I’m not talking love and light, positive affirmations, and the tendency to say “Namaste” in every other sentence. (In fact, depending on where that’s coming from, such sentiments can be deeply ungrounding.)
I’m referring to those who make you feel like the best version of yourself, and in the most effortless way. Life isn’t a cakewalk, and we come into contact with a variety of different people.
So I’m not advocating avoidance (after all, some of these difficult people just might be our family members, our lovers, or even ourselves!) I’m merely saying that it’s good to hose off some of the dross of the day by surrounding yourself with people who are firmly rooted in their intrinsic goodness, and who have a similar effect on you.
Of course, this will be a highly individualized vetting process. I’ve come to recognize feeling grounded as a distinct waveform in my second chakra, one that I associate with the feeling of being home and absolutely accepting of myself.
When this feeling arises in the presence of another, I know their sparkly awesomeness is probably rubbing off on me.
Eat well…and sufficiently.
This probably seems like a no-brainer, but it’s the one that plenty of sensitive and magical people ignore right off the bat, since sprinkling ourselves with the fairy dust of our experiences often sounds like nutrition enough.
But being grounded energetically means you’re grounded physically (so exercise is important, too). Those who tend to live in various energetic stratospheres often need to be extra careful not to neglect their appetites, which means neither malnourishing nor overindulging themselves.
Three healthy meals a day (preferably, at regular intervals), plenty of water, and lots of organic fruits and veggies will help flush out environmental toxins and ensure that your body is at its peak equilibrium state.
In some ways, what you eat doesn’t matter as much as the care you take to prepare a meal and sit down to enjoy it. After all, self-care is one of the most integral aspects of being grounded in your own reality rather than hitched along to someone else’s ride.
Hug a tree.
No, really, I mean it.
The vibration of certain plants tends to be harmonious because plants are naturally self-healing and not prone to having their bodies be permanent energetic dumping grounds.
Trees are particularly powerful teachers when it comes to demonstrating how we can live in the world in a way that is both deeply rooted and infinitely flexible. When you’re feeling either high-strung or down in the dumps, sit with your back against a tree.
As you feel the supportive weight of the tree against your body, imagine the energy of agitation or sloth being drained out of you like a toilet flush. As it is sucked deep into the earth, imagine the energy being alchemized and sent back out as brilliant light, recycled back into the plants around you to help them grow.
It’s a simple visualization, but you’ll likely notice yourself emerging with more clarity and ease.
Breathe.
It’s no joke that changing the way we breathe can transform everything from our cardiac health to our propensity for worrying.
Place one hand over your heart and one over your belly, and do the following exercise: Sit in a comfortable position. Imagine that your tailbone has a cylindrical hollow cord that extends into the earth, pulling up nourishing energy.
You can see this energy as a fountain of clear blue water. As you inhale, suck the clear blue water through your tailbone and up your spine, feeling it purify every cell in your body.
As you exhale, imagine a fountain of golden light pouring down from the heavens and washing over you. When we connect to both cosmic and earth energy, we can experience ourselves as active conduits of healing and clarity. This is a deeply effective practice.
Retrieve the pieces of your soul.
Shamans have done this for time immemorial because it’s quick, efficient, and gets straight to the crux of the matter.
When we feel powerless, drained, or out of sorts, we usually experience a feeling of incompleteness. This is because we have unconsciously given away huge chunks of our energy.
In the morning and before you go to sleep, simply request that the pieces of your soul that might have been “left behind” in unresolved transactions or with other people (even those you love) come flooding back to you.
It’s a subtle practice, but over time, you may experience this misplaced energy as colored bolts of light returning to you. Pay attention to where they come in.
For instance, if the energy enters through your heart chakra, this may alert you to places where you have misplaced your trust and love, or where you have over-given. If it emerges through your throat, this may signify experiences where you lost your voice and capacity for self-expression and truth-telling.
Remember, energetic sponging is usually a two-way street. You’ll want to take this time to send other people’s energy back to them, as well—whether you took it knowingly or not.
Use essential oils.
Ever since the ancient Egyptians anointed their royalty with fragrant oils, people have been using them for therapeutic purposes.
Aside from making your boudoir smell delicious, they present an unobtrusive way of calming your nervous system and putting your ship in order. I like spruce, pine, white fir, cedarwood, sage, and lavender—all of which anchor the body and emotions while providing gentle stimulation and detoxification.
Cut your energetic cords.
We can find ourselves remaining in icky situations for much longer than we should.
Sometimes these situations are only “in our heads,” but this doesn’t change the feeling of being held captive. This is why we must periodically turn over the soil and pull up our weeds.
Cutting energetic cords to others is the perfect way to do this. I particularly like the following exercise: Stand and close your eyes. Sense your weight upon the earth, and allow yourself to sink deeper into your center of gravity, feeling the stability of your stance.
Call upon your higher self to be present. Invite Archangel Michael into this ritual to hold space for you, and to offer you his illusion-cutting blue sword.
With this sword, you will cut through all toxic or draining attachments. You might visualize the chords as chains, ropes, or filmy threads that extend from your chakras and attach to other people or entities.
You may not know who all these people are (and in some instances, you may want to say their names aloud), but that’s okay.
Move your arms as if you were holding the sword and cutting through the cords yourself—around your chakras and perhaps even at the invisible regions below your feet, ensuring that you cut through the cords which are deeply rooted in time and space.
Sexual or emotional connections may be concentrated in the lower chakras, while mentally draining connections presiding over limiting beliefs about yourself may be in the higher chakras.
Remember, you are also cutting cords to relationships and connections that have been joyful. This may seem counterintuitive—wouldn’t you want those cords, after all?
No matter how harmonious the relationship, a cord creates a codependent connection—in other words, the energy of this other person has occluded or sucked away at your own.
We must periodically cut the cords to connections that are loving if we are to start from scratch and build the relationship on the basis of the present moment and new growth. As you cut the cords, you may want to say aloud, “Goodbye. I release and let you go.”
Breathe through the process, and let it take however long it needs to.
You may not physically feel what is happening, but that’s okay; just know that the healing will continue to take effect long after the ritual.
Ask Archangel Michael to fill your body with soul-clearing violet light when you feel complete. Because this is intense clearing work, you may want to take a nap or do something else that allows you to recharge sufficiently.
When it comes to energetic grounding, there are many, often subtle, forces at work that may have us feel like we’re stumbling around and constantly watching our backs. Whether these are electromagnetic fields or powerful thought forms or disturbances in the astral realm doesn’t really matter.
Know that you have the capacity to flip the script at any time, and that there are a plethora of measures you can take to feel energetically safe and at ease. Use your imagination and your open-mindedness to see what works best for you.
IN CONCLUSION
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