Post by Mysti on Jul 6, 2007 20:02:40 GMT -5
What Is A Medicine Bag and How Do I Make Mine?
By Shaman Elder Maggie Wahls
A medicine bag is an ancient item that spiritually
represents the person who wears it. In 1991 the body
of a man who lived over 5,000 years ago was found
frozen in a high mountain range and with him was a
medicine bag. The medicine bag is known in all
cultures and through out all of history. They contain
objects such as leaves, feathers, stones, herbs such
as sweetgrass, sage, cedar, lavender or pinion, and
other objects which have been added by the wearer and
considered spiritually significant.
Medicine bags can be as small as 1 inch by 1 inch or
as large as 30 inches in length. They are typically
made of leather and you can purchase such a bag to
make your own at most metaphysical stores.
The reasons to carry a medicine are for guidance,
healing and protection. Most medicine bags contain a
quartz crystal as one of its objects. Quartz energy
resonates with all the energies of the physical body
and is considered a remarkable healing stone. It
connects you to your spiritual self.
Other items you might like in your own medicine bag
are items you may have found a special attraction to
or resonance with in your life. For example, a special
shell you found at the seashore or a feather you found
or a piece of pine tree or a juniper berry that holds
meaning for you. We often meet up with items that seem
to be just waiting for us to pick them up and carry
them home and then we don’t know what to do with them.
This is one place to give them a home close to your
heart. The essence of these special items create an
energy in your medicine bag and that energy is the
force that represents you. So by creating a medicine
bag and wearing it close to your heart you are
connecting with your spiritual self, the authentic you
and always remembering who you are.
The Shaman often carries a medicine bag that has items
in it for healing oneself and others. I carry many
things in my tiny medicine bag. I met with a group of
healers recently who laughed at me for having such a
small medicine bag! Mine is only about 1 inch by 1 ½
inches. But it is not about the size at all, it is
about what it contains. My medicine bag contains items
that I can use for healing others on the spot. I carry
jojoba, a plant grown in the southwest for healing
skin infections, bug bites and rashes. I carry a
moonstone for healing trauma, a small piece of
serpentine that heals all kinds of internal disorders.
A small ostrich feather to heal any kind of spiritual
negativity, a seagull feather to remove any lesions or
other intrusions upon the body, the herb feverfew to
ease fevers, a hair from an elephant who is my totem
animal, the animal that I resonate the most with, and
the Three Sisters: a kernel of corn, a dried bean and
a squash seed that connect me to the abundance and
healing of Mother Earth. So the medicine bag I carry
is a healing bag and I might remove an item or use the
whole bag in an emergency situation or when visiting
someone who is sick by laying my bag upon the illness
or broken leg for example. It works!
Your medicine bag is a holy item for you and should
never be opened by anyone. It contains your holy
items, those that help you heal, those that bring you
protection, those items that connect you with your
guides or angels. The word totem animal is often
referred to and that would mean something that
represents an animal that you closely identify with
and feel a kinship for as I do with the elephant. You
can put something to represent this animal in your
medicine bag. Your item represents the power of this
animal.
To make your medicine bag you can purchase a small
leather pouch or make your own from a piece of hide or
natural colored canvas. The outside of your bag should
be a natural color or earth tone like tan. You can
decorate the outside of your bag with symbols or
drawings of animals or leaves, whatever feels right in
your heart. Before placing your items in your bag take
a moment to bless them and realize their meaning in
your life and why you wish to carry them with you in
this way. Bless Mother Earth and her creatures for
providing these things for you.
Think of how each item represents your own power to
heal, to guide and protect others by carrying this
medicine bag. This is your connection to your
spiritual nature. Carrying this medicine bag will
increase your awareness of your own sacredness and the
bag becomes sacred too. AS you go through life you may
find other things you want to add to this medicine
bag. If you wear it and add to it throughout the years
it becomes a spiritual scrap book of your life, your
travels, your achievements, who you really are and is
a wonderful thing to hand down to grandchildren who
can understand its meaning and respect its value as
you now do.
Copyright 2005 All Rights Reserved
By Shaman Elder Maggie Wahls
A medicine bag is an ancient item that spiritually
represents the person who wears it. In 1991 the body
of a man who lived over 5,000 years ago was found
frozen in a high mountain range and with him was a
medicine bag. The medicine bag is known in all
cultures and through out all of history. They contain
objects such as leaves, feathers, stones, herbs such
as sweetgrass, sage, cedar, lavender or pinion, and
other objects which have been added by the wearer and
considered spiritually significant.
Medicine bags can be as small as 1 inch by 1 inch or
as large as 30 inches in length. They are typically
made of leather and you can purchase such a bag to
make your own at most metaphysical stores.
The reasons to carry a medicine are for guidance,
healing and protection. Most medicine bags contain a
quartz crystal as one of its objects. Quartz energy
resonates with all the energies of the physical body
and is considered a remarkable healing stone. It
connects you to your spiritual self.
Other items you might like in your own medicine bag
are items you may have found a special attraction to
or resonance with in your life. For example, a special
shell you found at the seashore or a feather you found
or a piece of pine tree or a juniper berry that holds
meaning for you. We often meet up with items that seem
to be just waiting for us to pick them up and carry
them home and then we don’t know what to do with them.
This is one place to give them a home close to your
heart. The essence of these special items create an
energy in your medicine bag and that energy is the
force that represents you. So by creating a medicine
bag and wearing it close to your heart you are
connecting with your spiritual self, the authentic you
and always remembering who you are.
The Shaman often carries a medicine bag that has items
in it for healing oneself and others. I carry many
things in my tiny medicine bag. I met with a group of
healers recently who laughed at me for having such a
small medicine bag! Mine is only about 1 inch by 1 ½
inches. But it is not about the size at all, it is
about what it contains. My medicine bag contains items
that I can use for healing others on the spot. I carry
jojoba, a plant grown in the southwest for healing
skin infections, bug bites and rashes. I carry a
moonstone for healing trauma, a small piece of
serpentine that heals all kinds of internal disorders.
A small ostrich feather to heal any kind of spiritual
negativity, a seagull feather to remove any lesions or
other intrusions upon the body, the herb feverfew to
ease fevers, a hair from an elephant who is my totem
animal, the animal that I resonate the most with, and
the Three Sisters: a kernel of corn, a dried bean and
a squash seed that connect me to the abundance and
healing of Mother Earth. So the medicine bag I carry
is a healing bag and I might remove an item or use the
whole bag in an emergency situation or when visiting
someone who is sick by laying my bag upon the illness
or broken leg for example. It works!
Your medicine bag is a holy item for you and should
never be opened by anyone. It contains your holy
items, those that help you heal, those that bring you
protection, those items that connect you with your
guides or angels. The word totem animal is often
referred to and that would mean something that
represents an animal that you closely identify with
and feel a kinship for as I do with the elephant. You
can put something to represent this animal in your
medicine bag. Your item represents the power of this
animal.
To make your medicine bag you can purchase a small
leather pouch or make your own from a piece of hide or
natural colored canvas. The outside of your bag should
be a natural color or earth tone like tan. You can
decorate the outside of your bag with symbols or
drawings of animals or leaves, whatever feels right in
your heart. Before placing your items in your bag take
a moment to bless them and realize their meaning in
your life and why you wish to carry them with you in
this way. Bless Mother Earth and her creatures for
providing these things for you.
Think of how each item represents your own power to
heal, to guide and protect others by carrying this
medicine bag. This is your connection to your
spiritual nature. Carrying this medicine bag will
increase your awareness of your own sacredness and the
bag becomes sacred too. AS you go through life you may
find other things you want to add to this medicine
bag. If you wear it and add to it throughout the years
it becomes a spiritual scrap book of your life, your
travels, your achievements, who you really are and is
a wonderful thing to hand down to grandchildren who
can understand its meaning and respect its value as
you now do.
Copyright 2005 All Rights Reserved