Game : Spirit Journey

Game: The Spirit Journey

This is a fun little game that will teach you something about yourself, perhaps something you never knew. And it's a lead-in for a future article on "The Law of Association" (a property of the unconscious mind, usually shows up in the field of Hypnosis), and eventually "Modelling" (another property of the unconscious mind, one of the foundational NLP skills). But for now - read the story, play the little game, and see what you learn about yourself... you may be surprised !

Let's begin...

Many of the ancient tribal cultures were far more connected to the world than our current society is. The world around them was not just a physical thing, but also a thing of spirit, of mystery, with man being a part of the cycle of things, both taking and also giving back to the environment. There was a great deal of respect for the world... sometimes respect of fear, sometimes gratitude for what was given. When an animal was slain for food or clothing, it was thanked with gratitude and honour for what it provided for the tribe, and it's life was taken out of necessity.

People in these tribes worked together, not just for survival, but for growth, the continuance of the tribe, and the future.

Being an adult member of the tribe is not just a matter of age, it was also a matter of certain shared experiences. When a child, male or female, would reach adulthood, the child would embark on a spirit journey. This journey would often have perils on it, challenges that were within the individual's reach yet required effort. In facing these challenges, the child would mature and gain wisdom that mere teachings could not provide.

The young adult would be given a small amount of food, a knife to use as a tool and weapon, and clothing, and then would embark on the journey. Although typically they would bring back something from a distant location as proof of the journey, the whole point of this journey was the journey, not the end goal, and the return back to the tribe, where they would be welcomed as a new person, an adult of the tribe. No longer needing protection, but making a contribution in whatever way their abilities dictated.

This journey was not simply physical... they would be open to everything the mind offered, anything in the imagination. This was called the "spirit journey", where the archtypes of the mind would come alive. Everything would be looked at with a sense of "how is this connected to everything else ?". The rains giving water, the animals being prey, or hunters, or guides. Caves being gateways to the depths of the earth. Everything had meaning. Sometimes the journey is purely in the physical realm, sometimes it is in the spirit realm....

Imagine you are there, now, and embarking on your spirit journey.

At one point, you find yourself journeying through the spirit world, drifting through a beautiful fog. The fog is your favourite colour.

Now: Write down what colour it is.... and give three words that describes that colour. Any three words.



(Go ahead and write it down before carrying on....)



You continue your journey. It seems like it will be a very long journey, and you have no idea what you will encounter, or what will happen.

While you are journeying, you are joined by your faithful animal spirit guide, your companion for your journey through both the known and unknown. It takes the form of your favourite animal.

Now: Write down what animal it is. The first one that came to mind.
Now: Write down three words to describe your faithful animal spirit guide. Just three words.


Put the paper aside for the moment, and come back to the present....






[Read past this point only after you've gone ahead with the above game]






What you have Learned About Yourself

In the first part:
The three words you used to describe the fog is how you see yourself. Your inner self-image, even if you don't feel that way on some days.

In the second part:
The three words you used to describe your animal spirit companion describes your ideal companion. It's not so much the animal you choose - but what that animal means to you, what qualities you see in it, how it makes you feel.


Disagree on the first part ? Then what's happening is you're listening more to the world's opinions of you, or measuring yourself against the standard the world is trying to have you believe in. But what you came up with is your inner self-image, the things you resonate most with. You resonate with them because they are your qualities as well, regardless if you are able to express them or not.

Disagree on the second part ? Then what's happening is you are consciously looking at what society is trying to impose on you for relationships, or expectations of others you are trying to live up to, or you are mixing it up with past relationships (good and bad). The result from the exercise is revealing what your unconscious needs for a lifelong companion, what it (and you) are really most comfortable with.

How does this game work ? It'll get explained in a future article.

Generally - it`s about how "what we think we want" and "what we really need" can be two different things.



We get to this information, which can sometimes be nearly impossible to get to any other way, by using the "Law of Association".


In a future article, I'll explain the Law of Association more fully (and that`s when I`ll explain how this game works). There is a lot of information that can come from these "Games" that you simply can't get any other way. It can also be used in a different way to not only get information, but to connect you with skills and abilities you have inside you that you may not realize you already have (that`s when it becomes `Modelling`) !

Cheers !