Stopping the Trauma Train III
If we carry intergenerational trauma (and we do) then we also carry intergenerational wisdom. It is in our genes and in our DNA. — Kazu Haga
The ancestral field has its own magical magnetic pull on us. It compels us toward it like a riptide with both the unworked trauma and the accrued wisdom of the past. So you might find yourself doing things that make no sense at all in the context of your own life, be drawn to certain pass times or people, or have a hidden compulsion that riddles your health…until you discover that you are following the pull of an earlier family member, an ancestor's unfulfilled dream, or undigested tragedy.
Who are your people? Were they refugees or immigrants, farmers or intelligentsia, victims of war or business magnates? Perhaps they struggled with poverty, the shame of rape, unemployment, mental illness, or addiction. Their past experiences, especially when they are not processed completely, leave a residue in the family's field.
The past does not disappear. The blessings of our ancestors as well as their painful patterns lie dormant in the unconscious field of the family. And since life is constantly trying to heal and complete itself, this residue can land in the lap of the most sensitive offspring.
In cultures and traditions around the world, it is understood that the role of ancestors is to guide and help us here on earth. But if our deceased relatives have unresolved traumas or they are disconnected, or still troubled due to their own traumas while alive, then a blockage in the energetic field may result that prevents their agency or their ability to benefit us. It is in our power to help convert their blocked wisdom into blessings for our children and ourselves.
An amazing new form of trauma integration is ancestral healing. My work with British healer Jill Purce has been provocative in the extreme. Through intentional ceremony, deep inner work, and family constellations, we open the channels to our ancestors and then recognize and honor them.
Jill says: Until we open the channels to the ancestors, their presence in our lives can be like clamorous children, creating a low grade irritation, as if trying unsuccessfully to get our attention. But once we open those channels, it is possible to contact the ancestral patterns that can act like an emergency break on our joy and life force. I experienced first-hand the liberating feeling of reaching into the past and witnessing ancestral trauma turn into blessings.
We are extremely powerful beings! When we focus our energies intentionally through ritual and meditation, we can dissolve trans-generational traumas and liberate ourselves from negative family patterns. Just as important, we can liberate our ancestors' deep wisdom and blessings for us, their true legacy. I will be sharing this work in an introductory weekend in late March.
Dates/Times for Tirzah's Jewish Ancestral Healing Weekend will be announced shortly.