The Waterfall: Cleansing and Clearing

Water can dissolve, absolve, wash away, and regenerate. Water represents the cosmos in its entirety. It is the liquid counterpart of light. As rain, it is the inseminating power of the sky god, fertility. As dew, it is benediction and blessing.

Waterfalls are a part of Shinto shrine rituals. It is said that Dr. Usui meditated by the waterfall before he ascended Mount Kuriyama. Waterfalls are brought into being by water falling from a higher place to a lower place, signifying the unity of the Divine and the Human. Because of its great height, the waterfall has the tremendous power of water in motion, symbolizing new creative potential.

In the purification rites of the ancient world, one enters the waterfall naked to show one' s vulnerability and openness to the power of God. The pool at the bottom of the waterfall encloses the sacred and is the pool of purification. One stands under the waterfall to show humility and asks to be cleansed of all disease and impurities and re-created pure of heart.

Water itself is undifferentiated, unmanifest, potential energy. Water is the first form of matter and is associated with mother, birth, and the womb of the earth, prima materia. There is a Japanese concept called nagare. It means the flow of life. Water flows in successive movements of endless renewal. Rivers, leakes, streams, and other bodies of water but especially waterfalls are favored as places of meditation and purification, renewal and re-creation. Water in all its forms is a wonderful metaphor for Life.

The two opposing forces in this archetype are purification and contamination. When we live at the purification end of the continuum, we tend to perform purification rituals too often, indicating fear and a lack of trust in the Universe. Living at this end might show up in compulsive habits such as showering too often, too vigorously, or obsessively washing your hands. When we notice our habits becoming compulsive, we need to move toward the other end of the continuum, while avoiding contamination.

When we live at the contamination end of the spectrum, we are careless about our health, whether it's physical, emotional, mental or spiritual health. We adapt to a contaminated world. We must move toward the middle or more toward the purification end if we are to remain healthy.

REFLECT: In ancient times, people stood under the waterfall to feel the power of the water rushing to the earth and to cleanse their hearts and souls. A modern equivalent is standing under the shower, feeling the power of the water cleansing you.

REFLECT ON WATER AS FLOW: Remember the Japanese concept of nagare, which means to flow with each moment of your life, letting go of each past moment. In the succession of water, of now moments, we recognize that all things will come to pass in God/Spirit's time.

AFFIRM with feeling: "As I allow the waterfall to cover my head and body, so I allow God to cover my entire being with love and abundance. I live in gratitude for my blessings."

WATERFALL MEDITATION

* You have moved through the torii into sacred space. You feel, though, that you are contaminated with the world's energy. The impurities and corruption of the external world nag at you. You feel as if you have a disease. Your skin is not clear. Your eyes are not clear. And you do not hear acutely. You have picked up the cares of the world and have not yet been purified.

* You see before you a sparkling waterfall cascading down the cosmic Mountain.

* The waterfall contains the full spectrum, all the colors of the rainbow within its waters.

* You feel that some of your chakras have become blocked. You drop your daily clothes and you step naked into the colored waterfall.

* As you stand there with the warm, cleansing waters rushing over your body, you feel your mind, heart, and soul also being purified. Your thoughts turn to spiritual matters. You feel love in your heart and your soul rises up to meet the Source.

* When you feel the spiritual energy returning to your being, you step out of the rushing waterfall and into the warm, white robe of Reiki energy. You know that you will forever remember the concept of nagare and of living life in successive now moments. You drink a glass of pure, clear water and feel it cleanse your soul as you return to your life.