In this post:

• What the start of spring is really inviting you to do (and why slowing down is the most radical act)
• How to look outward to look in — and what that reveals about your inner wisdom
• What a somatic spiritual practice is and why your body is the book
• A step-by-step somatic spring ritual to welcome the light back into your being

Welcome to your favorite blog featuring nature-based spiritual practices on this fine full-moon start to spring!

The Slow Morning of Spring

The start of spring is a slow morning wake-up. Imagine still lying in bed and the light is beginning to pour in. As the sun tickles your eyes awake, you remember life beyond the dreams of the night. You lie in bed a bit longer. It feels wonderful. Only when you are ready do you stretch, slowly, and wiggle your way out of bed.

If this is what nature is doing at the start of spring, what are you doing?

Many of you are feeling the urge to keep moving. Slow mornings are a luxury that are few and far between, and it doesn't help that the news makes us feel like a mind turned off is the only time you can experience the calm eye of the storm.

Your Body Is the Book

Nature knows its course with ease, yet humans embedded in the western world seem to struggle with knowing what step to take next. In the WildWood Witchcraft tradition I learned that the body is the book, and the book is the land. Your body is nature and it is a well of wisdom. Knowing this, how do you reconnect with your inner wisdom?

One simple step is to look outward to look in. The way you perceive the world is the secret to understanding your innermost self, even the parts that are hidden to you. At spring you are reminded of the light within us, that inevitably returns no matter how dark life gets. You can connect to your inner wisdom and the wisdom of nature by welcoming the light of spring.

What does this signify? This light of spring is the invitation to wake up and expand into the world. It brings forth the verdant color of hope fulfilled and the sense that what you long for will be yours at last. No matter how long the night becomes, the day will always come to pass where a tiny green shoot breaks through soil that has softened just enough as the sun's strength has grown.

A Somatic Spring Ritual

Here is a somatic spiritual practice for you to invite the light of spring into your being.

If you are unable to perform any of these steps physically or out loud, you can do them in your mind's eye with the magic of imagination.

But first — what is a somatic spiritual practice?

A somatic spiritual practice is one where the body itself becomes the sacred site. Through breath, movement, or sensation, you bypass the noise of the mind and drop into the deeper wisdom that lives in your flesh and bones, because the truth of who you are isn't just something you think, it's something you feel.

Step 1 — Breathe with intention

As all life begins, start by breathing with intention. Feel the life of new beginnings that is the energy of spring enter your body with every inhale. Focus on this for a few breaths until you feel this positively filling your body. You might already get a sense of beautiful vibration and expansion as the oxygen fills your body.

Step 2 — Enter the circle

Allow your breath to return to normal and expand your awareness to encompass this moment in time, that is part of the cycle of life. Feel yourself present upon a circle that is forever turning and right now it is moving towards growth.

Step 3 — Drop into the earth

Now let your awareness travel down into the earth and feel it waking up, just as you are. So full of life, so full of becoming. Here there is no question of what to do next, just that natural fluttering open of the eyes that happens to you every morning that you get to wake up in your own time. You remember this feeling, even if it is far away, of not having to question your next action, of not having to ask how or why, but simply being — and that in itself being aligned with the natural flow of life.

Step 4 — Open your heart

Spread your arms wide so you feel a beautiful heart-opening stretch. Enter the present moment fully by speaking out loud:

I AM HERE.

Step 5 — Welcome spring

Bring your hands together before your heart and bow to the beauty of spring within you and all around you. Speak out loud with the honesty of your heart vibrating through the words:

WELCOME SPRING.

Step 6 — Rest in joy

Stand tall and ready, and next time you see the sun, turn your head towards it, close your eyes, and take a moment to rest in joy.

Ready to Go Deeper?

To learn more about embodied spiritual practices to support you on your journey to self-discovery, take a look at Journey to Your Essence.

The journey begins with a free 15-minute Compass Call. This is not a sales call — it is a check-in where I will witness you fully and we decide together if the next step of your path is one we take together.

With love,
Pipaluk