Pillar I: Surrender
When I think about where the journey of spiritual leadership and priestessing begins, it’s very clear: We begin at the point of saying YES to something bigger than ourselves. For each pillar we study this year, I’ll be featuring an archetype who embodies the pillar to help us define the qualities, characteristics, and behaviors associated with each pillar. For me, when it comes to surrender, no one in embodies this important quality more than Mary, the biblical mother figure who brought Jesus into the world. When she was asked whether she was willing to play this role, to be the mother of God and bring him to life, her only reply was “yes.”
Surrender is about far more than putting the interests and needs of another before your own; surrender is about a release of attachment to any outcome. It’s the hardest work in our early priestessing years because Ego is such a powerful force and in the early years, many practitioners are still doing intense work to balance Ego and Spirit. The Outer and the Inner voices. Letting go of attachment to any outcome requires you to release your expectations of what “could” or “should” be and trust that all forces in any situation collude for your highest good.
I’d like to suggest, as you begin your work on Surrender this year, that you consider journaling in response to the following inquiries:
1) In what ways are you feeling called to deep surrender in your life? How might it help you to release attachment to outcomes? Where in your relationship, in your work, in your health, or in your heart are you holding on too tightly to what YOU think is right or best?
2) What can you say “yes” to in your life that will improve your health and happiness? What or who needs more of your affirmation, connection, and commitment?
