Turn your focus and attention to your breath. Allow your consciousness to move with the rise and fall of your chest and the filling and release of the lungs. Continue in this manner for several breaths;  allowing each to become softer, smoother and slower

You step out onto a well-worn path- the earth beneath your feet still moist from the mist of the morning and tall full green trees form a canopy through which strands of early morning light gently stretch and extend to light the way.

You can feel the electricity of life all around you- insect- animal-bird-leaf- tree and rich fertile earth. You sense a connection and the interconnectedness between yourself and your surroundings.  Excited and anxious to explore more of this place, you move forward on the path. Each footfall announced by the gentle crackling of crisp leaf and twig underfoot. As you move along the Path it seems as though all of your senses become heightened and alive in a way that you have not felt for a long time.

Color, shape and form take on more depth and detail. You hear every sound that surrounds you, drawing you into an intimate conversation with the natural forces . You can smell each of the wild flowers, their individual aromas filling each nostril in a kaleidoscope of essence all mingling and the scent of damp rich earth gives a feeling of foundation as the scent of all animal life wafts gently on the breeze affirming that you are not alone.

You reach out- hand extended and fingers reaching- to touch a cascading bough of leaves from a graceful willow tree and you can feel the pulse of energy rush through your being. A connection between earth and sky above circulates and weaves a spiral pattern through your very core. There is greenery all around you, and as you walk further along this path the beauty of this earth realm wells up inside and fills you with awe.   

You now see just ahead of you  a clearing of open field and brilliant sunlight. The noon day sun has arrived and feathery shoots of wheat fill this space.  They are ochre in color with variations of tan and brown interspersed in accord with their readiness for harvest.  As you walk into the center you feel the gentle brushes of plant life and the softness of earth beneath in support of this place of growth.  You look upwards towards the sky and the warmth of the noon day sun floods across your face and you think upon the brilliance of the Divine shining and reflected back to you.  You are in a sea of life, but this is also the place of sacrifice- the cutting of the wheat  and harvest- as well as a place of return- for that wheat will also serve to nourish and feed. You think on these things and bask in the warmth of the sun before moving on.    

As you turn towards the North you notice a small mound of earth, just at the edge of this clearing. Hard stone and rock create the sculptures of the Gods. At the very base of one of the smaller rocks you are surprised to find an exposed area of russet colored clay-like dirt.  It is more brown than red, but you have a sense of the red moving through it as blood moves through veins.  Enlivening and adding richness and fire to this patch of earth.  You bend down and move your fingers over and through the clay, marveling at how moist it is.  It smells different than the moist earth and you intuitively know that any plant life would draw its nutrients from what lay on the top of this soil.  Life reaching upwards for sustenance, while being supported by the strength of earth below.   

You have been so intent on the diversity of all you have found that you become aware that the sun is beginning to set and you must return through the woods to your place of beginning. Once again you walk through the wheat covered field and take note of the change in color as the shadows of the night move across the expanse of feather-like face.  You hear the call of the wolf in the distance and see the first fluttering of bat wings moving above.  As you step once again onto the path into the woods, there is a moment of darkness- blackness all around- but in that darkness it is not menacing or a place of fear . Rather, there is great comfort in the swaddling of the night and the union of earth and sky cradling you.  Clouds move in unison and the brilliant light of the moon is revealed, lighting the path- moonbeams replacing those of the early sun you previously experienced.  All takes on new shape and form in this moonlit scene and yet remains the same, only its outer appearance changing in accord with the shadow or brilliance of light.   You move in rhythm with the energy surrounding you and draw on the synthesis of experience you have had on and beyond this path.  You know that there is much that lays hidden and longs to be revealed, but for now this is the beginning of a journey back to your true Nature.

As you stand once again at the place of your physical being, the swirling of time and space encircle you. You have walked the circle of the Earth and her elements. This is one of the keys the sphere of Malkuth holds - the gift of manifest form. This is the receiving place of the combined energy of all the spheres above, emanating downward into the Kingdom of the Four – who find their strength in the return to the One.  

The woods and all they contain gently fade from your sight and you begin the descent back into your physical state of being and the room and space in which you began this pathworking.  Return to awareness of the rhythm of your breath and the rise and fall of your chest.  Become aware of the physicality of where you are sitting or laying… your body pressed against cushion, chair or floor.

~ And when you are ready, gently flutter your eyes open ~