This week, we got an email from a visitor to our site, Sedona.net.  Shanna from Louisiana had a fairly common question:

Dear Arizona Travel:
How do you find a vortex?
–Shanna
Baton Rouge, LA

Usually when we get this question, we point visitors to our Sedona vortex map and call it a day.  But it got me thinking, “Is following a map really the only way to find a vortex?”  I mean, is a Sedona vortex map little more than an L.A. street-hawker’s $5 map to Hollywood Stars’ Homes? Well… maybe!   I mean, there’s got to be more to it than that, right?

So to better answer Shanna’s question, I turned to our guest blogger, Gregory Drambour of Sedona Sacred Journeys.  As a shamanic healer and guide, Gregory has a real-life how-to guide on finding a vortex… without a map, without a guide.  What he reveals will leave you more satisfied than a tourist in front of  Sylvester Stallone’s Beverly Hills mansion.

iandeth

photo credit: iandeth on flickr.com

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Conversations With A Sedona Vortex Guide
How Do You Find Vortexes?

My thinking might be much different than most people around this question in the title, especially here in Sedona. I believe there are vortexes all over the place! I joke with clients and say, “In an hour, I could find a vortex in Central Park in NY.”

When I first came [to Sedona], I didn’t feel the energy that strongly in the four vortexes listed on the maps; maybe because I was used to the intense power in the Northern Plains where I could hear the Old Ones singing. For the first six months in Sedona, I hiked everyday, sometimes twice a day. After a time, I began to feel my heart and spirit being pulled into unknown places. I allowed myself to explore those places and show my heart to them and I began to discover the intensity of energy I was used too. And thus was born the Sedona Vortex Experiences listed on my site, Sedona Sacred Journeys. If you honor nature, it will honor you.

If you come to Sedona and want to explore on your own, I’m all for it! Just drive around and when you feel yourself being pulled gently or something catches your eye–STOP–and get out the car and go explore it! I call this openness and willingness.

Before you enter the desert, you might make a little prayer and an offering of tobacco or even water. “There can never be too much praying and hugging” is my motto! When you get into the high desert or trees, continue to let that feeling guide you no matter how much you think you might be going the wrong way-–”This makes no sense, this doesn’t look right!” Quiet your thoughts, let go of trying to reach for it or trying to figure it out, relax! Suddenly, you might feel an energy surge coming from the ground underneath you or directly at you. That’s a SedonaVortex!

When you find that vortex, whatever you do, don’t try and manage it or do anything with it! [This is a] classic and natural, innocent mistake. Just be there…let go…relax. In the shamanic tradition, [we call this] “gathering personal power.” Don’t forget to thank that power spot before you leave – this is important.

Well, this will give you a good start!
A Ho,
Greg

Photo credit: NASA.gov

Today we’re happy to have Gregory Drambour as a guest contributor to ArizTravel.com’s Spirituality Week.  Gregory is a shamanic healer and guide.  He is the author of the well-acclaimed book, The Woodstock Bridge, endorsed by Richard Carlson of Don’t Sweat the Small Stuff.

Conversations With A Sedona Retreat Leader:

3 Rules For Making it Easier!

Yes, there are a set of rules for making it easier! If you follow them even a little bit, you can be certain that you will really start to fly! The rules can help you navigate through life with grace and ease. A deeper insight about any of the following 3 rules will change your reality immediately:

Rule #1: When you are making a change, you will more than likely experience some initial pain but it will fade—this is a certainty.

I have been reading Joel Osteen’s new release, “Become a Better You“. I’m a big fan of Joel who is the head pastor of Lakewood Church in Houston. Joel writes about the idea of getting through the initial pain of change as way of creating a new positive habit, and also, to know that the pain will fade in time. This really struck me. If we can just accept that there is going to be some initial pain and discomfort this could be very powerful.

Here is an example: Right now, I am going thru a big block with my personal hiking. It’s been over a month since I’ve hiked by myself in the Sedona Vortexes. I have learned that when I am hiking and writing, I am in much better place spiritually! But for a number of weeks now, I just can’t seem to get in the car and get myself on the trail. It feels almost painful because I have to really force myself. But when I heard Joel’s rule, it really freed me. I just simply accepted that there will be some pain and that it might feel like walking thru mud but it will fade. And it worked! As always, a few minutes into the hike, I felt great.

Rule #2: When you ask your Creator to enlarge your territory, the “border bullies” will show up!

In the Jabez Prayer, made famous by Reverend Bruce Wilkerson, one of the lines is a request “to enlarge my territory”. This refers to enlarging your spiritual territory. Now, when you invoke this line you can be pretty sure that the “border bullies” are going to show up! The bullies come in all shapes and sizes. Three years ago, I stumbled into a great office space and had two weeks to give the landlord a decision.

So I initiated an experiment: I wasn’t going to get into thinking about whether to move but just allow my wisdom to give me an insight. I was changing my process around making a very big decision. This is good example of enlarging your territory. Well, five days into it, I noticed the phone hadn’t rung in three days! And that’s very unusual for me because usually every day I am taking bookings. My first thought was, it’s an omen! “No bookings” are trying to tell me this new space is in the wrong direction! But within a few minutes, I remembered the rule! I had instinct this was the border bullies. And in the end I was perfectly right, the phone started to ring again the next day. And the new office space could not have been a better decision!

Rule #3: If you meet your Creator part of the way, They will meet you the rest of the way.

There is a small trick to this rule or a question; first, you have to ask yourself: Are you really meeting your Creator part of the way? Only you know this. And you can sometimes fool yourself into thinking you are but something deep down inside knows you’re not! If your Creator isn’t showing up, that might be the case. Part of the way usually means getting out of your comfort zone, not just edging out!

A few months back, I had a very successful healer come and do a Sedona retreat with me. Her desire was to stop doing massage and only to do cranial-sacral work. I asked her what her plan was. She said she was slowly easing into it because she was afraid of taking a big money loss because most of her income came from massage. Now, I can understand her plan but this is what I asked her: “Is that plan sharpening your spiritual sword?” She looked at me sheepishly and replied, “I guess not!” I was really happy she got this. And I am sure she is still cursing me!

If you do extend yourself past your comfort zone and really take a risk in faith, amazing things can happen. And moving to my office is certainly an example of that. I have had so many wonderful experiences there and financially its been very rewarding.

Give these simple rules a chance, be patient, experiment with them—it’s always a win-win, brothers and sisters!

A Ho,

Greg

PS. I’ll tell you a secret! Hiking wasn’t the only block for me these days. I have had hard time sitting down and writing. And getting this blog post done was painful as hell! But I kept remembering the rule and it worked! GO GREG!

Coming up on Spirituality Week – Day Three: Teaching Your Children

Have we got some recommendations for you!

Dear Arizona Travel:
I would like to come to Sedona in August. I am totally burned out and need some guidance and a healing retreat. Can you help?

-Jenni from Long Island, NY

ChristinaToo says:
Hi, Jenny. The following Sedona retreats providers can be found on our website, Sedona.net. Any one of them would be an excellent resource for you.

• SpiritQuest Sedona – A holistic approach to help you expand your consciousness and radically transform your life. Combining ancient wisdom with modern modalities, you’ll experience private one-on-one sessions with Sedona’s very best spiritual guides, intuitives and healers.
• Angel Valley Spiritual Retreat Center – This all-inclusive spiritual retreat center is located on 70 acres, surrounded by the Coconino National Forest, outlined by Oak Creek, with creekside guesthouses, cabins, and tipis. This Arizona retreat center uses uniquely empowering earth energies and a wide variety of healing services to connect within.
• Sedona Soul Counseling – Embark upon what Sedona Soul Counseling calls “SpiriTravel,” in Sedona or around the globe, and experience soul activation through nature walks and hikes; swimming with dolphins or manatees; or playing with wolves or wild horses.
• Sedona Soul Adventures – Amazing spiritual retreats and transformational soul adventures with Sedona’s master healers, intuitives, artists and spiritual guides.  One-of-a-kind personal spiritual retreats will open your heart and change your life.
• Enchantment Resort and Mii Amo Spa – the ultimate in luxury accommodations and spa experiences.  Choose from three, four and seven-day spa journeys and dozens of healing treatments and activities.

You can find more information about these providers on our website at:
Sedona Psychic, Spiritual & Vortex Guide and Sedona Spas, Alternative Healing and Retreats and Sedona Retreats and Lodging.

Take care of yourself,
-Christina

As many of you know, Sedona offers a spiritually rejuvenating atmosphere full of healers, guides and unique meditation opportunities. Guest writer, Masti from the Mystical Bazaar in Sedona, AZ, writes about a special healing experience worth checking out:

Out in the desert under the stars, a spiritual and healing experience happens around a campfire. A group gathers to share a sacred space in the beauty of Sedona’s landscape and they intend to have fun while participating in an evening of self-realization and creation. Some people have their favorite musical instruments and ritual objects with them and these things will become part of the Ceremony. They may stop by the Medicine Wheel or the underground kiva for a meditative moment or to set intentions.

For thousands of years, indigenous people from as far away as Canada and Mexico have held the land and areas in Sedona as Sacred. Tribal members made pilgrimages to Sedona for their ritual and ceremonial time and to revitalize their energy for the times ahead. Shaman’s, healers, indigenous people, wisdom keepers, and others still visit Sedona for the express purpose of making this profound earth connection. The earth is sacred – and connecting with the sacred land in Sedona is still a multidimensional healing and spiritual experience.

Full Article on this Sacred Sedona Vortex Journey

Many visitors have asked for a Sedona vortex map showing where all these renowned spots of heightened spiritual and metaphysical energy. We’ve created a Sedona vortex map indicating the four major Sedona vortex sites: Cathedral Rock, Bell Rock, Boynton Canyon and Airport Mesa. We’ve also included the site of the Chapel of the Holy Cross, which many visitors also claim is a vortex spot.

Sedona is filled with mind-bending views, both physical and spiritual On a late afternoon in Sedona, with the sinking sun beaming a powdery light over the mustard-red buttes, spires and mesas that surround the city like the ruins of fortress walls, everything looks better than good. Even the scenes that are banished from the postcards — the time-share developments, the trinket shops, the clusters of poky tourists — pick up an otherworldly glow. Those paunchy and ponytailed local hippies? All of a sudden, they’re glamorous: It’s as if they’ve been lit by Annie Leibovitz for a Rolling Stone cover circa 1978. More…

Source: DWIGHT GARNER, New York Times News Service. April 9, 2006

Enjoy the article and be sure to visit sedona.net for more information on the businesses mentioned.