The first record of any mermaid imagery was the Syrian goddess Atargatis (also known to the Greeks as Aphrodite Derceto). Her iconography usually depicts a nude woman with the lower half as a two-tailed fish holding a mirror and comb. In Santeria, she’s known as Yemaya or the “furious mother.”
As far back as our family can remember, this ancient goddess’s story and the image have been passed from mother to daughter for generations. If you came to either me or my mother’s house, you’d see upon entering there’s an altar dedicated to this powerful ocean goddess.
February will soon be here. Traditionally, it’s a month that holds a lot of meaning for us in our family. We hold a feast dedicated to Yemaya and thank her for everything starting on the second of the month. We invite friends, family, etc. to come to dance, drink, and eat and ask her for blessings for the new year.
So here’s my mirror meditation for you today:
This is to be done alone and with no distractions (preferably first thing morning or night before bed)!
For this exercise, you’ll need your favorite hand held mirror (dresser mirror even better) and comb/brush. Incense, music, and candles for ambience are optional but will help set the tone and space for what you are about to do. This is also great to do after a beach ritual/spiritual cleanse or right after a shower (blow dry hair before doing this meditation!) as general upkeep and you’ll see why. Reiki workers will love this too.
Sit in your favorite chair. Close your eyes. Breathe in then exhale deeply for three sets of three. Open your eyes and shake out all the kinks throughout your body. Picking up the mirror, stare at yourself and focus on details like your eyes, lips, nose and so on. Start brushing your hair and imagine as you do so that a bright golden light is slowly emanating from and around you with each brush stroke. You’ll be brushing your hair 108 times (54x min) so really enjoy the sensuality of this experience.
Brush each side of your head from the crown chakra down to the neck and over. Each time, the light will now be growing whiter, brighter, and bigger around you. In the mirror, with much practice, you will start to see the light ( this is your aura). Once you are done, do not stop. Start brushing the rest of your body, smoothing out your body’s energy field until you are beaming, tingling, and radiating. You’ll know you’ve got it when you are giggling like a schoolgirl. Laughter is always good.
This will help to clean, heal, smooth out, and “fluff up” your aura. After a while you’ll start to notice people are becoming more attracted to you, lingering in conversations, or asking when can they see you again or for your card. Reiki peeps – you can use selenite wands or amethyst to replace the hairbrush if you wish or create a brush that can accommodate gems. I did this with my mirror so I am not distracted by hair pulling or snags.
Until next time.