The Party and The Swan - Three Interrelated Visions

Hamsa - A Painting Illustrating the Visions By Ishka Lha @ www.ishkalha.com

THE PARTY

[Part 1 – A dream]

In this dream or whatever it was, I find myself in a lavish home in the hills overlooking a large urban metropolis. It’s a party of some sort. I’m not sure what the occasion is, and wonder if the house is mine. Everyone is dressed in fancy attire. The ladies in their gowns and adorned with fine jewelry and the men in tuxedos all seem to know me but they don’t feel like close friends. It feels like I’m the host or guest of honor and I’m not taking it very seriously.

I make my way down a long spiral staircase and onto the white marble floor of the Great Room. Feeling disengaged, as I observe the party goers gathered into small groups, I sense one couple masking an argument they’d had on the way to the event, another couple pretends to enjoy the conversation, but they are obviously more interested in maintaining a image of success in the eyes of others than anything real, or caring. The scene is all too familiar and a bit saddening. Looking around the room for an exchange of depth and genuine interest, I feel uneasy, and somewhat embarrassed at the unconscious state of humanity and this group of social elites in particular. I check myself, and am reminded to be without judgement in circumstances and company such as these. My dis-ease in the dream transforms into openness and curiosity. I see that my feet are clad in white patent leather and wonder if the shoes are rented, since I’ve never owned any like them before. A mirror reveals that the tuxedo I am wearing is of 30’s vintage and all white, one of the finest I’ve ever seen. A white bow tie around my neck adds to the formality and discomfort and seems entirely appropriate for the occasion.

Two large arch shaped doors beckon me from across the room. Each door must be fifteen feet tall, and several hundred pounds with a thick plate of frosted crystal at the center spanning the interior and supported by ornate iron lattice work. A giant silver handle tempts me to open the door. I think to myself, “I wonder if the patio in the back is officially off limits, and if anyone would notice if I went out there?” Seeing that no one is paying attention, I twist the lever and confirm the huge door is unlocked. Closing it behind me, I find myself alone on an expansive white limestone patio extending easily two hundred feet behind the house and facing a mountain immediately behind the property. It’s a bit cloudy and I can’t quite see the top. Something in me is incredibly curious to climb the mountain and see what’s on the other side.

It rained the last few days and the ground is covered with thick wet grass, mud, rocks, and puddles. The conditions are clearly averse to a hike in a white tuxedo and patent leather shoes. I think to myself, even if I find my way to the top, I might not make it back before the sun goes down, and my clothes will be ruined. I chuckle for having entertained the idea and for a moment my thoughts return to the festivities in the great room then once again, to the mountain and what may lie beyond it.

Without thinking, I begin my ascent, sloshing up the mountain in what are becoming very soggy and muddy shoes. It feels good not to care for a moment about what the party goers might think. I reassure myself knowing I can go up to a certain distance without getting too dirty. Rolling up my pant legs so the mud and water is limited to my shoes and socks which I can clean off after words so maybe nobody would notice, I continue up the mountainside. 

It soon becomes clear that I’ve begun what may become quite a difficult journey. With every few steps it seems to get steeper and the terrain becomes more difficult to climb. I can still hear occasional shrieks of hollow laughter and the clanking of dishes coming from the party below. I feel happy that I had the courage to take flight and follow where my intuition and heart beckoned me. My stomach tightens as I think of all the times I’ve been unable to break free from the shackles of fear, apathy, materialism, and unconsciousness. This helps me release feelings of judgement I was holding about the party goers. I keep pushing on.  

With everything going on in my mind, I lost focus of the path before me. My pant leg gets caught on the underbrush. With a pull to free myself I see that I will not make this trip unscathed. A rip in my pant leg is proof I’ve been into some sort of mischief. My white pants are now quite wet and very muddy at the bottom. My previously white shoes and socks are soaked and muddy too. Stopping for a moment to assess how far I’ve come and how far I need to go before I can see the other side from the mountain top, I notice that the sky is covered with dark clouds and it might start raining at any moment. Nonetheless, I’m compelled to go on.

Close to sundown, after several slips and falls, bruises, cuts, restarts, and pauses for contemplation, I finally make it near a precipice at the very top of the mountain. Facing a large near vertical sheer rock section ahead of me, I wonder if it’s safe for me to continue the climb any higher without climbing gear or safety ropes. Sitting down for a bit on the edge of the hard rock, I realize I should probably stop my climb at this point or risk a very serious or fatal accident. I’d come a long way from the party, and overcome significant obstacles in order to find my way where I was, almost at the very top of the mountain. I feel satisfied that I’ve come this far. My former self wouldn’t have even tried. And yet, there is a pain in my chest and mounting curiosity as I look ahead wondering if there is somehow a way I can scale this last and hardest part of the mountain. As my mind settles, I notice a slight crevice running along one side of the sheer rock surface up to about 10 feet below the very top of the summit cliff. I remember that when I was a kid, I liked to rock climb and used these crevices to support myself. I think to myself, I might be able to leverage against it just right and make it at least to the last 10 foot or so and maybe, just maybe, I can build enough momentum to jump from there and catch my hands on the sheer rock surface at the top. I decide to meditate for a few moments and connect with my heart and stillness and see what my intuition or higher guidance tells me. After a minute, I open my eyes, and see what looks like a huge eagle spiraling in the sky directly above me. I take this as a sign, that I’ll be protected if I try to make this final ascent, even if I fail.

Taking off my muddy shoes so I can really feel the rock underneath my feet and avoid slippage, I begin the climb. In this apparently do or die situation, everything seems to slow down and I realize I’m incredibly present while in motion, making my way quickly up the side of the last 100 feet or so of sheer granite, almost vertical rock, gripping my hands and feet tightly against the small two inch deep crevice that winds its way up the side of the cliff. With the momentum I have behind me, I make the final leap of faith and jump!  And to my delight, I catch the very top of the cliff with my left hand and am able to stabilize myself. With all the strength I can possibly muster, I pull myself up and onto the precipice where I can balance comfortably and see the other side of the mountain and into the most beautiful place I’ve ever seen in my life, a magical looking valley that brings tears to my eyes at first sight. 

Unlike the steep side of the mountain I had climbed, the other side was gentle, and easy to make my way down. With glee, I begin walking down the side of the mountain taking in all that surrounds me. Everything in this magical place and the valley below me has a shimmering, translucent quality. The flowers are more vibrant, the grass is greener, and the blue sky is bluer than anywhere I’ve ever been. The dragonflies and butterflies are filled with life and super happy to see me. Everything feels alive and inter-connected, all breathing together with me as though a part of me. The flower covered hillside descends sharply into a magical looking valley. A brilliant blue river runs slowly through it. The river widens at one point surrounding a small island at the center supporting a handful of the most amazing birds. They’re Swans! Swans have always been my favorite animal, but these swans are like no Swans I’ve ever seen before. They’re huge, magic Swans... large enough and powerful enough to fly with a human on their back. I wonder where this place is, where the Swans are so huge, the water so blue, and the flowers so bright. Wherever it is, it feels absolutely wonderful! Is this what Heaven is like?

I feel like I’d like to and might be able to stay in this magical place forever. Nothing can be more peaceful than watching these beautiful Swans floating slowly up and down the river, diving below, and flying high above. I say to myself out loud. Yes! I knew this was all here. I always did! My consciousness returns to the world I just came from. Just after that, I see some ghost like looking “shades” flying around in the skies above me. They feel sinister and have a condensing, magnetic energy that pulls at me if I direct my attention toward them unguarded. I watched them flying above and into the house where the party is going on. I see them fly into the mouths and ears of the people in the party and am aware that the “shades” are actually talking through the people, and no one is the wiser.

While observing this I realize that since I can see both worlds simultaneously, I have within me the power to work with these “shades”. I possess the Love, fortitude, will, gentleness, concentration, and training required to redirect these necessary forces. As I observe and contemplate the two worlds, I distinctly feel I have to make a choice. I can stay in the magical valley and enjoy it and peace forever, or I can go back to the world I came from, armed with the power and knowledge of a different way of looking at things in order to assist mankind. I decide to go back. 

[The End]

 THE SWAN

 [Part 2 – A vision while wide awake reading at home one afternoon a few years later]

I’m looking at the two worlds I saw before (what I now call Heaven or Shamballa and Earth). This time my perspective is from way up in the sky so I can easily see both worlds simultaneously. I see the “shades” doing what they do. I see the beautiful valley, the water, the flowers, the grass and of course I see the magic Swans. 

Looking to my left I see some white feathers as if I’m looking at the sky from the point of view of a bird. I look down and see more feathers. Suddenly I see that I’m riding one of the magic swans. As I feel deeper into it, I realize that I can feel my wings and realize that I’m flying. I’m really flying with power and grace.  I AM a beautiful magic Swan and I always was!  

[The End]

 THE SWAN

 [Part 3 – A vision while in an Ayahuasca ceremony several years later]

I’m lying on the ground looking at a beautiful and powerful green snake moving gracefully through the grass toward me. As I marvel at its beauty and strength, it suddenly transforms and becomes rainbow colored before my eyes and grows wings and takes flight. As it spirals gracefully into the air in all its glory, it becomes larger and larger and more and more powerful. Something tells me that this rainbow-colored cosmic swan can fly between the worlds and dimensions, and does so for the benefit of all beings. Its name is Hamsa. It represents awakened kundalini, life force, the creative essence of Mother Earth, Heaven and Shamballa at the same time. He/she embodies the perfect balance of masculine and feminine, strength and beauty bringing love without conditions, and healing and harmony to mankind.

It turns out that when we are in balance and complete harmony, we see that indeed the saying “all is one” is true. One Love. I AM that and all of that is me. As above, so below, as within, so without. I’m the mountain, the people in the party, the “shades”, the Swans, the flowers, the butterflies, the valley, and the river that runs through it. At the center of it all we find the Vortex of Love, and in the center of the Lotus of the Heart, we find infinite peace and awareness, with nothing more to do or be. Om Mani Padme Hum.

[The End]