Introduction to Self Alchemy Part 2

The alchemy process happens over and over again as long as one continues the sacred journey toward self awareness. In Tibetan Buddhism, it is told that what begins as a seed in the mud rises through the water to bloom as a perfect precious lotus flower. 

I have been on the path of self alchemy for decades. It began when my kundalini started rising at a retreat that ended with the goal of making myself aware of and healing an issue in my life. I chose my childhood trauma as my issue, not knowing that the majority of my childhood was buried in my unconscious mind and that I would undergo a near total deconstruction of my ego and descent into the underworld that would last years before I emerged with a far more wise and whole self. One of my teachers speaks of karma, and the law of cause and effect. Karma is a force which will bring about a predetermined lesson. However, once you have the freedom to choose growth, become the cause instead of the effect. In other words, make continual small steps toward spiritual growth and you may learn your karmic lesson with a fender bender instead of a head on collision. It is with this teaching that I am called to continually observe, analyze, deconstruct my current sense of self, and integrate and reconstruct a healthier sense of self. This explanation may sound entirely emotionless and clinical, so I have written a poem to provide a more experiential understanding of my personal alchemy process. Some people’s alchemy processes are slow and gentle. I am called to work very deeply very quickly, thus while I am always Divinely held, my process is not gentle.