Surrender is scary.
It feels like loss.
It feels like collapse.
It brings up old fears,
Deep trauma about the loss of agency,
About giving away power.
And yet,
Surrender is the most liberating of all.
Whatever it is that you are struggling with,
Whatever it is that you want to let go of desperately but cannot,
Bring it with you.
Bring all the tension within of holding on versus letting go.
Bring it all.
Close your eyes.
Take it with you.
This idea,
This struggle,
This heaviness,
This baggage may be something new,
May be something old,
May be dense,
May be dark,
May be a new spark of light.
Whatever it is that you cannot hold on to anymore,
Bring it with you.
Let us make an attempt to surrender.
Hold it in your hand like a tiny sapling.
You don't know what this sapling can grow into.
You don't know if it is a plant,
A tree or a weed.
You don't know how to nurture it,
How to nourish it.
You don't know if it needs to be nourished or if it needs to be destroyed.
Carry it with you,
The sapling that you don't recognize.
Hold it in your hands and let's walk.
Let's walk to this wide opening between the trees.
As you kneel down,
Repeat this after me.
I don't know what to do with this.
I don't know how to take care of this.
I am giving this to you.
I trust that you will take care of it.
I trust that you know what to do with it.
I surrender.
I have faith.
And plant this sapling,
Surrender it to the elements.
Nature knows what needs to be done.
It knows if this flame should grow and spread like wildfire or if it should be extinguished.
It knows if it will bloom,
When it will bloom,
How long will it take.
Surrender all your concerns,
All your worries,
All your tension,
Heaviness,
Doubts.
Plant it here.
Take nothing back with you.
Repeat after me.
I surrender.
I have faith.
The glorious Kulmohar trees watch from a distance as the small sapling is planted there.
We do not know yet,
But these ancient wise beings around it will take care of this.
Whatever is needed will come to it,
Whether to nurture or to silently bury it for good.
These old wise Kulmohars,
These grandfathers and grandmothers know,
They know how to take care of this,
How to bring it up or how to lay it to rest.
So give it to them,
All of it.
Let the flame of creation and destruction take it in.
This is the power of the flame.
This is the medicine of the flame tree.
The medicine of surrender and faith.
Watch the wind blow these orange,
Yellow petals and cover the sapling with a soft blanket,
One that can nourish,
Nurture or put to rest.
It is taken care of.
Leave,
Go back.
Leave the clearing behind.
Walk back with empty hands.
Take a deep breath in and let it out and open your eyes.
Thank you.
