The Doors of the Soul
“The Doors of the Soul can be used in meditations dedicated to healing, raising or lowering magical energy at will, and inducing different emotions by focusing the mind on different parts of the body.”
Photo by Kiwihug
Reconnecting to the Body
According to a medieval Irish text called The Judgments of Dian Cecht, translated by D.A. Binchy:
There are twelve doors of the soul in the human body: (1) the top of the head, i.e. the crown or the suture, (2) the hollow of the occiput, (3) the hollow of the temple, (4) the apple of the throat, (5) the spoon of the breast, (6) the armpit, (7) the breast-bone, (8) the navel, (9) the side , (10) the bend of the elbow, (11) the hollow of the ham, i.e. from behind, (12) the bulge of the groin, i.e. the bull sinew, (13) the sole of the foot.
The text in question, named after the divine physician of Irish myth, has to do with legal issues in the medical field. The Doors of the Soul or dorus anma are described as places on the body, not centers of energy – however, the British Druid Order (among others) interprets them as an ancient Irish equivalent to the chakra system. Whether or not this is a valid comparison, the Doors of the Soul can be used in meditations dedicated to healing, raising or lowering magical energy at will, and inducing different emotions by focusing the mind on different parts of the body.
The Doors of the Soul Meditation
The main purpose of this meditation is to contribute to the renewal of our friendship with the gods and spirits by undoing our alienation from our own bodies.
Lie down in a quiet place and close your eyes. Breathing slowly and deeply, place your mind at the crown for nine breaths, followed by the occiput, the temples, the apple of the throat, the hollow of the breast, the armpits, the sternum, the navel, the inside of the elbows, the groin, the area behind the knees, and the soles of the feet. You can also begin with the soles of the feet and work your way up.
Note the different energies and feelings raised by placing your body at the different points. For instance, placing your mind at the soles will ground you, at the navel will center you, and in the head will raise “fire in the head” or intense energy. Working through all the Doors one by one should leave you feeling deeply calm and present.
Anytime you want to raise a specific feeling, you can close your eyes and breathe slowly and deeply while focusing on the one Door you most associate with that feeling.
The Healing of Dian Cecht
This is a healing ritual using the Doors of the Soul. You should begin with an offering to the god Dian Cecht. Dian Cecht is the god of medicine and the personal physician to the other gods. When Nuada lost his hand, Dian Cecht made him a new one out of silver. At the Second Battle of Moytura, Dian Cecht prepared a magical Well of Health to heal the wounds of the Tuatha Dé, even of those who had been struck dead.
After leaving an offering for Dian Cecht, read this ancient Irish prayer aloud once, three times, or nine times. If you are helping someone else who wants to receive healing, ask them to repeat the lines after you and then guide them through the meditation:
May Fer-Fio's cry protect me upon the road, as I make my circuit of the Plain of Life
I call on the seven daughters of the sea,
who shape the threads of long life.
Three deaths be taken from me,
three lives given to me,
seven waves of plenty poured for me.
May ghosts not injure me on my journey
in my radiant breastplate without stain.
May my name not be pledged in vain;
may death not come to me until I am old.
I call on my Silver Champion,
who has not died and will not die;
may time be granted to me of the quality of bronze.
May my form be exalted,
may my double be slain,
may my law be ennobled,
may my strength be increased,
may my tomb not be readied,
may I not die on my journey,
may my return be ensured to me.
May the two-headed serpent not attack me,
nor the hard grey worm,
nor the senseless beetle.
May no thief attack me,
nor a company of women,
nor a company of warriors.
May I have increase of time...
I call on Senach of the seven lives,
whom fairy women suckled on the breasts of good fortune.
May my seven candles not be quenched.
I am an invincible fortress,
I am an unshakable cliff,
I am a precious stone,
I am the symbol of seven riches.
May I be the man of hundreds of possessions,
hundreds of years, each hundred after another.
- From the Kuno Meyer translation
With the prayer complete, lie down and close your eyes. Perform the Doors of the Soul meditation but visualize a divine healing power cleansing and healing all ills at each of the dorus anma. According to tradition, the person for whom a healing is performed must not question the effectiveness of the healing whether directly or indirectly.
CHRISTOPHER SCOTT THOMPSON
Photo by Tam Hutchinson.
is an anarchist, martial arts instructor, devotee of Brighid and Macha, and a wandering exile roaming the earth.