Be A Hummingbird

The Inca Medicine Wheel represents a cycle of transformation as we move through the archetypes associated with the four cardinal directions – Serpent in the South, Jaguar in the West, Hummingbird in the North, and Eagle/Condor in the East. This cycle of transformation can be seen as a spiral, with us always shedding and letting go, to discover new ways of being, and back again to release and birth something anew. We experience these cycles with the seasons of nature and the seasons of our lives.

As we move towards the first day of spring, I feel the wisdom of the Hummingbird particularly useful in helping move through the transition from winter to spring. We come to Hummingbird in the North after we’ve released what no longer serves us in the South with the help of Serpent and Jaguar has helped us illuminate what was hidden so that we could step into fearless and courage. Hummingbird comes into the cycle to help us tap into our inner wisdom, to remember the wisdom of our ancestors, and to be open to possibilities so that we can create our own mythic journey.

Hummingbirds are still even amid flight – flying in a figure eight pattern that allows them to stay still and source the nectar of flowers. And they source this nectar with great wisdom – knowing which flowers to feed from. So, from Hummingbird we learn that in stillness, there is an opportunity for wisdom and discernment.[1] We have a chance to observe, to take the lessons or gifts from the past, and to discern what will nourish us at our deepest levels as we journey forward. It invites us to be open to what will bring sweetness into our lives.

And despite their size, Hummingbirds undertake a long migration journey to find the nectar that nourishes them.[2]Hummingbird can teach us how to do what seems impossible and to follow our own inner calling rather than the expectations of others, as we source the nectar that nourishes our own soul along the way. In the moments of stillness, we can listen carefully to our own truths, our own wisdom, and release whatever heaviness may still be weighing us down, like resentment, for example, so that we can fly more freely to the next step in our journey. And we can also tap into the wisdom of our ancestors – our own kin and others – who have lived their own mythic journeys to help carry us farther and to create a great mythic journey all our own. When we can tap into not just what is or what we’re told must be, we’re able to open to synchronicities and possibilities that can help propel us forward.

Lastly, Hummingbird helps us learn that as we fly the great mythic journey of our lives, to do so with reciprocity. As the Hummingbird sources its nectar, it leaves pollen behind. It therefore does not take more than it needs, demonstrating reciprocity.[3] This reciprocity, as Lorena Saavedra Smith, would say, is about “sacred balance” and in giving and receiving “we recognize that harmonic balance is a prerequisite to living well.”[4] I would say too that reciprocity helps us to see our place in the world and nature, and how we are all connected. In seeing this connection, we can also see how we can help one another in so many ways, including in moving through transitions together.

To help you harness the wisdom of the Hummingbird to help you with transitions in your life, I wanted to share a short contemplative practice that may be done as a meditation or a journaling exercise. If you can, sit outside during this practice, communing with nature and hearing the birds may help you go deeper into the experience.

Contemplative or Journaling Practice:

Imagine yourself in the liminal space – the in-between. You’re in a place of transition. Suspended in air you see the past behind you, the future in front of you. Observe.

Release: From this vantage point, what do you see? What do you want to release, to liberate yourself from? Perhaps stories about what your life needs to be, what it must look like to be successful, fulfilled or to fit in? After you see what you need to release, let it go. You can imagine putting it into a fire, as an offering, or floating on the wind or a river away from you.

Nourishment, Wisdom, and Your Mythic Journey: Then ask yourself, what nourishes you? How can you bring sweetness to your life, to your soul? What inner callings and yearnings have you ignored, but are now ready to answer? As you do so, what new story will you create? What mythic journey will you take? What does it look like when your dreams are in full bloom? Imagine yourself as a character in a great myth or fantasy novel. Let it be your map. Give it permission to change with the possibilities, but to do so with wisdom. What do you need to help propel you forward? What ancestral wisdom can you look to as support?

Reciprocity: And as you move forward in your mythic journey, filled with vitality and wisdom, ask yourself – as I receive the gifts of this journey, what do I leave behind? What does reciprocity look like for you?

You can take the answers to these questions, the images that you’ve received and hold them to your heart. To bring more embodiment and integration of what you’ve witnessed during this moment of sacred pause, you can journal your answers and return to what you’ve written over the course of the spring – allowing new possibilities to emerge. A practice that I also find helpful is to not only visualize what comes to my mind and heart, but to also leave room – “for this or something greater.” That way, we’re leaving room to be open to synchronicities and to co-create with the universe or the God of your understanding, which may be able to imagine something more.