Rose Quartz Soars & Reunites: Self-Transformation Rituals for Change
“If you want to awaken all of humanity, then awaken all of yourself. If you want to eliminate the suffering in the world, then eliminate all that is dark and negative in yourself. Truly, the greatest gift you have to give is that of your own self-transformation.” – Lao Tzu
Protesters march peacefully through my Hollywood neighborhood on a weekday afternoon, touting signs and posters that relay one main message: A cry for the end of racial injustice. We’ve heard the concept that change starts from within. Often, however, the urgency for change eliminates the process of self-reflection.
Demonstrators photo by Logan Bik
For me, these last three months have been fraught with self-reflection of the familial nature. My mother was visiting me from Israel when the COVID-19 pandemic. The subsequent stay-at-home orders made it difficult for her to return home. What ensued was three decades of tension condensed into three months of isolation together in my one bedroom apartment.
Despite her profession as a therapist and mine as a spiritual healer, we both experienced communication breakdowns. And at times, we experienced emotional instability. So, we each began to make compromises. After living without a television for 12 years, I finally decided to invest in one. I hoped it would behave as a bonding mechanism.
Sure enough, it did. We ended each day with our newfound favorite comedian, Sebastian Maniscalco, whose humorous anecdotes on the nuances of familial relationships lent an air of lightheartedness to our tension. Tears of laughter developed into tears of joy between mother and daughter. Two individuals who also dealt with conflicting lifestyles.
As those three months of sharing every meal together, and laughing and crying together, slowly formed into the end of our time together, my heart became filled with a gaping emptiness. Since seeing her off last week, I’ve recognized how deeply I miss my mom’s company. Our futile differences created a wall between us for so long. A wall that I wished we had torn down much sooner, especially now that I’ve witnessed the euphoria of our unity.
Parashakti and her mother photograph by Yair Golov.
My sense of loss was exacerbated further upon witnessing the unjust and unwillful death of George Floyd. A man with a family just like mine, one who wouldn’t see him smile or laugh again.
Focusing on the Present
If this year has taught us anything, it’s a lesson on the futility of planning. The Native American teachings of Eagle Medicine contain a strong focus on the future. The Eagle represents change and possibilities, all things rooted in what’s to come.
Even as an avid practitioner of this Eagle Medicine, I find myself asking some of the following questions. How do we dream forward, in the essence of the Eagle, when we’ve witnessed the unexpectedness of the Planet?
This makes it more important than ever to come into the present. Our rituals for change can include meditation, dance, journaling, or other introspective practices. Let us ask ourselves: What change should we inspire from within ourselves in order to improve the world around us?
Parashakti photo by Masayo Benoist
In addition to being a symbol of renewal, the Eagle also represents an invitation to see the bigger picture. Its overwhelming ability to soar to unfathomable heights allows it to canvas all the land that is below. It can thus review the totality of its landscape. In turn, Eagle asks us to review the totality of the landscape that is our lives, and determine what truly matters. Eagle asks us to investigate and view our own rituals for change.
Questioning What Truly Matters
For me, the realization of what truly matters comes in the form of family ties. Given and made, by blood and by choice. “Family” might be the conclusion many come to. And it could refer to a need for reconnection or perhaps a need to cut the cord and fly free.
I think on the time I spent trying to “fix” those around me. My family in Israel used to call me the “Missionary” for my Yogic lifestyle (which they related to living in an ashram) and staunch attempts to change the way they live. When I wasn’t preaching the healing powers of superfoods, I was — and this may sound mundane — aiming to convert them to the ways of the Vitamix. And, though my mom is a loyal Vitamix user today, the bigger picture is that I see the error in my actions.
I wanted to eliminate the differences between us, in lifestyle and in beliefs. I felt that contrasts were roadblocks instead of learning opportunities. These last three months under lockdown orders with my mom sent me into a sort of forced acceptance. And it’s one that I’m grateful for as I look back.
More than anything, the experience has allowed me to see that, in order to deepen relationships, we must really be willing to do the work. We must be willing to confront difficult emotions and dormant prejudices to achieve new beginnings.
This question of what truly matters not only exists on an individual level. It exists on a societal level as well. And currently, it can be answered with a resounding “Black Lives Matter.” Much like our individual responses to this query, we must be driven to listen.
Healing Ceremonies for Harmony
New beginnings and rituals for change have become something of a running theme in my life. The onset of COVID-19 turned all my professional opportunities upside down. In fact, I built an entire program with rituals for change around this concept of starting anew, which I refer to as The East Gate.
Through the use of energetically-charged and ceremonially blessed jewelry, I lead people into the discovery of the unknown in their own lives. Naturally, the aforementioned jewelry I use to conduct the journey comes in the shape of the Eagle, and features all kinds of stones.
Now that the beaches have reopened in Los Angeles, I pack up my traveling altar and head down to the ocean. The stone I find myself turning to and dancing with the most in recent days is Rose Quartz.
From left to right: Visionary Winged One Pendant designed by Parashakti & SunDancer Winged One Pendant designed by Kabartsy. Photo credit: Eric Allan.
This blush-colored rock represents universal love. It is often used in the healing of the heart, and in friendship and relationship mediation rituals, in which two wounded parties can re-establish harmony.
With so much tension and injustice plaguing our world right now, I’ve been bringing Rose Quartz into nearly every Zoom meeting and meditation session. I’ve even been wearing it proudly to the grocery store, around my apartment, and (especially) amid my loved ones.
Due to its ability to connect to the heart chakra, this powerful stone is known for fostering empathy, peace, and understanding — all values that desperately need to be applied to the current climate.
Dance as a Healing Art, part of Rituals for Change
When I wandered down to the beach yesterday, I decided to practice what I know best: Movement as Medicine. In my personal practice, known as Dance of Liberation, I lead workshops on mindful dance and encourage dancers to wear blindfolds while they let their bodies pave the way for healing through movement.
Parashakti with blindfold for Dance of Liberation. Photo by Masayo Benoist
The blindfold encourages self-reflection. When you’re not fixated on the movements of others, thus allowing you to let go of how others perceive your own movement, you channel a special kind of connection. This connection often contains a newfound self-love, while still allowing you to retain a sense of community, since you can feel the presence of your fellow blindfolded dancers.
As I donned my rose quartz and dipped my toes into the cool salt water, however, I decided to leave the blindfold behind. This time, I wanted to be presently aware of my surroundings, understanding how essential it is to mobilizing external change.
Parashakti Dancing by the Ocean Photo Credit: Eric Allan / Parashakti is wearing white leggings from
As the pandemic looms, so many people are wondering what they can do to support their brothers and sisters when protesting is not an option. Perhaps that solution is self-reflection. When we’re not signing petitions or donating to noble causes, we can sit with ourselves, educate ourselves, educate the people in our lives, and adjust small habits. We can eliminate hurtful language, check in on impacted friends, and continue to spread the word.
We can clutch our Rose Quartz in one hand as a prayer for peace and raise our fist with the other as a simple ritual for change. Introspection is not inactivity. Quite the contrary, it is an acknowledgement that systemic change starts with self-change. It’s no coincidence that the influential Eagle is the Spirit Animal of my practice. Native to North America, this magnificent creature has aptly become a symbol of freedom.
And as we fight for the freedoms of our black brothers and sisters to be restored, we should use the Eagle’s symbolism as a driving force for reform.
Rose Quartz as Part of a Ritual for Change
Parashakti has just launched the Rose Quartz stone in her Winged Ones line. These power objects are part of her East Gate program. This is a multi-faceted healing journey for those who are undergoing hardship and looking for positive rituals for change. She is currently donating 3% of each purchase to Color of Change, a racial justice organization committed to fighting racism in communities across America. Click here to purchase your Winged One & be part of the movement!
For a comprehensive resource on how you can support the Black Lives Matter movement and victims of police brutality, please click here. This page consists of links to memorial funds, petitions you can sign, ways you can help demonstrators, and more.
You can also see a complete breakdown below. A huge, soaring THANK YOU to all those who helped lay the groundwork for this list:
- Donate to the victims of police brutality
- Support the demonstrators
- Give directly to our dear friend Haile Supreme who is organizing on the ground in Minnesota
- Another comprehensive list of bail programs for demonstrators
- Other important places to donate
- Donate to Black owned businesses
- Donate to The Loveland Foundation to give therapy to Black women and girls
- Fight police brutality: Campaign Zero
Links for white folks who want to help:
- If you only look at one thing, start with this comprehensive resource
- Your opportunity + invitation to become an accomplice
- Read + take action: 75 Things White People Can Do for Racial Justice
- Sign up for Rachel Cargle’s #dothework 30 day course
- Learn how to be anti-racist at Monique Melton’s Shine Bright School
- RSVP for Daybreaker’s Study Hall on How To Be Anti-Racist
Educational resources on police brutality:
- Check out aworldwithoutpolice.org for a super comprehensive study guide on what you want to know about police + our society
- Watch Phillip Atiba Goff from the Center for Policing Equity in an actionable TED talk on the history of the US police force
- Watch “13th” by Ava DuVernay on Netflix on the history of slavery, jim crow, and mass incarceration
Resources for demonstrators:
- ACLU on knowing your rights while protesting
- VICE: Know Your Rights: Filming the Police
- How to navigate facial recognition technology
People & organizations to support/follow:
- Follow Rachel Cargle @rachel.cargle
- Follow Monique Melton @moemotivate
- Follow Layla Saad @laylafsaad
- Connect with the Movement for Black Lives
- Connect with Black Lives Matter
Winged Ones Photos
A SPECIAL Prayer of deep Gratitude to our in-house Winged Ones photographer, Eric Allen. His gift of creative energy, flow, and healing through photography captures a depth of truth, authenticity, and magic. View Eric Allen‘s brilliant work!
Parashakti’s shamanic healing work is born of more than two decades of experience facilitating workshops, trainings, and retreats around the world, in Los Angeles, New York, Mexico, Bali, Guatemala, Indonesia, Israel, and Greece. As a lifelong dancer, her path as a healer followed a severe injury – a period of what is often called shamanic dismantling, after which her mission shifted towards healing. Over the last 20 years, Parashakti has developed the Seven Foundations and the Dance of Liberation™, as maps for her spiritual practice, living and breathing these foundations in daily ritual. Dance of Liberation™ has been practiced by over 10,000 dancers around the globe. It’s was born of a mission to help people experience ecstasy – without taking it.
Above all, Parashakti is dedicated to serving community and creating a sacred container where people feel safe enough to experience their deepest essences, honor their voices, and shine their brightest light. Join her on the Dance floor: www.parashakti.org