Hello Friends,

I just wanted to share with you that I bought a new Subaru yesterday! It is a black Outback 2.5i basic wagon. I experienced a powerful blessing ceremony for the car. I will add here the story I wrote to a friend about the event.

I did some numerology with the VIN number of the car. The number and letters added up to 69 which is a 15 (the Devil archetype!) but also 6 (the Lovers). This is going to be a helluva car!

Here’s the story:

My Subaru journey went very well. My friends ended up not being able to drive me to Chicago because of an unexpected mandatory office meeting. So I took the Van Galder Bus from Madison to O’Hare at 7:00am (watched a spectacular sunrise with a brilliant red sky from the bus) then took a taxi from O’Hare to the dealership. The transaction took about 45 minutes, then I drove to my parent’s house in Evanston and had a nice lunch, took them for a spin in the car, then drove back to Madison.

As I drove into Madison there was an equally spectacular sunset to greet me, and my new car, coming home. In the opposite direction from the sunset rose the full moon (an auspicious symbol for the day of purchase of this car) which was a huge golden orange color.

…I did a blessing ceremony for the new car.

I have to share what happened.

I raced home to my house to pick up some ceremonial materials. I wanted to capture the energy of the sunset and rising moon for the ceremony. I brought my Eagle and Turkey feathers, a bowl filled with dry sage to smudge and smoke the car, and Agua de Florida (a Peruvian ceremonial water used for blessing and clearing).

Remember the park with the swans I told you about? It is the park that has the eagle effigy mound and all the trees struck by lightning… Well, I had the strong message to do the ceremony at that park…of course the problem is that the park is gated closed for the season…So (having a 4-wheel drive car) I drove over the curb, on to the grass and around the gate to get into the park and get near the water…and prayed to the Spirits to make me invisible to the police while I perform the ceremony!

The timing was perfect. I parked the Subaru facing west, in the direction of the water and western horizon. The sky was the most brilliant red-orange I have seen in months…even more incredible than what I had seen from the bus that very same morning. Behind me, a huge full moon was rising up between the bare tree branches.

I got out of the car, opened the back hatch and set up my “tools”. I called in the Spirits of the 4-Directions, the Creator, and Mother Earth asking them to be witness to the blessing of the new car. Then I lit the dry sage with a match and let the wind catch the flame. Rich sage smoke began to billow out from the bowl. I picked up the bowl, the turkey and eagle feathers, and begun to walk around the car using the feathers to brush the smoke over the car.

In my world, everything has a spirit…even inanimate objects like a car. An object that gets a lot of use from someone begins to take on the energy of that person and develop a character of its own. So vehicles develop personalities…

In the shaman’s world you want to initiate any object that you will be using in a serious way and bring in an intention of goodness, harmony, and balance to that object…it is like creating a template for the destiny of that object, setting its trajectory to a positive direction. For things that are a really big deal, you also want to pick auspicious timing and celestial coordinates–sunset–full moon. If the providence is good, and the relationship a worthy one, the spirits often bring you a sign and affirmation. So this is what happened to me:

On my drive back from Chicago, I got the “name” for my new car. Inomoxo, the Peruvian Aymara word for Black Jaguar (my Subaru is all black). So as I began to smudge the black Subaru with sage smoke, I also spoke to the car:

” Inomoxo, I welcome you into my life, a partner in my journeys and travels, a companion in my explorations and work. Hold me and protect me, keep me safe in hard weather. Lead me to safety in deep snow, ice, mud or sugar-sand…wherever my work and adventures take me. Be strong and stable, reliable and dependable. I take you under my wing and protect you. I will care for you and tend to you. Our relationship will be strong and lasting. I ask that you always give me gentle warning for your needs for repair and care…and I will help you. We will share much, and you will be witness to my joys, triumphs and tears. I will feel safe in you…and I am so grateful for the gift of you in my life….”

I circled the car with smoke and prayers, then turned facing outward:

“Great Spirit, bless this new beginning, For Inomoxo marks a new time in my life, a new cycle…”

It was at about that moment that I saw a huge bird fly in at the edge of the park and land in a tree, it’s large, black silhouette punctuated by the crimson-orange sky.

I stopped and squinted to look, then a second bird came landing not too far from the first. They were both facing me…

Watching them, I continued with my prayer…

“May all my helping Spirits bless and support the well-being of this relationship. Bless Inomoxo, and bring vitality and long life to this being, this car.”…

The first bird lifted off and flew to another tree closer to me…as though coming in for a closer look…the second bird then followed suit, flying to a different tree…also closer to me. Now I knew what they were…a mated pair of Great Horned Owls…Owl is one of my guardian totem animals.

At this point I fully faced the birds and got down on my knees. Bowing down, I whispered, “Welcome, my friends.”

The first owl glided off the tree, and flew to a tree 50 feet away from me. She bobbed her head to me, intently watching. Now I could see her silhouette clearly; The thick full body, her golden eyes, the ear tufts…She sashayed up and down the branch like an excited parrot, I had to repress a giggle of delight.

…Then movement caught my eye…from across the field, came gliding her mate. He landed next to her, on the same branch. The two of them directly staring at me.

Now tears welled in my eyes…I knew this was the affirmation, the sign that my journey with Inomoxo would be a good one.

“Thank you…” I whispered. I was filled with an overwhelming feeling of deep gratitude.

The ceremony had been honored.

I closed the directions with heartfelt thanks. Thanked the moon, the sunset and the owls.

As I snuffed out the smoking bowl of sage, the pair of owls lifted off and flew out of the park. I got in Inomoxo, drove back out over the grass, curb and around the locked gate…No Police.

Thanks for listening. I love you all. Happy New Year!

Ana