Anita Pathik Law  

"Ram, Ram, Ram, Ram, Ram, Ram, Ram" my father chanted in his deep Indian accent, his eyes closed, smiling with his hand gently placed on my back. Encouraging me to join him in this simple mantra, the pain seemed to melt away, and I felt the tangible energy of love moving through the room. As my 7 year old mind absorbed the memory that would be revolutionary later in my adult life I recited the chant with my father absent of any doubt that I was not being embraced in a magical moment.

"This is a sacred place Anita, one where two world come together and miracles happen," grandpa Elmer said as he handed me two books; Many Lives, Many Masters by Dr. Brian Weiss and Exploring the Mysteries of Life by Nellie Cain. As we walked the sacred grounds in the woods that surrounded their simple cabin by a rumbling creek, he had turned me on to the work and life of Edgar Cayce, and had talked to me about the do's and don'ts of calling forth beings of other realms. "Don't play with a Ouija board Anita, the good spirits have better, more important things to do then play games." In between subtle spiritual and metaphysical lessons, he would break out into his infamous dirty jokes, always lightening the mood, his humor and his grand stature offered a unique mixture of softness and strength, heart and might.

"You and your sister have been given a legacy that began with your grandfather, Shaligram and grandmother, Shakuntala. It is to bring together the spiritual and the business, and to continue the teachings of Gandhi," my Uncle Gagan shared with my brother as they stood at the Ganges River, just moments after releasing my father's ashes in ceremony.

Long gone from this world, my father and grandfathers had planted seeds of healing, of mystery, of peace and of worlds beyond our physical, human experience. As a child I didn't understand the significance of what my elders were teaching me, let alone what they stood for. I didn't understand that my father, Magan Kumar Pathik, had been brought into this world and actually named by one of the greatest spiritual and social leaders in modern history. I didn't understand the sacrifice my grandparents made when they joined Gandhi's movement before they even reached adulthood. I didn't understand that Mahatma Gandhi had given birth to a consciousness that would touch the lives of my fellow Indians and Americans; Martin Luther King later adopting his methods of passive resistance and non-violence and paving the way to a new America. I simply didn't understand the significance of my unique and treasured upbringing and that in many ways I would continue on the path they had begun to pave for me before I was even born.

The women in my family were not any less notable. As I sifted through several boxes of my Aunt Nancy's books, shortly after her passing in July of this year, I was overcome with gratitude. As I looked through an amazing library of metaphysical gems, I came across an inscription in a book that was given to her by grandpa. "To One Who Sees From One Who Sees," I read aloud, feeling a jolt of electricity moving through the very core of my being. Her sensitivity annoying at times, I now understand what it is like to live on this earth as a feeler and a knower. In spite of her struggles and personal demons, she never lost her faith and sense of humor. Gifting us the "no thank you helping" and the hilarious Christmas grab bag tradition, Nancy will live on through my future generations.

My grandmother, independent, feisty and always sharing her conversations with God and my mother, a role model for non-judgment, love and service to family, join the other elders in my family as my greatest teachers and heroes. They are all part of who I am today. I remember being about 8 years old the first time mom sat me down and forced me to write a gratitude list so I would shift out of some self imposed, whiny, miserable rant. Today, she doesn't bat an eye when I describe miracles and manifestations; after all, she understood our innate power long before I became fully conscious myself.

How fortunate am I to come from such an amazing lineage? How humbled could I possibly feel? At 38 years old, today seen as a sage and spiritual teacher and healer in my own right, I wish I had always understood how blessed I was. I wish I had asked more questions. I wish I had told them all how amazing they were and how much they had shaped, albeit subtly, without imposition, who I had become, and more importantly, later, who I had un-become.

I wish I could thank them personally for my own radical healing a decade ago and that they could see and feel their spirits move me when I share healing energy with my clients today. I wish I could sit with my father and let him know that I "get it." I want him to know that he did teach me to meditate and pray and go straight to our Source and receive healing, in an instant. I want him to know that even though I was only six or seven when I first recall him showing me this way of ceremony, that his gift is carried with me in all of my breathing moments.

And, on some level, I know they know. I feel their presence when I am working with a client. Others have felt them too. Three completely unrelated healers have recently reported seeing Gandhi, my father and grandfathers standing behind me, without them knowing anything about my family's history. Two have seen my grandmother observing from a distance, both saying that she was learning about this healing energy stuff.

To tell you the truth, most of what I witness and experience in my healing work remains a mystery. I've let go of trying to understand the how's and just surrender to the clear fact that it is just part of how I am to serve. My linear mind has moved out of the way and countless miracles have been received as a result.

Just a few days before her death, as I was doing energy work on my Grandmother, I was glad to have a witness when she literally shot out of her recliner as I cleared her heart chakra. Even the adult proof chair, built to ensure hospice patients don't attempt to walk without assistance, didn't prevent the energy from literally bringing her up onto her feet. The evening she took her last breath I felt her presence come into my body, so strong, in fact, that I briefly lost consciousness. As I awoke, I simply stated, "Grandma is going tonight."

A few months earlier, I was blessed to witness my aunt go from moaning in pain to literally groaning in ecstasy as I called forth a healing of her soul in preparation for her long awaited transition. She laughed and smiled as she slipped into the coma that would soon release her into the afterlife. My mother, grandmother and husband circled around us, smiling and laughing at the sight of Nancy's energetic explosion into bliss. I felt and sensed the healing and loving and presence of Jesus and then saw my grandfather and father smiling, standing behind her as if they were escorts awaiting her final decision to leave her body and return home to God.

For the last year, every time I meditate or bring myself into hypnosis, I literally feel hands on me, my body temperature rapidly changing as I receive an energy into me that is beyond words or explanation. Saturday morning I was actually being physically moved around on my bed while in a deep state of meditation and prayer and all I could do was just surrender and let go. I had asked for a healing and clearly received it. My daughter stood outside my room listening to multiple footsteps and movement in my room as she tried to calm one of our cats that was outside my door desperately attempting gain entry. She commented how unusual it was to see Jasmine growling and trying to open a door. When I shared my experience with her, my amazing 12 year old just smiled and said, "I heard them mommy, I heard them healing you."

Is it real, my imagination, a miracle? All of the above? Have I lost my mind or simply regained a divine access to mysteries that lie within our reach at all times? Is it just plain fact that we are all healers, each of us operating at our current state of awareness, one that will heighten as we get out of the way and just simply allow?

I often wonder when the world stopped believing in miracles. Or stillness. Or harmony. When did we forget how powerful we were? Why have so many people lost sight of their innate power to heal, to manifest miracles and to serve one another in love and generosity as a pathway to deep eternal peace?

Maybe that is a big part of why I am here; why I have had the experiences I have had. Maybe it is why I have firsthand knowledge of both the debilitating nature of pain and the liberating rapture of healing. Maybe it is why all I really want to do is share this immense knowledge with others and to teach them-or remind them-of their incredible power as healers on the planet. Maybe my own awakening is critical to the collective awakening. And, maybe, just maybe, yours is too and together, this is how we will change the world; one mind at a time, one heart at a time, one soul at a time. Maybe we have arrived here together to awaken to the healer that resides within and ultimately, we will pave a path to a new individual and collective reality; a new world, a new level of existence that is emerging into our awareness and lighting the path towards a realization of the incredible potential we are here to serve.

Regardless of what I think I know or don't know, one truth is more apparent to me than ever before. It is a truth that we are all connected, all children born of the same Source; divine beings filled with grace and light and a spirit of promise that abides within each of us, no matter the various outpicturings and personalities that are merely a result of our cultural conditioning, choices and beliefs. The world is messy and filled with conflict, yet beauty and love are present in even the darkest of places. The beginning place for a re-awakening of humanity, we travel into the depths of beauty and emerge healed and whole. We embrace the One truth, the divine love of the Great Mystery and we join in a space of knowing that each and every one of us is powerful beyond measure.

Healers in our own rights, our task is ridiculously simple; to love and serve one another as we would our own children. To view one another as brother, sister, cousin, and to experience ourselves as part of the One unifying source of energy that supplies us with our breath and has infused us with the many gifts it fuels and energizes. To use our power for good. To be a source of inspiration for others. To release all of the reasons and excuses we have chosen to stay in pain, or have hidden out in the past. To follow our heart and acknowledge that sometimes doing the "right thing" is not always the right thing. Rather doing right is simply being right with ourselves and God, and that the greatest wish for all beings on the planet is to just simply be happy.

And, so, this next year, I ask of you one favor; a favor that will serve all of humanity. Make a commitment this year. Be yourself. If you don't know what that means, find out. Follow your heart, honor your resonance and your faith and have a conversation with your fears every time they come into the room. Be kind to one another. Be kind to yourself. Be kind to your parents and your children even when you don't want to. Make love like you mean it and stop taking things so damned personally. Grow up and show up, even when it's hard. Be present. Be present to the people in your life and the every day miracles that are gifted to you as whispers and kisses from the Divine. Take a long hard look at how you have adopted the beliefs you carry and release the ones that don't serve a consciousness of healing and peace. Be conscious as you form and pass along new opinions, especially as they relate to the upcoming political elections and internationally impactful issues. Don't make everything a crisis. Instead, see everything as an opportunity and grab the proverbial bull by both horns and enjoy the ride of your life!

Forgive everyone and everything from your past. Holding onto resentments is only weighing you down and holding you in a past that doesn't actually exist. Be authentic. Be alive. Breathe. Smile. Laugh. Choose love over everything. And above all, be grateful. Be grateful for your ability to feel, to connect and to experience compassion. Be grateful for the entirety of your life, even those experiences that brought pain, for they are the ones that offered you the greatest opportunity to grow and become a better human being. Be aware that anger is compassion misdirected and fear is usually a temporary loss of faith. And, last but not least, please, please see yourself as the powerful person you are. You are a healer, a creator and a facilitator of incredible change. We need you. We need you to be strong. We need you to claim your power and to remember and serve your unique purpose in the world. In the end, this is the yet a beginning of a new world, one that we will co-create together and I am honored to be on this path with you walking alongside me. It brings me great comfort to know I am not alone in the quest for a united humanity and that as each of us awakens to the healer within, uniting first our own internal divisions, we unite all.