There it was lying on the floor shattered into several pieces. Prior to its fall this family heirloom vase had been admired by all as stunningly beautiful. Now in a singular moment everything had changed. Banzan stood over the vase staring in total disbelief and fear, what would he tell his family? A feeling of dread consumed him as he knelt and nervously began to collect the wreckage. Little did Banzan know the profound teaching he was about to experience. Adding to his trepidation, he now heard footsteps coming from the other room.
“Sobo… it was an accident” Banzan meekly whispered to his grandmother who was now standing in the doorway. Gesturing with one-finger placed vertically across her lips, Sobo quietly instructed Banzan to gather the pieces and follow her. Being a wise woman, Banzan’s Sobo was about to use this mishap as a teaching moment. Being young and unaware of many aspects of his own culture, Banzan was about to be schooled in the fine art of kintsugi. An ancient method of repairing broken ceramics that boldly submits the tenet “that nothing is truly ever broken”.
Kintsugi ("golden joinery"), also known as Kintsukuroi ("golden repair"), is the Japanese art of repairing broken pottery by mending the areas of breakage with lacquer dusted or mixed with powdered gold, silver, or platinum, a method similar to the maki-e technique.
As a philosophy, kintsugi can be seen to have similarities to the Japanese philosophy of wabi-sabi, an embracing of the flawed or imperfect. Japanese aesthetics values marks of wear by the use of an object. This can be seen as a rationale for keeping an object around even after it has broken and as a justification of kintsugi itself, highlighting the cracks and repairs as simply an event in the life of an object rather than allowing its service to end at the time of its damage or breakage.
Slowly Sobo began the process of lovingly cobbling the broken vase back together. While doing so she shared the philosophy of kintsugi with Banzan. She explained that just as the vase was broken into pieces, we too can become shattered by difficult events that occur in our lives. These things can leave scars and wounds that create feelings within seeding a belief that we can never be whole again. Sobo then whispered in an authoritative tone, “Banzan… never accept this as truth, such contrivances are opportunities for each of us to become stronger, more resilient, and beautiful.”
The boy nodded in agreement, moved by the emotion his grandmother conveyed as she imparted generational wisdom to him. Though he was young, her words seemed to transcend time and touch him at the level of the soul. Sobo was teaching that it is in the messy mending of life’s abrasions that we discover how brightly we can shine, even with our metaphoric golden cracks. The art of kintsugi shows that what gets put back together can become a celebration of an objects (read person) unique history, revitalizing it with a new look and a second life. The overriding notion being there is beauty that can come from the places we are broken.
One of the most sacred roles I act in as a Shaman is to help people heal their brokenness. The work I am referring to is known as soul retrieval which targets the recovery of pieces of one’s spirit or soul so that one’s auric field or luminous body can retain its light and energy. Life events can fragment our souls. You might literally feel as if a piece of you is missing. The shattering can come in many ways. Some of the more common events are rooted in trauma. This can be emotional, physical, or sexual. An abusive relationship can also be the culprit. A serious illness, deep grief due the loss of a loved one or a divorce, are also events that can cause our souls to be leaked or drained leaving us less than whole. Whatever the cause, like the art of kintsugi, your soul can be made whole again, and your unique brokenness can become a source of strength and beauty.
During a soul retrieval it is my responsibility to take a special journey for you into other realms and seek the return of those parts of you that still exist, but reside in a separate place. The ultimate goal being to return the piece(s) of your soul that have been lost. I will petition spirit on your behalf to allow the return of them so that you can begin the process of healing. Having done this sacred task many times, what I have observed the most is when successful (sometimes the soul is not ready), you will experience more passion and light, healthier relationships, a greater ability to embrace change and make decisions, feel more fully present, and even more resistant and resilient to disease and illness.
This is not something one should approach lightly. You will know when you are ready. And when you are, just like a beautifully repaired vase blessed by the art of kintsugi, you too can have a second life, one in which your scars and wounds become your power and brilliance.
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