Written by Lumi (Changyi Li), Visionary Artist & Healer
Lumi (Changyi Li) is an art healer and intuitive known by her visionary art and embodied spiritual practices on the journey of self-healing and personal growth. She created Illumina Free Soul Art, an online platform to heal and empower the world through authentic and heartfelt expression.
When we enter the colder months of the year, the season makes us descend into the darker parts of the psyche. It is easier for us to feel more tired, gloomy, and miserable than in the warmer months. The shortening of the day and decreasing temperature nudge us to cocoon ourselves and face the inner autumn and winter. But this is also a fertile time to restore and regenerate our energy for our next growth, and a good opportunity to go within and sow new seeds.
Follow the wheel of the year
The Wheel of the Year exists in many native cultures. It speaks of the cycle of seasons and our inner changes according to natural rhythms. Our mental and emotional status and spiritual growth align with the turning of seasons. Because we, as humans, are a part of this great cycle of life and are in tune with the changes of Mother Nature. There are certain portals in the Wheel of the Year, such as solstices and equinoxes, which are powerful energy points that open up to our inner evolution and renewal.
The portal of Samhain at the beginning of November, according to the Celtic Wheel of the Year, is the gateway for winter months. It is when life energy starts to draw inwards from the outside for storage, preservation, repair, and in-depth change. The veil between the seen and the unseen becomes thin, so Samhain is often associated with the dead and the unseen. It is the time to connect to the deep wisdom of our ancestors and to receive guidance on our journeys. Our ancestors view Samhain as a gateway of both descension and celebration, that death (the dying of the warmer months) is also to be honoured and blessed because it heralds the beginning of a new phase in life (the new spring to come).
The Wheel of the Year reminds us that life has its cycles and turns so that it can sustain and renew itself. The circle of life has no beginnings nor ends, and life and death (both physical and inner) are indispensable phases of the wholeness of the cycle. And so, the colder and darker months are the gifts for our internal regeneration. We shall tune in with the cycle of nature and embrace its rise and fall. Life is easier when we flow with the rhythms of nature rather than swimming against it.
Tips for your heart to help you through the colder months
Autumn and winter invite us to turn inwards for reflections, introspection, letting go of the past, and setting intentions. We are invited to release the old layers of us that no longer serve us, pay them thanks, and let them go. Connecting to our unconscious psyche and embracing our inner death phase are the themes that tune in with the season’s call.
Do some simple rituals
At different energy portals such as Autumn Equinox, Samhain, and Winter Solstice, it is a good opportunity to carry out rituals and affirmations to tune in the energy of the time. The reasons behind doing rituals are to connect us to our hearts and to consciously remind ourselves of the intentions we hold inside and any actions to take so that we are actively involved in our changes. Also, it connects us with the wider realms of support that can guide and protect us along the way. Ask, and you will then receive.
These energy gateways during autumn and winter are all associated with light and darkness, so you may wish to carry out your rituals around sunset or in the early evenings and light up a candle during the process. It is encouraged to cleanse the space you are in beforehand, such as smudging or burning incense.
The general steps of a simple ritual are:
Take a few deep breaths and turn in. You may wish to meditate for a few minutes to calm the mind. When you are ready, light the candle.
Call for support and protection from light beings e.g. angels, ancestors, past loved ones, and spirit guides during your ritual process.
Express your prayers, intentions, or blessings with gratitude. You can write them down on a piece of paper or speak them out so that the message is conveyed.
Sit with your written or spoken intentions silently for some while, to take them inwards.
When you are ready to draw a close, express gratitude to the unseen support that holds and protects the space. You may wish to keep the candle burning.
If your intentions involve messages you wish to pass on to someone, especially past loved ones, you can burn the paper with the messages to release the energy it carries into the unseen. For any written intentions of release and letting go, this method can also apply. Be aware of any fire risk and carry this out in a safe space when conditions allow.
Go for a meditative walk in nature to feel the season and connect to your creativity
When the weather permits, go for a gentle and intuitive walk in nature. Keep warm. This wander might make you feel like expressing yourself. For example, make nature-based art using the objects you encounter, such as pebbles, stones, twigs, feathers, and fallen leaves. You may wish to make a mandala (a circular image in different layers symbolizing psychic wholeness) art using these natural items to connect to your heart and send some prayers and blessings.
You may also wish to move and dance intuitively in nature. Be aware of your feelings and the surroundings, and listen to your inner voices and any outer sounds. You may feel like moving your body with the wind or dancing with the fallen golden leaves. This is a good way to reconnect to your body and to rebalance the mind. Free-form movement benefits our overall well-being, and when this is done in nature, it brings more joy and healing as it connects you with the pristine healing energy from nature.
Find the signs of decay and death in nature and listen to their wisdom
This can also be done during your meditative walk. Find a fallen leaf, a decaying log, or a frozen stream and silently feel their presence. What do you hear from them? Are they passing on any messages? What questions do you hold inside for an answer?
Once, during my connection with a dead tree, I felt it inviting me to sit on its trunk to rest. It reminded me that it was not dying but turning into other living forms by feeding other organisms and creatures, that death was only a transient phase of a greater cycle of living.
There are always profound teachings from nature reminding us of the key rhythms of life. By experiencing these communications, we naturally free ourselves from the insecurities and entanglements in our minds.
Hold a natural burial for your old self
This is a simple ceremony to do in nature, especially if you feel strongly about transformation and renewal, and wish to let go of your previous self. During the colder months, there is immense energy stored in the earth beneath our feet. So the soil holds deep wisdom and healing energies, also holding us and our stories. So you can also allow the old you to gently “die off” and return to the earth:
Pick something biodegradable that represents yourself e.g. a leaf, a feather, a grain, a rock, etc., and take it with you when going into nature.
Feel this item during your walk. Is there anything you wish to say to it, or to the previous you that you wish to let go of?
Feel where you get led to, and find somewhere to bury this item in the soil.
Be gentle during the burial process. Notice any rise in thoughts and emotions, and notice how deep you wish to send this item into the earth.
Say a few words to this part of yourself and express gratitude for its coming and leaving. Again, notice any rising emotions or thoughts. You may also wish to decorate this small burial place using natural items e.g. fallen leaves and flowers to honour this process.
You may leave the place as you feel ready.
Find deep and heartfelt connections
It is important to find support and connections during this time of the year when things easily feel dark and depressing. This holding force from one another is essential to carry us through. Find your tribe, not only for cheers, jokes, and outings but also for connecting the heart. Find the ones who you can share your truth and feelings with, those who hold and inspire you with love and an open heart. These deep connections are the ground that anchors us during slightly gloomy and turbulent times.
In ancient times in many native cultures, our ancestors sat around in circles and exchanged feelings and held each other. These circle gatherings are still held by many healers nowadays in the healing industry, so reach out for the gatherings you feel drawn to. Or it may not necessarily be a healing circle but a group of like-minded friends, colleagues, or brothers and sisters you feel deeply connected to. That is your circle.
Do some inner work
The darker months easily evoke the surfacing of shadows, the unconscious parts of ourselves that we either deny or are yet to know. When noticing the surfacing of emotions, observe them, and if you can, try to sit with them and listen to them. These emotional waves are often associated with our shadows. They are trying to get our attention so that this part of us can be reintegrated and healed.
The key to this inner work is to allow, accept, and surrender to whatever you confront. We as a society have been taught to control our emotions, so it is programmed for us to suppress and deny the presence of our shadow sides. But the arrival of the colder and darker months teaches us to accept that shadows are equally important to light for our existence.
Our psyche needs autumn and winter times for its spring and summer to grow and blossom. If we keep avoiding or trying to defeat our shadows, we are cutting off a bit of ourselves and taking us further away from wholeness.
You can:
Call for the courage to face your shadows if you find it difficult and painful. Similar rituals as mentioned above can be the way to call upon support.
Do a simple practice to know your shadows better: state three aspects of yourself that you find extremely terrifying to admit to the world, and state three praises you often hear from others that you always deny. Shadows also include positive virtues that you often choose not to see in yourself. You can do this when you are by yourself and write your answers down. It often does not come directly, as the shadows are in the unconscious part of our psyche, and it takes time for us to dive deep in, acknowledge, and reintegrate them. Actually, you more or less know their presence. The hardest thing is to admit that they are there.
Be with yourself by spending some time each day alone. You may wish to meditate (under guidance or without), let your mind drift off, or do some writing, reading, gardening, or art. Allow your mind to rest. This daily return to yourself is key for recharging and building up your ability of self-regeneration and self-rebalance over time. The more you are familiar with spending time with yourself, the less frightening your inner world will seem to you.
Express your emotions and feelings, such as painting, writing, singing, dancing, etc. Let the psychic energy flow rather than be bulked up inside. Take note of any feelings that arise and any changes to your heart during your expression.
Keep a diary of your inner journey and especially, record your dreams and any significant inner conversations, strong feelings, breakdowns and breakthroughs, and epiphanies.
Lumi (Changyi Li), Visionary Artist & Healer
Lumi is a visionary and intuitive with the mission to serve as a healer through art. Her expression springs from her growth and self-healing journey and centers around themes on personal development, self-empowerment, re-connection to ancient wisdom and nature. Lumi shares her heartfelt expression on social media and website. Her art has been showcased in various UK-based exhibitions and magazines. Being passionate about inspiring and connecting to those who walk on similar journeys, Lumi is open to commission and collaboration which aligns to her mission. Her core value: to heal others one needs to commit to ones own growth journey; in the end it is love that heals it all.
