Our first night in the Sacred Valley, we were gathered around a dinner table at the hotel. Too excited to sleep, or too hungry, we were discussing the day and the MAGIC of Peru. There’s an immediate sense in this place that we, the whole world across time and space, are connected and are essentially the same.
Reflecting on this, one pilgrim shared the same creation story across Hindu and Chinese cultures that Native Americans up and down the Americas also share – the idea that the world was created on the back of a turtle. And furthermore, when questioned what the turtle stands on the answer being on the back of another turtle, and that turtle? You get the idea, the final answer is the quote, ‘It’s turtles all the way down.”
We went to sleep that night feeling connected in a smart and intellectual sort of way… and also unaware of how quickly things put out into the Peruvian Universe come back in a deeper level. It is a place where synchronicities abound!
The next morning some of us gathered for an exercise in Tai Chi in the garden. We were unaware of the proverbial gardener, who actually was the gardener, watching us with a knowing eye. When we finished, he smiled a toothy grin, as he walked around us pulling out three turtles hiding in the flower bushes that surrounded us and plopped them down right in the middle of our circle for us to see. We gasped and laughed and held onto one another in amazement – “It’s Turtles All the Way Down” we blurted out.
After soaking in these beauties, we joined the rest of the group to share what we had just experienced. Knowing this was a deeper lesson I googled “turtle spirit animal.” What did these guys have to share with us at the beginning of our journey?
Turtle Spirit Animal:
Encouragement to take a break in our busy lives and look around or within for more grounded solutions
Slowing down, pacing ourselves (the altitude alone forces this in Peru)
Ability to stay grounded
Persistence
Ancient Wisdom
The perfect message for the beginning of a deeply healing and magical pilgrimage. You can read more about the Turtle as Spirit Animal, and I encourage you to pay attention to the animals who cross your path and look them up. The Universe carries messages for us in many different ways!