Burning Bowl Ceremony: Releasing 2020 and Inviting in 2021

I’ve asked a dear friend of mine, Ele Dootson, to write this post. She is a Life Coach and owner of Radiant Light Coaching.
The ‘“burning bowl “ ceremony can be a powerful way to bring completion to 2020 and to transition to 2021 with mindful intention and peace.

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I think we can all agree that 2020 was a year of unprecedented fear, uncertainty, and loss. It has been an opportunity to dig deep and stretch ourselves in our journey of personal growth and to practice resiliency. We have been learning to pivot in order to adjust to this new climate and find new ways of being with ourselves and others. New Years is often a time when we reflect on the past year and look forward to what we wish the new year to be. Creating a mindful space for a burning bowl ceremony allows us to release the past and invite in what we wish to manifest.

Across many spiritual traditions, fire is a powerful symbol of wisdom, knowledge, passion, purification, transformation, divinity, and light.  Fire inflames, consumes, inspires, illuminates, warms and serves as a catalyst for change.  Native Americans saw smoke as a symbol and pathway to send and release thoughts and prayers to the Great Spirit. 

There is freedom in releasing and letting go.  It’s a form of surrender to that which is greater.  Forgiveness is an example of truly releasing, i.e. “For giving freedom to all!”  Releasing what no longer serves, makes room for the desires of the heart and soul. 

The burning bowl ritual focuses on what wants/needs to be released from the past, to free up the present moment, and be intentional in the invitation of what we truly want and what wants to emerge as we pave the pathway into the future.  It honors our awareness of what needs to change in our lives so that we can realize a higher potential in ourselves and our experience.  

You may follow this practice by yourself or in a group. It is very powerful to share this ceremony with a group of trusted friends, family, or a special group you are connected to on an authentic level. 

The Ritual:

Things you will need to have ready:

• Paper strips or Flying Wishing Paper*

• Pen

• A safe place to burn the paper – brass or glass bowl, a fire place, or outdoor fire pit

• Matches

• Sage or sweetgrass optional

1.      Setting the tone: Find a quiet place to be thoughtful in meditation/contemplation.  Settle in, get in a comfortable position to relax and be grounded. Open your mind to what you want to release from 2020 and invite in for 2021. ​ A few ways to get grounded are deep breathing, alternate nostril breathing*, and saying a Mantra as you breathe*.

2.      Gratitude:  Allow yourself to quiet your mind and begin to focus on what you are grateful for.  Celebrate and give thanks for all that you are grateful for in your life. 

3.      Acknowledge what is ready to release: When your heart is open and your mind is calm, write on a piece of paper the specific things, emotions, limiting thinking, habits, behaviors, people, etc. that you know it’s time to release. The act of writing it down is a humble acknowledgment and truth-telling, the key to true surrender and release.

•      What are you ready to let go of? 

•      What keeps you from having the experience you want to have?     

4.      Let go: In a safe way, offer this paper into the fire (Please use a fire-safe bowl, pit, fireplace, outdoor candle, etc.).  Sometimes people also put sage or sweetgrass into the fire along with the paper, as a form of cleansing, as ancient cultures have done to purify. As the papers burn, imagine that you are being released and freed from that which has bound you or held you back.  You may say out loud an affirmation such as “I forgive and release everything and everyone from the past and present that no longer serves, for the highest good for all involved, offering freedom and peace.” Or “Into this smoke, I release all energies that do not serve me, all negativity that surrounds me and all fears that limit me. So it is.” Rub your hands together for a final release of the attachment that you just let go of.

5.      Inviting in, New intentions:  Make a new list of what you are inviting in to move forward into the next phase of your life.  Invite in what you want to create, manifest, and experience in this next phase.  The sky’s the limit!  Take a leap of faith and follow your bliss! Write those items or experiences onto pieces of paper.

•      What do you want? 

•      What else does your heart yearn for that wasn’t allowed or was held back by fear 

6.      Release:   Again, put the paper into the fire and allow it to be released to that which is greater; trust in setting the intention and letting it go calls forth the support of the Universe. As you burn each intention you can say “I am inviting in ______”

7.      Take inspired action and bless the process:  Make a list of that which is within your reach and ability to take action on that serves in moving you towards your intentions. This is your work.  Finally, give thanks and gratitude for the process, honoring the great mystery that partners with you, and blessing your part in realizing what it is you want. 

Options for setting the tone

* Try a Kundalini and Hatha Yoga Alternate Nostril breathing exercise.​ This practice is an excellent way to let go of worries at the end of the day and to calm down the mind​. Inhaling through the left nostril helps to allow new perspectives, allowing you to reset your framework of thinking​. Exhaling through the right nostril relaxes the constant chatter in your brain and helps break autonomic patterns​. Alternate nostril breathing establishes emotional balance and calmness​.

Alternate nostril breathing instructions:

• Close your eyes, looking gently up to focus on the Brow Point.​

• Use the right thumb and right (pinkie) to close off alternate nostrils. ​

• Close off the right nostril with the right thumb. Inhale slowly and deeply through the left nostril. When the breath is full, switch nostrils

• Close off the left nostril with the little finger, and exhale slowly and fully through the right​ nostril. ​

• The breath is smooth, complete, and continuous​

• Continue with long deep and even breaths for 3 minutes 

*You can add a Mantra if you choose. You can use any two words that have meaning for you. Use the same words for the entire practice.​ Some possible examples are:​

• inhale peace - exhale love,

• inhale light - exhale darkness,​

• inhale gratitude - exhale happiness
  

Note:  I discovered Wishing Paper, which is a special paper that is safe to burn indoors.  You can write on it, roll it up (as described in the instructions), light it, and as it ignites, it flies up in the air and instantly turns into a single ash that falls down in one piece completely free from embers.  You can find these online or in specialty or novelty stores.   

Ele Dootson, ACC, is a Transformational Life Coach and owner of Radiant Light Coaching. Ele approaches coaching from a place of courage, compassion, empathy, and vulnerability which allows her to create strong partnerships with her clients. Ele empowers individuals to access their inner wisdom and power to create a life of courage, confidence and choice. Many of her clients are Highly Sensitive People who discover how to move from surviving to thriving, from overwhelm to calm, and to create intentions, choices, and actions that are in alignment with their authentic self in order to live life fully, purposefully, and vibrantly!