Good Evening W/ Manex Ibar

The drum is the centre of the journey. Manex describes it as the earth's rhythm, coming out of the cave like a speaker, and invites you to let your heart fall into step with it. He links it to the first sound you ever heard, your mother's heartbeat in the womb, as a way back to a safe, grounded feeling.

While you lie by the fire, a shooting star drifts into the circle and its light settles into the top of everyone's head, joining you all together. Following it back, you see it is tied to source, the creative energy the session says you are part of. This is where the words come in: "I am source. We are source."

The meditation pictures each person saying it aloud, then whispering it to the wind, which whispers it back to your ears. It's a way of hearing the idea from outside as well as within. After that, the light moves into your heart, and the cave's drum tells you that you are its children, protected in earth energy.

Near the end, you're invited to call on your guides and animal spirits to protect you through the night. If there's something you want resolved or answered, you state it clearly, place it into the starlight, and ask your guides to help track the answer into your dreams. Then you simply breathe and let sleep come.

As you walk deeper into the forest, other paths merge and you see brothers and sisters joining you. They're described as people you've known a long time, and you all gather around the fire together. It makes the practice feel communal rather than solitary.

It's a story and a ritual rather than a body scan. Instead of counting down or relaxing parts one by one, you travel to a place, take part in a gathering and finish with an intention. Relaxation comes through the imagery of forest mist, fire and drumbeat.