[paulaglober]

Last week I had to call the vet out to put my too old 35 year old ladies to sleep, dont panic, they were horses. It was very calm and dignified. The vet injected them with what is basically an overdose of anaesthetic, it is very quick. We talk to our horses during this time telling them to go and find who has gone before and not to be scared and we thank them for their kindness, love and loyalty during their lives.We also try to stay calm so not to worry them. When we do this we sit with their heads in our laps stroking their faces and looking in their eyes. Even before their hearts stop beating something leaves them and their eyes change. There is a moment of complete understanding, a time for knowing it is what is meant to be. It an enveloping feeling and then there is nothing. The animal on the ground becomes a carcass with no pull at all and the eyes are totally vacant. The vet monitors the heart beat at all times. It feels like their soul leaves them before they are actually dead, a moment of being neither here or there, a moment where they stay around us in the air to say goodbye. It is all in the eyes. I wish I could explain the differences that happens in the eye during this phase to you more, but at least I have tried. I thought it might be a topic we could discuss further ................

[Uttephabeta]

That's a beautiful start to what I think will be a very enlightening thread.

I've got some (Eastern/shamanic) ideas of my own which I'll bring in later.

But thank you for bringing this to us.

[codespokerbonus]

Jo

In certain spiritual traditions in the East, it is considered that the soul or spirit leaves the body when it feels that the time is right, and it is that ~ the soul leaving ~ that causes the bodily processes to cease, i.e. the heart to stop beating and so on.

I've also heard of shamans practising hunting rituals where a deer was to be sacrificed, and some of the shamans there clearly saw the soul of deer leave and rise upwards during the part where they were talking to deer, just before its neck was cut.

Here's something interesting. It looks like a spoof photo....but actually scientists have examined it and have declared it to be genuine.

It is thought to be a photo of a soul leaving a body which is dying on the operating table.



You can read about it here

If you think about it, it makes sense. How many stories do we hear about people having out of body experiences when the body is in crisis, maybe on the operating table? We hear about them looking down on their body from a height. At this time, the heart may be still beating. (I don't mean NDEs, where the heart has stopped but just experiences of physical crisis.) The soul leaves the body while the surgeons are fighting to keep it alive, and it is if the soul is preparing to depart.

[saumemeva]

Jo -

Yes.

The soul leaves through the eyes.

Had this cat, "Abby the Cat"

Who was damn near twenty years old.

She was the boss of the house since day one.

She was doing very poorly

And I finally took her to the vet to put her down.

So the vet (a she, also) did

With Abby curled in my arms.

And I experienced a paroxysm of grief

When I saw the light go out of her eyes,

And let her go.


hoka hey

john

[Aceroassert]

That was a lovely way to put it John, "you let her go", and Ish what you say is true, so true.

[Rqvtwlfk]

My eldest daughter had to have her cat Ozzie put down because of kidney failure. He had been with her since a kitten and she was heart-broken having to take him to the vets for his injection. Her partner held him in his arms and she held his paw, while the vet injected him. Ozzie looked at my daughter with the biggest eyes, as the injection took hold his eyes were saying 'its okay I know' and in that moment she knew he did. Then the light just went out of those eyes, like someone had switched off the light.

We have both seen him since sitting in his favorite spot on the curve of the stairs. He comes back just to let us know it's alright, he is still with us...

Cass xx

[Kubasarika]

Jo and all horse lovers,

Have you seen/read The Horse Boy?

This is a must read for anyone with an interest in the healing powers of horses and the mystical ways of the Shaman. As a parent of a child with special needs I found it to be an inspiring, uplifting and honest account of one parents overwhelming desire to ease the dysfunctional difficulties of his son's autism. As he rightly says, his son cannot be cured of autism but he can be healed of the dysfunctions that can accompany the condition. The journey from the diagnosis of autism to the intrepid account of trekking across Mongolia seeking the help of a very powerful shaman from the Reindeer Tribe is incredibly moving. The shear level of endurance needed is astonishing and the outcome triumphant. It leaves you crying but for all the right reasons! Ms. S. Grouse "yoga girl" (UK) There's a short video about it on this Amazon page.

[Vegeinvalge]

Thanks for that Ish, My own brother was disabled he had a rare genetic disease called Delangers Syndrome, I would take him on my horses and ride in the forest, he loved it. The bond between animals and children like my brother and others is something else. My horses and my dogs are completely different characters when they are with special children and adults, they become gentle and almost protective. Its a spiritual feeling, a bit of soul communication I think. A bit of free flowing souls, if that make sense to any one.

[UncoonsKala]

I[quote="Ishtar"]Jo and all horse lovers,

Have you seen/read The Horse Boy?

[quote]
This is a must read for anyone with an interest in the healing powers of horses and the mystical ways of the Shaman. As a parent of a child with special needs I found it to be an inspiring, uplifting and honest account of one parents overwhelming desire to ease the dysfunctional difficulties of his son's autism.


Thanks for posting this Ish. My eldest grandson has autism, he is 10 yrs old and been diagnosed for 5yrs. He is really going through a bad time with life at the moment, especially with his new school...I shall buy this and read it, then pass it on to my daughter.

Cass lol x

[KernJetenue]

Great! I love your new avatar, by the way! And I've been trying to practise the essence of your signature ever since you put it up. It's great wisdom.

Anyway ...

I just wanted to say something about my experience as a shaman with autism.

It is that in labelling we can sometimes marginalise these children in a negative way. I think what this book highlights is that fact, and how when this negative marginalisation is removed, the child can be appreciated for specialness and unique qualities that he has.

In our society, because the race to make big bucks is so fast, anything that doesn't easily and neatly slot into that well-oiled machine is pushed out to the margins and alienated. It just doesn't fit in anywhere, so we think.

However, one of my shaman teachers once told me about an African tribe that he stayed with, where a boy who we would call autistic was actually looked up to and included in all the meetings of the Elders. The reason for this was his special skills with numbers (anyone who has seen the Dustin Hoffman movie Rainman will know what I mean). So a way had been found to integrate him into the tribe and to show him that he was a valued member of it. Because of this, there were no behavioural difficulties and he blended in.

[TeftyJokip]

Every body brings something to this world, something about themselves to share, we only have to open our hearts and accept each others gifts. Sadly a lot of the human race are isolated by materialism or self. jo

[ariniaxia]

Yes, I agree. That's the essence of what I was trying to say. Thanks, Jo!

[fudelholf]

Ish totally agree about the marginalisation. Aiden & my daughter have had some rough rides with the so called experts in the field...but my daughter is made of strong stuff and she has realised over the years that SHE is the expert...she lives with her son 24/7 and nobody knows him better...she has had quite a few times when she has gone up against the system put her case and won! At the moment she is at a very low point so I'm hoping this might inspire her to see all is not lost and ways can be found to get back on course with the problems she has at the moment...So the book has just been ordered and we await reading it!!

Cass ) xx

[Axxflcaj]

Jo,

Thanks for sharing that. It seems a lot of people know exactly what you mean and also I think a lot of animals pick up on many things that we don't, such as people who are sick. It's lovely how you were able to be there with your horses. What a fine age they both reached.

The eyes are the window to the soul.