Relationship Self-Healing Exercise and Workshop

Hello, I’m Maggie Battista. I’m a storyteller, strategist, ritualist, teacher, and mentor. I also host Cacao ceremonies and teach a Self-Love Path for Soul Emergence.

I designed a Relationship Self-Healing Exercise for us.

It’s about choosing to view the relationships in your life in a very different way, one in which the dynamics of those relationships are not about the other person at all.

They are entirely about you.

And that’s because, everyone in your life is a reflection of you.

I realize that may be a lot to hold but it is how I view the world now. It’s a perspective shift that offers a path to self-awareness and self-healing and so much self-love.

If you’d like to watch this workshop, you may click the button to watch.

This Relationship Self-Healing Exercise allows you to better relate to vital individuals, to hold them with compassion, to self-heal, and to offer the best parts of you to them.

In the exercise, you take a direct, compassionate look at your three most dominate relationships and you choose to ask yourself these seven questions about each relationship:

1. How do I feel about me around this individual?

2. What aspect of this relationship most concerns me?

3. What does this aspect reflect about them? What parts of them need compassion and curiosity?

4. What is this aspect reflecting about me? What parts of me need compassion, curiosity, and self-healing?

5. What is the lesson I am learning in this relationship?

6. If I soothed this wound in me, how would I react next time this challenge surfaces in this relationship?

7. With this new understanding, how do I feel now?

I’ll give you an example of how this exercise works with a relationship from my life.

Relationship Self-Healing Exercise: Example

There are several people in my life who consistently try to control so much around them. I know they have reasons for this and I have a lot of compassion for them. But when they attempt to control or fix a situation, especially when it involves me, I have a strong reaction, one that I wish to understand. Let’s take this relationship through the exercise.

1. How do I feel about me in this relationship? I feel loved but there are lots of moments where I feel like an object of their control or judgment.

2. What aspect of this relationship most concerns me? I have a strong reaction within myself when I see them exhibit controlling or fixing behavior.

3. What does this aspect reflect about them? What parts of them need compassion and curiosity? They are simply trying to bring a sense of control to an uncontrollable world. They may be doing this because they feel out of control and need the world to make more sense to them in order to feel calm and peaceful. But that is their work, not mine. The part of them that feels out of control needs compassion and curiosity.

4. What is this aspect reflecting in me? What parts of me need compassion, curiosity, and healing? This aspect forces me to question myself and how I live my life. I feel anxious about my choices. I wonder if something is wrong with me. The part of me that feels uncertain or wrong needs compassion, curiosity, and healing, and that is my work.

5. What is the lesson I am learning in this relationship? In this relationship, I’m learning many things including how trust myself, how to detach from outcomes and release control, how to release judgment of another, and how to live life from the heart and soul (instead of from the logical mind).

6. If I soothed this wound in me, how would I react next time this challenge surfaces in this relationship? If I switch into my soul’s voice and allow it to remind me of how much I believe in myself and my choices, then what they say may simply flow through me like water. I would not react to what appears to be a way to control the world around them. I will soothe the part of me who feels tender and I will choose to trust myself.

7. How do I feel about myself now? I feel like I understand myself better. I know I can navigate the feelings around this aspect of our relationship.

I hope you found this exercise helpful and supportive of your soul’s path and emergence. Thanks for reading. I’ll be back again very, very soon.

Would you like to watch my Relationship Self-Healing Workshop where I discuss this exercise in detail?

How Ceremonial Cacao Supports Self-Healing

Hello, I’m Maggie Battista. I’m a storyteller, strategist, ritualist, facilitator, and mentor. I also host sacred Cacao ceremonies.

Ceremonial Cacao is associated with self-healing in the context of spiritual and holistic practices. Here are some ways in which Ceremonial Cacao is believed to contribute to self-healing:

1. Intention Setting: Ceremonial Cacao rituals often involve setting personal intentions before consuming the cacao. This intentional focus directs one's energy toward specific aspects of self-healing, personal growth, or emotional well-being.

2. Mindfulness and Presence: The ceremonial consumption of Cacao is often accompanied by mindfulness practices, such as meditation and deep introspection. Being present in the moment and connecting with one's thoughts and emotions can facilitate self-awareness and contribute to the healing process.

3. Emotional Release: Cacao is sometimes associated with the ability to open the heart and promote emotional release. Participants may experience a cathartic release of pent-up emotions, allowing for a more profound understanding and processing of emotional challenges.

4. Inner Exploration: In my lived experience, the psychoactive compounds in Cacao, including Theobromine, support inner exploration and self-discovery. This can involve gaining insights into personal challenges, relationships, or life paths, often directly from your own soul through visualizations and messages. In meditation with Cacao, one may also explore connections with ancestors or passed loved ones, allowing for a conversation or exchange of messages to allow you to process and integrate, write new stories, and give yourself closure.

5. Connecting with Spirituality: Ceremonial Cacao has been used in various spiritual traditions as a tool for connecting with one's spirituality. It may facilitate a sense of connection to oneself, nature, or a higher power, depending on your individual beliefs. In my studies, I learned that Ceremonial Cacao has provided daily nourishment and spiritual connection to those who practice Mayan spirituality for centuries.

6. Energy and Vibrational Healing: Some practitioners view Ceremonial Cacao as having energetic or vibrational properties that contribute to healing. The belief is that the plant medicine carries a unique energy that can positively influence the individual's energy field. I believe that Ceremonial Cacao carries a spirit and, in my ceremonies, I honor, thank, and welcome that spirit to facilitate the ceremony’s energy.

As mentioned, it’s crucial to approach the use of Ceremonial Cacao with respect and mindfulness. The effects attributed to Cacao are often subjective and rooted in personal experiences and beliefs so will be entirely dependent on your openness to self-healing. I have personally experienced tremendous self-healing through various practices, including Ceremonial Cacao. Additionally, the ceremonial context, the setting, and the guidance of experienced facilitators play a significant role in the overall experience and its potential therapeutic effects.

I am a ritualist who has received the permissions necessary by a counsel of spiritual leaders to hold Cacao rituals with the elements of the Maya tradition. If you’re interested in participating in a Cacao ceremony with me, please review my upcoming events page.

Thanks for reading. And I’ll be back again very, very soon.

What Rituals Are Connected to the Use of Ceremonial Cacao?

Hello, I’m Maggie Battista. I’m a storyteller, strategist, ritualist, facilitator, and mentor. I also host sacred Cacao ceremonies.

Ceremonial Cacao is used in various rituals and ceremonies that have roots in indigenous traditions, particularly in Central and South America. I am most familiar with the rituals used by those of the Mayan traditions as that is part of my lineage. The rituals associated with Ceremonial Cacao often vary, but they generally share the goal of promoting spiritual connection, self-reflection, self-healing, and a sense of well-being.

Here are some common rituals associated with Ceremonial Cacao:

1. Cacao Ceremony: This is a structured gathering or ceremony where participants come together to drink Ceremonial Cacao. The ceremony may include guided meditation, chanting, singing, breath work, journaling, or other rituals aimed at promoting mindfulness, soul connection, and inner exploration. Facilitators like me often lead these ceremonies to create a sacred and intentional space.

2. Meditation and Mindfulness: Ceremonial Cacao is sometimes consumed as part of meditation practices. Participants may sit in silence or engage in guided meditation to deepen their connection with themselves and the present moment. In my experience, a guided meditation practice will conclude with a journaling session and sharing circle.

3. Intention Setting: Before consuming Ceremonial Cacao, participants may set personal intentions for the ritual. This involves reflecting on specific goals, desires, dreams, or areas of their lives they wish to focus on during the ceremony. The intention-setting process is considered crucial for guiding the experience. Just like Ceremonial Cacao is produced with intention, it is vital for consumers to offer its spirit the same intention.

4. Gratitude Practices: Expressing gratitude is often a key element in Cacao ceremonies. Participants may be encouraged to reflect on and share aspects of their lives for which they are grateful. This practice is believed to enhance the positive and transformative aspects of the experience.

5. Emotional Release: Expressing emotions is a key element of my Cacao ceremonies. I foster safe and open space for participants to feel and express all feelings. It’s important for those feelings to be witnessed in order for them to be processed, integrated, released, or any combination.

6. Dance and Movement: Some ceremonies incorporate dance or movement as a way to embody the energy of the Cacao and promote a sense of liberation and self-expression. Movement can be a powerful way to connect with the body and release tension. I often pair Ceremonial Cacao with a slow and gentle yoga practice, which helps to promote rest, relaxation, softness, and a readiness to receive the heart-opening plant medicine.

7. Community and Sharing: Ceremonial Cacao is sometimes consumed in a communal setting, fostering a sense of unity and connection among participants. Sharing experiences and insights after the ceremony can be an integral and sometimes life-changing part of the ritual.

It's essential to approach Ceremonial Cacao with respect and an open mind, understanding that these practices carry immense cultural significance. If you're interested in participating in a Cacao ceremony, consider doing so with experienced facilitators who have been trained by indigenous teachers and who can guide the process and create a safe and supportive environment.

I am a ritualist who has received the permissions necessary by a counsel of spiritual leaders to hold Cacao rituals with the elements of the Maya tradition. If you’re interested in participating in a Cacao ceremony with me, please review my upcoming events page. My ceremonies include many of the above mentioned rituals, and include a meditation visualization journey to connect with your ancestors, your soul, and vital soul messages.

Thanks for reading. And I’ll be back again very, very soon.

What is Ceremonial Cacao?

Hello, I’m Maggie Battista. I’m a storyteller, strategist, ritualist, facilitator, and mentor. I also host sacred Cacao ceremonies.

Ceremonial Cacao is a specific type of cacao (the primary ingredient in chocolate) that is used in ceremonial and spiritual contexts. Unlike commercial chocolate, which often undergoes processing and may contain additives, Ceremonial Cacao is minimally processed and considered to be of much higher quality. It is cultivated and sourced with intention and sustainability in mind. Ceremonial Cacao comes from specific regions known for producing high-quality Cacao beans and has been cultivated and shepherded by the Mayan civilization for centuries.

The active ingredient in Ceremonial Cacao is Theobromine. It is found naturally in various plants, with significant amounts present in the seeds of the cacao tree (a.k.a. Theobroma cacao), from which chocolate is derived. The word "Theobroma" is derived from the Greek words "theo" meaning "god" and "broma" meaning "food," translating to "food of the gods." Theobromine has a similar structure to caffeine but tends to have a milder stimulant effect. It stimulates the central nervous system, relaxes smooth muscles, and dilates blood vessels, sending more oxygen throughout the body and toward the heart.

Ceremonial Cacao is used in various traditional ceremonies, especially in indigenous cultures in Central and South America. It is valued not only for its rich and pure flavor but also for its potential to induce a sense of well-being, relaxation, and heightened awareness. Many people incorporate Ceremonial Cacao into rituals, meditation, and spiritual practices, so that it may facilitate a deeper connection with oneself and the surrounding environment. Nearly ten years ago, I was introduced to Ceremonial Cacao precisely for this use, to foster a deeper connection with myself and, as a result, I began to hear my inner voice.

It's important to note that Ceremonial Cacao is distinct from the chocolate products found on supermarket shelves. The focus is not solely on taste but also on the spiritual and ceremonial aspects associated with its consumption. Those interested in using Ceremonial Cacao want to seek out products that are specifically labeled and intended for ceremonial use. Bear in mind, though, that producers across the globe may offer Ceremonial Cacao with inconsistent quantities of Theobromine. Since no two Cacaos are the same, I recommend you buy Ceremonial Cacao that has the quantity of Theobromine per cup printed on its package or contact the producer for that information.

Ceremonial Cacao may have various effects on the body, mind, and spirit. It's important to note that the experiences and effects can vary from person to person. Here are some commonly reported effects of Ceremonial Cacao:

1. Mood Enhancement: Ceremonial cacao contains compounds that may act as natural mood enhancers. The presence of theobromine, a stimulant found in cacao, can contribute to a gentle and sustained energy boost, potentially leading to improved mood and mental alertness.

2. Heart Opening: Many participants in cacao ceremonies describe a sense of heart opening or emotional release. This is often linked to the belief that cacao has the ability to connect individuals with their emotions, fostering self-awareness and empathy.

3. Increased Awareness: Ceremonial cacao is sometimes associated with heightened awareness and a deeper connection to one's inner self. Some people report enhanced mindfulness, allowing them to be more present and focused during meditation or introspective practices.

4. Relaxation and Stress Reduction: The theobromine and other compounds in cacao may have mild relaxing effects, potentially helping to reduce stress and anxiety. The ritualistic nature of cacao ceremonies, combined with intentional practices, may contribute to a sense of calm and relaxation.

5. Spiritual Connection: In various spiritual and ceremonial traditions, cacao is considered a sacred plant medicine that can facilitate spiritual experiences. Some participants report a sense of connection to nature, a higher power, or their own spiritual essence during or after consuming ceremonial cacao.

Keep in mind that individual responses to Ceremonial Cacao may vary. If you're considering participating in a Cacao ceremony or incorporating Ceremonial Cacao into your practices, it's advisable to do so mindfully and with respect for the cultural and ceremonial contexts in which it is traditionally used.

I am a ritualist who has received the permissions necessary by a counsel of spiritual leaders to hold Cacao rituals with the elements of the Maya tradition. If you’re interested in participating in a Cacao ceremony with me, please review my Events page. In ceremony, I share how I honor and give reverence to the spirit of Ceremonial Cacao and I’m happy to answer questions about that post-ceremony.

Additionally, if you have any health concerns or are taking medications, it's recommended to consult with a healthcare professional before consuming Ceremonial Cacao, as it does contain stimulants and other compounds that may interact with certain conditions or medications—like antidepressants and chemotherapy.

Thanks for reading. And I’ll be back again very, very soon.

A Soul Message on Compassion

Hello, I’m Maggie Battista. I’m a storyteller, strategist, ritualist, facilitator, and mentor. This is a message from my soul’s voice—

“Life, this daily life in this particular existence today, feels like it requires being in a constant flow of compassion. There are moments when it flows more readily; and there are probably far more moments when it is distinctly unavailable for yourself and for others. We see this, we understand this, and we want you to sit with that idea for just a few moments.

We ask you to sit with the concept of lack of capacity for compassion, for yourself and for others. Really, sit with this. Imagine all those moments of your life when your mind may immediately go to judgment, to fear, to worry, to anger, to frustration, mostly with yourself, almost always with yourself, instead of compassion. We imagine all those moments could fill up jars upon jars, boxes upon boxes, shelves upon shelves, with really not so great stuff. With wild tumultuous reckless stuff. Not the delicious stuff that is irresistible, but the stuff that just keeps you feeling low and making even lower choices or perhaps not making choices at all.

And then imagine that sitting there on the counter, among all the wild and tumultuous jars, is a lone jar filled with those rare moments of self compassion, the few moments of compassion for others. And to witness it is to witness the rose in the jar. To imagine the rose, let’s imagine the color, the fullness of the petals, the sweet scent, the firm stem, the prickly thorns, the radiance of this gentle beautiful rose, this rosiness.

If you allow it, could you let that rose spread to fill all other jars, turning the wild tumultuous feelings into equally wild but gentle garden roses, sweet and calm and peaceful, just there for you to appreciate in all its natural glory, just there for you to tend to it, in whatever way feels good.

We are not saying that to feel painful feelings around judgment is wrong, there is no wrong nor right. We are simply asking the mind to decouple from its programming, to find a way to automatically resist the judgment of self and others, to realize that life is sweeter when instead of filling our jars, our pockets, our mind, automatically, with the dark, the low, and the not so delicious stuff, that perhaps instead, we may first fill the jar with roses, we may first pause and witness the sweet, tender, peaceful capacity for compassion.

And we like the vision of the rose for this metaphor because the rose stands firm, gentle and soft and delicate in spots like the petals, firm and thorny and hard in other spots, like the stem. Our compassion is just like that, it has the capacity to hold both the soft and the hard simultaneously. It allows the time to tend to one thing and then the next and then the next, but slowly, deeply, gently. The rose is quite sturdy but quite tender.

The rose is like the word compassion. It brings a sweetness and tenderness and gentleness to the situation, but it also stands tall, blooming, beaming, glowing, passionate. We offer this because this is what we believe compassion is. Compassion is both the capacity to hold space for tenderness and toughness, but/and to also grow upward with passion. With passion, compassion, with passion.

And when you offer the rose or show the rose, it is not that you are required to do anything. You allow all the space for you or another to show up in their present tenderness, their sweetness, their gentleness, their pain even, and you also remain a beacon of growth, of hope, of creativity, of passion, of love through it all. And it’s in this metaphor that we provide the best example of what compassion is.

Compassion is not about bending over backwards or even bending over at all to help another person up. Compassion is about standing up, bringing all of your growth and hope and creativity and passion like the rose does, and allowing the self or another to bear witness so that they may also be the rose, for themselves and for others.

When one rose is bent or pushed over in a garden, the other roses do not bend over to pick it up or try to fix its petals. The other roses continue to beam and grow toward the sun, because the other roses know the best thing they can do for the bent rose is continue to grow and shine toward the sun, such that the bent rose may bear witness and find its own way back toward its own particular ray of sunlight.

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We are not saying to not offer help to anyone or yourself. A compassionate person may of course offer support if they have the capacity to do so. But what we are saying is far more important and that is this:

When you understand that the power to help, to heal, to pivot, to change, to transform is only within oneself, then you understand your place is to simply hold space for another and show up with your whole self, including all of your radiant passions. This is how we would describe compassion: to hold space for another and show up with your whole self. Period.

And in order to offer compassion to others, we must always offer it to ourselves first. We do not say *always* always, but we are saying it in this case. We have no capacity to offer compassion to others if we do not offer it to ourselves first in all situations. You cannot hold space for another or bring your whole radiant self or even help, without first doing all those things for yourself.

It’s a lot to hold, to realize that your role as a human being is to focus on yourself and to not automatically try to fix others. You all have been taught from a young age that you are here for service, you are here to help others, you are here to fix what is broken or who is broken.

But we want to reframe this for you. You do not exist to serve or fix or help others. You all often get so wrapped up in serving and fixing and helping others that you forget to serve and fix and help yourself. And while we don’t think you are here to work in any way, shape, or form, if you have a job, then it is your only job to serve and help yourself.

There are thousands, millions of people on the planet totally occupied with fixing broken people and broken systems and broken things around them. And we respect that, we honor that ambition and drive. And we get it, there are many moments to focus on just that path, especially when someone is bent over like the rose and others continue to stomp on them.

But/and we also encourage some gentle inquiry around that ambition. Because we know that you would all be better able to tackle the real problems and that in fact some of the biggest problems would vanish if you focused on serving and fixing and helping yourself. Period.

We offer this with a tremendous amount of gentleness when we say, broken people helping broken people is not a beautiful equation. And while we use the word “broken” here we know that most people are not truly broken, they are simply wounded or have been conditioned away from compassion for themselves and for others. For generations, humans have been told to get on with it; to patch it up and keep going; to just stop wallowing and get back to it already.

But we believe that the key to all this stuff called human existence is compassion. And we invite you to fully know it, to roll around with it, to create space for it within yourself, wholly, truly, deeply, before you even consider bending over to pick up the bent rose. Because it’s likely that you are the bent rose and with a little self-compassion, you may find your own way back toward the sun. In fact, we promise that you will. It only needs your love and attention and passion.

And this is the best gift we can offer you. And it’s a message that is perfection for all. You are your greatest comforter and your only job is to help yourself. And we wish you would do it with fervor, with zeal, with passion, and with all the compassion, for yourself at every moment.”

Thank you for reading. I’ll be back again very, very soon.

Why Surface the Voice of Your Soul?

Hello, I’m Maggie Battista. I’m a storyteller, strategist, ritualist, facilitator, and mentor.

I am also an advocate for surfacing the voice of your soul. It’s a beautiful and ancient tool that exists within you to help you grow, to help you remember your wholeness, to help you hold yourself through change, to help you allow all those answers that you’re looking for outside of yourself to surface from within.

The voice of your soul is the calm and all-knowing wisdom and language that surfaces from within when we get quiet and listen.

Today, I’m sharing why surfacing the voice of your soul may be relevant or helpful or interesting or perhaps even life changing for you. You get to decide. I’ll share how it’s impacted me and how it may impact others.

To discuss the why, we first need to discuss what the soul’s voice actually offers, in greater detail.

The primary role of your soul’s voice is one of compassion. And when you begin to develop and cultivate a relationship with your inner voice, you get access to a powerful, accessible healing tool that helps you express your most authentic self as you step toward your truest pleasure and joy and service, as it calls to you.

And when I say compassion, I mean, the inner voice helps you do three very important things:

Choose you

Hold you, and

Soothe you

And by doing those three things, the voice of the soul is the original tool for self-compassion. We’re not talking about compassion for others yet, though it will naturally extend to others, but the soul’s voice asks you to mind your own business and focus on choosing, holding and soothing you, first and foremost.

Using very simple terms, your soul’s voice will help you get very honest with yourself, it will help you meet yourself wherever you are and forgive yourself, and it will help you remember that you are innocent (even when you said a harsh thing to yourself or to someone else).

It will help you allow your love for yourself to rise and self-sooth and give you the opportunity to see and hold yourself tenderly from within.

Once you begin allowing your soul’s voice to offer all the compassion, then it may likely graduate to offering you nuggets of other wisdom and guidance, and even some gentle but blunt truths.

Ultimately, your soul’s voice helps you remember how ok you truly are in all moments, in very tough situations, in the unknown, and when pursuing change and adventure.

When I began recording and listening more deeply to the messages from the voice of my soul, I realized that, over time, when the soul’s voice told me how okay I was, I believed it. In fact, it was really the only voice that I believed without question. I questioned all the external voices – therapists, friends, partners, colleagues – and I certainly questioned the mind’s voice.

But each soul voice message was a balm in an otherwise turbulent time, sort of like the proverbial spoonful of honey that helped whatever medicine I was experiencing go down (also known as just the ups and downs of this existence!)

And as I began hearing how perfect and enough I was over and over again, in all situations, even when I was on the floor crying, even when I was worried about my survival, even when I felt the most alone that I had ever felt, I realized that I believed what my soul said. I believed, me. And once I believed in myself, the truth that everything really was okay finally settled into my bones.

On top of all of that beauty, your inner voice can help you dismantle blocks, beliefs and stories. The stories you tell yourself, the stories you allow others to tell you about you.

In fact, after I allowed my soul’s voice to offer its tender compassionate words, after I learned to believe myself above everyone else, the inner voice became my most helpful tool in allowing me to feel into change and move toward my desires.

And here's how that works generally:

First…

1. I may feel into something that I want to create – a project, a trip, a connection, a collaboration, a job, an experience, some big joy. It can be anything.

And then…

2. I may then ask the soul’s voice to clarify if this is something I really want. And the inner voice generally says, if it lights you up, then pursue it. You do not need to know why or if it’s something you “really” want – your deep desire is enough.

So…

3. I would take a step toward what I want. And let’s say, in that process, that I pause for a million reasons. The reasons could be everything from procrastination to not believing in my abilities to feeling fear around the potential outcome, to not being able to control the outcome.

So…

4. I would then go inward and ask the inner voice what paused me. I like to interrogate the pause. That self-inquiry is so helpful.

And…

5. If any feelings or energy rises around hearing that truth for me, for my body, I allow those feelings to rise and I let them move through me. With breath, through breathing, with the elongated breath. Breathwork is helpful for this.

So that…

6. With greater self trust, I get back to whatever I was making and take further steps forward.

And…

7. If I am paused again, I return to the soul’s voice.

I’ll give you a very simple example to show you how the inner voice helps you take inspired action from a place of peace and confidence.

Recently, I was having a few emotional moments. Let’s be honest, I have a lot of emotional moments. I move through contrast with tears often. I used to see those tears as weakness now I know they’re one of my greatest strengths.

But I was about to start creating these videos on the soul’s voice. And this call to produce these videos was a call from within. It just felt like a natural movement guided by my soul. And I was thinking about why I wanted to create these videos and whether anyone would even watch these videos and I got scared and I paused.

These emotions were bubbling up. And as they were moving around within, suddenly, the soul’s voice said, “Turn on your recording device. You don’t need to close your eyes. Just press record and talk.”

So I did as it asked.

And the inner voice proceeded to drop 15 minutes of truth about each and every block I had been feeling. It made it so simple and held me with tenderness.

And once I sat with its guidance, the list of easy explanations for all the blocks I was feeling up against, it reminded me that I’m here to do things differently and to continue to awaken to the fullest expression of myself and that means being uncomfortable and hearing hard things so that I may rise past those hard things and get back to what was calling me forward.

Today, as it has become a master in showing me compassion, my soul’s voice now invites me to possibility, potential and adventure.

And your soul’s voice, should you allow it, will help you realize how okay and enough you truly are, and then, it can help you take inspired action from a place of peace and confidence.

And that action naturally comes from your truest desires because your inner voice knows your desires before your mind can even find the words to articulate them. It connects to all the parts of you and senses what lights you up and interprets those as desires, even before you can articulate a goal or intention.

The inner voice works with the senses of the body, your intuition, your awareness, and your brilliant mind to understand what you want.

So when your body gets all lit up and achy watching two lovers hug, the soul’s voice can share that you may wish for connection.

When your intuition senses something feeling not quite right, the soul’s voice can share that you wish for a sense of OR actual safety.

When your mind receives an idea or concept that feels made for you, the soul’s voice can share that you wish to pursue a new purpose, a new purpose on the path of your ever unfolding purpose.

The soul’s voice knows things before you do. And now, my soul’s voice guides me toward peace and adventure.

But there is another reason why I feel it’s worthwhile to surface the voice of your soul. Follow me for just a moment as I take you on this journey.

If you can show yourself all the compassion,

If you can remember your wholeness in all situations, even in tough situations,

If you can come back home to yourself,

You can then begin allowing your natural passions to become your compass.

And your natural passions often are an extension of your healing

So if you pursue your healing and your passions, you will feel more fulfilled

And then you return to the core of the core of the core of your truth, of who you are, your most integrated self, the soul who wishes for peace and prosperity, not just for yourself, but for all.

And eventually, your compassion overflows to those around you

And eventually, others may see your wholeness and wish to come back home to themselves as well

And eventually, others see you allow your natural passions to rise, to be pursued, to be your compass, with far less judgment and a lot more peace

And as others witness your growth and expansion, they are inspired to follow their own growth and expansion

And as they return to their wholeness and grow and expand, we then transform into a humanity, a collective, one unified soul, who wishes for peace and prosperity for all

And we all return to the core of our one unified truth, we become more interconnected, and that wave, aligned with a better story and service and science, will transform into a humanity that has one vision for peace and prosperity for all – for the planet, for all living creatures, and for each other.

And that’s why YOU surfacing YOUR SOUL is worthwhile

And, if you ask my soul, it is one of the keys to remembering how beautiful this planet has been, can be, and will be again.

Phew, that’s a lot for one video but I hope it feels as good in your soul as it does within mine.

I’m sharing a lot more about the voice of the soul. And that’s because:

It has changed my life.

It has helped me remember my wholeness.

It has helped me come home to myself.

It has helped me become my most integrated self.

It has shown me that the answers for any question are always within me.

It has taught me to trust myself completely.

And, it has launched me toward adventure and a far better life than I could have ever imagined.

And now, I live a life almost entirely guided by my soul.

Thanks for reading. And I’ll be back again very, very soon.

How I Surfaced the Voice of My Soul

Hello, I’m Maggie Battista. I’m a storyteller, strategist, ritualist, facilitator, and mentor.

I am also an advocate for surfacing the voice of your soul, or the inner voice. It’s a beautiful and ancient tool that exists within you to help you grow, to help you heal or remember your wholeness, to help you find closure, to help you hold yourself through change, to help you find or allow all the answers that you’re looking for outside of yourself, to help you allow those answers to surface from within.

The voice of your soul is the calm and all-knowing wisdom and language that surfaces from within when we get quiet and listen.

Today, I’m sharing how I surfaced the voice of my own soul.

The short of it is, the inner voice will rise to the surface when you choose to listen. It is up to you to get quiet. It is up to you to still yourself and allow breath and energy to move through the body so that you may remember your own soul’s voice, which is also the voice of your original self.

The surfacing of my soul’s voice has happened in stages over a lifetime but I promise it will not take you that long to surface your own inner voice. I have prioritized surfacing and studying the voice of my soul over the last seven years and it’s very easy to surface. In fact, it’s just waiting for you to listen to it.

I want to give you a little background on me to understand my journey.

I have been a writer since childhood. I’ve always been connected to my imagination and to the various voices within my body.

Once I hit puberty though, my mind's voice ran my life and it did so for a very long time. The mind's voice is one of fear, trauma, worry and concern for our wellbeing. And in my life, my mind had every right to be concerned.

The mind is impatient and urgent and anxious and also strategic. It is not bad but it does seek to predict and control the external to try to maintain peace internally. And my mind has run most of my life.

But seven years ago, I heard a call to reconnect with another voice within, not the voice of the mind, but something else that wanted to rise. The voice was what I learned to call the inner voice but what I now call: the soul’s voice.

I studied the voice of the soul through working with various teachers, reading various books, and most acutely with Jess Lively who provides inner voice facilitator training. But I’ve taken this practice, my practice, in a slightly different direction to guide my healing, my homecoming, and my rising.

It began with stillness and journaling, just like any of us do today. If you’re watching this video, you may journal frequently too. But the words that flow onto paper during a classic journaling session, the first words, they are not typically from the soul’s voice; we most often journal from the mind, to rid the mind of unnecessary or complicated thoughts, to work out those thoughts.

My journey to surface the soul’s voice involved three distinct steps:

First, I began writing to the inner voice, asking it questions. I would write a question onto the page. And then, I would close my eyes, take a few deep breaths, ask the question aloud, and allow the response in the form of words to surface behind my eyes. At the start, it was often just one word replies.

“Yes”

“No”

“Yes and No”

In fact, I first saw the replies to my questions in my head, written on lined paper, the sort we’d write on in elementary school. The soul’s voice showed me words written in cursive hand writing on those lined pieces of paper in my mind.

Second, I went out into nature. I was actually called to be alone in nature, and that's when I heard my inner voice speak voluntarily for the first time. Now, it didn’t speak aloud. It spoke within me, I would hear its words in my head. On that first walk, it welcomed me to the awareness of it and invited me to be with it often.

Third, and eventually, I more easily distinguished between the mind's voice and the soul's voice and could speak between those voices. And I naturally allowed the inner voice to lead that dialogue.

First, it was in my head, and shortly thereafter, I spoke between both voices aloud. It was as if I was carrying out a conversation between the parts of me, just out loud with language.

Through it all, I learned that the soul's voice is kind and compassionate, like a warm blanket ready to hold me or a gold platform ready to uplift me and launch me toward adventure.

The soul’s voice is discerning but it doesn't judge nor hold you liable for fearful or weird or tender thoughts. You are always innocent to the inner voice, always, and it will treat you as such. It will hold you with kid gloves. It is delicate and careful.

If you hear anything that is not delicate nor careful nor compassionate nor calm, it's likely the mind's voice. That's the clearest way to distinguish them at the start. Now, after lots of practice, sometimes, the soul’s voice can get more direct or pointed or blunt, but that comes in time. It doesn’t always begin that way. It often wants to start tenderly and become grand and wise as you allow it.

Generally, my inner voice offers or channels messages directly from my soul quite easily. But I've been doing it for a long time. I often know there's a message wishing to rise, to surface, when there's a feeling that needs to get unstuck in the body or, in my case, when I feel tears come to the surface and want to spill from my eyes.

The mind may sense a feeling in the body and build a story around it to strengthen it. The body may feel tears which often represent a type of contrast between what the mind believes and what the soul knows.

Either way, however it presents for you, the feeling could be a strong emotion or a kind of pain or an old trauma from this lifetime, a previous one or your lineage. The inner voice invites you to breathe into that pain, into that emotion, to allow the out-breath, the exhale, the elongated exhale, to break it into smaller pieces or to move it completely so the truth, a true message, a kind of wisdom, may surface.

And that message or wisdom may be as simple as “This is painful,” with no further meaning. Or you may unleash an aria, an opus, a novel, a long message of wisdom and tenderness.

As that feeling arises, as the inner voice helps you move that energy, you get unstuck or unclogged or freed or liberated and in a tiny way, you heal.

And if you do it enough times, you can heal yourself. I know that to be true because it happened to me.

Now, ideally, in addition to surfacing your soul’s voice, you also bring in other supportive nervous system practices to encourage the process along and build a deep bench of modalities to support your healing, your home coming and your rising.

Some of the other modalities in my bench are:

Body movement (of any kind, from walking to yoga to dancing)

Breath work

Meditation

Therapy, any kind that resonates with you like cognitive behavioral therapy or somatic emotional release therapy

We don't do these practices to numb out or distract (like one may go to gym to distract the mind, another may go the gym to work through thoughts in the mind) but we do it to continue to move energy, to always be moving energy, Always Moving Energy, AME.

And moving energy so my wisdom or truth may rise from my soul’s voice, well, that feels like one of my full time jobs now.

Today, my inner voice shares messages when there is pain, when there is emotion and/also when there is simply curiosity or a desire for greater understanding or perspective. It often shares messages when there is magic or a synchronicity to notice, too.

And just to be clear, I sit down and journal to hear my inner voice less frequently, though it does still happen. Recently, I was in another country and my inner voice came through with long lessons and messages only through journaling, so I carried paper and pencil with me everywhere.

But more so today, I will be in meditation and I will feel or hear that the inner voice wishes to offer a message. I simply take a few deep breaths and invite the voice of my soul to speak and it speaks aloud.

And I gotta say, I still am surprised and delighted when I ask it to rise and it rises with such tender and compassionate words, often with phrases I may not have put together with my mind, but it's always perfection even in its imperfection.

It always chooses the right words. It’s me but better.

I’m sharing a lot more about the voice of the soul. I’m doing this because:

It has changed my life.

It has helped me remember my wholeness.

It has helped me come home to myself.

It has helped me rise or become my truest self, my most authentic self, my most integrated self.

It has shown me that the answers for any question are always within me.

It has taught me to trust me, completely, to trust the highest intelligence within.

And, it has launched me toward adventure and a far better life than I could have ever imagined.

And now, I live a life almost entirely guided by my soul. And I will tell you about that, too.

Thanks for reading. And I’ll be back again very, very soon.

What is the Soul’s Voice?

Hello, I’m Maggie Battista. I’m a storyteller, strategist, ritualist, facilitator, and mentor.

I want to talk to you about a beautiful and ancient tool that exists within you to help you grow, to help you heal or remember your wholeness, to help you find closure, to help you hold yourself through change, to help you find or allow all the answers that you’re looking for outside of yourself, to help you allow those answers to surface from within.

This tool is the voice of your soul, sometimes referred to as the inner voice. The voice of your soul is the calm and all-knowing wisdom and language that surfaces from within when we get quiet and listen.

It is the kernel of you, the essence of you, the core of the core of the core of your being. It’s your soul.

Your soul is your original self. Not who you were as a child, not who your mind thinks you are now, but who your original self was at birth, before these human bodies took over, before masses of human bodies took over, before societies and systems and cultures impinged on your allowing.

Your original self – your soul – knows your truth, knows why you’re here, knows what you’re here to heal, knows what you’re here to learn, and knows the keys to your prosperity and your allowing. To allow all that is and to just be who you were born to be.

And in allowing all that is, your soul connects you to all that is and thus you are all that is. And your inner voice will help you remember this by simplifying all that is into the now to connect you to it and to remind you that you are all that is. And it really is that simple.

While it is a kind of higher intelligence, the voice of the soul has no concept of space and time or, when it does, it thinks far more expansively than the human does. Our minds consider the past, the present and the future. But the soul considers the distant past like past lives and our lineage, and also the distant future like future lives and future iterations of the collective that exists on earth today, and all the other timelines where everything is happening at once. The soul’s wisdom is from all lifetimes, all dimensions, and all timelines – and that’s why it does such a good job at connecting you to all that is.

When I say that the inner voice helps you allow all that is, I mean, the soul’s voice is an allowing, it offers an allowing, it invites you into an allowing, of your peace and pleasure and joy. It allows the most peaceful path to surface. It allows as much ease as possible, to just be, to just merge with all that is.

That said, the soul does not expect this life, the traumas incurred through this life as a human on this planet, to disappear and evaporate like the end of a fairy tale. The soul only asks that you exist and stand tall and allow your peace through any pain, to know that the only thing that matters is your allowing and your connection to all that is and to you remembering that you are all that is. This kind of allowing, this kind of peace, this kind of flow, is within you at all times.

And that’s why the voice of the soul can guide you, ease you, soothe you, hold you, and help you choose you.

In fact, if you get still and listen closely – sometimes, you don’t have to listen so closely, sometimes, it’s right on your lips – but if you listen, you will hear your truth. You will hear how simple it all is.

Now, there are lots of voices within your humanness and your inner voice, your soul’s voice, is the ring leader. The soul takes in all the parts of you — the mind and its fears and its strategy; the body, the emotions and sensations within the body; your intuition; and even your awareness, the aware parts of you, the witness. And as the ringleader of all the parts of you, the voice of the soul discerns all of your messages and offers your truth.

And that’s because the inner voice is interlinked, very connected, to your inner knowing and your intuition. And those parts of you are very discerning. Just like the mind is very discerning. Just like the emotions within the body, the feelings in the body, they tell you a story, they paint a picture.

The soul’s voice is very discerning and it can take it all in and cut through the hype. Cut through the cloudiness, cut through the mess, cut through the stories, the stories you tell yourself, the stories you allow others to tell you about you.

The inner voice is like a knife in that way. It does that for you because:

You get to choose.

You get to choose the stories you tell yourself.

You get to choose the feelings you feel.

You get to choose how simple it can be.

And the soul is here to remind you of that, of how simple it can be.

The soul’s voice cuts through the messages like a knife to discern the truth, the truth of all that is for you.

Is it the truth of all that is for all souls? In many ways, yes, it is.

But your humanness may need to hear things in a slightly different way from some other human, so the soul may use language entirely unique to you.

Now as a human, if there is ever any choosing to be done, your soul will always choose you. The voice of your soul will take in all the bits of you and always choose you — your love, your compassion, your self-compassion, your desires, and allow you to drift toward joy, toward peace, toward pleasure. When the inner voice offers a message, that message often is, choose you, hold you, soothe you.

I want to say that again because it’s been said to me dozens of times by the soul’s voice. The voice of the soul says, if there ever is any choosing to do:

Choose you, hold you, soothe you.

Over several videos, I’m going to share a lot more about the voice of the soul.

It has changed my life.

It has helped me remember my wholeness.

It has held me during tough times.

It has explained change to me in the simplest of words.

It has been my greatest teacher.

It has shown me that the answers for everything are not outside of me, they are always within me.

It has taught me to refrain from any need for external validation and to just trust me, completely, even when it’s difficult to trust me, even when I’m deep in my feelings, when I think I may drift into being a less reliable witness.

In fact, it has helped me lean into my feelings, feel them, and move onto better feelings and better things far quicker than any other form of healing. And, I have tried dozens of other modalities, I have a deep bench of healing tools.

But the voice of the soul is my favorite tool, the most ancient of tools.

I now live a life almost entirely guided by soul. And I’m going to share more about how that looks and feels, too, because today, the present feels so much better than any other phase of my life.

Thank you for reading. And I’ll be back again very, very soon.