Pilgrimage to Egypt

by Gayle Clayton

For many years, dreams and visions of Egypt have haunted me. When I first began teaching metaphysics, I found myself slipping into her energetic past.  There, I remembered lifetimes of knowledge. This past fall, an opportunity arose to join a tour organized by Shamanic Journeys — a partnership between Nicki Scully and Jane Bell, both wonderful Teachers in their own right, to provide pilgrimages to sacred sites on this planet.  Our group of 44 spiritual seekers soon became one. Our Egyptian guide, Emil, frequently reminded us to “Be one” as he herded us through sacred sights, museums, and restaurants. 

Egypt is a place of diversity and duality: the barren, sands of the desert contrast the corn and sugar cane fields of the fertile Nile valley; farm families live in direct relationship to land, water, and food, while others negotiate the more metropolitan issues of crowded cities, politics, and tourists. The men flirt outrageously with Western women while the veiled local women examined us curiously. Egypt is an odd mixture of modern, ancient, and transcendent. 

At times sharing roads with pedestrians, horses, and goats, our tour traveled at off-peak times to have private ceremonies at Egyptian sites. Our first morning I stood at dawn between the paws of the Sphinx as Nicki, Jane, and Normandi led ritual. In my mind’s eye, an ultraviolet, bird headed figure beckoned to me. “Horus?” I thought, but the being shook her head. Nepthys, archetype of invisibility, dreams, and unseen worlds, had honored me in her kite form and remained a constant visitor with me during the entire trip. This inspiring visit was just the first of many to come. 

The Sphinx on Giza Plateau at dawn.

That night at dinner with Karen and Normandi, we discussed how to honor the third anniversary of my Teacher’s passing. Swapping numerous funny and outrageous stories, we found unlikely coincidental links that had brought us here together. We created a loose structure for our ideas and the energetic portal I had promised to open.

Finally asleep, I found myself in a lucid dream out in the white desert sands. There dancing her way to greet me was Normandi, calling to me, “Sister, Nepthys.” I relayed this dream to Normandi during the bus ride to Saqqara, the site of Zoser’s step pyramid. As soon as we arrived, I recognized Saqqara as the place in my dreams. I grasped Karen’s arm as we headed across the desert, “I’m losing Time. Just help me ground.” Indeed, I seemed to be floating through dark space.

Using the Zoser pyramid as a backdrop, Nicki began a guided chakra meditation corresponding to the seven pyramidal steps. Normandi and I stood with her as the energy for the diamond body initiations flowed through all of us. Time and space flowed away in all directions.

All light beings were invited to be reborn while the energetic portal remained open to send the dead to the light as well. When I could open my eyes, the desert was filled with thousands of eyes surrounding us. The souls of everyone physically present appeared as radiant interconnected crystals in deep space. Then, one crystal ignited with a bright flash. The light left it and traversed the lines to the connecting crystals. They, in turn, were catalyzed into an explosion of more light. Indeed, a single illumination can be the catalyst to enlighten the entire matrix of interconnected beings. My hope was restored that the conscious web of creation could be held by humanity. I left with a smile.

Zoser’s pyramid at Saqqara

Nearby, Normandi was stopped by a tourist police officer who had observed our ritual. “Metaphysics?” he asked. Normandi indicated yes. “Aliens?” he inquired further. Normandi smiled and shook her head. Evidently the guard had seen light beings visit us and had mistaken them for aliens. Our day’s work was hardly inconspicuous. 

Magic, insights, and miracles became an integral part of my trip. Seldom did I keep track of the itinerary; I enjoyed the freedom of simply having to show up at the right time. One very hot day was spent at the Valley of the Kings. Descending the passageway decorated with funerary texts, I entered a magnificent burial chamber. The highly decorative walls surrounded a cantilevered carved sarcophagus lid. Just before the lights were extinguished for our ritual, I dove under it where Myrrah already sat. 

Darkness surrounded us. The total absence of light imitated the non-sensory state of death. Then Anubis, guardian of the dead, appeared before me to remind me that death was simply a transition. With this liberating thought, I was free — no longer bound by a body, space, or time. Death was not an enemy, but a liberator of consciousness. For a timeless moment, I felt unlimited and immortal.

However, eerie hissing sounds, reminiscent of a prior initiation, drew me back into the sensory world. My body formed a mudra, a sacred position, in response to the golden glow now illuminating the space between Myrrah and me. Light and unconditional love radiated between us. I thanked Myyrah for remembering the old ways. As she ascended the walkway, Myyrah perfectly sang the vowel tones of the sacred Egyptian priestesses. Tears welled in my eyes. 

There were many unexpected treasures on this trip. From being escorted by army guards into a temple site at night, observing our cruise ship going through the locks at Esna, shopping for galibayas in the market, or riding local donkeys by the Colossi of Memnon, every moment was an adventure. 

At Abydos, the tomb of Osiris remains underwater. The Oseirion can’t be excavated because the water table has risen over the centuries. Egyptologist John Anthony West states that similar floods date back to 10,000 BCE, approximately the time of the sinking of Atlantis. Consequently, there isn’t much to view at the Oseirion. Yet, I remembered it from a reoccurring dream where I was diving through the ruins, attempting to retrieve the underwater treasures. Fortunately I could breathe underwater in the dream, but those who were with me could not. Finding the physical location of that dream allowed me to ground it into the physical awareness — an indisputable confirmation of the reality of the dream state.

The Oseirion

At Dendera, though, more memories flooded through me. Tall columns capped with once blue images of Hathor grace the temple entrance. Dendera was familiar and still held significant energy. Outside, the sacred lakebed, once representative of the primordial waters of Nun, was the site of our next ritual. The group’s ecstatic dance represented the hieros gamos or sacred marriage of Hathor and Horus. Afterwards, my friend Karen and I were drawn to a low, small door in the pool’s enclosure. Entering into the dark passage, we intuitively knew where the turns and descent led. However, practicality overcame us and we exited to a waiting Normandi.

“What’s in there?” she asked. With no response other than a look from us, Normandi entered and disappeared around the first turn. Karen and I waited expectantly. Normandi then rushed out exclaiming, “This is where the crocodiles were!” Karen and I snickered. Normandi shared similar memories of ancient Dendera, too. Though the three accounts varied somewhat, the lake seemed home to ancient initiations that required novices to swim underwater through this tunnel. If the novices were successful, they found themselves in tombs and other parts of the temple complex ready for further initiations. Dendera is a must see.

The Temple of Dendera

Our active trip was balanced with a relaxing time on our Nile cruise. Here, the moving Egyptian landscape of rural homes, irrigated sugar cane and corn fields, and livestock herded by children waving and shouting greetings to our ship revealed an intimate relationship between the people, land, food, water, and transportation. The group further developed its own identity through discussions and meditations. 

We left the serenity of rural Egypt to fly back to Cairo for our private initiation in the Great Pyramid. Entering the Pyramid, we climbed hunched-over in silence and darkness through the low-ceilinged ramp. At the Grand Gallery, I was relieved to be standing upright. However, there was more climbing and yet another low passage leading to the King’s Chamber. I was surprised to find the chamber devoid of decoration. The stone sarcophagus at one end dominated the large room. I waited anxiously for my turn at lying down in the sarcophagus. Many of my prior dreams and visions had revealed my Teacher helping me out of the sarcophagus. Now I would have the physical experience in this lifetime with Bobbie and Nicki assisting me. Though I felt Nicki making inter-dimensional connections to my physical heart, my experience was of a timeless, eternal moment. All things disappeared and there was only total awareness. Then as I got up, I realized that everything had changed. In the silence of the King’s chamber, I could hear everyone everywhere. People’s feelings were as obvious as the clothes they wore. There were no boundaries. This soul consciousness transformed my approach to the world forever. I became who I am — without mask, without pretense. I knew I could never go back.

Normandi Ellis and Jane Bell in front of the Great Pyramid.

Egypt irrevocably changed me. While her landscape and stories mirror the heavens, her energetic presence empowers humanity to consciously mediate heaven and earth. The Egyptian timeless land, people, and history enter your heart so subtly that I doubt any traveler ever truly leaves. I still dream that I am in Egypt. Her treasures reveal the mysteries of humanity: who we are, were, and will be.

further reading:
The Passion of Isis and Osiris by Jean Houston
Dreams of Isis by Normandi Ellis
Fingerprints of the Gods by Graham Hancock
Serpent in the Sky by John Anthony West