-IBIS-1.5.0-
rx
imagery
Frog journey
psychospiritual approaches

definition

Anyone who has collected frog jelly, the little black eggs in the gelatinous substance found in stagnant ponds in springtime, knows that, when put in water, this jelly becomes tadpoles. They miraculously begin to develop legs and actually turn into amphibian frogs. Because of this process, Frog is a major symbol of transformation and metamorphosis.
Where he appears in mythology, Frog evokes either great respect or revulsion. He is a reincarnation symbol for the Chinese and Maya, where stone figures were found in the mouths of the dead in ancient burial grounds. Jade frogs were used in China and other stones in the New World to make fetishes which were buried with the people. Egypt's gentle goddess of childbirth and fertility, Heket, had the head or the entire form of a frog.
Associations with rain are attributed to Frog primarily in India and South America. Lowland Maya and Olmec tribes identified Frog with water, mucous, and semen, as well as with rain for crops and the continued growth of the forest. The Huron Indians of North America and the aborigines of Queensland, Australia, have similar myths about frogs swallowing all the water in times of draught. In Australia, the water was released by making the frog laugh, a feat accomplished by the eel, whose squirming and wriggling antics made the frog roar with laughter. For the Hurons, it was Ioskeha, their creation hero, that stabbed the frog, releasing all of the water from the frog's belly.
The myth of the frog prince relates to Frog's ability to perceive the true soul, the highest potential of everyone, which usually happens through the transformative power of love.
Frogs are indispensable to our forests, as they call in the rain. They are very magical creatures. When you have frog medicine, you can call in the rain and also work with water to cleanse negative energies. Use water in any healing work you do. You can put water in your mouth and spray it onto your altar. When you do a healing, you can spray it out over the person, envisioning the frogs doing it, to clear negative energy. Be sure to picture the frogs and hold the notion of cleansing for your altar or situation while you do this, so that the effect will be a blessing rather than a profanity. Spraying in a similar manner is practiced in several cultures, including South America and Africa, and might not be associated directly with Frog. In Africa, for example, spraying is empowering, and is done by a person whose mouth has gone through rituals. Totemically it would be more closely related to the Elephant, whose spray is considered sacred.
Frogs are an indicator species in the ecosystem, calling our attention to the health of the environment. Many species of frogs have vanished mysteriously in recent years, suggesting a relationship to environmental conditions similar to the canary in the coal mine. This is a critical situation, for all things in nature evolve and work together. Where the frogs are disappearing may indicate pollution in ground, water, and air.
Frogs bring the rain, and with the rain comes cleansing. Their call is not a cry of desperation, but rather an acknowledgement honoring of the waters of life.
The frogs have come into the Cauldron to teach us how to cleanse negative energy, and to remind us of the value of our forests. This journey can be enhanced by getting into it physically. Try sitting like a frog, and even hopping about like one. You can even visit Frog while taking a shower or bath. Go ahead and make it fun and playful. Make lots of noise! Children will love this one, and it works well as a group activity.

Frog Journey
Do the alchemy. . . .
Thoth directs you to a lush, green forest. It is so rich and verdant that it takes a moment to realize that the ground is covered with frogs. They are everywhere. As they begin to croak, a rhythm develops. More and more frogs join the chorus, adding their unique rhythm to the song they are creating. The powerful sound comes from their gut and calls forth the rain with love. . . .
As you continue to resonate with the sound of the frogs, you feel yourself become one, noticing the vibration that wells up from your own gut, as you add your voice to the cry for rain. You vocalize a "r-i-b-i-t" that is both audible and felt throughout the entire front underside of your body, completing your transfiguration into the amphibian Frog. . . .
Look down and notice your webbed feet, your spotted amphibian legs. Your eyes bulge as you continue to "r-i-b-i-t". Go ahead and catch a fly that happens to pass within range. Swallow it. You might not see the other frogs around at this point, but you know they are there by the resonance of the sound. The sound gets more and more powerful. It lifts the vibration in the forest and contacts the water spirits above, resulting in rain. . . .
Feel the rain as it falls, and continue to make your sounds. The water of the rain is cleansing. You can hear it dripping from the trees. It makes puddles all around you. The voice of Frog calls attention to an area of your body or life that most needs the healing from the rains. Perceive the cleansing effect of the rain as it extends to your own body, mind, and psyche. . . . Long pause
As an offering, use the space that you have created to cleanse some area in your life or to send cleansing healing energies to another person. . . . pause
You may also consider what you can do to help the forest so the frogs have a place to reproduce. . . .
To return, jump up, and you're back in your human form with Thoth, who may be holding an umbrella. Take time to discuss the possibilities of this work in your life. . . .
Thoth will assist you back. . . .
(Scully)

Reprinted with permission from the author, Nicki Scully, and the publisher, Bear and Co., from The Golden Cauldron, Bear and Co., Boulder, CO., 1991.

see also other Scully imagery:
Cauldron alchemy and initiation
bear journey (heart)
gold journey (heart)
Kuan Yin journey (compassion)
Mut and Crone journey (healing intuition and wisdom)
rainbow butterfly journey (self-esteem)
Taueret journey (birth)


footnotes