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A lot people think walking on fire
or more specifically,
a bed of red hot coals... is crazy insane! At first glance, everything we know
about fire suggests that this is a stupid thing to do! It's hot, it burns, it
destroys, and is usually connected to some unpleasant memories involving pain.
There seems to be no practical reason for doing this idiotic stunt.
So why would any one in their right mind want to walk
on fire?
Let alone pay to do it, knowing there is a risk that one can
burn their feet?
Because doing so suggests
that are capable of doing much more than we allow
ourselves in our day to day existence.
Firewalking has been a part of human
culture since the dawn of time as a rite of passage or a
testament of faith. Christians, Hindus, Polynesians,
Buddhists, Africans, and Native Americans to name a few,
have practiced the firewalk.
People walk for different reasons. The
Vikings walked on glowing hot metal chains as a sign of
their strength, Buddhists performed the ritual as a
spiritual endeavor, Hawaiian Kahunas walked on glowing
lava beds, and Fijians today still dance on red-hot
rocks, not only as a rite of passage, but to entertain
tourists as well.
The firewalk is a symbolic act, a physical metaphor of our
own innate power. The power for our bodies to respond to
our physical world, it demonstrates the body's fantastic
ability to heal itself, and more dramatically it helps
you overcome fear. Knowing
that cultures have walked on fire for centuries,
the
question becomes not can it be done? But will you do it?
Can you overcome the fear? It's not for everyone, but
if
you are attracted to the idea at all, a part of you is
saying 'walking on fire will help me.'
And that is the point...
After a person walks the coals they
realize that it was a deceptively simple thing to do. That is the beauty of it. Something that once seemed
impossible, or at least very difficult, now becomes
something you did, done deal. It become a personal
knowing and is part of your history, a part of your
belief system. This message cannot be ignored by our
minds, by our bodies. The next
logical step in thinking is if I can do this, what other things am I
not attempting because of my
fear?
(misperceptions) Is walking on fire crazy? Crazy like a
fox.
Why
can people walk and not get burned?
There are a few
theories on why people
can do this and if you are
curious you can read them. Prominent doctors
and researchers are quick to point out though, that
there is relatively little known about the oddity of
firewalking. The research to date still has rendered few
clues as to what prevents the soles of human feet from
burning upon exposure to temperatures exceeding 1,200
degrees Fahrenheit. Doctor Andrew
Weil, physician and firewalker, has investigated
firewalking for many years, says this: "The scientific
literature on firewalking is dreadful. There is no way I
can be convinced that mental state is not the key
variable in firewalking."
Do I need to have
meditated for 10 years and have attained a special state
of mind to walk on fire?
No, the state of mind needed is one
you're already familiar with on some level. The workshop
prior to walking helps you access this state on demand.
We also teach a specific process from putting aside
fear. I am confident if you take the first step, you
will walk to the other side.
Frankly, if you can walk to the
kitchen and get something out of the fridge without
getting lost, you have the capacity to walk on fire.
People do get burned from
time to time.
But...
It must
be pointed out that people can and do get burned walking
on fire.
Instructor
Daniel D'Neuville
has come to deeply appreciate the
role that our mental and physical state plays in walking
safely across the coals:
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"I have burned from time to time, small blisters, but it
happens when I take the fire for granted and don't pay
attention." "The very first time I walked 16
years ago,' says Daniel,
' I felt nothing. Being naturally skeptical, I dismissed
the intensity of the fire, the length of the walk, I
questioned it. Something made it too easy. I was still
proud that I did it, but somewhere inside I played down
the achievement of what I had done, but now I was
curious about what was possible.
The next time I walked, the coal bed was noticeably more
intense. The coals were at least 6 inches deep and 15
feet long and definitely hot! The heat rising off the
coals created a wind effect blowing people's hair like a
gusty afternoon.
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I had asked my mind for a more conscious
experience and I got it, I felt more heat but it was
like walking on hot sand. It was a small group of 45
people and 22, almost half of us burned. The instructor
had not been trained, but had watched someone else do it
and decided to teach it. I was fortunate and walked
without burning. After this walk, I had an increased appreciation for
what my mind and body was capable of, but decided when I
walked again I wanted to do it with someone who was
certified." Rather than just walk again
with someone else leading, Daniel wanted to know first
hand how to teach others. "I wanted to know how this all
started, I wanted to be trained by the best." Daniel
sought out and was trained by
Tolly Burkan, Father of
the Global Firewalking Movement in the foothills of the
Sonora Mountains. Daniel
has walked on fire over 100 times and at one point walked a
stretch of 180 feet. The Guinness World record is 166
feet and was performed over a 166 foot coal bed. "I did
my personal walk in my back yard and would walk to the
end of my 15 foot bed, turn around and walk back and
forth.' says Daniel. 'I wasn't attempting to set any
kind of record for ego sake, I just needed to know for
myself. It was personal"
Tolly
Burkan and firewalking today
This year, the Global Firewalking
Movement celebrates its 30th anniversary since Tolly
launched the craze by offering firewalking classes to
the general public in California. For the first time in
history, everyday people were being taught how to walk
across glowing, red-hot coal beds completely barefooted.
The coals have been measured at 2,000 degrees
Fahrenheit. The average temperatures for firewalks are
between 1200-1500 degrees Fahrenheit, which is
equivalent to 650-800 degrees Celsius. Aluminum engine
blocks are poured at around 1100 degrees Fahrenheit.
Today, over two million people have taken
a firewalking class with either Tolly Burkan, (the
founder of the Firewalking movement) or with one of his
certified instructors. People from all walks of life
have participated including Congressmen, U.S. Senators
even President Clinton has firewalked. Fortune 500
companies all over the globe, including such giants as
Microsoft, Met-Life and Coca-Cola, regularly employ
firewalking as a training tool and technique for
motivation, team building and personal growth. Even
beyond the two million people who have firewalked
themselves, 50 million viewers watched a firewalk
prepared by a F.I.R.E. Certified instructor on the
TV show Survivor on CBS television. A firewalk
prepared by a F.I.R.E. Certified instructor has also
been featured on the MTV show "Road Rules".
Ultimately
, The firewalk is not about walking on
coals. Even though this is the physical action, in the
manner that it is experienced in our workshops... it is
a demonstration of your innate power and beauty.
A powerful metaphor of taking
the first step to a new level of functioning , moving
towards realizing your dreams.
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Daniel
Neuville, Michigan firewalk instructor and peak performance coach
