Yet as I’ve read and researched, I’ve discovered that there are so many variations out there–so it simply makes sense to decide what representations are best based on your own circumstances. Seems that’s what the Native Americans and other peoples did, after all!

In my prison work the four directions are very important because the guys have a strong need to connect to the greater whole, beyond the walls. In my individual work, particularly on my farm, I tend to relate to the specific place, tree or meadow and create my sacred space / time based on that rather than the cardinal directions.

The time aspect is generally not given much importance in the generic circle casting but I certainly think it could be very important. As a spiritual guide once told me: “All places are sacred, especially here. All times are sacred, especially now.” I often will center based on the time of day (eg. sunrise), season, moon-phase or other time related factor. An important ritual most likely will be scheduled for an “important” time to give it more punch but it has been stressed upon me that there is nothing wrong with right now and right here.

I thank the land spirits for cradling me. I greet my gods (which often involves facing in different directions – wind blowing into my face for Vavale, the direction the sun is beating down for Karijiana, the moon for D’miezak’r and so on), and I ask the animal totems / perevrjni who I think will help me most next, and then I ask if anyone else wants to tag along.

Directional worship pretty much stopped in 2000, when I abandoned Wicca and stereotypical ‘Jamie Sams’ neoshamanism. Directions are important, I still believe this symbolically too; that going certain directions in dreams, and so on, are very significant. Likewise I still use the directions and their symbolism in my rune-castings… but in ritual and certainly before journeying, directional worship or respect is not a part of my practices.

1.) The approach you describe probably works better for solo working than for group working.

2.) The human body always provides us with a “directional” orientation–before, behind, left, right, above, below, within, without, now, then. later, approaching, receding, and other such. But bodily orientation alone may not aid us in navigation.

I think that the key insight of the typical NESW orientation is a more or less fixed relationship to the global Earth and to any of its subregions. Change always encompassed by a shared frame of reference.

3.) I’ve found that localization provides useful contacts with the landscape and spirits of place. That helps a practitioner gain a feel for immediate energy flows and patterns and sources of insight. That mountain, That watercourse, That stand of those kinds of trees. That animal/ And such.

4.) I think that as practitioners become more comfortable with their developing skills, they end up doing both the shared and formal orientation and the personal and local orientation more or less simultaneously. It’s one of the things that adds richness to practice and roots it where it grows.