What’s in a name?
Do you like your name?
Does it resonate with you?
You probably didn’t choose it, but it’s the most personal thing about you.
Some of us get our names changed as we go through life; nicknames, adoption, marriage, but we rarely get a say in what we’re called.
Unless we decide to change our name.
Changing our name isn’t easy. Often, other people find it challenging to accept, family and friends may struggle to use our new name and may be judgemental about our changing it. When we are in our power, when we embody sovereignty, we no longer go to others for permission when it comes to our sense of self. I spent most of my life limiting myself because of the perceived judgments of others and yet, when it came to it, when I said, “This is me and this is my new name, please use it”, the response was so much more accepting than I expected. I had found the personal power, not only to claim my own name but to be respected for who I am.
If we change our name, we can end up with a name we actually like, that fits who we are, who we’ve become. A name whose energy resonates for us and as us. It surprises me that more people don’t do it, it’s a wonderful way to claim our power, our truth, ourselves. We can be creative, colourful, expressing our personality and values. We utilise our clothes, hair, car, home, so many elements of our life when identifying ourselves, surely our foremost personal identification is our name.
Early last year, I went from Amanda, a name I never felt was really mine, to Ananda. Amanda means ‘love’ and Ananda means ‘blissful love’, it felt like levelling up. I didn’t get to choose my new name, I received it from my teacher and guide, personally, I would have gone for something more exotic and less like my old name. I use a number of goddessy name options as avatars in various places online, I expect we all do something similar, Ananda was not amongst them nor a name that had occurred to me. To be honest, my new name sometimes causes confusion, people mis-hear or mis-read it and end up still calling me Amanda and I correct them.
I also removed my second name which was Jayne and pretty much redundant, adding a second first name, Amenet. I received this name during my soul initiation with the knowing that it’s the name of my soul. Over the past year, I have found myself identifying with the name Amenet more and more as I integrate with my soul.
Three days after I finished painting my shamanic drum, I received a new name through my channel. I had already painted this very name on the side of my drum without realising the significance. The new name was revealed as my complete soul name, Amenet Drago.
I’m not going to change my name legally again yet, but I know it’s coming. In the meantime, I will start using Amenet Drago as I set up my new service, so you will see my name change on this site when the time is right. This name is not of my choosing either but feels so deeply personal and empowering. When I say it as my name, I seem to momentarily sense the ancient expression of my soul. Words contain power and names even more so. I feel like I am finally becoming the truth of my being and my name is an outward expression of that truth.
Do you like your name? Do you identify with it? Have you changed your name? If you were to change your name, what would you choose? If you’re thinking about it, what’s stopping you?
ananda amenet reid 