Breaking Ancestral Contracts: Releasing Inherited Limits to Abundance
We all have our limits. For some, it’s a limit to joy, others to success, and for many, it’s a subconscious ceiling on how much abundance or happiness we can truly allow ourselves to experience. In the past I noticed a frustratingly consistent pattern in my own life: no matter how much progress I make, whether financially, physically, or emotionally, there’s always an unexpected setback that pulls me back.
For example, I’d hit a financial milestone and, just as I felt the relief of reaching a goal, something would always pop up: an unforeseen expense, like a car issue or a tech problem that drained my resources and left me back where I started.
And even in moments of personal joy or emotional clarity, I’d find myself creating chaos out of nowhere, almost as if I wasn’t allowed to hold onto happiness for too long.
At first, I dismissed these as coincidences. But the pattern kept repeating, and I could no longer ignore it. Something deeper was at play here. It felt like I had an invisible ceiling, a barrier that limited how much success, peace, and joy I was allowed to experience in my life.
As I pondered this, the answers began to surface. I started asking myself questions I had been avoiding:
Why is there a limit to how much I can hold and experience?
Where did this invisible ceiling even come from?
Why do I feel safer in scarcity than in expansion?
These questions led me to something profoundly revealing: ancestral contracts.
Inherited Limits: The Hidden Contracts from Our Ancestors
Ancestral contracts are the unseen agreements passed down through our family lineage, often carrying unresolved trauma, limiting beliefs, and survival patterns from previous generations. These contracts are not written or spoken; they are energetically imprinted into the DNA, emotional systems, and behaviors of each subsequent generation.
While modern psychology often focuses on the individual’s experiences, ancestral contracts explore how emotional patterns, financial beliefs, and behavioural tendencies are handed down like invisible blueprints, deeply influencing our choices and actions. These contracts are born out of survival mechanisms. Our ancestors faced immense hardships, whether poverty, oppression, or war, and in their attempts to survive, they passed down patterns of fear, scarcity, and limitation to protect the family lineage.
Unfortunately, these inherited limitations don’t just disappear when we’re born. We’re born into them, unconsciously inheriting the same fears, beliefs, and struggles that shaped our parents, grandparents, and ancestors before them. Without realizing it, we begin to live out these ancestral contracts, repeating the same cycles of sabotage, scarcity, and failure.
For me, the financial sabotage, the setbacks, and even emotional chaos were all manifestations of these inherited contracts. They were not random. They were a direct reflection of the emotional and spiritual agreements my ancestors made, agreements I unknowingly continued to honour and replay.
Why Do We Stay Stuck in These Patterns?
A crucial question arises: Why do we continue to honour these ancestral contracts, even when they no longer serve us? Why do we feel safer in scarcity, struggle, and limitation?
The answer lies in the subconscious programming that our ancestors instilled in us as part of their survival strategy. These patterns of lack, fear, and survival were ways to cope with the harsh realities they lived through. They had no choice but to adapt to their circumstances, and in doing so, they unknowingly passed on their limiting beliefs and survival instincts to their children and grandchildren.
When we operate within these ancestral limits, we’re often in a state of nervous system dysregulation, a fight-or-flight response triggered by the fear of expansion or success. On a deep, cellular level, we may fear that if we allow ourselves too much peace, joy, or abundance, we’re threatening the survival of the family. This deep-seated fear can unconsciously block us from stepping into our true power and potential.
Releasing Inherited Contracts: A Ritual for Freedom
If you recognise these patterns in your own life, it’s time to release the ancestral contracts that are holding you back. The first step is awareness, and the next is intentional action. Below is a ritual designed to help you release the invisible limits inherited from your ancestors, breaking free from the old patterns and embracing your power.
Step 1: Prepare Your Sacred Space
Create a quiet space where you can feel safe and undisturbed. Light a candle to symbolize the illumination of truth and the clearing of old energies. You may want to place items representing your ancestors, such as photographs or heirlooms, on your altar or sacred space.
Step 2: Ground Yourself
Sit comfortably and take a few deep breaths. Ground yourself by visualising roots extending from the soles of your feet deep into the Earth, anchoring you to her stabilizing energy. Feel the Earth’s support as it helps release old patterns and energies that no longer serve you.
Step 3: Acknowledge the Inherited Contract
In your mind or aloud, acknowledge the inherited contract that you are ready to release. Speak to the contract that has limited your joy, success, or abundance. It might sound like this:
“I recognise that I have inherited the contract of scarcity, fear, and failure from my ancestors. I honour the lessons it brought, but I now choose to release it.”
Step 4: Write and Burn the Contract
Write down the contract you wish to release on a piece of paper. Be specific, this could include patterns like financial struggle, fear of success, or emotional chaos. Once written, hold the paper and speak your intention aloud to release it.
When ready, burn the paper (safely), letting the smoke carry the energy of the old contract into the universe. Watch as the flames consume the paper, symbolizing the release of the inherited limitations.
Step 5: Set Your New Intention
Now, set a new intention for your life and the legacy you wish to create. Speak it aloud, such as:
“I release the ancestral contracts of scarcity, fear, and limitation. I embrace abundance, peace, and success as my birth right.”
Feel the shift in energy as you claim this new path.
Step 6: Close the Ritual with Gratitude
Give thanks to your ancestors for the lessons they have brought. Express gratitude for their resilience and strength, and affirm that you are now free to create your own legacy. Sit quietly for a few moments and feel the new energy settling into your body and life.
Reflection: Journal Prompts to Process Inherited Limits
After the ritual, use the following journal prompts to further explore the limits you’ve inherited and to solidify your new path forward:
What ancestral patterns have I been unknowingly carrying?
Reflect on areas where you feel stuck, where failure seems inevitable, or where fear holds you back. Are these patterns familiar from your family or community?How do I feel about my ability to hold abundance and joy?
Explore any resistance or discomfort around receiving good things in your life. Do you feel unworthy or scared of success?What does my new legacy look like?
Visualize a life free from the inherited limits of the past. What does your new future look like, and what values and beliefs support it?How can I honour my ancestors while creating my own path?
Reflect on how you can honour your ancestors while freeing yourself from the restrictive patterns they passed down. How can you make peace with the past while stepping boldly into your future?
Creating Your Own Legacy
Breaking ancestral contracts is not just about healing yourself, it’s about healing your lineage. By consciously releasing the limits that were passed down to you, you free yourself to create a new path. One that is filled with abundance, success, and joy, unbound by the invisible chains of the past.
This is your chance to break the cycle, step into your power, and create a legacy that reflects your true potential.