create your own sunshine

 

 

Balancing tea for you Solar Plexus Chakra.

Create your own sunshine.

1 part lemon balm
1 part honey bush
2 parts dried ground lemon peel
1 cube crystallized ginger
1/2 stick of cinnamon

Brew. Sip. Enjoy. Love.

chakra talk

I had no idea when I started this no shit experiment that what I was actually doing was gathering all the information and courage required to put together this Chakra Yoga Workshop.

Had I known at the time that this was where it was all going, I'm not sure I would have kept up with it.  Not because it's not wonderful, because it is.  But because I can be fearful and I can be lazy.  So, I'm glad I wasn't tuned into the higher beings at work and just kept on plugging away.

I've totally thrown myself into the chakras.  Through study, yoga, and writing.  At times it's been a bit intense, and even a bit scary, but it's been a totally rad ride.  And it's shaping the way that I teach and the way that I move and the way that I feel about my body, myself, and the world. 

So there.  In your face fear and laziness.

Chakras!  Chakras are energy wheels  in the body that govern all aspects of our health; physical, emotional, mental and spiritual.  There are seven major chakras and 21 minor chakras.  The chakras that are most talked about and the chakras that we'll be exploring throughout the workshop are the seven main chakras that run up the length of your spine.  Starting right at your root - the space between your pubis and your tailbone - up to your crown chakra, the space at the top of your skull.

Exploring the chakras opens up a path for greater healing.  As we move our way up through the chakras we start to discover more about ourselves and our place in the world.  Shedding old skin along the way and opening up space for our true unique talents and gifts.

The seven main chakras are all interdependent of one another and if one is out of whack it will affect the others. 

Many people talk about 'kundalini rising' and using the chakras on the path to enlightenment.  And that's all good and wonderful.  However, to actually clear all of your chakras - allowing a smooth route for Kundalini to uncoil and slide her way up to meet her consort, Shiva - for that burst of enlightenment, is a little unrealistic for those of us new to the journey. 

So, the practice here is in learning to find balance in the chakras.  To study them through reading and movement and to develop a deeper understanding of ourselves - body, mind and spirit.

We're just giving Kundalini a little poke.  Waking her up.  Getting her ready for her journey.   In doing this we'll not only stir things up, but we'll develop the tools we need in order to deal with whatever it is that comes up.

Stephen Cope refers to this as "building a fortress of the self".  Creating awareness and equanimity. 

Sharon Ganon refers to the chakras as being "doors to perception"  And goes on to explain that "our reality only exists based on our perception".  By bringing our chakras into a more aligned place, our perception of situations and the ways in which we react to these situations will be more in tune with our personal Truth.  Using the 'fortress of the self' we'll be able to see more clearly and not be as directly affected by upcoming situations or attached to their outcome.

Our physical bodies act as energetic maps for our emotions.  Everything we feel, we store in our bodies.  By looking at imbalances in the body and by matching these imbalances to their governing chakra we can start to look at which chakras need a bit more work, and emotionally what we might be holding on to.

Working through the chakras is not for the faint of heart.  But if you're open to change and open to channeling in some major energy and light than this work is for you.

It's the Chakra Ride.  Admission: total vulnerability.

Enjoy!

*I'm working out of a book called "The Complete Guide to the Chakras".  by Ambika Wauters

a monkey tale

I love story telling, especially when the story includes a monkey.  Here's an old Hindu tale that I heard at the end of class the other day.

As the story goes...

The people of the village used to put out coconuts to catch their food.  In order to entice their dinner,  they would cut holes in the coconuts and fill them with sweets and leave them out around the village. 

When no one was around and the village was quiet, monkeys would sneak over, and seeing and smelling the sweets would draw nearer to the coconuts.  Making sure the coast was clear, they would reach in and take a hold of the sweet.  With the sweet in hand, they would then try to pull their hand out of the coconut to enjoy their prize.  But they would be stuck.  For the hole was only big enough for the monkeys to reach in, but small enough to trap a closed fist.

Determined to hold on to the sweet, the monkeys would remain trapped, and as a result would later become dinner themselves.  But had the monkey simply opened their hand and let go of the sweet, they would have been free to see another day.

This is us.  We are the monkeys.  And the coconut our minds and the sweets are our thoughts.

The moral of the story is to let go.   

There are times when we hold on so tightly, we are so connected and attached to certain thoughts and ideals that we become trapped.  Determined, we hold on with such force, with these tightly closed fists that these attitudes take over and start to become who we are.   At times it seems almost impossible to detach from these thoughts and ideals.  We want to be free, but it seems like a lot of work.

But if this tale of the monkeys is true, (and I'm sure that it is) than really, all we need to do is let go.  All we need to do is open our hand and let go of the sweets.  Letting go really can be that simple.

Try it.

What sweets are you holding on to that are keeping you trapped?

Take a deep breath and let go.