Awake Arise Elevate

Write, keep writing even when there is nothing to express, keep the pen moving on the paper continuously strengthening the connection with your ego self aside: without the voice of judgement  that relays false messages of worthiness, talent and skill. Stay out of your own way by allowing your thoughts to constantly flow and don't grasp onto any one thought and allow that thought to move into a storyline. Acknowledge and move on, acknowledge and move on. Knowing that you assign relevance to any given thought or idea so if a specific thought doesn't feel good, do not assign it relevance and let it go -- there are many more joyful thoughts that can take its place.

How would you like your life to be? How would you like to feel in your life? Do you believe you can create the feeling that you desire in your life when the events in your life are less than good? Do you believe you can create the feeling of joy when the circumstances in your life are less than joyful? Because the moment you begin to create the feeling in your body, the closer you are to achieving that level of being and the sooner the circumstances of your life heighten to match the feeling you have created. 

Do not rest in your contentment. Attempt something that your ego self thinks is too hard and that your ego self says you are not ready for. Listen to the passionate stirrings in your heart and try something that pushes the limits of your comfort level and capability. Remind yourself of your extraordinary human abilities that have stayed dormant in your comfortable existence and daily routine. Turn off the distractions that seep your invaluable energies and awaken to the reality that now is the time to be the person you always desired to be. Awaken to the reality that you are only held back by your false ego beliefs and step out of the shadow of ego and into the expanse of your own light. Awaken to the reality that there is no one in the universe just like you, there is no one else with your unique set of experiences and talents, and you have something amazing to share with others -- a voice and a perspective that can uplift and change the way others interact with the world. 

Arise to the challenge of moving outside of your comfort zone and cultivating the gifts you have to offer and watch your reality change dramatically. Do not ask opinions or seek to measure your worth by how it is received but know that by engaging in uniquely who you are, you are engaging in your life's work, you are creating your biggest gift to the world and rest in peace that you have answered your calling, fulfilled your life's duties. 

Elevate your view and elevate the world. 

The Inner Voice and Meditation

Open your heart and receive messages as feelings and attempt to recognize your inner voice from the chatter of your internal dialogue and listen to the suggestions of your inner voice. Those heart whispers can be small suggestions like a person to call or connect with, an urge to go somewhere or take part in something -- answer the urge, answer the call because on the other side of that suggestion  is a synchronistic opportunity that will move you along your path. Perhaps it is the person you must meet or the experience you must have to inspire your next work.

Your inner voice is always here, lovingly guiding you at every moment to go and do what is in your highest interest and it is necessary to quiet the chatter that obstructs your inner voice from being heard and acknowledged. Like all things of God and Divinity, your inner voice is a gentle whisper like the wind under the wings of a butterfly and to hear this inner whisper, the storms of thought must be calm for a butterfly cannot flourish on the turbulent winds of storm. 

Meditation is as simple as you decide it to be. Like most things that are meant to bring joy and vitality, there is not much effort to be applied and where stress and effort are applied, the graceful flow is obstructed. Do not fight the river of thought, flow with it and as the river widens around the bends of your mind soon enough you shall arrive at the expanse of inner consciousness and then you may hear: listen and be enchanted by your inner voice. 

If you are not meditating, you shall not understand the profound times. Daily meditation is exactly what you believe it to be and the ease of meditation is just a few thoughts away from changing the belief you hold about meditation. In other words, if you hold the belief "meditation is hard and I am not good at it", you can create a new belief by engaging with the thought "meditation is simple and I happily meditate everyday". How much easier would it be to engage in a meditation practice if it were met with joy and ease instead of all the lower emotions that are assigned to it?  Are you not the master of your life that gets to dictate the ease in which your life is run? Are you not the ultimate decision-maker on what is valuable and necessary in your belief structure?

Meditation is a point of focus and that point of focus can be applied to any number of places: internally to the point of zero, absolute stillness or perhaps pointed outside of yourself engaged in creative activity. Creative activity is always working with the Divine. As God is the ultimate Creator so too does God channel through you as you engage in the activities of creation, whatever that medium is for you. Meditation is not limited to a seated position with eyes closed, but again can be whatever point of focus you decide it to be. When you so intently focus on a project, artistic endevour or activity of the body, does all thought energy not cease as your internal energies are funneled into the task at hand? Do that everyday. Still the turbulence of thought and welcome the guidance of your Higher Self and choose to be guided in every moment of every day and stand in awe as your dreams begin to unfold before you. 

And so it shall be. 

When It Falls Apart

Nothing has transpired that you did not know was coming. Be in peace as all of these things are in Divine order and moving according to plan. (These heavy thoughts) serve as a distraction and we urge you not to be distracted because your connection to your Higher Self will be the sweetest and most rewarding connection you will ever cultivate and keep. Your connection to your Higher Self and your Higher Truth is the only place you can safely dwell and stay out of confusion and disappointment and all of the other lower emotional vibrations that come along with placing expectations outside of yourself and on outside relationships.

Your heart is safe in your keeping. your journey is visualized by your inner sight and your intuition. Asking someone to co-create makes this journey less of yours. Yes, there are wonderful things to be said and felt about sharing your journey with another and you will share this journey with another, you will share this journey with many others. Now, rejoice that you are the single creator that is being guided by your Truth and this shall be the path of highest accomplishment.

We see how bothered you are by some of the thing that have transpired and we see that you are continually allowing yourself to be hurt by aspects of relationship dynamics and we say this to you: you are on a different path than the one that is giving you difficulty and your core truths are different. The longer you allow yourself to be hurt by the same things in different forms, the longer you identify with your ego self and the less time you spend in Divine Love where there is no pain, there is no suffering or miscommunication or confusion. In Divine Love there is only perfection and truth and knowledge, all for your pleasure and expansion and entertainment.

Your time and space is so limited to being experienced by your limited human form and all you must do to surpass your limitations is transcend your human experience which can be as simple as closing your eyes. To move through the unpleasant experiences is the same as moving through the pleasant; be grateful for what arises and admire the sharp contrasts that more clearly point you in the direction of your heart's desires. Appreciate the misemotions as candles lighting your way on a seemingly dark path and don't stop to warm your hands by that candle but continue forward with the anticipation of the raging fire that will warm your entire being.

Dear one, you cannot know what beauty and delight will come of your experience from here but we urge you with love and with a more expansive view to continue your journey inward. All of the pieces are falling into place just as they should, give up the outcome, give up the understanding, give up the effort and know from that still, silent space inside of you that all is well.

And so it shall be.

Distraction and Anger

Write everyday, everyday as if your life depends on writing the word. Do not get distracted by your sensual wiles and monitor your thoughts constantly. While it may seem harmless to entertain storylines in your imagination, when you play into those storylines, you give them energy and creation and it is your writing and your purpose that needs the majority of your energy and creation because it is through your purpose that all is coming -- all you desire, the manifestation of your biggest dreams. The more you allow yourself to be distracted by your body and your urges, the more you take yourself away from manifesting your desires and the further away the realizations of your manifestations.

Focused energy into your purpose, that is the name of the season. You have taken many downloads and have done good work in your dream state and integration. Now it is time to move energy and awaken dormant forces within you to be a creator of vibration through the written word.

We appreciate your most recent experiences because you have stepped into the knowing of supported, excited, fulfilling, energized life outside of the confines of the relationship that you have bound yourself to. As you know, you must be able to focus outside of that realm and that is your challenge this season: to let the unnecessary fall away and be in love with your purpose and your truth, be the connection of your inner voice and bridge the gap  between who you are and who you present to the world. Engaging in your sensual world at this point will draw experiences to you that are a vibrational fit for you here and now and will keep you locked in this vibrational frequency.

Dear one, your expansion has just begun and you must press on by leaning into who you really are. You must continue to ascend up the ladder of the spine and as you continue upward in vibrational frequency, you will begin to attract those at a higher frequency and you will begin to manifest relationships and experiences that will bring incredible people and pleasure into your life that from here, cannot be imagined, entertained or understood. Continue inward and thus upward, do not be distracted by small pleasures or those distractions will only serve to prolong the arrival of your truest pleasure.

Sat Nam, truth is my identity and whatever satisfies the soul is truth. What is anger? 

Anger is a secondary emotion that is created when the primary emotions go overlooked or unexpressed. Emotion is energy in motion and anger is created when a primary emotion is restricted in it's motion, perhaps it is held in the stomach or the throat and it spins and spins until the emotion has created so much potential energy and momentum that it is accelerated out through a burst of passionate "anger". This is not always a socially acceptable experience and so anger may be held in the system much longer and when this happens, it reeks havoc on the body, turning against the body by creating dis-ease in the organs and overall function of the internal physical form. 

Go in peace.

Be Love

Allow yourself to be in love everyday.
Wild, harmonious, undeniable love with everyone you meet and encounter, beginning and ending with yourself: silently and within stillness, emanating divine love from your heart center, take a moment to be love. And as you spend this silent, still moment embodying love, set your intention to be consciously aware of your beingness of love at every moment throughout the day. 

Fall in love with this new day and bring to it a new set of circumstances that has never existed for you, bring to it a new boundlessness that has never existed for you. Become aware of the limitless potential that exists for you as you emanate pure divine love and only amazing and synchronistic events will occur for you today. 

See in yourself all the beauty that exists  in each expression of life, breath, and divine love and be a mirror of that beauty to everyone you encounter today. Be the person whose presence lifts the vibration of all you meet.  Be the sweet breeze that accompanies the purifying light of the sun and lifts the spirits of everyone it touches. Be the scent that stirs the senses and puts a pleasant smile on the face of everyone it graces. Speak the words that unlock the melodies of divine hymns and allow all who hear it to resonate in divine love, the absolute highest of vibration. 

Take the time to center yourself in this space and then move forward as the most gentle of God's warriors and radiate your gifts outward from heart center and create a graceful infantry of lovers. A revolution of people reaching out to one another, of seeing one another and speaking kindly of one another and helping one another. An infantry of people concerned and loving themselves and their brothers and sister who are merely a reflection of their own inner being. This all begins with you, gentle warrior, tuning in to your limitless divine love and loving yourself to such an extent that all you can but help to give and be is pure joyous love. 

And so it shall be. 

An Experience of Anxiety Dedicated to my Yogi Veterans

Each Monday I have the pleasure of teaching yoga to a wonderful group of military veterans at our local VA clinic. I feel so very connected to this group as I too am a veteran. They are a wonderful group of yogis that support each other in ways that are not present outside of shared experience. Each time I leave after teaching, I am inspired and uplifted by their dedication to their yoga practice and their camaraderie with one another. I wrote this after leaving our last meeting and dedicate it to them with all my heart. 

A note on anxiety, for my fellow veterans…

Anxiety is something I have dealt with and continue to deal with on a regular basis. Practicing yoga has helped to manage it and the more I practice, the more I am able to take little bits of wisdom (wisdom is knowledge experienced) off of the mat and apply it to my everyday life.

I find that I experience anxiety when I am trying something new, doing something I haven’t done before or going somewhere surrounded by people I don't know. I had an experience just the other day that I would like to share to expound upon this point.

On the first day of Spring or the Vernal Equinox, I was invited to teach a kids yoga class at Olmos Basin Park for an LGTBQ Community Easter Egg Hunt. Kids yoga is a funny thing, you really have to get down on the level of the child to communicate the teachings. It is not done as an adult yoga class, but instead there is a larger play aspect to it: crawling around like a lion or buzzing like a bee, for example. This play aspect serves to teach kids to engage in deep breathing or getting them to move their body in and out of certain yoga poses. Perhaps it goes without being said, but you can’t take yourself too seriously when teaching a kids yoga class, it must be done with a light heart and your ego must be out of the equation entirely. In other words, comfort level must be super high.

Headed to Olmos Basin Park, my internal dialogue was non-stop and brutal: "I do not want to go, I do not want to teach, what would the parents think?, how could I be in control of that many kids in an outdoor setting, I do not want to go, I DO NOT WANT TO GO!..."

On a side note, this chatter doesn’t only happen when I am teaching kids yoga, this happens for regular yoga classes,  and everyday activities like leaving the house or keeping plans that I've made that sounded good when I made them…  I call these thoughts resistance.  Just like the resistance I encounter when I sit down to do a long breathing practice and feel like I want to wiggle, check my e-mail, pet my cat, do ANYTHING other than what I have sat down to do: breathe. The more that I lean into the breathing, the more the resistance (thoughts/feelings, it’s different for each person) makes itself heard, at first. Once I hit the 5 minute mark (more or less) in my breathing practice, that resistance starts to fall away and soon enough, the breath becomes my full focus.

Returning to my trip to Olmos Basin Park, I was hearing this relentless internal dialogue (resistance) and this resistance was creating an obstacle. In the past, I may have listened to these thoughts and relented, going home instead of meeting my obligation. Instead, because of my work with and through resistance, I was able to see those thoughts as just that. Knowing these thoughts as resistance, I said thank you for allowing yourself to be known, Release.

 Release.

 Release.

 Release.

 And I continued with release instead of giving these thoughts energy and following them along their story line of how awful this was going to be, how much I didn’t want to do it, etc.. At times, my internal dialogue has been so powerful that I say the word Release right out loud, allowing it to be like lightning through the clouds of thought. It may not work right away, but repetition is key. 

This isn’t to say the rest of my afternoon went off without a hitch, I was a big hit and the sun shone upon my brilliant yoga moment. Not at all. When I arrived at the park, even with my repetition of release, I felt anxiety in my body: the desire to run, the desire to yell, the pricking on my skin that makes me feel like my insides are coming out. So I took a long moment on the outskirts of the crowd, took my shoes off and put my bare feet on Mother Earth, put my hand over my heart and just began to breathe long and deep.

Crowds overwhelm me. I get into the middle of a big crowd and I don’t know where I end and someone else begins. I feel so much from those around me that I don’t know what is mine and what belongs to others. A lot of the time, I don’t know what to do with myself and I don’t know how to act because I feel so overwhelmed. This is where grounding comes in and that is exactly what I created when I took my shoes off and began to breathe. It’s true that you can’t always take your shoes off (although I take my shoes off far more than is socially “acceptable”) to feel the Earth under your feet. Other ways of grounding are to imagine pressing all of your energy into the Earth (with bent knees), this is called bioenergetic grounding (it’s not just a hippie yoga thing… there’s a science to it!). Deep breathing and humming are also good grounding techniques as grounding serves to take you out of your head (thoughts) and into your body (presence).

I probably stood on the outskirts of the crowd for a good 5-7 minutes before venturing in to find my contact to begin the process of teaching kids yoga. As I walked through the crowd, engaging with strangers to find my contact person, I reminded myself that I am the only one who knows I am freaking out and as long as I was smiling, no one would be any the wiser. I kept my hand on my heart as a reminder of my body, my breath and my presence.

After that whole (internal) ordeal, I didn’t get the opportunity to teach kids yoga. The way the scheduling was flowing didn’t allow for a yoga session and I ended up leaving the park without rolling over the ground with a bunch of kiddos hissing like a cobra. After all that! I will share this with you, I left the park feeling like a freaking champion that I had overcome all of those heavy thoughts and feelings that were trying to obstruct my experience. I felt like I had overcome myself and I was loving me and loving my yoga experience to know that I can move through resistance, whatever it looks like.

This is just one small experience with anxiety that at times, threatens to become crippling. What I hope to highlight by sharing this experience is that my greatest battles are the battles I fight internally, with myself: my thoughts, constant narration, and overwhelming emotions. The tools that I have learned through yoga are my weapons in this battle. I am a warrior and I will overcome. You are a warrior and you too shall overcome. 

I am reminded of an old Indian adage that makes a beautiful conclusive note:

“One evening, an elderly Cherokee brave told his Grandson about a battle that goes on inside people.

 He said, ‘my son, the battle is between two wolves inside us all. One is evil. It is anger, envy, jealousy, sorrow, regret, greed, arrogance, self-pity, guilt, resentment, inferiority, lies, false pride, superiority, and ego.

The other is good, it is joy, peace, love, hope, serenity, humility, kindness, benevolence, empathy, generosity, truth, compassion, and faith.’

The grandson thought a moment and asked the grandfather, ‘which wolf wins? ‘

The old Cherokee replied, ‘the one that you feed’.”

happy grounding.

The Evolution of the Energetic Human: The High Heart Chakra

The chakras (literally 'wheels' in Sanskrit) are spinning vortices of energy in the body beginning at the root (and home of kundalini energy) to the auric field surrounding the body. These energetic centers are connected through channels or nadhis that serve to circulate subtle energy through the entire human system. In the kundalini lineage, there are 8 main chakras and each energy center within the physical body coincides with a specific endocrine gland which serves to secrete hormones into the circulatory system. Each chakra has an associated color, mantra (sound), symbol, element, body part, and basic function. For more information on these chakras, check out 3HO's website here.

This is a very broad and basic explanation of the chakra system and through extended study, each illness and physical manifestation can be traced back to the chakra system, a powerful tool indeed.
This basic explanation will have to do as the point of this blog is to introduce a lesser-known chakra called the "high heart" or "unified heart" chakra.

The high heart chakra center is located halfway between the heart and the throat charkas. If you picture a deep green color spinning around it's center at the heart and blue spinning out of the throat chakra, the high heart would meet right where the 2 spinning colors collide, creating a turquoise color at the sternum.  The powerful energy of unconditional  love (heart chakra) is given expression (throat chakra) at the high heart and this is our intimate connection to all of the aspects and elements of the natural world including our fellow humans. 


The high heart is associated with Thymus gland, located in the upper anterior part of your chest, directly behind your sternum and nestled between your lungs. It serves a double function as part of the endocrine system and lymphatic system where white blood cells (lymphocytes) pass through the Thymus gland and are transformed into T cells. T cells, once matured, migrate to the lymph nodes and are distributed through the body to help fight disease. (All Thymus information from EndocrineWeb).

What is unique about the Thymus gland is it is largest in children (much like the human fascination with the natural world) and as puberty unfolds, the Thymus gland begins to slowly shrink and it is ultimately replaced with fat. This process is very similar to any organ or muscle group that goes underutilized or is no longer energetically supported, it atrophies and slowly dies.

Our Call Back to Nature

This chakra is an ancient energy center and once served mankind when we were living close to nature and instinctively understood natural laws as a mechanism of survival. The closing down of this center is one of the challenges taken on when humans began exploring dense physical reality and separation from Source. As we experience the energetic shifts of the Aquarian Age and are moving back toward our light body, this is the first of the ancient chakras to be reawakened and assist in the ascension up the spine.

It's become very difficult to ignore our need to return to nature as media inundates us with reports of global warming, animal extinction, overwhelming trash (and radiation) strewn through our oceans, and much more. Mankind's misuse of natural resources and obsession with disposable goods has created a catastrophic situation on the only planet in our solar system fit for human life and many animals have long ago fell prey to our greed and carelessness. The outer collective world is mirroring the inner collective world as violence, greed, and restlessness have become the norm. It's important to stay out of fear and stay connected to higher energy centers, reawakening our connection to the natural world beginning with (and not limited to) the high heart.

There is inspiring evidence of this awakening through innovative young people like Boyan Slat, founder and CEO of The Ocean Cleanup (www.theoceancleanup.com) where they are initiating the biggest ocean clean up in history. Adidas is answering the call with a prototype shoe designed out of ocean trash (read CNET's article here). There are amazing movements taking form through Bill Mollison's 1970's creation of Permaculture coupled with Earthship Biotecture (www.earthship.com) to change the way we live to a more sustainable standard. Sustainability aside, breakthroughs have been made with the likes of Blackfish and change is on the horizon with legislation being passed in California to halt the breeding of captive orcas. The truths surrounding United States animal farming practices are continuously being called to light and people are waking up to the reality of cruelty and demanding change.

Most importantly, this chakra serves to connect us to our fellow man, transcending belief systems and moving into acceptance and unconditional love for one another. We were all humans before we were disconnected by race, separated by religious dogma, divided by political beliefs, and classified by wealth and income. It is time to transcend these man-made barriers that only serve to separate us from one another and acknowledge the true Source and our connection to It and one another.

Practice to Energize the High Heart

Awakening this energy center is as simple as bringing this chakra into your chakra meditations. You can begin by imagining the swirling green at the heart and watch as the color branches out and connect with the spinning blue of the throat. In this space between heart and throat, continue to imagine a swirling turquoise. Light tapping on the sternum while holding the above visual may have profound effects as well. There is also the option of working with an intuitive healer/energy worker and allowing them to facilitate this initiation into higher spiritual levels.

We may not awaken overnight although very strong energetic shifts are currently happening all around us. It is an unfolding, an opening of the lotus flower that is supported by kindness and compassion to ourselves and one another. Energizing the high heart chakra (and the thymus gland) can energize your entire system as well as stimulate your immune system and you may find yourself getting sick less often  or recovering much faster from illness if it occurs. It may also bring you more in line with your spiritual gifts and awaken your inner healer. The benefits of awakening this area are many and the time is now. Know that you are only limited by your beliefs and that you have a purpose on this Earth.

Awake. Arise. Elevate.



Resources/References

Heal Your Life
Thymus Gland
3HO
Welcome to Planet Earth