life

the art of savasana

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The final pose of any decent yoga practice is savasana. It is the place where you reflect upon your entire practice as if it comes before your eyes on a distant cloud.

Some yoga teachers and practitioners believe savasana is the most important pose in yoga, reflecting true peace as the culmination of your practice.

This final resting pose, otherwise known as Corpse Pose, truly is a pose in which to wrap the fruits of your labors or your joys of movement and love for your body.

After moving the precious prana within your body through movements that flow through you, twists that wring out toxins, and peaceful moments in between that take your breath away, savasana is a time to celebrate and smile within in stillness.

It’s a time to celebrate your life force that moves through you, that you may have a tendency to ignore as you move along in your busy day.

To the mind that is still, the whole universe surrenders. ~ Lao-Tzu ~

Savasana does not act alone.  It is the end result of that which came before it.  It is your consciousness in its pure state, which you can see most easily after clearing out impediments in the body, mind and heart, especially with a seasoned teacher who can lead you eloquently through it, in the right vibe.

In this way the meditative state created in the space becomes like a cloud that you can trust and call your own.  As you wind down your practice in a true state of peace, your ending rest has the power to bring you to samadhi, the 8th limb of the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali.

Samadhi is a non-dualistic state of consciousness in which you become one with all that surrounds you, and all of your thoughts connected outside of yourself, in which the mind becomes still, concentrated on one point though the person remains conscious.

If you are lucky you will feel bathed in a purple light.  The true art of savasana is to become as if a body floating in the ocean, weightless and free.

Namaste.

© r.e.l. 7/13/10

a stress free life

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Do you wake in the morning and tell yourself that today will be the day that you will really take your health to another level? One idea to ponder is why you would wait. Any moment can be a time to set your intention. You might wait because you are too stressed at the idea of changing.

A healthy life makes you feel great but activities that drive our personalities can interfere with health, some of which feed addictive behaviors, stress, overindulgence or even laziness. Although we all mean well and fully intend to do what our heart tells us to do, is following every inclination at every moment actually following your heart and acting with your best health in mind?

There are many different facets included in health. Those that require motivation for some of you such as diet, exercise and mind-calming activities are part of it, but if you are stressed about the plan you have for yourself or the goal you wish to achieve, then maybe you are going about it in the wrong way for you.

If your plan is to drastically cut out all of the poison in your life all at once, and trade it for regimented goodness, and this makes you crazy in your mind, then perhaps there is a better solution for you.

We are talking about your body, mind, heart and spirit. A plan for health needs to include each or else a part of you will attack the plan, so to say, and never start, or fulfill a part of it while another part becomes detrimental to your health.

Stress can eat away at your insides and definitely shows on the outside, so you can’t hide from it and you can’t hide it from others. What is most important is your internal appearance, which if nurtured, reflects to your whole being.

How about starting out slowly to come to terms with what will truly work for you. Spend a day alone dedicated completely to yourself simply to form your plan.

  • Drink a lot of water to hydrate and cleanse your system removing toxins.
  • Alkalinize a stressed body by nurturing yourself with foods that will increase your acidic pH such as lemon in your water, avocado, grapefruit and most greens to name a few.  This will leave you with more vibrancy and mental clarity.
  • Try to move slowly through your day paying attention to your feet on the ground as you move — preferably barefooted.
  • Yoga, pranayama breathing, meditation and music can assist you greatly in your effort.
  • Go for a walk along the beach and listen to the ocean waves soothe your soul and perhaps give you answers.

Slowly without trying you will find yourself formulating the formula for your stress free life. Keep a journal handy and write down whatever inspires you. If you’re lucky you’ll end the day with a wise mantra, a list or even a heart-opening poem. Without even knowing it you’ll probably feel a connection with your spirit and life force.

At this point, you will know what you need to do, and will do it with ease in a way which supports your life customized to you.

One final hint: don’t tell anyone your grand plan. You are doing this for yourself, not for anyone else 🙂  Others will notice the new you emanating from the old you in no time…

Namaste.

© r.e.l. 7/10/10

river of time

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you exist
outside the river of time…

so do i
passing through the veil
to this place in my heart

a journey through
before finding the sun…

in me there is magic to this life
to realize the answers

because love survives
tattooed forever
as the one
who will find the way
forever enchanted
to eternity

© r.e.l. 7/4/10

about balance in life

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Sometimes I feel like I am scattered in too many places, with too many activities and endeavors in my life.  Every day is different and I wonder if I have a lack of clarity on where I’m headed.

However, I realize with this question, I am comparing myself to those people who are fully dedicated to one area in their life.

When I remove the comparison to others, which is a necessary and healthy avenue to take, I realize the answer. I am fully balanced in my life.

A mother, a writer, a friend, a yogini, a spiritual seeker, a dreamer, a lover, a hiker, a surfer, an inspiration, a teacher, a graduate student, a music lover, a traveler, an explorer, a mystic, an artist, a silent loner, a social butterfly, a fast mover, a slow mover….forever enchanted.  The list goes on the more I think.

It’s all about balance.

I am on one path but have many tributaries in my river of life…  Each day I wake and decide in the moment which branch, like a root, to follow.  This grounds me into myself.

😉

© r.e.l. 7/4/10

 

space

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space
giving him
air to breathe
me, himself, us
the clouds will part
the moment he opens
again… when he cannot
imagine this life without me
when he forgives with no conditions
his wind will reach me and caress the back
of my neck… and will tell me “you will know, love,
when i am in the sky coming back to you… don’t worry”

© r.e.l. 6/24/10

follow the mist

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I am ever-changing.  In this moment I seem to be in the middle of a silent breath between states.

I appreciate many forms of life: people, viewpoints, spirituality, yoga, words.  I notice that it is common for people to tag a style of being in the world, which then closes them off to other inspirations that could come spontaneously, from afar, from within, or sometimes right in front of their own face.

There is a misty quality to knowing you are on the right path, regardless of the unknown.

I follow the mist……..

There are as many ways to grow and evolve as to be uncountable.  We all have our own way, and to follow another’s way is to not fully engage with your own inner guidance.  I am influenced by many modes of thought but always, in the end, I follow my own truth.

listen my love,
illumination is eternal.
now is always evolving.
as there are billions of stars,
there are billions of steps.
as there are billions of souls,
there are billions of ways to grow.
~Rumi~

In fact, my yoga practice has taught me this as well.  With my many experiences with yoga styles and traditions, in the end I most enjoy the vinyasa flow style which allows me to organically lead myself to where I’m headed in that moment.  This leads me to my own way of growing.

I listen to my body as I would music, as I move and unlock the secret messages hidden within the spaces of my being.

I am listening now.  It whispers to me that the answer is to keep listening.

© r.e.l. 6/19/10

not without

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you are a gift to my world
do you know that?
i will follow you
to the end.
would the stars give me you,
the one i have searched for
all my life,
without also showing me
the way,
the secret
to find you
in my life?
i whispered to you
you took my hand
together we moved forward
to discover the wonders of
yes.

© r.e.l. 5/21/10

life is a journey

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Life is a journey. I intend to make it worthwhile.

With regards to this journey it is not important what the venue, physical activity, or endeavor, or even the goal. What we make of our experience is what counts. What matters is the lessons that remain with us after we have completed whatever it is we do and how we integrate this knowledge in our hearts back into the society in which we live. It is a true life meditation to keep lessons we learn inside us and never let the magic die.

“Everything you are against weakens you. Everything you are for empowers you” (Wayne Dyer). I have found this to be true. Like the The Secret, whatever you give your power to (even mentally), you make stronger.

I emulate my life in my yoga practice. I let myself fall to see what is on the other side of that moment. I take all of the positive powerful experiences I feel as a person onto the mat with me and play them out, so to speak, to fruition. I use the power of the energy I generate there to feed my experience, using its fuel to vaporize any false stories or inhibitions I may have about myself.

I reach a point where the past and the future become unimportant. There is only that moment, and the incredible certainty that everything is taking place as it should be, and this fills me with trust.

I know I have a question about life and that it will unfold as I breathe. With each step I will be open for new discovery in the next moment. Moving my body will unlock the fruits of the inquiry that I cannot know until it happens.

Why do trust? Because of the mere fact that I exist. I trust everything that is happening to me in my life. I let my body guide the way. This allows my heart to shine and my mind to take a backseat.

© r.e.l. 5/8/10

the way

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i had no choice
but to move forward on my path
finding love in my heart
fearlessly opening to life
as i returned again
to the land
that was like a father to me
giving me life situations i needed
that were meant for me to progress
and seemed to have
the same heartbeat as my own heart.

along “the way” i was led to silence
a peace that i had never known
and a truth that will remain
with me
as magic
forever
begging my return.

© r.e.l. 4/24/10
inspired by the Road to Santiago, Spain–“The Way”

through the vines

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through the vines
connecting my blood to infinity
i move so that i can water
your roots.
they reach out to me so…
each with its own strength, its own sound
its own breath, its own life
yet moving together as one.


i find you
where you are raw
not dark
but vulnerable
needing to be held
to feel safe
my breath, my attention
to your every need
your every call for touch
to be an open room
for you to pour your soul into.
you ask that of me
and i hear you.

your warmth has the power to soothe
and pierce me
to puncture the balloon
where i keep my secrets
can you feel it now?
as a bit seeps out
released in the air, to the open
to find its way
no longer trapped, no longer secret.


a veil between you and me
its thin yet it covers
that which we need to protect
until time opens its wings for our flight.

© r.e.l. 4/7/10

inspired by an embodied meditation at CIIS

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