Inspirations: Change & Re-Invention

This year feels more difficult to leap into, no? Is it because it’s opening a whole new decade? Is it that last year we lost hope, there for fear stains new dreams? Most are more than pleased to leave ’09 behind, you’d think we’d be in a rush to move onward. We are, but tentative on how best to step out. We are coming to understand the old motivations and methods do not insure success, and we do not yet have compass for the new. We do not know if we are putting stock in the wrong desires. Perhaps we have the right blue prints, but a mis-guided architect? Mebbe we think we’ve boarded the good ship Lollipop for the South Seas, but begin hearing the bellow of drunken sea chanteys from the captain? If I were a true metaphysician, knowing that the only certainty in 2010 is more change, I would ask for my attitude to shift, not for the winds to take me safely into harbor. I would ask to sing along with my off-kilter, song- filled Captain, not abandon ship. I would not beg this year to deliver hoped-for-goods, or particularly sober leadership. I suspect that the true demands of this year are not to abandon Self. I will learn what I can, and forgive myself the errors. I will take what tiny steps I may, and not see them as insufficient. And I will hold my dreams sacred…no matter what. Asana: Dekasana. This is a new pose, but very like the old pose of Virabradrasana III. Move onto one leg, lifting the other up behind as you tilt forward, parallel to floor. In Dekasana you lift the torso up, arms back, as though in flight, instead of the flat back, open arms of Vira III. Health… Read more »

*That I won’t have to tweet more than three times to find out what the Kardashians are having for dinner. *That the TV will not glue itself to another distraught politician, golfer, or latenightLetterman, tearfully confessing to yet another sexual transgression for which they hope to absolve themselves with 20-20 remorse. *That our love affair with dead rock stars give us greater grist than their grisly, vacuous lives. *That our love affair with the affairs of anyone who is anyone, even a no-one who wants to be a someone, offer up more grist than the gristle of bad taste and over spewed ‘this just in news.’ *That our love affair with fear, and a fear-feeding-press find a fast cure. *That Capt. Sullenberger is not the only hero in an entire year’s events. *That we think beyond what we are told to think. *That the hope we cling to beyond all reason has not been completely extinguished. *That we can somehow, against all rational belief, elect greatness in our rulers. *That with every ounce of faith/grace & charm we rule ourselves with the same yardstick. Asana: Utkatasana/Chair Pose, or Fierce Pose. Standing in Tadasana, bend knees, pulling hips back and under, lifting energy up into inner thighs & groin, extend arms overhead, lengthen spine, lift chest up, bring thighs parallel to floor. Working within the simple form of Utkatasana we grow muscle to tackle the next, more difficult poses. Health Notes: This pose grounds the body, strengthening thighs, back, and ankles. It tones abdominal organs, and stiff shoulders. When we are grounded we need less tweets. We consume fewer gossip-laden-news-notes. We believe more in our selves and less in the opinions of others. Astrology Notes: During the week’s of Saturn’s reign in Capricorn, we need to be real. Saturn demands are… Read more »

In this seasonal time of feeling trapped in outworn-outgrown grooves, and having to release many of the year’s hopes and dreams, we activate deeper levels, check into soul territory, and seek Scorpionic regeneration. As the earth contracts toward winter hibernation, a part of us longs to be her microcosm, to imitate her long, last sigh toward Savasana. Our primitive selves yearn to settle into winter’s long rest…unless you are in sunny climes where you are playing tennis. We sniff the wind, looking for signs of the year ahead, windblown leaves hopeing New Year’s lives will somehow be more fabulous than the present disarray; this flying and feeling at the mercy of chance… God’s ‘eenie meenie miney mo theory. In the scurry of chaotic days, and too much-muchness, dancing as a blown leaf seems a magical possibility. But November’ Scorpio energies are too primitive a force field to allow flitting about. If you are feeling the push for life to go underground, or at least slow to a long sigh, then sit with an image, a symbol, an animal that walks you toward your soul. Choose something powerful that can hold the too high vibrations, the brittle sounds, the careless neglect, the overweening demands and put them where they belong, in the trash. Then surround yourself with silence, stillness, breath, contact with the earth, a hand to hold. Asana: Vrschikasana/Scorpion Pose. Knee and bend forward, forearms parallel, the distance between the shoulders. Lift the head and chest, exhale to swing legs up overhead. Bend the knees, dropping feet toward the head, or on the head if very flexible. Keep chest open, press arms into floor. Breathe long and evenly. Afterward, do a forward fold to relieve any strain on lower back. Health Notes: Lungs expand, arms and back are strengthened, and… Read more »

The Harvest Moon, or Hunter’s Moon, is the full moon nearest Michaelmas, and the fall Equinox. Long ago we used to work into the night cutting the last crops, leaving only fields of stubble for the moon to shadow. We prayed mainly for enough to eat through winter, and to pay quarterly rents due on Michaelmas. This was a moon of reckoning, by whose light we evaluated chances of survival. Though many of us no longer live under fear of rents due, nor work through moonlit nights, old blood yet asks we take stock of who, and where we are. Is our Spirit strong enough to withstand winter’s weight? Has our soul grown more conscious? Did we harvest fields of joy and hope, or sow salt and sorrow? Have we created what we wished from the year? The subtle, or not so subtle, shift toward a new year leaves little time to produce hoped-for results. We face that now. The present shape of core desires may be different, but their essence hasn’t changed much. What has grown is that many millions are becoming more conscious. We are more connected through Grace, less through fear and distrust. We are a world opening to multi layers of awareness. We are manifesting potential and possibility where none existed before. This year, as we hover at wide cross roads of change, let us stand under, and with, and in, and for this Harvest Moon’s great light, beacon’s of the heart’s harvest. Asana: Vrksasana/Tree Pose. Stand tall, Tadasana, pull the R foot heel into the L groin, (toes pointing down the leg,) balance strongly yet lightly upon the earth. Face the harvest moon lifting up off the horizon as you bring hands over the heart in the Angeli or Dharmachakra mudra. See yourself as one… Read more »

The regeneration of this new cycle asks that every day hold baby steps of awakening. It begs the self of personality to grow into the Self of soul. It requires the heart’s Grace to be inclusive rather than exclusive. It asks kindness at every turn, especially kindness toward self, that small self that feels it’s failing, it hasn’t done enough, if only it had been better…’this’ would not be happening. The ancient Hebrew timing of a ‘New Year’ asks we inspire ourselves with the breath of spirit. Observing world-changes, and feeling our own shifts, we boot sleepy, and frightened selves into fast forward. This struggle of the Aquarian age is to give birth to a new consciousness. With the profound planetary energies surrounding this new moon, this ‘new year,’ we finally move from out-grown shells and irrelevant structures. Scary? You bet! Demanding? Absolutely! You think you have any choice? None! What can a butterfly do but tear itself from the mold of its old chrysalis to its new adventure of flight? Like us, it may appear calm and nonchalant, but what do we know of another’s inner struggles? Afterward, when the changes become visible, we are congratulated that we took the leap, ran the river, flew off the branch…after wings stop shaking, hearts stop pounding. This new world, this new year is not just for the bold and beautiful, it is for everyone alive to Self, breathing to become… L’shana tovah Asana: Karna-Pidasana/Ear Pressure Pose. This pose is often the release from Sarvangasana/shoulder stand, as you lower legs overhead to floor. Move through Halasana/ Plough Pose, then bend knees, drop them toward the floor on either side of the head, by the ears. Hands can help prop the back up, or clasp together on floor away from shoulders, opening pectoral… Read more »

The great Sufi master, Hafiz, wrote: “The warriors tame The beasts in their past So that the night’s hoofs Can no longer break the jeweled vision In the heart.” Not only do I wish I’d written this, but my deeper wish is to be as Hafiz’ warrior…released of the beasts of my past; un-tethered to regret, shame, sorrow, or whatever repeated rhythm the dark hoofs beat. It is easier to hear what keeps someone else from their ‘jeweled vision,’ from fully engaging a present moment, than it is to see one’s own rutted, well trod loop of ancient story: There is the wounding, “You always hated me, this just proves it!” The injustice, “It’s so unfair. He always got what I wanted. Now he’s getting it all.” The mantras of inadequacy, “I can’t believe I did that. I’m so stupid.” And always martyrdom. “No you go, I’ll stay home and wash the floors.” What unbelievable silliness keeps us from present joy. What relentless unconscious garbage prevents us from fully embracing a warrior-self. We all do it. Some of us just do it less than others. Those are… “The intelligent and the brave Open every closet in the future and evict All the mind’s ghosts who have the bad habit Of barfing everywhere.” Indeed it is the ‘intelligent and the brave’ who are willing to stop the madness of the subconscious patterning of past muck-music. It is not necessarily the intelligence of the mind so much as the heart that is required to shape the muscle of great kindness. It is a brave soul who turns and faces the ‘mind’s ghosts’ of bad habits, stops beating themselves up, then moves on, stronger, and more resilient to create ‘jeweled visions’ from their broken heart, broken bones, broken dreams. Asana/Pose: One of the… Read more »

Twisting takes us inward. This can be either wonderful, as in a deeply cleansing Asana/Pose, or…it can be a convoluted inner angst, a nightmare of repeated wounding we inflict upon ourselves. When we are unable to release ‘old story,’ when we return time and again to defend against change, to see only the one side of the issue, to choose to be hurt by past bruises, and unresolved anger, then twisting in to re-scar that old territory, opens cankers of dis-ease and dismay. You ask, “Who in their right mind chooses that?” Not many of us when we are in our ‘right mind.’ It is when the ‘wronged mind’ takes over and can’t move on that we unconsciously, and consciously, spend too much time living past story. When it is our ‘story’ it is all too often one of regret, sorrow, and mis-deeds…be they done unto, or meted out. Twisting and breathing in NOW is not necessarily easy, but it is far more comfortable than past or future turmoils. Living in now makes it easier to view the past and see it as….well, past; gone! Done! Over! Take the lessons, see the mistakes, wash forgiveness over all, until forgiveness is unnecessary. Then twists carry us into the inner, sacred sanctum of profound physical, and emotional release. Our DNA is formed by a double helix, strands of light allowing new life to emerge from its endless twisting convolutions. Asana: Parivritta Parsvakonasana/Revolving Lateral Angle Pose. You can come into this Pose from Vira I by exhaling as you bring the arms down and across the forward knee. If the R knee is front, move the L ribs long, to try and place the entire L arm over the R thigh. Make sure the R knee remains over the R ankle, and that… Read more »

Yesterday I took a running spill, coming down hard on lower spine and posterior hip. It forced me toward new thought: One, I need to slow down. Two, it is time to restructure. Bones, ruled by Saturn, hold the physical body in place. Saturn, watch-dogs our boundaries, asking if we have sensible rules & regulations for a positive earth experience. Clearly when Saturn/bones cry out… pay attention. When Saturn takes over too much territory, when all we do is work, and be over-responsible, life grows dark, and depressive. Re- balancing is demanded. I am reminded that in the Tarot, Saturn represents the devil, not as an evil presence, rather as a metaphor for the senses, and personality that create the ego. Without a strong ego-structure, we are easily lost. But if the ego comes to rule spontaneity, and silliness we are in trouble. When the sensuous aspects of our nature stop feeding the personality, when pessimism and hard work crowd out joy and adventure, then havoc ensues. Saturn is also known as ‘The Dweller on the Threshold.’ Here, its ‘doorway’ is about testing to see if we are ready to move to the next level. Some might say it is another representation of the devil, but if spelled backwards, it becomes, ‘lived.’ Perfect! In our daily living we are tested to see if we have built correct structures for mind, body, and emotions. Are we strong in spirit? How well do we discriminate, and illuminate our reality? Do we walk toward our transformations and initiations? Consider ‘initiation’ as simply passing into higher levels of wisdom. The simple questions are: Will I slow down enough to see, and fix, what is out of bounds? Can I re-map the dark territory of my fears? Will I be willing to sit with my… Read more »