We seek ourselves. Our true selves. This is the freedom every heart desires and this is the path of yoga.
Where is this freedom to be found? Is it waiting for us to accomplish a certain task or to have specific things lined up in our lives? No.
Wholeness is here, in the present, holding you. Always.
When we get caught up in past and future, in the pushing and pulling of what we think we need or what we want in order to be happy, we forget that what we’re looking for is right before us.
Happiness is a choice. Peace is a state of being that can be found in any moment.
Acceptance and full presence allow us to surrender all the things that get in the way and move into the whole, healed state of who we truly are.
Yoga invites you to remember who you are, and to step fully into the whole, true, authentic Self. Freedom awaits. All you need to do is turn towards it and recognize yourself within it.
Unlimited potential and a powerful time of transition gives you a chance to set intention and allow your mind to become fully absorbed in the heart!
Though this article speaks specifically about Maha Shivaratri, you can learn much from it about transitions in general, and why they are so important.
There are certain times of transition where the veil thins; when you can more easily feel the intrinsic connection between who you are as an individual, and the essence that pulsates as the Spirit in us all.
Maha Shivaratri is one of these times, and a very special transition indeed. This is the Great Night of Shiva, which happens only once a year on the 13th moon as the sliver of crescent moon dissolves into the darkness of night.
It offers both potency and the opportunity to enter into a deeper relationship with the divine.
Here’s some footage from the last year’s Kamloops Maha Shivaratri Gathering:
Before I continue, I’d like to say that, though this tradition comes from India, it offers any sincere practitioner a clear path to the heart. You can use mantra, intention, and celebration to deepen your own understanding and relationship with what you personally believe; that which you already know in your heart.
It is said that your prayers and mantras are magnified 10,000 times on this powerful night. Read more…
There is a Live Oak in New Orleans called the Tree of Life.
Locals love it, and all who discover this massive and beautiful tree on their visits return to be in awe of it’s incredible canopy, roots, body and presence.
This tree, and truly all of Nature, has so much to teach us.
The video below speaks to this, and includes a meditation that will help you connect and shift into a state of remembrance and desire to contribute to the beauty of the world.
I hope you enjoy this video, which weaves my own personal perspective with that of the trees, sharing teachings from Anusara® yoga that go straight to the heart.
I just spent a week by the ocean in Tulum, Mexico. To me, the ocean is such an incredibly healing presence. It invites a mindful return to the vast, beautiful truth of who you are.
Though I did try to shoot a full yoga practice video for you, it didn’t turn out. However, I have this lovely little meditation for you instead.
The video below guides you through a meditation that calls to your essence, inviting you to attune to nature. Enjoy the waves of your breath as you take a few minutes to meditate.
This meditation calls upon the resonance of the ocean to bring a pure, clear quality of being. With each breath you can become more and more connected to your natural self.
Open to receive each breath as a gift, and you will feel the pure clarity of beauty in every aspect of your being.
Yoga, to me, invites you to dance on infinite paths that are all going on the same pilgrimage through different routes.
It allows you to surrender your struggle and live skillfully in harmony with life.
Yoga reminds you that your essence is goodness, and that you are connected to everything else through the pulsating energy that creates, sustains, and dissolves all back into itself. And this practice helps you cultivate tolerance and understanding so that you can recognize the essence of goodness in others, as well as inviting a natural and joyful celebration of life!
The gems on Indra’s Web are a great example of the infinite expression of the One, and a lovely thing to meditate upon.
Indra’s Net (or World Wide Web)
Technically I believe it’s called Indra’s Net, though for some reason the term ‘Web’ works better for me. Maybe because the Internet, or World Wide Web, is such a fascinating phenomenon that so closely reflects the universal creativity of Indra’s Web.
Just as the Internet gives us a chance to express ourselves creatively, to connect across vast distance, and to learn from each other, Indra’s web offers us Read more…
This video and meditation help you re-connect with your own magnificence.
Think of a place you consider sacred.
It could be a cathedral, a forest, a mountain, a temple… Perhaps it is your favorite river bend or a corner of your backyard. Maybe you’ve made a pilgrimage to a holy place of personal significance.
With the idea of this sacred place in your mind, consider how would behave there. What thoughts do you have? Does the way you move change? How do you feel and act when you are in sacred company?
The respect, kindness, and thoughtfulness we use to honor that which we consider sacred are equally as appropriate to apply to ourselves. Perhaps even more so.
You are an embodiment of divinity. The essence that holds the universe within itself also holds itself within you. Read more…
Om Namah Shivaya is one of my favorite mantras. I sing it to many melodies, let it whisper quietly within me, or just feel it in the heart of meditation.
It is a Maha Mantra; a great mantra that has been passed from teacher to student for thousands of years.
It brings you back to the simplest, most comforting truth by affirming that the essence of everything that is, is good. You are a good person. You are connected to so much that is auspicious and divine.
Om Namah Shivaya guides you into your heart space and holds you in a warmth that reveals a deep peace that has always been with you and is always available if you simply follow your breath and the pulsation of your heart.
I would like to offer you a free download of me singing this mantra. It isn’t a perfect recording, but it carries the vibration of love, peace, and beauty. May it bring you great joy.
I intend to, at some point, get into a recording studio and do this properly, but for now, this is what I have to give. If you enjoy it, please share it with friends and family by bringing them to this page.
May this great mantra resonate love and peace into the hearts of all beings.
Scientists have found that the Earth and human beings resonate at the same frequency. To the best of my knowledge we’re the only beings living on this planet that actually vibrate at the same rate as the planet itself.
To me this is very real proof of our intrinsic connection to Mother Earth.
All ancient civilizations and indigenous cultures have honored the cycles of Nature and lived in ways that respected the direct relationship between the Earth and themselves. They lived in reciprocity and balance with the world around them.
Somehow our modern culture has created an illusion of separation from Nature. But so many people are finding ways to come back into balanced relationship with Mother Earth.
Tonight is a full moon eclipse on the eve of Winter Solstice!(Note: If you are reading this at a different time, the message still has meaning, simply discover what cycle Nature offers to you in the moment and feel how you want to honor it).
Celestial bodies are aligning, demonstrating yet again the perfection and incredible beauty of Nature’s Dance. This is a perfect time to become more in tune with this dance ourselves, and create our own experience of Divine Alignment.
The practice I offer you here blends the practice of yoga with Peruvian Incan Shamanism. This practice is offered in complete respect of what you already hold true in your heart – your own belief system can be honored with this sweet ceremony. Read more…
We seek ourselves. Our true selves. This is the freedom every heart desires and this is the path of yoga.
Unlimited potential and a powerful time of transition gives you a chance to set intention and allow your mind to become fully absorbed in the heart!
It means “May all beings be happy and free, and may my thoughts, words, and actions contribute to the happiness and freedom of all.”
Yoga, to me, invites you to dance on infinite paths that are all going on the same pilgrimage through different routes.
Technically I believe it’s called Indra’s Net, though for some reason the term ‘Web’ works better for me. Maybe because the Internet, or World Wide Web, is such a fascinating phenomenon that so closely reflects the universal creativity of Indra’s Web.
It could be a cathedral, a forest, a mountain, a temple… Perhaps it is your favorite river bend or a corner of your backyard. Maybe you’ve made a pilgrimage to a holy place of personal significance.
Om Namah Shivaya is one of my favorite mantras. I sing it to many melodies, let it whisper quietly within me, or just feel it in the heart of meditation.
Want to hear something really amazing?
