busybuffalos

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THINK  ( >BIG JOINTS>meet< small sockets>

Some people just have the right shaped bones to excel in certain asana. It is called human variation. Sometimes it can make us look inhuman.This message crafted from the 'Obi wan Kenobi' of Yin Yoga and my mentor and teacher Bernie Clark. 

This image resonates with me because of my personal range of motion combined with strength appears that can do the impossible in many physical acts. THINK  ( >BIG JOINTS>meet< small sockets> )I have been blessed with a bit of hyper mobility in my joints and muscle integrity to protect this hyper extension. This does not underplay the emphasis I place on training functional movements like yoga rather than training specific muscle groups akin to lifting weights.

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Second certification in this niche which kinda feels like home given the rewards of a consistent yin practice. “Our issues are in our tissues.” https://www.instagram.com/p/CJ6JqNfHl9B/?igshid=16e8hdfk7new1

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NINE OBSTACLES KEEPING YOU FROM PEACE

Peace on earth and goodwill toward men makes a nice sentiment especially in this season of giving. This short phrase sums up for many the warm feeling of peace that is synonymous with this time of year.

With happenings of 2020, some for me very tragic, the very secular practice of mass consumerism, overindulgence, and capitalism may have found a disappearance of Christ from within Christmas. Never fear, good tidings of great joy starts with abundance cultivated from peace from within.  

Stuff figuratively and literally. Weighs You Down—  This year instead of tangible gifts, the latest shiny, bobbly thing that entangles our attention span and enamors the ego. Get rid of things, people, situations, or things that no longer serve your higher purpose. Free yourself! Give the gift the intangible. Let us all convey an implicit hope, a spirit of generosity, and a kind disposition toward all living creatures. By doing so peace and a thriving Kriya yoga practice flourishes. PSY 2.43- 2.45

When we start to understand the interconnectivity of human life, nature, and other species, we start to re-envision the world that allows others to flourish without taking away from ourselves.

Peace begins by finding stillness. With stillness, communion with the divine is found, we admit reluctance of letting go of old wounds. This shifts our strategy from avoidance of people we disagree with to the conversation of inclusion and bridging the gap.

Ask yourself 1 of these 9 questions that rob our Peace.

Am I living a life of Disease or lack of ease? Am I a mental sloth? Do I live in self-doubt? Could you care less about how you go about your day? Do you find laziness a positive attribute? Is your sensuality in check? Are you well-rested? Is thought clouded by fantasy? inability to reach, grasp, or comprehend a goal; and the inability to remain grounded are obstacles and distractions to the clarity of thought?

We rise by lifting others

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The eyes are useless when the mind is blind.

In Greece among the ruins there are structures still standing called Temenos. This sacred space  is a four walled enclosure with no roof. Warriors would come from the battlefield, remove their armor, lie down on their backs, open their hearts to the sky, and to let go of their transgressions. Before returning to civilian life. I believe that when we turn our gaze to the heavens we become lighter.

When our minds become distracted, our eyes wander; when our eyes wander our mind is disturbed and we lose a sense of clarity Our eyes are the lens through which we learn about the world and ourselves in connection with the world. This is the very same tool through which we can discover the connection between the external and internal self.

We all get look, but do we see? Drishti is a means of stabilizing the external world and our inner selves. Directly translated this Vedic word "drishti" means ‘Vision’. It is an outward focal point for an inward gaze with eyes shut. Your spine follows the gaze as body begins to cultivate a sense of rooted stability.

This is a technique for looking for the Divine everywhere—and for seeing correctly the world around us. Drishti becomes a technique for removing ignorance that obscures our true light.

So how often do we get to bring this concentrated awareness into our everyday? 

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The Power of Positive Thinking

I being a human on this earth have first-hand knowledge that we optimists don't always handle stress well. To be human means to suffer. It's part of the human condition, but so is resilience. The ability to deal with stress is related to the maturity of our inner circle, genetic build,

and whether you were raised in fertile soil, but not to optimism. Optimists may just be more likely to give and receive pleasure, but we can not fight against anxiety. In the face of pressure, optimism is ineffective. To build an impenetrable wall, we must have an unshakable belief in ourselves.

Over 50 years ago Dr. Norman Vincent Peale wrote in his book The Power of Positive Thinking to "Make a true estimate of your own ability — then raise it 10 percent. Resist becoming egotistical, but develop wholesome self-respect and believe in your own powers". That's a difficult short shortlist! Make today great, and with that success build your resilient castle stone by stone.

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History Repeats

When we know our history we can set a course for the future.”

Each of us has internal filters that collect experiences created by gender, personal history, cultural values, education, and collected traumas. These experiences are the sum total of all our thoughts both conscious and unconscious. This filter tells us whether protein in the form of beef, raw fish, or organic tofu is a food worthy of eating. This filter also is capable of tremendous acts of evil and hate. If I made a confederate symbol or swastika image my profile picture, or put a bumper sticker on my car, what am I declaring to my friends, family, and the world?

Ask yourself: Are you a decent human with the potential to create anything that would cause harm to another? Maybe you're an evil narcissist. A monster that thinks you are a decent human?

I've become a history nerd. It didn't happen overnight. Why? because there are clues to the future which are found in reoccurring themes equivalent to ripping pages out of Mein Kampf. Case in point —1933 Germany passed the Enabling Act which assured an ambitious Chancellor named Adolf Hitler dictatorial power moving Germany away from a democratic state. This critical event led to the Nazi siege of Germany providing absolute power to the leadership to make laws and destruct democracy laid out in five decisive steps.

When as a county our collective ideological-focus weighs in heavier than empathy, our society is in for a bruising. Evil doesn't die, but if you know history you recognize parallels. Over time we forget history's harsh bruises; however, we're not immune to evil embers of hatred twisting values of normal compassionate and loving people.

THE FIVE STEPS — Hitler's first step in 1934 was to discredit the media while simultaneously seeking to silence scientists and government employees. The third step was to deploy hate crimes against minorities. Any opposition was met with ridicule, threats, and public shaming. Hitlers wealthiest supporters purchased media outlets employing only those faithful to the ruling party. These supporters provided the masses with transistor radios that received only one channel, thus prohibiting people from receiving any outside influence.

Hitler's fifth and most radical step was to declare that the only way the country could be unified was to restore traditional values. Minorities including gays, the disabled, Non-­Christians, and people of color were considered "inferior" and sent to death camps for slaughter.

"Racism is perpetuated by people who refuse to learn or acknowledge that history repeats."

Remember the quote at the beginning of this journal entry? “We are all born ignorant, but one must work hard to remain stupid.” When we know our history we can set a course for the future. You may have been conditioned to be ignorant. Not STUPID but IGNORANT. "Ignorance is bliss." or so the quote goes. Wake Up and Think America! It's not illegal Yet. We’re facing a crisis where our ability to think for ourselves, communicate opinions, or disagree with the government is seriously under threat.

"To me ignorance is having history written so that you don’t have to acknowledge uncomfortable facts."

Most everything about our western culture in modern times is about ego attainment, attachment, and ignorance. It has taken many years to learn to shave those parts of my ego that attaches to external outcomes to a slow trickle. This is a disparaging thought to reduce your ego, but this is the point where true liberation begins.

Everywhere you look these days, it seems that we are in a rush to embrace ignorance. Irrational, self-destructive ignorance.

The Yoga Sutras call out ignorance. This 5000-year-old text describes ignorance in (Chapters 2.1-2.9) as the gross colorings the mind. Through the practice of yoga, we learn to shave off those parts of our ego that attaches until we are reduced to nothing. This is a disparaging thought to be nothing but this is the point where true liberation begins. Most everything about the West in modern times is about ego attainment, attachment, and ignorance.

#Iam1busybuffalo

#NO45in2020

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A prideful person is at war the world , so allow humility to enter your life and discover a world free from false prestige.

I have learned that when I surrender to fear and open my heart, I allow myself to be humbled.

You might find success and fortune in the world, but remain simple and make all people feel comfortable in your presence. Big things start with humble beginnings

Have you ever tried to be humble. It looks really fake.A fake ego is waiting to be exposed.as a phony. Once exposed and fragile humility comes out, It is not a creation. It is a shadow of the real you.

A humble person is easy to get.

They're not even aware that they are humble. Ego is a hierarchy that says, "No one is like me."

EGO can feed on humbleness -

"Nobody is like me, I am the most humble person."Humility is the foundation for all other virtues. There are millions who think and protest that they are humble. Look at self proclaimed humble people. They bow down low. Watch their actions and listen to their words.

If you say, "I am humble," look around for people to appreciate you.

Are truly humble? To be humble is to be kind. It’s in the giving of the peace in your mind.

#Iam1busybuffalo

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Yoga Knee Deep in Rona

It is well known and supported by statistics from multiple medical journals that ritualistic behavior induces a calm to manage stress caused by unpredictability.  *(1) So it goes without saying that weaving a wellness routine of movement therapy aka yoga into your pandemic schedule can help navigate the uncertainty of today's times. In fact, rituals are needed as an internal structure because our external lives in unprecedented times have become totally unstructured which triggers more anxiety and stress.

Of all your vital signs, which include the cardiac pulse rate, body temperature, blood pressure, and respiratory rate, only the respiratory rate can be controlled with a conscious and voluntary effort. The other vital signs are involuntary and not controllable with conscious effort. Science has given us a new term. Cardiac Coherence AKA — a term I've always known as Pranayama. This method of prana I'm introducing was developed based on the understanding that slow, deep breathing increases the activity of the vagus nerve, a part of the parasympathetic nervous system. The vagus nerve controls and also measures the activity of many internal organs. When the vagus nerve is stimulated, calmness pervades the body. The heart rate slows and becomes regular; blood pressure decreases; muscles relax. When the vagus nerve informs the brain of these changes, it, too, relaxes, increasing feelings of peacefulness. Thus, the technique works through both neurobiological and psychological mechanisms.

When ‘Rona's’ numbers started climbing we were told that masks were for the sick and to keep the sick from getting other people sick. Now it’s, ‘Everybody needs to wear a mask.'  If your face is covered, it stands to reason you have a harder time breathing. In a way, you feel more contained. So, yeah, anxiety is a huge barrier to wanting to wear the mask. I get it. It's cumbersome to have a mask on. Mask makes some feel a little claustrophobic. If you wear glasses, it's a steamy mess. Some friends have said that  ‘I have the right to do whatever I want. This is America’. This sense of entitlement is unwarranted. But you can’t go to the store without shoes or a shirt on.

Researchers say wearing a mask that covers your nose is crucial to preventing coronavirus infection. The University of North Carolina recently found the nostrils have far more receptors targeted by coronavirus than do the lungs or throat. Rona makes 1,000 times as many copies of itself in the nose compared to the lungs.

I have taken on a challenge with my workouts recently and over the last couple of weeks, I've seen some drastic results. My daily workout has been with a mask on, and I highly recommend it. Consider dawning your new fashion accessory (your mask) as a training device. utilizing Cardiac Coherence. A western scientific name for Pranayama. 

Wearing a mask is the equivalent of prolonged exposure to a high-altitude air, results in the body's ability to use oxygen. It also affects a hormone secreted from the kidneys called Erythropoietin (EPO) that regulates red blood cell production. A higher red blood cell count means more oxygen carried to the muscles, which translates to increased endurance.

DID YOU KNOW: Your breathe passes through our arteries 960 times an hour? Under normal conditions, we breathe 16 to 20 times per minute or from 960 to 1,200 times per hour. If you breathe less than 16 times per minute is referred to as bradypnea or slow breathing. A respiratory rate of more than 20 times per minute is known as tachypnea or rapid breathing. In Vedic terms these powerful strokes of exhaling breath known as Kapal Bhati Pranayam or the breathing exercise of Anulom Vilom Have been effective and beneficial in preventing infections as it unblocks the nose, keeps the energy flowing and also improves blood circulation.

Lessons I quickly learned with a mask while working out:

Be smart [and] don't overdo it.

If I feel dizzy, imbalanced, or overly fatigued, stop.

When exercising with a face mask. Less oxygen in your lungs means less oxygen in your bloodstream and your working muscles.  Over a few weeks, the body adapts and becomes more efficient at metabolizing oxygen. At first, I fatigued faster, especially with cardio. With less air, the body has less available oxygen to utilize during exercise to convert glucose [sugar] into energy.

Tips For Optimizing Your Immune System

1. Gargle warm salt water and use a neti pot. These ancient Ayurvedic strategies—dissolving about ½ tsp. Himalayan or sea salt in 8 oz. of warm water—is “non-negotiable” if you are trying to prevent sickness. Germs and bacteria hang out in your nose and throat 24 hours before digging into your bloodstream and affecting your immunity, and salt clears them out. You can use these saltwater rinses as preventative measures or when you feel sick.

“A balanced circadian clock (or your internal time-keeping for cycles of sleep and alertness) is directly linked to a strong immune system. *(4)  Psychology Today reports that people who sleep 6 hours or less each night are 4.2 times more likely to catch a common cold than those who sleep 8 hours a night.

RESOURCE:

*(1) Mindfulness-practices-lower-anxiety —Psychology Today.

*(2) https://www.unc.edu/posts/2020/06/08/researchers-map-how-coronavirus-infection-travels-through-cells-of-nasal-cavity-and-respiratory-tract/

*(3) https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4090048/

*(4) https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/sleep-newzzz/202004/why-getting-regular-sleep-is-even-more-important-right-now

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Every day, we project what will inevitably come back to us. Boomerang effect? —Perhaps. 

The Chinese use two brush strokes to write the word 'crisis. One brush stroke stands for danger the other for opportunity. When experiencing CHAOS, be aware of the danger--but recognize the opportunity. The continuous flow of thoughts lead to two states of the mind.

Peace or Chaos. You may view the future as full of danger. Peace is found the when connection between of love and trust is formed.

Choose to give so much time to the honest examination of your self that there is no time to critique others. If you live your life by walking in truth, you really don't have to worry about much. When we send out truth, compassion, and love, we find the gateway to peace. Today send health, happiness, and prosperity to each and every person you meet. When these things come back to us, it's a multiple blessing. 

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Poke it With a Stick. See if it Gets Upset.

“Today, we are committed to a worldwide struggle to promote and protect the rights of all who wish to be free. … It ought to to be possible, in short, for every American to enjoy the privileges of being American without regard to his race or his color.”

As I tell my children "If you know the past you can navigate the future fearlessly". Apparently "We The People"  have not pushed the bar as a nation? Perhaps we choose to poke a stick in unhealed wounds instead of going through the grieving process in order to grow.

I see a reoccurrence of events paralleling actions of our elected chief and commanders childhood concerning race relations and racial inequality in the United States This leader and his actions are being used as a incendiary just like some elected leaders of our past. It almost seems as if we ripped out the dog-eared pages of dramatic episodes of our darker moments and using that as a playbook and a recipe for mayhem and chaos. 

What did JFK say about civil rights? Kennedy defined the civil rights crisis as moral, as well as constitutional and legal. He announced that major civil rights legislation would be submitted to the Congress to guarantee equal access to public facilities, to end segregation in education, and to provide federal protection of the right to vote.

Just 56 years ago we faced a similar issue with race relations and racial inequality in the United States. In 1967 the phrase "when the looting starts, the shooting starts" was made prominent by Miami Police Chief Walter Headley, used to incite possibly illegal shootings by police officers.

You might remember the movie Forest Gump? In the movie Forrest Gump found himself in the view of cameras documenting the event. The Stand in the Schoolhouse Door was an actual event. Alabama Governor George Wallace stood in the door of the University of Alabama that summer day in 1963 to prevent the entry of two black students form enrolling in school. Martin Luther King Jr. called Wallace "…the most dangerous racist in America…" I am quite sure If he were alive today. Our elected chief and commander would wear this title well.

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An Imagined Letter from Rona better known as Covid-19 to Humans

Hi, my name is Rona. I want to ask you to stop! It is no longer a request. It is a mandate. I can help you. I can bring the high speed merry-go-round  of life to a halt. I'll stop the planes,

the trains, the schools, the malls, and your meetings.

As humans the obligation is to each other, the human race is suffering and so is your planet.

Last year, firestorms scorched the lungs of the earth. Did that give you pause?

How about the fevered climates in Japan and India or the typhoons in Africa,China, Japan?

You've not been listening. It 's really hard to listen with your heads up your asses. You are so busy hustling for the comforts and conveniences that with be taken away when you meet your maker. What you know of a collective foundation is giving way, buckling under the weight of needs and desires. I can help. I can bring the firestorms to your body and the burning, searing, and flooding to your lungs that is all the gossip.

Your race is not well. I am not the enemy. I am the Messenger and an ally. We are a balancing force.

I am asking you to stop, to be still, listen and consider the concerns of all;

Your ignorance is the root of suffering. So be with your ignorance and find your humility. Relinquish your thinking minds and travel deep into the mind of your heart.

Have you noticed? There are fewer planes, the roads have less cars, the skies and waterways are cleaner. The Earth is detoxing. The Earth needs to be healthy so that the human race may be?

I know many of you are afraid now.  Fear, can cripple. Do not let it rule you. Instead, let it speak to you. Seek stillness,  and listen for its wisdom. What might fear be telling you about what is at work, at issue, at risk, beyond the threats of personal inconvenience and illness?

Just as the health of a tree, a river, the sky has a story to tell, tells you about quality of your own health, what might the quality of your health tell you about the health of the rivers, the trees, the sky, and all of us who share this planet with you?

The human race might require a collective change of heart and mind that leads to fundamental shifts in institutions and a new normal.

A new normal requires prioritization of your well-being and life satisfaction over more consumption; just as we’re prioritizing health over economic activity by quarantining ourselves during the days of Rona.

I'm new on the block and there will be more like me: someday. Maybe, along with the resulting temporary shuttering of travel and commerce, is an opportunity to rethink and reboot your individual lives and our collective ways of being on this precious planet.

#Iam1busybuffalo

#NoCoronaCooties

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Team Scarcity is driven by fear

What closes us?  Studies point to fear as the primary culprit. Fear that we will undergo a scarcity, fear that we will not be loved. Fear manifests in many forms. Some manifestations of fear: impatience, frustration, cruelty, self-hatred, jealousy, envy, prejudice. We feel scarcity when a tornado strikes and hurricanes ravage. The price of wood goes up and clean water gets stockpiled. In early 2008 When gasoline shortages hit, the thought that there might be a day or more without gas in the tank led to six-hour lines and even fistfights. And yet, physical goods always manage to bump up against scarcity.

Thankfully, for many people in the privileged western hemisphere scarcity is a memory, but our minds work unconsciously to construct scarcity in fact society feeds on this. You might remember in Economics 101 telling of the basic law of supply and demand. Our economies have always been based on scarcity. The media amplifies our envy of physical goods with reality TV shows and commercials about that next thing you ought to buy if you hurry! You can even borrow funds to do so.

So, in a world of abundance and privilege, what's scarce? Where is the economy? I believe it is in connection. Connection to belonging to something bigger than ourselves. Famous psychiatrist and holocaust survivor Dr. Viktor Frankl once wrote, “He who has a why can bear anyhow.”

So who trusts you? 

Who wants to hear your voice? 

Who collaborates supports and engages you? 

These are things that don't scale to infinity. These are precious resources of connection. When basic needs are in balance, we feel safe, secure, and grounded.  When we feel comfortable with the stories of your past (good or bad) and with our prospects for the future, our lives feel connected and filled with abundance. On the flip side, when this energy is out of alignment or blocked, a scarcity mentality takes hold. Life all boils down to this moment. This is it: there's nothing else. It is your decision to enjoy life or be miserable. Connect with your inner circle, and take the time to identify how you connect with something greater than yourself. Then prepare for the power you will wield when you tap into that intention. 

This week I will be addressing Aparigraha (PYS 2.39) and how attachment changes our perspectives. Join me on the mat or schedule a private session. —Namaste!

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Sutra 2.38 Brahmacharya

Sophrosyne is the Greek concept of an ideal of excellence of character and soundness of mind, which when combined in a well-balanced Yogi utilizing Asana, Pranayama and Meditation lead to other qualities, such as temperance, moderation, prudence, and self-control.

In English, there is no word that has this simple equivalent. We sometimes translate this to mean prudence, self-control, moderation, or temperance. In Latin as continentia (continence and moderation) and sobrietas (temperance and sobriety). In Hindi this word is known as Brahmacharya.

Brahmacharya is outlined in The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali. This 2000 year-old guideline translated from Hindi provides a fundamental source towards the practice of yoga and has a long tradition of passing form teacher to pupil, practiced and repeated.

The second chapter of the Yoga sutras 2:38 says  "Ahimsa-satyasteya-brahmacaryaparigaha yama". To me, Brahmacharya is the sanskrit word equivalent of sophrosyne.

Ahimsa-satyasteya-brahmacaryaparigaha yama" is the basis of the last three weeks of focus and interpretation towards the Yamas. I obtained a copy of my book listed just to the left in my first teacher training many years back and it sat untouched for many years because these teachings had to percolate their way into my life. 

“Brahmacharya pratishtayam veryalabaha” PYS 2.38— Essentially means continence.

Continence is an old English word for chastity which means nothing lost from the body;  In recent years yogi scholars have reassigned meaning to be a looser term which is of a non-sexual, broad, nebulous interpretation of "staying to your purpose".

If continence means nothing lost from the body; Incontinence would mean a lack of restraint lack of self-restraint. When we lose self-control we destroy our interior, our power of concentration and strip away our creative being.

So your prayers are your conversation with the divine, meditation could be listening. You might have experienced feeling light as a feather in your meditation and yoga practice. These are the moments you realize you are not just the body. The more joyful you are, the more you are in tandem with your infinite consciousness, the lesser you feel the tension of the physical weight of the body.

This is practicing Brahmacharya in Yoga. A person who is small-minded is always succumbing to the cravings within the body. This person might seek satisfaction through stimulation of the senses by taking up bad habits. Forget getting caught up in the senses by taking refuge in your self by coming back to your nature. This heat gets trapped in the head skewing vision and blurring our perception.

We, humans, are attached to sensual pleasures, which generates suffering when those sensual pleasures cease or become lost. Sensual pleasures also create enslaving tormenting addictions. Furthermore, sensual pleasures cannot bring true permanent happiness, which is why people get bored with and continually search for & acquire new sensual pleasures. This sure seems like a never-ending cycle of suffering. ॐ

—Namaste

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Sutra 1.40

In time, the heart can hold the smallest thing and the uncontainable through Equanimity. My interpretation of this sutra is a person’s perception of events, life, etc becomes their reality. An example is reading a sad story or book and feeling melancholy afterward or even depressed. I think the sutra is relating to events beyond just being empathetic to another person's plight but more extreme changes.

When the division between surroundings and individual cease to exist the individual takes on the mindset and begins to change behavior, conforming to their current environment known as Classical conditioning or Pavlov theory. In these experiments, Pavlov sounded a bell while presenting food to a dog, thereby stimulating the natural flow of saliva in the dog's mouth. Military use these behavioral changes upon new recruits. Almost brainwashing the individual, a process of “breaking down to build-up” therefore creating the solider.

If an individual does not have firm beliefs or trust within themselves they are more susceptible to fluctuations of the mind and in their actions and thinking. They begin to identify with objects outside of themselves. Believing that happiness can be achieved through objects or achievements, For example, I will be happy when I finish school, buy a house... When we attach to outcomes we are no longer the masters of self and unable to experience contentment and Joy.

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The jerk store just called. They're running out of you!

If someone honks at you in traffic, you think, “What a jerk!” What if they weren’t honking at you? Maybe they were trying to warn someone else of impending doom.

Not knowing the cause your day creates a snowball effect in your mind declaring “People are jerks!”  You arrive at your destination and say, “I’m having a bad day.” Why? All because of a misunderstanding. Knowing the truth of a situation doesn’t mean we find peace.  Even worse is when our view of the world is based on a misunderstanding. 

We are operating from misunderstanding and incorrect information (viparyaya) Sutra 1.8. As a result we fill in the gaps in our knowledge to create a picture (vikalpa) Sutra 1.8.. This feeling of mental unrest and discomfort that is commonly referred to as duhkha or Suffering.

Yoga enables us to view the fluctuations of the mind, body and emotions. Tap into a higher state of consciousness we find awareness. AS we become aware. We come closer to our true identity —We Rise by Lifting Others

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Be Tricky or a Dick but not both.

Congratulations, if you're reading this, you’re human, but this fact doesn’t make you more superior just because these words are written in English. 

Just because you’re angry and have privilege doesn’t mean you’re right… And just because you believe something doesn’t mean it’s true. Ignorance is contagious and American society has come to recognize the characteristics of the classic alpha male as strength and virtue which is blatantly ignorant. Though perplexing at times, we accept the proverbial beating of the chest as a necessary trait for effective leadership.

You may have been given the power of intelligence, but that doesn’t mean you’re wise. You might have even found some level of privilege in life using these traits. The idea that we can be both ignorant and intelligent at the same means a division of consciousness. Division implies conflict. This is where we as humans have a common ground in this polarization of politics where Fear is being used as a Pawn, Knight and Rook Bishop and Queen.

When we consider ourselves as part of the whole vs judging and exploiting, peace is found. Humility is the key to the liberation of our suffering. Love is a tool to Shepard us to a better understanding humility.

Our world needs leaders, and I am far from putting myself on a pedestal; however, I would caution anyone from choosing an ignorant lifestyle in the pursuit of an “alpha leader”. Because we are not animals. While this behavior may win one a momentary position of power, it won’t last.

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ROAR

ROAR

What is everyone looking for in one way or another?

Perhaps it is unconditional love…As in years past. A kriya and cleansing with self-study starting from scratch with the sutras. This week I’m diving into Yoga Sutra 1.4 this to explore deeper meaning.

This sutra essentially asks us to be aware of our internal dialog aka (chitter chatter) in the mind and not attach or identify with that thought and to use one pointed stillness to acknowledge light from within. With this awarness, we potentially can act with Lovingkindness. Our thoughts can become our distorted and negative view can create suffering.

At times I put on a pseudo-identity, which means that I think a thought to be a reality, but it’s not. What steals from our collective PEACE more than anything? It is suffering from the fluctuations of the mind (aka chitter chatter).

Life goes on with or without us. We play different roles we have an age, a gender, a socio-economic class, a status, husband, a leader or a follower. Functioning in life requires identifying with roles. I really got in touch with this sutra with my kids. My children have an uncanny ability to know exactly what buttons to push constantly. Sometimes I have reacted to them is not the most graceful way. sometimes Like Shrek Doing “The Roar” I choose to apologize as soon as I am able. My kids always forgive me and appreciate me owning up to my own crap.

CLICK TO WATCH SHREK “The Roar"CLIP ON YOUTUBE

This has been a great lesson for them to see me finding humility in apologizing to them. It’s so easy to project my “stuff”- anger, frustration, agitation, onto them which creates suffering for all involved. When we align with our thoughts [vrittis] we limit the potential of what can be.

When we experience pure light ( love, compassion, empathy), we are aware of the container that darkness holds for light to be present in our life. In the presence of Love based emotions, we get to recognize that suffering by those closest to us is endured by what we love the most. We, the ‘Seer’ understand that freedom is found by releasing bondage of the mind.

Sutra 1.4 says this is in sanskrit ”vritti sarupyam itaratra"

Vritti = fluctuations in the mind

Sarupyam = Means becoming one with form and identification with objects.

Itaratra = elsewhere, everywhere: one pointed stillness

For this Yogi, suffering is when we deny true self and live a life of lies just to appease others. When we find stilness provides discovery into our true self.

Ask yourself: When we without any identifications, who are we?  

We Rise by Lifting Others ॐ