You’re more ‘cloud’ than you are ‘you’.

/in /by

Taoism, in my opinion, is essentially the Chinese version of Shamanism. It’s a philosophy and way of being that has been referred to as ‘the wisdom of nature’.

There is a concept that underlies Taoist philosophy, and this idea is key to personal healing and transformation. In Chinese, it is called tzu-jan — that which is ‘of itself’, ‘by itself’, or ‘of itself so’. In other words, tzu-jan expresses that which is automatic, that which happens by itself, that which simply is with absolutely no effort.

Now this is actually a really easy thing to understand. We are, as alive human beings, brimming over with tzu-jan. Let me show you what I mean:

As you read this, take a moment to find your heart beat. Right now, as you are reading, slow yourself down enough to actually find it. Pause, and find it. It may be in your chest, your armpit, your groin. You may feel it, or you might just sense a movement or life-energy in your body; a feeling that your body is doing its thing. Now, in your mind’s eye, imagine all the functions of your body that are happening right now – You are breathing (you can take conscious control of your breath, but it’s always there even when you aren’t paying attention to it), your stomach is digesting food, your eyes are sending signals to your brain and your brain is interpreting these words on the screen, your glands are secreting chemicals that help maintain your immune system, your hair and nails are growing, even the neurons sending signals to move your finger on the ‘mousepad’ of your computer is so automatic that you arent even aware of it. All of these things happening with absolutely no conscious effort whatsoever from you.

In fact, that thing that you call ‘you’ (John Smith, dentist, 45 years old, father of three) has no control, and no part in just about anything that is happening inside you. It is ALL occurring by itself; effortlessly, and perfectly. It is ‘of itself so’. And you – your personality, your ego, that persona that you define as ‘me’, has nothing to do with any of it. You don’t ‘grow your bones’, they just grow.

Now for a moment, think about waves crashing on a beach, cloud formations on a sunny day, a tree in a forest that you once noticed, a school of fish shoaling in perfect formation. These things, just like the processes in your body are likewise, totally spontaneous. They just are. Yes, the cycles of the moon can effect the tides, gases and elements merge in just the right way to create a cloud, photosynthesis is responsible for the growth of the tree, fish respond instantaneously to tiny vibrations from the others in their school, but these are just explanations and conceptualizations of a bigger process; a Great Happening – Nature occurring all by itself. Can you now entertain the idea, that you actually have a tremendous amount in common with a cloud, a tree, a school of fish?

Even a hawk making a conscious decision to swoop down and eat a mouse is still a completely spontaneous event. Its the hawk’s nature to eat mice (they have the vision to see the tiniest movement thousands of feet away), and mice were meant to be eaten by hawks (they make up for this by being incredibly procreative as a species). You might think that the hawk/mouse example is a little more like us. We do, unlike a cloud or a tree, have a conscious mind.

But here’s the thing: until we learn to teach it not to, our conscious mind lies to us. It tells us who we should be, what rules we are supposed to follow, what we are actually allowed to have, even what we are supposed to look like. But no matter how hard you try, you can’t get out of nature; true authentic nature. You cant tell it what to do, boss it around, or beat it into submission. Nature will always win. And just as your heart beats ‘self-so’, if you give it a chance, your mind can function in the same way. We are just too afraid (confused, beaten down, socialized) to let it.

This is all that healing is: Aligning what is happening in our minds with our real nature. The same nature that beats our hearts and the same force that produces the clouds. And by opening our arms to the Great Happening (and its going to happen whether we embrace it or not) and saying ‘YES’, we stop fighting with nature, we make friends with ourselves, and we see our reflections in the trees.

THE CHAKRAS – what they do, and why you might need to know about them

/in /by

THE CHAKRAS IN RELATION TO THE PHYSICAL BODY, MIND AND EMOTIONS. 

The seven major chakras are energy centers that are located along the spine. While they are invisible, we know from Chinese acupuncture (and other eastern systems of healing) that there is a vast and complex system of meridians and nadis that are energetic pathways in the body (similar to veins and capillaries). And, the chakras can be likened to the major organs of the luminous energy field of the body.

The chakras store, assimilate and process information. Carolyn Myss (ANATOMY OF THE SPIRIT), describes them as being like ‘computers’. This analogy seems quite accurate. In the same way that computers store information and log memory, the chakras contain all of the emotional, physical, mental, and spiritual ‘data’ of the human energy system.

The chakras are also directly related to the biology of the body. Each one has a connection to (and are located near) the seven glands of the endocrine system. The endocrine system chemically regulates every single function of the body and brain. Processes like fighting illness, digesting food, and cognition, begin initially, and are overseen by, the glands of the endocrine system.

Further, each chakra is housed near vital organs and are connected to groups of nerve ganglia that transmit the information that the chakras absorb from the outside world into physiological response in the body. This is why we get a ‘tension headache,’ a ‘nervous stomach,’ or an overall increased physical vitality when we receive good news.

Any chronic physical or emotional condition, is the result of pre-existing imbalances in the human energy field. These imbalances can be caused by negative thinking and self-talk, anxiety, unresolved trauma, compromised self esteem, abusive relationships, poor work or home environment, fear, addiction , etc. Any of these types of problems can cause a chakra to close or function in an impaired way.

The chakras contain the energetic blue prints of every aspect of our being. Below is a an overview of where they are in the body and what they contain:

CHAKRA 1 (ROOT CHAKRA)

Location – base of spine at the perineum

Content – basic survival needs (food, clothing, shelter), connection to earth, family and tribal beliefs, continuation of the species

Organs – elimination system

CHAKRA 2 (SACRAL CHAKRA)

Location – 2 inches below the navel

Content – sexuality, sexual identity, giving and receiving pleasure, money, emotion, sensuality, the fight or flight response, relationship, creativity

Organs – reproductive system

CHAKRA 3 (SOLAR PLEXUS CHAKRA)

Location – solar plexus (the soft spot below where the ribs meet)

Content – sense of self, self-esteem, personal management of ones own health, who we are in the world, persona

Organs – digestive system

CHAKRA 4 (HEART CHAKRA)

Location – Central Heart area

Content – our ability to love, self-love, compassion, higher quality of relationships

Organs – circulatory system

CHAKRA 5 (THROAT CHAKRA)

Location – throat

Content – self-expression, communication, the seat of will and will-power, addiction, professional/career will

Organs – thyroid gland and ears

CHAKRA 6 (BROW CHAKRA)

Location – third eye (center of brow)

Content – thinking, cognitive center, processing and assimilation of ideas, intuition, physic sight, executive will (how we ‘run our show’)

Organs – pineal gland and brain function

CHAKRA 7 (CROWN CHAKRA)

Location – crown of head

Content – connection to Spirit, higher self, inspiration

Organs – pituitary gland and brain function

DYSFUNCTION, HEALING, AND SPIRITUAL ASPECTS OF THE CHAKRAS

The information contained in the chakras is often detrimental, out-dated, and largely unconscious. We let negative beliefs, unhealthy perceptions and bad habits determine the quality of their content. This is often the result of mis-knowledge about ourselves and our identity that are the result of abuse, trauma or emotional neglect. Not to mention the host of societal norms and family customs of which we unconsciously subscribe that do not serve us.

A common idea of the new age is that we ‘create our own reality’. And in truth, we absolutely do. We can, at any time, begin to change the content of our chakras. We can reconfigure, restructure and resurrect our energy system into one that glows with health, vitality, and abundance. Like computers, the chakras will hold any information that we choose to ‘download’. They will open to any new energies and ideas that we decide we want to take in as part of us.

They function best when we are running energy through them that celebrates, encourages and supports our highest good. When we align with a vision of ourselves, and a view of the world that is expansive, inherently abundant, joyful, and filled with possibility, they function optimally.

In fact, even when we are unconscious of the severity of the problems in our lives – when we deny the existence of a negative situation, when we pretend that a relationship that is stifling us is ‘just fine’, when we accept a falsehood about ourselves that keeps us stuck, abused, or unable to move forward, the chakras will send a message (through a feeling, an intuition, an illness) that we are out of balance. In other words, the chakras help align us with Higher Intelligence, with our Higher Selves, and with Spirit.

They help to light our way.

So Glad I Waited…..

/in /by

When I launched this new website a few months ago, I knew that I wanted to include a blog page. This ‘healing’ stuff, with it’s talk of energy bodies, chakras, and soul retrieval can seem a little ‘out there’, for sure. So the idea of including a blog I thought, would be a good way to write about the work that I do in ‘everyday’ terms; lessening possibly, a bit of the ‘otherworldly’ aspect of this work, and explaining it in more concrete terms.

And, although I have had the impulse to write something many times, nothing felt quite right, or ‘universal’ enough to become the dreaded ‘first blog’. So I have been waiting until the inspiration (or the material) presented itself as the perfect jumping off point.

Yesterday, I had a client who came for a SHAMANIC HEALING session. This morning he received (and he sent me) a poem that was written by his twelve year old neice. What she wrote is the essence of what it is I (and all of us, for that matter), are trying to do and be in this lifetime. And it is said with such profound simpleness, that I will let it speak for itself.

For those that know me, they know that I can TALK. 🙂 So it is with tremendous humbleness that I defer my ‘first blog’ not to my own voice, but to the wisdom of a twelve year old girl:

 

THE SHATTERER

by Emily A. Aubin

 

As I blitz fast and free

I feel emotion over me,

and I am bound.

As if to the rythm of a beating drum,

laughter shatters sky,

formerly deep and glum, a sky of sorrow shatters.

Avoid no water,

shatter silver,

let joy overcome you through 

shattered silver.

Never lose hope to fierce wind,

Run forward and shatter air.

Fight the wind and

shatter air.

When darkness takes you prisioner,

blitz right on and

shatter darkness,

out-blitz dusk,

and shatter darkness.