Yesterday, I had a lovely time, teaching special yoga in a local disabled centre. We reflected on kindness and on bodhicitta – wishing good things for ourselves, the persons we love, those we don’t like, all the sentient beings around us: the animals – pets and wild – plants, the planet… Everyone!
A few life times ago I made a vow. I vowed to dedicate my self to help animals. To alleviate their suffering and help them to be heard. I have tried a few things over the years. I waged a war against the world, but I realised that the war I was fighting against the outside world was also happening inside me…
“Hands of Compassion” by Mayumi Oda.
In these challenging times we get to see a lot of people – especially women – rising and standing up for their voices to be heard. After decades of feminism, western women have become strong and powerful. “The fight isn’t over” I hear some of you say. Sure. But it’s been a long way.
Sadly I have met a lot of western mamas who told me how much they wish they had more time to do yoga. More time to do art… but what about being yoga?
Boy and I often discuss quotes during car journeys. We often mention Gandhi’s quotes. I usually introduce them when they are relevant to whatever discussion we are having.
One of our favourites that we like to remind each other of is :
“There is enough for every man’s need but not for every man’s greed”.
We do like that one.
We have also previously discussed:
“The heart is like a garden. It can grow compassion or fear, resentment or love. What seeds will you grow there?” – The Buddha.
I took a week off blogging last week, as I have been reflecting on the loss of Chatral Rinpoche.
As the western world is busy mourning David Bowie, truth be said I personnaly felt very sad and a lot more affected by the loss of Chatral Rinpoche, who died at age 102, on the 30th of December.
Rain daisies, felted bee
My week has been bee-sy, needle felting a bee for the birthday of one of Thom’s friends. This bee is now with her girl, I hope they will have a lot of fun together…
Rain daisies are good friends for the bees, and it reminds me that more work needs to be done at the allotment over the weekend. There are bee hives next to our patch. We got some of their honey this week.
Before I started this bee, I did some research on bees to connect with them and to get to know them better… I learned that honey bees taste with their legs (their claws to be more precise), and that until fairly recently scientists couldn’t understand how bees could fly, as their bodies are so much bigger than their thin wings. It seems that they beat their wings at such a speed that they can take off and fly!
In many cultures bees represent fertility, a strong sense of community, prosperity, diligence, busyness… and they also remind us that we are all interconnected within the big web of life, as without bees and other pollinator insects our food would not grow.
If you find that you have a fascination for bees, and/or you feel a strong connection with them, I invite you strongly to go and meet them: go and sit quietly in their company and listen… and see what they have to tell you. You can also meditate on the qualities of bees, their social habits, their behaviour… and see if you need to implement more of these qualities into your own life. Or maybe you need to be less bee-sy? Slow down and take time to enjoy the sweet golden nectar of life? Perhaps you need to stop rushing around and working too hard, and set aside some time to relax and enjoy ‘what is’ and what you already have?
Pay attention to omens and animals who cross your path… if you come across bee(s), there may be a reason, and it’s worth taking a few moments to reflect on it.
In yoga the sound of the bee hum is associated with vishuddi, the throat chakra. There is a pranayama (breath control exercise) called brahmari – which means bee in sanskrit – also called the bee breath, named for the humming sound that bees make. This breathing technique is very relaxing and quietens the mind effectively. You can practice brahmari while sitting, start with simply noticing your natural breath for a while, then inhale through your nose and keeping your lips gently closed, and then hum like a bee as you exhale. Do so until you have completely emptied your lungs and you need to breath in again.
You can also use this breathing technique while in a posture such as the swan for example:
The Swan or extended child – Utthita Balasana
Or be on all fours in the cat position, breath in and as you breath out, hum like a bee as you get into swan (or extended child), then go back into cat (on all fours) as you breath in, and keep going…
If you have an interest and/or a connection with bees, you may enjoy this documentary:
Happy Beltane!
Noémie.
Seagull came to me yesterday, after a yoga class focusing on Vishuddhi (or Vishuddha), the throat (and 5th) chakra.
Amongst other things, Vishuddhi is about speaking your truth, voicing your needs, saying the things that really need to be said, being able to voice your feelings clearly, with honesty.
Its colours are often purple or turquoise blue.
I did this painting after the class. The blue of the sky, the purple of the sea and the seagull… although the animal usually associated with Vishuddhi chakra is a white elephant, seagulls are notoriously famous for being quite loud, they definitely speak out their truths…
Sometimes, problems with this chakra can manifest as speech impediments, anxiety, difficulties to swallow, thyroid and throat problems… i have had some issues with this area for the last few days, as I have been suffering from a sore throat and a stiff neck simultaneously.
This morning this cow came to me, as a reminder:
i must honour my duty, stories have been brewing.
i know her.
as I’m busy preparing and thinking
about this coming workshop,
she came and nudged me gently
“keep going, do not stop
but remember our story”.
I’ve uploaded a new video to my youtube channel, as promised at the end of my “Telepathy with your dog” video:
This is a guided practice for preparing you to communicate telepathically with your animals. I hope you will enjoy it and that you and your animals will get a better and deeper understanding of one another :)
Here is a video I did a little while back, which is a good intro for the video above…
I have just learned of the death of Dr Masaru Emoto and his last words were “Thank you!”.
Expressing gratitude is a great way to keep our hearts open, and it’s a great practice while we are communicating with animals whenever we find it difficult to stay focused and heart centered.
Dr Masaru Emoto’s work showed us how our intentions affect water, as you can observe the different patterns of water crystals when the water is frozen.
A Water crystal exposed to “I love you”
In one of his experiments, he exposed water to a note saying “I love you” and the crystals looked beautiful, whereas they looked completely chaotic when exposed to “I hate you”.
If we think about it, our bodies are made up to 70% of water and our brains are 90% water, so the thoughts and intentions we have towards one another and oneself surely affect us on a cellular level too…
Anyway here is a video he made about his research, as a humble tribute to his life’s work :)
Here I’m in the middle of organising my next animal communication workshop, and this time the theme is Dog. It will be over a few Sunday afternoons at the end of November, I hope to see you there :)
“Dogs have a way of finding the people who need them,
Filling an emptiness we don’t even know we have.” – Thom Jones (American writer)
Have a lovely weekend,
Noemie.
“I want to write because I find expression of my thoughts and emotions releasing and revealing”
Hooded crow (Corvus cornix) in flight
… and also because it takes me to an unknown path.
When I go down that path,
I hear a crow and I feel safe,
like I have a life long friend by my side.
I might sometimes write my way to Africa,
sometimes only down the road,
but it always takes me somewhere safe, and clear.
I connect with my old friend soul,
together we detangle the yarn of life.
The happy times, the grieving times,
the times when I feel lost and alone, unloved
and the times when I feel life is the most precious gift.
I heal my relationship with others, and with myself.
I learn to trust, others and myself.
I reflect, self-reflect
Doubt and self-doubt…
And I always feel better for it.
“Live your life as an experiment” – Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche.
FocalHeart 