The One Minute Vacation

We all love vacations! The word "vacation" comes from the Latin word vacare meaning "to be empty or free". Taking vacations is an important part of our life. We tend to give so much of our time to our professions and our routines that to break it up a few times a year is an essential part of our mental health strategy. Taking time to empty ourselves of tension and stress, to let go of our routine and practice a greater sense of freedom is all part of the ritual known as vacation.

You know that saying, "As above, so below"? I enjoy exploring the macrocosm and the microcosm. In this case, the macrocosm is the typical year in your life that includes a summer vacation and a winter vacation. Now we can take that down into the microcosm which is a typical day. Giving yourself time twice per day to "be on vacation" is again part of a good mental health approach to life. The question becomes, how do I get to Florida and back twice per day? Or, if I live in Florida, "how do I get to Nova Scotia and back twice per day"?

The truth is, we do not have to go anywhere to touch the emptiness and the freedom that is at the heart of the vacation experience. Yoga and meditation are phenomenal tools to introduce us to the micro-vacation. Like a vacation meditation requires a little bit of planning like making sure that you won't be interrupted; unless of course you do get interrupted and then that interruption becomes part of your meditation. For one minute you break all routine, there are no have to's or should's, there is only space. Now, the mode of travel is the breath. Your breath is like the airliner that will carry you to your destination which is no destination at all. The micro-vacation takes practice but in 60 second segments, even you can afford it.

Close your eyes and begin to be very aware of your breathing, in and out through the nose. Sit up straight and let the shoulders fall down and away from your ears. Feel all the sensations in your body as you pay less attention to the thoughts that rise and fall in the mind. Trade thinking for feeling. Incorporate a great sense of relaxation into your micro-vacation. Enjoy yourself....enjoy your SELF.

Namaste,

Steve

Yogi Jayanta

I am always fond of exploring the microcosm and the macrocosm, you know(vacations twice per year)

Don't Just Set a Resolution...Be Resolutionary!

Most of us have realized from painful experience that lasting change rarely occurs as a result of a New Year's Resolution. Why is it that we are so often incapable of becoming the person we want to be? Too often, resolutions are inspired by fear and are set up as self-imposed expectations that reinforce the gulf between who we think we are and who we think we want to be. It is time to establish our resolutions from a deeper place; 2010 is a year of deepening. People are beginning to understand the profound nature of the present moment and will begin taking action from this place. Rather than another New Year's Resolution, now is the time to become Resolutionary.

Reaction or Resolution?

In many cases our resolution is inspired by a negative self-image adopted from society or an influential voice in our lives. For example, we compare our bodies to those we see in the media and decide the way we look is bad. The pain from this comparison becomes the fuel for our change. The resolution is not sustainable and we end up in that familiar negative spiral that reinforces the unworthiness that inspired the resolution in the first place.

Gratitude: The Power of the Resolutionary

The resolutionary recognizes gratitude as the true power behind sustainable transformation. Chis Walker told me once "Don't leave anything until you love it." This is great advice rooted in the awareness that love is more empowering than fear. Love and gratitude are intertwined. The Resolutionary uses self-love as the inspiration behind this path of living transformation. The traditional resolution is based on fear and limitation and lacks fundamental acceptance. Be grateful for the miracle of your body and and allow the spontaneous gratitude for this sacred mystery to fuel your growth and expansion in 2010.

From Expectation to Anticipation

The old-school resolution is a self-imposed expectation and expectation is the root of all evil. OK, that may be dramatic but spend some time contemplating the possibility the expectations you put on yourself and those you place on others are the heart of the suffering that creeps into your life day by day. Expectation states that we will be "happy when...". Expectation is one of the root problems with the New Year's resolution. Let me introduce a new word to replace the thorny and insidious seed of suffering known as expectation. This word frees us from the dependence on some future event to be OK with ourselves and instead brings us back to the present moment. To access the present moment there is a requirement for a deep sense of acceptance and honesty, this is the starting point for a life-altering New Year's Resolution. This new word that holds the seed of freedom and guides the Resolutionary back to the moment of now is ANTICIPATION. The official definition describes anticipation as "pre-sentiment or pre-knowledge". Anticipation brings us immediately into the experience of our resolution rather than emphasizing the gulf between where we are now and where we hope to be as is the case with expectation.

A Resolutionary Practice

In order to anticipate we must make the experience of fulfillment real in our minds and bodies. Consider this an invitation to imagine the greatest version of yourself for 2010. The Resolutionary takes time to sit in silence and practice gratitude. Give yourself the gift of 5 minutes per day to sit and breathe with awareness and simply be grateful. Let gratitude flood your body soaking every cell with liquid light. Even now, you can simply breathe with awareness, relax the body, allow the mind to be and reconnect with the Source of life, with your Beloved. Gratitude is the mystical power that fuels authentic transformation and is the direct experience of your own essence. Gratitude is the fuel of the Resolutionary, fill up every single day and soon you will be filling up with every single breath.

Don't wait for some future moment to be the highest version of yourself. The future is a fantasy and the past is over; the Resolutionary realizes their transformation here and now. May this year be full of transformative moments and big-time gratitude. To all the Resolutionaries out there, I wish you a very HAPPY NOW YEAR!!

Interiority

Hello All,

I am back to Canada with family in tow and Yarmouth has never felt more like home than now. We will be getting together tonight at the Boathouse to celebrate the present moment with our bodies and breath. As the winter season descends upon us we may also notice a slowing down and gentle movement within. As the trees and foliage let go of the blossoms of the past so too may we let go of that which was and in that letting go make room for the emptiness and interiority of the winter season.

This is a perfect season to explore the mystery and simplicity of meditation. If you have not experienced meditation in a group format you may find the practice offers a deep relaxation for the mind the way yoga provides relaxation for the body. Regardless, this is the season of interiority. Take a moment today, maybe right now, to reflect on your own interiority. We all have an interior life in which we are always participating and may rarely reveal aspects of it to others. Reveal yourself to yourself by witnessing your interiority with great compassion. Be present for the inner dialogue that is on-going, for the reactions and the sensations that weave the fabric of your interior person. In our meditation group tonight we will set fire to that fabric with the power of concentration and reveal the spaciousness and the vastness of our interiority.

I hope you have a wonderful day and as you bear witness to your own interiority realize that every person you meet also has that complexity, depth and internal reality you may rarely have been present to.

Namaste,

Steve

Yogi Jayanta

Nourishment of Prana

Hello All,

As we gear up for our Sunday morning workshop (9-12 at Milo Boathouse) let's begin to deepen our understanding of the vital energy that is the bridge between mind and body. The prana that nourishes our bodies comes first and foremost from the sun, it is the source of energy that is available in the fruits, vegetables and grains that we eat. As you can imagine the prana from the sun is absorbed into the waters of the earth and the land itself. Naturally, if our sun releases prana then it would make sense that all stars release prana, this cummulative pranic source from all stars we will call Cosmic Prana. All nutrition that we receive has, at its origin, solar and cosmic prana. In addition to receiving prana through the foods we eat and the water we drink the breath is also a major source of prana. In other ages where the air was more purified it is said the prana from the air was enough to sustain life. There are many examples of yogis who lived by sunlight alone and one was tested by NASA for over 100 days with no food intake. This is simply to demonstrate the life-giving power of prana and should not be attempted.

Most of us don't realize our mind-body system is photosynthetic. There are many cells in the body that are photosensitive including in the pinneal gland which relates to the third eye. As near as I can tell science does not yet understand how these cells respond to sunlight or even how sunlight would get to those cells. It seems to me the photoreceptors on these cells are triggered by the flow of solar prana to that region of the body. Suffice to say, science acknowledges we have cells inside the body that are photosensitive with no understood mechanism to solar-effect them. Nature is the greatest teacher we have to understand the mystery of life, take a moment and look closely at a flower or tree and realize the role of the sun in the growth and sustainability of that organism. Now, reflect on your own mind-body organism and realize that your growth and sustainability is also closely rooted to the sun and the sacred vital energy you receive in the form of prana. Breathe as though you are being nourished and granted life with every breath because.....of course.....YOU ARE.

Namaste,

Steve

Yogi Jayanta

As Above, So Below

On this Fall day with the cool breeze blowing and the sun hiding behind the clouds I am reminded of that global axiom..."As above, so below". Many ancient traditions acknowledge what quantum science now confirms. What we observe at a macroscopic level is a simple and elegant reflection of what is found at the microscopic level. When we compare the structure and dynamic of a galaxy with that of a single atom the truth of this statement is revealed in its other form, "on earth as it is in heaven".

This universal property of reflection can be found all around us but given our yoga practice and the strong emphasis we place on the breath I thought we could explore our own respiratory system. The teachings of yoga tell us the primary source of prana (subtle energy) is the sun. Our bodies absorb the prana of the sun through the breath, the skin and a little-known receptor at the crown of the head. Like the human body, trees absorb the rays of the sun and perform photosynthesis converting the light of the sun into energy for growth. The tree uses carbon dioxide and releases oxygen. We, in turn, absorb the light of the sun and inhale oxygen and exhale carbon dioxide. The design of the elements of our respiratory system mirrors the design of the tree. Not only do we have a completely symbiotic relationship with trees but the internal structure of our respiratory system even looks like trees. As above so below may also be stated, "as within so without". Take a moment, breathe slowly and deeply acknowledge the trees that have served you that breath, now perceive the tree-like branches in your lungs that are passing that much needed breath to the body. Be grateful for the miracle that is happening right now!

Tomorrow morning (8:45 am at the Milo Boathouse) we will acknowledge our photosynthetic nature and transform the light of awareness into a healthy body, mind and spirit. Hope you can make it.

Our workshop on Sunday will take us deeply into the breathing, movement and vibrational principles of yoga. We will also explore the ancient connections between "as above so below" and that beautiful line of the Lord's Prayer "on earth as it is in heaven". There are still spots available for Sunday but please let me know so we can arrange for your organic, vegetarian and delicious lunch. Have a wonderful day, and don't worry that prana from the sun can pass through the clouds in the sky just as the light of awareness can pass through the clouds of the mind....there it is again, AS ABOVE SO BELOW.

Namaste,

Steve

Yogi Jayanta