Today's blog theme is returning to the roots close to my heart....the incredible workings within our mind-body-spirit.
We will return to a bigger picture cosmic view in later blogs...I promise!
What would cause my head to nod so vigorously with identification - a non fiction book of course! Many of us may remember Gary Zukav who penned the # 1 best seller the Seat of the Soul . Some folks may also be aware that he later co- authored The Heart of the Soul with Linda Francis. The messages in their book come closest to describing the teachings of Heart Centered Energetic Medicine within the Bodintuit experience. Although I have unknowingly travelled the road of Heart healing for quite some time I am delighted to hear and learn from this book's truth, which is so wonderfully articulated.
And talking about learning....
The co-authors speak of our human experience on this planet as a place of learning: "Earth School the Universe is your tutor and the classroom is your life."
Gary and Linda share the underpinnings behind this teaching and you're gunna wanna check out this......
Your task as a student in the Earth school is not to change your parents, boss, employees, or classmates, it is to change yourself." Gary and Linda then make a profound declaration that "Changing requires your heart." I so appreciate their recognition of the need for heart activation to be a successful student during our time in this Earth school.
Thankfully alignment with any book does not require total agreement with everything written....
Yes trying to change or control another person is a monumental waste to time so best to live "within my own hoola hoop".... so to speak. What my life has taught me so far, is my task in Earth school is not to change myself...it's to Prepare to be Changed. This may sound like I am quibbling and my life is much more harmonious when I turn to a Greater Authority or if you prefer Grace for transformation. This is where my reliance on the Great Teacher is paramount to experiencing LIFE (Love Is Forever Evolving/Enriching)
Okay back to where we do align......
"Emotional awareness is noticing what sensations you are feeling in your body and where these sensations and the locations are. They show how you are processing the energy flowing through your energy system. The departure from your energy system is a real event that produces physical experiences which can be observed easily when you focus your attention on your body."
This is not new knowledge as my studies in Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) attest. This medicine's philosophy dates back thousands of years. The understanding of qi (energy) is fundamental to TCM. Along with the importance of qi our organ and meridian systems reveal patterns which are on a relational basis, so if one area is challenged another one will be impacted. This connection is good news as when you treat one area you can support the others too!
The authors go on to clarify some important higher wisdom......
"All of your emotions originate in the same place - your energy system. Before you can change the way you process energy, you must become aware of how you are processing it.
Emotional pain of any kind is a reminder to stop and look inside. Each moment each decision is a moment of creativity". This creative approach is so integral to the Bodintuit teachings. Our physical sensations are signals.
Lets use a traffic light analogy to help explain this. Green light sensations often suggest you can move forward. Yellow light is asking us to pause and the Red is saying STOP. I can give an example of this using blog writing. While musing on the computer I will have peaceful sensations " feelings" with an awareness of my breath gently moving through. If however, I do not take a much needed break a yellow light signal in the form of pressure in my chest will appear along with shallow breathing. On the rare occasion I ignore this loving tap tap tap from the universal self a pain on the right side of my neck appears and very shallow breathing. So what is the emotion that I am may be unaware of.... well.... it could be frustration for not resting and it could also be fear and its cousin urgency generated by false deadlines.
This statement makes my heart sing.......
"Recognizing where and how energy leaves your energy system is the foundation of spiritual growth." I am joyous in having this acknowledged that our bodies are an integral aspect within the spiritual axis . This moves us away from the dualism "that we are not our body." I find this declaration quite a disconcerting viewpoint of the spiritual process. I would at least reframe it "we are not just our body" or "I experience having a body." Years of living an embodied life both personally and professionally has shown me that our bodies are a integral part of a foundation for healing: they are NOT separate they are Spirit made flesh!
The question to help clarify this understanding is.... are you called to wholeness with embodiment being a vital part of the path?
Here is another road trap.....
"The more intense an emotion is, the more painful are the sensations in your body and the more compulsive are your thoughts. If you have grown so accustomed to painful sensations in your body that you are not aware of what your body is feeling, pay attention to what you are thinking."
Yes indeed, we are now peeling back the layers of how our mind - body works...
There are several ways that the mind attempts to protect us from emotions that it perceives as too threatening to be experienced. We have already mentioned physical sensations being created to distract. The other distraction is obsessive /compulsive thinking. This is pain lurking too in another disguise. Mental pain comes in many different forms: addictions and repetitive OCD behaviours. I have sympathy for the mind body protection (MBP) mechanism inherent in an unconscious desire to avoid experiencing uncomfortable emotions. However, the solution being offered is not worth the experience of this "detour", at least not in the long run.
This leads us to an incredible truth being revealed..... "Emotional Awareness is preventive medicine."
"Medical treatment of a physical dysfunction is emergency treatment of a symptom that has developed over a long time. The cause of physical dysfunction wherever it appears, is a release of energy from your energy system in fear and doubt for an extended time. Releasing energy from your energy system in love and trust produces health and vitality. It lights up your centres differently it produces gratitude, joy, and fulfillment."
Many of us have gone to countless allopathic and complementary medical professionals not understanding what these supposed symptoms first of all were and secondly what they meant. How many remedies I took and treatments paid for trying to fix these symptoms, not realizing they were signals attempting to get my attention. No wonder this had been my designated route since my mindset was seeing these symptoms as a problem and was baffled as to how to get rid of them. Today I have a 180 degree turn and can welcome and respect these body signals with a friendly acknowledgement "to come on in and tell me your story."
A beautiful summary so far.......
"The medicine that your life offers you is your emotions and the medicine requires becoming intimately aware of your emotions - of the physical sensations that occur in your body and the thoughts that accompany them. In other words, paying attention to your energy system moment by moment is the healing medicine .This is the experience of energy leaving your energy system in love, and trust it is also the experience of authentic power."
Love and trust are words very close to my heart.....
When I say the word trust a visceral response of quiet strength and peace naturally appears. I would describe this feeling as having a body to it or simply (embodiment). I experience love as softer, awe-some, and delicious. I would describe it as expansive spaciousness that I access through my etheric heart. Those two work together as trust allows love to flourish and love feeds our capacity to trust. In truth love is a force not simply an emotion; so when we experience situations through the lens of love and trust we are harnessing a powerful energy.
Aaaah so how do you gain access to this energetic power?
"Intimacy is trusting that the universe will provide what you need, when you need it, and in the manner most appropriate for you."
This intimacy is created by our becoming aware that compulsive thoughts and physical sensation deserve to be investigated. This exploration can be aided by accessing creative tools: journaling and meditations being two of my faves. The caveat is that facing the sensations and the emotions alone is quite challenging. My own experience has revealed the need for community to rally the willingness and trust to enter into the space that appears to be too threatening or difficult; connecting with like-minded folks and skilled practitioners, who have the consciousness to see through these (MBP) tactics. I may use all of these tools or just a few depending on how severely I am activated. The very good news is that these (MBP) escapes can eventually be viewed as an ally once we have a better understanding of their underpinnings. We can now recognize that compulsive thoughts and uncomfortable physical sensations are not doing something to us they are doing something for us! In essence they are alerting us to become present and dig in to see what may be actually disturbing us. The power and inherent freedom lies within the unlocking of our truth, thus unblocking our vital energies. This clearing allows us to enter into a natural energetic state where we are re-stored emotionally, mentally and physically in divinely ordered timing.
If the last paragraph sounds too woowoo we can use the metaphor of a storm that causes an electrical blackout. Your body is the house, the blackout is the pain, the storm is our challenging situations that we wish to avoid, and the company workers called in to restore are our tools. This storm usually will affect the whole house not just one room. The workers must have expertise: access to correct information and tools to be able to restore the service to your space. The bigger the storm the more likelihood that the whole neighbourhood is affected. The more areas that are impacted the more diverse the team needed will be to get the job done! Each member may have a different skill or role and ultimately they are all on the same team. Lets remember that even the storm has its vital role and if there was no storm there would not be this opportunity!
Lastly....
This book has some neat exercises to support body awareness and the healing process that you may want to check out. I feel grateful to Gary and Linda who have travelled this heart -centered journey and all of you brave souls who are walking along side of me. We will explore their further teachings in a future blog.
Comments