You are bigger than your wheel of emotions

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wheel of emotion

Plutchik’s Wheel of Emotions

Lately, I’ve incorporated a new ritual into my morning practice.  As soon as I wake up, even before I’m out of bed, I recite a set of affirmations from A Journey into Wholeness given to me by Benita Esposito.  One of those affirmations is, “I find myself big enough to contain my emotions, and know that I am larger than they are.”  It’s an interesting approach to bringing awareness to emotions as part of our being.  Similar to Rumi’s guest house.

Understanding our emotions helps us process them on a conscious level, so our bodies don’t have to experience them on a physical level.

Robert Plutchik, a psychologist and professor at the University of Florida developed an evolutionary theory of emotion supposing that emotions have an evolutionary history. He believed there to be eight primary emotions - anger, fear, sadness, disgust, surprise,anticipation, trust, and joy. Like natural selection, he believed that our emotional responses adapted overtime, and were passed on as part of the psychoevolutionary process.  Think the psychological version of Darwin. He even developed a ‘Wheel of Emotions” graphic to illustrate how nuanced our emotions can be.

He suggested 8 primary bipolar emotions: joy versus sadness; anger versus fear; trust versus disgust; and surprise versus anticipation. Additionally, his circumplex model makes connections between the idea of an emotion circle and a color wheel. Like colors, primary emotions can be expressed at different intensities and can mix with one another to form different emotions.

The theory was extended to provide the basis for an explanation for psychological defence mechanisms; Plutchik proposed that eight defense mechanisms were manifestations of the eight core emotions.

I find the theory fascinating, particularly how he incorporates the light and the dark aspects of emotions like surrender.  Even though it’s quite colorful, it’s still a little two ‘defined’ for my taste.  It would have been great (if he were alive) to see a collaboration between he and Eckhart Tolle.

The point is, no matter what emotions you experience, you can ride them out by being bigger than they are.

“Rather than being your thoughts and emotions, be the awareness behind them.”

- Eckhart Tolle

Namaste.

- Your Charmed Yogi

(Photo/Quote: Wikipedia)

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Let’s pretend life is a cassette tape

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mixed tape

If you’re over the age of 25, you probably remember listening to music on cassette tapes and the awesomeness and tribulations that went with it.

Skipping forward wasn’t as easy as pressing an arrow, there was skill involved.  Go too far, and you missed the awesome intro of Danger Zone.  Stop short, and you’re playing a game of trying to find the exact end of the song.

The beauty was that we didn’t realize how life was pacing us vs. today, when we try to out-pace life.  You appreciated the next song and the anticipation WAS the journey.

So, just for today, see if you can bring awareness to the times you’re trying to ‘skip to the next song’ and allow yourself to wait it out.  I promise, the next moment is there – live in this one.

Namaste,

- Your Totally Awesome Charmed Yogi

(Photo: Mark Wisz)

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Beautiful: Yoga is for Everyone - Sarah Shaffer's Story on Yoga with Down Syndrome

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Reblogged from Christa in New York:

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Too much of the media circus around yoga leads people to believe that it is a practice exclusively for super models and contortionists. Nothing could be further from the truth. U.S. News & World Report ran a story about Sarah Shaffer, a high school student who practices yoga to relax and improve her running.

The full story is below but the last line is the one that got me choked up.

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Solar eclipse yoga (and a new moon too)

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solar eclipse

Today, we’ll experience the annular solar eclipse.  The moon will block part of the sun today for a sensational celestial sight for those who can see it.  So what does this mean for yogis?

Like during a full moon, energies fluctuate greatly during solar and lunar eclipses . Emotions can be heightened, and we can feel overwhelmed or even drained — even for several days before and after the eclipse.

We, ourselves, may feel these shifts intensely or we may simply feel the effects of everyone and everything around us in heightened states. Like full moon yoga, there are many different interpretations of what, if any, yoga to do.

For me, I’m often so full of energy that I’m buzzing like a kid on sugar only to crash from the overwhelming build up within me.  So, I tend to get on the mat and practice a steady vinyasa flow FULL of breath linked with movement.  This both helps to release and draw on some of the amazing energy circulating at the time in a healthy, productive way.

It’s also a great time to experience connectedness, and with the new moon, it’s a great time to shed what’s no longer serving you mentally and spiritually, and start anew.

Here’s a practice you can do for the next few days in celebration of the solar eclipse and new moon.  I recommend focusing on your breathing, flowing from each pose to the next on an in breath and out breath.  Feel free to sneak a vinyasa or your favorite transition in between the standing poses and inversions.

1. Kapalabhati Breathing - Here’s a video for those unfamiliar with the practice

2. Gentle warm-up – Whatever creatively moves through you to get the energy flowing.  Perhaps some cat cow, or hip circles or even some meditative, child’s pose to release tension.

3. 3 – 5 Rounds Surya Namaskar A Sun Salutations – There’s  a chart within this post if you need a reminder of the poses.

4. 3 -5 Rounds of Chandra Namaskar (moon salutations) – Here’s a post with a chart if you’re unfamiliar with moon salutations.

5. Tree pose - Hold for 5 breaths on each side.  Don’t be surprised if you’re wobbly, just stay with it. If you topple out of the pose, just get back in and laugh.

6. Child’s pose – Hold for as long as you need

7. Inversion of choice – You may want to pick something like headstand or shoulderstand.  If you’re energy is off and you’re feeling weak, go for supported shoulderstand with a block under your sacrum

7. Gomukhasana Cow Face Pose - Hold for 10 – 15 breaths, and switch sides

8. Savasana - Give yourself 10 minutes to integrate your practice

9. Meditation – If you have a meditation practice already, try doing 15 – 20 minutes.  If not,  you may choose simply to sit still and allow yourself to be present; you may choose to silently repeat a mantra or send an intention out with the new moon.  Or you could try this Solar Eclipse Kundalini meditation by CatalystYogi.

Enjoy your practice whatever you do, and take time to observe the energy swirling around you and within you.

Namaste.

- Your Charmed Yogi

(Photo: Colleen Pinski / Caters News) 

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Take fear into your infinite heart

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buddhist meditating on heart

Our hearts have an infinite capacity for loving, healing, learning, and illuminating. When we’re angry, we can feel our hearts close, and when we forgive we can feel our entire bodies soften.

When we are in pain, we can let down the walls around our hearts and let others in.  And, when we are afraid, we can open our hearts and let it swallow our fears, only to shine brighter after.

To fight pain, fear and anger is to give those things power, to deny part of ourselves. Instead, take those things into your heart where they are acknowledged, welcomed, accepted, comforted and transmuted.

Namaste.

- Your Charmed Yogi

(Photo: Tumblr/Ozone Baby)

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Worry about your Self

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Know thyself bhagavad gita

When I was little and I was too invested in what someone thought of me, or what someone else did in comparison to myself, my mother would say “Just worry about you.”

Often, this was said when I was concerned that my brother had an extra Oreo or was able to get away with something I previously hadn’t, but the saying still plays out in my mind — often.

If I catch myself pontificating about why someone isn’t meeting an expectation, I parrot her words to myself, “Just worry about yourself.”  We are the only ones we can control after all, and even that is questionable. We can control our own actions and how we respond to situations, but not the situation itself (unless directly caused by our actions).  As Thich Nhat Hanh once said, “My actions are my only true belongings. I cannot escape the consequences of my actions. My actions are the ground on which I stand.”

It might initially sound very ‘un-yoga’ to suggest that you worry about yourself, but I’m not talking about becoming self-centered, without regard for others.  But, rather focus on knowing your Self by acting with love for others, and not allowing your mind or ego dictate your worth.

The Bhagavad Gita talks, in length, about the “Self,” particularly about getting to know the infinite self — the self that is beyond thought, beyond change.  Through meditation and living a sattvic life (a life of goodness and purity), we will know the self that transcends manifestation and destruction.

Sounds ethereal and unattainable, but I like to break it down into individual moments.  How can I know myself?  I can become aware of my emotions, actions and reactions.  I can attempt to observe these actions as a witness.  I can do my best to act with purity of heart.

We can also become aware of when we experience ‘want’ and compare ourselves to others.  On the yoga mat, for example, worry about yourself — really.  Don’t worry about what your neighbor is doing or what you think your practice should be.  Just focus on your breath, your SELF.

I came upon a YouTube video recently that reminded me how much I use this method of quelling desire.  It’s of a little girl named August who’s trying to get her seat belt buckled all by herself. It’s hilarious.  You’ll watch it over and over like I did.

When we truly know our own ‘Self’, we transcend reaction and suffering.  And, we become infinite.

Namaste.

Your Charmed Yogi

(Photo: Uplifted Vibrations)

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Stand still among the trees this Earth Day

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stand still in the forest

Stand still. The trees ahead and bushes beside you

are not lost. Wherever you are is called Here,

And you must treat it as a powerful stranger,

Must ask permission to know it and be known.

The forest breathes. Listen. It answers,

I have made this place around you.

If you leave it you may come back again, saying Here.

No two trees are the same to Raven.

No two branches are the same to Wren.

If what a tree or a bush does is lost on you,

You are surely lost. Stand still. The forest

Knows where you are. You must let it find you.
- David Waggoner, Lost
Happy Earth Day & Namaste.
- Your Charmed Yogi
(Photo: DeviantArt)
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Yoga for lower crossed syndrome

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yoga for lower cross syndrome

Got low back pain?  It might not be your back. It might be your glutes – or lack thereof.

If you work in an office, chances are you sit a lot, maybe even all day.  Chronic sitting can lead to muscle imbalances and even cause some muscles to go completely dormant.  If you’d noticed that you suffer from chronic lower back pain, but haven’t been able to pinpoint the cause, your lower back pain may be due to lower cross  or lower crossed syndrome.  The good news is, you CAN recover with some exercises throughout the day, and a yoga sequence designed to fire the muscles that have gone night-night.  Continue reading →

When you’re lost, find home in your own heart

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heart

At some point in our lives we’ve all felt that sense of  ’Where do I belong?’  There may be a catalyst like the loss of a parent, a move, a divorce or no catalyst at all.  Chances are, you’ve had that feeling of being lost or untethered and wondered where you’re supposed to be. And the answer is, you’re exactly where you’re supposed to be.

Sometimes we feel lost because of decisions we’ve made, and other times we feel lost because life has made decisions for us.  There’s a quote by Henry David Thoreau that helps me when I’m feeling out of place, “Not until we are lost do we begin to understand ourselves.”

Feeling lost can manifest itself in a number of ways from skipping time on your mat to feeling anxious, sad or alone.  But, if you can see the positives during this time, you will see that it’s during these times that we learn the most about ourselves.

Think about a time that you got lost in your car only to discover a fascinating new place that you didn’t even know existed.  We can find the same gems within ourselves; places in our hearts that we didn’t know were there all along.

Are you feeling lost?  The only GPS you need is your own heart.

Try writing a letter or a journal entry about the sensations and emotions you’re feeling, and examine what part of you may be looking for your attention or acceptance.

Namaste.

- Your Charmed Yogi

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Photo: Etsy/IScreenYouScreen 

The Way of the Buddha

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Reblogged from Zen Flash:

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It is like going into town. One can approach from the north, from the southeast, from many roads. Often these systems just differ outwardly. Whether you walk one way or another, fast or slow, if you are mindful, it is all the same. There is one essential point that all good practice must eventually come to- not clinging. In the end, all meditation systems must be let go of.

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