Freedom

By Judith Roth

In the face of today’s information overwhelm, the practice for me always comes down to “Where am I putting my attention and awareness?”

Our quest for freedom lays in the conscious choices we make moment to moment in our daily lives. It’s easily understood that this constant barrage of negativity exuded by our communication systems sometimes takes our breath away, reinforcing the huge adrenaline state of fear.

How many of us purposely absorb ourselves in inspirational writings, prayer, in practices that heal our feeling of separation and find the freedom to move more deeply toward the divine?

Just as the barrage of negativity grows in this current political climate, it’s important to realize that equal amounts of energy that don’t receive publicity are going toward practices enhancing the transformation of consciousness and moving us all closer to healing the myth of separation.

I can feel the inspired energy shift.  In the face of storms of negativity promoted by the media, the  season ahead could reflect the shift in consciousness actively taking place on our planet.

The rippling effect of our practices, gatherings and devotion are powerfully transformational.

Find Judith Roth at Sky Temple in Yelapa, Mexico.  http://www.yogainyelapa.com/

On Prana

by Elizabeth Rainey

prāṇa: vital air, life breath, vitality, energy, power

We breath in and out hundreds of times a day and with this activity we animate our body-mind. Intertwined in the flow of the breath rides the mysterious force that enlivens us and allows us to move our bodies and create with our minds. It pulsates in every cell and coordinates all our activities. It is the sparkle in our eyes and the radiance of our being. The breath ... so fundamental, so magical, so easily forgotten.

Through our yoga practice we become more attuned to this subtle and foundational aspect of our being and learn how to nurture and honor it. Our āsana practice is designed to help free the body-mind of obstacles and blockages so that we have more energy available to us. Over time we begin to sense where it is stuck and where it moves freely and endeavor to bring it into a dynamic balance.  Through the practice of prāṇāyāma we cultivate a relationship with our subtle body and invite its potent currents to open, clear and infuse every aspect of our body-mind. The practice of meditation is the settling of our prāṇic body into the open space of our awareness where it can expand beyond the body-mind.

It is said that the link between body and mind is the breath. We know from experience that when we are agitated so is our breath and when our breath is deep and easy so is our body-mind. So, as we attend to our breath (and prāṇa) we access a deeper, more subtle and steady part of our being. And we begin to be able to infuse that steadiness into the constant dance of our body-mind and life.  We also acknowledge our  interconnectedness with every other living being on this planet in an intimate dance of inhale and exhale.

Breathe the light
Ride the wave of possibility that enters you moment by moment
Speak from that sacred place of connection
Honor this divine gift of breath with every action and thought
Be inspired.

See more about Rainey at elizabethrainey.com.