We are More than the Servings on our Plates ||

This was originally posted to There's Beauty in Recovery last week... jump through to the site at the end of the excerpt to read more...

Today, I write this having just had a meal that was composed of every color of the rainbow. It was beautiful for my body and for the planet and for the soul. It provided me energy and strength and kick-butt properties that help me fight cancer and support my immune system, all while tasting so darn good. Food is so much more than what we choose to put in our mouths. Food shapes our emotions, our sense of culture, our seasons and ages and time periods. In some countries, it makes a political statement. In others, it demonstrates a political affiliation, a movement, an opinion. We charge our global footprint based on the foods we consume, we liberate some and harm others. We can make change with food. Food? Yes. It is so much more complicated than the bite that passes between our lips. This. This is what changed my life. This is what made me fall in love with the enemy. This is so much more important than just me with my plate – this is my life and my future and my imprint on this beautiful, divine Earth... [keep reading]

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anything exciting going on on this wonderful hump day? comment below...

xxoo

Life as a Practice ||

This was originally posted to There's Beauty in Recovery a few weeks ago... jump through to the site at the end of the excerpt to read more...

I was sitting in yoga the other day, blissed out and listening to Sam Smith’s Nirvana and Safe with Me, when it occurred to be that in class, we are often told that there is no mastering a pose. When you think you have gone as far as you have gone, there is always a tweak, a transition, or a place to go further and explore a little more.

Huh. There is no mastering? So I don’t have to constantly feel like I am not enough or I don’t compare?

Yes! There is no need for feeling that sense of lack, because exactly where I am is enough. If one day I cannot even get into a pose I could just yesterday, that is okay, because I am exactly where I need to be in this very moment. I do not exist in the body of yesterday or the person of tomorrow. I exist in this very moment and that is all that matters.

With this vibrational shock to my core, I naturally took it to everyday life, and here’s what I learned. You can’t master life either. Nope. What happened yesterday, what you wore, what you ate, what you felt, all of that happened in the past. And you aren’t there anymore. You are here! You are reading this post and maybe realizing that life, like yoga, is just a practice. It’s not a practice for a big finale, either. Just a practice that is always ebbing and evolving and flowing into magnificence until one day you pop up in the most extraordinary version of an adventure and you realize woah – today it was all just meant to work. [read the rest...]

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Stay tuned to tomorrow's post -- a little coconut chocolate bliss recipe and then the benefits of coconut over the weekend! Woohoo. Love you all.

anything exciting going on on this wondrous hump day? comment below...

xxoo

Put Your Fingers Together for Yoga Wednesday!

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Our hands are magical, amazing wonders of the body that enable us to grasp and hold on to our hopes, dreams, and fears, both tangible and fantasy. These hands of ours hold far more power than we ever give them credit. Each area of the hand represents various emotions and behaviors, creating a map to our well being and consciousness.

That being said, there are gestures that can be done with our hands that unite our personal power, sense of clarity, feelings of love. These are called yoga mudras.

Woah ||

Like I said above, yoga mudras are gestures, often done using the hands, during a yoga practice or meditation (or the good ol’ day to day activities) that elicit various emotional states and levels of consciousness. They are often referred to as seals or locks and work to harness energy flow and reflexes in the body and brain.

Mudras work through our bio magnetic fields, body, and mental state; they clean out the channels within our body. By wiping out stagnant energy, we clear a path for our life force and individual truths. When mudras purify our bio magnetic field, we are shielded against negative forces. This now elevates our own vibrational power. On a very summed up level ... our vibrational power are the energies we put out into the universe like joy, happiness, and positive intention. 

The idea of mudras is to regenerate and transform the mind-body principle and expand our inner and outer consciousness. There are many many more mudras than the few I selected today, so be mindful, do what you like, and love yourself always.

The Hand ||

the individual finger | planetary energy

            Index | Jupiter

            Middle | Saturn

            Ring | Sun

            Pinky | Mercury

thumb | individual persona

The Touch ||

Passive || fleshy parts touch (meditation} there should be enough pressure that you feel a little energy and vibration, but not so much that your skin turns white

Active || fleshy part of thumb to nail of finger {daily routine or yoga practice} just slight pressure of the nail to the skin

The Mudras ||

Gian (or Gyan) Mudra || Seal of Knowledge || thumb and index finger touching

Planet || Jupiter: expansion & prosperity

Effects || flow with ease, have self-knowledge, be receptive, be prosperous

Good For || communicating difficult topics or through unflavored emotions; during a yoga sequence for heart openers

Shuni Mudra || Seal of Patience || thumb and middle finger touching

Planet || Saturn: responsibility & governs karma

Effects || patience, commitment, courage

Good For || actualize destiny, understand lessons; during a yoga sequence in forward folds

Surya Mudra ||Seal of Sun and Life || thumb and ring finger touching

Planet || Sun: energy & vitality   Uranus: intuition, strength & change

Effects|| boosts health and strength; activates internal vibrational power and light

Good for || radical change and breakthroughs; during a yoga sequence that is particularly challenging

Buddhi Mudra ||Seal of Mental Clarity ||thumb and pinky finger touching

IMG_1289

Planet || Mercury

Effects || creates capacity to clearly communicate; stimulates psychic development and intuitive abilities

Good For || relating to others; connecting to the words you wish to speak; having a clear mind; during a yoga sequence forward fold or final meditation

Prayer Pose || palms of both hands and fingers completely touching, thumbs press into sternum

Balances || left and right sides of brain and body

Right: masculine, active, sun Left: feminine, receptive, moon

Golden Triangle||index meets index, thumb meets thumb in a triangle

Breakthroughs & Manifestations

[pictures by yours truly]

*** sorry for the late post -- just had a really sucky sucky day -- but I'm bouncing back and finding strength ... its a great time for this post. Please excuse any blatant errors in the writing; my mind is just here there and everywhere, but the intention is pure xxoo