The Suchness of Now

My dear friend to whom I never met, but I know we are kindred spirits shared this video with me.  It's with Eckert Tolle, The Now:

Oh, So Sweet! Svadhisthana

With Nia there are a lot of healing movements pertaining to all the chakras and in this session we will focus with the second chakra known as the Svadhisthana or the sacral chakra or even the sex chakra.  As we are going beyond the correspondence, please check out the following link if you want to learn more about the correspondences: http://www.chakra-colors.com/Sexual-Chakra/

The Svadhisthana involves emotions, sexuality and fluidity/flexibility of the body.  It is located at the sacrum, genitals, affecting hips, knees and the lower back. So, movement will be based on those areas. But, before we get into the movements let’s discuss what creates an unhealthy sacral charka.

What Creates an Unhealthy Svadhisthana

As Svadhisthana chakra is ruled by water, water-signifying emotions. Know that, water should naturally flow. So, think of good, healthy flowing water that is drinkable. Where stagnant water is undrinkable because it’s poisonous. So, the question needs to be asked, “How does one become undrinkable?” 

A unhealthy Svadhisthana chakra signifies restrictions. Parents who are restrictive equal a child not allowed to speak.  I’m sure many of you heard the saying, “A child should be seen and not heard.” This child will not be allowed to speak out when he or she needs to be heard. This child will cry and will not get the response that she is crying for. Neglect plays a big role in this child’s life when proper nurturing is needed.

This child will be denied the creativity and live in an environment that shuns creativity. These restrictions will deny the good healthy natural pleasure that balances us emotionally, physically and spiritually.  Children love to interact with their parents, they loved to be heard, and they should be heard. Plus, children are naturally creative, we can learn a lot from a child’s natural creativity. Parents should be receptive to their child needs. Otherwise, as Anodea Judith puts it so well in her literature, a child will become emotionally illiterate.

So, if this programming is set into our minds and our bodies, what are the consequences?

If this chakra is deficient, we are subjected to fear:

• Fear of change,
• Fear of contact,
• Fear of intimacy,
• Poor social skills,
• Feeling emotionally numb
• Avoids pleasure, looks at pleasure like its evil.
• Lacking that spark to life, lacking desire, and passion.
• Depression

If this chakra is excessive:

• Very sensually driven, prone to sexually act out
• Sexually addictive
• Constantly have to be stimulated by sights and sound.  Watches a lot of tv, constantly going to the movies, constantly listening to music. They have to be stimulated all the time and can’t sit or be silent for a minute.
• Drug addiction/alcohol addiction
• Addicted to drama, only feels alive when drama happens.
• Easily hurt, always off on emotional roller coasters.
• Have a tendency to emotionally attach to a person, and can go as far as stalking them because they feel that this person is the only one who can satisfy them emotionally.
• Manipulates people emotionally, seducing people to get their needs met.

What happens to the body?

Emotions play a pivotal role with the physical body and its muscles. As emotions must naturally flow like water, if it doesn't then naturally there will be physical consequences. Stagnation will occur; the body becomes stiff, losing its flexibility and we are only as healthy as we are flexible.

To go deeper, check out “The Chakra System, A Complete Course in Self-Diagnosis and Healing.” By Anodea Judith. There she will go deeper into the Svadhisthana, how if affects your desires, emotions and fear of pleasure. It’s a fantastic course where she breaks down the chakras, what causes excessive or deficient chakra, mental dis-ease and health dis-ease, blockages, the psychology behind each chakra that affects us, plus ways to heal them.

Healing the Svadhisthana with Your Nia Practice

Start off mentally focused on the idea of “change.”  Change is pivotal in healing the Svadhisthana. So, invite change into your life. Since emotions are related to desire, focus on those types of emotions and work through them with your Nia practice.  Now, if you notice that you get caught up in those emotions and you start to cry.  It’s ok, it’s good that you are crying, however if you feel that those emotions are overwhelming.  Focus on a word, that word can be anything.  It can be the name of your deity, saint, or just a word.  The purpose of the word is to ground you. Chant it in your mind or out loud.  Sometimes just saying “Ahhhhhhhhh” is a great way to ground.

Nia Movements:

When ever the opportunity occurs and it will because Nia works with all 13 joints, which includes the hip joints.  Focus intently on your hips movements.  Hip bumps, pelvic circles, free movements that involve hip movements. This is the time to connect to the emotions that involve the Svadhisthana. Nurture those emotions, recognize them for who they are then, recycle those emotions by sending them into the earth then ground. Ground them by pushing those emotions down through your legs with pelvic pushes.  Emotions will spiral into the earth.

As you continue your Nia practice, you will start to feel more natural ways to move that energy, those emotions and go with it.  This is what Nia is about, it’s natural, it’s The Body’s Way.

Chanting During Nia

– Vam is the mantra for the Svadhisthana.  While you are practicing any Nia movements or you feel compelled to, chant “Vam” vocally or mentally.

Replenishing and Reprogramming with Healthy Emotions

Now that you have released unhealthy emotions, it’s time to replenish/reprogram your body with new emotions.  Those of you who have taken Nia will understand the next bit of info.

• When you extend your arms to the heavens, invite joy and happiness into your heart.
• When you extend your arms to the community then embrace yourself, embrace joy and happiness.
• When you extend your hands to heavens, use your body to spiral happiness and joy throughout your body. Shifting your upper then lower body, spiral head to toe pushing that energy throughout your body saying to yourself, I accept and deserve joy and happiness.

When ever your work with space, your space around you, and the three different levels extend joy and happiness energy to your aura.

Sensation Scientist

Ok, some people maybe looking for my chakra posts.  Most of them are on wordpress and I am in the process of switching accounts.  It's just right now I am deciding the best possible route to go with "ALL" my blogs.  So, if you are interested in the Chakra blogs, please go to the following link:  http://aumnation.wordpress.com/chakra-blogs/


The above charkas are not done yet, I just seem to be going through a tadbit of a writer's block. The creativity has been rerouted in another direction. 

Debbie Rosas
Creator of Nia

So, let's talk about "Sensation Scientist!"  I am so thrilled about this topic that Debbie Rosas the creator of Nia has brought about.  I haven't even gone through the course yet, but, just the title alone has excited me and sucked me completely into the topic.  "Sensation" meaning senses, perception and awareness.  Scientist meaning person who studies or practices any of the science or scientific methods."Wow!" "Outstanding, Wow!"


I am so thrilled with this.  Simply because this is something I've been so intrigued with physically, mentally, spiritually.  The sensations that has happened with my body during certain life processes and experiments.  What a pleasure for my analytical mind. 


So, what does being a sensation scientist mean to me; past, present, future? 


Past Sensation Scientist:
As a child, it would of explained the awareness I had "before" I was getting into trouble and my stomach would grow ill. Signaling that  trouble was ahead. 


As a teen, it would explain my hormones going out of whack and having the desires that I had that got me into a lot of trouble. If I were to be conscious of the sensations, and not a slave to my desires, perhaps I could have avoided the trouble.  Who knows, maybe - maybe not. 


Present Sensation Scientist:
As an adult, it would mean being conscious of the mistakes I made or make and changes I am going through now. Being conscious of my mind, recognizing  how those memories of regret affects me physically and learning to let go and change. Initializing the Nia Technique known as R.A.W. - Relaxed body, Alert Mind and Waiting Spirit.  




Future Sensation Scientist:
As I grow towards being a crone, it explains the freedom that invites me to live my life and be myself where in the past I was denied. Allowing myself some freedom as I reached a mature point in my life. Utilizing all those techniques I stumbled onto as I searched for truth. Being the seeker that I was, then becoming the butterfly.




What Does Being a Sensation Scientist Mean to Me...  
What I like about this the most is, anyone can be a sensation scientist. That everyone brings a unique experience to the table. It means that there are no rules or boundaries, because to me, the same solution does not apply to every person. Each person is unique. Each person is invaluable and has lot to offer.


A Sensation Scientist defies the limitations of the judging mind, the critical mind. As a matter of fact, the judging mind would almost be a sin. 


Most of all, the Sensation Scientist will become the real pleasure, the real joy and extend that energy outside of themselves so that it will bring joy and pleasure to those who are ready for it. 

Claiming Your Ground – Muladhara

I haven’t been posting or blogging like my usual self due to I’ve been studying chakras.  My intent is to apply chakra healing to my Nia practice, especially since Nia HQ eliminated Chakra Dancer from their routines because of copyright issues.  Luckily, I have a Nia Instructor who is guiding me through the Chakra Dancer process.  I’ve also been studying Anodea Judith’s Chakra System books, mainly because she works off of Arthur Avalon’s book, “The Serpent Power.”  A man I take highly serious, not only because I have studied his teachings for the past 10 years, but also because Ram Dass and Bhagavan Das recommends his teachings.


This blog is dedicated to the root chakra, technical name: Muladhara.  Now, if you want to learn the correspondence to the chakra’s check out the following link:http://oneyogalife.wordpress.com/2008/05/19/a-brief-description-of-the-chakras/

In this blog, I am going beyond the correspondence and discuss the healing emotions relating to the Muladhara chakra, applying it to your Nia practice to strengthen the healing process.

What Creates an Unhealthy Chakra

Muladhara is a chakra about survival instincts, things that we are not thinking about yet we have this innate intelligence ie instinct.  This chakra is molded and shaped starting from the time in the womb till about 12 months of infancy.  So, it’s starts with how your mother feels about her maternity and on.  Complicated birthing process may weaken the Muladhara, where healthy births create a healthy first chakra.
If a mother is unhappy about the pregnancy or she is having complications or she may feel abandoned or alone because she herself is unwanted. Her feelings and fears make her body contract and when her body is contracted, the muscles in the womb contract and feel tight and tense.  Instinct tells the baby being here is uncomfortable.


When baby comes out of the womb and is not greeted by loving touches, kept warm, supported, held comfortably by loved ones, physically abused, malnourished, overfed, and/or if the parents fears are passed down onto the child. The infant will remain contracted and mistrust is developed. Unfortunately, these emotions will naturally be programmed into their minds and can stay with them life long.


The mental state of a person with an unhealthy first chakra are; frequent fear, fear of change, anxiety, spacey, lack of discipline, restlessness and laziness.  Physical states would include either obesity or underweight.  These people will have a tendency to hoard and be materialistic.


Depending on the individual, the chakra can be excessive or deficient and the body reacts creating various illnesses. Excessive means your body will not release energies, deficient means we are not in the body; we don’t want to be in the body, we fear the body.


To go deeper, check out “The Chakra System, A Complete Course in Self-Diagnosis and Healing.” By Anodea Judith. A fantastic course where she breaks down the chakras, what causes excessive or deficient chakra, mental dis-ease and health dis-ease, blockages, the psychology behind each chakra that affects us, plus ways to heal them.

Healing the Muladhara with Nia

I have noticed with a lot of the Nia routines, Carlos and Debbie Rosas choreographed movements that work with the chakras as their intentions are to add various holistic practices and apply it to Nia.  This is what makes Nia so unique and you can add anything you have learned here to your Nia practice. As you grow with your Nia practice some these movement will naturally become apparent to you.  If you are taking a Nia class you are on your way to healing or connecting to spirit, healing your mind and body.  You obviously want the change, so we applaud you in your efforts!  A healthy you creates a healthy planet as we are all connected.


So, let’s start with the basics:


Since the Muladhara is connected to the feet, legs and the base of the spine, a lot of the Nia movements deal with those areas.


The Focus and Intent – If your instructor has not set a focus or you just want to set your own focus, think of something about yourself that you want to heal. Concentrate on that focus during your Nia practice.


The “Step In” – Let go of any distractions to help focus.


Connecting To Space/Your Space – Everyone who has taken Nia knows what this means.  Use this as an opportunity to collect and gather thoughts and emotions you want to heal. Visualize yourself connecting to these emotions, loving these emotions no matter how hurtful these emotions are, and then prepare yourself to recycle them into the earth.


Closed Stance/Open Stance – a great opportunity to root yourself, grounding your energy.  When you are in closed stance visualize roots extending from your feet deep into the earth. Here is an opportunity to recycle any emotions or energy needed to heal into the earth.  Visualize all those feelings draining from your body through the roots to be grounded into the earth.  The earth has the power to cleanse that energy, recycle it into something positive.


Creating a Spiral Through Your Legs – Starting from the tailbone, activate your Muladhara by pushing your pelvis in a downward motion.  This will create a spiral of energy through your legs.  Here is a good opportunity to take emotions, that something that needs to heal and spiral it into the earth.


Spinal Rolls and Undulating the Spine – Roll/Undulate as your Nia Instructors instructs you to.  Feeling gravity connecting and rooting you to the earth as you push down with your feet. With your upper body you awaken the chakras as you roll upwards feel yourself lift and grow out of the earth.  Energy anew.


Chanting During Nia – Lam is the mantra for the Muladhara.  While you are practicing any Nia movements or you feel compelled to chant “Lam” vocally or mentally.

Arise Medicine Warriors - Be An Agent of Calm!

Listen to this as you read this blog:
http://soundcloud.com/soundtrack_dxb/song-for-agents-of-calm

I've been so upset and so furious about this thing going on in the Gulf that I got swept up in Maya, the Illusion. I should have been more focused on alleviating the suffering with all the murder that is going on. Suffering in not just the people, but suffering of our brother and sisters of the sea. My focus needs to change, the focus needs to be more on awakening the unconscious minds. The focus should be warning our brothers and sisters of the sea of the danger that BP is currently doing to the gulf and that they should find a new home.

The focus needs to be on the universe and listen to her voice. I believe the only way we can heal this planet is - we have to become conscious of all nature, of all sentient beings. To do this, we need to put ourselves in the place of those who we affect. We need to be Agents of Calm.


We need to heal the wound, or the cancer will be literally burned off by the Universe to save herself.

We can respond with great fear, or we can respond with great love and this is our option. ~Eden Sky

Stepping Outside the Flesh

I was thinking about this the other day... So, once we drop our bodies who are we really? Are we man, woman, white, black, Asian, Mexican, Buddhist, Jew? Are we any of these once we move on? And if we aren't any of these things, why do we consistently identify with them now? What's up with these attachments? What's the point? Yes, I am a woman and a mother, people identify with me this way. Heck, most people who look at me think I'm a bitch. They assumed an identity for me, not even giving me a chance.

So, the question comes about - once I am dead, am I still mother?

“Identity is theft of the self.” ~Estee Martin

I'm thinking these attachments we have, well gee, next to everything on the face of the planet is no way to live. Yes, I am a mother, yes, I am a woman, but I am something alot more profound than that. I am spirit, this amazing piece of the universe. Once I drop this body I become this energy that is unchangeable and eternal. It is believed that our soul is our link to the Godform, the Universal Spirit, what ever identity you choose to give your God, Goddess, what have you. So, as a mother, I look at my son and I should see the same incredible unchangeable spirit in him as in myself. I not only have a responsibility to that little man, but I also have responsibility to that great spirit within him. Honoring his spirit, I honor the Universal Spirit.

The same would apply to all spirits - like a cow or a dog, for instances. Actually, it was a dog that inspired this blog. A man decided to leave a pregnant dog outside with no water, no food and no shade on a hot summer day. Animal rescue workers tried to save the dog, but she died. All the owners could say to the news crew is, "It's just a dog!"

I hear this phrase alot, "It's just a cat, it's just an animal." No, really, it is something so much more - it is a spirit. It is a piece of the Universal Spirit. It is a piece of God. Now, alot of people do not want to hear this, because of the "guilt" factor. Reasons are, most people want to eat meat and guilt and meat do not work well together. So, if they look at an animal and identify with this animal as an equal, then eating this animal will be impossible. They are most likely hungry.

Well, the Western Indians did not have this problem when he gave thanks to the animal he killed at the time it was hunted. He would thank the animal for sparing it's life for the meat they would eat. And thank the animal for his flesh for keeping the hunter's family warm for the winter. Now, that's what I call respect. Not the horror that goes on the plate today.

What we are doing today is the greatest sin to any God of any religion. Simply because we are spitting in God's face for the lack of respect for the spirit within each sentient being. I'm not just talking about these farm factories and these people who are abusing these animals, these children, these women and men. I'm talking about everything on the face of this planet and beyound.

Now think about this... The man who said that about his dog, "It's just an animal," he was a black man. Now only a few hundred years ago, a slave owner would of said, "It's just a N word." (Note: Keeping it politically correct, I despise that form of identification.) Not only did the slave owner disrespect the slave, he also disrespected his own God and I do mean the slave owner's God. That slave, once he dropped his body, he was spirit, he was God.

If all things were honored, if all beings were honored as if they were God, this planet would be so much different. We would not have a population problem, we would not have a food shortage problem, we would not have murders, rapes and pedophilia. We would not consume torture. We consume torture ever day - movies, news, dinner. Our own minds become torture with anxiety and depression medicines. This is what happens when you do not honor all things as God, simply because of our attachment to our identities.

So, why not step out of the flesh and do not look at yourself as human. Do not look at humans as human, do not look at animals as animals. The same with plants, same with this planet. Look at their spirit, look at them as if they are God. (To whomever you worship or not worship in some cases - whatever works for you. I honor them all.)

How about stepping out of the flesh for a few minutes? What will you identify with then? And ask yourself this, why do you have to identify with anything?


Namaste,
iSpiritDancer

“The reason why the universe is eternal is that it does not live for itself; it gives life to others as it transforms” ~Lao Tzu

iSpiritDancer's Wavespell Sutra Prayer

I am working on a prayer or my own heart sutra or wavespell what have you... I'm basing these off of the 7 chakras and then end in the latter part of the 13 Wavespells.

I wanted to create a prayer to share with my son with the intention of bringing people to consciousness and to offer our own selves relief from the insanity that surrounds us. A way to focus perse.

I believe that seeding people for evolution is possible. It has happened to me and the most intriguing people has come into my life and still does. They have opened my heart and mind to things that I never even fathom.

But beforehand, let's set a tone:

Chakra tone: A mind at peace, a mind centered and not focused on harming others, is stronger than any physical force in the universe. ~Wayne Dyer

Wavespell tone:
“The reason why the universe is eternal is that it does not live for itself; it gives life to others as it transforms.” ~Lao Tzu

Chkr 1: ~May I learn from my past then let go of it.
Chkr 2: ~May I not be a slave to my desires.
Chkr 3: ~May my will be free from distractions.
Chkr 4: ~May my heart be a beacon of love.
Chkr 5: ~May I speak only truths.
Chkr 6: ~May I see past all illusions.
Chkr 7: ~May my thoughts be guided by Universal Truths.

Extending Beyound (8) ~May all sentient beings comprehend suffering.
Extending Beyound (9) ~May all sentient beings conscious of their actions.
Extending Beyound (10) ~May all sentient beings become sincere.
Extending Beyound (11) ~May all sentient beings be free of attachments.
Extending Beyound (12) ~May all sentient beings be free from suffering.
Extending Beyound (13) ~May all sentient beings achieve liberation.

I may modify this in the future, but it feels pretty "right" now.