There's a Baba In My Dream

Originally, I was using this blog for Nia, what Nia has done for me and what it could do for you. For that I went to WordPress, here's the link for that. http://aumnation.wordpress.com

This blog, I'm going to use as my personal journey as a spiritualist. If you can call me that, I'm still unsure and I am not going to make any assumptions about that. However, this blog is based on my personal journey, my trial, tribulations, affirmations and awakenings. Does not mean it applies to you, or it may. I guess that depends on who this blog attracts.

This blog is called, "There's a Baba In My Dream." I named it so after a dream I had last week. The date was Friday, June 3rd, 2009. What a dream, so excited about this dream, not to say I'm special or anything, but the fact that I might actually be on the right path is enough for me to be excited about! And that I might be able to put the skills I have learned in the past decade to good use, to help heal some people on this wondrous planet, people who earned freedom of suffering! So, considering all the horrible mistakes I have made in my life and the resentment, the guilt and the illness from those emotions that has literally been eating me alive. I'm so thankful for this, because all the seeking I've been doing may actually be in the works.

See my intentions are quite clear now. I must help people, help people from suffering through discovering forgiveness, particularly forgiveness of self. Which I have found to be extremely hard to do considering the ego likes to play mind games with us and constantly screams at us saying, "You are suppose to be perfect! You really screwed up! You don't deserve forgiveness!" This obviously is not true. I don't care who you are, if your intentions are pure, and you are making more than an effort, forgiveness is yours. Just surrender to it, surrender to the work that has to be done to get to it. You know what it is, your physical self, your spiritual self is talking to you all the time.

Back to my dream, there were hundreds of people around this beautiful garden that faced a series of rocks almost like a mountain side in the background. There may have been a pond or pool of water in front. Luckily, I was sitting in front staring at the water, focused on it. Behind us, there was a green beautiful garden with woods and big boulders surrounding us. It was night time, it was dark outside of the garden, fire torches were blazing but they seemed to be a distance away. There was alot of people behind me, and two unlikely people, who I would of never really thought would be there was there with me in front and I had another friend who was back in the background.

I was distracted by the pool of water in front of me, when people started to cry with excitement, "It's him, it's him!" And even though I was distracted by the water, I heard him saying names. Then I heard him say my name. I looked up in surprise, shocked that this guy knows my name and he just smiles at me. Glorious beautiful smile!

I had a dream of Babaji Nagaraj!

There is a 2nd part of the dream, which I am convinced is a "Word Problem" ie a test. The energy was different in this dream. It felt uneasy, I felt uneasy and I think this was the "Ego" part of the test, something that I still have to work on. But more people were coming to see this guy in a building. He was sitting on this throne, it didn't even look like the same guy that I saw in the garden. I was going to see him there, hundreds of people around. I just wanted to walk past this guy, I felt on uneasy and he didn't look like he was happy with me at all. I think this was ego playing games with me again. I am unsure. So, shamefully enough I walked past this guy, past the doors and felt ill, ashamed of myself.

So, the word problem is, I really should not be ashamed of who I am. Babaji knows what is going on with me, I guarantee he does not care about my past, he only cares about who I am now. However, if I continue to beat myself up about it, I'm going to miss an incredible opportunity. I need to stop being ashamed, let it go, invite love into my heart. Surrender to what he has to offer and go with it. It belongs to me, it belongs to all of us, we just have to accept it and go with it.

If I see him, I'm giving him a big hug! Breathe out any fear or reservations and just surrender to a hug and a thank you for helping me work through this.

Namaste,
Tina

Enjoy It Or Don't Do It

But you now, you wear your soul on your sleeve, exhausting your energy, propping yourself up on a tree, mumbling, or bent over your desk, asleep. Heaven gives you a form and you wear it out by pointless argument. ~ Chuang Tzu (c.360 BC - c. 275 BC)


Before pilates today, I sat for about 5 minutes and sat on the yoga mat and breathed. Breathed thinking to myself, "I am Peace, I am Forgiveness, I am Peace!" When the Pilates Instructor came in, Linda. Love Linda, she is such a joy to be around, I love her pilates class. I also love the music she brings in, she really puts her heart into the class just with the music alone.

Well, before the class some of the people were complaining about exercising. I see it all the time, "Ok, time to work off the donuts." Glum looks are the faces as their feet pound the treadmills, the super grunts at the weight machines. Half of the time I have this look on my face like, "Ok buddy, the restroom is that way!" Uhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh, RRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR! Lift those weights! These people totally sound miserable and I'm like, "Listen, if you don't enjoy it, don't do it!"

This is one of the reasons I like Nia, because it's about enjoyment. Heck, I've gotten to the point where I apply the pleasure aspect of Nia to my workout on the treadmill, core exercises and lifting weights. So, instead of sounding as if I am constipated and I'm trying to take a dump as I lift weights, I say, "ahhhhhhhhhhhhhh," as if this is wonderful. Or when I hit the treadmills maybe I use some of the 52 moves, particularly the arm exercises on the treadmill. Or when I do ab work, I float up and down and around as I listen to my music.

People don't even look at me funny, they just admire me for my extra efforts and the beauty and grace I put in every movement.

Well, I suppose the moral of this story is in the title, so, Enjoy It Or Just Don't Do It!

Namaste!

Lift Those Toes, Love Those Knees

When I started my adventure into Nia I was so excited. The excitement had my adrenaline going and I was like, I’m going to learn these routines, start pounding the pavement and spread the news about this wonderful technique known as Nia. So, I got down to it and started to learn a routine known as, “Opal,” beautiful album and fun routine.

I learned the routine rather quickly, working on it whenever my son took a nap or at night after he went to bed. About a month later, I started noticing some problems; my knees were hurting! “Oh no!” This is not good, then I started getting depressed thinking I spent all this money and now I can’t do this. Well, being the determined person that I am I thought to myself, “Hey, there is got to be a way to solve this problem.”

First, I started to look into yoga, and I found an asana that helps the knees; Uktasana, the Chair pose. One of the articles said, when you are in this pose, lift your toes. Note: It was suggested to do this against a wall. So, I did and it helped a little bit. Then I started to research the Nia site, which I should of done in the first place! I found more articles about instructors having the same problem. One instructor suggested, when ever you are in “A” Stance or “Riding” Stance or even in the “Bow” Stance she suggested to lift your toes.

Give it a try, stand in “A” Stance and keep your toes down, notice where all the weight is. Then try lifting your toes, and notice where all the weight shifts too. It shifts to the back of the leg, which takes less pressure of your knees. Brilliant!

So, three weeks later, my knees feel great! I lift my toes all the time, I lift during Nia and I lift them outside of Nia as I am doing dishes or taking a shower.

So, remember the best cure is prevention! And since, 1 out of 4 people are getting their knees operated on and regretting it. My suggestion is a simple movement change, Lift Those Toes folks, Love Those Knees!

Music in the Soul

“Music in the soul can be heard by the universe.” ~Lao Tzu

The music in the soul can be seen in my Nia practice as I flow with the music. My motions are gentle, graceful yet strong. My intentions are pure, no thought just movement. Completely surrendering to spirit who has come out to play.

This is my soul, my soul claiming flesh that can be seen by the universe. Coming alive, feeling alive, becoming bliss.

Butterfly

Once Zhuangzi dreamt he was a butterfly, a butterfly flitting and fluttering around, happy with himself and doing as he pleased. He didn't know he was Zhuangzi. Suddenly he woke up and there he was, solid and unmistakable Zhuangzi. But he didn't know if he was Zhuangzi who had dreamt he was a butterfly, or a butterfly dreaming he was Zhuangzi. Between Zhuangzi and a butterfly there must be some distinction! This is called the Transformation of Things. (2, tr. Burton Watson 1968:49)

I like to look at my life as if I was a butterfly. Starting out as a caterpillar, crawling through the dirt and the muck, which truly represent the trials and tribulations of life. Entering a cocoon like state, which represents the time of reflection, the transformational period and learning to let go. Then the final stage, becoming the butterfly, finally letting go of all aspects of life. My wings floating on the wind that blows. Free.

This outlook of course can apply to all stages of life, for instance, it can represent a project at work. First, you discover your companies needs or problems, then you develop a project management team, which could be consider the cocoon like state, the transformational period and then you become the butterfly and watch your business boom.

Or perhaps you can look at it as a self-healing process; say if you are working through anger issues. The anger could be the caterpillar stage where you go through the hardships that possibly caused your anger. Then there is the cocoon stage where you reflect on what has happened to cause you such discomfort that you lash out. Then finally, there is the butterfly stage where you learn to no longer have an attachment to your anger, calm down and be free of it. There are so many possibilities as to where you can apply the butterfly stages.

I am the butterfly, in love with the world, in love with its possibilities. I am filled with hope that we are in the cocoon like state right and soon about to enter the butterfly state. In love with the world.