The Heart of Yoga

I would like to share a lovely, expressive poem from Dana Faulds, Go In and In: Poems From the Heart of Yoga http://www.amazon.com/Go-Poems-Heart-Danna-Faulds/dp/0974410608

Lead me to the song of my heart

and help me to sing it unashamed.

Help me to stand before you in bare consciousness,

unflinching in your light.

Lead me to the expression of my soul

in all its fullness.

Let me embrace my humanity,

yet be anchored in divinity.

Help me unfetter the joy that I am.

Lead me to the stillness of my soul

where love and union dwell as one.

May I uplift others in the recognition

of their magnificence.

May I see the vastness of my own soul,

and embrace it, unafraid and whole.

She also wrote: "Writing became my way of accessing the spark of the divine that I believe resides within each one of us. That spark, with its wisdom, energy and truth was always within reach. It was the fuel for poems, life decisions, consciousness and being fully alive."

Her sentiments deeply resonate with me. My thoughts after reading her poetry:

Yoga is a beautiful life metaphor.

Lifes' challenges.

Groundedness. Groundlessness.

The journey. The destination.

Lovers. A marriage of two souls.

Soulmates. Vows.
Good with the bad.
For better or for worse.

The rug pulled out from under you.

Betrayal. Angst. Confusion.

Your life turned upside down.

Fear. Hope. Forgiveness.

I'm reaching for it.

Unearthing. Truth revealed.

Making space for the unfolding . . .

Telling our stories through poetry is part of our healing into wholeness. What's your story? Is yoga helping you to express it? I would love to hear how other souls feel about reaching for their hearts!

Namaste

The Unstruck Heart Chakra

There is a place I know deep in my heart unstruck by the blows of life. I must go there, roam and listen for answers.

This is my sentiment about the heart chakra that holds so true for me in my life lately. The anahata or heart chakra is the space within your heart that is omnipresent and unchanging. Anahata in sanskrit means "unstruck." I find this so graceful in an ever-changing world of impermanence.

How warming to know that it is always available to us: so take a deep breath, clench your fist, place it in the center of your chest, bow your head as you exhale, and touch and feel its 'green' warmth! It is always what it is. We are always who we are.

Open your heart, listen and follow its longings. Find your calling. It has already chosen you. Meditate on it. Discover what moves you. Lao Tzu said, "At the center of your being you have the answer; you know who you are and what you want."

In other words, when you get to that place where you feel stuck, resistant, no where else to turn, sit with your 'uncomfortableness'. Present moment awareness brings you there. There is such vulnerability in it, but sit with it, don't repress, don't act out, don't blame it on anyone else, don't resist - for it is then that you will encounter your heart.

This is why we practice yoga to make our mind and spirit resilient enough to contain the intensity of our fears, doubts and insecurities and move closer to the answers in our hearts!

Please comment and let me know how you are finding your way to your heart.

Namaste

Gratitude for Yoga

Today, let us swim wildly, joyously in gratitude. -Rumi

Do you ever feel like you'll just burst if you don't get it out? Well that's how i feel and I'm thrilled to finally be putting it out there in the universe (cyberspace, blogoshpere) as i drink my daily cup of chai post-rejuvenating yoga class.

I've been journalling for @ 4 years about my creative/yogic journey - life. I felt my thoughts were private - but now i know they are not as the more i've come to understand myself i realize that we are all on this journey together. So join me fellow travellers for a daily cup of chai as we open the flood gates of our thoughts/feelings/musings.

Yoga has been my saving grace these past 3 years. It is a rich tradition/discipline of physical and spiritual practice. It has made my life a perpetual unfolding act of study, reflection, healing and becoming. My sadhana or personal evolution if you will.

In a very organic way while focusing on the breath, hatha yoga asanas allow you to feel sensations in the body and experience whole body awareness - present moment and connected. Further, meditation (savasana-relaxation pose) offers you freedom from the constant mind-chatter, guiding you to your heart (spirit, soul, consciousness, essence, intuition) where your wiser, inner voice can be felt and heard. How beautiful is that? No wonder i've stuck with it for so long! Are you thinking about giving yoga a try? If so, i highly recommend it!

Yoga is experential. You must experience it for yourself to understand the integration of the body, mind, spirit so often stated but not really understood. Perhaps you'll feel a wonderful sense of calm after your first class, maybe you'll have more energy. But stick with a regular practice & you are sure to reap all its benefits.

I think i need to search & read other blogs out there with similar subject matter, join in on the conversation, make comments and post links to my blog to get it out there & connect with others. I have read one recently i found a link to on http://themagazineofyoga.com/. It is http://ajablanc.com/ which is beautifully written with heartfelt sentiments. Apparently she is a regular contributor to the magazine.

So off i go out into the blogosphere to connect . . . Will let you know how that goes shortly. If you do happen upon my new blog, please pour yourself a cup of chai & join in on the conversation.

Namaste

Photo credit: In gratitude, yoga art print: http://www.etsy.com/shop/corinnaluyken