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Vibration – the key to our wellbeing

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Vibration affects every second of our lives

Vibration is the key to all life. Everything in the universe, us included, is energy and takes and maintains its form due to vibration. A significant factor for our wellbeing is the effect of the vibration of things around us, and of the people and organisations we associate with. We similarly have a vibrational impact on others and our environment by the way we think, speak and act. To use a modern idiom, each one of us is an influencer, whether we use social media or not.

Vibration to make a difference

Many people can feel the “vibes” or energy a person or place gives off. These may be uplifting, which we could say are positive. A comparatively negative quality, on the other hand, might make us feel uncomfortable or even pull us down. If we want to make a difference to our world, we can. We can do it by aligning or associating ourselves with higher quality energy, and the highest form is love – unconditional, non-judgmental. The universe has an unlimited supply of it – we just have to be open to it. It really is that simple.

The best vibration is the simplest

Simply by being kind and by loving, we raise our own vibration – of our mind, emotions and our entire energy field. That’s all we have to do. When we love, our body heals faster because all our energy channels open up. Loving those around us helps them heal faster, too. When we love unconditionally, we help the world because all tension eases, both in us and around us. Everything responds to love. Whatever our day to day responsibilities, grand or small, spreading “good vibrations” is our role, too. Cheers to that, I say!

Awakening Heart – The Blissful Path to Self-Realisation

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Tune in – the Magic of Spring Energy is here

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Spring is well and truly with us now. Just as the energy in Nature is changing, so is that within our own bodies. In Qigong practice, we understand this as the time of year when the Wood element* predominates. This is the energy that gives rise to growth and activity, and is closely associated with the liver. The body is seeking to cleanse itself of the stale energy left over from the colder months, so the liver will be working hard. There is a touch of excitement about this season, too, because Fire is also strengthening as we begin the trek towards the heat of summer.

Tune in outside

What does this mean for us? Cocooned in our modern homes and workplaces, we may forget that the body is intelligent and is informed by its surroundings. Getting outside into the fresh air more helps us to stay in tune with our environment. Having a little more physical activity is important, too. Nature prompts us, quite literally, to spring into action.

But don’t overdo it

That doesn’t mean trotting off to the gym, necessarily. Having just passed the Spring Equinox, we are at the halfway point between the maximum Yin energy of winter and the Yang energy of the summer. The balance is actually a little delicate, like a seesaw balancing on its fulcrum. If we do too much, it is easy to put the body out of balance. Moderation in all things is the key if we want to keep our immune system strong.

Be happy!

The emotion of happiness is very supportive for the liver, so it is very good to keep smiling, even if life is throwing a few curved balls at us. Smile to yourself when you wake up in the morning and send a smile out from your heart into the world. “I am happy and grateful for being right here. Thank you.” Words like that – there is no formula, so use whatever phrase you feel comfortable with – immediately begin to change our energy for the rest of the day. It works like magic, so perhaps it is!

*The Five Elements are Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal and Water

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Autumn is here – does your body know?

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As we head deeper into autumn, we may find that our energy is changing. Nature withdraws and becomes more yin – turning its energy inwards to strengthen and restore. Our bodies, too, need to adapt and change with the seasons. They are part of this world, not separate from it, and so they appreciate the nurturing aspects of the inward turning energy. If we fight that need by becoming more active instead of less, we create strain – and that will weaken the body rather than strengthen it.

Listen to your body because it is listening to you

Please take care of your body and listen to what it needs. Maybe it will not appreciate the cooling foods of summer so much now. Instead, it may relish warmer, moister and a little more unctuous, food more often. Soup, anyone? According to traditional Chinese health advice, and to Ayurvedic understanding, the autumn can be drying on the body. This can particularly affect the lungs, and to some extent the skin. A tendency to a dry cough or some itchiness may be a sign of this. Pears, incidentally, are said to be a very kind fruit for our lungs. Sipping warm water at times throughout the day (or, better, yin-yang water1) can help balance the body, too.

Spirituality includes flesh and bones

Being kind to the body is an important aspect of spirituality. Your body listens to the messages you give it. If we cannot be kind to ourselves, it is difficult to cultivate compassion and kindness for others. Not to be confused with indulgence, this is about living from the heart, fully and completely. Let’s celebrate autumn and indeed every change of season as it comes, and be happy and peaceful. The world needs us to be just that, particularly now.

  1. Yin-yang water is said to be very balancing for the body at any time of year. It is easy to prepare – simply add boiling water to cool or room-temperature water, 50-50. Drink it while it is still warm. Some people like to fill a flask with it to use during the day. ↩

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Healing energy, the Universe and You

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Healing energyHealing is not a great mystery – everyone has healing energy and the ability to help heal themselves and others. Everything in the universe is energy, from a star to a rock to a speck of dust. Your body and mine are both energy, as is the plastic waste in the sea. Energy is not destroyed, it just takes different forms. Problems arise when there is an interruption to the  flow of energy and too much accumulates in a particular place. In the environment, this excess gives rise to pollution and imbalance, and in the body to congestion and disease.

Healing is dealing with excess energy

When we are ill or simply out of sorts, it often feels as though we are lacking energy in some way rather than having too much of it. We may feel lethargic or headachy, or there may be pain or soreness. Whatever the symptoms, there is inevitably a blockage or blockages somewhere in our system. If a river is flowing well, everything along its course is fine but if something blocks that flow, silt builds up and flooding occurs in that location. Elsewhere, there may be a shortage of water. Our energy or qi is rather like that – too much in the wrong place throws everything out of balance.

Giving it back to the Universe

When too much energy has accumulated, it does not stay still, hanging around until someone invites it to a party. By its very nature, energy is always moving and, like water, will always find somewhere to go. If there is no outlet, it will form unwanted complex patterns and it is these that can cause health problems, possibly severe, over time. As the body is energy, the essence of healing is to create the right conditions to allow the excess to return to the environment – the Universe – and restore balance.

The healing power of the mind – and a smile

The flow of energy, qi, in the body is directly affected by our awareness, by our thoughts and by our feelings. In traditional Chinese health systems, it is said “the mind leads the qi”. It is difficult to feel cheerful in every waking moment, perhaps, but the more positive we are, the healthier and happier we are likely to be.

A very easy thing we can do is to smile more often. Smiling helps to open the energy channels in the body and release little blockages. Breathe in, smiling to your body; breathe out, letting your smile extend beyond your body. Try it for a minute or two. It is so simple but is extremely effective at making us more receptive to healing energy.

Books

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Faith in yourself is as easy as letting go

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Faith in yourself is an essential ingredient for creating a happy and fulfilled life. It harnesses energy by the bucketload and has the potential to make enormous changes – or none. True faith doesn’t come from anxiously repeating affirmations until the brain gives in but is a mental state embracing the elements of complete trust, relaxation and poise. Intuitively, deep in our bones, we know everything is working out as it should and that nothing can threaten us. We just have to learn to let go.

Faith, waves and the art of eliminating the little me

The biggest threat that we have is not from some outside source but from the belief in something fake – the “little me”. This little me does not ultimately exist but we think and act as though it does. We cling to individuality, yet it is as impermanent as an ice sculpture. Everything in the universe is a play of energy and everything is connected to everything else. We are all part of that play, and it should be fun.

Let’s stop creating disasters

The disasters that humankind keeps propelling itself into come from denying that interconnectedness. Whether as individuals, a group, a sect, or even a nation or culture, our problems come from belief in a permanent individual self. That self will seek out anything that reinforces its delusional independent existence. It is madness and is as ludicrous as a wave on the ocean believing it is a wave, wanting to be bigger and better than all the other waves, when really it – and everything else – is simply water.

The strength of holding onto nothing

Faith is knowing that we are more than that wave. Each of us is a manifestation of, and part and parcel of, the universe. Our true nature is unbounded in every sense but we are so often tricked by the form in the mirror, by our fears, feelings and beliefs. Having faith in ourselves is knowing that all those things are like appearances in a dream. We can continue to hold onto them and perpetuate the dream, or we can safely let go because there is ultimately nothing to cling onto. That’s a very liberating faith.

Thank you to those who occasionally get in touch or comment. It’s always good to hear from you!

Awakening Heart: ebook and paperback

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