5 Steps To Unblock Your Chakras

Chakra meditation involves focusing on the different energies that lie within our bodies. There are 7 known chakras and they are known  to be our energy vortexes; opening for life energy to flow into and out of our aura. These vortexes vitalises the physical body and to bring about the development of our self-consciousness.

The reason why one needs to unblock their chakras is that a blocked or improperly aligned chakra will prevent your energies from flowing all throughout your body, causing disharmony and resulting in a very pessimistic or negative mood. In the process, you will regain a life balance which is critical to healing of both physical and mental. The steps involved to performing chakra meditation are fairly simple and focus should be given to one chakra at one time.

In general, 5 techniques to unblock chakras are:

Visualization Through Meditation


A very effective technique, simple in execution where you will need to meditate and clear your mind, allowing you to focus on the chakra and visualize its associated color. You can then focus on the goal that you intend to achieve.

The Crystal Method


As the name suggests, this method requires the use of crystals, held directly on the chakra or right over the chakra for at least three minutes (but not longer than five).

Sound Therapy
Music bowls are used in this technique, which can be purchase at metaphysical stores along with a set of detailed instructions.

The Soothing Massage
A full body massage is an effective way to unblock all 21 chakras in the human body. Besides that, it helps stimulate your vital systems and promote healing.

The Right Mix Of Exercise And Nutrition
Proper nutrition and sufficient exercise is needed to keep healthy and have a energised body, especially in your chakras and aura.

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Want to know more about chakras?
Check out these Positive Affirmation Chakra Cards: https://fl123.infusionsoft.com/app/storeFront/showProductDetail?productId=20

Inspirational Speaking… and All That Jazz!

So yesterday I joined 6 other entrepreneurs who were all speaking at City College Norwich to a group of 100+ students, as part of the ‘Positive Image‘ campaign, created by Sarah Harding to help empower young people.

We each had a 30 minute slot to speak and in total over 550 students attended talks during the day and gave fantastic feedback afterwards.

So what did I speak about?

Well I shared with my journey from teendom through to where I am today, including lots of the good and bad times that got me here. I then went on to speak about values and how important it is to live your life in line with your values, those instinctive ideas that tell you what is good, bad, right or wrong in your life and the essence of who we are. These are pretty much hard-wired into us and if you’re not working in line with them you’re going to end up pretty miserable!

Then I went on to speak about beliefs and how we create so many beliefs all the time that we think are true. That we believe are part of who we are. That in reality are nothing but generalisations about experiences that we’ve had, that we’ve chosen to make into a belief (consciously or unconsciously).

I gave an example of being bitten by a dog as a small child and how that child might then create a belief that all dogs are bad and carry this belief through their whole life. This belief then may morph into a strong phobia of dogs that has a huge impact on their life, until death.

Now, most of us know, rationally, that the majority of dogs are lovely and it’s just a few you need to be careful of. Yet fear and phobias don’t work on a rational level and if we create a negative belief and we then build on that it can have far reaching consequences.

Then we flipped it and looked at positive beliefs and how we are in control of what we believe, whether we believe it or not! That we have the power to pick up or let go of beliefs as and when we choose. We just need to make that choice and take action towards achieving it (i.e. see an NLP/life coach/hypnotherapist etc or make small stepping stone changes daily yourself).

So how great would it be to choose positive beliefs instead of negative ones?

How great would it feel if you truly loved yourself and whenever you were faced with a decision, you chose the positive belief over the negative?

Just imagine how such positive choices could affect your life and not only your own life, but the lives of the people around you too.

So what can you choose to believe today that is positive?

After beliefs I spoke about Law of Attraction (LOA) and that by giving off positivity we attract it back to us.

Now I was pretty amazed when I asked the room who had heard of LOA and not one hand went up. So this was potentially the first time the these 100+ students had heard about this powerful mindset.

Anyone who knows me, knows that I am a great believer in LOA and have seen it in action time and time again. So I was in my element explaining how it can be used to benefit life.

I gave a few hints and tips about choosing to be nice to people. To compliment instead of insult. To remember that you do not have any idea what is going on in someone else’s’ life or mind and that your words might have a massive impact on their day, week, month, year, or even life! It is that important. Your snide remark may stay with that person for their whole life (see beliefs above!). You just don’t know. The world has enough problems and we need to be empowering others, not dragging them down. So choose your words carefully and empower rather than degrade whenever you can.

Remember:

Is it true?
Is it helpful?
Is it inspiring?
Is it necessary?
Is it kind?

If it is none of the above then why say it? Think what your agenda is by saying something that could hurt. What is happening inside you that makes you want to make others feel pain?

They say that perception is projection, in other words, what we see in others is what we dislike/want to change about ourselves. Perhaps next time you feel the urge to say something less than positive, take the time to ask yourself what it is in you that makes you feel that way about the person you are speaking to. It can be very enlightening, if a little uncomfortable at times!

And it didn’t end there (yes they were still engaged with me, for which I am hugely thankful).

I then moved on to goals and goal setting. One of the teachers said they had ‘tasks’ they were used to setting but not SMART goals.

I wanted them to think outside of the school box and look at long term goals that were in line with their values – and of course a little Law of Attraction doesn’t go amiss in this potent mix either!

So we looked at powerful goal setting:

S = Specific
M = Measurable
A = As if now
R = Realistic / Relevant / Responsible
T = Timed

and how they could use this for when they’re job hunting, planning grades etc.

Of course I had to mention that it’s all very well using these techniques and thinking, for example, I’ve set a goal to get a great job, and then doing nothing and thinking it will manifest. With the best will in the world that just ain’t gonna work! Or at least the likelihood of it is greatly reduced.

If you set a goal you then have to take MASSIVE action towards achieving it. You want that great job? Set your goal and then get out there. Network, send off applications, get on LinkedIn, JobHop and other online agencies. Take action and you will active your goal. I’ve seen it happen many times and it is always an amazing feeling when you get it!

So we had to wrap it up at this point and I kept thinking on the way home how many things I could’ve, should’ve said but there just wasn’t time – I spoke for 35 minutes in the end and it’s amazing how short a time that really is.

It was so lovely to have some of the students come up to me afterwards and say that they found it inspiring (what is a better compliment than that from a 16-18 year old!). We even had a lull between me and the next speaker and a few said I could continue as they were enjoying it – it’s so nice to be wanted! 😉

There is something quite magical about working to empower other people, especially the next generation. If we can empower them when they’re still young, just think what they could achieve!

Life is too short to be riddled with negative beliefs and surrounding yourself with negative people.

Get out there and LIVE!

Be around people who support and empower you and you you can in return support and empower them too.

Enjoy life – it’s there to be lived and enjoyed.

Climb out of the box and inject some serious positivity into your life – you just never know where it may lead you!

I could get used to this inspirational speaker malarkey!

You can find out more about the Positive Image campaign here: http://www.timetolookbeyondthemirror.co.uk/

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Author: Sophie Jewry
http://www.theholisticdirectory.co.uk

The Simplicity of being a Child

Simplicity of being a child……….a thought that has often crossed my mind especially in the last few days. As I observed my 2-year-old nephew, I came to realize even more poignantly the faith…the absolute Faith that a child never seems to be without. Whether they are in a room or outside or in a moving car……..they just Believe that there will always be someone to hold them if there were to be a likely fall. Even after a fall, a child will never get scared to walk again or run or go out to play. No matter how vicious the fight, the next morning a Child again goes looking out for that friend; after getting scolded by a parent, a child still loves them. No matter how little or how much they have….they share because if they want to and this desire is not fuelled by duty or righteousness……………..it is just their heart’s desire. They believe in Fairies and Angels, in beautiful worlds filled with absolutely gorgeous realities, they wonder how a bud turns into a flower, they believe in the man on the moon.

They don’t know how to hold a grudge or how to stop smiling. They are the epitome of unconditional love….they just will avoid a person if they don’t feel uncomfortable….they do not slander a person if they don’t somehow gel with them. They just trust their instincts and allow their bodies to tell them when to expect what. They are so open about what they like and do not like….they just don’t have the understanding of Judgement…..hence they are completely themselves where-ever they are. The curiosity and inquisitiveness which is so innate to them is what propels them to try new things without fear, they do not have even an inkling of what is it to suppress. They don’t get scared of being labeled as dumb or foolish if they don’t know something. They are just Pure Beings of Love and happy to BE.

Why is it then that we destroy this beauty and innocence of a child to turn them into people who are competitive yet never satisfied….want to earn more yet never have the time to enjoy that………..want to love yet somehow forget how………..want to cry yet get scared of the labels…..want to learn new things and explore new places yet suppress these feelings……want to play yet don’t have the time………want to call their friend yet think too much about losing the fight………judge people basis what they can do for them……stop listening to the voice of their souls…………..lose their Faith….and ultimately forget how to be happy…..and thus starts their journey to look within themselves and to go looking for Happiness….something they were born with.

The good news is that today more people than ever before are working towards ensuring that the kid in us….stays there…happy and healthy. It ain’t wrong to grow up and learn what we are meant to learn on our journey on this planet, I mean after all we choose to be born to learn lessons and progress on our soul journey but who says we cannot keep the child within us to help us on this journey and trust me it is possible….we might get hurt or disappointed on this journey but we will always have the child in us to help us smile, get up and walk again or may be Run….who knows….after all then we will have our Faith in Miracles right where it should be…………in our hearts 🙂

If you are looking for inspiration, look at some of your baby photographs because all you need you will find there………….you will find the True You….Fearless and Free….ready to just BE.

Article supplied by: Rumpa Das – Celestine Rhythm
The Rhythm of my Divine Consciousness
http://celestinerhythm.com/

What Is Meditation?

Meditation is the practice of bringing the mind inward by focusing the attention on a single object in total concentration. Without total concentration, there cannot be meditation, as the mind creates thought waves continuously and brings our attention from one thing to the next. As the concentration increases, the thought waves diminish and the mind becomes calm and quiet.

Meditation is that empty space created by quieting the mind, where there is nothing but an uninterrupted flow of energy, and the usual preoccupations with the world completely disappear. At higher levels of meditation, duality also disappears and there is nothing but oneness with the Divine. This is called Samadhi or Nirvana. The permanent state of Samadhi is what we call Liberation or Self-realization, and it is the aim of all forms of yoga and all spiritual paths. Liberation is the true aim of life, and meditation is both the practice and the door to attaining it.

The ultimate benefit of meditation is the realization of God, but there are many other advantages in every stage of spiritual development. Because it purifies the body in general and the nervous system in particular, diseases of the body and mind are greatly improved. Energy levels and mental powers are increased as well, the creativity and intuition are enhanced and inner joy becomes a regular experience. Stress levels are highly reduced by meditation, and the medical community is starting to realize the value of the different practices yogis have been doing for thousands of years, particularly hatha yoga and meditation.

If you are able to meditate at least for half an hour daily, you will become level headed and face life with peace and spiritual strength. Meditation is the most powerful mental and nerve tonic. Divine energy freely flows during meditation, and exerts a benign influence on the mind, nerves, sense organs and body. It opens the door to intuitive knowledge and to other realms of reality. The mind becomes calm and steady. Inner peace becomes possible and real.

With practice, duality disappears and Samadhi, or the superconscious state, is reached. Be patient and consistent, reaching this state takes a long time.

Important Guidelines for Meditation

• As purity begins with the physical body, cleanse your body before meditation.

• The seat for meditation or asana should be made of wool on the bottom and cotton cloth on the top. Avoid sitting on the bare ground, since your energy may be drained off, and do not share your asana with anyone.

• Regularity of time, place and practice are important, as they condition the mind to slow down, paving the path to deeper levels of meditation. Ten minutes every day is better than one hour every now and then.

• The best times to meditate are early dawn and dusk, when the atmosphere is quiet and charged with special spiritual energy. If it is not possible to sit for meditation at these times, choose a specific time and stick to it everyday.

• Try to have a separate room for meditation, if at all possible. As meditation is repeated, the energy will increase and the atmosphere will be filled with peace and purity.

• When sitting, face North or East in order to take advantage of favorable magnetic vibrations.

• Sit in a steady, comfortable, cross-legged position with the spine and neck straight but not tense.

• Keep the breathing rhythmic: inhale for three seconds and exhale for three seconds. The breath, the prana (vital force) and the mind are connected. Regulating and controlling one will regulate and control the other.

• Do not force the mind to be still, as this will set in motion additional thought waves. Allow the mind to wander at first, focusing on a mantra or specific technique, as the mind will eventually become still with practice.

• Select a focal point for the mind to rest. Most people choose the Ajna chakra (third eye), as it is close to the eyes and easy to focus on. Eventually, the Anahata (heart) chakra can be chosen.

• If you are not using a mantra, you can also focus on a neutral or uplifting object or image while concentrating on the breath.

• Attempt to live a pure, pious, sattvic life. Treat your body as a temple. Strive to eat pure, nutritious food and avoid intoxicants. A vegetarian diet will accelerate your spiritual development.

Article by: Yol Swan
Intuitive Spiritual Counselor, Life Purpose Coach & Vibrational Healer 
http://YouAreYourHealer.com

Experience: A Journey Toward Healing

Lie or sit down in a comfortable place and loosen your clothing so you can breathe without restriction.

Close your eyes and focus your awareness on how you’re breathing. Take deep, full breaths….

As you inhale, silently repeat to yourself , “ I am.” .. As you exhale, say “Relaxed.”…

Spend a few minutes getting relaxed……

Now bring your awareness to whatever area of your body needs your attention because it is in pain or under some other stress.

Don’t try to analyze why it’s so, nor try to change or control it. Just notice it as it is. As you become aware of this area, are you also aware of any emotions ?….

Again, don’t analyze, change, or control them. Just notice what they are.

With your eyes open or closed, make your right hand into a shape of expresses how the area you’ve focused on feels.

You might want to stretch your fingers long or curl them into a hard fist. Let your hand do whatever it needs to do to reflect how your body feels….

Hold your right hand in that position for several minutes and observe it.

Then let your left hand take on the shape of how you’d like your body to feel if it were not in pain. If your right hand is closed and tight, maybe your left hand is open and loose…

Do what feels right to you.

Slowly move your attention between your two hands, between the shape that represents how you’re experiencing your body now and how you’d like to experience it.

Gradually let your right hand change into the shape of your left.

Notice how your body feels after you do that and how you experience the related emotions…..

When you’ve finished, if you’ve had your eyes open, close them and bring your awareness back to your breathing… breathe deeply several times before you open them….

Courtesy of Clyde Ford, D.C.

Article by: Dorena Clifton PhD .com
Dorena is a gifted natural healer with an unwavering belief that shamanism can function as a guide for organizing knowledge to help us understand our path towards health and healing. Her healing practice is specifically focused on bridging the internal world to the external world where the problem originated. Dorena’s intention is to inspire and to teach about the human potential in a truthful way. She has a teaching style that is fun as well as thought provoking. She is thorough and welcomes questions beyond the classroom to help you see how to apply this to your life.

http://dorenacliftonphd.blogspot.co.uk/2011/12/experience-journey-toward-healing.html

Beautiful Words

The Four Reliances:

First, rely on the spirit and meaning of the teachings, not on the words;
Second, rely on the teachings, not on the personality of the teacher;
Third, rely on real wisdom, not superficial interpretation;
And Fourth, rely on the essence of your pure Wisdom Mind, not on judgmental perceptions.

It is better to conquer yourself Than to win a thousand battles. Then the victory is yours. It cannot be taken from you, Not by angels or by demons, Heaven or hell.

With gentleness overcome anger. With generosity overcome meanness. With truth overcome deceit.

Do not believe in anything simply because you have heard it.
Do not believe in anything simply because it is spoken and rumored by many.
Do not believe in anything simply because it is found written in your religious books.
Do not believe in anything merely on the authority of your teachers and elders.
Do not believe in traditions because they have been handed down for many generations.

But after observation and analysis, when you find that anything agrees with reason and is conducive to the good and benefit of one and all, then accept it and live up to it.

Article supplied by: Rumpa Das – Celestine Rhythm
The Rhythm of my Divine Consciousness
http://celestinerhythm.com/

The Perpetual Dieter

Weight loss is all about burning more calories than we consume. Right?
So why is it so difficult?
And why has weight been on my mind all my life?
Why is it a constant struggle for me and for others?

I used to say that I was born overweight, but the reality was that I was a normal healthy weight but I grew into an overweight child. A tubby child. A child who had the mickey taken out of her at school and a child that hated sport and any form of exercise or physical activity. And it’s true to say that my hatred of sport and physical exercise has continued. To this day I don’t get that ‘buzz’ that people talk of after a gym session or a run, or the increase in energy that others talk about.

But I do get that ‘buzz’ when I lose weight!! But the thought of eating vegetables and salad (I was never a big lover of these foods) and depriving myself of the foods that I love fills me with dread and makes me grumpy. I used to go to endless lengths to hide the foods from those that I didn’t want to eat (I used to hide vegetables in the cheese plant at my mum and dad’s as we didn’t have a dog!) to those that I ate in secret (a chocolate bar hidden amongst my underwear – after all if no-one saw me eat it then it wouldn’t matter!)

When I went on a diet food was always on my mind and occupied my every waking moment! And if I ate something that I shouldn’t have done then I used to chastise myself and tell myself I deserved to be this way. If I couldn’t have what I wanted or was faced with a plate of unappetising food, again the self-hatred would drown out my reasons for wanting to be slimmer. And the scales each week became my enemy. The dial seemed to be stuck or only ever went up!

Since then I have learnt to accept myself for who I am. I am no stick insect and never will be. But I have learnt to understand my relationship with food. I eat when I am bored, I eat when I am lonely, I eat when I am upset and I celebrate with food when I am happy. I eat when I am stressed, I reach for calorie laden (nice tasting) foods when I am tired and I HAVE to clear my plate (even when I am stuffed) just so that I can have a pudding. The list goes on…

The Solution

Yes the key to losing weight is burn more calories than you consume. But unless you understand your relationship with food and change these habits as well it will be an uphill struggle.

So to be more successful at achieving your ideal weight look at the issues that have prevented you from getting there (and staying there) in the past. For example, if you eat for other reasons besides being hungry then visualise your stomach as a balloon, and ask yourself how inflated this balloon really is. Is it completely empty or so full that one more breath of air will cause it to pop. Visualising your stomach in this way during a meal can also be used to signal that it’s time to stop eating.

Hypnotherapy is a powerful tool to help you change your relationship with your food forever. By working at an unconscious level you can literally change how you think. When you have your first session with a hypnotherapist you are taking the first step on the road to having a healthy relationship with food and increasing your own self confidence. Leading you to a life where ‘diet’ is not part of your vocabulary.

Article by: Lisa Williams
Stockport Counselling & Hypnotherapy
Online and face-to-face counselling and tailor-made hypnotherapy packages
www.stockportcounselling.com

Belief is a Potent Medicine

Your Beliefs become your Thoughts
Your Thoughts become your Words
Your Words become your Action
Your Actions become your Values
Your Values become your Character
The combination of all these factors including your habits create your Destiny and Health

Thanks to Elke Keil – http://www.elkekeil.com

Eleven Hints for Life

I found this today and thought it was lovely so wanted to share it on here:

1. It hurts to love someone and not be loved in return. But what is more painful is to love someone and never find the courage to let that person know how you feel.

2. A sad thing in life is when you meet someone who means a lot to you, only to find out in the end that it was never meant to be and you just have to let go.

3. The best kind of friend is the kind you can sit on a porch swing with, never say a word, and then walk away feeling like it was the best conversation you’ve ever had.

4. It’s true that we don’t know what we’ve got until we lose it, but it’s also true that we don’t know what we’ve been missing until it arrives.

5. It takes only a minute to get a crush on someone, an hour to like someone, and a day to love someone-but it takes a lifetime to forget someone.

6. Don’t go for looks, they can deceive. Don’t go for wealth, even that fades away. Go for someone who makes you smile because it takes only a smile to make a dark day seem bright.

7. Dream what you want to dream, go where you want to go, be what you want to be. Because you have only one life and one chance to do all the things you want to do.

8. Always put yourself in the other’s shoes. If you feel that it hurts you, it probably hurts the person too.

9. A careless word may kindle strife. A cruel word may wreck a life. A timely word may level stress. But a loving word may heal and bless.

10. The happiest of people don’t necessarily have the best of everything they just make the most of everything that comes along their way.

11. Love begins with a smile, grows with a kiss, ends with a tear. When you were born, you were crying and everyone around you was smiling. Live your life so that when you die,
you’re the one smiling and everyone around you is crying.

– Unknown