By Patricia Moreno on June 6, 2011
When I was 12 years old, I had a bone marrow disease in my left arm. The night before a possible amputation, my father sat by my side and took me through a guided visualization of an army of little soldiers marching into the infection. With picks and shovels, they cleaned it out, and one by one, we watched as they marched the infection out of my body. Except for my left arm being a few inches shorter, it is now in perfect health.
I didn’t remember this story until many years later. I was in a yoga class with my teacher John Friend. One of his assistants kept coming over to me while I was in downward dog and kept trying to adjust my shoulder. In frustration, I plopped on my mat, asking myself “What is it? Why can’t I pull my shoulder back?” I didn’t really expect an answer, but it came to my mind loud and clear: “Your left arm is shorter.” The whole story came back to me and I jumped up with excitement, rushing to John to tell him my left arm was shorter and that was why I couldn’t do the position the way he had been trying to get me to do it. He looked at me and said, “It isn’t likely unless you had some trauma to your arm.” Excitedly, I said, “I did, I did! When I was 12 I had a bone infection.” He said, “OK, use a block under your hand.”
In that moment, it was like so many pieces of my past made sense. I remembered being 12 years old and so much of what my father had taught me about the power of our thinking. I realized that one of the most challenging times had been not only my greatest teacher, but the foundation of the creation of intenSati, the workout I developed that combines positive affirmations and movement so we can exercise our power to choose what we think, say and do. It also reminded me to remember that the guidance from within me is always there, and asking my higher Self for the answer is a practice I could develop.
We have the power to choose what we think, say, and do and the perspective we choose is what will determine our actions and our experience. Training ourselves to choose to look for what is right about our past and our present, and to intend a future that is getting better in every way is our right. Few people develop this ability and, therefore, many walk around in a state of fear, worry and doubt instead of gratitude and appreciation for what was, what is and what will be. The choice is ours every single day and in this way we are always co-creating our reality. As above so is below, this is what I now know.
Affirmative prayer is praying believing it is already done. IntenSati is practice of affirmative prayer. When we add motion to the affirmations, we add emotion, and emotion creates change. We become it, we breathe life into it and we call it forth. Every thought is a prayer and worrying is praying for what we don’t want. It’s our faith that determines the outcome – worrying is preparing for failure; positively affirming is preparing for success. We are blessed with the power to choose. What will you choose today?
Every day in every way
I co-create my reality
As above so is below
This is what I know
Today I choose to see
What is right about me
When I ask it is given
What I believe I receive
I am preparing for success
I am available for guidance
I have the power to choose
What I think, eat and do
Where fear has blocked me
Love now surrounds me
Everything is right about me.
And so it is!
Join me in choosing to believe that we are always right where we need to be. No mistakes have been made, none can be made and none will be made. It’s all happening for our benefit.
Life is good! Go in peace to love and serve the world, and eat your veggies! Owning your power is sexy!
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By Guest Blogger on May 24, 2011
By Diana Charabin
Years ago when I first heard of Kris Carr, I wondered how could cancer be sexy? I understood the crazy part but I was yet to understand how Kris could take something with such an opposite connotation, “cancer,” (just saying it makes me feel a punch in the stomach) and turn it into inspiration and hope.
I have had a similar experience with mala beads. For those of you who don’t know, mala beads are meditation garlands that have been worn for thousands of years in traditions of Buddhism, Hinduism, yoga and meditation.
From the moment I first laid my eyes on mala beads I was extraordinarily drawn to their uniqueness and energy. It was an unexplainable attraction. I also noticed in watching a few of Kris’ videos that she frequently wears mala beads!
Mala beads are traditionally used for japa meditation – reciting a positive affirmation or mantra along each bead to come into a more calming, connected and spiritual state.
When I started making mala beads I wanted to take the tradition of these esoteric beads and make them accessible and “sexy.” I wanted to link mala beads to setting an intention. Because I am very interested in the healing qualities of crystals we fused mala beads with healing crystals that each have their own energy and intention. There are crystals for love, strength, prosperity, healing, break-ups, focusing, letting go, spirituality, grounding, protection and so on.
Choosing an intention is only half of the process. It is just as important to choose a mala that you are visually and aesthetically drawn to. The things we find beautiful are just as important in our healing as what they are meant for – whether it is art, a beautiful beach or a set of mala beads.
One common blockage I have seen people struggle with when choosing mala beads or in general is figuring out what their dream or intention should be.
Ask yourself :
What do I want?
If you cannot answer this, ask yourself: What do I not want?
This is a good starting point. There are so many ways to get clear on this: yoga, meditation, goal setting and vision boarding.
Or perhaps your intention is to start making clear decisions – that is a good place to start as well.
There is something powerful about wearing your intention. It makes your goal tangible at every moment of the day. Every time you look at your mala or feel it, you are reminded to stay on your chosen path. Distractions that are coming at you from all directions are averted when you have a physical object to touch and gently be taken back. I often hold my mala beads during a conversation or gaze at them in front of my mat during yoga and they remind me why I am here.
Along with being prayer beads, malas are worry beads. People who wear them often touch, rub or hold them. They are a constant reminder that you are not alone, that you are powerful, complete and that everything is possible.
Here are several factors that you should be mindful of when choosing mala beads:
Beauty:
Things that you are attracted to are integral in your healing whether it is a beautiful landscape, a cute animal or a gorgeous mala. Surrounding yourself with beautiful and uplifting things is powerful.
Color:
What is your favourite colour? What colour of clothing do you wear often. You want to choose a mala that you will use and wear often so choose something that you can see being a staple.
Shape:
Find a mala with a shape that you connect with. Ever heard of sacred geometry? Choose something that you are drawn to.
Intention:
What do you want to create in your life? What are you working on? What do you want? What are you struggling with. Ask yourself these questions and see if they guide to what you want to create as your intention.
Energy
Every crystal we use in our mala beads as its own individual energy. Make sure that this energy aligns with your intention! A lot of malas will assist everyone on some level – see if you can find something that you connect with individually.
Intuition:
What was the first mala you were orginally drawn to? – This is most likely the perfect mala for you!
Choosing a mala is a combination of all of these factors – most importantly follow your intuition and follow your heart.
Diana Charabin is a fearless entrepreneur, adventurer and yogi who is passionate about living. She founded Tiny Devotions, a hip, fresh and inspired jewelry company that creates designer mala beads.
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By Julia Butterfly Hill on March 10, 2010
Julia Butterfly Hill lived a fast-paced lifestyle until surviving a severe car crash at the age of twenty-two. Hill has said that the accident and subsequent year-long road to recovery awakened her desire to begin a spiritual quest. She ended up 180 feet above ground, living in a California Redwood Tree named Luna that was over 1,000 years old to keep it from being cut down. Hill lived in the tree for 738 days without ever touching the ground on two 4’x6’ platforms. Her dedication protected the tree from destruction, sparked a movement, and transformed her life. Today, Hill travels the world sharing her knowledge of environmental conservation and inspiring others to believe in their power to create serious change.
1. During your two-year stay in Luna, how did you cope with feelings of isolation and confinement? How has this aspect of the experience influenced your daily life?
My time in Luna taught me so much about myself, the world, and what it means to be fully present and alive through every experience—whether we perceive it as positive or negative. The isolation and confinement I sometimes felt while living in Luna taught me how powerful, and even important, it is to source from within ourselves our connection to the Divine (however we relate to or define its meaning) and to the Natural World of which we are a part. We so often look outside of ourselves for things like joy, peace, love, or power. Yet, when I had what felt like nothing is when I found out how much I truly have, just by being connected to Source. Prayer, meditation, and gratitude exercises were and still are vital in my finding freedom, joy, and power even in the most challenging of moments.
2. How did you maintain physical health during your stay in Luna? Could you tell us about your diet and physical activities?
What we eat, what we think, and what we do with our bodies and our choices all play an important role in the health of our bodies, our communities, and our world. I am a Joyous Vegan (meaning I joyfully refrain from eating animals, including fish, chicken, cows, sheep, goats, or pigs; nor do I eat anything that comes from them.) When the weather permitted, I climbed in the tree for exercise—which was like partner yoga with a tree! My favorite yoga ever! I, also, have found that prayer and commitment to living spiritually and mentally healthy also plays an important role in my physical well-being. So, too, with what we do to the planet. It is all connected. It is all one. What we do to the Earth, we do to ourselves.
3. How would you describe the force that guides your activism? What advice do you have for those yearning to change the world for the better but feeling like they cannot make a difference as an individual?
Because no choice happens in a vacuum, every single choice changes the world. It is actually scientifically, physically, and spiritually IMPOSSIBLE to not make a difference! Therefore, the question is not, can one person make a difference? Each and every one of us absolutely does make a difference! Once we realize this, we stop believing in the myth and asking ourselves, “Can I make a difference?” We awaken and recognize and step into the truth of our power, and ask ourselves instead, “What KIND of a difference do I want to make?”
The force that guides my activism is my commitment to living a life that (to the best of my ability) models the world in which I want to live. These are my choices. I am human, so I make many mistakes, but my commitment is to live Love in Action with every thought, word, and action. For me, my life and my choices are a Spiritual practice in every moment.
4. What is a typical day in the life of Julia Butterfly Hill? Are there a few simple habits that you integrate into your daily life that our readers can adopt to care more for the earth on a daily basis?
Although there is no such thing as a typical day in my life, I do have everyday mindfulness practices. The guiding principle for me is an idea of true “Ahimsa,” or non-violence. My understanding of this movement is a deeper definition than I normally hear articulated. For me to live this commitment is “to live so fully and presently in Love, that there is no room for anything else to exist.” This is a much bigger calling than to just live as a non-violent person. This commitment calls me to be so committed to being a full and living embodiment of love consciousness that I fill a space until all else falls away. I look at every thought, word, and action through this lens and do my best to live up to this calling.
There is no such thing as a perfect choice, but there is always a best choice for any given moment. This can be as simple as selecting reusables instead of disposables. When we say we are going to throw something away—where is “away?” There is no such thing or place. “Away” always has a face and a place. I do not feel that Love would guide us to trash the Earth and livelihood of others. So Love guides me to bring my own reusable mug, utensils, napkin, and container with me everywhere I go. I love this Earth and her species and future generations far too much to trash and waste them. I am a joyous vegan because how we decide to eat can be tools of mass compassion or weapons of mass destruction. Love guides me to choose to joyously eat as simply as I can to honor all life and to live as lightly on this Sacred Earth as I can.
I have chosen to not birth another human into this world because Mother Earth has 6.9 BILLION children and can not care for the children already here. Love guides me to know that the most conscious choice I can make is to redirect the energy of birth into birthing a more healthy, loving, and thriving planet for the children who are already here. These are just some of the ways I do my best to follow what Love would do moment to moment. It is actually very empowering and joyful to ask myself, moment to moment, “What would Love do?” Then, I do my best to live in a way that honors the answer of Love.
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By Kris Carr on May 13, 2009
Pioneers,
As I mentioned on the forum yesterday, what you choose to focus on in life is extremely important. Your focus is the team captain of vibrant health, spiritual wealth and happiness. Decades ago, Ram Dass introduced us to the saying Be Here Now, with his spiritual eye-opener of a book by the same title. Yeah, yeah…be in the moment…blah blah blah…Ugh. Right?
I don’t know about you, but sometimes I wanna give the “moment” the bird. When the now is sucky, mean and painful nobody in their right mind is gonna wanna sit in it. Well, maybe some red robed monk who gets off on mental torture and back pain would but not me. Yet I often wonder about my pain ratio. How much of it do I create and how much is real? Is it too hard to make my juice in the morning? Is there really no time for me? My husband, does he stink at communication when we fight or am I the one getting tongue tied? What’s the reality of my money situation? Will I always fear it or will there be flow? And then of course there is “the cansa”. Ohhhh, the scary, scary, spookie “cansa”. Poor me, whoa is whoa. I was given 10 years to live (by some jackass doctor) 6 years ago. How should I view that? 4 years left OR plenty o’ time sassy cat. That douchy was dead wrong. He’ll be dirt napping way sooner than me fiesty, firey, ALKALINE me!
I bring this up because lately I’ve read so many comments about fearing the Adventure Cleanse Tune-up. In my mind, those of you who are scared of changing the food on your plate are not sacred of changing the food on your plate. The real issue is changing your focus. Letting the light in. Half empty is comforting. It ensures that since you won’t be reaching you won’t be falling. There will be no scrapes that need tending and stingy alcohol. They call it “cruise control” for a reason. But I ask you this, is it breezy and warm inside your own personal city limits or deep down does it feel like prison?
This is no time to be beige. You are a glitter soaked wellness warrior and your thighs need you! Your liver will deep bow thank you. You will poop like a heavy weight champion. Your spirit will shake it off and stamp it down as you will rise out of the hole and shift your perception from lack to plenty.
If you are following my 28 day cleanse (today is day 3!) I ask that you focus on the positive rather than the negative. Instead of “I didn’t do it right”, please notice, acknowledge and bless all that you have accomplished. In order to do this you really need to think about the language you use. We all talk to ourselves (especially in the car). Pay attention to what you are saying and remember that your cells have ears! They are listening…
Ok, I’m gonna keep this one short today so that I can go sit on my meditation cushion and try and corral the mind mustangs. Perhaps I’ll start with a little prayer. “Please help me to see the cardinals through the clouds”.
Peace and focus,
Kris
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