grief and praise

For me, Autumn is a time for rest or wildness, or both.  Every autumn, I  am aware of my own domestication process,  school, learning to contain myself, sit still, follow directions, and hold back expression.   So, I  cry more this time of year, because I am  missing my wildness.  I want to dance with abandon, let tears roll, and laugh until my sides ache and eyes water. Not all the time, of course, but more, deeper.

As autumn deepens, it is a time of decay and dying,  to let go of what has finished it’s time. Some of what we let go of , we may need to grieve. 

I recently listened to  talks, Grief and Praise, by a South American Shaman, Martin Prechtel.  His way of speaking is humble and humorous. His book, The Smell of Rain on Dust, is an exquisite, and deeply comforting read about life and grief. 

 I hope some of you listen and enjoy this as much as I did, read his book or at least read the notes below.  He reminded me of the medicine of tears (and laughter). I am paraphrasing some of his talk here…

“The ability to weep is a gift. Laughter and weeping are relatives.   Praise and grief live in the same house, sleep in the same bed. Weeping is not depression, not sadness…it is lack of grieving. Tears loosen  medicine…This is why we feel so alive when grief is done…done properly…there is not a right way, but…you look a mess when you’re done and feel so alive~!  Grief brings you back to life. Grief is a form of praise of life, the gift of being alive.”

He talked about how important it is to praise young people, all their ideas,” praise them well, all the time, listen to them and teach them how to grieve properly.  Let then see you grieve so they will know how….. The ”tough” youth play out our illness, for us to see- they act flat- like they feel nothing….flat.” (he tells a funny story in the talk)

 When something dies it is important to grieve, or it is as if it was never alive. You can’t deal with it yourself; it takes a community…To grieve properly takes a lot of people, hundreds of people…  Praise is better that way too.  

“When the tears roll you have to listen to the person. Nothing to solve… they are in that place, listen to them, let it rock.. Same with happiness… let it roll… Grief makes people care for each other…We love expression in the village, the people watch out for you. People praise and grieve in such a way that the village holds them up while they do it”.  

Here is a prayer he spoke in native language, then in English, then explained it’s meaning                                        Long Line, Honey in the Heart, tears of Gods,                                                                 white roads, paved with the eyebrows of the moon, which is sea foam                             all color roads, which are paved with abundance from the tail of the morning star,    which is the deer.    No evils, 13 thank-you(s).

Do listen to the whole brief talks at  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h6h3JNOCTYc

Namaste,   Christina

purity of practice is joy in practice

Dear Yoga Friends,

Wishing you all peace, health and love; may you find closeness and joy in the seasonal changes.

There are so many distractions in the world today as well as so many worthy pursuits, right?Holidays, travel, visitors, media and consumerism all can distract our attention.

Stay strong and hold your sacred practice time, it is the most unselfish thing you can do!

In times of illness, injury, grief or crisis, shift your focus to less asana more pranayama or meditation. Do not deprive yourself of your daily practice.

Remember to keep your practice pure.

 When practice is pure it is never a burden, it brings joy, at the very least some peace.

What is purity of practice? It is practice without attachment to success or failure, pure dedication to move, raise energy, and grow.   It is pure effort, pure concentration, and pure discipline.

Seeking earnestly to find balance of effort to match were you are at on any giving day. Balance of the energy to what is at any given moment. 

Yoga is for flexibility of mind, emotion and body.

Travel outside your comfort zone often, whether that means slowing down, stepping it up or reaching out. 

Expanding your practice, energetically, mentally, physically, emotionally, spiritually or socially.

Your practice changes! As it should!  You change, life changes. It is the only thing we can count on- change- so let your practice change to fit where you and life is in the moment. Mix it up, try working off stress and frustrations through more vinyasa or being your strongest. Let yourself laugh at small attempts at difficult poses. 

If you are grieving loss of a loved one, maybe a few vigorous poses to work through the anger that is one phase of grief, or some gentle and comforting asanas to nurture yourself. Reaching out to others when the pull to isolate is strong. Allow yourself to feel the grief. Be with others who comfort you. If you’re comforting a friend, sit and listen and give them space to cry, simply holding their hand and appreciating them and their process.

Love and Light through the season,

Christina

Dec 15th Yoga Members Appreciation Event:  Optional 45 minute walk together at 3:00 pm  Restorative Yoga Hour 4-5pm, followed by tea time.  Is OK to join just for restorative class. 

The Slow Revolution

The Slow Revolution, Svadhyaya

Dear Yoga Friends,

I wish to encourage you to join a revolution. The slow revolution has been going on forever; it is armed with powerful weapons, compassion and courage. It speaks truth through clear voices, working for a better world together.

The leaders of the slow revolution are not hateful, not angry, not judging they are collaborating and offering solutions and staying clear about the problems humans on earth face. They are bringing people together, understanding how everyone is vital in the process of making a better world.

Evolve in this inner revolution. The world needs us to be awake, creative and connected.  Speak up against injustice with a heart full of love. There are many good people showing the way.  Let them inspire you, and support those leaders who stay calm through the storms and those who bring people together.

Do vote. Do continue to do the good works. Do speak your truth more.  Do have courage, from the fire you tend every day, your meditation/yoga practice.  But,

 “Never be in a hurry;
Do everything quietly
and in a calm spirit.
Do not lose your inner peace
for anything whatsoever,
even if your whole world seems upset.”

 ~ Francis de Sales

When we feel week and powerless, let’s strive to show each other how powerful we are. When the culture tells us to be independent rather than interdependent, encourages isolation, and we feel alone,  defy this conditioning and connect with other humans over and over, regularly.

Because together, we are strong.

When the culture tells you to be afraid, choose love instead, it always the antidote to fear. To be brave is to carry on in spite of fear, to love in the face of hatred. No matter how unjust and cruel the tyrants and injustices are, the real revolution will come from knowing how to be calm and love even the enemies, the others.

When the culture tells us to see humans as others, somehow not worthy, contradict this by caring for those persons less fortunate, marginalized and oppressed. This can be as simple as eye contact with those who are made invisible such as disabled, elderly, children and homeless persons.

I call on you to drink deeper the fruits of yoga: daily practice, meditation, compassion and discipline. Be together. Keep showing up for yourself and each other. This will keep you sane and empowered.

Your daily practice empowers you to filter the pervasive attention-grabbing news and media which screams for your attention by playing on the emotions of fear and hatred. This, along with the pressure to look and be OK, can be overwhelming. Advertising, promotions and campaigns tell us “we must do…”, playing on any insecurities and fears we may have.

Our world doesn’t need any more people stuck in despair and hopelessness. Our world doesn’t need any more people acting from anger. Our world doesn’t need any more people too busy to nurture their souls and the souls of persons everywhere.

I get stuck, paralyzed even, when I let my attention be pulled by external forces. I get so angry or overwhelmed and react poorly when I haven’t practiced svadhyaya, one of the niyamas, one of the eight limbs of yoga.

Svadhyaya – study of the self. It is the fourth niyama of Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras will deepen our yoga practice way beyond the mat.

Practice of svadhyaya brings emotional balance. Emotional intelligence is accepting all feelings, allowing space and time for all emotions to move through you, thereby reclaiming your rational thinking and not being controlled or stuck by past hurts, humiliations and unmet needs.

If you catch yourself annoyed with others, love them, see their humanity, no matter how broken they seem, and then look at what state you are in.   If someone else’s behaviors can steal your peace, it is the surest map to where you need healing. Discover what, about you, needs to judge rather than be compassionate. Become aware of where to heal, in yourself, that which got broken. This is svadhyaya.

Yes, it is right to have and feel emotions; there is sadness, loss and cruelty in the world, how can we not cry, shudder and even scream about it? This sometimes is called release; crying, laughing, yawning, ranting, growling, sighing, and sweating are all ways in which we release. If we are irrational or stuck in regards to an aspect of our life, it is based on past hurts, fears, and oppression. It comes from times where we had to store away the feelings. Our beings (mind, body, cells, habits, thoughts) are where it gets stored.

In modern society we expect people to look and be fine even when grieving great loss, to be back at work within days, back to our normal selves. Grief and unreleased emotions stored in our beings cloud our rational mind and create ill health and disease.

When you are overwhelmed by the horrible things of the world, create a place to find your peace, your inner stillness, a stillness deep enough to keep you a force for good. Cultivate this in your practice and carry it forward to hold space for people along your path. Begin with those near you in your day to day life. As more of us do this, the world changes.

I too stuff emotions, yet if I find persons who are able to hold space, and practice deep listening, I release those emotions that are in the way and in my being. Then I am free to act with compassion and creative intelligence, rather than react, become depressed or shut down. I also hold space for others to do this work in equal exchange. It is not as difficult as it is different, it goes against all our conditioning, and it is worth time and effort, it is worth risking mistakes and appearing foolish.

Peace,

Christina

Recommended reading, The Smell of Rain on Dust, by Martin Prechtel

If you want to join classes and events please refer to current schedule on website menu. www.happymountainyoga.com

When Much is Happening

Whew! sometimes many things happen in a short time, right!? 

Somewhere in the midst of everything I  did my first live interview! It was with Mind Body Radio online and I’m pleased with it.  I wasn’t nervous and kept it real! It is  15 minutes (which flew by) here is the recorded show link- https://mindbodyradio.com/daily-show/episode/Christina-Bouajila

For me since mid August: planned travel, emergency travel,  trauma for a loved one in my family,  loss of a loved one (who was very close to the loved one who experienced trauma), tears, grief, love and praise.  All part of being alive involved and connected. I am awed by how calm and present I stayed through it all, which is because of yoga.

I am forever grateful to yoga because I can show up 100%. I am not afraid of being with people in trauma or be around death and grieving. There is a peace that I feel during rough times, through grief, and loss as well as healing and celebration! This peace is from disciplined daily yoga and meditation.

These days, true yoga for me it is all about how I show up, who I am, not just in yoga poses, but in life, in my relationships and in any work I do. The fruit of daily practice and meditation over the years means a more purposeful life and more energy to show up more often in more ways. It also means a much larger and diverse community. The larger the community the more things happen!

Peace, Christina      www.happymountainyoga.com