Meditation-The answer to life's obstacles

I came across this great blog post by Smoke Gets in your (third) eye last week and wanted to share it. Her writing technique is fluid and really takes you on a great ride about the way we live life, and how to handle life's ups and downs through meditation.



image: Pick the brain

The law of attraction

Napoleon Hill

Every adversity has the seed to a better equivalent.  When I read this three years ago from Napoleon Hill's Think and grow rich, I knew I needed to buy the book. Rarely did I go to a bookstore and buy a book. Come to think of it, rarely did I go to a bookstore. But on that particular day I was guided and felt compelled to go. It was a cold day....bitter cold, and I had just gotten a delicious, hot vanilla latte from Starbucks. As I looked at my watch I realized I still had thirty minutes before my socially acceptable time to arrive at my next appointment. (socially accepted? Boy did I have a ways to go!) So I decided to "run" into the bookstore to eat up some time....or so I thought.

 I half heartedly thumbed through various books for about ten minutes and then I read that quote. Originally written in 1937, this book had been read by some of the most influential people of our time. How had I not known about it? With over 100 pages I somehow came to THAT page with THAT quote. It was as if my guide had personally grabbed me by the ear and dragged my butt to THAT quote so she could finally get through to me.

See what you don't realize is that earlier that day, I was in a self pity of a mess. Sick.and.tired.mess. Sick and tired of being broke. Sick and tired of everything going wrong, sick and tired of having everything seem forty thousand times harder for me than the other person, sick and tired of never attracting what I wanted, always getting more of what I didn't.

I plopped down onto the floor and began reading in shear disbelief. Focus on what you want, not on what you don't...... Society's biggest problem is our familiarity with the word impossible....People are so accustomed and comfortable complaining about "what is" rather than focusing on "what could be"....

This book was speaking to me. Now it did not completely change my life, but the book did completely change my life. I still went through hell and back, but most importantly the book made me aware of my behavior. It made me aware of my contradictions. It told me that you can't tell the universe you want more money, and then turn around and say well I can't have that because I can't afford it. And while I never did make it to that appointment, I did make it into a book store and I did learn that: If you think you can, or you think you can't, your right! 


Love and light
Amanda

images: flickr, simon vics, flickr

The universe and our creative power

I think one of the most disappointing factors about myself is my inability to stay on track with the things I want. I started doing Chakra healing through a wonderful woman named Carol Tuttle, about four weeks ago. Now I am not upset that I haven't stuck with it consistently....as I proclaimed that I would. (Every day for at least 30 minutes) I am upset with the fact that I know how the universe works, aware of the law of attraction, healing energies.... and yet I still sabotage my lauguage and actions with what is.


Each day with me is like a drug induced, chaotic self-war of internal anarchy. One day I am confident that I can conquer every wish and crazy demand and the next I proclaim my stake to inferior beliefs and destructive habitual patterns. At times I break down and plead to my guides to save me, and other moments I confess my absolute elation of gratitude. A constant tug-of-war of highs and lows that I like to refer to as my self ruled government. ( an organized democracy it is not!)

I truly feel sorry for the guide that was assigned to look after my soul. She must shake her head and throw her hands to the heavens continually for having to deal with me.

The past couple of days have been extremely hard for me. My bills are piling up, creditors are calling me and the harder I profess my stake to riches, the more desperate I become......and oh yes.....yes, my dear audience I have been here before. In fact this very time last year I sat on that meditation pillow and begged the heavens to save me. Throwing my hands in the air I told them I could not do it anymore and I give up.....oh how many times I have been here!!!


So how is it that knowing in every fiber of my body that I need to focus on abundance rather than lack to get what I need....but I cannot seem to get past this state of disappointment and desperation?? Like a mix tape forever looping in my head, all I can hear is "You have made zero progress in an entire year"......"I am so broke"...."How will I ever pay these bills"....why can I not manifest? Gee, probably because my DESPERATE plea for money, sends to the universe more DESPERATION for money. But I still can't make it stop.

In absolute tears this morning I pleaded to the heavens to help. Please oh please make this desperation stop. Please oh please help me out of this horrible 80's mix tape.....and then it happened.


Pissed off, saddend, desperate, frustrated, disappointed and effing angry, I tried very hard to lift myself out of this all too familiar self pity. But thank God for those guides that have to look after us. No matter what they never give up on us, and they never fail us, no matter how ridiculous we behave, and how much we annoy them! Today they sent a vendor into my office and he handed me a much needed booklet. He said "God told me to give this to you."

As I flipped open the booklet I saw:

"I tell my people they can have what they say, but they are saying what they have......Too many people use the words of their mouth to hold themselves in bondage. But speak from the heart, and it will produce liberty..."


Thank-you my angels for looking after me. Thank-you for not giving up on me, and despite my constant loop tape of what is, I will continue trying to manifest what can be.....

Love and light Amanda

images: Smoke gets in my third eye

A welcome note podcast

BevDee and I are kicking butt. We have gotten the blog and forum up and running....or shall I say BevDee got the forum totally up and running and I am stepping in to take some of the credit. Have to watch us blondies, we are known for being slackers! Ha!

The most exciting thing about this collective effort is that BevDee and I both want to share our spiritual path, and we both want to open up a conversation amongst our readers about their experiences. But we also have special interests too. My big interest? I really want to launch a podcast. I absolutely love Kelly Howell and her interviews with people like William Bulman and Tom Brady. I also love books and interviews by people like Judith Orloff , Jeff Klein, Nicki Scully, Anodea Judith because they truly inspire me.

While I have NO IDEA what I am doing, I am determined to interview the best minds in the spiritual world, (physical and non-physical may apply:) so if I have to start with interviewing BevDee, I am sure she will be happy to be my first guest...if we really, really sweet talk her! My first ever podcast is a little on the rough side. Yup, took me ALL day to get this three minute podcast so I apologize for the poor quality. But let this be a wonderful starting point to reflect back on when we hit our biggest milestone...perhaps interviewing Kelly herself? Oh talk about first circle!

Click here to listen to my first podcast-A welcome podnote


Thanks so much for listening
much love and light
Amanda

PS- If you want more info on Tom Brady (who doesn't have a website) please contact us!

The journey to enlightenment

One of my favorite quotes from the book Eat, Pray, Love is: "I am not asking for life to be easy, I am just asking for it to not be so hard!" Boy, did I resonate with that! The past couple of years have been challenging to say the least. However, in light of my cynical opinion on this journey to enlightenment there were valuable lessons learned.

During my trek through the emotional roller coaster I like to call lack, anger, frustration, and every negative thought imaginable, I was feverishly meditating and focusing on what I thought I wanted. I devoted an old scrap book to magazine clippings which I deemed my vision board of desires. I chanted mantras, lit incense, focused on the things I desired and pretended as if they had happened. I went as far as begging....yup things got pretty low, and I still was unable to manifest. Why did "that" person do all the same things as me, and get entirely different results.....BETTER more positive results? Why was "that" persons dreams coming true and I wasn't even able to manifest a sandwich, let alone a car!?

I started this roller coaster of emotional pandemonium five years ago. At that point in my life things were pretty good. I was making a damn good living working out of my house, I was considerably happy but meditation was merely a shallow exploration for more material things....that I did not need. But in late 2007 early 2008 a massive shift started to occur in my life. Everything started to go wrong. Clients were unruly and difficult, money was scarce and I unwittingly decided that if I expanded my company things would magically get better......but they didn't.
As I entered into 2009, my husband was out of work, all of my jobs had dried up or went away due to the economy and all the money that I had worked hard for (but easily acquired) was gone. To make matters worse I was diagnosed with ovarian cancer in March, and the family pet of 12 years was diagnosed with diabetes. I swear to holy heaven every time I thought it couldn't get worse...it did!

Things continued to spiral out of control. Around every corner was another catastrophe or another fire to put out. I just couldn't get a break. My life was falling apart and I needed the salvation of meditation more than ever before, but it fell on deaf ears. I was nothing more than a shell on auto pilot, I moved from one event to another in survival mode and I was angry and pissed off that the universe would not help me.......I felt that I was doing everything right. Focusing, meditating, visualizing and in return I got zero results.

Fast forward to now. It has been one hell of a journey. And I am no where near being done. I am still cleaning up the aftermath of what truly feels like going to hell and back, but for the first time in three years, I actually feel that change is occurring for the better. I finally feel like I am crawling out of the hole. Albeit slow, I can honestly say that I finally understand the purpose of meditation and going into it with loving intention. In the past I was going into my meditation space angry, frustrated, and pissed off which made me associate that space with those feelings subconsciously, every time I entered! And those feelings would continue while I tried to silence my mind because I felt that way.....I had no idea the fatal results of my thoughts, and feelings. I had no idea that wanting abundance on one hand and being frustrated on the other was confusing my chaotic energy into disorganized mayhem. How on earth can the universe understand such gibberish?

While some may shy away from the act of meditating, there are many forms and practices that can benefit us all. Meditation should be approached with intention and love. It is about silencing your mind and honoring the ritual. Even if you only slice out seven minutes of your day to do it, you will feel transformed. Try to do it in the same place ever day. It programs your mind and helps you get calm very quickly when in that sacred space. Think loving thoughts, focus on your feet, legs, thighs and continue to work up your body. Focus on your breath and count. What ever you have to do to shut down for a moment.

Meditation helps ground you. It slows you down, and you think better. You make better decisions and it really helps put things in perspective. I meditate everyday. The ritual alone puts me in a quiet space where I can reflect on things that are important to me. It has helped me get away from anger, and desperation and replaced it with love, wholeness, and trust. Although it truly was a long road trip to wholeness, the most important thing is I did not give up. Try it, honor it, and believe in the power of creation within you.

Love and Light
Amanda



images: Dangerous creation, elizabeth gilbert, no limits, doctor exclusive

New age thinking vs Western Culture

I had the wonderful opportunity to attend one of Bill Plotkins Soucraft intensives in early March. Having never done anything like this I wasn't entirley sure what I had gotten myself into. Open-minded, and ready to explore, I dove into the idea of heading out into nature to talk to trees.

For five glorious days I trekked through the woods (in the middle of no where) to connect with the divine. Not only was I in the middle of no where, I was camping with 12 strangers I had never met. Strangley enough, despite all the signs to be alarmed or rather programmed to fear such unknown circumstances, never in my life had I felt more connected, and safe. These were my people. 

For five days my heart poured open. So much sadness and grief held within me for so long and for the first time in my life I felt accepted, and welcomed. By the end of the trip I was further saddened to leave my family. I truly dreaded going home.

The experience left a very strong impact on my life. It also opened me up to many new modalities and practices such as regular meditation, and chakra healing. All of which I had done for many years of my life, but never with so much conviction and purpose. Never had it connected to the root of who I was, or had such a deep meaning, until that trip. It was as if I had been unzipped and a new light of energy had been injected through me.

So why is it that an experience such as this can leave such a strong impact on ones life, completley change it for the better, and yet still fall on deaf ears for so many? This is the question that really brought Bev and I together. We desperately wanted to share in our amazing transitions, but no one we knew wanted to take part in such "woo-woo" thinking. 

Our ancestors practiced special ceremonies regularly and followed daily rituals to honor and bless nature and the unseen gods. So when and where did our rancid western culture get so lost? Perhaps somewhere between the intersection of My super sweet 16 and Jersey Shore fame? Or was it as simple as the idea that a two income family suddenly made life a little easier until it became a game of keeping up with the neighbors? I think the death of a reality stars husband is proof positive that perception is certainly not reality, and it's time for us to put our feet back on the ground.

Amanda

images: joongwonacupucture, animas

Zen Chakra-A welcome note

As Beverley and I get our barings and figure out what the hell we are doing, we'd like to personally welcome you to Zen-Chakra! What is is you ask? Well, Bev and I met in a chat room....and not the kind you hear about on the news (no one was harmed in the writing of this post!).  It was a forum where like minded individuals meet to discuss healing modalities like natural stones, opening up your chakras and finding our true purpose. The good kind of chat room where it is safe to share your REAL name! Yikes!

Ever hear that saying, "live your purpose, find your passion?"  Yea me neither.... Until I met Bev.  Then I realized that things began to shift. As her and I exchanged emails about our experiences with our chakras, we realized that a conversation needed to be started. We had so many questions, so many exciting things to share and we wanted to open it up beyond our inbox for two.

So in just a few short weeks, Zen-Chakra was created. We are starting an online forum, and a blog where everyone can come to share their knowledge, gifts and most importantly, their experiences!  Are you familiar with the chakras? Do you know what they do, or the power that they hold? We want to hear from you! Let us know what interests you on your holistic journey.

In the menatime, excuse our mess as we get ourselves settled and organized. But please don't hesitate to contact us, we'd love to hear from you!

Thanks,
Amanda B