Amanda May
Kundalini Bliss - Basic Spinal Energy Series
Sat nam!
Below is a link to a vlog where I teach a series of Kundalini yoga postures that will increase your flexibility, energy and strength. They’re also excellent for preparing the body for meditation. For optimal results, these postures should be practiced every day.
This vlog is a demonstration that is meant to lead you through the series. As you watch, you may want to pause on each posture, and continue on your own. Begin practicing each posture for 30 seconds, gradually building up to 2 minutes.
Points to remember:
- Your breath is through the nose
- Your eyes are closed
- Keep your gaze at the point in between your eyebrows
1. Sufi Grind
Sit in Easy Pose, with your hands on your knees.
Begin making large circles, inhaling on the front half of the circle and exhaling on the back half.
Change direction midway through.
2. Spinal Flex
Hold onto the shins.
Inhale as you press the lower spine forward and exhale as you release it back.
Keep your chest steady and lifted.
3. Spinal Twist
Bring the hands to the tops of your shoulders with your 4 fingers in front and thumbs behind.
Keep your elbows high.
Keeping your chin aligned with your spine, inhale as you gently twist to the left and exhale as you twist right.
4. Forward Reach
Extend your legs extended out in front of you.
Stretch your arms out in front, with your palms facing down.
Inhale as you reach forward, and exhale as you return to the upright sitting position.
5. Frog
Come into the squat, with your heels lifted and together.
Inhale and straighten your legs, coming up into forward fold. Exhale as you come back down into the squat.
Keep your chest lifted.
Hands are on the floor in front of your body.
Heels are lifted and together the entire time; inhaling up into forward fold and exhaling back down into the squat, keep your chest lifted.
This is a great posture, however, if you have any knee issues, please modify!
6. Stretch Pose
Lie on your back with your spine connected to the ground.
Bring your heels together and lift them approximately 6” off the ground.
Extend your arms with your palms facing down.
Open your eyes, look at your toes, and begin Breath of Fire.
Breath of Fire is a powerful, rhythmic and continuous breath. The inhale and exhale are of equal length, with no pause in between, approximately 2 to 3 cycles per second. Its powered from the Naval Point, which is the area on your body between your belly button and your pubic bone. If you’re new to Breath of Fire, please begin by practicing with your mouth open.
To finish each posture, inhale deeply, hold your breath, exhale and relax.
Remember, this is YOUR personal practice, so enjoy it! If you have any physical issues that cause you pain, please modify each posture as it suits YOU best.
This series is easy to do and if practiced consistently you will see a huge improvement in your physical flexibility, strength, and your life force. It is a wonderful addition to a lifestyle of wellness and vitality and a great way to energize your day.
In release, we begin anew
Happy Winter!
Today Winter Solstice and the New Moon occur on the same day. This time holds an extra opportunity for a re-alignment into wellness of mind, body and spirit.
Take some time to be silent today. Go within. Consider your life and the past year. If you’d like, burn incense or sage to clear your space before you begin.
Use your time to set the tone for the year ahead. Draw into your awareness those things that you might have been hanging onto (regret, anger, disappointment, blame). Be easy on yourself during this process. Holding onto thoughts and opinions of a low consciousness level diminishes our life satisfaction. Write them down and then light a fire or a candle and symbolically release whatever it is that you’ve been holding on to.
When we release, we clear the way for something new to come into our lives and the Solstice is a good time to plan for the year ahead. Consider your hopes and dreams for the upcoming year and write these down. The New Moon is a powerful time to write new intentions and goals for the upcoming month. Write these down too.
Be open and try not to judge or edit yourself during this process. Spend time considering all that is possible, and allow yourself to dream. Use the magic of the holiday season to fuel your imagination and help your inspiration to flower.
Think of ways you might infuse your life with more joy:
What do you feel passionately about?
Are there things that you’d like to do?
Places to go?
People to spend time with?
Experiences to have?
Goals to achieve?
Be well and remember that YOU are the light. You bring the Change that the world is waiting for. So please, let your light shine as you emerge into a beautiful new year.
“Travel light, live light, spread light and be the light.” - Yogi Bhajan
Taking A Bath In It
Some days what I bring to my practice is not so pretty. Some days what I find waiting for me is sadness. Loneliness. Powerlessness. Regret.
I realize this may not be the blog post that you want to read or even think about today, but here it is.
Don’t let me be misunderstood: I’m a proponent of positive thinking, goal setting, taking action and making changes. I’m a big believer in acting proactively and not succumbing to a victim mentality.
But…being human means that I have a shadow side. It’s part of being whole, and I am a complete picture. I have smooth edges and rough edges. Along with my joy, there’s also sadness. To be anything other would require repression of valuable pieces of me; pieces that talk to me with wisdom and inspire my creativity. Pieces that open me up so that I can access deep levels of healing.
“The darkest, most shadowed parts of our personality have purpose. They are part of us, even if sometimes that purpose is beyond our understanding at the time. The shadow forces us to face what we do not want to face, and make peace with what we do not want to acknowledge.” - Ek Ong Kaar Kaur Khalsa
When we meditate we have the opportunity to witness our thoughts and emotions in a raw, uncut, one-on-one way. Sometimes the treasure lies in just being with whatever arises, and that might mean heaviness. But we miss a valuable lesson if we avoid something because it is painful. By facing what we don’t like, or what makes us uncomfortable, we are ultimately able to accept it and make peace with it. When we find and embrace those pieces of ourselves, we become happier. We move on. We become wiser, bigger and more compassionate.
I aim to greet every emotion and thought that arises as if, as Rumi said, it is an honored guest. I look for the message they have for me. It’s not always easy, or fun. I don’t always feel “Zen”. It’s getting real with the totality of what it means to be alive, human, and conscious.
It’s a balance. It doesn’t mean that every single day I wake up on a high. It just means that every day I wake up and accept what is in it’s entirety…and I face it. That’s reality. That takes courage, one day at a time. And that is why I practice.
THE GUEST HOUSE
This being human is a guest house.
Every morning a new arrival.
A joy, a depression, a meanness,
some momentary awareness comes
as an unexpected visitor.
Welcome and entertain them all!
Even if they are a crowd of sorrows,
who violently sweep your house
empty of its furniture,
still,
treat each guest honorably.
He may be clearing you out
for some new delight.
The dark thought, the shame, the malice.
meet them at the door laughing and invite them in.
Be grateful for whatever comes.
because each has been sent
as a guide from beyond
– Jelaluddin Rumi, translation by Coleman Barks
Any form of running from the truth of ourselves can lead to a numb existence. It takes courage to squarely face that which we carry inside us and accept it, flaws and all. It's true that living with an open heart leaves us vulnerable to pain, but at the same time it opens us and allows us to feel MORE love and joy.
Why meditate? Freedom.
One of the most powerful skills we can cultivate is to learn how to take distance from the drama and antics of the mind. When we reach this point we are able to operate from choice, rather than reaction.
Wisdom from a friend
Life is a continuous play of ego, resolution, lessons, conflict, understanding, pain, struggle, transformation, joy, abundance and stillness.
It all swirls around us, but at our core center everything remains the same.
Connecting in silence in our innermost being leads us back to the heart, and that is the key to all reset and cleansing.
Happy Full Moon!
Today I’m thinking of how life is about the journey, and not the destination. This helps me to keep the big picture in mind.
It’s a good day to let something go and I’m starting with self-judgement.
As I continue the process of establishing myself in a new life, everything that I’ve hung on to (opinions, judgements, big upsets, goals, priorities, even furniture! ;) is up for review. I am releasing the things that I’m ready to. When we let go of stuff we create room for other, better things to come into our lives.
So let go of something old if you’re ready to. Let something new in.
Whatever you do today, remember that we’re all connected by what the eyes can’t see: the heart. It supersedes time and distance. And that is the most REAL thing that exists.
Here’s to creating a life that you love. Live large!
Happy full moon and happy Valentine’s Day.
Sat nam and love,
Amanda
Happy February 2
I love this day.
Darkness comes before the light, winter before spring. Here in the Northern hemisphere, we’re getting closer to spring and longer days. We’ve now passed the halfway point between the winter solstice and the spring equinox. We’re moving away from winter.
The seasons are my personal guideposts for living mindfully. These past weeks I’ve spent time in contemplation, sorting and giving thanks for my life and releasing what doesn’t support me.
Being quiet and going within is nourishing. Winter teaches me that darkness has a purpose. It reminds me that the void isn’t empty, but full of possibilities.
I’m like a seed. Seeds need to germinate under the soil, in the dark, out of view, before they grow. And I’m ready to move towards the light.
Image from anjanamagica.
I encourage you to take a few moments today to think about your life. Are there things you are holding on to that keep you from being happy? Are there things that keep you from being less than productive or less than your best self? If you do have any old emotions, opinions or habits that you want to clear from your life, I encourage you to let them go. Light a candle and symbolically release them.
Today is a reminder to make space for the new, make space for the light…and have faith that it’s coming.
Sat nam,
Amanda
For more information about this day and a fun article, go to:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/02/01/imbolc-2014_n_4697460.html
