27
Mar, 2023

We run to far away temples and walk up mountains to search for what we have lost inside ourselves

Going to places for the sake of it will not help you find ‘yourself’.

Travel, even a yoga retreat, will not necessarily help you find yourself. Yes you will experience new places, different cultures and maybe get new perspectives. It can be eye-opening and perhaps make you further appreciate the life you have.

But it seems that we have lost something.

What you have lost just might be found when you give yourself an opportunity to be still and quiet. It can be found when you give yourself the opportunity to meditate and contemplate the sense of who you are and how your mind creates a sense of ‘me’ and ‘other’.

Maybe you do have to get away for that.

It is not the getting away that is important, it is the opportunity to be quiet.

Maybe you will find yourself sitting in a temple. For example the Nityananda temple in Ganeshpuri is a place of chanting and devotion, and being away from your usual routines might allow you to be open enough to experience the Shakti, the spiritual energy, that is available to us all. Maybe you get a glimpse of perspective of the familiar old mind habits.

Sitting in a cave in a mountain might also allow you to be still and quiet and open to the energy of transformation, the energy that becomes apparent when we become really still and drop back from the busy mind.

Tenzin Palmo sat in a tiny cave on a mountain for many years. In the end one of her statements was …

‘The idea that there’s somewhere we have got to get to, and something we have to attain, is our basic delusion.’

Maybe taking yourself away from your usual routines and responsibilities really does help.

But it is not the travel and it is not necessarily the place that will help you find what you have lost.

What many of us have lost is the sense of inner connection.

The sense that we are really not separate, that we really are all manifestations of one big consciousness and are in this together.

There is no ‘me’ and ‘other’. That is the mind’s creation. (I know, that’s a bit of a mind bender!)

Yes there is a separate body, with a mind, that manifests for a brief period and then fades away again. Maybe as individuals we make a small difference in the world doing work we are called to do, serving in the way that feels authentic. Sitting in stillness helps us to see what that work might be, and helps us to see how we skew our view of reality by believing the mind. We believe the mind that creates ‘me’ and ‘other’, rather than accepting that it is a sort of virtual reality on our mental screen.

Being still will give you perspective on Self and reality.

It will help you see that it is not ‘me’ that has to experience the world, judge the world, manipulate the world to suit the individual. It will help you to feel the sense of one-ness and connection. That is the work of Yoga.

Jetsunma Tenzin Palmo also said:

‘When we are angry, when we are excited, when we are depressed, when we are elated, we are completely submerged in and identified with those thoughts and feelings. This is why we suffer. We suffer because we are completely identified with our thoughts and feelings and we think this is me. This is who I am.

Being still will give you perspective on Self and reality. It will help you see that it is not ‘me’ that has to experience the world, judge the world, manipulate the world to suit the individual. It will help you to feel the sense of one-ness and connection.

That is the work of Yoga.

Then… with a feeling of inner freedom, life might unfold in a way that feels easy and purposeful.

You can’t run away from yourself.

Maybe you can find that inner freedom within right now, or maybe it is time to explore within. If so, I’d love to help.

Fluff free freedom is an online course that helps you to find the state of inner freedom that comes from truly recognizing your mind for what it can and can’t do.  It takes you from stressed to calm, from uncertainty to clarity, to being present and mindful and to really getting clear on living your best life. Check it out here.

You can purchase your own set of these ‘Yoga off the mat, contemplations to enrich your practice’ cards from the store HERE.

The gorgeous original picture on the front of each card is by Gayle Stone Art.

25
Oct, 2022
A Yoga off the mat contemplation

How would it feel if you loosened the reins of control?

Having a human mind means having a desire to know and control, it comes with the territory, it is part of the nature of the human mind. We like that feeling that things are ‘under control’.

This might be to a greater or lesser degree, depending on our life situation and personality. We have a tendency to live a fantasy life in our heads, rather than our actual life.

The problem with control is that we don’t really have it.

Yes, really.

Of course we do have some degree of agency or free will in the choices we make.

> Do I get up or hit the snooze button?

>Do I go to yoga class or sit on the couch?

>Do I discipline my child or let it go?

>Do I keep a tidy and uncluttered house so as to feel more free to live my life and not be pulled down by unnecessary busyness, or is that all too hard and not a priority?

So yes, we make those sorts of choices, and maybe even some big picture choices about what country we live in (although to be fair we do not always have a huge choice) or what sort of job we want (which also becomes limited according to our education and experience).

It seems to me that we somehow co-create life. We play our little part, but there is a bigger picture, a bigger force working as well.

Perhaps we are a somewhat avoidant in being real with life. We play the safe game. The familiar.

So it is perhaps shocking to realise that the idea that somehow we ‘control’ life itself really is illusory.

(Sometimes it takes a big life event for us to see this, or maybe we tip-toe toward this recognition.)

However it is for you, if you invite a sense of ‘allowing’ rather than ‘controlling’, what then?

Maybe a sense of the scary unknown, the mystery?

Maybe that is somehow more ‘real’ than the ‘control’ that limits us and boxes us in?

Oh I know we are always trying to juggle and manage and control things, but don’t forget to leave some room for what the Universe wants too.

How would it feel if you loosened the reins of control a little? How would it feel to be a bit more open to the mystery and realness of life?

Consider this your invitation to let life find you!

PS: We don’t usually look at our minds in this way do we? We know we have one, but we don’t realise the full extent of how we can use it as a tool rather than being ruled by it. We rarely recognise that our sense of self, or ‘me’ is a mind-generated collection of ideas that has no actual reality. What fun it is to explore these things and to recognise that we can use the mind as a wonderful tool and not be ruled or limited by it!

Fluff free freedom is an online course that helps you to find the state of inner freedom that comes from truly recognizing your mind for what it can and can’t do.  It takes you from stressed to calm, from uncertainty to clarity, to being present and mindful and to really getting clear on living your best life. Check it out here.

You can purchase your own set of these ‘Yoga off the mat, contemplations to enrich your practice’ cards from the store HERE.

The gorgeous original picture on the front of each card is by Gayle Stone Art.

23
May, 2022
yoga off the mat contemplation

What would freedom look like for you?

Would it be

  • Lots of $money$ in the bank?
  • Perfect relationships?
  • Perfect home?
  • Perfect family?
  • Perfect job – or maybe no work at all?
  • The choice to do whatever I want, whenever I want?

I’m sorry to disappoint you, but this is NOT the sort of freedom that yoga offers.

>> The sort of freedom that the ancient writings and teachings point to is INNER freedom.

Okay, so perhaps there are some things on that list that look pretty good. The funny thing is that once you experience inner peace and freedom, you no longer see these things as goals and funnily enough you may even find you have many of them!

Certainly relationships become much easier when you have perspective on what it is to have this human existence. And your purpose, your work, might unfold a bit more easily as you feel into the flow of it. It may not really feel like work so much, as you realise you can be present and fully engaged in whatever you are doing.

Freedom in yoga is a capacity to drop away from the personal ‘me’ to feel a sense of expansiveness within.

Yes we still have a human life to deal with. But when we feel more freedom within, we also feel more connected and whole. Compassion and okayness are natural outcomes.

And we realise that where we are right now, and doing whatever we are doing, is where we find that freedom.

I’d love to know if YOU find freedom in your everyday life?

To me, that’s what this work is really about (I even wrote a book about it!)

*If you are interested in experiencing more inner freedom in your life, then my online course Fluff-free freedom might be just perfect for you. Find out more HERE

You can purchase your own set of these ‘Yoga off the mat, contemplations to enrich your practice’ cards from the store HERE.

The gorgeous original picture on the front of each card is by Gayle Stone Art.

16
Feb, 2022
finding freedom in everyday life

YOU are the only one who can free yourself

Yes a teacher might point you in the right direction.

But unless you do the work yourself, you probably wont get to experience the wonderful state of freedom that is available for you.

The wonderful state of bliss and connection that comes from dropping back from the busy mind.

The state of yoga that is your birthright.

This is something that takes work to realise, it certainly isn’t immediately obvious, is it?

To see the mind for what it can do and what it can’t do.

To practice being still and dropping away from the mental drama so as to experience the bliss and Shakti of being.

It is wonderful to have a mind and we use the mind in so many ways to make our way in life.

We get so familiar with it that we mistakenly think that we are the mind and that the mind is somehow what defines us.

Our work is to free ourselves from the trap of the mind.

The trap of the ego.

The trap of the mind-developed sense of self.

As this card suggests that you contemplate, you are the only one that can do that for yourself.

When you do, what is left is experience of inner freedom and bliss. Of perspective. We realise the Self as one big connected being.

We are the droplet in the ocean, so we are the ocean itself.

Freeing yourself is the work of yoga.

Oh, and when you truly get that, guess what? Then there is more work!

Feeling free within in a big step.

And then life goes on and continues to require actions, responses, interactions and so on. If you take the time and effort to keep noticing (and not just float around in your newfound bliss bubble) you will observe that life still has its ups and downs. You can observe yourself interacting. You see the effect of your interactions.  You can observe your mind chatting.

Perhaps you have a new compassion for yourself and for others.

***

Much more meaning than is teased out here can be taken from these cards, this is just a starting point.

You can purchase your own set of these ‘Yoga off the mat, contemplations to enrich your practice’ cards from the store HERE.

The gorgeous original picture on the front of each card is by Gayle Stone Art.

*If you are interested in experiencing more inner freedom in your life, then my online course Fluff-free freedom might be just perfect for you. Find out more HERE

5
Nov, 2021
Surrender to what is, be OK with what is

Surrender to what is

Can you be okay with how things are?

They don’t have to stay as they are, in fact there is nothing more certain than change anyway, but for this moment now can you simply surrender?

Or do you feel the need for control?

Having a human mind means having a want to control, a desire to know and be certain about things. And yet control really is an illusion.  Yes we have a degree of personal agency, but the bigger picture is always just what it is, regardless of how we would like to control and manage it.

Surrender happens when you no longer question ‘why me?’

We could well ask instead, ‘why not me?’.

We can be annoyed when things don’t go the way we think they should, can’t we? Have you seen that in yourself? Sometimes it is easier to see in other people’s situations.

An alternative response is to surrender to the reality of the moment.

When we surrender to ‘what is’ we no longer ‘argue with reality’ and can find a place of acceptance, and then funnily enough we have better capacity to deal with whatever it is we have to deal with. We find a way to be OK.

‘Surrender’ is a wonderful mantra for meditation, and for life! One of the tracks on my Shavasana CD and digital recording is a Surrender meditation – you can get it right now here.

Have you practiced surrendering?  What have you found?

While considering the idea of surrender, you might also be interested to read ‘The Surrender Experiment’ by Michael Singer. A book and author I have only come across in the last couple of years: https://untetheredsoul.com/

Much more meaning than is teased out here can be taken from these cards, this is just a starting point.

You can purchase your own set of these ‘Yoga off the mat, contemplations to enrich your practice’ cards from the store HERE.

The gorgeous original picture on the front of each card is by Gayle Stone Art.

*If you are interested in the possibility of surrender and experiencing more inner freedom in your life, then my online course Fluff-free freedom might be just perfect for you. Find out more HERE

20
Aug, 2021
inner freedom, self realisation, awaken

Now is the time to get back in touch with your Self, to come home to your Self.

This quote is a good reminder for me that right now is where our work is.

Not in some future time when everything about life is more tidy and organized. Not when we have more money, more time, better relationships etc. No, that is an excuse to put it off. Why wait?

Why not experience inner freedom now?

If not now, then when?

Patanjali used the word ‘atha’ in the first of the Yoga Sutras, which is ‘Atha yoganusasanam’. I am not a Sanskrit scholar, but my understanding is that this translates as ‘now to Yoga’. Now is the time.

Not some other time, but right now.

Why waste another day not exploring the possibility of feeling connected and free?

If we are willing to let go, willing to drop back from the mind, we are there, home with our Self.

Still-mind Meditation and contemplation are the means that worked for me to experience this, along with my practice on the mat. I don’t think anything works sufficiently without some guidance and support. Some help to tease out the way we live in our heads…

The usual ways we think of our ‘self’ is a person with a body and a mind isn’t it? The mind comes up with a ‘me’ that describes our roles, our relationships, our desires, our problems, the whole lot.

We think that mind-created ‘me’ is who we are.

It takes a lot of effort to see that ‘me’ is something that the mind creates.

That the mind creation called ‘me’ is only some thoughts and has no substance really – isn’t that mind-blowing?

What this card suggests is that there is a Self to come home to, and that Self becomes apparent when we drop the ‘me’ self, when we drop back from the thoughts altogether. What may become apparent when we drop the body and mind (like we do when we practice corpse pose, and also when we meditate) is a stillness and quietness, a place from where the mind can be observed.

To me, this is much more where we want to keep our awareness. That quiet, watching, non-commenting Self. The expansive and unlimited space. The place where we experience what I like to call inner freedom.

Lets do all we can to get in touch with that now!

To realise your Self, to come home to your Self.

Much more meaning than is teased out here can be taken from these cards, this is just a starting point.

You can purchase your own set of these ‘Yoga off the mat, contemplations to enrich your practice’ cards from the store HERE.

The gorgeous original picture on the front of each card is by Gayle Stone Art.

*If you are interested in the possibility of experiencing more inner freedom in your life, then my online course Fluff-free freedom might be just perfect for you. Find out more HERE

1
Jul, 2021
Sarasvati contemplation cards

You already have everything you need within

You don’t have to search anywhere else.

The freedom you seek is within. The happiness you seek is right there too.

The truth about your being and reality, which maybe you did or maybe you didn’t know was part of the puzzle, is right there as well. The truth of your path, your dharma, is within you.

How do you find out what there is to know if it is within?

You have to be quiet.

You have to quieten the busy mind and drop back from it.

Ironically, if you really want to know your path, if you really want to experience freedom within, you have to be willing to surrender the need to control and know.

When you give up all the mental habits and desires you may well find a sort of profound joy and okay-ness.

And then perhaps a glimmer of insight as to your path will bubble up and become apparent. Where you are right now is perfect for now. Sometimes it is perfect for later on too, but we all know that change is inevitable. Maybe in stillness we get a little nudge about moving in a certain direction. And if you listen quietly maybe the message gets clearer or maybe it fades away.

I have always found that projects and ideas have presented themselves, and rightly or wrongly I have tended to follow the little nudges. Some have been more outwardly ‘successful’ than others but I always grow and learn from them.

The nudges I have followed are many, here are a few:

*Do yoga teacher training (way, way back in 2001!)

*Teach meditation as well as yoga

*Teach mother and baby yoga

*Teach yoga for breast cancer 

*Write a book

*Buy our house in Mordialloc (moving to the beach from the eastern suburbs where we had spent most of our married life)

*Create yoga off the mat contemplation cards

*Blog and chat about the contemplation cards

*Create an online course that takes people to a state of inner freedom

Some of these projects had a natural duration and others continue. The thing I have found is to stay open and to stay tuned in to the inner voice, so to speak.

Life presents us with opportunities as well as what might be seen as challenges. These are the ups and downs of any life. How we accept and ride those waves is up to us. Spend some time tuning into your inner wisdom and you might find that everything really is okay. You really can feel a sense of inner joy and okay-ness. Maybe even great bliss and love. That is always my wish for you.

Much more meaning than is teased out here can be taken from these cards, this is just a starting point.

You can purchase your own set of these ‘Yoga off the mat, contemplations to enrich your practice’ cards from the store HERE and postage is free in Australia. They make a perfect gift too.

The gorgeous original picture on the front of each card is by Gayle Stone Art.

*If you are interested in the possibility of experiencing more inner freedom in your life, then my online course Fluff-free freedom might be just perfect for you. Find out more HERE

28
May, 2021
Sarasvati contemplation cards

Drop the neediness for life to be any different to what it is right now

Of course this card was going to pop up during lockdown number 4 wasn’t it?

Just when we think ‘it should NOT be like this’, we get this reminder to drop the neediness for life to be any different to what it is right now. I might add that these quotes were created and cards were made before the pandemic, and even though the message seems to be particularly apt today, the messages apply universally.

Here we have a good reminder not to blame, not to get stuck in our head, but to find a way of being okay so that we can get on with this one life that we have.

It would be a pity to waste this one precious life on negativity and blame wouldn’t it? Why do we think the grass is greener somewhere else? Why do we want what someone else has? Why do we think things will be better some time in the future? The future is an idea in our head isn’t it?

The only time we really have is this moment now.

If your life right now is the one you have, this is also the moment where you can do the work of freeing yourself from the veil of illusion. This moment is where you are. Do you think it has to be any different? If you do, you have an argument with reality. Can you be okay right now where you are? Can you find peace and joy and contentment right where you are? Can you feel a sense of inner freedom?

Can you do the work of freeing yourself from a sense that you are an individual separate person to a sense that you are consciousness expressing itself? Can you do the work of rather than identifying solely with a sense of ‘me’ as this body and mind to that of a larger sense of being none other than universal creativity and energy? Can you see that the sense of ‘me’ is created by the mind and really only exists in the mind? I know these are hard concepts to grab, but understanding them is so freeing.

You don’t have to wait until everything is different, or somehow better, to do this work.

Yes it is work and it may take some time to feel it experientially, but there is no better time than right now to begin. To drop back from the busy mind and feel the creative expansive flow that expresses itself through the body and mind that you have. Can you see the difference that makes?

It doesn’t take different circumstances to get that, it takes the willingness to drop some conditioning and look.

You don’t have to take anything on faith or belief. Look and see, that’s all. You can do that right now.

The perfect time to do this work is right now. Right in the middle of your life – messy as it may be. Do you agree? I’d LOVE to know.

Much more meaning than is teased out here can be taken from these cards, this is just a starting point.

You can purchase your own set of these ‘Yoga off the mat, contemplations to enrich your practice’ cards from the store HERE and postage is free in Australia. They make a perfect gift too.

The gorgeous original picture on the front of each card is by Gayle Stone Art.

*If you are interested in the possibility of experiencing more inner freedom in your life, then my online course Fluff-free freedom might be just perfect for you. Find out more HERE

15
May, 2021
inner freedom is possible

Use your talents and skills, and also experience your divine nature

We all have skills and talents. Things we like to do and things we are good at.

Perhaps you know what your skills and talents are. Or perhaps you think yours are nothing special, but if you consider your experiences leading to this point, then yes they really do make a unique set!

Maybe also there is something that you want to do, something that has been nudging at you to come to life.

Are you talented at or curious about music, art, accounting, organizing, motivating, singing, creating, engineering, story-telling, IT, yoga teaching, meditation teaching, sharing mindfulness, teaching stress-management, gardening or whatever combination of these and other things you bring to your life?

For me what this card is saying is that while we do the work that we bring to the world, we can also experience our state of inner freedom, our divine nature.

These are not mutually exclusive. We are not divine only every now and then, or only while we are sitting in meditation. There is nothing in our world and our life that is not divine, that is not connected and a part of the whole.

So perhaps we don’t have to run away from our life to experience the bliss of being, or to experience our divinity, our inner freedom?

Whether we are zen on the mat or caught up in an argument, whether we are out in nature or doing our work, this is life and all of life is divine.

Does this mean that life always feels blissful?

Sometimes it takes being fully immersed in our creativity to find our bliss. We find ourselves in the flow and the work pours out of us. But I think we can also experience inner freedom and bliss in doing the dishes. Not if we are grumpy about doing the dishes, and probably not if we are rushing and trying to be super efficient either! But if we simply go about our day, we can do it with presence and awareness, rather than being on autopilot without such awareness. We can practice moment-to-moment awareness, and moment-to-moment inner freedom and divinity.

What have you been doing when you were just going about life doing your thing with your unique set of skills and talents, and have felt the experience of divinity, your divine nature? I’d really love to know if inner freedom is a more or less constant experience for you, whatever you are doing, or even if you think that is possible.

Much more meaning than is teased out here can be taken from these cards, this is just a starting point.

You can purchase your own set of these ‘Yoga off the mat, contemplations to enrich your practice’ cards from the store HERE and postage is free in Australia. They make a perfect gift too.

The gorgeous original picture on the front of each card is by Gayle Stone Art.

*If you are interested in the possibility of experiencing more inner freedom in your life, then my online course Fluff-free freedom might be just perfect for you. Find out more HERE

24
Apr, 2021

The mind is a useful tool for living

The mind is a tool for living

Have you ever thought of the mind as a tool? As not the whole of you are, but something useful to help you in your life? And just like other tools, something that you can drop for a while too?

We have many tools to help us live well. For example, we have a car to take us places. It is a fabulous device for transporting us around. The mobile phone is another useful device. It helps to keep us connected with others (oh and so many other uses too!) And what about our computers? They really do make our lives easier even if they also have us tearing our hair out at times!

The thing about these tools is that they are great for assisting us to live well but we don’t need or want them to run our lives.

We turn the car off and leave it in the garage. We shut down the laptop or at least close the lid. We (hopefully!) take a break from constantly interacting with our mobile phones. And all the other gadgets we use throughout the day – we understand their place in helping us to live our lives and don’t mistake them for who we are, right?

The mind is also a useful device, great for thinking, planning, and helping us to communicate.

It really does make a difference when we learn to take a break from the mind. To drop back from reacting to the chatter and busyness that the mind creates. The constant mental commentary is so familiar that it fools us. The mind creates a sense of ‘me’ and we forget that we are not the mind. I think it is almost like some people who forget they are not their phone!

It is not of course immediately obvious that you are not your mind.

The ‘me’ in your head is a mental projection and not the whole of who you are. We gradually develop meditative awareness as we learn to drop back from the mental busyness. This is something we have been exploring in **Fluff-free freedom, and it really does make a difference in people’s lives.

It is not as though having a mind isn’t useful, of course it is! Dropping back from the mind is what helps us to feel connected, whole and free.

Not having to be drawn into the drama of the mind gives choice and perspective and ultimately gives us the capacity to feel into the larger, creative flow and sense of being. My invitation is for you to find this inner freedom for yourself.

Much more meaning than is teased out here can be taken from these cards, this is just a starting point.

You can purchase your own set of these ‘Yoga off the mat, contemplations to enrich your practice’ cards from the store HERE and postage is free in Australia. They make a perfect gift too.

The gorgeous original picture on the front of each card is by Gayle Stone Art.

**Find out more about my online course Fluff-free freedom HERE