Day 19 - Ayurvedic Journey
“Through systematic meditation one can awaken the third eye and touch the cosmic awareness. Sushumna nadi is the subtle pathway in the spinal cord which passes through the main psychic centers. The awakening of these centers means a gradual expansion of awareness, until it reaches the cosmic awareness. Each center has its own beauty and gracefulness. Through generations of ignorance and unconsciousness, this channel of awareness becomes obscured and hidden. Meditation is to become aware about this internal life energy. Meditation is the procedure to rearrange, harmonize, activate, and integrate the individual life energy with the cosmic life energy.”
OM (AUM)
The most powerful method of opening the Third Eye Chakra , is with the use of the OM (AUM) mantra. Each chakra and a seed sound, or bij mantra, which is a sound that that particular center resonates with, and chanting that sound activates that center. For the Ajna chakra, the seed sound is the AUM mantra
Lisa Bermudez, E-RYT 500, YACEP, Ayurvedic Wellness Coach
Dinacharya - Day 6 of self-care with Lisa Bermudez - Full Reading HERE
Self Care Through The Lens of Ayurveda: Self Care For Nose (Earth)
If you are feeling weighed down, have a headache, or are suffering from allergies, neti is a great practice. Using a ceramic neti pot, use non iodized salt (about 1/4 of a teaspoon), and warm water (use water that you would drink). Mix the water and salt into the neti pot, put the tip of the net pot into one nostril and tilt head. The water will go through the nasal cavity and out the other nostril. Practice this over a sink and close one nostril as you exhale through the nostril that the water came out from to clear out excess water. Repeat on other nostril.
Be mindful that if you tend to have dry sinuses, neti may not be the best practice for you.
“Study yourself. Become your own mentor and best friend. When you are suffering stay at the bottom until you find out who you are. Let the storms come and pass. How you walk through the fire says a lot about you. Nobody likes a victimhood mentality and what happened to you is not important. It is about how you use your chaos that matters. The dawn will come”
Liz Glover Wilson, E-RYT 500, YACEP, Ayurvedic Wellness Coach
Sadhana - Day 6 of Spiritual Readings with Liz Glover Wilson - Full Reading HERE
COCOON OF LIGHT
When I was young I asked God to show me wisdom. I did not ask to be smart or get the best grades, as I somehow knew that I had the capability and would need to apply myself. I was asking for wisdom in my heart—for understanding. I wanted to make a difference in this life—have purpose!
Decades later, I am still on that journey to understanding, toward enlightenment and to find the will of God/my purpose/dharma. The journey with Yoga has been hugely helpful, and I believe there is wisdom in the ancient teachings that can benefit us all.
Day 6 - Sadhana - AJNA CHAKRA
In Yoga, we use the Chakra energy system to explain our development and abilities - and, also our imbalances and emotional state. In yoga, we talk about sixth Chakra-Ajna or our third eye. We say this is the lens through which we create our perceptions of the reality we choose to live on Earth.
It’s how we perceive or ‘see’ our world and the many multi-dimensional worlds around us. It affects our beliefs, our dreams, our visions, and our view of things in general. Whatever filters we have created that are sitting in our third eye color any view we have of our reality.
Interesting video about the pineal gland (ref)
“The eye (singular) is the lamp of the body. So, if your eye is healthy, your whole body will be full of light, but if your eye is bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. If then the light in you is darkness, how great is the darkness!”
Erik Phillips-Nania, RYT-200, Author - Climate Change Yoga
Seva - Day 6 of Planet Care with Erik Phillips-Nania
Sacrifices (Yajna) for the Earth
“All living bodies subsist on food grains, which are produced from rains. Rains are produced by performances of yajna, and yajna is born of prescribed duties” Bhagavad Gita, 3.14.
Never forsake the practice of performing the yajna which purify the atmosphere. -YajurvVeda.
Yajna is often translated to "sacrifice" or "offering." A higher interpretation of yajna is that it’s a sacrifice of our ego, our separateness, to enter into the mystical realization and truth of the eternal presence. Making yourself meditate feels like sacrifice at first, until you realize it changes Reality.
“We share this planet. A simple way to practice Yajna is to plant a tree, put out birdseed, offer a tray of food for your forest friends, and/or donate to your favorite animal sanctuary. Other practices include turning up your thermostat 5 degrees this Summer, try car-pooling and consider a more plant-based whole food diet.”
Yajnas are food offerings (prasadam) to Krishna. Yajnas are chanting the names of god (sankirtana-yajna) to save us from scarcity of food supply. Yajnas are food offerings to non-human, to the animal kingdom, to strangers, and the poor. This is our responsibility.
The founder of the Hare Krishna Movement, Swami Prabhupada, said, “If the Lord is pleased, every part of nature will be pleased. The river will flow profusely to fertilize the land; the oceans will supply sufficient quantities of minerals, pearls and jewels; the forest will supply sufficient wood, drugs, and vegetables and the seasonal changes will effectively help produce fruits and flowers in profuse quantity.”
Yajnas means "to realize the truth of the present moment."
Bhuta-yajna, offerings to all living beings, offering food to the animal kingdom, rejuvenating gifts to nature, earth, sea, and sky, planting trees, and mindful usage of natural resources;
Manushya-yajna, charity; manushya-yajna, to help others to the best of one’s abilities; pitr-yajna offerings to our ancestors with donations in their memory; brahman-yajna mantras; and sankirtana-yajna, chanting the names of the gods;
Deva-yajna, water and fire offerings to the gods, offering hymns, songs, prayers, praise, worship, and soma—to help us purify the atmosphere, oceans, and lands.
Other Types of Yajna HERE.
For todays' Earth Meditation, please make an offering to the animal kingdom, or a rejuvenating gift to the earth, sea, or sky.
Another type of yajna "sacrifice" for the Earth involves breaking our addictions to toxic products of ecocide—especially industrial meat and dairy products, the number one cause of water pollution, air pollution, deforestation, and climate change. When we break our addictions, we can restore and revitalize our connections with our higher Self and Nature.
These are part of the environmental teachings of yoga and Hinduism, described HERE. Protecting the environment is part of our collective Dharma/Purpose and virtue. It's part of our expression of reverence and respect for creation.
“You are not limited to this body, to this mind, or to this reality—you are a limitless ocean of Consciousness, imbued with infinite potential. You are existence itself.”
Kapalabhati
Continue with this breath. This is a breath that awakens us.
Awaken your divine energy with this breathwork.
Ida, Pingala, and Sushumna are the main Nadis or energy channels through which the Divine energy flows. These 3 Nadis connect our chakras and run, vertically, from the base of the spine to the head. Ida is situated on the left, Sushumna in the center, and Pingala on the right.
Remember the symbol from medicine with the two coiled snakes around the winged staff? In Hermetic philosophy, this is called “Caduceus”.
It represents the two main Nadis, Ida and Pingala, reaching their pinnacle of evolution and contributing to the vital energy.
Ida and Pingala are the main conductors for our own energy and of the – the universal life force energy.
Through Ida, Pingala, and Sushumna, energy, awareness, and consciousness can rise to their full potential. This allows the person to reach a whole new stage of unity and spiritual evolution.
The instructions for this can be found on Day 17 HERE.
“72000 nadis are the areas where modern medical science can learn a lot from the ancient science of yoga and Ayurveda.”