Spirited Woman Blogger Team

Light on Eating

The holiday season with its light, love and cheer gives us the perfect opportunity to be present and conscious with the food that we eat as we enjoy the range of culinary delights.

When was the last time you sat down to a meal and actually tasted every bite?

I’ve heard it said that after six bites of the same dish, our taste buds get bored.. Usually we are so busy talking or worrying over the days events that we hardly notice the food we are eating. In a very real way, our distraction can lead to our body hardly “noticing” its nourishment.

The quality of conversation during a meal can influence how your body assimilates food: staying conscious of what you think and say during eating allows food to be transformed into the most vital energy, capable of providing loving nourishment to the body and psyche. On the other hand, eating while angry or distracted may decrease the useful absorption of nutrients. Conscious eating is the first step toward a spiritually constructive and harmonious relationship with food, and learning to practice true calm during you meals can be satisfying and elevating..

An important part of my spiritual training took place in The Hungry Mouth Restaurant of San Francisco’s Baptiste Yoga and Health Center in the 1980’s, as both a chef and food server. As students of Raja Yoga, we were taught to apply what we were learning about the power of our thoughts into every part of our life, including food and its service. A hand-made sign over the stove reminded the chef to be aware of imbuing the food with love, Likewise, the waiters and waitresses were expected to be conscious of the quality of their thoughts while bring food from the chef to the customer and when serving. It was all about consciousness. (I devote an entire chapter to these principles in my book The Tenth Door.

Applying this knowledge to your food attitude during this holiday period will keep you clear and guilt free.  And please remember, being conscious of eating does not preclude enjoying the holiday goodies. Be mindful to avoid even a trace of guilt! You’ll truly enjoy what you choose and every cell will sing!

- Michele Hébert, www.rajayogis.net
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Magic Number

A popular piece of adornment these days is the wrist mala.Yoga practitioners and fashonistas alike can be spotted wearing bracelets made of everything from sandlewood to semi-precious stones. Many are unaware of their significance and few are aware of their use as a sacred spiritual tool.

Elizabeth Gilbert patterned her best seller, Eat Pray Love, around the structure of Hindu prayer beads or malas dividing the chapters of her famous book into fractions of 108 --the number of beads on the mala’s sacred circle. Traditionally, malas are used to repeat a mantra or prayer-much like the Catholic rosary. Interestingly, there are also also 108 beads in the Bhuddist prayer beads while the early Catholic rosary had exactly half that number or 54 beads.

What is the significance of 108? In Indian culture 108 is considered to be a number of completion and wholeness. In numerology, zero, the circle represents unity. Eight is the number that represents infinity. One and eight equal nine which represents completeness.

In astronomy, the average distance of the sun and the moon to earth is 108 times their respective diameters. It is said that in India their are 108 sacred sites throughout the country and 108 marma (sacred) points on the human body.

Wrist malas are a smaller version of the standard mala which has 108 beads.

Many wrist malas, although not all, are composed of a fraction of 108. Twenty-seven is a common number. Once you learn use how to use them you will imbue your own precious spiritual energy into the beads and they will become a protection for you.

1. Remove the bracelet and place your thumb and forefinger on one of the beads.

2. In your mind repeat a sacred phrase--a word or words that are sacred to you. It might be the name of the divine according to your wisdom tradition, the words peace harmony, well-being, or joy, peace, bliss. Whatever you choose repeat the same phrase with the tongue of the mind as your fingers move from bead to bead.

3.  Complete one circle on the beads..

4.  Replace them on your wrist. Do this at least once daily.

As you become adept in this ancient practice, you will find that the malas become a great friend and a sacred time for you to connect with your indwelling spirit.

- Michele Hébert, www.rajayogis.net
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Creative Musings

As long as I can remember, I’ve been intrigued by the creative process. The act of bringing something into existence is truly amazing. What is this magic and from where does it originate? We often attribute the art to the artist but every truly creative person understands that they are not the source, rather they are the instrument through which the Art moves.

Historically, earlier cultures have attributed the power of creativity to a goddess or spirit that, when connected to them, we become the vehicle through which creativity flows. In the early Vedic culture of ancient India,  people called on the goddess Saraswati to awaken the creative flow. The Greeks attributed the creative force to nine Muses also goddesses, while the Romans believed that every person had an inner being they called a Genius. The Genius was a divine being present within every person, place and thing, that was responsible for all artists’ work (interesting to note that the plural of genius is genii).

My spiritual teacher, Walt Baptiste, called the creative force itself Art. The true artist, he said, is on the path of evolving consciousness or spirit. As the artist grows spiritually, it is reflected in the power of her artwork and this touches the consciousness of all who experience it.

Music, painting, drawing, dance, writing, poetry, sculpting, singing are what are most commonly considered to be part of the creative arts, but what about our thinking? Our very thought is creative and out of our thinking we create our lives. This is certainly a very high form of art. However, the greatest creativity of all is our ability to Re-Create ourselves. Ultimately this is the goal of the Spirited Woman---to grow and unfold into the fullness and wholeness of all that we can be.

- Michele Hébert, www.rajayogis.net
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Remember to Remember - The Importance of Breath

Did you know that your breath is intricately connected to your emotional state? When you are feeling depressed, sad or angry, you breathe a certain way and when you are feeling inspired and on top of the world, you breathe another way.

Which comes first, the chicken or the egg? The breath or the mood?

The truth is that you can’t separate the two--they are intricately intertwined. The important thing is to understand that by changing your breath, you can instantly change your emotional thermometer.

At some point you have most likely been told to breathe deeply when under stress--a very helpful practice to be sure. But with awareness and intention you can take this principle of breath/emotional state to the next level. Another step on the road to self-mastery for the spirited woman.

In order to delve a little deeper into what makes us tick, the first step is to stop, find a quiet and comfortable place and lie down. Let your body be still and after two or three minutes bring your attention to the breath. Allow a slow and calm breath to settle in the solar plexus area. Continue it until you feel a shift within yourself. You will know when this occurs. When you are in a state of calm and well-being, you will be breathing the breath of calm and well-being. Look at that breath very carefully. How do you breathe when all is ideally well? Get to know the quality of the breath of well-being. Study it and make a mental note of it so that you can recall it at will no matter the circumstance.

Once you have a clear memory of the quality of the breath of well-being, you can recall it and use it at any time. The trick is to remember to remember. What often happens is that once we are stuck in a negative mood, we get caught in it and forget that we are the one in the drivers seat. We have the breathing tool to pull out of it immediately but we forget to use it. In a way, we get lost in our negative moods. They’re familiar to us and they become uncomfortable habits.

That’s why it’s so important to practice breathing daily. So the breath of well-being becomes a habit and it becomes second nature for us to consciously use it. When we do, there will be an instantaneous response physiologically and emotionally. We will no longer be striving to be well. Instead we will be well-being itself.

- Michele Hébert, www.rajayogis.net
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Easy Cleansing Diets

Have you thought about a cleansing diet but didn’t know how to begin? The first step in creating a body of health, strength and radiance lies in purifying the mind-body system by cleansing and eliminating accumulated waste products that settle deeply in our tissues and create an atmosphere of fatigue, sluggishness, disease and premature aging.

With the current onslaught of chemicals and toxins in our food, water, and the very air we breathe, it is imperative to look at ways that we can help the body keep itself operating at a high level of efficiency.

What about the body’s own system of elimination? Why do we need to do anything extra? The human body has four main organs of elimination: the kidneys, bowels, lungs and skin. These four organs work tirelessly in their attempt to eliminate poisons and toxins from your system. In addition, if one of these organs is not working up to par, the other three must work overtime.

Periodic cleansing diets help rid the body of toxic build up and waste products by lightening the load of the digestive system and purifying the bloodstream. The following are two easy and short cleansing diets that help detoxify the system and give  the digestive organs a well-needed break:

ONE-DAY LIQUID DIET
This regimen was introduced to me years ago by the “grande dame” of yoga and one of my close yoga teachers, Magana Baptiste. At age 90, she still teaches actively in SF to packed classes. More about Magana can be found in my new book, The Tenth Door - 24-hours of liquids alone gives the digestive system a well-deserved rest by freeing energy that can be used for healing and rejuvenation. It is also a great practice for mental discipline. In addition, many people feel that doing this once a week helps control weight. It consists of herbal teas, fresh raw vegetable juices, and cooked vegetable broths to be sipped on throughout the day.

ONE-DAY TO THREE-DAY PURIFICATION DIETS
This plan is a moderate vegetable juice/ raw foods purification diet that will nourish you on many levels. It is also called the mucusless diet system because the foods you will be ingesting are primarily alkaline and do not produce mucus and congestion in the system.

1. The amount of what you eat and drink is not limited. Eat only raw vegetable juices, (fruit juices are high in sugar), whole fruits and raw vegetables. Consume organically grown foods whenever possible. Drink only pure water (no tap water) and herbal teas. Be generous with yourself and partake of a variety of these foods throughout the day. Munching is encouraged. Remember that you are feeding the bloodstream with the highest quality foods and providing the body with all that is necessary for this short period of time.

2. For these days eliminate entirely all meat, fish, beans, soybean products, milk products, grains, oils, sweeteners (natural or artificial), salt, caffeine and alcohol from your diet. Do not eat dried fruit, nuts, seeds, starchy root vegetables, (potatoes) canned or frozen foods. No mayonaise, ketchup, soy sauce, or condiments. Don't feel deprived, there is a lot that you can eat.

3. Balance your day with periods of rest and activity. If you have periods of difficulty, remember your initial reasons for doing this. Select some good books on the subject. My book is dedicated to the subject of body-mind purification and another good reference is The New Detox Diet by Elson Haas, these will give you more insight into the topic.

As a result of periodical purification regimes,  your system becomes more efficient, and you will experience the clarity and lightness of being that comes with it.

- Michele Hébert, www.rajayogis.net
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New Beginnings

I came across a box of cards depicting hand mudras recently. Mudras are hand gestures or yoga postures for the hands that are symbolic of a deeper meaning. If you’ve ever been to an Asian art exhibit you have likely seen statues of Buddha and other figures whose hand and fingers are in unusual positions. Each hand position has a different meaning and is said to awaken certain energies.

Hand mudras are not just relegated to the East, however. The statuary of Christianity also has many hand gestures that are identical to their Eastern counterparts and mean the same. Japanese, Thai, Classical Indian, Hawaiian and African dancers tell stories with their hands using intricate hand and finger movements to to tell their stories.

In the Eastern traditions, each finger represents one of the five elements - the thumb is agni (fire), the forefinger is vayu (air), the middle finger is akash (ether), the ring finger is prithvi (earth) and the little finger is jal (water).

One of the hand mudras that particularly caught my attention with the New Year approaching is the one for new beginnings. I’m a big believer in new beginnings. Recreating ourselves on a regular basis keeps us on our toes and makes life fresh, new and exciting. As we allow ourselves to change and grow and take up new projects, new doors open and new opportunities present themselves.

The following website depicts the closed lotus mudra with a special chant to repeat. Give it a try and see if it resonates with you.

A health, happy New Beginning to you and yours!

- Michele Hébert, www.rajayogis.net
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Transformation

The goddess, or female deity, is the embodiment of creative power. Throughout the ages different cultures have viewed her through different prisms, yet the common theme to the goddess mythology is transformation through the creative power of the feminine. Through the right use of this creative power, we hold the key to our own personal transformative process.

In our society, many women in their mid-years have spent their lives nurturing and taking care of others and experience guilt when it comes to taking care of themselves. Yet, in order to be able to give more to those around us, we should be attending to our needs as well. There comes a time in each of our lives when we reach a crossroads and make the choice to move on to another level of spiritual awareness by attending to deeper needs within ourselves or to stay where we are.

Spirited women, by definition, choose the path of conscious transformation. Once we make the decision to recreate ourselves, we step onto the path of self-mastery. As we begin to achieve new levels of mastery over ourselves and our lives: physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually, we naturally becoming channels of a greater more expansive love.

My spiritual guide used to tell me, “You earn every inch of the way, Michele.” Transformation comes to those who stay the course. It is a life work. But as my mentor also taught, “You are always given back so much more than what you could ever give.”

The path of self-mastery calls for the development of the tools that will help us maintain steadiness in the face of life’s difficulties and the ups and downs of material life. The tools of self-mastery are breath control, the care of the physical instrument including exercise and nutrition, control of the mind, and spiritual practice. Within this fourfold approach to personal development lies the key to balance, health, happiness and quality living into the future.

- Michele Hébert, www.rajayogis.net
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Speaking of Habits

I’ve been thinking a lot lately about habits. I had the great opportunity of spending a week in Troncones, Mexico, a small beach town of about 800 people just outside of Zihuatenejo on the Pacific.

Some friends of ours offered my husband and me their beach house and as we were going to be leading a yoga retreat in Costa Rica. We jumped at the chance to spend a week unwinding afterward. The beach house was an open air palapa (thatched roof with no walls) just a few steps from a deserted beach with a direct view of the pounding surf and a sunset that was to die for. It was perfectly appointed - simple but everything we would need for an extended stay

My husband and I took one look at the place, met each others gaze, smiled in wonder, and sank into a blissful week of spending hours just looking out to sea, cooking simple but gourmet tasting meals with the fresh fish from the fish man who came by every morning and luxuriating in two deep meditation sessions on the beach in the morning and at sunset.

We were in nature 24/7 and soaked up its life force. It was a deja vu reminder of the four years I spent in solitude on the beach in El Salvador. It had such a powerful impact that I wrote a book about it. The Tenth  Door: An Adventure Through the Jungles of Enlightenment.

Now that I’m back in San Diego, I’m very aware that the freedom from the responsibilities and deadlines - self imposed or otherwise - is vital on many levels. My mind was totally  free of  the habit patterns of worry or anxiety that so often occur, however unconsciously.

And the best thing is that I slowed down. I slowed down enough that I can clearly view the old mental reactions trying to creep in. When we can see them, we have a chance to eliminate them. I am aware that I have a choice to let them back in or to choose freedom and clarity instead.

I have no doubt that the combination of the utterly peaceful environment and the long and deep meditations are responsible for this clarity. And I’m forever grateful for the gift.

- Michele Hébert, www.rajayogis.net
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In the Land of Eternal Spring

Sitting on my hotel balcony in Costa Rica, overlooking the glorious lush tropical landscape, my gaze goes to a nearby placid lake surrounded by lush tropical plants, trees and gardens spreads out for miles in all directions. A dramatic volcano looms in the distance.

Costa Rica is abundant with glories of nature. The country boasts over 900 species of birds and it is advanced in protecting both wildlife and its natural resources. Instead of an army, they spend their money on education and even the most remote villages have elementary schools. As a result it has the second highest literacy rate in the world. The health care system also gets high marks. Even if only one family member works, everyone in the family receives health care for $18 a month. There is a huge middle class and very little poverty in the way that you see it in other Central American countries.

Although we appreciate much about the country, my husband and I chose this location for our yoga retreat primarily because of the richness of nature and the powerful life force that emanates from it. It’s easy to forget in the confines of city life, the impact that immersing ourselves in nature can have on our energy field and on our consciousness. We are more than flesh and blood and bone. We are beings of energy vibrating at speeds of light. We absorb our surroundings and breathe into ourselves the vibration of our environment.

Nature has its own powerful consciousness. It does not get lost in the past or dream of the future. It is always in the present moment. When we spend time immersed in its embrace, and consciously breathe its energy into ourselves, our consciousness is lifted and we are healed on deep levels of our being and effortlessly drawn into the powerful present. The only moment. Now.

- Michele Hébert, www.rajayogis.net
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Let the Mountain Come To You

Have you ever had a day where your mind is all over the place and you can’t seem to focus? Rather than riding it out until it’s over and spending precious time in a funk there are time-tested ways to break through these periods quickly. One of them involves  the simple act of walking.

Contemplative walking is a powerful way to purposefully bring your mind, body and spirit together. Many wisdom traditions use this practice as a method to help us move into the present moment and experience ourselves as the receiver rather than the doer.

Yoga offers us a walk that incorporates moving on the breath. You count the length of your breath with each step as you breathe in for the count of three and out for three. In a matter of minutes you may find yourself walking a few feet off the ground as the rhythmic pattern of your steps and your breath brings you to a state of peace, harmony and well-being.

In the Japanese Zen tradition, there is a meditative walking practice that often follows a period of seated meditation. For years, my husband, Mehrad and I have taken groups of students to a Zen Monastery located on a mountain outside of Los Angeles where we participate with the monks in their morning chanting and meditation.

First, there is tea ceremony, than chanting in original Japanese. (Yes, they give us printouts to follow). After chanting, there are three 20-minute sessions of seated meditation alternating with 10 minutes of contemplative walking outside the Zendo (meditation room) in a circle as a group. In the Zen tradition, the group walks very slowly as one unit, each person following the exact steps of the person before her.

Walking on a labyrinth is an adventure in itself. Labyrinths in the West date back to the Celtic culture. In the U.S., many churches and hospitals have constructed labyrinths for walking meditation practice inspired by the labyrinth on the floor of Chartre Cathedral in France. Following a designated circular path you mindfully walk into the center aware of each step, and every breath and walk out renewed.

At Rancho La Puerta Spa and Fitness Resort a special meditation hike is offered in which you are guided to “let the mountain come to you” rather than actively going toward the mountain. A very different approach indeed and one which can be life changing. Try living life that way. Let the mountain come to you.

- Michele Hébert, www.rajayogis.net
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