Taking it out into the world

All that is gold does not glitter. Not all those who wander are lost. J.R.R. Tolkien

There’s been a lot on inner work going on for me lately: chakra healing, shamanic soul retrieval, and of course, chakradancing. Now it seems it’s time to take this inner journey out to the world, to share this gift with others. And I have to say, I am feeling a little scared. It’s all very well to dance around my loungeroom, but now I’m going to put myself out there and guide others through the journey of Chakradance. Am I up for this? Am I ready? Will I do it ‘right’?

Better to illuminate than merely to shine, to deliver to others contemplated truths than merely to contemplate. Thomas Aquinas

Last week I went and danced with a dear friend. She’s been having some health problems and so we focused on the solar plexus chakra: the seat of personal power. I know that sounds a little Tony Robbins, but the power here is akin to the flow of electricity. If our solar plexus is compromised, for example, by us giving away our power through dynamics of low self-esteem and approval seeking, we can become very depleted in this area. As a result our whole system suffers as this inner ‘fire’ of digestion, metabolism and empowerment dwindles.

One of the greatest losses of energy in this chakra comes from ignoring our intuition. We all have intuition, it is an innate gift, the issue is when we don’t listen to it. We suppress it, deny it, argue with it, throw fearful thoughts at it, and this all takes a lot of energy.

Your soul knows the geography of your destiny. Your soul alone has the map of your future, therefore you can trust this indirect, oblique side of yourself. If you do, it will take you where you need to go, but more important it will teach you a kindness of rhythm in your journey. John O’Donohue

Caroline Myss talks about how we have misunderstood and mis-used the notion of creating our own reality, applying this force at the level of the material and the personality (romance, power, prestige) but that is not really the truth. The reality we create is at an energetic level, in our thoughts, and where we, consciously or unconsciously, direct our energy. This concept needs to be applied it to the management of our spiritual energy, and of our energy output.

Where does your energy go? Have you ever considered this? Not just physically but emotionally, via your thoughts. Do you harbour resentments, fears, old hurts? This is the great responsibility of the human life – conscious management of our power. The chakra system is a blueprint of the management of our spiritual energy, according to Myss.

Last week my lover gave me a rune reading. It was a beautiful process, and as with tarot, can be used as a form of divination alongside therapeutic counselling, to uncover blocks and issues in the querent’s life.

The runes are the traditional writing, magical and divination symbols of the ancient Germanic peoples, which effectively covers most of Northern Europe. Specific symbols carved in wood, or representations of these symbols on cards similar to tarot, are used in a traditional formation representing the realms in Norse mythology. There is an apparent correlation between these realms and the essence of the seven chakras as explored in this article by Magin Rose.

The reading was in response to a query I had about Chakradance. I had felt that just as I was beginning to bring my business into the ‘real’ material world of people, there was a major block occurring. People get very excited by ideas, but when it comes down to actually committing to a physical place and time, would they do it? Would anyone actually come to my classes?

The runes selected were highly favourable, suggesting I have the favour of the gods as what I am offering is of value, and with a recurring theme of sea-faring. I saw the analogy that my business, my chakradance craft, is like a boat, a beautiful boat, but one that has never been on the sea, is it actually sea worthy?

The only solution was some good old-fashioned business planning. Planning is something I often see as boring and restrictive, yet seeing the creativity as I write my business plan, the ideas flowing of how to launch my business, how I want my space to look, are actually really exciting. And it’s real.

We all begin the process before we are ready, before we are strong enough, before we know enough; we begin a dialogue with thoughts and feelings that both tickle and thunder within us. We respond before we know how to speak the language, before we know all the answers, and before we know exactly to whom we are speaking. Clarissa Pinkola Estes

Come to think of it, it’s not that planning is boring, it’s actually scary. My usual modus operandi is ‘fly by the seat of my pants’.

Yes, that is a kind of intuitive living, but I think you can be intuitive and conscious of your decision-making and the direction it’s taking you. I traditionally make what seems like a great decision at the time, with no real thought as to how to measure if it actually is a good decision, and if so, how I will know that going forward. And when fear and doubt creep in, as they always do, I’m lost at sea with no compass, asking myself plaintively, ‘are you sure this is what you want?”

I know of no more encouraging fact than the unquestionable ability of man to elevate his life by conscious endeavour. Henry David Thoreau

This week several synchronous articles have crossed my path, as I started to realise I needed more of a plan around my business, a friend’s new business was launched, with this wonderful article on why planning really helps calm the anxiety of launching a business – read it here at Confetti Design, and I received an email from Doreen Virtue about planning a spiritual business.

Johannah Chilcott, from Confetti Design, writes that there are three steps to keeping your head when starting a new business: building a solid foundation through research and planning, reducing objectives into micro-tasks to get things done without stress, and creating strategies for support, mentorship, and stress management techniques. It’s a very sensible approach, far less angst-ridden than my ‘fly by the seat of my pants’ no-planning-plan.

After the rune reading, and these gems of wisdom that have arrived in my inbox this week, the recurring message is that I need to plan, not because anything will necessarily go wrong, but because I will go into self-doubt, and a solid plan will remind me that I have prepared my boat for the ocean, I am sea-worthy. It will remind me of the reasons I embarked on this journey, and the solid ground behind and in front of me.

Probably the most important part of manifesting my intentions is right here, this giving birth to them in the physical world, not shying away from physical limitations and obstacles, seeing this as part of the richness of what I am doing, breaking through old barriers of self-doubt and self-sabotage.

Success in any endeavour depends on the degree to which it is an expression of your true self. Ralph Marsten

I previously wrote about the book Creating on Purpose: The Spiritual Technology of Manifesting Through the Chakras by Lion Goodman and Anodea Judith in an old post here.

The jist of Creating on Purpose is that all creation is co-creation between energy forces which are always at work, and through awareness and energetic healing we can become a clear ‘bridge’ for these forces to flow through, and we can quite literally use our consciousness to change the world.

 You have the ability to draw down your own vision of what you want to create in your life and to manifest it here in the physical world. Your soul has a purpose for being here. Lion Goodman and Anodea Judith

The ancient vedic texts called the upward journey of energy throughout the chakras mukti, or freedom; Anodea calls it the ‘current of liberation’. This current enables you to liberate yourself from limitations and attachments. It is the commonly conceptualised path of enlightenment by ascending from the lower chakras through to the crown chakra.

Less understood is the downward path, which the ancient masters called bhukti meaning “enjoyment”. The descending current of bhukti is the process by which consciousness densifies into physical form. In its simplest form this can be thought of as the process used in any body movement. When you walk your consciousness tells your brain to instruct your body to walk, this thought travels via energy signals to the nerves in your legs, where it manifests physically as you walking.

This downward path of energy through the chakras is the process of manifestation, where ideas and intentions catalyse and are transformed into physical reality. This process begins at the seventh chakra at the crown and moves down to the base or first chakra.

But he was able to understand one thing: making a decision was only the beginning of things. When someone makes a decision, he is really diving into a strong current that will carry him to places he had never dreamed of when he first made the decision. Paulo Coelho

In Creating on Purpose, Anodea and Lion outline seven manifestation principles, which describe how the seven chakras are involved in various stages of manifestation. Lion is very clear that this is not about sitting still and manifesting abundance, this is co-creation between our energetic and physical forms which requires action.

For an intention to manifest there has to be an idea in your consciousness (7th chakra) you visualise it, including looking at all kind of related things and letting your imagination play with the idea (6th chakra), you communicate with people who can be helpful and talk about it (5th chakra), you ensure right relationships around this intention (4th chakra), you create action plans (3rd chakra), you infuse your intention with passion (2nd chakra) and you actualise the intention in the physical world (1st chakra).

The other process is dealing with resistance. Like my aforementioned reaction to putting myself out there, it is natural to experience resistance to any new intention or action. You need to identify and remove these obstacles and unblock your chakras to allow the current to flow freely.

Strive not to be a success, but rather to be of value. Albert Einstein 

Creating and holding a vision for our endeavours does not mean being attached to perfect outcomes, more it is a compass to hold and refer to when the sun clouds over and the seas get rocky. It is a vision of the direction we saw from the high vantage point on the coast before we set sail, and once we found ourselves out at sea, we can refer to that vision for guidance, inspiration, direction and courage.

Affirmations for starting your own business by Che Garman:

What I offer through my company has tremendous value.

My work is a labour of love.

I effortlessly channel my energy into working on my business.

I easily get the funds I need to help grow my business.

I believe in myself and in my company.

I build my business with understanding and dedication.

I contribute to the lives of others through the services I provide.

People are extremely eager to engage my services.

My chosen lifework is fulfilling and lucrative.

My company makes a positive difference in the world.

My business instincts are well-tuned.

My business is constantly growing and prospering.

My business is flourishing!

 

Bless!

 

Image:

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