Removing Obstacles

Om Gan Ganapataye Namo Nama

A sacred chant offered up the the elephant headed deity, Ganesh or Ganapatai. Chanting this phrase over and over is considered a pathway to removing obstacles and reaching the fullest potential, in spirit, in prosperity and in success.

Most of us have prayed in one form or another to take away the things that are holding us back. Usually these things are within our own heads-self doubt, self destructive behavior, constant worry, critical judgements about ourselves and others, not feeling worthy of what we ultimately desire and want in our lives- and the list goes on. Ganesha, the elephant headed deity, represents success, prosperity and peace in all of our endeavors. He is know to be the remover of obstacles in our lives. By invoking Ganesh, it is said to remove the physical and mental blocks that prevent us from reaching our full potential for love, success and abundance. In addition, Ganesh is also the life of the party wherever he goes!

I recently purchased this Hip Hip album that is mixed with sacred chants by leading Kirtan singer call Elephant Power, by MC yogi...I love it...and it cracks me up listening to these hip hop beats with samples from artists such as Bhagavan Das, Jai Uttal and Krishna Das...cracks me up and makes me want to sing out loud...

Jai Ganesha! Rub your belly, breathe away the obstacles and receive what you desire!

Gratitude

In remembrance of September 11, 2001, let's take a moment to remember everything we are blessed with and be grateful for every moment. Life is way too short!

Happiness smappiness....

Here is an excerpt from 'Notes from the universe" from yesterday...

"For those who ponder and wonder and wrestle with the idea of what it is that they really want, I have an answer that each would wholeheartedly agree with:"Happiness."

http://www.tut.com/

In the personal search for happiness, sometimes so much can be lost...and what I mean by that is we spend so much time trying to figure things out most of the time, that we forget to be present and to remember that we have a choice to be happy. I know some of you will disagree with me but we all really do...

The other day, I was grappling with something that was weighing on my mind.....essentially a whole batch of confusing emotions that were swirling...we all know the feeling. I was tired and feeling a little self loathing when I realized that I had nothing to not be happy about. By setting the "stuff" aside for a moment and shifting my perspective to the amazing things that are going really well in my life, I immediately WAS Happy!

Happy, in my opinion is really a state of mind. None of us can change the past, but we can be present and create our own happy future just as we had always hoped for. We need not more than what is right in front of us....and nothing is more powerful and beautiful than that! Let go of expectations and embrace what the universe has to give you.....its as easy as that!

New Beginnings

The change of seasons always offers an incredible opportunity for New Beginnings. Summertime is coming to an end and although we technically have a few more weeks of Summer, Labor day signals the end of the Summer Season for most of us. Here on the East Coast, the change of seasons will happen before any of us truly know it. Soon we will be putting away our summer dresses and pulling out our knee high boots and sweaters.

New Beginnings can symbolize so many things for each of us individually...maybe moving on past a relationship that didn't work, accepting and receiving and new outlook on life or even shedding away the layers and the baggage of whatever you are holding onto. It also offers a new perspective to receive with Love. Marianne Williamson references in her book "Return to Love" that acceptance and forgiveness all come from finding a place of love within each person that we encounter. It may be a love relationship, a family relationship or even a friendship that has you in a twist. Once we are able to approach anyone from a place of love, we can find healing regardless of the distress, discomfort or pain that we have felt in relation to another. With this comes the ultimate freedom that anyone can have....letting go and starting over!

By Starting over, we naturally let go of the past. With letting go comes emotional freedom. And with that emotional freedom, anything can happen....Happy Birthday!

Namaste

Namaste literally translates as "the light within me acknowledges the light within you." A simple gesture and statement, sometimes finding our own light can seem daunting when our mind tells us otherwise.

Marianne Williamson says it well in her book "A Return to Love"

-'We get in life that which we focus on. Continual focus on darkness leads us as individuals and as a society, further into darkness. Focus on the light brings us into the light.

"I accept the Christ* (light) within" means, " I accept the beauty within me as who I really am. I am not my weakness. I am not my anger. I am not my small mindedness. I am much, much more. And I am willing to be reminded of who I really am."-

By focusing on our lightness and the truth of who we really are, true happiness and peace are abundant and available to all of us. We are all pure and perfect at the core of our being and by recognizing this essence we all have a unique opportunity to realize something truly beautiful, devoid of what are mind is telling us and what the world tries to dictate.

Yoga for accepting and embracing the lightness within you-

Sit in a comfortable seat and place the right hand on the energetic center of your heart (anahata chakra) place the left hand over the right. Close your eyes and breath into your heart center. Finding love and compassion for yourself is the key to happiness.

*Christ in this context refers to the light within us and does not denote a religious connotation.

Forgive to Live

Forgiveness is a heavy word...not just for the implication of what it means, but for the energy that is usually surrounding it. I had a dear friend who I had lost touch with recently say to me...."thank you for forgiving me".... for events that had transpired years and years ago. I stepped back for a moment when I heard this and thought about it. Yes, we had not spoken in many years (at least in the way this conversation developed) but forgiveness now???? I hadn't really thought about it in so long, because I had forgiven this person ages ago.

So why was it so important for me or for anyone to forgive? Especially, when there is no guarantee or even hope that you will ever see or speak to someone again in your life! I believe forgiveness is a path to freedom. We have all have witnessed people in our own lives that literally spend a majority of their time holding grudges against people who have done them wrong and have literally wasted their energy feeling bad about something that happened in the past. I am not proposing that you ignore your emotional process, but why hate, despise and fester when the only person that it is holding back and hurting is you???


I realized this many years ago after my life dramatically changed and my reality became something completely new and different. My new reality was born out of heart ache and pain....as I went through my emotional process, I immediately realized that the only person that was being hurt by not forgiving was ME! You see, the other parties don't ever feel your pain....as much as we would like them too, not so much. You are the only one who feels your pain....and the grudges and the anger....so unless you have magical powers, put away your voodoo doll.


What's not to forgive?...we are all human and all make mistakes, some bigger than others. The important thing is that we are sentient beings with the ability to learn from our mistakes (and other people's), forgive the pain that we have been dealt and to truly be free to LIVE an abundant and joyful life. Do whatever you need to do to get there....forgive yourself, forgive someone else, and you will find that you be truly LIVING, happy and free.


Find some compassion...try Supta Baddha Konasana to connect with anahata chakra (the heart center) and release tension and anger in the hips....a perfect pose to open yourself up to forgiveness.

Great!

My grandfather past away this last year and I have written about him before...today when I was getting my morning coffee before I went in to teach my Wednesday morning class, I was thinking about his fantastic optimistic attitude. Whenever anyone asked him how he was, he always shouted with resounding joy, "GREAT!" Just like Tony the Tiger. In his later years, with failing health, he perpetuated this sentiment when he could no longer speak...by knocking his large knuckles on a table...his new symbol of "Great!"

I reminisce about this for several reasons....you see, living with an optimistic and positive focus in life can considerably change everything around you. My grandfather was faced with adversity throughout his life, as well as, great abundance. Regardless of what he was faced with at any given time, he was always "Great!"

If you were to just start your day feeling great and shifting your focus to even say that you are great, maybe, just maybe you will feel great and then everything seems to fall into place. Depending on your beliefs, we only have this one life to live so why not make the best out of every moment....let go of what holds you back, forgive, be free, live with compassion and make a difference....even if only for yourself! Great things will come!