The Power of Wonder
“You develop an instant global consciousness, a people orientation, an intense dissatisfaction with the state of the world, and a compulsion to do something about it. From out there on the moon, international politics looks so petty.” Edgar Mitchel
Astronaut Edgar Mitchel, in viewing Earth from the perspective of the moon, experienced an expansion of consciousness, of awareness of his own relationship, and accordingly humanity’s relationship, to the vast Cosmos. He came home to Earth, a transformed human and founded the Institute of Noetic Science (IONS) in Petaluma, California. It’s mission, to scientifically explore the human mind and consciousness in relation to the Cosmos.
Today, we are experiencing profound change in our national politics and our ways of treating those who share our Earth, our human brothers and sisters, and all life forms born of the Earth and Earth dependent. We are experiencing profound change in Earth’s climate, triggering instability, natural disasters, and the very real possibility that the Earth soon will no longer be able to sustain us. If we could Uber to the moon today, and look back across space at the beauty of the sphere that is our home planet, how might we feel? Might we experience a sudden expansion of consciousness, an understanding of the interconnection and dependence of all of creation? Might our hearts burst open at the Oneness of the Cosmos, might our minds dance in wonder at it All.
To wonder, one’s mind and heart must be free. Freedom of mind and heart, is essential to the well-being of humans, individually and collectively. Freedom of heart and mind are essential to the expansion of human consciousness. The expansion of our consciousness is essential to uniting us to solve our problems today. To change and evolve we must see the whole picture, and our relationship to the whole not just our personal situation. We must wonder to see truth, to face truth…to act according to the truth we see.
As personal freedoms are threatened with the profound changes in our nation and world, may we not give up in despair, may we not choose complicity. Instead, may we wonder, may we seek new perspectives to widen and deepen our awareness of what is. May we wonder at and celebrate the magnificence of not only our planet Earth but of our own existence. May we observe the artistic beauty of the diversity in humanity and of all of life on Earth. In our wonder may we see the truth, that all of creation is interconnected, each a small part of ineffable creation.
Today personal freedoms are threatened, especially for those who are in minority populations. I find myself reflecting often these days upon freedom. I think about what can be taken from us, and what can’t. No one and nothing can take from us our hearts, our minds, our Spirits. Wonder is ours and always is ours. It is untouchable. It is eternal.
May we join in wonder. May we expand together our individual and collective human consciousness. May we see in one another our unity, our wholeness, and celebrate both our individual uniqueness and the magnificence of creation.
Let’s expand our wonder today, by looking at something we take for granted in our daily life, from a new perspective. May we sit in a different chair than we usually do and take in a new view. May we change up our route to work or the grocery store and walk, bike or drive down a new street. May we say hello to another human that crosses our path, who looks different than we do, see them, and wonder what it’s like to be them.
Let’s claim and embrace the gift of wonder that comes with this gift of human life on Mother Earth.
(In memory of Kevin, my first born, who taught me oodles about Wonder, October 10, 1986 to March 23, 2012)
Inner Sunrise - for the grieving
It is morning, the sun has yet to take the night
Life lays heavy upon me
Like a wool blanket on a hot summer night
I want to throw it off
Oh Spirit, as the sun takes the sky
May I wake my soul to the inner sunrise
Of your infinite grace
May I lay like a baby swaddled in his mother’s love
In yours
Then fully charged in you, Spirit
May I greet the moments of this day
Aware that love lives still, within me
-Anisha Zo
Grief is the human experience that follows great loss, whether the loss of the life of a beloved, the loss of a career, an identity, the loss of home, the loss of health or physical ability, the loss of human rights, or the loss of life as we knew it. Grief cannot be denied, or avoided. It must be lived all the way through. Grief’s every tear must be shed, every emotion allowed to flow through and express itself through you in your own unique ways. Grief is natural medicine that heals the great wound of loss. Grief’s medicine requires time and patience and trust… Grief does not express itself the same in any two people. Your grief is as unique as you. If you are struggling through your grief, there are many grief groups that offer support both in person and online. Working with a grief coach or counselor or an evidential medium can give support through your grief journey. When we are in grief, we are vulnerable. It is important that those we bear our wounds of loss to, honor and respect our vulnerability. Listen to your inner world in your process of finding your genuine, authentic grief support people. — Anisha
Soul Nexus – Our Inner Charging Station to Source Energy - part one
Our soul nexus, our charging station, always plugged into Source, our home within
Within each of us is a metaphoric compass, flashlight and warming blanket, that we can trust to guide and comfort us in through the deepest darkness. When we come into the stillness within us, when we let our mind and body quiet, let our emotions flow freely through, we naturally find ourselves at our soul nexus, our center, where the spiritual body merges with the physical. Our soul nexus is always directly connected to the field of consciousness and energy that is our Source (called by many names, God, Great Spirit, Allah, Yahweh, Higher Power, Christ Consciousness). Our soul nexus is our charging station, it is always powered, always waiting for us. It is our spiritual home within us.
What is occurring in the outside world does not affect our soul nexus, it doesn’t ever lose power. Even physical death cannot take the power of our spiritual energy. Our spiritual energy is our eternal consciousness. It cannot be destroyed. It continues when the body cannot.
We can become disconnected from our soul nexus, from our direct connection with Source. Living in societies that do not embrace the reality of the unseen subtle energy of life, we can be oblivious to existence of our spiritual being and our soul nexus. We also can accumulate baggage, such as patterns of unconscious thoughts and beliefs out of sync with our essence, and protective defenses from past traumas. Our energetic baggage can block the outlet to Source energy, making it difficult to plug in.
We can become distracted from our inner world. We can become tied up in intense emotions such as fear and anger. We can become distracted from our own inner source energy by looking to others as our source. We can plug into the pseudo sources of addictions. We can rely on the direction of our left brain and its logic and analyis alone, and ignore the right brain and the natural partnering of the brain’s hemispheres that allows the spaciousness of mind necessary for presence to our soul nexus and our connection the the divine Mind within our inner world.
Wherever you are, no matter what your circumstances, your emotions, your thoughts in this moment, you can cut through it all quickly, by taking a deep slow belly breath, then exhaling slowly, yet powerfully, through sound (high notes, low notes, goofy sounds, let sound pour through your vocal cords. Do this three times, deep inhale, so that your tummy baloons with air, and then slowly release the air, allowing it to carry blocks, distractions, stress, tension out of your inner world. If you don’t feel less stress and more peace after three breaths, take three more and belt out three more strings of powerful sound.
When you feel greater peace, close your eyes and be still for just a moment. Can you sense your soul nexus? Usually its in the middle of your torso, just under your heart and lungs, in your solar plexus chakra (where your ribs meet in a v). Once you find your inner center, your soul nexus, your spiritual home within your physical body, your Source of peace and comfort, you are on your way to learn how to live more and more of your moments in physical and spiritual harmony. This peace within our soul nexus, also works as our inner GPS, to understand if people, and places and paths are in sync with our highest good. Check in with your soul nexus, take and release your deep slow sound breaths and sit in the greater peace with awareness of your soul nexus. Now, ask your inner world, your inner divine mind, to help you sense and know if a person, a thing, a direction is in harmony with your essence. Connecting with our inner world is the first step on our spiritual path; our spiritual adventure as eternal spirit in physical human form. Now that you know where your soul nexus is within you, you can get there more quickly, whenever you want to feel the comfort and guidance of your inner home.
Now, lets get started on soul work, the inner work of getting to know your true soulful self and releasing the baggage that can accumulate in your inner world. Stay tuned for blog post about Soul Work, coming soon.
I
Weekly Awareness - The Sacredness of Water
“There is a sacred marriage between water and earth... Their relationship binds everything we know and trust. Earth holds space for water. Water nurtures earth’s dreams. Their collective desires make life possible. Without their marriage, this world could not be. And we could not be of this world.” - Thomas Lloyd Qualls, Painted Oxen
What is your relationship with water, you in physical form, made of the elements of the Earth?
Water, it fills the clouds and pours from them to Earth. It fills our oceans, our lakes, our rivers, our streams, our reservoirs, and flows into our houses. It flows through our pipes and filters, this life-giving source, that we drink, that cleanses our hands, our bodies, that takes away waste. It evaporates from the Earth to the clouds and the cycle of life-giving water flows continuously.
In Native Spirituality, Water is sacred. The Lakota tribe has a saying, “Water is life.”
What if we were to see water as life, as sacred?
According to Unicef, 2.2 billion people on the Earth today do not have access to clean drinking water and 3.6 billion people on Earth do not have access to a safe toilet.
Do you have in your home, safe drinking water and a toilet that water runs through? What if we, who water flows freely through our daily lives, meet each drop of water with an awareness that it is sacred, that it is life? What if when we fill a glass with water, we take a moment to give thanks that such a sacred substances flows into our homes and sustains our life? What if we drink the water with awareness of its sacredness? What if we wash our hands aware of the sacred liquid from the Earth, purifying them? What if when we bathe in water in our shower or bath, we bring awareness to the sacred liquid that flows through our home, and cleanses and purifies our body?
What if all of humanity saw water as life, and its purity as essential to life? What if humanity realized it is in relationship with water, for without water there is no life on Earth? What if we took care of our water sources? What if we did everything we can to ensure all people have access to the sacred liquid of life?
Awareness is consciousness. When we bring awareness to the sacredness of water, we expand our consciousness, and in our connection to all of humanity, we expand our collective consciousness. Today, may you drink and bathe, and sit on the bathroom throne, aware of the sacred liquid flowing through your life.
A “sacred water” spiritual exercise to cleanse, and purify your energy body:
WIth you eyes closed, take a few deep slow cleansing breaths
Bring your awareness to your center (solar plexus area)
Take a few more deep slow cleansing breaths
Bring your awareness to your crown chakra (top of your head) and envision the chakra opening
Envision a pure clean waterfall, one that flows down the side of a mountain in the spring
Imagine the pure clean, sacred, life giving water, flowing through your crown chakra and down through your body, from head to toes. As it flows through you, envision it cleansing all that is in your energy body that does not support your well-being and highest good.
Envision the water flowing out the bottom of your feet into the Earth, taking with it all that wasn’t in alignment with your highest good and well-being.
Take a few moments to enjoy the sacred water flowing through you.
When you’re ready, close your crown chakra and the chakra at the bottom of your feet.
Thank the sacred water for its cleansing and blessing.