Sunday, 28 February 2016
A Beginner’s Guide to Crystals
When we are around crystals or gemstones our energy levels balance, harmonize and are heightened. Crystals have the ability to alter and raise our vibrations.
Crystals appear solid and still, however, they are a collection of highly vibrating atoms. They started out as liquid or gas situated under the Earth’s surface. When either the liquid or gas rose to the surface and cooled it bonded and formed to be what we now perceive as a solid state, with each atom organized in an orderly, repetitive pattern. These atoms vibrate at a very high speed and both temperature and sound can influence their frequency.
Each crystal has its own unique vibration and when we use our intuition we are able to connect with the crystal or stone that has a vibration that resonates with our own.
Crystals awaken the cells within our bodies that are vibrating on a low frequency. They engage with them to lift our vibration so that all our cells are vibrating on a similar frequency.
Just as crystals are capable of influencing our frequency, we are also able to influence the frequency of a crystal. Temperature is one indicator that causes change. As soon as we hold a crystal in our hand we activate it and its vibration will automatically alter. This is why when choosing a new crystal, we place it in the palm of our hand until it warms to our body temperature and when the vibration stabilizes we are able to feel how it resonates with our own vibration.
Placing a crystal near a candle will also warm and activate it so that we feel its powerful vibration while meditating.
When we receive a crystal and we are ready to connect with it, we should sit in the lotus position, if comfortable, and cup the crystal in our more dominant hand, with our less dominant hand underneath. Inhaling and exhaling deeply we can focus on the vibrations emanating from the crystal. The vibrations from the crystal will radiate through us and interact with our own energy.
We can then reprogram the crystal by imagining we are immersed within it. We can then attune to the crystal and voice a clear and pure intention for it. We will begin to feel a resonation with the crystal, which may consist of either subtle or more noticeable sensations. We can then swap the crystal to our less dominant hand with our more dominant hand underneath to balance the energy throughout our body.
The crystal will then be programmed to our set intention and each time we hold it we will reconnect and realign with it. As the crystals vibration and our own vibration merges we will harmonize on the same frequency so that we have absolute resonance with the crystal. We are then able to heighten our awareness as our vibration is raised and we will be able to reach a higher level of consciousness.
It is imperative that we take good care of the crystal so that harmful energies cannot interfere with it. We should be careful where we store it and also be aware of who else may be handling it. After anyone else has touched it, we should cleanse and reprogram it.
It is common for people not to allow anyone else to handle crystals they are specifically working closely with. It is also essential to reaffirm the intention regularly, even if the crystals have been stored safely.
Clear quartz is one crystal that is very easy to program as long as our intentions are for our own, or external, higher good. It has excellent communication qualities, helps to gain clarity and it clears emotional blockages.
Rose quartz is often used for healing as it strengthens empathy and opens up the heart chakra to allow a pathway for love and compassion to enter. It carries a strong vibration of unconditional love so it is capable of transferring painful emotions into loving ones.
Pink is a naturally loving and compassionate color and when healing rather than envisaging a white light surrounding and protecting our bodies, we can envisage a soft pink light as this enhances our healing power and infuses it with unconditional love. It also helps us to connect to our inner knowledge.
Rose Quartz gets its name from its beautiful rose-pink color. It is a transparent pink crystal that has a soothing and calming essence and is the perfect healing tool when our hearts are heavy and distressed. It communicates directly with the Heart Chakra and its peaceful energy circulates a loving vibration that helps us to let go of anger, resentment and fear and it enhances our ability to love and accept our self and others unconditionally.
The soft and gentle feminine energy that emanates from Rose Quartz helps to tenderly soothe aching hearts and heals old wounds. It assists us with releasing our self from the past so that we can refrain from repeating old patterns of behavior that keep us caught in a rotating cycle of pain.
We can keep a small piece of Rose Quartz close to our heart by popping it into a piece of clothing or wearing it on a chain as a pendant. Keeping Rose Quartz near to us heightens general feelings of wellbeing, self-worth, self-love and unconditional love for others. The gentle, but powerful energy radiates and vibrates in our aura.
Rose Quartz can also be placed around the home to harmonize each room as its presence emanates soft, warm, sensual and romantic sensations.
Yellow Jasper is another highly recommended crystal as it replenishes and rejuvenates energy, so it is worth carrying a piece along to any social events or places that we think may drain our energy.
Crystals can be used in various ways. We can place them under or in our pillows, clothing, in pockets or purses, we can use them while meditating or place them around us as a visual aide.
When we are around crystals and gemstones we will feel energized, balanced, grounded, calm and centered. We will also find that we will not need to carry out protection visualizations or grounding techniques quite so often as the vibrations from the crystals and gemstones naturally protect our energy.
It is essential to cleanse crystals regularly as they can easily become contaminated with either our own or external negative energy. Crystals that absorb negativity should be cleansed more frequently.
Sea salt is a natural cleaning agent, so we can leave crystals in a bowl of water with a tablespoon of sea salt. Not all crystals should be cleansed with water. Generally, ones that end in “ite” should not be left in water. It is always better to check if water cleansing is suitable although often our intuition will guide us.
We can run crystals under flowing water, either a tap or a waterfall, to remove any residual energy along with dirt and grime. Alternatively, sound vibration harmonizes them or we can choose to smudge crystals. We can also bury them under the earth so that they can reconnect to their natural environment and Earth’s energy can realign and recharge them.
Once crystals have been cleansed we can leave them out under the sun, although not on days that are too hot. We can also place them out underneath the moon and stars so the natural energy that is transmitted reenergizes and recharges them.
A new or full moon is an opportune time for cleansing and recharging as they are periods of releasing and letting go of negative entities.
~
Author: Alex Myles
Editor: Travis May
Image: Flickr/Phoenix Wolf-Ray
A Reading List to Inspire your Inner Wild Woman
“The strongest actions for a woman are to love herself, be herself and shine amongst those who never believed she could.” ~ Author Unknown
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So you want to unleash your inner wild woman?
While growing up, we women never attend a class on how to love ourselves or how to shine like the magnificent f*ckin’ queens that we are.
That is why it is up to us to help one another become the beautiful goddess that we were all born to be.
Because regardless of where you are in your life right now—you have magnificence breathing and pulsing inside of you, just waiting for the moment when you’ll decide to let it loose upon the world.
It’s not easy to awaken— it’s not a one step process.
If anything, it’s more like the cha-cha—a few step forward and then a few steps back—but progress none the less.
I have received numerous inquiries, asking about my personal reading list from women all over this beautiful planet who are searching for more.
The thing is that we are all unique, so what helped achieve my own higher level of awareness may not do the same for you.
That is a unique formula that you will have to experiment with, in order to find what works for you.
That being said, there are some amazing pieces of literature which can help inspire even the drowsiest of goddesses that sleep within us.
Above all, have faith in yourselves, and never doubt what your intuition is directing you towards.
The most sacred and beautiful aspect of a woman is her heart—so follow it, my beautiful wild woman, and see how amazing life can be when you let yourself bloom as only you can.
Blessings and love to each one of you, on your journey to become a wild woman.
Together we can change the world.
~
Listed in no particular order:
- Women who run with the wolves: Myths and stories of the wild woman archetype, Ph.D. Clarissa Pinkole Estes
- Succulent Wild Woman, Sark
- Wild Feminine: Finding power, spirit and joy in the female body, Tami Lynn Kent
- Succulent Wild Love: Six powerful habits for feeling more loved more often, Sark and John Waddell
- Wild Women, Wild Voices: Writing from your authentic wildness, Jude Reeves
- Warrior Goddess Training: Become the woman you were meant to be, HeatherAsh Amara
- Goddesses: Mysteries of the Feminine Divine, Joseph Campbell and Safron Elsabeth Rossi
- Untame Yourself: Reconnect to the lost art, power and freedom of being a woman, Elizabeth DiAlto
- The Divine Feminine Fire: Creativity and your yearning to express yourself, Teri Degler
- The Alchemist, Paolo Coelho
- Warrior of the Light: A manual, Paolo Coelho
- When Things Fall Apart: Heart advice for difficult times, Pema Chodron
- Living beautifully with uncertainty and change, Pema Chodron
- Taking the Leap: Freeing ourselves from old habits and fears, Pema Chodron
- The opening of the lotus, Lama Sherab Gyaltsen Amipa
- On beauty and being just, Elaine Scarry
- I know why the cage bird sings, Maya Angelou
- Eat, Pray, Love, Elizabeth Gilbert
- Five Wishes, Gay Hendricks
- The Prophet, Kahlil Gibran
- Love & Misadventure, Lang Leav
- Tiny beautiful things, Cheryl Strayed
In accompaniment to this list of amazing books, I would also suggest gifting yourself a beautiful journal that you can write your uncensored thoughts and feelings in, in regards to what you are reading—and also what you are experiencing in your life. I also would suggest an adult coloring book and a beautiful pack of new colored pencils—one of my favorite is Art for Mindfulness: Landscapes by Joe Bright.
“Wild moon woman you were not made to be tamed. You are an earthquake shaking loose everything that is not soul. Shake Woman, Shake.” ~ Elyse Morgan
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Author: Kate Rose
Editor: Yoli Ramazzina
Photo: Pixabay
Friday, 26 February 2016
10 Books for Every Writer’s Arsenal
Every writer was first a reader.
Saying that books have “changed my life” would be slightly inaccurate, as I do not believe that a book alone can change your life.
However, a good book can: a) Give you a new perspective, b) Motivate you to take action or change your way of thinking, c) Relax you into the unknown, d) Improve your writing and creativity, e) Make you a better listener, more open to new and different ideas, and f) Reaffirm your values and beliefs and make you feel more connected.
Books can act as stepping stones back to our path when we have wandered off it and feel lost, or when we just don’t know where to step next.
I believe that books, like all things in life, come to us in the moment that we need them the most. When we’re ready to receive the messages they have to teach us.
These are the books that I keep coming back to:
1) The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho
I found this book at a farmer’s market for four dollars and read it cover to cover in one day. It’s not lengthy at all, but there is value in every page. Coelho has a way of weaving fiction into a beautiful tapestry of allegories, and this text, a story of finding treasure, is a treasure in of itself. If you have any form of ungrounded wanderlust, The Alchemist reminds and affirms that everything we are looking for is already inside of us. That doesn’t mean we shouldn’t go after dreams and adventures in this life; rather, we should realize our heart’s truest desires—to know itself.
2) The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls
A true tale of the author’s life growing up the daughter of an alcoholic father and mentally unstable mother, this book made me angry, it made me sad, but most of all it motivated me. Walls’ clarity and determination to make something of her life, perhaps not in spite of, but rather because of her upbringing, is admirable. It made me look back at my own childhood in a different light and gave me the kick in the pants I needed when I read it. Circumstance is really only a small part of who we are. It is what we do with what we have been given that sets the course of our lives in motion.
3) A New Earth and The Power of Now by Eckhart Tolle
These two books of Tolle’s are perhaps the most profound spirituality books I have ever read. The Power of Now was written first, and A New Earth expands on the concepts of being in the now. For me, A New Earthhad a bigger impact, because in it Tolle delves deeper into applying techniques to living life in the present in a world that is constantly doing its best to distract us, keeping us in the past and worried about the future. The shifting of our awareness to being the observer of thoughts and emotions that come up, rather than getting caught up in them, was life-affirming for me, and so helpful in reducing the role the fear-based ego plays in my life.
4) The Dark Side of the Light Chasers by Debbie Ford
Whoa. This was one of those books that kept popping up through recommendations I read online, and I took it as a sign and ordered the audio version. The “spiritual path” starts out positive for many people, which is why they choose to go down it. But positivity does not mean that things are going to be easy; quite the opposite is true. It involves a lot of tough work; it involves looking at all of our sh*t, everything that has gotten in the way and mucked up who we really are at our core. Ford reminds us that we have a “shadow side,” and that understanding it is the way to finding true love and compassion for ourselves (and others as a result). When we own all of the aspects of our personality, we are free. Our shadows have gifts, things they are trying to teach us, and until we learn, we might keep repeating self-sabotaging and destructive patterns. Once we understand, we can integrate, and once we integrate, we have full access to all of who we are, the gifts and abilities that have been hidden from ourselves and the world. I can’t quite explain it—you just need to read it. I recommend the audio version, because at the end of each chapter the author takes you through guided meditations and other exercises.
5) The Untethered Soul by Michael Singer
An easy read to ease into spirituality. You can pretty much open to any page in this book and read a message that will remind you of the ultimate message: in every moment, we are choosing. Choosing happiness, or choosing suffering. Choosing love, or choosing fear. We always have a choice, and freedom of choice is perhaps the only reason we need to be happy.
6) Love Letter to the Earth by ThÃch Nhất Hạnh
All of Hanh’s works are peaceful yet powerful, but this one in particular made me look at things a little differently. I have spent a lot of money on college courses, learning about how to care for the environment, but none of them as educational as this book. Hanh reminds the reader that this planet that we’re living on is it. The majority of us say we care for the planet, but how many of us are living that way? If we love someone, we do our best, so the state of the planet is a reflection of how loving we are in our daily lives. Collectively, the more we take loving action, the greater the effect on our world will be.
7) Pathways to Bliss by Joseph Campbell
This is a great one if you’re wondering what you should do next. Campbell makes it pretty simple: “Follow your bliss and the universe will open doors where there were once only walls.” If you have a passion, but you’re not sure if it’s going to pan out, go anywhere; if it will be of benefit or make you money, don’t worry about that. Do what you love, because the cost of not doing what you love is far greater to your health and happiness—the only things that truly matter when it comes down to it. In the end, it only matters how we lived our life. If we spend our time doing what we love and what brings us joy, we invariably also bring joy to those around us. Campbell also delves deeply into mythology (what he’s known for—another book of his, The Power of Myth is also a great read) and reminds us not to get too caught up in symbols of religion, as they are all just different people’s interpretations, leading back to the same thing in the end: personal transformation.
8) Daring Greatly by Brené Brown
Brené Brown is a champion for vulnerability. If we want to grow (which is what we are put on this planet to do, so if we are honest with ourselves, we all want to grow), we are going to come up against many moments in life that ask us to take risks. To follow our intuition takes vulnerability. Vulnerability does not equal weakness. It requires great inner strength; it’s scary to take risks not knowing how they are going to turn out for us. Brown’s perspective has practical real-world solutions for many of those “What if?” questions our doubting mind likes to spring on us when we’re on the edge of doing something that scares the sh*t out of us.
9) Wild by Cheryl Strayed
The true story of Strayed’s loss of her mother and the journey she went on to recover the pieces of her heart will make you cry, and then it will give you strength. Strayed’s account of her trek from California to Washington on the Pacific Crest hiking trail is a reminder of the strength that we all hold inside. Women in particular are much stronger than we are taught to believe, and many of us go on similar journeys as a result, not so much to prove that we are strong to others, but to discover it for ourselves. This book just might give you the courage to do the thing you need to do next.
10) Tiny Beautiful Things by Cheryl Strayed
I just love this author. And again, books always come to us when we need them. This one is a collection of question and answer letters of advice that Strayed compiled from her time as a columnist at “Dear Sugar.” The questions people ask involve all the parts of this human experience: life, death, marriage, divorce, transition to adulthood, success, failure, abuse, survival, illness, recovery and more. We know we shouldn’t judge people until we can place ourselves in their shoes; well, this book helps us to place ourselves in many people’s shoes. And more than one of the letters will undoubtedly resonate with you in some way. Cheryl’s loving and brutally honest, heartfelt, empathetic responses to each letter give an equal dose of courage and comfort.
There are so many more books that I love, and books that I have yet to discover. These are just a few of the many. A great place to start, if you will. These are the ones that have had a profound and lasting impact on my life, my thinking, my being and the way I do things (or don’t do them).
Like anything in life, do what feels right, take what makes sense to you, and leave the rest. Maybe it will make sense later, or maybe not. Books can be tools, a starting place if we are feeling a new beginning or a change of direction is in order, or if we just need advice or to feel like we’re not alone. Books transport us to the timelessness that exists when we are in the moment of something—when things start coming together, and we get inspired to change what we want and be okay with everything else.
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