Soul Interaction: Where the Soul Meets the World

Are you a human sponge?

Life hits us from every angle.   Each day we are bombarded with energy from computers, cell phones, television, news, our cats, bosses, partners, spouses, and just about anything else can go here.  It’s a world of rapid motion and change.  We are all empathic to some extent.  What this means is that we are all little sponges that are constantly absorbing the energy around us.  Some of us are more absorbent than others, but we are all on some level internalizing the world around us.  The closer something is to us the more profound an effect it can have on us.  If we have a disagreement with a friend it might not impact us as greatly as an argument with a partner.  We also drink and eat things that affect us on multiple layers.  We also begin to see physical manifestations of this collective build up within the body.  An easy one to point out is eye strain from sitting in front of a computer.  On a deeper level stressful situations can cause ulcers and cancer is even associated with deep traumatic emotion stored in the body.  Our shoulders ache when we carry too much emotional weight and we even store old emotions in the shoulder blades.  We all know that we carry life’s stress as well as any personal stress that floats through our system.  So, this brings us to…

Hitting the Spiritual Flush Button

So, the example I am about to give is a harsh one, but it really illustrates the point.  Imagine the body as a toilet, and all that gunk that we are collecting with out EVER flushing is just building up.  Pretty disgusting image, huh?  Good.  Then is time to learn how to take the body into a state of cleanse and detox.  There are several ways to wring out the body.  We can cleanse through meditation, diet/fasting, and exercise/body movement.  There are of course tons of ways to cleanse, but we are just going to focus a few from each of these catagories.

Meditation as a Cleansing Tool:   The most basic and easiest way to enter into a cleanse is to focus on your breathing.  As we inhale we are bringing in new connection, and as we exhale we are releasing.  Many times a though will catch the inhalation, and people often forget to exhale.  We move through life getting caught off guard, and when our breath is not centered it keeps us from being grounded.  It keeps us from letting it all go.  The are we breath in brings in the oxygen or bodies need to survive, when we exhale all the waste leaves us.  We can attach positive affirmations of letting go and cleansing to each inhale and exhale we take.  Breathing in the affirmation deeply, breathing out any resistance to living it fully.  Depending on our particular meditation modality we can begin to go on a deeper internal journey.  We might even be able to venture deeply into each chakra noticing where imbalances might be.  Even in this space the breath is important in facilitating a release of those blockages.  You can also chant mantras geared for specific energy connection, or you can simply sit and relax.  Most of us rarely get to slow down.  Coming into full presence in an action of rest can do wonders for all levels of the body and it can help you through the detoxification process.

Eating/Fasting:  The body also responds to what we fuel it with.  I know everyone reading this isn’t vegan/vegetarian.  I also know that many of you that are not might not make the leap right away.  The idea here is to do the best you can with what you can.  The idea is to be aware of what we are putting into our bodies to provide fuel, nutrition and balance to the entire system.  We have to give ourselves foods that will heal us.  Raw fruits and vegetables of all varieties, cooked steamed veggies, nuts, etc.  Creating balance on your place becomes a physical affirmation of balance to what you are about to place into your body.  Make your own food as often as you can.  This connects you energetically to the food from start to finish.  You might not be able to do this every meal, but it is a great way to give the body a flush.   Fasting from foods that cause damage to our bodies is also important.  Clearing out sugars, caffeine, saturated fats, fast foods, etc.  Most people hear the word ”fast” and immediately shut down.  Fasting isn’t that bad as long as you use proper structure when starting it off.  The key to a fast is setting your intention for what you are removing from your diet.  Don’t jump too far into the deep end right away.  This can cause the body to go into shock on multiple levels.  Sugars, caffeine, and other addictive food additives can have the same effect on the body as narcotics during the detox phase.  It will be important for you to have a meditation structure in place, as well as a fasting plan.  Fasting helps us to break out connection to addictive food substances.  Fasting also brings control of those aspects of our lives back.  We often reach out to food in emotional crisis, in turn giving away personal power.  Those are the food items that you want to focus on in the fast.  This will help you to regain control over not only your attachment to the food substance, but to the emotions you are reaching out with.  My recommendation is to not set a specific time limit for a fast.  You start it, then you stop the fast.  When we are working through emotional food attachment we do not want to begin attaching guilt to the act of eating.  This can take you down a dangerous road.  If you set your goal at 30000 days of fasting and then you eat the second day in, you may internalize this as failure vs success.  Even fasting for a few hours can be a lot for some.  Give yourself space to let go, to re-balance, and to re-connect to the self.

Movement/Exercise:  Physical movement is something we do daily.  So, here is your tool. Move with intention.  When you are walking to the bus stop in the morning, set and intention.  Give the energy from that walk to some area of your life that might need it.  Give it to some place, some body out in the world that might need a little extra boost.  Let each step you take during the day ground out any attached stress, distress or disease that might be present in the body.  So, you can attach a positive affirmation of release or just be present in each movement fully.  If you want to take this further you can take a yoga class or head to the gym.  Yoga in itself is moving energy towards specific functions. Heart openers open the heart chakra to the sky and often directly into the ground.  This allows us to do a deep release when we connect into that sacred space of breath and movement. Even working out can help to move energy into bettering the body.  Lifting weights fuels the muscles with new blood and growth.  We can attach affirmations of growth, movement and connection to those parts of ourselves that might have been dormant.

Release can take many forms.  These are just a few ways to get the energy moving and to begin the “wringing out” or “flushing” process.  Each of us has to decide what is the best form for us to connect into.  We MUST do this daily.  Over the next couple of weeks I’ll take each of these modes of cleansing a little deeper to show you how to detox fully from the inside out.

Please feel free to post questions you might want me to address in one of the up coming blog posts on dextoxing/cleansing.  Or if there is an area of detox/cleanse you want me to focus on let me know and I’ll add those in as well.

Mahayogi Das CFT CSN MAT PAT

www.michaelbrazell.com

michael@michaelbrazell.com

Dynamics of Addiction to Work and Food

Part 1 of a Series on the Spirituality of Addiction

*These are my thoughts, my opinions and many of these come from personal experience with addiction, you might not agree with everything written, and that is okay. I may even be harsh when talking about addiction. That comes from seeing it destroy the lives of those close to me, and even coming close to surrendering parts of myself in dealing with my own addictions. All insights, comments, and sharing is welcomed. It is through discussion that we grow.– Mike”

When you hear or read the word “addict” What is the first image or thought that pops into your mind? Is it of a junkie sitting in an alley shooting up heroin? Is it of an alcoholic unable to control their drinking. Addiction is much more that these images, but these are the images that are most often given to us by media. These images are more extreme versions of what addiction really is. Addiction is the surrender of power to an external source. Many of us move through life without ever really knowing where we are surrendering our sense of control. Loss of power can come through a variety of forms and channels. Drug and alcohol abuse is just one facet of control loss. These can be the most
deadly, so they get more attention as it is important to move the person afflicted with addiction beyond that control sooner than later. For the purpose of this blog I want to focus on two other areas that I have had personal experience with: overwork and food. Within any area of addiction there are also emotions that we also become addicted to. We begin to lock ourselves into dangerous patters that do not let us fully live in our experience.

Overworking ourselves to death is not something you will hear played up in any media outlet, and you wont be seeing it anytime soon on A&E’s show “Intervention”, but many of us will take on more than we can chew, and this can in fact have un healthy repercussions in our lives. Stress is a big killer. Stress can cause high blood pressure, stroke, and in leads into a variety of other unhealthy habits (including other addictions). A lot of people consider certain drugs to be gateways into addictive experiences, but our lifestyle choices can also play a big part in this. After a long day at work, many will head out to
“happy hour” to unwind with friends and a drink (or many drinks depending on the severity of the work week). These are just quick ways to alleviate stress, and at times there is a sense of “peer pressure” to attend functions if they are work related–”I had to go, everyone else in the department was going”. Even the word “happy hour” carries with it a particular weight, it becomes an affirmation as to what is expected from the experience of drinking cheap drinks as a stress relief.

We can become addicted to emotions, sensations and overworking is a way of filling a void that might be present. It allows us to ignore other things that might be going on in our lives. We begin to reach out for substances that will fill the void, or give us cause to turn away from what is most needed. We can even create “victim dynamics” which allow us to use our addiction to justify situations. “The reason s/he left me was because they do not understand or appreciate the work that I do, or the hours that I have to put in, etc.” These kinds of statements deflect personal responsibility for connecting into a place of growth within the relationship or other things that are avoided/ignored/or put off because work becomes that “thing” that fills every corner of our lives. We have to balance our lives fully and create positive outlets of connection to the world around us. Our lives are not just defined by work or community achievements, they are defined by how we treat those closest to us. We have to allow others into this space, we have to create the balance that will allow for interpersonal growth. We have to look around us and see where we need
to show up in our lives fully beyond work. If you are overworking or using work to avoid situations in your personal life, you have to ask yourself the underlying reasons for this deflection? Is there fear in stepping into your life fully? Is there fear in connecting fully to a loved one? Are you more comfortable as a victim than a participant? Asking these questions through a meditation might give you some guidance on what/who and why you
may be playing into avoidance.

Food addiction is another area that gets a little more focus than work addiction, but it can be even more deadly as it has direct impact on our physical bodies. Most people assume that illness such as cancer, heart disease, diabetes are primarily genetic. These illnesses have a greater chance of forming due to our dietary choices, so it is our eating habits that tend to be passed down from generation to generation. As we grow up we build a relationship with food, and there are extremes within that dynamic. Some of us learn to reach out to food to fill a void, others learn to restrict food choices as a place to regain control. Food can bring pleasure and pain, health or sickness, well-being or distress. We have to begin to define our relationship to food in a healthier vibration. When we are reaching out to fill a void we eat more than we need to. In turn we attract guilt, resentment, and the underlying thing creating the void remains present. It doesn’t just disappear because we decided to eat the entire bag of chips. Certain foods can also excite addictions within us. Sugar, caffeine, chocolate, fats all have properties that can affect certain areas of the brain that are also associated with other chemical dependency. I wont discuss all of the dynamics in this post. Think about this, have you ever said “I can’t live without… cheese, chocolate, cupcakes, etc…” that is an affirmation of an addiction. Many will
argue that this is said jokingly, but others will agree that if they are forced to give up their morning coffee they would suffer throughout the day. We create an energetic dynamic and connection to the things we put into our bodies. We have to take accountability for our health. When we eat because someone made us angry/upset/sad we are giving power over to someone who is more than likely NOT spending and equal amount of time in the same space. Not only are you giving away personal power you are reaching causing self harm by
filling that emotion with food. I am not saying that having a cupcake or a candy bar is bad, it is what we attach to that food item that becomes the crutch of the addiction. Cupcakes take on the role as saviour vs a delicious treat to enjoy after dinner or on special occasions. This is also giving away power, we become a victim, and many give up. Food addiction requires us to wake up to different choices that allow us to build a positive connection to ourselves and what we attach to food.  Affirmations are powerful ways to grow out of a food addiction. Reaching out for healthier choices, allow ourselves the occasional treat and overall taking care of the body gives us greater sense of connection to the physical self. This brings the spiritual and physical self into greater alignment.
I’ll be going into this deeper in future posts, and I don’t want to make it sound like it is as easy as saying one affirmation to change the food relationship dynamic. It takes a while to go into an addiction and it will take time to step out of one.

Each day we are given opportunities to grow, to be part of this experience and to live this life fully. Understanding where you are allows you the freedom to grow, and it give you the tools to detach from into greater states of being. Take a look at where you currently are and breathe your life in.

Mahayogi Das CFT CSN MAT PAT
www.michaelbrazell.com
michael@michaelbrazell.com

Most would assume that spiritual people are also compassionate people.  Most in many ways are.  Through our divine work, we do our best to create positive energy in the world around us.  We look for where energy is needed and we give freely when we are able.  One aspect of compassion that is often times overlooked or taken for granted is “compassion to self”.   Turning compassion inward is usually something that is taken for granted.  We live in a world that moves faster than ever before, and this year life seems to be moving even faster.  We have to take time for ourselves and truly LIVE our great work.  I see so many spiritual people running themselves into the ground trying to be everywhere at all times.  This in turn causes harm to the self, the physical body takes on excess stress, chaos, and at times sickness.   We have to look at where we can love ourselves as fully and fiercely as we love our paths and those we are of service to.  ”Healer heal thyself”, is a phrase that comes to mind.  If you are in leadership within our spiritual communities and you take on too much you are not living in the deepest aspect of what community is.  Delegation of responsibility enables trust to be shared within a group, and it lets you breathe.  We have to take time to connect to a sense of what we need to create greater growth for our path.  Compassion for the self is not being selfish, but it is something that is necessary to create space for us to heal, to grow, and to foster deeper connections within our communities.

Walking a spiritual path means more that reaching out, we have to reach in.  Being kind to ourselves, not holding on to judgement, and just allowing ourselves to be is necessary for growth.  If you are connected to a healing modality take time to use it on yourself.  We all have the capacity to generate and create healing for ourselves.  We must not overwhelm ourselves with more that we can handle.

Here are a few quick steps to bring compassionate connection into your heart:

1) Take a look at how much you are taking on, and delegate where necessary.  Our spiritual paths and lives are usually busy ones, but we can not be effective leaders if we are chronically overworked.

2) Take time to “heal thyself”.  Take time to breath and to center yourself daily.  Turn off the TV, shut off Facebook, and turn off the cell phone.  Give yourself a few moments each day to “disconnect” from all of life’s distractions.

3) Appreciate your body by moving into healthier lifestyles.  When we are running ourselves into the ground with unhealthy eating choices we are not being kind to our bodies.  We only have body, and we must take care of it.  We must be kind and compassionate to the flesh and bone structure that houses our soul.  Go for a walk, set realistic fitness goals, take a yoga class, make positive dietary changes and give yourself time to relax.

4) Practice presence and show up to your life.

These are just a few steps in extending kindness to the self.  What are some ways that you extend kindness to yourself?

Mahayogi Das CFT CSN MAT PAT

www.michaelbrazell.com

michael@michaelbrazell.com

The goal this week is to eliminate some stress from our fitness journey.  Here are your Tuesday Tips!

Spiritual Fitness: So, one of the things that keeps most people from engaging in fitness is not knowing how to structure a proper workout.  Start simple.  I am going to list a few, easy to do exercises and quick routine that you can do anytime.  OBW=Own Body Weight exercises are the best for overall conditioning, strength, and weight loss.  OBW exercises should be included in any routine whether or not you use the gym or are just workout at home.  A lot of gym folks forget to include these very important exercises.  Here is an online guide that you can reference for exercise ideas:

http://www.bodybuilding.com/exercises/

Here are a list of a few of my personal favorites:

1) Push ups.  These are a classic full body exercise.  The entire body is engaged, the core is working to stabilize the body, and you do not need to very many to get the body moving.  There are literally hundreds of variations to the push up.  So, you can choose the ones that suit you.  The biggest precaution is to keep your lower back from swaying down.  Keep your navel engaged and pulled towards the spine.  You can even do modified versions of the push up to remove pressure from the lumbar, or from the shoulders depending on your personal limitations.

2) Squats:  These are another easy to do exercise.  One of the misconceptions with squats is that you have to bring your rear all the way to the ground, the moment your quadriceps engage you are doing a squat.  There are also hundreds of squat variations.  You can point your toes out, in, legs wide, narrow, etc.

3) Planks:  Holding the up position of the push up and resting in this position engages the core fully.  There are also a variety of plank variations you can do to add some variety to your core training.  You will feel this through the entire body.  A strong core will keep your protected from injury, it strengthens your muscles, and you actually burn fat because all of the body is in calorie burn mode.

These are just 3 simple exercises, but the fact that each has endless variations means that you can constantly keep your workout fresh and exciting, but also simple and quick

Here is a quick and easy routine that should not take more than 5-10 min to do:

1) Hold plan position for 10 seconds

2) 5 push ups

3) Hold plank for 10 seconds

3) 5 push ups

4) Stand up and do 10 squats, and 10 jumping jacks

5) 10 squats, 10 jumping jacks

Now repeat the entire sequence for as many cycles as you want.

Nutrition: The dreaded “cheat day”.  When transitioning ourselves to a healthier way of eating we often will eliminate everything from our diets right away.  For some this just means that we’ll be sneaking those cupcakes when no one is looking.  If you give yourself one day a month, or one day a week that you allow yourself some leeway.  This allows you to enjoy dessert when you go out with family, and puts you in a positive relationship with the food that you at one time may have had a negative relationship with.  Being in control allows you to decide when and how much you will take in vs that dessert taking control of you through emotional eating.  One thing to keep in  mind is that nutrition requires structure.  Keep a food journal and a log of what you are putting in your body.  In your journal include a calendar of days that you will be going out to eat, and days that you are going to have your “cheat”.  This way you can create structure in your caloric intakes through the week.

Mahayogi Das CFT CSN MAT PAT

www.michaelbrazell.com

michael@michaelbrazell.com