Namaskar friends. I just wanted to share some of my favorite mantras with you. 

This is a video of me chanting the mantras. You can also read more in this blog for the words and meaning. 

I use these mantras everyday to lift my energy, clear my mind, and send out positive intentions to the Universe. 

They are:
1. Togetherness Mantra
2. Happiness Mantra
3. Light-Bringing Mantra
4. Perfection Mantra

Check it out!

Are you thinking of beginning your journey in Yoga? There are a few important details for you to think about. I want to help you find the class that is right for you.

I have been sharing and teaching yoga for some years now and I have observed a few useful keys about people starting Yoga that can help you.

Don’t get started without being well informed about your options. Otherwise there are a few negative possibilities.

1. You could waste valuable time, money and effort going to a Yoga class thinking that it will give you the results that you want.
2. You could spend a long time trying to find the class that is right for you, only to realize it is completely different from what you thought.
3. You could be committed to class that is not actually taking you towards your personal goals without realizing it.

​I have been helping people find what they want in Yoga. If my class is not the right fit for my client’s personal goals, I send them to another class that I think is better suited.

That makes me feel fulfilled because I know that Yoga has something to offer that person and I want to find the right place for them to benefit.

So let’s take a look and see if we can find you a class that will help you. 

In my previous blog post we spoke about working with the inner energy in our meditation. Certainly working with the energy was a big shift for me. Once I began feeling the chakras and moving the energy my meditation became much more exciting.

But still there was a “problem,” – my own mind.

Whenever I sought to meditate I would work with my energy and try to quiet my mind. But it just felt impossible! Sometimes the mind would clear, like seeing the clouds part in the sky and light shining through.

There would be moments of clarity. Sometimes a bit of space and a fleeting experience of peace.

Most times there would be a parade of thoughts through my mind that I never seemed to be able to control.
It felt like I could not escape from the thinking.

It was at this point I was ripe for breakthrough number three. I needed to understand my own mental voice… the mental narrative and how to detach from it.

That is what I want to share with you in this blog post. 
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In a previous blog post I shared that managing my inner energy dramatically impacted my meditation. When we learn to experience our energy body and energy centers (chakras) our meditation practice becomes very powerful.

There is a lot shared about chakras and energy on the internet, but much of it is founded only in ideas and not experience. We may read about chakras and learn about the colors, mantra, crystals, and all that jazz… but that does not give us a tangible understanding of our energy centers.

Only experience can bring true understanding. I am writing this blog to help you have an experience of your energy and your energy centers.

In this post we will talk about the

1. Energy body and energy channels.
2. The different chakras.
3. The hard truth about chakra meditation.
4. What you can do to personally experience your energy.

In my previous blog post I spoke about the need for practice and discipline. It is only through intelligent practice that you can make any kind of progress. This is true not only for meditation but for every avenue of life.

But keeping disciplined is often very tough. I am sure you have experienced making a promise with yourself to commit twenty minutes to practicing every day and not being able to fulfill it.

I have experienced that, trying to set goals for myself only for them to be disrupted by the course of life. Then we feel badly about not holding to our personal commitments.

On my spiritual journey I have felt this many times, and it continues to happen in small part. But I have developed personal strategies to help myself be better at sticking to my discipline.
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I want to take this time to share with you the ways in which I have motivated myself to stay with my meditation and build my practice. These are some of the things that I do to this day to help me stay disciplined in my practice. 

In my previous blog post I outlined the many challenges that arise in the practice of meditation. Hopefully in reading about them you have gained a better appreciation of the process and learning that takes place in our practice.

I recognize that the process may seem daunting. I have often felt discouraged and almost completely defeated, many times over, as I pursued that deeper spiritual connection. But I never let go of my dream.

The dream of inner freedom, self-understanding, and experiencing a deeper part of myself.
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My master was highly influential in this process. His words and guidance always reminded me that it was possible. His very presence was the proof. Because I could feel that peace, love, and wisdom in him that I was seeking. His life was my evidence that I could have the same experience. 

Meditation is presented as a very positive and uplifting experience. We always hear about the benefits of meditation and what it can do for us. I have even shared my belief in the positive power of meditation.

What we don’t hear is that meditation can be a challenging and frustrating experience. We don’t hear about how meditation can completely overturn our world.
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The reality is that you will benefit from meditation. It is a self-development tool and will help you to grow on many levels. But the process is a challenging one. 

I remember practicing meditation as a teenager. Sometimes on a whim, I would go outside and sit cross-legged on the ground in the garden. I would close my eyes and I think I did a good impression of meditating.

But amidst my calm poise, kissed by the rain or the sun, my mind was never silent. I could use whatever technique I knew to no avail. I would sit for a few minutes at a time, no more than half an hour. Sometimes I felt there was some shift inside. But I could never describe the change, if there was any.
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 Most times I felt like it was a failure. 

​In the past I had very little interest in meditation. Honestly it was not enjoyable for me. I would practice because I knew it was important to my yoga and my spiritual practice. But each time I sat for my twenty minutes it would always end in frustration.
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On occasion I would have some uplifting experience from it, and that is what would keep me coming back to work on it. To say that has always been fulfilling would be a lie. 

I have known Oraine for a few years now and I have always been impressed with her work. She helps women to find greater balance in wellness in their lives. Because of her strong impact in the community I know that she holds some wisdom that we can benefit from and that is the reason I invited her to be a part of our stress management event. 

Oraine has been providing support services to the women of Trinidad and Tobago for many years now and has a passion for holistic remedies. You can check out her professional practice page (www.camhanach.org) and passion project in aromatherapy candles (www.facebook.com/GardenOfGraceHandmade)

She was very happy to sit down and have this short chat with me (and Zara) about the landscape of stress and what she has seen from her clients. The conversation was very revealing and sparkled with her incredible personality.

These are the 5 points that were revealed (among many other insights):

1. Admitting to stress does not make you weak. We need to learn to validate ourselves and our needs. 
2. You have to be willing to do the work to manage your stress meaningfully. 
3. Develop a morning ritual to help you diffuse stress from your day.
4. Begin building a stress management tool kit. 
5. Learn to be true to yourself and go after what you need to be more in balance. 

What was amazing for me was to see the principles of Yoga shining in all of these insights that she revealed to us. Through the holistic and spiritual practice of Yoga many of these same ideas are developed and explored. We only had a few minutes to chat but it was incredibly enlightening. I hope that you find it resonates with you and inspires you to work on the stress in your life.  

What was your important take away from this conversation? Do leave me a comment on your inspiration and what you will do moving forward to manage your stress more wisely.