Things said or done long years ago,
Or things I did not do or say
But thought that I might say or do,
Weigh me down, and not a day
But something is recalled,
My conscience or my vanity appalled….

From man’s blood-sodden heart are sprung
Those branches of the night and day
Where the gaudy moon is hung.
What’s the meaning of all song?
‘Let all things pass away.’

Taken from Vacillation by W B Yeats

These words by Yeats echo what ails us until we learn to, “let all things pass away.” This is the key to true freedom; when we can truly let things go, to let go of the thoughts of regret about the past and mulling over what we could have said and done.

Who amongst us has no regret about the past?  If only we made wiser choices, acted differently, were more gentle in our speech etc, our life would be different today. The wisest compassionate remark one of my teachers made regarding this was, “if you could have, you would.” With  this outlook, we recognize that we did the best we could for who we were, which is the best we can ever possibly do, until we learn that we can make different choices.

Letting go of the past is the most important step towards personal freedom. Painful memories and unresolved issues of regret or failure are the invisible companions that follow us into every avenue of our personal life path in the present. They appear as nagging doubt, anxiety, timidity, fear, and lack of trust in ourselves and others. How do we shrug off these ghosts of the past and live in the present with clarity and resolve without self-sabotage?

One of the most helpful methods I have found is a self-healing technique called TAT®, which I have mentioned in a previous post, Coping With Difficult Times Part 3. There are a few steps to this technique which consists of focusing on a few statements while holding a posture. The posture is putting one hand at the base of the skull and the other on the point just above the nose-bridge between the eyes. You would have to look at the instructions on the TAT website. You can download the free instructions here by clicking here. From that page there are two ways to get the instructions. You can log in as a customer and order it through the store, or you can go to the tatlife home page and click on the free download link. Either way, it is free.

The  steps are:

1. This[substitute this with  whatever your regret, anxiety, failure etc.] happened.
   
2. This happened, it’s over, I am ok and I can now relax.
3. All the places in my mind, body and life where I hold this, is now being healed. Thank you.[you may thank whatever form of divinity or the universe etc.]
4. All the origins of this is being healed. Thank you.
   
5. I ask forgiveness of anyone I hurt because of this.
6. I forgive anyone including myself and God who I blame for this.
7. I now choose to create…[the opposite of 'this']
8. This healing is now integrating on all levels. Thank you.

The above steps can be shortened to three steps or you can even add more. Please check the TAT website if you are interested in learning more about this technique. You can download the instructions for free.

The beauty of this technique is that anyone can do it at any time, to heal mental, emotional or physical issues. The steps of forgiveness and choosing a new way of being are the most effective parts in healing any emotional issues from the past. It is the acknowledging of what is standing in the way of us moving forward in the life we want to create. It makes conscious all the nagging discomfort and stress that looms over us or appears as a background of anxiety and foreboding, without having to delve deeply into the issue.

When we can let all things pass away, we are open to the present moment and can live more fully and deeply. Our choices are not based on negativities that we still harbor from past hurts. We are free to make choices where we can reflect on our actions, determine their consequences both for ourselves and others. Our choices are then made on the basis of what brings us fulfillment rather than emptiness and disatisfaction. We become truly free with a deepening self-knowledge.

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There is no greater mystery than this, that we keep seeking reality though in fact we are reality.   We think that there is something hiding reality and that this must be destroyed before reality is gained. How ridiculous!  A day will dawn when you will laugh at all your past efforts.  That which will be the day you laugh is also here and now. — Ramana Maharshi

The teachings of the great spiritual master, Ramana Maharshi  can be summed up as the practice of self-inquiry through the simple phrase: Who am I? His main premise was that we are already self-realized beings and we only have to look within for the answers that we are seeking on the outside. When asked what is the best path to attain knowledge of the Self he replied:

To each person that way is the best which appears easiest or appeals most. All the ways are equally good as they lead to the same goal, which is the merging of the ego in the Self. What the devotee calls surrender, the man who does self-inquiry calls knowledge. Both are trying only to take the ego back to the source from which it sprang and make it merge there.

As a very young man beginning his spiritual journey, Ramana Maharshi one day had an extraordinary experience of tremendous fear of death:

I was sitting alone in a room on the first floor of my uncle’s house. I seldom had any sickness and on that day there was nothing wrong with my health, but a sudden violent fear of death overtook me. There was nothing in my state of health to account for it nor was there any urge in me to find out whether there was any account for the fear. I just felt I was going to die and began thinking what to do about it. It did not occur to me to consult a doctor or any elders or friends. I felt I had to solve the problem myself then and there. The shock of the fear of death drove my mind inwards and I said to myself mentally, without actually framing the words: “Now death has come; what does it mean? What is it that is dying? This body dies. And at once I dramatized the occurrence of death. I lay with my limbs stretched out still as though rigor mortis has set in, and imitated a corpse so as to give greater reality to the inquiry. I held my breath and kept my lips tightly closed so that no sound could escape, and that neither the word “I” nor any word could be uttered. “Well then,” I said to myself, “this body is dead. It will be carried stiff to the burning ground and there burn and reduced to ashes. But with the death of the body, am I dead? Is the body I? It is silent and inert, but I feel the full force of my personality and even the voice of I within me, apart from it. So I am the Spirit transcending the body. The body dies but the spirit transcending it cannot be touched by death. That means I am the deathless Spirit. All this was not dull thought; it flashed through me vividly as living truths which I perceived directly almost without thought process. “I” was something real, the only real thing about my present state, and all the conscious activity connected with the body was centered on that “I”. From that moment onwards, the “I” or Self focused attention on itself by a powerful fascination. Fear of death vanished once and for all. The ego was lost in the flood of Self-awareness. Absorption in the Self continued unbroken from that time. Other thought might come and go like the various notes of music, but the “I” continued like the fundamental sruti [that which is heard].

This “Absorption in the Self” that Ramana Maharshi referred to can be practiced by anyone regardless of religious persuasion. The Vijnana Bhairava or Divine Consciousness is an ancient text on yoga which has one hundred and twelve verses that describe ways to experience divinity. Of these there are under two dozen that a seeker can practice without having to study any religious philosophies.

Here is one based on music:

If one listens with undivided attention to sounds of stringed and other musical instruments which on account of their uninterrupted succession are prolonged, he will at the end, be absorbed in the ether of consciousness (and thus attain the nature of the Self).

In the notes from Jaideva Singh’s translation he said:

The resonance of musical notes lasts for a long time and being melodious it attracts the attention of the listener. Even when it stops, it still reverberates in the mind of the listener. The listener becomes greatly engrossed in it. A musical note, if properly produced, appears to arise out of eternity and finally to disappear in it.

When the music stops, it still vibrates in the memory. If the yogi does not allow his mind to wander to something else, but concentrate on the echo of the music, he will be absorbed in the source of all sound, and thus will acquire the nature of the Self.

This is a beautiful practice and listening to a droned stringed instrument is one of the best ways to do this. Here is a link to a recording of Tamboura, an Indian drone instrument which is very conducive for this practice.

Related posts:

Self Realization

How To Cope With Difficult Times Part 4: Chanting

Being Awareness

Being In The Light

Things Are Not What They Seem

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Among the many forms in which the human spirit has tried to express its innermost yearnings and perceptions, music is perhaps the most universal. It symbolizes the yearnings for harmony, with oneself and with others, with nature and with the spiritual and sacred within us and around us. There is something in music that transcends and unites. This is evident in the sacred music of every community – music that expresses the universal yearning that is shared by people all over the globe.
~ His Holiness the Dalai Lama

The sacred music of all cultures speaks to our souls in a language that only the soul understands and never needs translation. Our hearts resonate to the beauty of these sacred sounds and devotional feelings are evoked, whether it is listening to Bach’s Mass in B Minor, Brahms Requiem or Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan Qawwali. We are deeply moved at a level that  transcends the mundane and are transported to the realm of divine ecstasy. Sacred music has the power to startle us to move beyond the sensorial and to listen with our hearts and souls, to be transformed by its majestic beauty and inspiration.

Here are a few of my favorite Sacred Music:

Christian:

A Feather on the Breath of God: Sequences and Hymns by Abbess Hildegard of Bingen

Gregorian Chant: The Benedictine Monks of Santo Domingo de Silos

Vivaldi, Sacred Music: Laudate pueri Dominum; Stabat Mater; Canta in prato

Sufi Qawwali:

The Ultimate Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan

Tibetan:

The Lama’s Chant: Lama Gyurme & Jean Philippe Rykiel

Rain of Blessings: Lama Gyurme & Jean Philippe Rykiel

Music as Medicine: Nawang Khechog

Indian Kirtans:

Live on Earth: Krishna Das

Satsang: Deva Premal and Miten

Sacred Chants of Shiva: From the Banks of the Ganges

Native American:

Canyon Trilogy: Carlos Nakai

Deer Dancer: Jessita Reyes & Grupo Yaqui

African:

Sangoma: Miriam Makeba

Related posts:

Self Realization

Coping With Difficult Times Part 4: Chanting

Musical Cheers

Chanting

One of my favorite memories of chanting was when I went to a Hatha Yoga weekend retreat at a Benedictine Monastery. Our small group sat in meditation as we listened to the brothers chant their morning liturgy. I experienced a deep peace as the sounds of the melodious voices drifted in, over the distance from the chapel where they chanted. By the time we started our own chanting of the OM mantra, I was already immersed deep within. The sound of the mantra vibrated throughout my body and energy field. It was as if  I was becoming squeaky clean and I felt like my cells were humming. After the chanting was over, it was time for a tea break. I remember sitting overlooking the meadows in the cool morning air; everything was shimmering! I was shimmering inside, so were
the blades of grass, the leaves on the trees and the rays of the early morning sun that cast a golden glow over the land. I was so open to the intense beauty of the morning and every cell of my body was dancing in ecstasy! That was my first experience of chanting, I was hooked!

Image credit: Pixelsior

A mantra is described as an inherent sound-power that can produce a specific effect, physically or psychologically. The most popular mantra is OM. It is believed to be the primordial sound of the universe from which all phenomena is created. Could it be the equivalent of the Big Bang that scientists refer to in regard to the cosmos?

Like meditation, Om chanting can be practiced by anyone of any religious persuasion. You do not have to be a  Hindu, a Buddhist or a Jain. It is believed that the vibrations of this sound has the quality of harmonizing all energy to its vibration, just as a tuning fork harmonizes all instruments in its vicinity to its key. An interesting practice is to notice if you can detect the sound vibration of OM in all sounds you hear. It is the basis of all sound. Here is a link to a beautiful recording of the OM mantra that I like. It is helpful to chant along with a recording, it is the next best thing to chanting in a group. The sound vibrations of a group of people chanting at their own pace is magical and to be immersed in that sound vibration is very healing. The sounds have a purifying effect on the physical, the emotional and the spiritual levels.

The mantra is most effective when chanted out aloud but can also be very beneficial when intoned silently to oneself or inwardly. In the beginning you can chant for just five minutes and as you become accustomed to chanting you can slowly build up to a half hour or more.

• It is best to sit in an upright manner in a chair or on the floor on a cushion and adopt a comfortable meditation posture.
• Take a few deep breaths to become centered and focused within.
• Om should be intoned giving full value to both the O and the M. It should be intoned with equal time on both sounds: Oooommmm.
• Chant in a relaxed manner without strain.
• If you find yourself getting restless, distracted, anxious or tense, just take a deep breath and let it out fully, feeling that you are releasing and breathing out all tensions, and continue as before.
• Thoughts, impressions, memories, inner sensations, may arise during chanting. It is best to witness these and keep your attention centered on the sound vibrations, in time with your breathing.
• Feelings of peace, awareness, joy, as well as soothing radiations of energy well up in the physical and subtle bodies.
• At the end of your chanting time, keep on intoning Om in time with your breathing, as you go about your daily activities.

If you are self-conscious of chanting out aloud, it is also very effective to listen to OM inwardly, imagining the sound within. It is said that the mantra is alway vibrating within, so starting out acting as if you can hear it, you may be able to tune into the actual experience! Playing a recording of the OM mantra is a great support to create a peaceful atmosphere in your home and to stay centered.

To be continued.

Going With The Flow

In this series on Coping With Difficult Times we have been looking at ways we can care for ourselves so we can stay grounded and remember what is true and valuable in our lives. As a health practitioner, I have been exploring ways to teach people how to keep their equanimity and how to care for themselves when they are faced with difficult emotions. The modality I work with is related to the Chinese Medicine concept of Chi or life force. When Chi is flowing smoothly, there is a feeling of physical and emotional well-being. When Chi is stagnant or inharmonious due to physical, emotional or environmental disturbances, diseases of the body-mind occur. There are many ways to work with the body-mind to enhance the smooth flowing of Chi and to optimize physical and emotional well-being. We have already discussed Mindfulness Meditation, Tai Chi, Yoga, and Laughter Therapy, which are all great ways to harmonize the body-mind. In this post we will look at a self-help acupressure technique developed by Tapas Fleming, an acupuncturist. The technique was first discovered to help people with allergy symptoms and has since become a very effective technique for dealing with post traumatic stress symptoms, phobias and other difficult emotions.

TAT(Tapas Acupressure Technique)®

TAT® has been widely taught to victims of physical disasters such as earthquakes and tsunamis with successful results in relieving or avoiding post traumatic stress symptoms. It is easy to do and can be taught to anyone, even young children within a few minutes. It consists of holding a posture with your hands, one on your forehead and the other at the base of your skull, while you go through a series of statements or affirmations. The technique has been simplified to just using three statements, whereas the original used a minimum of five statements. I subscribe to the free newsletter which gives updates on new developments and technique refinements. It is not recommended  to practice TAT® for more than 20 minutes a day, as it is a powerful releasing technique. Drinking lots of water is recommended after practicing TAT®, to release toxins. You can download the free instructions here by clicking here. From that page there are two ways to get the instructions. You can log in as a customer and order it through the store, or you can go to the tatlife home page and click on the free download link. Either way, it is free.

Here is an excerpt of a testimonial given by a US Army veteran who took a weekend workshop of TAT®:

“I am 65 years in age, and a retired 31-year veteran of the U.S. Army,…..When I began this TAT work, I knew I still harbored sights, images, sounds, feelings, and emotions from my two years in combat in Vietnam. I have always, since returning from combat, had some difficulties communicating with my wife, and with developing close friendships. My senses have been super sensitive, I have been a light sleeper, and am always assessing my surroundings, as if I face an immediate security threat……I find that I can now recount details much more clearly, look at photos and not get tightened up, and see both years of combat like chapters in a book. I can now recall all of this without the emotions that I have harbored inside over the years….. My doctor asked how the medication was making me feel for me to achieve such a return to the healthy normal level recorded. I hadn’t started the medication yet, so I explained that I had been going through a trauma healing process and a stress reduction process, and that is the only way I can explain my blood pressure measurement. Since going through this workshop, I sleep deeper than I have for years and wake up more rested. I feel significantly less stressed and more at ease than I can ever remember. It is my intent to go through this TAT process at least once a week for the rest of my life.”

TAT® can be practiced when necessary, although you may want to use it as a self healing technique to work on several issues to support your physical and emotional well-being.

To be continued.

Related post:

Let All Things Pass Away

The body-mind connection

Do you ever notice how you walk tall with shoulders back, head held high and confidence in your stride when you feel good about yourself? When you feel like you want to hide from the world, do you notice that your posture droops and you look like you are caving in on yourself? It is true that our psychological state affects our physiology and it is also true that you can affect your psychological state by paying attention to your physiology. Working on the body-mind connection is one of the best ways to have clarity in these difficult times. We can choose to make the best of a depressing situation by keeping our bodies fit and our minds free of negativity. Research suggests that physical activity increases mood-enhancing neurotransmitters in the brain, raises endorphins, reduces stress, and relieves muscle tension which all helps to relieve depression and increase emotional well-being.

Yoga and Tai Chi

Yoga and Tai Chi are two forms of exercise that strengthen our bodies and enhances the smooth flowing of our energy. These exercises consist of slow movements and holding postures that unblock stuck energy caused by stress and difficult emotions. Practicing Yoga and Tai Chi focuses our minds, slows down our hyperactive physiology and immerses us in a deep serenity. Engaging in these practices helps us to stay grounded and to have clarity when all else is chaotic and disturbing. If you have access to classes in your area, that is the best way to learn. It is possible to learn from a DVD but is easier if you are guided by a teacher in a class, otherwise, there are several beginners DVDs available online that have good reviews that you might want to try.

Enjoying Exercise

The key is to pick an activity you enjoy, so you’re more likely to keep up with it. In the Pacific Northwest where I live, the weather is gray, wet and overcast, especially in the winter months. It is easy to feel depressed when the barometer drops outside and to get all wrapped up in a heavy gray mood. I have found that the best way to get out of a rut is to get dressed for the weather and to go out walking in the rain. The cool fresh air, walking in the puddles, and the feeling of expansion being out in the open, invigorates my body, my mind and spirit and I soon begin to feel alive again. I often go walking without the distraction of listening to music on my mp3 player. I like using my time in Mindfulness Meditation, being aware of the rhythm of my feet touching the ground and of my breathing. I notice the textures and colors of the foliage and tree trunks, the sounds of the birds, the smells in the air and the shapes of the houses. When I focus in this way, my mind is not chattering, worrying, and criticizing; I am present and happy taking in what is around me. When my mind is quiet, I sense the beauty of my surroundings as an inner experience; my own beauty; I am one with my environment.

Getting outdoors and connecting with nature is the most enjoyable way to exercise. I am an avid gardener and that takes up most of my summer. In the winter, I enjoy beach combing, and hiking on the great beaches and hiking trails available here on the coast of British Columbia. When I am in the great outdoors, time stops for me, I feel phsically invigorated, my mind is clear and I feel so grateful for the beauty and serenity of this part of the earth where I live. I am in touch with who I am and I know that no matter what goes on in the world around me, the essence of who I am is not affected. It is a great gift to be able to experience peace on the inside even if the outer world is in chaos. The value of that gift can never diminish.

To be continued.

Laughter: Lighten up yourself

I remember a funny incident from when I was a volunteer worker living in India, and it often comes to mind when I catch myself getting too serious and wanting to get things right! One day I was in the office and the receptionist who was a volunteer from Australia was answering the phone. It was just after lunch when the rest of the office was usually on a long afternoon break. The person calling did not speak any English and my Australian friend spoke very little of the Indian language. In her Australian accent, she was reading from her phrase book in Hindi, “The offices are closed, call back later.” It so happened that there was a young Indian man in the office and he was falling out of his chair laughing as the receptionist kept repeating the phrase in her best Australian-Hindi accent. When she hung up, she demanded to know what was so funny. It turned out, that with her mispronunciation of the phrase, she was saying, “Everyone in the office has been shot, call again later.”

When life gets too heavy, finding the lighter perspective is the best medicine. I love watching Comedy Central’s: The Daily Show and The Colbert Report. These are the only news shows I watch, and I get enough of an idea of what is happening in the world from watching these shows. They do not have to work at making the news satirical because the news these days is satirical; at least you can take that perspective or be totally depressed by what you see and hear.

The benefits of laughter

• it feels good
• relaxes the mind and body
• reduces stress
• lowers blood pressure
• elevates your mood
• boosts your immune system
• improves the functioning of your brain
• protects your heart
• exercises the facial, abdominal, diaphragm, back and leg muscles
• increases energy and vitality

According to research, laughter helps to reduce stress hormones such as cortisol and enhances the production of infection fighting antibodies. This helps to reduce stress, lower blood pressure, boost our immune system and protect our hearts. In times of distress, humor helps us to let go of heavy emotions such as depression, anxiety, fear and anger. It is difficult to hold on to these feelings and to laugh at ourselves and the absurdity of life at the same time. Humor allows us to step out of lonesome difficult emotions, to connect with others and to share our laughter with others. When we can see the absurd, we are less likely to take ourselves and life so seriously. We have more clarity and can be part of the solution rather than part of the problem and can be a force for creative action to make the changes we envision, that are within our control.

Bringing more humor into your life

• Smile a lot, and practice gratitude for the little things in your life; you will be more inclined to see the lighter side of life.
• Laugh at yourself; keep a journal, see the funny side of your problems; you get a different perspective and you take your problems less seriously.
• Realize that there are some things that you have no control of, and let it go.
• Emulate children, they are naturally light and carefree. Dress more colorfully and keep a toy on your desk and play with it.
• Watch comedy movies, don’t forget the Marx Brothers and The Three Stooges. Watch comedians on television or DVDs.
• Read Swami Beyondananda’s daily joke on this site and subscribe to internet joke sites.
• Join a laughter yoga club if there is one in your area; they are a little structured, it might not be for you.

Here is a video on laughter yoga, from India where it began. This one is hosted by John Cleese. There are others on YouTube, if you are interested.
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Here is a joke to lighten up your day

Fire swept the plains and burned down the farmer’s barn. While he surveyed the wreckage, his wife called their insurance company and asked them to send a check for $75,000, the amount of insurance on the barn. “We don’t give you the money,” a company official explained. “We replace the barn and all the equipment in it.”
“In that case,” replied the wife, “cancel the policy I have on my husband.

This joke is from A joke A Day

To be continued.