Releasing Ties that Bind

I wake up feeling the pain of others, leading to the recognition and acknowledgment of my own discomforts, so deeply buried...

My dreams are vivid, and three white mice insistently seek my attention with their urgent message to share... What, I know not, but upon arising I look up the significance of their visitation, and it seems they point toward the existence of latent fear, and invite those they visit to step out of the shadows. I continue exploring the meaning of mice as an animal totem, and marvel at how relevant it all seems to me...

There are days and weeks so filled with suffering and sadness, it could drown us if we allowed it...

There are times when prayers are needed for so many it is almost overwhelming. The cries of those in need pierce the heavens, desperately clamoring for attention...

There are times when we must commit to internal growth and face our internal demons and the aspects of our lives that are not so pretty...

There are times we feel so bound up and tied - that not even Houdini could unchain our hearts - and so we urgently invite in the heavenly power of angels and higher beings into our lives - graciously calling upon all our guides and saints to help us along on our journey...

This is one of those times - for many I hold close to my heart - and for me as well...

The beginning of the year is a good time to purge and to release on so many levels - cleaning out the many rooms in our homes and the mansion that is our being. We are driven to roam from room to room in our abode, systematically discarding items that clutter and no longer serve us - all the debris inhabiting our soul, and the limitations holding our hearts captive...

As I prepare to teach a class on revolved twists and bound poses, that are so challenging to me, and to many others as well, I am reminded of the "granthis" discussed in yogic literature - that is, the energetic knots in our being that keep us bound...

There are times when we feel bound and know that if our lives are to continue to unfold on its spiritual trajectory, we must work diligently to untie those knots. Over time, any spiritual practice enables us to slowly untie and unbind all that holds us captive...

The challenge is to do this in a way that is respectful and gentle with ourselves, for no one is harder on us, than we are...

And so, when I drove around early this afternoon, running errands, doing a mental examination of conscience, I remembered a song written by a dear friend, and listened to it after I dashed out of a drugstore -  gently reminding me that I can always choose to see how things are. How I respond to situations, to all those things that bind, and how I interpret everything - is always my choice...

"...I can't wish the rain away

When it's raining here inside

I can't make the sun come out

But I can open up my eyes

All I've ever known that sets me free

Is that it all unfolds as it should be

Take me slowly back inside

Where all I need is always found

I'll work until the knots are untied

Until I am unbound..."

When the day seems too much for you to bear, may you remember that you have the power within you at all times - to shift it and change it. You have the ability to see everything, differently. You have within you the means to untie the knots, slowly, deliberately, and patiently. 

May we always remember we are not alone but are supported by many in realms seen and Unseen. May we work assiduously to untie all the knots that bind. May we forgive all those souls and situations we find difficult to forgive; may we also allow ourselves to be forgiven by others, but most especially, may we forgive ourselves...

And may we truly believe that all shall be well in the end...