Inner Power

So did you feel it? This past Sunday we had a full moon that fell in the earthly sign of Virgo. It was a powerful reminder of strength and inner power. As Tanaaz (Forever Conscious, Intuitive Astrology) said,

"It is time to enter into warrior mode. Gone are the days of feeling sorry for yourself or being the victim. Gone are the days of getting irritated by every challenge or setback that life has brought you so far. Gone are the days of resisting what the Universe is trying to show you. This is about finding that inner strength so you can heal, repair, nourish and reflect in whatever way you need to...Trust your instincts and see what arises for you, because chances are this Virgo Full Moon will show you the way and will show you where healing is required..."

When I read this I just said, "YES" and it got me to thinking about how we foster and connect to our own inner power. In our culture people are quite aware of physically working out. Whether or not they actually do it is another question, but people know that being in our physical body is generally a good thing. Over the many years of personal training I had this experience several times where the client would be either on the elliptical trainer or treadmill in a steady state of regular breathing with their heart rate elevated. They would turn to me and almost whisper, "I've never told anyone this before but...". And it didn't just happen a couple of times but frequently. I began to think more deeply about how our body is the gateway to opening up our emotional and mental channels. People would start working out and untapped issues would rise to the surface. In times of challenge, people will often avoid the difficulty by escaping to the gym or their yoga mat. By turning to the physical effort, we feel as though we can bypass the sticky moment and hope it goes away yet we know that it won't, as avoidance doesn't lead to resolution.

The next piece to this thought is that this is where people would then stay in the physical body. My thought for the week isn't about working out but about working in. Our body is one way in which we can tap into what our soul's conversation is. Our breath finds rhythm, we release endorphins and relax just enough for the curtain to be drawn back to reveal something deeper and perhaps unconscious. Our yoga practice, as well as other forms of movement, gives us the invitation to explore our inner landscape. And sometimes what is revealed challenges us and sometimes we turn it off and move back to just working out. But if we have a safe and sacred place, we can allow whatever arises to be there and perhaps begin to shift what needs to change. As Judith Hanson Lasater (A Year of Living Your Yoga) says:

"...it is in the difficulties that we grow. You don't need to like the difficulties that life sends you, but remember that they too are part of the sacred path of evolution." 

An appropriate meme that I came across this week just about sums it up:

So as you step into your practice this week allow for the rising of a deeper consciousness. We can support this connection to our inner power, building our inner strength by tapping into the third (Manipura) chakra, the seat of our self-esteem, self-will and confidence. We build our inner strength every time we chant its bija mantra of RAM, sung or spoken with the mouth wide open and allowing the lips to hum the "m" sound to the end of our breath. We stand strongly in our posture as we vibrate this energetic center. Fully trust the gut feeling that arises when you need to make a decision or to stand up for what you believe.

A final thought on inner power is the understanding that our outer strength and power will shift as we age. A point will arise where we have passed our strongest physical selves, even if we have a lifelong commitment to working out. However, that doesn't need to be true for our inner strength as it has the potential to continue to expand until our last breath. As we know our time in this body is limited and it shall change and eventually disappear, yet our inner power will always be the light we carry within.

Let your light shine...work in.