Happy Monday! I hope all is well in your world!
In this week’s blog/vlog, I’d like to share a bit of the inner work I do in my stone circle as a way to show you how to develop your capacity for feeling.
This process is governed by shapes so, for this inner work, I’ve chosen a square, triangle, inverted triangle and circle.
Why use shapes for this deep inner work?
A number of people (from Steiner to Jung) say once you get to pure potential beyond everything — what can be weighed, measured or known — you’re in the realm of the superconscious, nonlocality or nonrelational space. That’s where the potential for everything exists.
If you study the development of a child’s mind, you’ll find that they get images long before language. They start by drawing very basic forms that look like wiggles and dashes, then progress to circles and triangles.
When we have images come to us, they trigger thoughts in us and, if we’re not conscious of what we’re paying attention to, they can have a negative effect on us. That’s why it’s not a good idea to expose young children to images of violence (which tend to flood our TVs on a daily basis).
When I teach my students how to use art therapy and mandalas, I work with different shapes and allow them to feel the energy within each one.
You can do this exercise very simply in your home or outdoors. Draw any shape that your soul guides you to create — circle, square, star, square, rectangle, you name it — that’s big enough for you to step into.
To get the full benefit out of this exercise, you’ll want to pause my vlog, step inside each shape you’ve created and do three to four minutes of deep 4-6-8 breathing. (Inhale for 4 seconds through your nose, hold it in for 6 seconds and let it out through your nose or mouth for 8 seconds.)
Be sure to expel the air without forcing things too much. By being gentle, you’ll activate the parasympathetic nervous system which will balance and calm you.
Watch me for a minute…
Once you’ve turned my vlog back on, pay close attention as I step into each of the shapes and what you’re feeling as I navigate through each one.
For example, watch me inside the circle. You’re picking up light which has an infinite capacity to carry information. And, because I’m projecting light to you, it’ll shift my light which will shift you.
When I step in the circle, what happens inside you?
Because it’s a circle, it likes to radiate its energy outward just like the sun. For me, I feel my energy radiating outward like a light bulb. I’m not going to tell you much more than that, because I want you to pay attention to your own mind and body and practice yourself.
If I describe too much of my personal experience, your brain will just lock onto my perceptions and recreate what I said, and not hear what’s actually happening within as you move in and out of each shape.
That’s largely why, throughout antiquity, all of the great spiritual teachers — Buddha, Lao Tzu and Jesus to name a few — didn’t want people writing things down. They wanted their students to have an experience unique to themselves.
A couple of tips
Having trouble feeling me as I step in and out of each image?
Buy a small bottle of Bach Flower Rescue Remedy and put four drops on your tongue. If you don’t feel an energetic shift, it’s an indication your subtle energy pathways are clogged up, so you’ll probably need to do some detoxification and healing. If you start by taking four drops a day, that’ll help clear your field.
Here’s another tip: If you’ve done any plant medicine journeys and you feel a bit blown out of yourself afterward, make a square on the ground, then just come sit in it, relax and meditate, or do a standing meditation in a stone square or draw a square on the ground.
As you inhale, visualize that you’re a tree reaching for the stars. As you exhale, visualize that you’re growing roots deeper and deeper toward the center of the earth. That’ll have a very powerful grounding effect on you
By doing these things, not only do you get to be creative and keep yourself fit, you can develop your inner awareness of how shape or form changes your energy levels. That’s what the art of feng shui is all about, when it’s applied to a piece of property or to your home or even to art and other things.
I hope you enjoyed this little exercise today. This is one of the things I like to do to grow and have fun. Remember, you don’t need stones to do this exercise. You can take a stick and simply draw each shape on the ground that’s big enough step in and out of, if you like.
For those of you who like to do art, feel which energy is most nourishing to your body. If a square is really grounding for you, after doing plant medicines, you can create a piece of art that’s made of nothing but squares and it would have a very positive grounding effect on you.
Want to learn more about exercises like this one? Consider enrolling in my Holistic Lifestyle Coach (HLC) Level 1 online program.
If you’ve already tackled HLC 1 and enjoyed what you’ve learned, think about signing up for HLC 2, where we’ll teach you how to coach people professionally, make a living and share your love with the world.
Love and chi,
Paul
