The Heart of Spirituality

This is an excerpt from Benjamin Riggs's Embracing Personal Disappointment as the Path to Awakening.
I absolutely loved it. Hope you do too.

The Heart of Spirituality.

When we truly relate to our personal dissatisfaction we realize that our life is a pattern of learned behaviors revolving around a center that is inauthentic and uninspired. We thought that life was about becoming our own person; rather than learning to embody the creative nature of our individuality. As a result, our every action was transformed into an attempt to become what we were not. This left us feeling empty and inadequate. Furthermore, when we look deeply, through the practice of meditation, we realize that we created the false self that our barren life has been obsessively revolving around. We see that we are the creators of the world we inhabit. We have divided ourselves against ourselves and made ourselves into slaves, chained to the task of filling the void that we created when we tried to become what we thought our friends, family, or society wanted us to be.

It is difficult to accept that we are both the prisoner and the guard. First of all, because, if we are responsible for all of our dissatisfaction, then we must also accept the sterile nature of one of our favorite past-times, blame. The futility of life, as we have been living it, is not the fault of our upbringing; we cannot blame it on society or the insufficiency of religion. Truly relating to our personal suffering means that out of all the assholes we have met, we are, perhaps, the biggest; out of all the bullies we have faced, no one, other than the one we created, so ruthlessly suppressed that silent voice of authenticity that always asked us to be true to our Self. Second, it puts us in a very compromising position. We are forced to learn to love ourselves, even the part of us we hate for having created this terrifying situation. On the spiritual path it is often said that we must be compassionate and loving toward our enemies. But when we realize that we are our greatest enemy will we be able to grant ourselves the same loving space that we would grant a dear friend?

The Buddhist path requires bravery and courage. We are put in a vulnerable situation immediately, but if we should choose to sit with our darker side, we will see, in a flash of insight, our basic goodness—the heart of enlightenment—break through that karmic cloud of darkness. It is only by digging deep into the silence of our inner-being that we are capable of recovering the unlimited capacities of our own enlightened potential. And it is within this untapped inner-resource that we will find the answer to the question, “Who am I?”.

Original Post
http://www.elephantjournal.com/2011/11/embracing-personal-disappointment-as-the-path-to-awakening/

Love & Light,
+Erika

What is the Clean Program?

Ok. You guys know how into health I am. My friend and chiropractor-in-training Ariel Provasoli introduced me to The Clean Program. Here's a little intro video:

Hoping that all of you begin to rethink some, if not all, of your food choices. I have. It has made a world of difference!

To better living,

+Erika

Living Our Divine Essence

Living Our Divine Essence by Erika Matos

An inspiring friend, Xina Sy, invited me to contribute to her  Big, Bold, Beautiful Blog(http://thebigboldbeautifulblog.blogspot.com) and I gladly obliged.

Here's the link: Living Our Divine Essence by Erika Matos

With Love. Enjoy!

"When we live from within, nothing from without can shake or stir us. When we are grounded in truth, we can trust our foundation to be the sturdiest and most reliable. When the inner void is filled, the material band-aids are no longer needed to determine worth or value." + Erika

Natural Health

I have been noticing lately how my focus is mostly on the physical body. Don't get me wrong, my fascination with the spirit, mental, and emotional side of our selves is very strong. However, I am finding that the body is the one part that gets very neglected. Either lack of information, or lack of motivation, leaves us in a state of imbalance and at the hands of doctors who do little but prescribe mindlessly.

The more I learn, the more that I realize that the body is one of the easiest things to correct and "make healthy". My approach is one of natural, holistic, organic eating, herbal therapy, vitamin & mineral supplementation, mindful exercise, and energy healing.  The thing is: the body can affect our spirit, our mind, and our emotions. It is our vessel throughout life!

Since I began my Pilates instructor training, I have been more consistent with my workouts, and have noticed an incredible positive difference in my mood. That combined with more nutrition education, convinced me that the body is an incredible powerhouse! What a beautiful physical gift to have. It's design is perfect.

Although we are not given a manual on how to effectively take care of it, to be happy, healthy, and free of disease is possible.

From now on, I'll begin to focus more on this area as a educator and coach. I'm really looking forward helping people transform and improve their well being.


Love yourselves. Love the body that you are in.


You have no idea how blessed you are! (And if you do, stay in gratitude!)

Many Blessings,
+Erika

Shine On!

"Our spiritual nature is light which radiates from us and naturally transforms and heals. This spiritual light also creates unlimited possibilities of what can happen versus the limitations our minds put on things.

The sun shines light that is absorbed by all of life. The sun does not decide that since things are going "badly" in the world it won't shine today. The sun shines each day.

We must make a choice to shine our light and allow that light to radiate no matter what is going on in the outer world. We can't go back and forth deciding one day to feed the light and then one day to feed fear and anger. This going back and forth detracts from the focus and concentration of spiritual energies needed right now to create true change."

- Sandra Ingerman

Liberation

I learnt so much this past 4th of July weekend. About love, life and the pursuit of happiness. About releasing my self-imposed roles. About relaxing and allowing myself to ride the incredible wave of life. About the unexpected lessons, and happy new connections. I experienced pure magic.

For a while, I allowed myself to surrender, and then wondered how come I didn't do this more often! Life happened beautifully without me trying to control what was going on around me. Better than I could've expected. The food, the company, the exchange of genuineness, all fed my soul, which was apparently hungrier than I imagined.

So this weekend I went with the flow, got into a state of flow, and loved every second of it! Maybe this holiday was meant to liberate me from myself. To feel my way through this journey just a tad bit more, and to put the mind at ease. The fireworks ignited within my soul, and I fell in love with life all over again...

Hoping that your holiday was filled with joy!

Many Blessings,
Erika

Shadow Working

Whatever you feel is wrong with the world are shadows of yourself.  The things that you like in other people, and the things you don't like in other people, are all reflections of yourself.

(You mean to tell me that person I can't stand is mirroring a part of me? Yep!)

What's a shadow? According to Debbie Ford, the shadow contains all the parts of ourselves that we try to hide, deny or suppress. It is the keeper of all the aspects of ourselves that we dislike and the qualities that we judge as unacceptable. It shows up in different ways and you may feel angry, critical, fearful, lazy, controlling, selfish, weak, pathetic, etc. These are the parts of ourselves we don’t want to the world to see, and that we try so hard to get rid of.


But eliminating it is not the answer. We must learn to embrace and accept those parts of ourselves! The Shadow Process gives us access to loving our imperfect, human selves entirely and unconditionally. This deep and profound work teaches and enables us to embrace both the darkness of our smallest self and the brilliant light of our highest self. 

Making peace with our dark side is a sacred journey. It demands rigorous honesty, courage and a great deal of compassion. Embracing our shadow delivers us emotional wholeness and the absolute freedom to be who we are. When we are filled with self-love and self-appreciation, we automatically attract the miraculous experience of love and appreciation from others. I think of Anakin Skywalker/Darth Vader, where in the end he made peace within himself, and 'brought balance to the force'.

Don't fight those parts of yourself. The darkness within needs love just like anything else. When you learn to give it just that, those pieces of you start working in your favor. 

Shadow work is intense! It'll always show you where you could improve, and it's ongoing, and every time and opportunity for growth and expansion. Yes, it's uncomfortable, but we understand that discomfort is a chance for betterment.

Love what you have feared in order to receive the key that will allow you to unleash the unlimited power that lies dormant within you.

You don't have to be perfect, you just need to be YOU.

+Erika
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Erika Matos is a transformational agent, a certified health and nutrition educator, intuitive healer, and life coach helping people shift in the right direction by critically rethinking everything assumed to be true about what it means to be a happy, healthy, prosperous being. To learn more about her work visit http://www.realitymanifest.com

Pilates Training!

In four days I begin my Pilates instructor certification! Thrilled and scared at the same time. While I had years of classical dance training in the past, I have never taught movement. It's new territory, but I'm excited to finally do it. I had been considering it for about a year now, and the moment has now arrived.

Here's why I love this so much:
Pilates' Six principles are: concentration, control, center, flow/efficiency of movement, precision and breathing.

It's a very simple method that really strengthens your core, increases flexibility and gives you really good sense of control of your body, instead of just being at its mercy! One can gain coordination in the legs, abdominals, arms and back, in addition to strength and endurance. Each time you exercise, you have to concentrate on what you´re doing and focus your entire body on the correct movements in order to reap all the awesome benefits. Much like yoga, the most important thing is to breathe. The discipline learned can definitely be applied to all other areas of life.

Pilates has been very helpful for me. I suffered a few lower back injuries, and this was the best therapy I received. My goal is to be as prepared to serve my clients as possible, as well as keep myself balanced and focused. To keep growing and learning...


Our bodies are the temples that will support us through our entire journey.  Let's shower them with love, proper care and maintenance.

+Erika

_______________________________________________________
Erika Matos is a transformational agent, a certified health and nutrition educator, intuitive healer, and life coach helping people shift in the right direction by critically rethinking everything assumed to be true about what it means to be a happy, healthy, prosperous being. To learn more about her work visit http://www.realitymanifest.com

Sandra Ingerman on How To Heal Toxic Energy

How To Heal Toxic Energy (Excerpt)
huffingtonpost.com

Sandra Ingerman



As human beings it is our right to have and express the range of feelings from joy and love to fear and anger. Expressing our emotions makes us feel alive.

At the same time it is important for us to look at what kind of situations and interactions trigger us. We must stop the reaction and learn how to express our thoughts and feelings while at the same time transforming the energy to positive energy that is healing energy for the planet.

Throughout time spiritual teachings have taught that our outer world is a reflection of our own inner state of consciousness. When we look at the environmental pollution and the state of the world today we are seeing a reflection of our own inner world. If we want to change the world we need to focus on changing ourselves. And this includes the need to be more conscious of the thoughts we send out.

Here are some simple ways that you can work with to transform energy:

Breathe: Breathing is one of the simplest ways to transform energy. When you are in a state of reaction your breathing becomes shallow. By breathing deeply you naturally transform your reactive state.

Set An Intention: When you feel upset just say the following statement to yourself: "I need to express how I am feeling right now, and I ask that the energy of my feelings be transformed into love and light so I am feeding the world with love."

Think Of A Precious Image: The energy behind your emotions goes out to all living beings. If confronted by someone who evokes strong emotions think of a loved one and impose his or her image on the face of the person challenging you. For example, you might work with the face of a baby kitten, puppy, or your favorite flower. What thoughts do you want to send to those you love?

Use The Power Of Words: Spiritual traditions teach that words are vibration and the words we use effect our lives. As children many of us used the phrase "abracadabra". This is actually an Aramaic phrase "Abraq ad habra" and means, "I will create as I speak." Use words throughout the day that remind you of the energy of love.

Be Grateful: Think about what you are grateful for. Being grateful always transforms your current state of consciousness.

Project Strength: Don't pity others whom you perceive as suffering--this only pushes them deeper into a hole. When you see people in their divine light and perfection you help give them the strength they need to deal with their troubles.

Connect With Nature: Water can wash away your pain. As you wash visualize negative energy flowing from you and being transformed into light. As you stand in the wind imagine the wind carrying what needs to be released and being transformed into light. Light a candle and imagine the fire transmuting your intense feelings. Or you can bury your troubles in the earth with the intention that the energy be transformed to love.

Surround Yourself In Light: If you feel someone is being energetically hostile toward you, imagine a protective light surrounding you. Some people think of being surrounded by white light. I imagine being enclosed in a translucent blue egg. Find a color that works for you.

Original Article: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/sandra-ingerman/healing-energy_b_867267.html

Sandra Ingerman, M.A., is the author of eight books, including Soul Retrieval; Medicine for the Earth; Shamanic Journeying: A Beginner's Guide; How to Heal Toxic Thoughts; How to Thrive in Changing Times; and Awakening to the Spirit World: The Shamanic Path of Direct Revelation. Sandra teaches workshops internationally on shamanic journeying, healing, and reversing environmental pollution using spiritual methods. Sandra is a licensed marriage and family therapist, a professional mental health counselor, and a board-certified expert on traumatic stress.