ARE YOU IN THE ARENA OR IN THE CROWD

"It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better.

The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena,"

Theodore Roosevelt

Anytime you strive for growth, for change, for greatness (whatever that means to you), you are likely to hear critical voices.

Some of those voices might be real, others perceived, often the harshest & most cutting critical voices come from within.

Doubt, despair, fear & judgement can be the catalyst for harsh words, warnings & criticisms about your ability to shine.

These critical voices, whether real or perceived, can make it a lot harder to do the work it takes effect positive change.
They can hold you in more comfortable, familiar ways of being.

The question is what is worth overcoming these critical voices for?

What arena will you step into?

What is worth the risk of failure?

What is worth the price of success?

If you were filled with courage what would you do?

What can you do this week to make that happen?

MAY MY HANDS BE SERVANTS OF MY HEART

"Now is the time to get serious about living your ideals.

How long can you afford to put off who you really want to be?

Your nobler self cannot wait any longer."

Epictetus

Blessing comes from prayer.

The most potent kind of prayer is action, hard work.

The most empowering blessing is to work toward a worthy ideal.

To answer the call of your soul, your heart, you conscience.

PONDER THIS

What's one thing you you could do in the next day or so that is an expression of who you really want to be?

SET & SETTING

"The more disciplined your environment is, the less disciplined you need to be. Don't swim upstream."
James Clear

In a blue print for greatness we talk about Preparing yourself and your environment to help make your plan come to life.

In meditation, and many other healing modalities, we talk about set & setting, the state of mind & environment we practice in.

In the kingdom of Soul-train we set up the gym so that a workout flows seamlessly.

By taking the time to organise your environment, both internal and external, to support your discipline you make it easier to access you genius, step into flow and perform at your best.

PONDER THIS

How can best prepare yourself and environment to be at your best this week?

YOU'RE MORE & LESS THEN YOU THINK

"Awakening to the truth is a deep realisation of what you are as an experience.

What is it that is listening?

What is it that is feeling?

Feel it.

Sense it.

Welcome it."

Adyashanti

Meditation is a practice of awakening

Awakening to the experience that you call you

Tuning in and noticing what it's like to be.

This simple practice can have profound implications.

It can allow you to see where you are stuck & move beyond.

It can allow you to see through who you think you are,
to see how you're seeing and how that's shaping you.

You are much more and much less then you imagine.

TRY THIS:

Tuning In

The tuning in practice is an opportunity to deliberately pay attention to the present moment.

It’s simply taking the time to notice what is making up your experience right now.

Start by taking 1 - 3 belly breaths.

What do you notice around you?

What can you see? .......... hear? ........ smell? ............. feel? ............... taste?..........

What's happening inside of you?

What thoughts are present? How do you notice your thoughts?

Are you experiencing any emotions or feelings? If so where do you feel? How do you notice them?

What about your body? Can you feel the sensations your body? Maybe you can feel the sensations of your breath?

Notice if these -thoughts, feelings, bodily sensations - related in anyway?Notice if they are shaping the way you’re experiencing yourself and the world?

What's it like to open to your experience in this way?

KALEIDOSCOPE OF THE MIND

"The world is your kaleidoscope, and the varying combinations of colours, which at every succeeding moment it presents to you are the exquisitely adjusted pictures of your ever-moving thoughts." 
James Allen

Through what lens are you viewing the world?

You perceive the world through your thoughts, emotions, moods, physical sensations and cultural norms.

These perceptions shape your reality.

To hold too tightly to &/or not recognise your point of view is to limit your sense of the world.

Meditation can be a way of seeing the lenses that shape your view.

It can loosen "fixed" view points and expand your perspective.

This can empower you with an orientation to
curiosity over criticism

&
a willingness to understand rather than assume.

TRY THIS

Tuning In

The tuning in practice is an opportunity to deliberately pay attention to the present moment.

It’s simply taking the time to notice what is making up your experience right now.

Start by taking 1 - 3 belly breaths.

What do you notice around you?

What can you see? .......... hear? ........ smell? ............. feel? ............... taste?..........

What's happening inside of you?

What thoughts are present? How do you notice your thoughts?

Are you experiencing any emotions or feelings? If so where do you feel? How do you notice them?

What about your body? Can you feel the sensations your body? Maybe you can feel the sensations of your breath?

Notice if these -thoughts, feelings, bodily sensations - related in anyway?
Notice if they are shaping the way you’re experiencing yourself and the world?

What's it like to open to your experience in this way?

THE WAY TO HARMONY

"You do not have to fight with your nature, habits and limitations, because by doing so, you are creating animosity within yourself."

Swami Satyananda Saraswati

The way to harmony is to make peace with chaos.

When you practice being still and opening to fully to yourself in any given moment you're practicing meditation.

Beyond resistance, boredom, impulse and wondering if "am I doing this right?"

is a state of knowing that becomes the meditative state.

To require complete obedience of our internal world is to be forever seeking.

To follow every thought and impulse is to be forever distracted.

To accept whatever is an be unmoved by it is the beginning of seeing.

Harmony will follow.

NOT ALL WHO WANDER (or wonder) ARE LOST

“A genius is the one most like himself.”

Thelonious Monk

Not all who wander are lost.

But what if you don’t know who you are?

It can be frustrating to have a sense

"I am somebody,

I am destined for something,

there’s purpose there for Me

- but it’s not clear who or what it’s is."

If where not careful this wondering can leave us stuck, haunted & confused.

But people aren’t born fully formed

We become who we are by choices made consistently over time.

By following intuitions and ideals that appeal.

Some of us do this with a strong sense of direction & clarity -

“this is my destiny” - “I know where I’m going and who I want to be.”

For others it’s not obvious who it is we are becoming or where it is we are going

Perhaps we lack a sense of purpose and personal becoming

This can feel disheartening and we might imagine that until we figure it out our destiny is on hold.

That our genius is being suppressed.

That we are wandering, lost through the world.

But not all who wander are lost.

That you are making choices, paying attention and orienting to those things which spark something inside of you means the "YOU" you wonder about is surely being formed.

Free from the illusion of certainty that some people hold,
your genius is manifest in moments that might not to seem to have much momentum.

But often magic is a happening beyond our current capacity to notice.

It can be helpful to remember Dr Seuss' reminder

"Today you are you that's truer than true.

There's no one alive who is youer that you."

When you make choices from your heart, choices from that place that feels true to you - even though there might be doubt and uncertainty, even when the choices seem small and insignificant - you are honouring the inner guide that is shaping your destiny.

Movement, Meditation and Mindfulness are ways we can form a deeper connection with our selves and also get beyond ourselves enough to see who we are and the forces that shape us.

On December 2nd we are running a live event to immerse you in some simple but profound meditative practices.
The experience is designed to create a shift and empower you with some tools to foster a deeper connection and self awareness.

Tickets Here

YOUR BEST IS FLEETING

"only those who are inferior are always at there best,
and I am not inferior."

OG Mandino

With in you there is greatness.

There is a best version of you.

It may seem fleeting & inconsistent

It may be easier to recognise it's absence then it's presence

It may be hard for you to admit it

But it's there.

PONDER THIS

How can you be at your best more often?

How can you rise to the challenge when you're not at your best?

Day of SOUL
A potent journey of restorative movement and meditation followed by a nurturing Meal.

MASTER THY SELF

"He who cannot obey himself will be commanded."

Friedrich Nietzsche

To be a great master is to listen deeply & lead courageously.

One who leads without listening is a tyrant.

One who listens without leading lives in imagination.

You're invited to a space for deep listening,
for self mastery.
For movement. meditation & communion (with self & others)

Saturday 2/12/23, 11:30am - 1:30pm
@Soultrain

Day of SOUL. REST IN PEACE

“Within you, there is a stillness and a sanctuary to which you can retreat at anytime and be yourself.” 
Hermann Hesse

Imagine stepping out of the rush of time and into a state of deep rest and presence

Imagine putting down your worries for a couple of hours to connect with your body and catch your breath.

Imagine stepping into a practice of restoration and coming out feeling revitalised and more yourself.

On Saturday 2nd of December we will be running our last Day of SOUL for the year.

An opportunity to slow down, connect with your body, rest your mind and restore your spirit.

BIG JOURNEY SMALL STEPS

"Well being is realized by small steps…but it’s no small thing."

Zeno.

Well being is culmination of action and attitude.

When you navigate life's little challenges skillfully and appreciate life's blessings wholeheartedly your well being begins to be realized.

CONTEMPLATE THIS:

What small steps can you take to increase your sense of wellbeing?

What is stopping you from taking those steps?

How might you navigate those challenges.

A WELL FUNCTIONING MIND

"A well-functioning mind recognizes the futility and cruelty of constantly finding fault with its own nature… [It] can quieten its own buzzing preoccupations in order, at times, to focus on the world beyond itself."

Alain DeBotton

When you find yourself stuck in your own head

Being overly judgemental, unhelpfully critical, focused only on what is wrong

Know that you can choose another way.

Knowing is sometimes enough.

Knowing that you are stuck in one particular way of thinking, seeing, being can sometimes be a catalyst for a shift.

And sometimes another way is required.

One can look at the nature of the mind in this moment as a way through.

The obstacle becomes the way.

Look at the thoughts that are bouncing around, that are telling stories, that are triggering your emotions and are shaping your experience.

Look at the feelings that support those thoughts, that animate you in a certain way and seem to trigger more thoughts (& more feelings)

Look how this inner world is manifesting in your body.

How are you holding yourself? What's your posture like? What physical sensations do you notice in your face, neck, shoulders, hands, hips, feet?

Notice what it's like to notice in this way.

What's it like to take a moment to neutrally notice that which shapes your state?

Another way is to expand out.

To expand your point of view

To open to a more whole, open way of seeing and being.

This can be done

Via the senses - by looking around and listening. What can you see and here that you hadn't noticed before?

Via the body - by moving and "burning off" or expressing some energy

Via the mind - by remembering that this moment of time & space exists with in eternity and that it will pass.

When you find yourself stuck in your head you've found yourself.

This is the first step to freedom

A PLACE CALLED MIND

“The mind is its own place, and in it self can make a
Heav’n of Hell, a Hell of Heav’n,”

John Milton

Meditate on the Mind

Watch as thoughts shape it.

Watch as it shapes you.

Notice that the mind has the power to instill

fear & courage

despair & hope

chaos & calm

Notice that by noticing, the mind loosens it's grip,

you are no longer at its mercy.

And that you can choose how to shape it.

HONOUR YOUR FOUNDATIONS

"Don't overlook the basics.

Don't ignore the foundation.

How long can a tree remain standing without the roots?"

James Clear

Meditation,

journaling,

movement & muscle,

friends and family

How easy it is to let these things go when we get "too busy"

The mind, our thoughts, our body, our connections are the foundations of our being.

When “more important” things take over and our foundations weaken we are likely to be sorry.

Honour Your Foundations

ASK THIS

What’s one thing you can & will do today to honour
your mind,
your thoughts,
your body &
your people?

The Harmony of Being

"A man is not rightly conditioned until he is a happy, healthy, and prosperous being; and

happiness, health, and prosperity are the result of

a harmonious adjustment of the inner with the outer,

of the man with his surroundings."

James Allen

The wise one’s wisdom comes from watching attentively,
in and out.

The wise one's potency comes from knowing where to place energy and attention

Harmony is achieved by choosing what to change & what to accept.

CHOICE

"Life is a sum of your choices."
Albert Camus

Recognise & Honour your power to choose.
Not everyone is blessed with the choices available to you

Choose Wisely
Choose Courageously
Choose Compassionately
Choose Lovingly
Choose Greatness
Choose Grace

Or don’t

The choice is yours.

FREE YOUR MIND

“When you are practicing zazen, do not try to stop your thinking. Let it stop by itself. If something comes into your mind, let it come in, and let it go out. It will not stay long.
When you try to stop your thinking, it means you are bothered by it.

Do not be bothered by anything.”

Shunryu Suzuki

Your mind is not too busy to meditate.

If there was a switch to turn the mind off there would be no meditation (& there would be no one to turn the mind back on)

The effort in meditation is to be undisturbed by the impulsive nature of the busy mind.

To be unmoved by the internal cues that would usually move you.

When one can be still in the face of the turbulent nature of humanity a freedom is accessed.

Freedom to know yourself deeply without being controlled or limited by the self you know.

Freedom to compassionately bare witness & courageously see beyond the beliefs & notions that might otherwise hold you back.

TRY THIS

*Find a comfortable, quiet place to practice where you're unlikely to be disturbed.

*Set a timer for the duration you've chosen to meditate

*Make a commitment to practice as diligently possible.

*Start by bringing attention to your sitting posture. Notice what it's like to sit still and become familiar with the posture that you're in.

*With a general awareness of your body begin to pay particular attention to the breath.

*Bring your attention to the sensations of the breath. Acknowledge that body sensations, sounds, thoughts, and emotions will be present (& will sometimes distract you), but that the primary attention is on breathing.

*If you notice your attention wondered from the breath firmly and gently guide it back, this is not a mistake it's part of the practice).

*When your timer goes off to mark the end of your practice take a moment to journal about what you noticed during the practice.

THE ART OF STILLNESS

"The body and the mind are phenomenally connected. If can keep your body still the mind will also become still after a while."
Sadhguru

The mind is restless as are emotions.

They are hard to control & total control over them is unrealistic and perhaps even unhealthy (the dynamic nature of thoughts and emotions is part of humanity)

The body is a little easier to work with and is part of the system that is a human being.

The practice of mindful stillness can lead to a way of being that is beyond the natural turbulence of mind and emotion

That being said sitting in complete still takes awareness, discipline & practice.

Try this

Meditate on Stillness

Find a space where you're unlikely to be distracted.

Set a timer for the duration you will commit meditation.

Make a commitment to stay with the simple instructions of the practice as best you can.

Sit as comfortably as you can with a long, unsupported spine.

Take a moment to notice the posture you're sitting in.

Keep a general awareness of this and commit to staying completely still.

Each time you notice the impulse, be still, notice the impulse, realise it has no control over you unless you let it.

If you decide to move do so mindfully.

The key here is to be discipline not rigid, to alert, aware & relaxed.

If catch yourself moving mindlessly, don't waste time being critical or commentating - simply come back to stillness.

When your time goes off take a moment to journal about what you noticed.

*Many of us experience a stilling of the mind during high intensity exercise or a deeply embodied experience.

This exercise is not supposed to replace these modalities but add to them.

The art of stillness can be a profound teacher for those willing to sit beyond impulse.

GRANDFATHER ROCK

“The Mountain spoke to me.
Reminded me that he was my ancestor
Then I knew I wasn’t sitting on the rock, I was sitting with the rock.”
Rama the Cloud Wanderer

Be the Mountain

Grounded. Restful. Slow. Safe

A sanctuary for wisdom, for life

Home to the Monk.

The one who see's
out to the world
and into being

ALL IS ONE

"You are never alone you

You are eternally connected to everyone."

Amit Ray

We are each and we are all one.

This is a cliché that's often spoken in spiritual circles.

And the idea to some of us sounds quite nice, to others it might sound like bullshit and others still might think so what.

When the idea becomes a deep knowing, a felt truth, it can be a profound experience.

TRY THIS

Go to a place where you can be with nature - the ocean, some trees, the open sky.

Sit and breath.

Just be.

Commit to sitting and staring into the natural world, hearing it, feeling it, smelling it.

Allow it's essence to wash over you.

Don't look for anything in particular just be with and notice.