Within the complexity of human consciousness, emotions reign as powerful forces, shaping our perceptions, decisions, and ultimately, our lives. Yet, what if I told you that not all emotions are created equal? What if some of the feelings we hold dear are mere illusions crafted by our minds? Brace yourself, because we're about to embark on a journey to explore why your mind-made emotions aren't as real as they seem.
The festive season brings with it a mixture of sentiments, from the joyous anticipation of gift exchanges to the stress of holiday preparations. However, for many, it’s not just a time of merriment but also a season marked by the challenges of life.
Being bombarded with messages of ‘joy’ and ‘togetherness’ can amplify feelings of sadness, loneliness or anger for anyone going through the heartache of divorce or a breakup, grieving the absence or loss of a loved one, or facing strained or even abusive family relationships.
This is where Qigong can help, by connecting you to your inner strength and restoring your emotional balance.
In the stillness of my first Qigong session, there I stood, grounded yet reaching for the heavens, moving in harmony with an unseen force. My hands tracing invisible arcs in the air.
This practice, rooted in centuries of wisdom, spoke to me in a language beyond words. It whispered of a world within, a world rich with untapped potential and boundless possibilities.
Urbanization, with its concrete jungles and digital cocoons, has created an ironic separation between humanity and the natural world we belong to.
The rustling of leaves and the murmur of rivers are often drowned out by the cacophony of city life, leading to a disconnection from the Earth on which we depend for our survival.
What many fail to see is that the Earth beneath our feet is more than just dirt and soil; it’s alive and brimming with energy and ancient wisdom.
A fundamental aspect of emotional resilience is the understanding that it's not about suppressing your emotions or pretending to be fine when you're hurting. In fact, it's quite the opposite. Emotional resilience begins with acknowledging your emotions, understanding them deeply, and then finding healthy and constructive ways to navigate through them.
We all have healing to do and, like it or not, each of us is responsible for our own healing work.
Although we can benefit greatly from the guidance and support of others to help facilitate our way toward a greater sense of wholeness, nobody can do our healing for us.
If there is one thing life, and especially my Qi Gong practice, has taught me, it is that ‘power’, in the true sense of the word, comes from within. It is never forced, but comes naturally to us when we remember who we really are – magnificent creatures of Nature, exquisite expressions of life-force energy, divine intelligence made manifest.
When I was 28 and taking my first tentative steps along the spiritual path, I made a vow to myself that I would make it my life’s mission to ‘evolve in consciousness’, without quite knowing what those words even meant.
I had a somewhat vague and romantic notion that, with enough yoga and meditation, I would one day ‘reach enlightenment’, which I thought was some kind of mystical reward bestowed on only the most spiritually-devoted.
Flash forward more than 20 years, and I have a very different view of what ‘evolving consciousness’ really means
When I first heard about ‘death’ as a child, it was described as ‘going to sleep and never waking up’. I remember being both terrified and unconvinced. The thought of there being no ‘I’ didn’t make sense at all. How could ‘I’ not exist, the 8-year-old me wondered? I reassured myself that, surely, someone would discover a ‘cure’ for this thing called ‘death’ long before my time arrived.
Little did I realise that Life itself, in its own time, and in its own way, would offer up a healing elixir, a soothing balm, which would provide all the assurances I needed. And that it would come to me, after decades of striving and searching for answers, when I finally learned to ‘let go’.
What would your life look like if all aspects of who you are (physical, emotional and mental) were in alignment? What if you could line up your internal energy with the energy of the universe, so that life became more about ‘flow and ease’ than about ‘effort and struggle’?
With so many wellness modalities, practices and products to choose from these days, it can be quite overwhelming to figure out what we need for our own healing and growth.
Some people will sample everything to find the ‘missing piece’ they’ve been searching for. And some, overwhelmed by all the information out there, or perhaps afraid, deep down, of trying something new, will ignore the stirrings of their soul and resist changing at all.
Every day, with every thought we think, and every emotion and belief we hold on to, we are creating the future reality of our living experience.
It’s not only what enlightened masters have been saying for centuries, it is energetic law, now proven by quantum physics. It’s happening for everyone, whether they know it or not.
Sometimes, it’s the people who hurt us the most that turn out to be our greatest teachers. Whether connected to these people by birth, love/marriage or ‘circumstance’, I like to think of them as ‘angels in disguise’.
For a long time I lived as though I was ‘half-alive’, never quite feeling at ease in my own skin and trying really hard to earn love, recognition, and my worthiness, from the outside world.
To love and be loved is what makes life worth living, but too often we struggle to find love that is real - the kind of love that feels safe, trustworthy, deep, attentive and supportive.
