The strength we think is outside of us is not.

For within lies the most beautiful “secret garden” of all possibilities.  It can be our choice to live from that place of co-creating our lives or we can allow the outside world to dictate what we get.  For it is my belief that the world is always conspiring to do us well; it’s our thoughts that can run wild and tell us different.

Inside lies the field of all possibilities, like a blossoming flower has the ability to spread its pedals wide and explode with the most fragrant of smells; we too sit in this fertile world where we can take the sun that’s warming our bodies, our spiritual practices that feed our soul, the water that can move us like a river and food that can give us the energy to expand our hearts, minds and souls and share it with the world.

Eyes wide open, heart expanding, wings soaring and ready for takeoff!
Om shanti.

Most of you know by now that I have found one of my Spiritual Homes to be the 2nd oldest church in Charleston, SC, The Unitarian Universalist Church.  The moment I was in the presence of this congregation and the guest speaker that first visit, I knew this would be the church for Skylar and I.  It’s NOT a non-denominational church but rather a church with “no creed.”  Meaning that the church truly and honestly supports all walks of faith and even those with no faith in a higher “power”/atheists.  They welcome black, white, gays and straights with open arms and anyone in between.

They don’t just say that either, the preacher, the vestry, all the volunteers and congregation honestly live a very liberal and service oriented life-where they respect and honor each walk of life.  At UU they are very socially active in the community always doing their best to be activists for good causes and help those who are less fortunate…it’s all about social justice-just my kind of place.

At any rate, the Chair of Worship Services, Hillary Hutchinson asked if would be one of the guest speakers to do the sermon on Yoga a while back; I gladly said I would…Well, this past Sunday was my day and I have to say it was the most amazing experience.  I felt blessed to be able to share from my heart about Yoga’s philosophy and my own personal story as well.  My family at UU (the congregation) were so kind, open minded and I believe they might have learned a little bit about Yoga that they were unaware of when they walked in that morning.

I have to say that I’m really not the teacher here, but rather I have learned from some amazing teachers I’ve been blessed to have in my life that helped me make my sermon what it was.  They are, in no particular order: Trace Bonner, Deepak Chopra, and Sri Swami Satchidananda (indirectly of course because he’s left the body but his teachings remain in books and thru Trace who studied physically with him)

Opening Words

We come together this morning to remind one another
To rest for a moment on the forming edge of our lives,
To resist the headlong tumble into the next moment,
Until we claim for ourselves awareness and gratitude,
Taking the time to look into one another’s faces
And see there communion: the reflection of our own eyes.
This house of laughter and silence, memory and hope,
is hallowed by our presence together.

~Kathleen Mc Tigue~

First Four Limbs of Yoga: By God, Spoken Through Me

*You may need to turn your speakers up a bit*

Click here to view the embedded video.

Closing Words

For all those who haven’t found happiness, joy and everlasting peace
just follow your heart and let your breathe take you there.
You are a Divine creature of the Universe and deserve to
Unveil that happiness that resides within.

There are truths in many paths-find the path that’s right for you.

“Let yourself be silently drawn by the stronger pull of what you really love.” Rumi

PS…Thanks to my friends and family all over the world who have supported my journey.  I love each of you!

Wings of Peace

Spreading my wings.
Flying into the wind.
The wind carries me in the direction of soul, spirit and The Divine.

Drifting I am not.
Purposeful living I am.

Meaningless has no place.
Mission driven thru and thru.

On the wings of faith.
On the wings of love.
And on the wings of peace.

That yearning deep inside.
The fire that brews within intensifies with every passing day.
This I can’t ignore.

I must stand up.
I must shout out.
I must lead and follow those who are with me.

Steadfast supporting myself and others in the journey of healing and awakening to a higher purpose.
Pushing through the false self in a cloud of smoke, only to remember the beautiful essence of who we truly are.

On the wings of faith.
On the wings of love.
And on the wings of peace.

What can I do to serve?
What can I do to love?
What can you do?

Humanity is worth serving-lets spread spread our wings together and fly!

My kick ass friend, Maggie Deller of The Positive World, posed the question to me this morning on Facebook:  ”how are we born perfect and yet we are in progress-all growing?”

This question I’m sure might stir some of you up, considering many beliefs/faiths teach that we are imperfect beings on a mission to letting God work through us and take our sins away.  This is indeed one way to look at it.

I believe that God/Source/ The Universe birthed my spirit as a perfect one.  A spirit that is in complete harmony with others, that feels, gives and receives unconditional love.  My True Self is one that is never changing, and it’s essence is perfect, beautiful and complete BLISS.

HOWEVER, we are born in this world a spirit having a human experience…we are one of the creatures on earth that has been blessed to live with the 5 senses, language communication, and emotions.  Much of the human experience in our younger days is spent cultivating and growing an EGO (edging God out).  This ego can serve us at times and needs to be there, but honestly when you think about it the ego can be the biggest wall that each of us face.

The ego sees everything as being separate.  The ego judges and casts stones.  The ego contains fear and hate.  The ego attaches to things, places, people, etc.  The ego defines our experience with things that’s aren’t of our True nature-like cars, big houses, jobs, money and you name it the ego will attempt to define us through materialistic things and events.

We are the Sinner and Saint

So, being that we are born into a world of duality-spirits having a human experience, our journey on Mother Earth isn’t to learn lessons, which I have often said for years now…but it’s to REMEMBER, who we really are.  It’s to remember that part of ourself that’s never changing and always there for us-SPIRIT.

It’s that part of us that will never leave us, will always be filled with love and ready to share at a millisecond’s notice.  It’s that part of us that we’ve “covered” up for years with an often very unhealthy ego.

So in this incarnation there is an option of growing, spiritual evolving, or personal developing…all to shave away or tame that often out of control EGO and allow our TRUE SELF to emerge and shine bright.

We are the sinner and saint, we are the divine and diabolical, we are love and hate…we are all that is-just some qualities show more than others.

Even though different qualities show up in people in totally different ways, there is a divine light in each of us, there is no separation at all.  Just looking at a drop of water that came from the ocean-that drop is no more or less than what it came from-THE OCEAN.  So no matter what your faith or religious affiliation, I hope you know that you are that which is bigger than us, you are that which is that higher power, it’s running at your core-you are the “drop” of that which is of the higher power!

I acknowledge that Divine Light that’s in YOU just as it’s in ME…NAMASTE.

ANGEL’S EMBRACE

The angels hand reach down from the heavens to cradle me in her arms.
She whisked away the suffering I impose on myself, through unconscious thoughts running through my mind.
The angel embodied all that is good, sweet and glorious.  A calming peace surrounds me, inside and out.

As I lay there helpless in her arms I realize my angles are always with me, they are never gone.
The angels wisdom, comfort and love are accessible through me if I only call upon them.

Bliss Everlasting

Honor myself as Divine.

Without the need to be filled with temporary pleasures.

But rather stay in service to others and in devotion to God.

To be in that pure love is nothing short of BLISS EVERLASTING.

Sharla Patrick

There is a pull from deep within, that’s often unexplainable and makes me nervous to share aloud.

It’s the feeling every time I pick up a book on spirituality, learn more about a Holy Book, or different ways to heal physically, emotionally and spiritually.

It’s the feeling I get in the pit of my stomach and the center of my soul, that feeling of exploration-to further uncover that which I know is my True Self.

It’s the feeling I get when I visit the Abbey.

It’s the feeling I get when picturing what living at an Ashram would be like.

It’s the feeling I get when I journal.

It’s the feeling I get when I blog.

It’s the feeling I get when I meditate.

It’s the feeling I get when I practice Yoga.

It’s the feeling I get when I read Hafiz, Rumi, Deepak, Erich Schiffmann, and many more.

It’s the feeling when I have deep conversations with my dearest Jana Fleming or attend her retreats.

It’s the feeling I get when I walk into a health food store.

It’s the feeling I get when I smell insence.

It’s the feeling I get when I listen to Wayne Dyer or Oprah’s spirituality series on podcast.

It’s the feeling I get when I share with someone a tool that could help them.

It’s the feeling I get when I dig my toes in the earth, touch a tree, or smell a flower.

It’s the feeling I get when I look up at the stars, see the sun set and moon rise.

It’s the feeling I get when I see Tibetan prayer flags waving in the air.

It’s the feeling I get when I’m at a Kirtan.

It’s the feeling I get when I see, hear or read anything in Sanskrit.

It’s the feeling I get when Skylar brings me random feathers-that seem to be all around us ALL the time. (angels)

It’s the feeling I get when I wake up and find it hard to work but would rather read all day.

It’s the feeling I get when I want to be in silence with no technology clouding my world.

It’s the feeling I get when I am at church.  (Unitarian Universalist-my spiritual home, THEY ROCK, just sayin)

It’s the feeling I get more and more each day…it’s exciting yet scary.

So at this point in my life it’s just about finding some sort of balance…seeking more of that feeling without negating my “householder life” as Deepak calls it.

Love the journey.

~~~Om Shanti~~~

Sweet Spot of the Soul

From within lies that sweet spot
The internal point of dependable reference
That allows us to know, and know for sure.

The alter of our spiritual life
Where we don’t need feathers, crystals, or incense.

For this is an eternal flame
That connects us to something greater than ourselves
That’s bigger and brighter than anything abound.

Our heart song needs no strings or fancy voice
For this place within shouts the glory of all that’s inside and outside.

Sharla Patrick

Where Have You Been?

When I wasn’t looking there you were.

When I wanted nothing to do with you, patiently you waited.

When I denied you, you stayed steadfast.

And then one night the soot of life faded away.

There standing bright, I felt you for the first time.

With a smile on your face and warm embrace.

Your open arms cradled me like a baby.

Rocking back and forth a familiarity hit me,

This place was home, it never went away

Only clouds of darkness hid the beauty and grace for so long.

But now I see, now I feel, now I know you were there all along,

I was just too asleep and blind to realize you.

When I ask most people if they know what Yoga is they say “Yes, but I don’t think I could ever do Yoga because I’m not flexible.”

That answer cracks me up because that’s like a young person who’s learning how to read saying “I don’t need to read that book because I can’t read the words.”  Or a kid saying “I don’t need to ride that bike because I don’t know how.”  We all have starting points with ANYTHING new in our lives-it’s a matter of taking our time and learning but enjoying the journey along the way…this is true with the journey of self exploration and Yoga as well.

Understanding the fact that we are all are operating on different frequencies of consciousness according to what we are doing, thinking and from the past experiences of our life, it’s important that we find what we feel, personally, is the best way for self exploration to take place.

I watched a super fascinating and captivating movie called, Enlighten Up, which only confirmed all that I have read and studied about what I’m about to attempt and explain.  But there are many schools of thought from Yogi’s and Yonginis in regards to what is Yoga?

The word Yoga means to yolk…to harmonize the mind body and spirit.  The way a personal “achieves” Yoga could be polar opposite from another person who “achieves” Yoga.  If we were to ask the amazing Yogi, Iyengar what Yoga is, his response would be, “Yogas Citta Vritti Narodah.”  HUH-What on earth does that mean exactly you might be asking yourself?

Well, basically it means that the whole “goal” of Yoga is to control the mind so it doesn’t control us…simple enough right???

WRONG-most people are ran by their thoughts and emotions and have no clue how to tame that down or to even see clearly at times when they desperately need to.  This doesn’t mean you are void of emotions, it just means that you have your emotions under control and can begin to operate with a more objective perspective, like you are witnessing something rather than being so caught up in it.  Much like sitting in the eye of a hurricane, you are still int he hurricane but you have a stillness about you that would help you circumnavigate how to safely and optimally get out.

Just as I can remember for the better part of my entire existence until my path of Yoga, I found myself feeling like a Tasmanian Devil of sorts…I was someone who wasn’t able to handle situations in the best manor, being overran by flooding emotions, scattered thoughts, stifling fears that would stop me in my tracks…Come on, I know I’m not the only one out there like this.

So the ancient Yogi’s belive there are many path’s to Yoga and here the are…

6 Ways to Heal, Grow, Prosper & Transform

1.  Karma Yoga: Doing acts of selfless service of perfect acts, doing everything for the sake of God.

A Karma Yogi might be that of Mother Teresa-someone who is always giving, doing things for others in the name of God.

2.  Bhakti Yoga: doing everything in devotion to God.

Bhakti Yogi might be that of a nun or monk who’s renounced their life and lives in total devotion to God.

3.  Jnana Yoga: self realization through the intellect.

Jnana Yogi might be a scholar.

4.  Japa Yoga: self realization using the power of sound vibrations.

Japa Yogi might be a singer, musician, or songwriter.

5.  Raja Yoga: the “Royal” path to self realization thru meditation.

Raja Yogi might be that of Buddha, as he renounced his life and sat in meditation for years to understand his True nature.

6.  Hatha Yoga: finding balance between feminine and masculine energy using a combination of asanas (poses), pranayama (breath work) & meditation.

Hatha Yogi might be the closest idea that Americans have to western yoga-in that there is a physical practice of yoga on a mat in a studio, where your body is apart of this particular process.

So what style do you think would be best for your own evolution, healing, growth, transformation or healing?

You might be thinking do I have to be just one of them or do I need to do any Yoga at all?

You Are In Charge

Unlike most religions where there is usually someone in an authority figure leading the people-pope, high priest, bishop, etc; the process of Yoga is for you to take full responsibility of your relationship with the Divine through whatever modality helps you do that.  Yoga is meant to be expansive for your spiritual growth, not stifling or constricting.

Yoga will eventually lead us to freedom from our own perceptions and will help us connect to that which has never gone away but sometimes hard to feel, find, experience at times-God/the Divine/whatever you want to call “it.”

My Path For Now

The moment I experienced meditation, I felt a peace that I hadn’t felt before…I began to physically and mentally heal so many challenges in my life transformed and still are to this day.  I’ve had a consistent practice for 2 years now (yes I miss days, good lord, I’m not perfect, but it’s a work in progress that I’m dedicated to because I’ve lived the amazing positive changes it’s brought into my life.)

And as many of you already know, I fell in love with the practice of Yoga on the mat the very first time I practiced.  I am at the halfway point of my Teacher Training and so thankful I listened to my Soul’s message even though it was scary at first, I know my life is on purpose and I’m living that purpose RIGHT NOW thanks to the life changing event two years ago.

I also ADORE Slokas.  You know you’ve heard an amazing song on the radio and you “go somewhere.”  It’s as if the music takes you to a happy place, if only for a brief moment, it’s a great feeling from the inside out.  Well, that’s what the “prayerfield” is all about as my friend Joe Stover calls it.  When I talk, sing and listen to the sacred words of sanskrit that offer prayers for the good of my evolution and to all of humanity and beyond I feel totally connected to that which I can’t see, but only feel within, the Divine presence of God.  I often feel that when these sounds vibrate in and around me that there is no separation between you and I, that we coalesce as one energetic unit that reminds me we all came from the One.  It’s a feeling like none other, of unconditional love that’s much deeper than the brain can even compute-it’s only a feeling that the soul can translate and our cells vibrate with.

This is my path of Yoga, for me it has allowed me to begin finding my True Self more and more…shedding the layers of crap that have held me captive for so long.  It’s liberating and exciting to be falling in love with me, little ole me, with no one or nothing I lay responsibility on of making me happy-it’s truly happiness that exudes from the inside and bubbles to the outside.

So now that you know a bit more about the different types of Yoga philosophy and about my personal path…what’s your path or what are you interested in learning more about?