The Spring Ceremony

We piled out of the cars, eager for the adventure of the Springs. Lu, our Hindu guide, helped us dress in appropriate temple clothing (sarong, lace top and sash).

We slowly walked through the gate, feeling like princesses, and the world fell away.

We knew this experience would be life changing, but no one could have prepared us for how deeply the energy would impact us.

As we walked down the ancient stone steps, the outside world disappeared. There was a hush, a stillness that pervaded everything. The only word that can describe the air inside the Temple is…reverence.

Vibrant colors serenaded our walk down into the depth and heart of this ancient space. Trees as tall as small buildings created a canopy of leaves, filtering the light and altering our perception of ourselves.

Lu lead us in a ceremony to prepare to enter the springs. The sound of water rushing down the hillside nearly drowned out her soft voice. A few moments spent in worship and then we walked down a few more steps to the springs.

Turning the corner, I saw the area for the first time. This was truly a holy place. It seemed almost alive with energy. Moss covered all exposed surfaces and mist rose from the surface of the water. The sound of rushing water was so loud that we couldn’t communicate unless we yelled in each other’s ear.

The water barreled down from above and was channeled into four different fountains. We soon learned that each fountain had a purpose in the ceremony.

Entering the pool required a step down on mossy rocks into chilly water that took your breath away. There was no time to hesitate, because someone else was waiting behind you. Together, we shared the experience of ice cold water, while maintaining our prayerful attitude.

We ceremonially offered small flowers and then, one by one, we stood under each waterfall. The first waterfall was to release the mind, the second was to release the body. The third was to cleanse the soul and the last was to surrender to the Divine.

When it was my turn, I was excited but nervous. As I stood in front of the first fountain, I prayed to be open to whatever happened.

I stepped into the liquid curtain and tried to find the sweet spot where I could breathe and still be submerged in the water. My time in the mind fountain was short, because I never could find that sweet spot. I backed away and took a deep breath, hoping to master the technique.

On the second fountain, I discovered that if I leaned forward and tilted my neck down, the water would flow over the back of my head and down the sides, creating a pocket of air. My body relaxed and I was able to let go of my thoughts (so appropriate because this was the body fountain).

The third fountain is where I lost it. I realized, on a visceral level, that I was held, safe and loved. I started crying, then discovered that I could make as much noise as I wanted and no one would hear me. The sound of the water was so loud that it drowned my sobbing. I stayed much longer, allowing the water to wash over my head and back, cleansing more layers than just the physical.

Lu was patiently waiting at the last fountain. I was still holding my flower and she nodded at it, saying something I couldn’t hear. I finally heard her say, “Let it go.” I shouted to her that I already had, but she laughed and pointed to my flower. “Let it go,” she said again. I finally understood and gently placed the flower on the surface and watched it float away.

Something shifted inside of me under the last fountain, and I felt myself merging into oneness with the Divine. My small self was washed away by the strength of the water, and in its place rose a peaceful certainty about myself.

Emerging from the last cleansing, I felt like a different person. Walking back up the ancient steps, absorbing the holy energy of this place, I knew that I had shed layers of limiting beliefs.

The impact of this cleansing in my life is difficult to describe or measure. When I forget that I am loved and here for a reason, all I have to do is study these photographs again.

I share my story in the hope that it will inspire you to shed limiting beliefs. There are many ways to do this. Meditation, yoga and tai chi are just a few examples. Find what works for you and surrender to it’s wisdom.

The ancient ceremony I experienced is one way to meet your Self. Another is to begin a daily meditation practice. The 21 Day Heart Dancing Challenge is designed to gently lead you home, using short, guided meditations and journal prompts.

However you find the way, just know that you are loved beyond measure, that you are meant to be here, and that you have a gift to share with the world.

It’s just another step in the Heart Dance!

When are You a Grown Up?

Milestone birthdays have a way of encouraging reflective thoughts about life, love and the pursuit of happiness.

I have one of these birthdays coming up — the one that marks the beginning of a new decade and the end of the previous one.

“Milestone” sounds like you have a chain around your neck and you have just been thrown off the boat. I prefer to be more playful — such as “this is my year of celebrating __ years of traveling around the sun.”

Now that I am entering a new phase of life, I wonder if I am finally a “grown up.” When I was a kid, I thought all grown ups had the answers to everything. They sure seemed to…

“It’s just the way it is.”

“We’ve always done it that way.”

“No need to fix something that isn’t broken.”

Of course, now that I am older and wiser, these pat sayings are amusing. But to my 8 year old mind, these words were the law, not to be questioned.

In my moments of introspection, I always wondered what it would be like to be on that side of the table. To have all of the answers and speak so confidently.

Now, I know the truth.

When I was a child, I thought like a child. Now, as an adult, hopefully I think like an adult. But am I a grown up?

That question keeps hammering in the back of my mind. Have I reached the age where grown up status is automatically conferred? Or do I have to earn it?

What I do know is that the more times I travel around the sun, the less tolerance I have for other people’s answers. I am on a quest to seek my own answers that resonate, encourage and cultivate my greatest good.

No one has the answer for everyone; they only have the answer that works for them.

How do you find your answers? For me, meditation and mindfulness have paved the way back to myself.

Dipping into that space between thoughts is the only way I have found to love myself. Being aware of my thoughts and my words is the natural offspring of loving myself.

Why not join the 21 Day Heart Dancing Challenge? It will help you establish a daily practice of meditation, journaling and intentional creativity. Who know where that might take you?

Mindful Focus – For Students in School and Students of Life

It’s the time of year when the specter of final exams is close enough to create a cloud of visceral fear that trails behind students. Test anxiety can grip the most dedicated scholar and ruin the end result of their month-long efforts.

When I was studying for the bar exam, I hit a wall of fear. I graduated from law school with respectable grades, had a great job at the firm I wanted and was ready to start my career. I had climbed the mountain and was ready to begin my next adventure.

But one thing stood in my way.

The Bar Exam. Just typing those words still causes my heart to race a tiny bit. It is a cruel joke on aspiring lawyers. Endure 3 years of law school, and you’re still not done. Graduate and receive your J.D. degree.

And you’re still not a lawyer.

The Bar Exam is the final hurdle. The last summit to conquer before you can practice law. You have a bit over two months to study (at least in my state), and you don’t know if you passed until four months later. You have already started your legal career, and your future career depends on passing. The first time.

To say that law graduates studying for the bar are under a bit of pressure is such an understatement I won’t even try to come up with an appropriate analogy.

Taking exams and staying calm under stress is an art and a science. When I was studying for the bar exam, I didn’t know how to stay centered, mindful and focused. I somehow managed to pass (Thank God).

I wish I knew then what I know now.

How Mindfulness and Meditation Can Help You Focus

According to Jon Kabat-Zin, generally considered to be the “father” of mindfulness in the West,

Mindfulness is the moment-to-moment, non-judgmental awareness, cultivated by paying attention in a specific way, that is, in the present moment, and as nonreactively, as non-judgmentally and open heartedly as possible.

When you practice being in the moment, then the next, and the next, your experience of the moment is at its peak. The past no longer exists, and the future has not yet arrived. All that is important is the here and now, which you experience without judgment.

Doesn’t that sound like a great way to live? Research studies have proven the physical, psychological and emotional benefits of mindfulness. Peace, calm, and compassion as just a few of the many ways that practicing mindfulness can change your life.

As a student, being mindful while you study can help you understand and remember the information. Setting the intention of focus, awareness, and memory before you study is the key. And the best way to do that is to listen to a guided meditation.

Meditation is one way to achieve mindfulness. By slowing down and watching your breath, you focus your attention on what is happening at this moment. Stress and anxiety cannot exist in this space. Your mind is clear, and when the meditation is over, that clarity will help you focus on the information you are learning.

It’s using your mind to improve your mind.

The Mindful Focus Meditation

Find a comfortable place to sit with your feet flat on the floor and your hands in your lap. Your back should be straight but loose. This meditation is less than 25 minutes, so give yourself about 30 minutes for the entire process. No interruptions (cell phones on mute, computer on mute) and no distractions.

Listen to this meditation in the morning as soon as you wake up. It will help you stay focused in class or when you are studying. If you listen again during the day or at night, it will ease anxiety and increase confidence in your ability to understand, remember and retain the information.

It’s just another step in the Heart Dance!

A New Way to Heart Dance

Instead of having guests on the Heart Dancing Radio Show, I decided to teach on various topics, using mindfulness concepts as a foundation. I also created guided meditations to support each lesson. The topics I chose to explore may seem random (money, fear of flying, and focus), but underneath each one lies a current of fear. And fear is what I want you to embrace and love.

As you dive deep into this information and incorporate the meditations into a daily practice, you will discover your interior world shifting and opening. You may also find that you are calmer, more peaceful and less reactive. Whatever the benefits are, please enjoy these next episodes made with my heart full of love and light.

Money Magic

The concept of money has been abused, judged and manipulated ever since it was first conceived. Money and power are forever linked together in cultural beliefs and patterns. Those with money have influence. Those without money are faceless and unimportant.

Where do you fall on the scale of money, importance and power? How does that make you feel about yourself? Are you afraid of money or what its disappearance could do to you?

I have had my own struggles with money and often fell into the trap of judging myself when my bank account balance was low. Punishing myself for my misdeeds (did I really need that pair of shoes) kept me from seeing the real issue I had with money. It was always based on fear and judgment.

Judgment and fear always cloud your view of yourself. Neither one helps you grow or evolve into a better person.

It wasn’t money’s fault that I indulged in buying impulsively. Just because my bank balance dipped dangerously low to being overdrawn wasn’t because of my lack of a making six figure income. Money was not treating me unfairly or shunning my efforts to become wealthy.

No matter how hard I tried to assign blame, it wasn’t money’s fault.

The outside forces that shaped my thoughts, beliefs and attitudes about money were just signposts on my journey. When I finally woke up and realized that the real journey happened in my interior world (shaped by my thoughts and beliefs), I regained my power of choice. From that point of power, I made different choices and changed my Money Story.

Fear is no longer an active force in my money relationship. I found another way to be with money and I want to share it with you.

The Power to Choose

When you look at your beliefs and attitudes about money, do they support your growth or encourage your fear? It is crucial that you identify what you believe so you can change them.

Cultural money myths and beliefs support the ideas of limitation, lack and competition. If you fail, fear becomes your companion. If you succeed, fear is still your shadow because you can always misstep. Money becomes the enemy and you are its victim.

There is a different way to be with money. Disregard the cultural myths around money and see it for what it is: ENERGY.

Money is simply the exchange of energy. When you use your debit card or cash to buy something, you are exchanging energy for something of value (which is also energy).

When you don’t have enough money for something you want, it’s because you don’t have that amount of energy to exchange. No guilt, shame or judgment. And definitely — NO FEAR!

If you want that thing badly enough, you’ll figure out a way to increase your energy levels to be able to enter into the exchange. Simple, right?

An easy way to remember that money = energy is this: MONEY is My Own Natural Energy Yield. When you produce a service or product, that is your yield. When you pay with what you have produced, that is because of your yield. If your yield is less than what you want, then produce more. It’s all energy!

There is one more step in the process.

Mindfulness and Money 

Mindfulness is a way to reconnect with life by staying in the present moment. No judging. No expectation. Just pure and simple being.

Guided meditations clear the clutter of the mind, establish connection to a greater source and align your body, mind and spirit.

The combination of both of these practices, focused on the energy of money, creates a powerful synergy. Introducing: The Money Magic Meditation.

As you are guided into a deep place in yourself, you will see money from a new perspective.

This meditation should only be played when you are not driving or operating any kind of equipment. Ideally, you should be in a quiet room where you will not be disturbed for one hour. Have a journal or pad handy to make a note of the insights you receive during the meditation. What you may discover will surprise you!

Listen often and notice your beliefs and attitudes shift around the concepts of wealth and money. As you beliefs change, so will your actions. As you make different choices, your money story will grow and evolve. Almost like magic!

It’s just another step in the Heart Dance!

P.S. To learn more about me, please visit KathrynEriksen.com. Let’s dance together!