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Awakening the inner Goddess within us

Awakening the inner Goddess within us

“She will rise, with the spine of steel, and a roar like thunder, she will rise.” ~Nicole Lyons

It is that time of the year in India when the Hindu festival of Navratri is being celebrated with great pomp and fanfare. Navratri, which means nine nights, is considered to be the sacred period during which nine different forms of the Goddess are worshipped. From a spiritual perspective, it is also considered to be the time for introspection and taking the inward journey with your source. So during this sacrosanct time, when I heard about a workshop that helps you connect with the Goddess within, I was curious to know more. And when I learnt that different meditations related to the Goddesses were a part of this workshop, I simply had to do it. The timing couldn’t have been more perfect.

‘Living the Goddess Principle’ was a one-day workshop facilitated by ‘Joy for Life’, an energy space created through the empowered deLIGHT of two beautiful souls – Ellaeenah and Jogita. ‘Joy For Life’ is based on the cosmic premise that joy and abundance is the divine right for all. Bach Flower Remedies, Ho’oponopono, Crystals, Meditation, Angels, Sacred Geometry, Chakric energisation and more find their happy place here.

How does one express the intangible benefits of attending a spiritual workshop? Here’s my account of a humbling experience in connecting with the Goddess within –

The Divine Feminine Principle

The workshop began with a wonderful explanation on the duality in the forces of the universe and the significance of maintaining the balance between them. For every masculine there is a feminine energy, each of us having masculine and feminine energies within us in different proportions. These divine energies are not independent of each other but are essentially the twin faces of the Divine Consciousness. Even though they appear to be opposite, in reality they complement each other.

The divine feminine principle is the creative force that sets the direction of evolution, whereas the divine masculine principle is the executive force that follows through on that direction. However over the years, with the advent of science and technology, the intuitive divine feminine energy has been suppressed by the egoistic divine masculine energy. In order to reclaim the balance in our universe, it is essential for both these energies to perfectly blend within us, so that a shift in consciousness takes place in the outer world as well.

After a blissful meditation to bring to life the inner Shakti Goddess energy, we moved on to understanding and living the Goddess Principle.

Being the Goddesses

The Goddess Principle is the Cosmic Force of Universal Consciousness. It is by our own embodying through thoughts, words and actions that we bring alive this dormant energy. When we begin to express the qualities of different Goddesses is when we align with their frequencies and consequentially, their gifts naturally come to us. This was reiterated during the day with the help of beautiful meditations on the different Goddesses. The underlying thought was to help us realise that they reside in each of us.

Lakshmi is the goddess of prosperity and the universal symbol of abundance in all areas of life – wealth, relationships, knowledge, health, beauty, etc. She represents attainment of goals through knowledge and discernment. Sitting on a lotus symbolizes that even with dirt around us, we can retain our purity. Being Lakshmi means living the qualities this divine energy represents. Imbalance in any area of life is Lakshmi imbalance. To attract Lakshmi, we must be Lakshmi.

Saraswati is the goddess associated with education, music and language. She is a symbol of creative expression imparting us with the gifts of wisdom. The chanting of ‘Om’ and the cosmic sounds are associated with this goddess. To connect with her energies is to unite with our deeper spiritual truths.

Durga in Sanskrit means the ‘fortress’, the unassailable and the invincible. She is the symbol of our inner strength and conviction. She serves as a reminder that within each of us lie an unbeatable goddess force that helps us defeat our inner demons. To connect with her energies is to connect with the power of the divine Shakti and become self-reliant.

An interesting component of this workshop was an introduction to the Bach flower remedies. To explain this wonderful holistic science of healing would surely require another blog post.

Celebrating who we are

The most important essence of the workshop for me to go home with was to celebrate who I am. My strengths, weaknesses, my fears, anxieties, aspirations, all that makes me the way I am. To be myself and to live my truth – that’s above everything else. It is vital for me to take responsibility for my reality so that I can muster the courage to bring about the changes I desire. I want to give myself the gift of self-assertion over self-denial. For only then will I acknowledge the Goddess within me, and only then will I rise with her power!

Meet the Facilitators:

Ellaeenah Niloufer Jadefire is an Energy Intuit, Spiritual Counsellor & Mentor, and Life Coach for Personal Empowerment who focuses on Inner Child Work with body-mind-spirit synthesis. As a health facilitator, she practises and teaches many healing techniques like Crystals, Bach Flower Therapy, Sacred Geometry, Angel Cards, Energy Rebalancing to name a few.

Read all about her work and services on www.jadefirelight.com.

Access her meditations and channellings on her YouTube Channel

Jogita Jagwani has been on a journey of wellness for many years and she believes that wellness is not just an absence of illness, it is everything that makes the person happy, healthy and whole. As a health facilitator, Jogita practices various techniques like Bach Flower Therapy, Reiki, Nutrition Guidance, Energy Healing, Ho’oponopono, Chanting and Tarot Card Readings. She is a skilled social worker, having dedicated 20 years of work to V Care Foundation, a cancer care organisation in Mumbai.

You can reach her via email on: jogita.jagwani@gmail.com

T- Thich Nhat Hanh #AtoZChallenge

T- Thich Nhat Hanh #AtoZChallenge

“With mindfulness, you can establish yourself in the present in order to touch the wonders of life that are available in that moment.” ~Thich Nhat Hanh

Thich Nhat Hanh, a Vietnamese Buddhist monk fondly referred to as Thay, is a world-renowned Zen master, spiritual leader and author. I first heard of him when I received his book ‘Peace is every step’ as a gift from my then husband (life and it’s ironies). It was the first time I got introduced to the word ‘mindfulness’. Until then I knew of only the ‘mind’ being ‘full’ of noises.

Breathing in, I calm my body.

Breathing out, I smile.

Dwelling in the present moment,

I know this is a wonderful moment!

Thay’s key teaching is to inculcate the practice of mindfulness through which we can learn to live in peace and happiness. We are so busy getting an education and a job and material possessions, that we forget living the present moment – the only moment there is for us to be alive. He highlights some of the ways we can learn to be mindful through conscious breathing, thinking less, meditating and nourishing our awareness of the moment.

 There is nothing to chase after. We can go back to ourselves, enjoy our breathing, our smiling, ourselves and our beautiful environment.

 

His teachings are not just theoretical but they highlight the simple ways we can be mindful and aware in our daily activities – while walking, while eating, while driving or even while washing the dishes. We don’t have to be sitting only in a meditation hall to feel peace and happiness. It is available to us at every given moment.

Being passionate about calligraphy, I also enjoy his calligraphic works and how effortlessly they flow through his hands. It a mindful art of Nhat Hanh that captures and expresses his lifetime of meditative insights, peace and compassion.

Listening to his words of immense wisdom infused with a sense of calm and a bit of humour, has been extremely soothing to the chaotic mind. He is a spiritual leader I truly admire and follow.

Key Highlights:

“The present moment is filled with joy and happiness. If you are attentive, you will see it.”

“Wearing a smile on your face is a sign that you are master of yourself.”

“Feelings come and go like clouds in a windy sky. Conscious breathing is my anchor.”

Look at some of his bestsellers here: http://amzn.to/2p7Xuda

 

This post is part of the #AtoZChallenge 2017 Blogging from A to Z: http://www.a-to-zchallenge.com/.
I write about my spiritual and personal growth influences from A to Z.
My previous posts in chronology:

  1. A New Earth 
  2. Brahma Kumaris
  3. Chicken Soup for the Soul
  4. Dialogue with Death 
  5. Eat Pray Love 
  6. Finding a purpose in life
  7. GANDHI
  8. Healing with Chakras
  9. I Believe in Angels
  10. Jonathan Livingston Seagull
  11. Kahlil Gibran 
  12. Lisa Nichols
  13. Meditation
  14. Neale Donald Walsch
  15. Oprah & Deepak Meditations
  16. Power of Positive Thinking
  17. Quotes, my favourite ones
  18. Rhonda Byrne ‘The Secret’ and ‘The Magic’
  19. SKY by Santosh Joshi

 

Images courtesy: http://bit.ly/2pFwyEt; http://bit.ly/2oRTa1J

  

M – Meditation #AtoZChallenge

M – Meditation #AtoZChallenge

The thing about meditation is you become more and more you.” ~David Lynch

If there is one daily practice of mine I absolutely look forward to, it would undoubtedly be meditation! What started as an anxious mind seeking solace during a mental storm, meditation has now become a way of life.

The word meditation, is derived from two Latin words : meditari (to think, to contemplate, to exercise the mind) and mederi (to heal). Its Sanskrit derivation ‘medha‘ means wisdom. Meditation means different things for different people.

I look at meditation in several ways –

Meditation for me means awareness. It means getting into a state of alert consciousness. Meditation is to connect with my higher self and to feel the presence of divinity. It is a recognition of my breath.  It is the observation of my mind as a bystander. Meditation is being mindful of my life. It is to live in the present moment. Meditation is who I choose to be in my full consciousness.
Various methods are used to practice meditation for e.g. prayer beads, chanting of mantras, breathing exercises, idol worship, long sitting postures, bodily movements, lighting incense and candles, using crystals, etc. The style you are comfortable with evolves with time and practice, yet the technique is not that significant as is the experience.

How has meditation helped me?

  • Keeping anxiety at bay
  • Better clarity of thought
  • Calmer response to daily challenges
  • Increased sense of intuition
  • Greater productivity
  • Better sleep
  • Improved self-confidence
  • Wiser perspective to life

If you are new to meditation, it would be good to start with focusing on your breath for 5-10 minutes daily. Then gradually begin with listening to meditation music and short guided meditations. There are loads of options available online as well as several meditation groups in your city. It is a process of trying, absorbing and evolving. If you aren’t already meditating, I do hope you get started on this beautiful journey of self-discovery.

This post is part of the #AtoZChallenge 2017 Blogging from A to Z: http://www.a-to-zchallenge.com/. I write about my spiritual and personal growth influences from A to Z. My previous posts in chronology:

A New Earth 

Brahma Kumaris

Chicken Soup for the Soul

Dialogue with Death 

Eat Pray Love 

Finding a purpose in life

GANDHI

Healing with Chakras

I Believe in Angels

Jonathan Livingston Seagull

Kahlil Gibran 

Lisa Nichols

 

 

 

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