Body Messages
One of the many gifts of practicing yoga is heightened body awareness, a clearer and deeper communication in the body-mind. The messages from the body can be subtle, discerned primarily through intuition. Some are very specific. Different emotional energies "live" in specific areas of the body. I will give a few specific examples and invite you to explore more information on this topic.
The chakra or energy center system of yoga and Ayurveda are very helpful in learning to understand where and how energy moves in the physical body. The lower three chakras are at the base of the spine, in the center of the lower abdomen, and behind the naval. These centers contain what we call the survival energies: stability (1st Chakra), relationships/community (2nd Chakra), sense of self/will (3rd Chakra). For example, it is not unusual to experience discomfort or pain in your lower back, just below the waist, when you are fearful or having a specific crisis in your finances. Financial issues challenge our sense of security in our world.
A personal experience also comes to mind. A few years ago, during a visit to my holistic physician for a tune-up, we talked about the tightness on the right side of my neck. After muscle testing me, he explained that it was a relationship issue with a female friend (in this instance, the side of the neck reveals whether the friend is male or female). He then asked me if I was unhappy with a friend's decisions and choices recently. Was I being stiff-necked or stubborn about her choices? I had to think for a moment and, sure enough, I felt a dear friend had put herself at risk and was suffering as a result. As I forgave her for her choices and myself for judging her, my neck began to release.
This next example makes me laugh even though, at the time of this experience, it added to my emotional and physical suffering. I was in the 25th year of my marriage when it failed. The grief and sadness were extremely intense of course. Divorce is never easy and, in the middle of it all, I developed physical manifestations of the stress. As the months unfolded, I began to see a pattern. Every time I felt threatened, the same condition flared. My body could not have sent me a clearer message that I needed to adjust my thinking and my perception of what was going on. I worked with a therapist and my doctor, stuck with my yoga and meditation practice, and spent time with loving friends having fun. The pattern did eventually fade away. The only time the condition returns is when I perceive someone as a threat and internalize their behavior in some way. My body lets me know right away and I respond quickly to shift my awareness. 99% of the time, my body calms down within a few hours. There are times, to be honest, when I it takes me longer to shift my thought patterns and experience physical balance.
What is your body trying to show you today? Take some time to feel, listen, and perceive its messages. When you do, please take care to do so with the intention of gaining information and understanding. Release all judgement so that you learn to reset attitudes or perceptions and to support your body in releasing tightness or illness. This is an opportunity for healing and expanded awareness. Judgement only hinders the process. Love yourself as your body becomes a source of information in your journey of enlightenment.
A helpful mantra to use during these times of challenge is Aum Ritam Namah which means "My desires and intentions are aligned with the Universe, the Divine."
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