One of my favourite and maybe lesser known pieces of Art by Banksy hanging in the MOMO MUSEUM IN AMSTERDAM.
I’m writing this on a rainy day from my floating lodge on the Great river Ouse here in the UK. Although Autumn and inevitably Winter bring there own challenges requiring a certain adaptation on our part. It is also a great time for reflection, a slowing down and relishing in the quietness that autumn brings.
During the last couple of weeks l’ve found myself drawn to leaning into cultivating a loose ritual of prayer every night before bed. I normally always say a silent prayer before l eat my food see below (a ritual engraved from my Jivamukti Yoga Days).
‘Thank you for the money to buy this fresh food and drink. l hope the least amount of harm was caused to the planet and the animals in the making of this food.’
I’m not an really what some might say a religious person by nature but fundamentally l feel myself as a spiritual being cultivating elements of hope, compassion, peace and gratitude for life, my life. Even through the traumas and challenges in the past have been hard to bear and even now, l’ve always leant into my yoga and spiritual practices to find comfort and some element of hope to cling onto.
The cliche you hear and see everywhere ‘Be thankful for what you have’ is a constant reminder of the importance of being present in every moment. More importantly the need to stop and pause at intervals along life’s journey, especially in this busy and overstimulated world we live in.
STYLING Relishing a Self Sanctuary ritual/s
I’m sharing with you my three practices that l started at the beginning of October which l’ve found has cultivated a sense of groundedness, peace, manifestation and abundance in all forms.
EARLY AM
I have this great app on my iphone called Gratitude Jar every morning while l’m sitting in bed having my tea or coffee and contemplating the day ahead l jot down what l feel at that moment.
DAY - MANIFESTATION
During the day l use my ‘stick it wall’ thank you
not just for soft goals but also as my manifestation wall. Because we are visual creatures my nature what we see first starts a reaction/response. This is how l manifested my Costa Rica Retreat with dearest Elena next month (which l wanted to come true but still couldn’t really see how we were going to get there). Looking at this note created an imprint of belief in what l hoped would be achievable. Thank you Gabby Bernstein for starting me on this journey back in 2016.
EVENING PM - PRAYER
Thank you
for the reminder.Before bed l place my hands in prayer/namaste position thumbs to my forehead/third eye chakra to give thanks and ask for guidance, insight, support and inspiration in the areas of my life that l feel l need help/and/or clarification with to keep me on my highest path. During my experience of prayer l’ve observed that l listen differently not only to myself but how finding a deeper connection or resonance from that when l’m in meditation and corpses pose/relaxation.
If your interested in delving deeper, another conscious cornerstone and a profound and relatable resource (one of my other go too’s) is ‘The Reality of Being - The Fourth Way of Gurdjieff’.
Other holistic creative resources to get you into the vibe of prayers is the beautiful book by Pixie Lighthouse PRAYERS OF HONOURING, l cannot recommend this book enough!
RITUAL SENSATIONS
At the end of the day it is worth remembering that rituals create impressions that cause sensations. If we lean into sensations we can use them as a roadmap one that can provide emotional intelligence for self knowledge. Contributing to creating a safe and kinder refuge for our inner world, one that we hope will continue to gives us learning, understanding and comfort.
'“Transformations lead to changes that leads to an awakening within.”
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