EMILY PERRY:: ELEMENTAL

inverting the world

there is something to be said about going upside down.  and perhaps you, like me, have heard it all before too: about how yoga inversions really do change the way you see things.  colors change.  there is nothing you cannot do.  you are on fire.

one of the big pieces i noticed from hanging in sirsasana/headstand so much during my inversion workshop was how i was activating DU 20, an acupuncture point on the top of the head.  This point is also called a hundred meetings, and it is where all the yang channels come together.  It is at the top of the head at the seventh chakra, and so it makes perfect sense that i was running off to my retreat with my husband on a headstand high, full of energy and excitement.

now that i have really added inversions, i feel like my practice is more well rounded now: like there is more flow and energy and movement.  like there is more connection.  it seems for me that a little change in perspective really can open things up in a big way.

what openings have brought you more connection and energy?

on retreats

sometimes, to be more in the world, we need to pull ourselves away from things that distract us.  

when i get space from things, i can climb more into my interior world, and work out all of the creative sparks that have been hitting me, but that i haven't had the time to flesh out.  as the mother of two, i have little time to act on all of my creative ideas, to focus on something conceptual for long periods; and so a little retreat from them is like a gift: ideas, projects, dreams and visions can become tangible and real and part of my "now", instead of my "tomorrow".

:::

my husband took me here for a couple of days, to celebrate our seventh wedding anniversary, and it was nothing short of perfect for a retreat::

 

 

treebones is a special place: it lies nestled in the mountains of Big Sur, with ocean views (when not foggy!), and yurts!  i had time to unwind, practice sirsasana, and just be.

i felt like i really landed.  next year i hope to make it to Squam, but until then i am going to bask in everything i learned sleeping in a circular space, surrounded by fog and the sound of crashing waves.

off on a retreat...

i am off to spend a couple days in a yurt on the coast in Big Sur... I will see you when I get back later in the week!

doing

reading:: the best buddhist writing 2008 (i just can't get enough Natalie Goldberg!)

dreaming:: of eating at ubuntu sometime soon

manifesting:: yoga inversion workshop, here i come.  i can finally learn to do a proper headstand!

intentioning:: attending a art retreat.  either with a newfound tribe or one that is organized.

what are you doing?

on connections and energy

as you may know, the medicine i practice, Classical Chinese Medicine (Acupuncture) is a highly energetic medicine.  when i am treating patients, the whole experience involves interacting with their qi (chi, prana, or energy).  during the life-long study of this medicine, practitioners become more familiar with this energy, be it though Qi Gong, Tai Chi, meditation, or yoga.  and as we become familiar with energy, we develop metaphors and ideas about it in order to better understand the human condition.

that being said, one powerful condition one comes across in practice is the idea of energetic cords.  barbara brennan has gone into this in detail in her work, but in essence the idea is that all of our experiences create energetic connection.  no matter how you want to label the experience, we are connected to it.  some cords dissolve on their own when they no longer serve us, but some stay connected to us in unhealthy ways, draining our mental and emotional energy.

if we are in a space where we are ready to welcome the new into our lives, often i recommend that the beginning of the change begin here, with the examination and release of these old cords that no longer benefit us.  why not be free?  why not create space from the get-go?

a wonderful way to discover your energetic cords is in meditation.  once you get into a quiet space, try to visualize all of the energtic cords coming from your body, and where they might lead.  what do they look like?  are they tangled around you?  can you find any that really seem to be pulling all your energy away?

if so, these are the places to investigate further.  if you find that you cannot release a cord that seems to be draining you, perhaps there is other work to be done there before it is ready to be released. in my class and workshops i will be further discussing energy cords (aka relationship cords), and together we will have a cemermony to release them.  

for myself, i like to keep the idea in the back of my mind that all my interactions create these connections, and so it is my choice what i give my energy to.  so, let's choose to put it towards the positive, fulfilling places!

on manifesting & letting go

 

so i have been thinking about the process of manifesting in our lives.  how is it that things come to be?  that we give birth to the new?  so many times i would be working with patients in the clinic and this is was one of the things they struggled with.  

in essence, there are two parts to this concept: knowing what you want to manifest, and then creating space for that to come into being. i think sometimes we get it all backwards: we really need to create the space first to be open to the ideas that will inspire us to create want we want or need.

in classical chinese medicine, this process is considered to involve the mental element (the lung and large intestine). metal energy includes letting go (large intestine energy) so that we can breath in the new (lung energy). we need to let go of that which does not serve us in order to make space for us to breath in the change we need. in order to inspire, and to be inspired.

one thing we do in meditation group is sit down, create a quiet space, and think about what isn't working anymore.  what can we let go of?  what is asking you to hold on, and asking to be released?  

in my next post I will talk more about those old connections, about their release, and we'll explore a mudra (or seal) that channels inspiration.