WHEN THE UNIVERSE PRESSED PAUSE.

Maybe we’ll learn how to Be?

One of the things I work on daily (some days more successfully than others ?) is to constantly put myself in a state of mind that keeps me open to receiving messages from the Universe. So when I think about what the world is going through right now in this context, I’m floored. If this isn’t a clear message for the people of the world to stop, reflect and change things up, I don’t know what else is.

Last January I had my chart read by a Vedic astrologer. He told me I was moving from a period of doing, to a period of Being. It really resonated with me because for my entire life I’ve pretty much been non-stop. And in the past couple of years, my life has definitely slowed down. I fought it at first- feelings of being less than, not productive, a loser, etc. were some of the demons I had to slay. I am actually just learning how to make peace with it, embrace it and realize it’s the best thing that could have ever happened to me.

And now, for whatever reason, it seems as if the Universe has prescribed this idea of Being- to every single person on the planet. No doubt many of us are still working and taking care of kids and have a lot of responsibility to keep delivering, but it also seems to have come with a sense of life slowing down. This constant push of having to do (especially if you live in a city) has somewhat been lifted since no one else can really do much now either. Bye FOMO!

Is this a nudge from the Universe to all of us to get off our daily hamster wheels? Turn down our monkey minds (incessant non productive thinking)? And connect with the true source of everything- our Selfs (with a capital S!)? Because while this doing, doing, doing has become the norm and feels good, it doesn’t mean it’s what’s best for us in the long run.

As a recovering doer I know this first hand because of my initial response to just Being when I first started practicing meditation. My skin and mind both jumped and were like hellllsssss no! Doing allows us to keep shit moving and is very surface. But Being, goes deep. And the journey to getting to a place where you embrace it can be rough sometimes. It was for me at least. Even now, 3 years into my meditation practice, I have days where I peek at the clock and want to cut my 20 minute meditation short by 2 or 3 minutes because I have a running list of stuff I need to do. My doing side is apparently soooooo important it can’t spare the last 2-3 minutes of my meditation to continue to just Be. WTF.

Doing feels good. But the risk is that it can also sometimes be rooted in Ego. It can make you feel important, admired and appreciated- all external validators. While Being, once you move past all the cobwebs and roadblocks that challenge you from Being (ie. I can’t meditate, I hate meditation, sitting in stillness is stupid, going for a walk in nature is a waste of time, etc.) feels like absolute bliss. In Vedic meditation we say, “Do less- accomplish more. Do least- accomplish most. Do nothing- accomplish all.” Which means, if you are rooted in Being, everything in life flows easily and effortlessly. You get more done, by doing less because of the SUPERPOWERS rooted in Being provides. You also begin to operate from a place of deep knowledge- so decisions and the ability to navigate life becomes easier.

It took me 3 years to experience this and through experience, truly understand and believe it. I now know that my time on the cushion (20 minutes in the morning and 20 in the evening) is far more important than anything else when it comes to my wellbeing. And in the bigger picture, 40 minutes of my time is a small sacrifice for a lifetime of bliss.

So what are some of the way to move into a state of Being? There is no one answer since everyone is different. For some people, it’s sitting in silence for a couple minutes a day. For others, a walk in nature. For me, practicing Vedic Meditation has changed my life (and I highly recommend it!).

Use this time to experiment. Try going on a 30 minute walk in the park every morning and then sitting in silence for 5 minutes. Do it for a whole week, see how you feel. Or, you can download headspace and try meditating for 10 minutes every morning and see what that does. If you find that reading is a great way to understand things I recommend “The Seven Spiritual Laws of Success” by Deepak Chopra and “The Code of Extraordinary Mind” by Vishen Lakhiani. Both of these books do a great job of explaining how to Be (and as a result be in flow).

Would love to hear how everyone is managing during this time, what’s coming up for you and as always, if you have any questions email me at [email protected].