Born to shine

On a birthday card my former boss wrote me once:

'when you can dream it you can do it' 

I find this quote very powerfull and I try to remind myself of it when slipping away in daily obligations. Slipping away in the matrix. Slipping away in fear. 

I have so much respect for people with a dream and even more respect for people daring enough to pursue their dream. As I am convinced that we are all here with a purpose. Small or large... the size of the purpose doesn't matter. But to live to your fullest potential, that is what matters. 

To not live out of fear. To not live out of anger, but to live because we have a purpose, to live out of love and to live out of gratefulness. To live to shine.....so let's shine! 

'Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won't feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It's not just in some of us; it's in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.'

- Marianne Williamson

De bliksemafleider

Op de achtergrond
altijd aanwezig
klaar om af te leiden
te conformeren en te pleasen
in dienst van het doel
zijn eigen identiteit vergetend

Quote of the day

“A human being is a part of the whole called by us universe, a part limited in time and space. He experiences himself, his thoughts and feeling as something separated from the rest, a kind of optical delusion of his consciousness. This delusion is a kind of prison for us, restricting us to our personal desires and to affection for a few persons nearest to us. Our task must be to free ourselves from this prison by widening our circle of compassion to embrace all living creatures and the whole of nature in its beauty.” 

- Albert Einstein

Balancing act

It has been a while.... I know......I am guilty...

But I will make up. 

It has been 4 months since I last wrote, but also 4 months of new and fresh inspiration.
New experiences in life, new experiences into my happiness journey.

What I have done?
Well, beginning of April, I left Shanghai with 1 suitcase. 
I went to Bali. Completed my Yoga Teacher Training and taught yoga for a month at the Bali silent retreat. 
Afterwards I went to see a friend in Singapore and there I decided to travel through India to experience the country and culture where the yoga was born. 
I will write about my travel experiences separately. 

After India I went back home to the Netherlands.
Currently I am still living out of the above mentioned suitcase. Who would have thought that.... wow..... speaking of detachment....... 

And there we are...... or better said.... there I am..... here I am..... living out of a suitcase, not having a proper job, not having a proper house, not having a proper life. But to be honest, I like it. I like the feeling of freedom, the feeling of lightness and I like the feeling of not knowing what will come my way tomorrow. But it is also scary..... scary because there's no direction or control. 

Lots of ideas and inspiration, but at the same time I'm confused and trying to figure out how to integrate my 'Eastern' experiences into the 'Western' society. Balancing with one leg in the spiritual and one leg in the ego driven world. 
Trying to find my way between soft and hard, old and new, feeling and thinking, wrong and right, the known and the unknown. 
 
Knowing that time will tell... knowing that all will be fine, no matter what. 

Namaste. 

 

The real thing

"The real yoga starts when you get off the yoga mat"

A sentence used by Johan Noorloos, a famous Dutch Yoga teacher. 
Currently my teacher.....

And it is true.......

On the mat you practice every aspect and every part out of the 'real life'

Sometimes you really feel like practicing, other days you don't.....
The trick is to learn how to motivate yourself, dedication. 
This is called Bhakti in Sanskrit. 
Dedication to your practice, dedication to yourself, dedication to your goals.
Just like the real life.

Sometimes you feel energetic and daring. Daring to try new things and to challenge yourself. 
Sometimes you feel tired and exhausted. Wanting to lie down. Surrendering all the weight of your body into mother earth.
Sometimes you want to shrink yourself. Rolling yourself up like a child safe and protected. 
Sometimes you want to expand yourself. Taking in the space, feeling powerful.

Sometimes you look too much to others. Comparing yourself to others and as a result losing yourself. 
Sometimes you forget to breathe..... when you challenged yourself too much....
Just like the real life.

Sometimes you feel like a loser, the feeling of failure. 
Sometimes you feel proud, proud of what you achieved.
Just like the real life. 

Sometimes you feel stabile, steady, grounded..... easily balancing on 1 leg
Other days thoughts take over control and you lose the balance, lose the focus....
Just like the real life. 

...Yoga is like an anchor, everytime you find yourself drifting away, it pulls you back, back to yourself. Back to the true you........ 
Because that is what's real.....
Just like the real life. 

Namaste.

2 butterflies

2 butterflies

Playing with eachother

Gracefully

Following eachother

Effortlessly

Trusting eachother

Silently

2 butterflies

Flowing through life

Without a purpose of direction

Wherever the wind takes them

2 butterflies

Representing how to surrender to the flow of life

2 butterflies representing true love

Silence

Today is the 10th day of my Yoga Teacher Training. 
It's an intensive program, an intensive schedule.
The alarm goes off at 5.30 and at 6.00 we are in the yoga Shala on our mats in the middle of the rice paddies. 
Pranayama, meditation, asanas, anatomy, philosophy, ayurveda... these are just a couple of the subjects we are covering. 
After dinner the program continues: Bio-dance, mantras, movie night, making mandalas etc etc. 
Sundays we are 'off'. Shopping, laundry, studying.... there's not much time to relax or be connected with the rest of the world. I'm literally in my Yoga Bubble over here. 

The first couple of days are all about observing. 
Then the mind kicks in and you start resisting & questioning things....
Sitting in a crossed leg position over 8 hours a day? 
Chanting mantras 108 times? 
Getting rice sticked onto your face? Really.....? What for....? 
 
And that is exactly where the true Yoga comes in. Yoga is not just doing some poses. Yoga is about mastering the fluctuations of the mind (aka 'the monkey mind'). As the mind takes over control. It hijacks you.

Tonight we are starting 'mouna'. This means silence. As in 'Eat Pray Love' we will be walking around with a badge saying "I'm in silence". 60 hours in silence..... 

As wise men said: 

"True silence is not only without words, but without thoughts"

 

Namaste