"I AM THAT"

"The cosmos is also within us...we're  made of star stuff."   - Carl Sagan  -

 "A human being is part of a whole, called by us the 'Universe', a part limited in time and space. He experiences himself, his thoughts and feelings as something separate 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 us. Our task must be to free ourselves from this prison by widening our circles of compassion to embrace all living creatures and the whole of nature in its beauty."        - Albert Einstein -

"So Hum" is a breath mantra from the Siddha Tradition of South India meaning "I am That."  I incorporated this "mantra" or mental focus phrase in its original form as well as in translation, to the CHI Wholeness Exercise (CHI-WE). 

Visualizing yourself at the center of a circle representing the Universe / the wholeness of who you are, you repeat "I am That" (meaning you are whatever you see) in a language of your choice, ("Mimi Hivo" in Kiswahili) synchronizing it with slow deep breathing. As you do this, you are consciously bringing that awareness and Universal Energy in with your in-breath, into your heart and into your whole being, and breathe it out into Earth.  Focusing on your breath and on the mantra keeps you in the moment. 


My doctoral research showed that doing this easy exercise for 5 minutes creates a statistically significant, measurable physiological change almost immediately, shifting Autonomic Nervous System (ANS) activity from Sympathetic (stress response) to Parasympathetic (de-stress response).  


I observed this phenomenon with 58 trauma-exposed Sri Lankan youth in my doctoral research.  I saw similar results in American teens in the Washington D.C. area.  I see the exact same phenomenon with clients,  including cancer patients of various ages and youth in HIV-AIDS affected areas in Kenya.  


I share this easy technique as part of the CHI Self-care Program  I offer individuals and groups through workshops and individual sessions in-person in Kenya and online to anyone anywhere in the world via computer and/or phone.  E-mail me if you would like to take this workshop in-person in Nairobi, Kenya or online via Skype.

NOTE:      Watch the video full screen and with full sound for best effect.  

                 Click on the links in the text above to access further information.  

EARTHING

"Walk as if you are kissing the Earth with your feet." – Thich Nhat Hahn

We humans, like all visible beings on our planet, are creatures who live on the surface of Earth. Our feet are the points of connection with Earth, and our heads the point of connection with Universe. The life force that keeps us alive comes from the interaction between these two source energies. Since Earth is part of the Sun’s family, it is closely bonded to the sun’s energy. However, sun’s energy is basically light energy – which is, in fact, the substance of everything in it’s family – including us. Every cell in our body at the most basic level is made up of light photons. What we call the “mind” and even what is called the “energy field” are energy constructs made of light photons.

 The aspects of ourselves that we see or our physicality or body is made up of all the elements that make up Earth. And all that we don’t see of ourselves is made up of light energy from the Sun. All Earth beings are progeny of Father Sun and Mother Earth. Pure universal Energy that is yet un-manifested is known as “dark” energy. That which is manifested in any form but cannot be seen, such as our minds are of light energy. Physicality or anything that can be seen or what is known as physicality is called matter, and is connected to dense planetary energy. That’s the physics of who we are.

 When my first child was born (34 years ago), the nurse wrapped him up in blankets before she gave him to me on the delivery table soon after birth. Shortly after, she took him away from me to register vital signs, and discovered that his temperature was lower than it should have been. When they wheeled me back to my room, they kept the baby in the nursery to put him under bright lights to warm him up. I insisted that my baby room-in with me, and that they bring him to me right away, as I had arranged with the doctor and hospital prior to birth. I told the nurse that I was perfectly capable of transmitting to my baby whatever warmth he needed. She brought him to the room but in the incubator. I asked her to give my baby to me to hold. As soon as she left the room, I disengaged him from the blankets and took him into bed with me. The rest of the night, ignoring “hospital policy” I slept skin-to-skin with my baby, holding him on my body – head to heart, so he attuned to my heartbeat, breastfeeding him on demand. In the morning his temperature was perfectly normal. We were both happy and peaceful.

 Being skin-to-skin with Mother Earth has pretty much the same effect on us, her offspring. All the other animals don't wear shoes, and sleep directly on or in her body.  They are totally one with her energy.  Physical contact with Mother Earth transfers her energy to us, re-balancing and attuning our electromagnetic energy to hers. Earth carries a positive charge and we carry a negative charge, Connecting directly with Earth neutralizes and harmonizes our energy.

 Earthing, as the term suggests, has to do with connecting and attuning ourselves to Earth. Ever since we humans got ourselves “civilized” and started wearing footwear, we created a barrier between ourselves and Earth. That was the beginning of our objectifying and disconnecting from her. Unable to feel the connection with her through our feet, we forget our connection to her altogether. She became a resource to be exploited and we forgot that she is the source of our physical being, and a living, breathing organism that we, like all other Earth beings, are part of, much as the microorganisms on our skins and in our bodies are part of us.. She provides us with everything we need to stay alive. Think of what could happen to a house in which the electrical system is not properly earthed. The electrical system runs the risk of getting all messed up. It’s the same with you. If you are not “earthed” your energy system also gets messed up.

HOW TO EARTH
Go outside and take your shoes off. Stand, walk, sit or lie down (take a nap) on Earth for about 15 – 30 minutes or as long as you want. That’s pretty much it! How easy is that!!! If it’s hot, I sit on a chair on a stone-paved picnic area under a picnic umbrella and read a book. Sometimes I do the CHI Wholeness Exercise (CHI-WE) sitting on a chair with my feet touching the ground, or sitting cross-legged on the grass or with my back against a tree trunk. If you, for some reason, can’t go outside, imagine being in a place outdoors where you feel safe and comfortable, sitting on Earth, doing CHI-WE. I go in my mind to my favorite beach in Sri Lanka, or to a hill looking out over the Dead Sea. My mind can take me anywhere I want to be in an instant. I am not sure if it has the same effect as actually being there, but I believe that it just might. (Would be an interesting research topic!) 

ATTUNING TO EARTH ENERGY WHEN TRAVELLING
 When I moved from Washington D.C. in the Northern Hemisphere to Nairobi, Kenya, located barely South of the Equator – I was very aware of how different Earth’s energy felt here than in Washington, where I had lived for 10years before I came here. After all, the feel of the face is different to the feel of the belly, is different to the feel of the knee etc, so why would it be that different parts of Earth would feel the same? So whenever you travel from one place to another, remember to Earth yourself, to align with the energy of where you are located. I discovered, to my surprise, that I recovered from jet lag much faster than I used to when I Earth myself as soon as I arrive in a new place.

RESEARCH ON EARTHING
Research on the effects of Earthing have been published on: http://www.earthinginstitute.net/index.php/research 

EARTHING PRODUCTS
Seriously, when you can connect to Earth Energy for free, why spend money on products? If you don’t have garden space of your own, find some green space in your town or city, take your shoes off and earth yourself. It’s really that simple. 

However, if you really want to buy Earthing products, you can buy them from: www.earthing .com
My husband, the gadget guy, got the Earthing sheet and an Earthing pad for the car, and thinks they help him sleep better and feel less tired on long car trips.

Special thanks and a cosmic hug to Chandra Souza for triggering this blog post when she sent me the image and the quote yesterday on Facebook.  I resonated deeply with both the image and the quote. 

CELEBRATE 11-11-11 ONENESS

11-11-11 is a symbol of oneness. 11-11-11 looks to me like three portals or doorways, perfectly aligned in a row holding sacred space for opening and discovery. The meaning of this numerical configuration has for me is that in this moment in human evolution, we are experiencing the consciousness of the oneness / wholeness of being. It represents the alignment of body, mind and spirit; the alignment of the heart of humanity with the hearts of Universe and Earth - the wholeness of who we are. So is the Circle or Mandala of Wholeness.
CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE WHOLENESS EXERCISE

On 11-11-11 at 11:11:11 AM, I will be in Karura Forest in Nairobi, meditating with a group of people. In the evening a group of us will come together at my house to do the Wholeness Exercise, and to celebrate our connection with each other and All That Is. In our Healing Harmony Circle - we will sing healing harmonious chants and rounds together to energize healing intentions for ourselves, each other and our collectives - including Earth and Universe. At 11;11;11 Pm, I will be doing the Wholeness Exercise. Throughout the day, we can join in the wave of wholeness /oneness that will be taking place in various formats.

Wherever you are, I invite you to join the oneness wave on 11-11-11 at 11;11;11 AM and PM to align with wholeness, and celebrate the truth of who you are, by doing the Wholeness Exercise at 11:11:11 AM and PM.

I share below an excerpt from a blog posted by my friend and soul sister Laural Wauters from Wisconsin:

This November, in 2011, we will witness the numeric phenomenon of 11/11/11. If you take it a step further, we will will have two opportunities that day to experience 11/11/11 at 11:11:11 am and 11:11:11 pm.

I invite you each to take time today to honor the expansion that is occurring within you and around you. Acknowledge the Collective Unconscious that resides within you connecting you to everyone else on this planet. Honor the sacred feminine and the sacred masculine within everything. Allow yourself to awaken the Collective Consciousness by seeing the oneness of being. Connect the rhythm of your heartbeat with the heartbeat of the earth. Give yourself the gift of love and realize that by doing this you are sharing your love with humanity. From this place of expanded awareness you are creating a new world.

CLICK HERE to read ALL OF LAURAL'S BLOG POST.

Getting a Good Night's Sleep

Ever since I was a child, I have resisted going to bed at night. I’m not the only one with “night-owl-itis.” All my siblings too have this “thing” about wrapping up the day. Recently I have been thinking about changing this pattern. So I did a little research on why it is so important to go to sleep at a reasonable hour.
While we sleep our organs rest and restore themselves. Chinese medicine has identified the times of the day that each of the internal organs restore themselves. The organs of the Solar Plexus restore themselves during the night hours:
9 - 11pm: Thyroid / Adrenals
11pm – 1am: Gallbladder
1 – 3am: Liver
3 – 5am: Lungs
5 - 7am: Large Intestines
Note that the Solar Plexus is connected with the Immune System and ones relationship with oneself. Going to bed at a reasonable hour is an essential aspect of caring for oneself.
Here’s a list of things that may help to prepare for a good night’s sleep:
• Establish a set time in which would like to be in bed and asleep;
• Reserve your bed for sleeping, rather than for working, watching T.V., or studying.
• Turn off the TV or computer at least 30 minutes before your planned bed time;
• Spend 15 to 30 minutes winding down by making the time to be quiet, meditate, read, journal, or listen to soft music;
• Perform deep-breathing exercises to facilitate relaxation: e.g. Wholeness Exercise or Mindfulness Exercises. Reiki self-healing can also help relax and prepare you for sleep.
• Take a hot bath or shower before bed; Add 10 drops of Lavender Essential Oil to the bath.
• Put 5 drops of Lavender Essential oil in oil diffuser near your bed, or slip a handkerchief with a few drops of lavender into your pillowcase.
• Make sure the room is completely dark with no light leaks.

Good night and sweet dreams!