Reflections on things we can do to support us during these changing Corona times
I have created a meditation to support you and the text and audio can be accessed here.
Francais
Italiano
Deutsch
This period for most of us, apart from those giving front line support for those with the virus, is a time when we are being called upon to retreat to our homes and stay away from others as much as we can. For those of us for whom touch and physical connection is a core part of our work and way of relating to others, it is a challenge. However it is also an invitation to go inwards, find new ways of being and to reflect on where we are at with our life. We may also want to use this time to ponder what is essential in our lives and how we want to live after all this over .
All there is, is now. Be fully present in each moment and that will lead into the next moment.
This may seem an especially strange time to do this for those of us living in the northern hemisphere where spring is inviting us to move outward. Yet perhaps because spring is dynamic and the energy of birth, it is offering us an opportunity to channel this powerful energy inwards and create new ways of being. It is an invitation into the unknown. An invitation to be present in times which are constantly changing.
It is a challenge. For me, as many of you know, I had already taken January out to go to India, to go within and do a retreat with Anand Mehrotra at the Sattva Yoga Academy, where my daughter had done the second stage of her yoga training in May. I wrote on my return that I was ready for new challenges. I thought that meant emerging more into the world again yet now I am once again invited to move inwards.
Whatever is going on with Corona, whatever you believe about it, we can’t change what is happening on the bigger scale. However we can choose how we respond to it. We can choose to accept it and surrender to it, rather than resist it. I love Anand’s expression of this:
See what is happening as happening through you rather than to you.
We are all having to make huge adaptations: connecting with ourselves, our loved ones, our neighbours and indeed everyone else on the planet in new and different ways. We are realising our interconnectedness not just with every human, but all sentient beings. We are also understanding more about the impact of the ways we move upon the earth.
For those of you who know my work with the Extraordinary Vessels this is very much their nature. They help us adapt in times when there are big shifts in what is going on. This can be when there are big changes from within our body, such as during puberty or pregnancy. Indeed this is how I first discovered the Extraordinary Vessels. Here is a blog I wrote a few years ago.
However these shifts can also be in what happens outside our body. Indeed this is an aspect I was writing about in my new book, before Corona came along. The vessels help us to respond to big changes in the outer world on the level of us as a species and this includes our responses to new diseases. It really is their moment!
It is interesting that Corona travels through the air and affects our respiratory system. Our lungs operate on a moment to moment level through the in and out breath, but they are also about our most basic connection to space, which includes the atmosphere. In most situations, it is through the air that we receive support and nourishment. However now, when we are close to others, we perceive it as dangerous. When we are born we shift the taking in of our nourishment from our navel (where we received blood through the umbilical cord) to our mouth and nose. It is through the front of our body, the Yin, Conception and Penetrating Vessels ( see another blog I wrote and our Heart that we receive nourishment. We need to practice physical distancing while the virus is so present, but in doing so let’s not forget the nourishing nature of the air and how vital it is for us. I have included this focus as part of my meditation.
Find what supports you
The meditation and kriya (breath, mantra (sound), mudra (often a hand gesture)) practices I have been doing since my return have helped me feel focused and are a core source of my daily support in these uncertain times. We each need to find what is supportive to us. For me it is about doing something positive and life affirming for me, others and the planet every day. I find nature very nurturing and am glad that I have a small garden where even if we have to stay in our homes, I can continue to connect with the outside. Connecting with others is also important and we need to find new spaces and ways of doing this.
Already we are seeing many good things come out of Corona. Communities are supporting each other. People are coming together in new ways. The earth is getting a rest from planes pollution factories. We are all getting a rest and learning to adapt in new ways.
However it is important to recognise that at times fears, doubts, uncertainties arise as we are living in a new reality. We may be worried about how we deal with isolation, about lack of money, about having our future plans taken away from us. Take time to acknowledge those feelings too. They are part of you and part of this new reality.
All I can say is that it is time to surrender. We have no control over this situation and things change fast. But it will end. There is light at the end of the tunnel, and we will get through it. We could see the emergence from the tunnel as an opportunity for a rebirth: for ourselves and for the earth.
Stay well. Be with the feelings which arise.
I hope to continue to connect with you in new and creative ways..
Suzanne
