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Beautiful People Beautiful Rituals Healthy Living

Healing Music by Naoe Amano

Such soothing, liquid sounds … such beautiful music. I especially love the piece she composed called “Breathing Forest”… hahhhhh… sigh…it’s feather-like but grounding… so lovely:)

IMG_2549_01_smallAnd you know how much I love FORESTS – so much that I flip for it:)
IMG_2547_01_smallThat extra oxygen boost helps unleash the energy, you might call “exuberance”, I thought I had lost and the desire to open up the heart to the sky:)Feeling that oneness when you know trees’ exhale is your inhale – together it’s such feeling of wholeness – that feeling of coming full complete circle.

So grateful that I was able to go to her only performance here in the Bay Area as she normally goes between Japan and New York, not so available here in the Bay Area. What a welcomed stopover she made…

I have heard crystal bowl sounds before at Mt. Shasta but this is the first time I heard it fused or weaved into piano music. She gracefully merges the two instruments, where the crystal bowl generate not just “sounds” but more. The two collaborative sounds create music of healing … The vibration takes you to another realm and its mesmerizing to see her perform – while I loved watching her play the piano, at the same time, chime the crystal bowls to create unique blend… after awhile, you feel sooo sooo relaxed… you just want to close your eyes and take in the vibration. Unlike other concerts where you sit upright with good manners, at this lovely concert, she gently coaxes us that it’s perfectly alright to lie down and rest, nap, LISTEN – we were on our back just absorbing the vibe not just with our ears but with our whole body – practically in a trance state. (I just wished we had all the props to give our body the comfort to take even more healing powers:)

Luckily I was able to take home a piece of the sampling as she had released a CD – I thought to share this great gift with some of the yoga students with discernment – perhaps I will make it one of my playlists for a certain type and style of yoga classes. This sound will help restore students back to optimal health – I was convinced through my own experience. Being December holiday season, I myself arrived to the concert dead exhausted and stressed fighting the traffic, dealing with what I call the jagged edgy vibes … but almost like a restorative yoga session (which would eliminate our physical discomforts like tension, tightness, soreness, stiffness … the list goes on), after her concert, I felt soooo much better, recharged to have so much energy to face all that was to come after the concert – my evening shift awaited and I now had the energy to be fully present to meet the demands of others. Healing music is so precious. Dressed in all white, she looked like a delicate angel who had gone to the heavens and come back to provide light to those who seek it. Yogis are seekers. This seeker was so entranced – thank you so much for such an amazing concert. As far as energy transmission, nothing is better than “LIVE” – no quality CD or stereo system can match the artist’s LIVE performance where every note is ALIVE, sparkling with “energy”, “prana”, “chi” or “ki” in Japanese – but here’s a UTUBE video I found to give you an approximate idea:

Just close your eyes and imagine … the music transports you to ….. (fill in the blank:)
Or in my case – think NOTHING. It’s meditation practice that bubbles with no effort, foaming together streams of consciousness.

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Beautiful Rituals Healthy Living

Tonight’s Lesson …

“Everything we do is infused with the energy with which we do it. If we’re frantic, life will be frantic. If we’re peaceful, life will be peaceful. And so our goal in any situation becomes inner peace.”

― Marianne Williamson

And this…

“Love is what we are born with. Fear is what we learn. The spiritual journey is the unlearning of fear and prejudices and the acceptance of love back in our hearts. Love is the essential reality and our purpose on earth. To be consciously aware of it, to experience love in ourselves and others, is the meaning of life. Meaning does not lie in things. Meaning lies in us.”

IMG_9662_smallA gallery at St. Lukes Hospital, Tokyo.

“According to ancient Asian philosophy, life is not a circle but a spiral. Every life lesson that has ever been presented to you (which means everything you have ever been through) will come back again, in some form, until you learn it. And the stakes each time will be higher. Whatever you’ve learned will bear greater fruit. Whatever you’ve failed to learn will bear harsher consequences. Whatever didn’t work in your life before this point was a reflection of the fact that you hadn’t yet integrated the different parts of yourself. Where you didn’t yet accept yourself, you attracted a lack of acceptance in others. Where you hadn’t yet dealt with your shadows, you manifested shadowy situations. Broken parts of you encountered broken parts of others. So now you know! That was then and this is now.”

― Marianne Williamson, A Year of Miracles: Daily Devotions and Reflections
IMG_9661_smallCalligraphy sign by Dr. Shigeaki Hinohara, age 104 and still making the rounds to meet and greet patients at St. Lukes hospital, Tokyo. My grandparents long gone were under his care at one time – he’s often asked what is the secret to his longevity… His answer may surprise you.

Age is not a number designation of years lived; age is … read on.

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Beautiful People Beautiful Rituals

Nourish & Nurture with TLC:)

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Dear First-Time Student,

I felt the immediate affinity towards you as you had on my alma mater school t-shirt and reminded me of those days when merely having the “will” was sufficient.

Yes, it’s all those blocks and the straps and the … bolsters and … blankets and as we forage and get them all set up, you were wondering if that heavy dread that’s overtaken your heart would lift. The weight of the sand bags reminds you how it feels when your lungs feel weighed down and constricted. Burdened. You pray that with “practice” the dread will dissipate and transform to joy. That feeling of trepidation you just cannot explain to those who never felt it. 

I know you will get well. You will feel better. Much much better. You will feel whole and strong, again soon. I come from a place of empathy for I was once fearless, adventurous and carefree – then lost it as it was my own doing to whittle away at my essence. Then I regained most back through slow hardware, software restoration. It has been a project virtually completed. But then, maintenance is a process, a work in progress, always. I regained the foothold once thought to be lost. And so can you.

As the cliche goes, there’s a light at the end of the tunnel… and that tunnel need not be all dark and mildew moldy smelling. Nor laden with artificial glitters. That tunnel can be paved with ethereal glow in the dark flowers, lovely candles and divine scents fit for royalty. Perhaps even some music on the way and if Wifi is blocked, I have got THE chant that eradicates those toxic thoughts. I know – some experience considered to be heavenly bliss, to you now feels like … hell. Rather than exhaling with release and relief, you feel as though you are dragged over hot coals. Your nerves are all fired up so revved, you are wondering how you are going to sit still since you are having trouble breathing … either fighting that heavy feelings and if all that fighting fails, you are ready to take the flight and so… that’s the door that’s always kept a little ajar so soundlessly one can make the exit with grace. Fight or flight, it’s okay. I understand that urge to flee. Be assured though, this too will pass. You showed up and that’s enough for now. You will heal. You have it in you.

I have to go for now to get things done… our perennial theme – But quickie in a nutshell – It’s like a reset button we press to get back on track … Our body has the innate instinctive coding to heal – it has the wisdom and intelligence to know just what will allow us to shine again, in that brilliance we had as a child when we had little to no fear. Fear is good; it allows survival. But beyond survival, we need not fear – we want self-assurance, confidence and … courage. To live in joy. How ? Stop beating ourselves up and start treating our body with more kindness… with compassion. With respect it deserves. It helps to know what you need to do to take care of yourself … and sometimes that would be to …let it be and allow the body back to homeostasis.

We just have to get out of the way.

Please take care – you will get well and the barometer of knowing is when you are able to show up again. You had the courage to show up once and that is enough for now.

Thank you for showing up. That’s a milestone.

Love & Peace,
Your Yoga Teacher

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