Category Archives: energy

by | March 10, 2015 · 6:51 pm

You are the average of the five people you spend the most time with

The quote above by author Jim Rohn take a similar vein to a poem by the 16th century English poet and cleric John Donne “No Man is and Island”. We are nothing more than a summary of influences from the people around us.

We are born into this world as completely helpless beings, dependent on parental nourishment and protection. In essence nobody is self-sufficient. We all rely on each other in one way or another.

So who are you spending most of your time with? Are you surrounding yourself with people with a mainly negative and destructive outlook on life. Are you one of those people who predominantly look on the dark side of life and see the world as a bad place. Do you see only the negative aspects of people around you?

Or are you a shining light of optimism. You have an enormous ability of blocking off any negative energy that might come your way and have found a way of side-stepping people with a “vampire energy”. You find life beautiful, easy and full of joy.

We most likely have phases in life where we find ourselves in either of the two camps, depending on what challenges we face in life at a particular moment in time or whether we have just fallen in love or won in the lottery.

All great teachers of Mysticism will tell you that the art of happiness is the ability and wisdom to accept life’s preciousness in the here and now. Impermanence is one of life’s great lessons. Ask anyone who has suddenly lost a loved one or been confronted with an event that has changed everything that was thought a moment earlier to be true, safe or a permanent-given.

cloud twirl

The only truth is that life is a constant flow of yin and yang, birth and death, light and shadow, good and evil, expansion and withdrawal. Sorrow, grief and despair are as much part of life as happiness, joy and exultation or loss and abundance. Discipline of the inner mind and thought process by means of meditation, the body arts or other rituals will help us deal with this ebb and flow.

What we can control is the choice of the people we surround ourselves with and how much time we choose to spend with them. It is an interesting exercise to reflect on those five people in your life who have had the most impact,were or are your most important teachers and made you into that wonderful person who you are today.

No Man is an Island

No man is an island entire of itself; every man

is a piece of the continent, a part of the main;

if a clod be washed away by the sea, Europe

is the less, as well as if a promontory were, as

well as any manner of thy friends or of thine

own were; any man’s death diminishes me,

because I am involved in mankind.

And therefore never send to know for whom

the bell tolls; it tolls for thee.

MEDITATION XVII

Devotions upon Emergent Occasions

John Donne

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by | February 23, 2015 · 8:14 pm

Are you into conspiracy theory?

A broad cross-section of people I have come across lately believe in conspiracy theories.  The argument mostly goes like this:  The world is being ruled by a small group of people who decide and control most of the things that happen in the world today from political decision-making to technological invention.

conspiracy-theories

Conspiracy theorists seem to have moved from the fringe to the mainstream.  Here is the top 10 list of conspiracy theories compiled by Time magazine:

Some conspiracy theories in history have in fact been proven true, like the Nixon cover-up in the Watergate affair, the Iran-Contra affair and the Libyan involvement in the terror attack on the Pan Am Flight 103 in December 1988.  One of the most absurd allegations during  South Africa’s apartheid era also turned out to be true many years later.  Research was actually being conducted on a virus that would only kill the blacks.

But there is a need to be a bit more  sceptical when it comes to some of the conspiracy theories out there. The common thread seems to be to find a way to explain in simplistic terms many of the events happening in a world of growing complexity. A lot of people have the tendency to form an opinion and then verifying what they believe with some information on the Internet. On closer scrutiny the article or website turns out to be a badly written diatribe of a single opinion without any valid sourcing or solid evidence

Take the story on the so-called “fake moon landing”. I cannot possibly imagine thousands of people working on such a complex space project over many years and all of them keeping a “fake made in a Disney film studio” a secret for decades. The world is so intricate and complex that the truth in the end always comes out. A cover-up, especially if many people are involved, simply doesn’t work. It is a human tendency to tell their family and friends “a secret.” Someone will always spill the beans.

The issue that needs to be addressed is the gullibility with which every half-truth, speculation and downright wacky theory is being claimed as truth while sound investigative journalism, scientific study or a judicial finding is being ignored or slammed as being part of this conspiracy thing. Part of the problem is that established media is not doing its job and has lost credibility by placing emphasis on superficial entertainment instead of being a watchdog on society and itself blasting some of these theories into the world without verifying the facts.  A growing number of people feel alienated in a fast-changing society and are seeking simple answers.

Conspiracy theories first and foremost feed on fear. Here lies the bigger problem. Fear breeds irrationality and a victim mentality. It is just a short step away from blaming a religious or racial minority, the politicians, the media or anyone else for all that is going wrong in the world.  It’s a “cop out” mentality of refusing to stand up and taking responsibility.

We have the freedom of choice on most things that matter. Health and personal happiness is a choice. It is a  choice of what we eat, how we exercise, what we read, what people, family and friends we want to spend our time with and especially what information we are feeding our minds with.

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by | January 9, 2015 · 10:58 am

Boosting your energy and life vision with a liver-detox

In my previous blog I mentioned that a healthy liver is perhaps the most  crucial organ in keeping our body and soul healthy and in sync. After sumptuous meals and drinks over the festivities the New Year is a good time to think about detoxing your liver.

There are several natural and wonderful ways of doing this. It takes about two years for the cells in the liver to completely renew themselves. A healthy liver gets rid of all those toxins in the body, boosting your energy and quality of life on many levels.

Lets look at the foods you are eating. Start by reducing your intake of processed foods, carbohydrates, sugar and alcohol. Some of the super foods that will naturally cleanse your liver are:

carrots, olive oil, avocados, garlic, green tea, leafy green vegetables like spinach, artichoke, asparagus, kale, and brussel sprouts.

Fresh carrot juice with a shot of good flaxseed or olive oil and a teaspoon of Chia seed will work wonders.

You could also try the juice of half a lemon in a hot cup of water first thing in the morning. The sourness of lemons triggers nerve and hormone activation to the liver and digestive system. In general you should drink good water throughout the day as this cleanses both the liver and body. It also reduces the risk of gallstones, which results when bile becomes too concentrated in the gall bladder.

Molasses is not everyone’s cup of tea as the taste is bitter and takes some getting used to. But try this recipe over ten days:

Two tablespoons of lemon juice, one tablespoon of molasses, one tablespoon of virgin olive oil, a pinch of cayenne pepper and a cup of warm water.

From a physical aspect all the martial arts such as Judo, Karate, the Tai Chi Quick Fist, Push-Hands or Sword Form are excellent in stimulating your liver energy and getting rid of suppressed anger.

On the mental level an imbalanced liver is very often related to cynicism, anger, irritability and excessive irony. Am I having difficulty in coping with losses, disappointments and shattered dreams? Is it not time to renew my visions, my dreams and what I really want from life?

Road on the sky

Here is an exercise that might help you. Take at least a 15-minute breaks once a day to do the following. Close your eyes and concentrate on your breathing for at least a count of up to 21. Then visualise how you would like your ideal life to be like without any restrictions or boundaries. What job would I like to have? What house do I ideally want to live in? What is my ideal of a happy relationship, friendships and social life? Don’t get disturbed by curve balls like self-pity, negative thoughts and emotions.

Every thought can become reality but you need to give it thought and time to take root and flourish.

It gets more energy if you write it down in every detail and use as many pictures and images as possible.

A really good time for such a future vision is right now and in the months just before the first signs of spring.

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by | December 16, 2014 · 5:19 pm

Keeping the “general” in your body happy

liver_energyA healthy liver is not only crucial in detoxing our body and staying fit and healthy, it influences strongly our mood, enthusiasm and the joyfulness of being in there here-and-now.

In Chinese medicine the liver is often compared to the strategic general at the head of an army, utilising the power of body and mind to keep us in a state of equilibrium.

The liver is an amazing organ, dealing with hundreds of tasks and working overtime in dealing with carcinogenic materials and other toxins that bombard the body. One of its primary functions is the storage of blood and regulating the flow of blood to the circulatory system in accordance with our physical activities. When the body is resting the blood is kept in “storage” for the next phase of activity.

In addition the liver controls the activity of muscles, tendons and bands, ensuring a smooth interaction of joint and muscle movement. When we speak of a low level of “liver blood” in the body this is reflected on tendons becoming stiff and inflexible, causing stiff body movement and joint pains. We literally can’t move to do the things we want to do.

But there is much more that comes to play on an emotional and psychological level. In my book Yield and Overcome I go into more detail on how the body organs are related to elements and cyclical seasonal influences. On a subtle level the liver is home to the ethereal soul, that continues to exist after death. It is about transmuting the challenges we are faced with in this world and following our true calling or soul path. As we grow spiritually we bring a little of “heaven to earth”.

When the ethereal soul becomes separated from its “physical home” it loses connection to its true destiny and meaning in life. We lose sense of direction and being in the here and now. When plans and visions start failing or when we are forced to do things we find to be meaningless, we either start feeling depressed, listless and low on energy or have bouts of anger and resentment. We blow our lid at the smallest irritation.

When we see a person following his or her calling watch the glow and enthusiasm in their eyes. The liver expresses itself in the eyes. In the same way a diseased liver or one that is out of balance will show in the “grey” of the “living dead”.

The good news is that the liver has an enormous capacity to regenerate itself. Dr. Max Gerson, MD ( 1881-1959) assumed it would take 12 to 15 generations of new cells to form a totally new and healthy liver. He specified a period of about 18 months to fully heal and restore the liver of advanced cancer patients. However experts believe that the amount of toxins the human body has to cope with today will require a longer period of two years or more.

So in our modern world the liver energy is confronted with on the one hand the many distractions on a mental plane while at the same time having to deal with major challenges on a physical level.

Some questions that arise in connection with the liver energy are:

  • How do I feel when I get up in the morning? Am I joyful or depressed?
  • Have I found my place in the bigger picture of things?
  • Do I really enjoy my work?
  • Where do I really feel at home?
  • Where is my energy or enthusiasm blocked?
  • Am I feeling constantly tired and listless?
  • Do I have a problem with anger management?

Apart from liver-cleansing nutrition there are various good methods of bringing your liver energy back into flow, but more on that in my next blog

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