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Tabula Rasa: cleansing, centering and integrating

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ta·bu·la ra·sa
ˈtäbyo͝olə ˈräsə,ˈräzə/
noun
  1. an absence of preconceived ideas or predetermined goals; a clean slate.
    “the team did not have complete freedom and a tabula rasa from which to work”
    • the human mind, especially at birth, viewed as having no innate ideas.

     

Sometimes, in order to stand in our power, we have to wipe the slate clean. We have to start over, and have the courage to let go of what needs releasing.

There is a beautiful dual current that shows up during this time of year. One one side we have the celebration, the joy, the giving and receiving. On the other we have the dying, the darkness, and the emotional struggle that often also arises. This beautiful duality is a powerful teacher. It gives us contrast that creates growth, and it offers us possibility.

Wiping the slate clean takes work. It’s a process. Not everything gets wiped away with ease. The hardest part is starting, making the commitment to show up to whatever process of cleansing works best for you. This is a great time of the year to open, to engage, to begin. What’s holding you back from stepping into your power? What’s creating stagnation in your current experience? What do you need to do in this moment to begin healing?

Cleansing can take many forms. Sometimes we have to start with our physical spaces. De-cluttering our lives of unnecessary “things”, donating them to those in need, examining our attachments are all important. Sometimes it means taking the broom the the floors, putting hands in dishwater, organizing a workspace.

We may feel the call to cleanse the body. Taking a warm bath. Moving the body through dance, yoga, going for a walk–building body heat and sweat. It may mean changing out diets to be more nutritious.

We may feel the need to cleanse the inner temple. Meditating, engaging in energy healing, breathing deeply, and journaling are ways to bring balance and awareness to the inner space.

The missing piece of the puzzle is integration. Once we begin the process of cleansing mind, body, and spirit energy begins to move. How you integrate into life after the cleansing phase is just as important as the process of cleansing. Being at center, is being fully integrated.

In the next few weeks, we’ll be diving deeper into cleansing processes. We’ll also discuss how to integrate after the changes. The path of full integration is not an easy one, but it is necessary.

Take time to feel where you are in your body. Take a moment to bring awareness to your inner and outer spaces. Breathe deeply. Know that you are loved.

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Giving Yourself a Reading

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One way to connect to your intuition and to develop trust in the information that it is giving you, is to get in the daily habit of giving yourself readings.  There are a wide variety of techniques and processes out there, but the idea is to keep it simple.  I’m going to give you a simple process that I have shared with students and clients of mine over the years.

  1. Write down your questions. I harp on journaling A LOT because it is one of the most powerful spiritual tools in our arsenal of self discovery. One of the reasons so many people have difficulty in doing readings for themselves is that they either aren’t sure of the questions they want to ask, or they aren’t sure they are ready to hear the answers to those questions. Carrying our journals with us gives us a place to write down the questions we may have for our soul.
  2. Don’t be afraid to be vulnerable with yourself. Being open to our questions is as important as being open to the answers, and both require us to be vulnerable enough to show up to our process of self inquiry.
  3. Open to your heart. One simple method of tuning in is to bring your awareness to your heart center. You can do this by simply bringing your hands to the heart. Allow yourself to connect to the simple rise and fall of the chest. Feel the beating heart beneath your hand. Let this act of body awareness be a doorway to deeper listening.
  4. Listen for the answers to your question with your entire body. We often get stuck in our head, and we often feel as if answers to our questions will come with some deep flash of insight, or thundering God force words through our ears. Sometimes the answer comes as a subtle fluttering in our bellies, a breath that goes a bit deeper than all the others, or you may see something in your external space that triggers deeper exploration (a photo, a color, a bird, a tree, etc).
  5. Write down anything you are feeling, seeing, sensing, or hearing (internally or externally). All of it is used in determining the answer to the questions you are asking. Don’t over think things, if something is standing out, write it down.
  6. Take a step back from the session. Let the answers and questions gestate a bit. You might come back with more questions based on the answers you receive – GREAT!  This means you are now moving into a soul dialog rather than just a question and answer session.
  7. Sometimes the answer isn’t what you want to hear, but it is always what you need to hear. Be receptive to whatever comes through. One of the most dangerous things we can do it is toss aside an answer just because we don’t like it. I see this often in cases of relationship questions. It’s hard to hear the truth. Sometimes the answer is that it is time to move on, but tossing aside that truth filled answer because it’s not what we want to hear only leads us to more suffering. If we are having trouble with a particular response we have received from our intuition, we can always ask our soul to amply the answer we have received, be open to digging deeper if you feel called to do so:
    1. What do I need to know about my relationship at this time?
      1. Beloved, it is time to move forward into your own light as this relationship has come to the end of its course.
      2. What can I do to make the transition one filled with grace?
      3. What areas of this relationship have caused us to arrive at this point of finality?
      4. What is my true teaching from this relationship with (xyz)?
  8. Have fun with giving yourself a reading. Too often we only use this beautiful connection we have to the soul our soul (the intuition) to ask about the stuff that requires heavy lifting. Ask simple things, ask about manifesting, ask about creating abundance, ask about winning the lottery, ask about expanding your connection to your spiritual path, ask for affirmations of love, ask for any number of things you might desire insight on, but ask!
  9. Take action on what your soul is giving you in the reading. If we are asking to improve our lives, and then we don’t follow through, it is only going to prolong the suffering and delay arriving at that place of liberation.

This is just a quick primer, something to have a bit of fun with, and my soul is nudging me to do more with the blog, so here it is. I hope that you find the information useful, and if you have questions you can alway contact me at: michael@michaelbrazell.com

Soul Musing: Opening to the Light

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Alex_Grey-LightworkerEach day we are giving opportunities to shine, to be of service, to step into the light. We get so caught up in the hustle and bustle of life that we forget that life is supposed to be lived. We forget to have fun. We forget to soften around the edges. Life is tough, we suffer, and the world suffers. Suffering is an opportunity for us to open to the light. Pain is a doorway if we slow down enough to look at what is happening beneath the surface. Presence affords us a power that we seldom tap into because of the many distractions that are constantly in our faces. When is the last tie that you’ve looked up at the sky? When was the last time you witnessed the multicolored magic of a sunset? I know I spend more time online than I like. I’m working on creating balance. I often wonder what it would be like if we didn’t have these electronic tethers. How would we connect to one another?

“The wound is the place where the Light enters you.”

I can still remember a life before the internet. It was beautiful. I can remember having full present conversations with friends, family and those around me. You can see a blankness in some people’s eyes. Their brains are already leaping into whatever comes next. We’ve gotten away from showing up, and are more involved in running towards the next event, thought, the next place to be.

Life moves quickly, but it doesn’t mean that we have to. Slow down, breath into this moment. Rest. Arrive.

You are loved.

Yoga Under a Rainbow – Shiva- Fasting

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Just launched a new blog. It’s exciting, and is going to be a place for me to explore my yoga practice and how it integrates into my life.

http://www.inkedyogi.com

Head over, read, share, and follow along 🙂

Inked Yogi

I love that the weather is finally changing. I love taking my practice outside. There is something powerful about having the open sky above me. The limitless space is powerful. I started out by laying back and staring into the sky, and I was surprised to see a rainbow. The colors were pretty brilliant against the white clouds. I joked in my head that yoga was the pot of gold I’ve been searching for all this time. Since stepping a bit more deeply into my yoga journey, life is picking up. I feel that things are coming together, and that’s a good thing. I am still healing old wounds, but that is what yoga allows me to do. Yoga gives me the space to step into my heart, to listen with depth.

“Read a little. Meditate more. Think of God all the time.” -Yogananda

I’ve been reciting the Hanuman Chalisa…

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Yoga as Prayer

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Today as I was taking my place on my yoga mat at the gym, I asked myself the question, “Why do you do yoga?” The question struck me, and I’ll admit at first I didn’t have an answer. I decided to take this question into my practice today. As I was moving around the mat, breathing, taking in the sounds of the gym, I had a realization was over my heart. Yoga is how I pray. For me, yoga is devotion. When I am on my mat, I am stepping onto sacred ground. I feel my soul come alive. My breath joins my body more deeply, and for a moment all that exists is the flow.

Stepping onto the mat is stepping into trust. We spend much of our day trying to get away from the body, we rush into our expectations, or are bound to the anchors of our past. We hold judgement against ourselves. We eat foods that lack nourishment. We engage in distractions (television, social media, etc). We numb ourselves. When we take a step onto the yoga mat, we are saying to the soul, to God, to the universe I am here, and I am ready. The very act of showing up sets the intention, and brings us into presence.

As I move through the asana, I pause and deepen my breath. Too often in classes we try to rush through the sequences. Each pose is a meditation, the breath the mantra, and when we move slowly we are honoring the sacredness of that union. Sequences do not need to be complex, you don’t need to be fancy with how you breath, just let the body move. Yoga is an act of surrender. I try not to plan too far ahead as to what I want to do on my mat. I ask my body what it feels like doing today. I let each asana guide me to the next. I invite in my emotions, the ambient sounds and colors of whatever space I am in. Yoga is not about escaping, its arriving into to presence.

Yoga is a prayer that is said by the body, on the altar of our soul. Each movement is an intention in action. Each breath is a sacred mantra that whispers through us, taking us deeper into each heartbeat.

Take a moment to honor your path by dropping into the breath. Hold your awareness at the rise and fall of the chest, take your hand and place it over your beating heart. Feel life moving through you. Let this be enough.

Namaste

The power of sacred silence

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“silence is the language of god,
all else is poor translation.” – Rumi

Inhale deeply.

Now release it.

Be present in this moment.

Silence is powerful.  What do you hear in the silence?  Take a moment to breathe this in.  Don’t reach for it, let it come to you.

When is the last time you unplugged from everything.  Turn the phone off.  Turn off the computer. Take a breath, and have a seat.

What does silence sound like?

“Silence is an empty space, space is the home of the awakened mind.” – Buddha

There is power in silence.  We are able to take in more of the landscape. Life slows down a bit. We are able to bring awareness to the present moment.  We are able to arrive.

Silence allows us to be okay with the chaos of life.  It is the space between each in breath, and out breath.

Words are not always necessary to convey the message of our soul. The next time you are with a friend, a lover, a family member, or every a companion animal–sit with them in deep silence.  Take them in.  Look deep into their eyes.  Let the heart and soul speak through the language of silence.  You’ll be surprised at how much more of that individual you see.

Now do this in the mirror.  The silence allows us to see, and to be seen.

If you are finding that you are more in distraction throughout your day, than in connection… take a silence break. Go outside, touch the earth, feel the sky above you, breath it all in.  No reactions, just observe.  Stay with the breath, return to the breath if you need to. Be present.

You. Are. Loved. 

Michael Brazell

www.michaelbrazell.com

www.facebook.com/mbrazell

www.blogtalkradio.com/michaelbrazell

www.youtube.com/soulinteraction

Stepping into 2015: Release, Power, and Love

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As 2014 draws to a close, I feel the call to set some intentions for 2015.  2014 was a year of release for me.  My intuition and my soul have been taking me deeper into my life, and onto my path.  This has been a year of release.  In order to move forward we often have to let go of the anchors that keep us bound to a past that is no longer ours.  Detoxing the mind, the body, and spirit allow us to have clarity without it being through the lens of our past.  There are still things I am working on releasing, but I’ve learned never to rush this process.  Moving with grace and kindness allows for deeper growth to occur.  When we are able to take ownership and responsibility for our lives in profound ways.  What do you need to release as you move into 2015?  What lens of your past are you filtering your present through?

I realized that by taking responsibility of my past, I am able to stand in power.  Owning my difficult parts as well as my beautiful parts allow me to be whole.  Journaling has really helped me to gain perspective on my life.  If you are not journaling, i would recommend that you set the intention to make journaling a part of 2015.  Journaling is tangible.  The journal becomes the altar deep-breathto our soul.  Write down whatever makes you shine from the inside out.  I love to include quotes, prayers, passages from sacred texts, pictures, and things that inspire me.  By carrying my journal with me, I feed it my life-force.  I give it life.  The journal is a living extension of my being.

Love is powerful.  Learning to love through the chaos of existence has not always been the easiest of tasks.  I’ve had my share of challenges this year.  Relationships and friendships were challenged, some survived, and others did not. I’ve learned to hold the pain and the joy in the space of love.  Even with people leave my life, I’ve never put the out of my heart.  Learning to hold even our enemies in the light of love is powerful. It releases us from the binds they might have over us, and it lets us be whole.  Taking responsibility for our lives is empowering.  This allows us to forgive ourselves.  When we can offer forgiveness to our past, to those that have brought us the lessons, and to the current moment we are able to be liberated.

As I move into 2015, I am setting some clear intentions and goals.  I feel it is time to make a lot of changes.  Making a public declaration of these intentions allows me to hold myself accountable to them.  What intentions are you setting for the new year?  What goals are you going to try to manifest for the upcoming year? Write them down, put them in your journal, and carry them with you, take them out often and look at them, breath them in, and live them.

Here are my 2015 intentions:

  1. Its time to be a raw vegan.  I’ve done this in short spurts, but now it is time to make the transition.  Cleaning up my diet, my life, and my connection to the food I am putting into my body is necessary this year.
  2. 365 days of yoga and meditation.  I need to take my personal practice to a new level. I need to live my yoga this year in a new way.
  3. Finish my book.  I’ve stutter started and stopped this for way to long.  This is the year that the book comes to life.  Stay tuned.
  4. How I do my sessions is changing.  I am expanding and letting go.  Opening to new ways of doing things, and coming back to the reasons why I started this work in the first place.
  5. Im pulling back from social media.  I am making social media outlets a place to expand the soul, and open to deeper consciousness.  Rather than just sharing what others have done, I am going to make a conscious effort to transmit the words and works of my soul.
  6. Travel, travel, travel.  I am looking to make 2015 a year of getting out into the world to meet other seekers.  I want to visit ashrams, spiritual communities, and festivals.  Still planning things out, but as soon as things firm up, I’ll be posting them here.
  7. Youtube, blogtak, and this blog are going to blossoming this year.  I am going to engage my platform in new ways this year.  You’ll want to stay tuned.  I plan on doing weekly videos, weekly posts, and of course the radio show.  This is exciting and I look forward to brining this to all of you.
  8. 365 days of poetry.  The poet in me has been asleep for a while, and now I feel it’s time to process some of the life lessons through poetry.  I hope to release my chap book mid year.  I’ll be posting poems to this blog.

These are just a few of my intentions for the year.  There are others that are more personal, but these are just a few that I felt would be appropriate to share on this blog.  I’ve learned a lot about myself this past year, and I look forward to what 2015 brings.

What are your goals and intentions for 2015?

May you be blessed in light as you move forward.  May the light of your soul radiate like the sun.

You are loved. You are Beautiful. You are Divine.

Mike.

Weekend Specials, Radio Show, and Life

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rtrbuddhaI hope that everyone is doing well.  Life has been up and down for many (myself included).  Be sure that you are taking time to breath.  Take a few moments each day to be in gratitude for all that life is bringing you–yes, even the struggle.  The struggle that we go through is a teacher, it helps to bring us to our edges, and helps us to initiate change.   Take a moment and just breathe. Place your hands on your heart, and feel the drum of your life beating, moving life force through your very existence.  This is what life is really all about.  Finding a bit of stillness in the chaos.  Don’t get so hung up on the small things.  Allow yourself to have grace, peace and love.  The world will bring its challenges.  Life will be difficult.  Decisions will not be easy… and even in all of this we can find love.  The grass is already green where you are.  Stand in power, stand in love, and let your breath move you.

 

–I’ve just loaded up my website with the reading specials for June!  So head over and check those out.  I am also offering some really great offers for this weekend (5/30-6/1).  If you purchase a 30 or 60 min reading this weekend, you’ll get one free.  You can share the extra reading with a friend, use it for a follow-up, or just keep it for a future “soul check up”.  The sessions are good for 6 months, so you don’t have to book them right away.  This is a great deal since they are combined with the already reduced rates!  Click here to go to my site, or fill out the form below.  If you are currently going through a financial hardship and still want to get a reading, do not hesitate to contact me.  We can always work out an exchange, a payment plan, etc.

–I am also offering $6 email readings.  These are great if you want a bit of a soul nudge, or just have a few questions.  These usually take me about 24 hours to respond to, and you can ask up to 3 questions you’d like guidance on. For more information or to schedule a session just click here. You can also fill out the form below.

Soul Interaction Radio is up and running!  Be sure to check it out.  I am going all out with it, and really hope that we can keep the momentum going.  We are currently airing 5 days a week, and I have some AMAZING guests lined up for the show.  Here is the current schedule.

Monday- 7pm EST Soul Meditations (meditation talk and guided meditation)

Tuesdays- 7pm EST Soul Interaction Radio (Topics and Free on air readings)

Wednesdays- 9pm Applied Spirit.  Learn how to apply your spiritual life to your everyday life

Thursdays- 7pm EST Soul Interaction Radio (Topics and Free on air readings)

Fridays- Soul Satsang: This show is a divine transmission. It is about creating and solidifying our touchstones for truth.  I tune into spirit, and we flow through guided meditations, channeled messages, healing, and spiritual discussion.  I am working out the time and format, and that will be found on the BlogTalk channel.

– I am also getting more active on YouTube, so be sure to check out the Soul Interaction Channel!

****I am going to be hosting classes via Google Hangout.  These will be mini workshops on meditation, channeling, A Course in Miracles, and the Oneness Transmissions.  If  you are interesting in learning more you can email me at:  michael@michaelbrazell.com  and follow my facebook page to get the updates:  SoulIntuitive

 

Just remember, take some time for you.  Start living your life to the fullest NOW. Stop tiptoeing around your soul journey and start living it.  Trust your intuition, and take the leap!

You are Loved.  You are Beautiful.  You are Divine.  

 

Michael Brazell CFT CST MAT

www.michaelbrazell.com

www.facebook.com/soulintuitive

www.blogtalkradio.com/michaelbrazell

michael@michaelbrazell.com