Chakra Garden of Jewels ~ Julie Lusk with Kabir’s inspiration and ‘A Place to Sit’

Don’t go outside your house to search for jewels.
Don’t even bother with that excursion, my friend.
There are jewels inside yourself.
Precious, profound and ready to be discovered.

These jewels are just like flowers.

Some are taking root.  They are in the process of being fertilized and getting ready to sprout.
Others are growing and budding , preparing to flower.
There are also beautiful blooms inside, brimming with fragrance and lively vitality.
Others are in stages of decline, getting ready to retreat, recycle themselves,
and naturally cycle back to the beginning.

Like a bouquet of flowers, there are jewels within you.

There is a sparkling ruby red jewel and it’s so stabilizing and protective.
There is an orange carnelian jewel too.  It lights up your senses, creativity and ability to feel.
There is a beautiful amber jewel, radiating confidence, inner strength and courage.
There is an emerald jewel too.  The glowing emerald green jewel is loving, forgiving and kind.
There is a bright sapphire blue jewel shining with truth and sparks your creativity.
There is an amethyst glowing inside that awakens your intuition and shows you the big picture.
There is a crystal clear diamond, shining with spirit, connecting the Holy Ones with you.

Don’t go outside your house to search for jewels.
Don’t bother with that excursion, my friend.
There are jewels inside yourself,
waiting to be discovered, polished and ready to beam beautifully.

 Just like any yoga posture, there is a lot going on in Full Side Plank. The full version of Vasisthasana requires core strength, good shoulder alignment and plenty of leg flexibility. But, there is one key thing that will help you master the practice: plant the bottom foot.

As you can see in the photo below  my bottom foot is flat on the ground, as if I’m standing on it. This not only creates stability, but also lifts your hips, which makes the pose feel significantly lighter.

If your ankle doesn’t have this kind of mobility, practice with your foot against floor molding with the pinky toe edge of your foot on the ground and the ball of your foot pressed into the wall. Then lift your hips way up!

Once you learn to get your hips up and feel more stable in Side Plank, then you’ll be able to take the top leg up into the full pose or some other fun variation, like floating it, or tree pose.

The Set-Up

To ease wrist pain and make your bottom arm less strained, you have to move your hand forward. Notice in the photo (below) my hand is not directly under my shoulder, but forward under my head. This decreases the angle on your wrist, which causes less pain. It also widens the base of your pose and makes your foundation more stable.

To find this alignment, start your set-up on all fours, then move your hands one handprint forward from directly under your shoulders. An additional note: Keep the inner edge of your hand down, especially where your index finger meets your palm and press into the floor with your fingertips. This creates a stable base, and tones the muscles around your wrist to give it more support.

Your Bottom Shoulder

Aligning the weight bearing arm in Vasisthasana is important, not only to your shoulder health, but also to the stability of your pose. The most common misalignment I see is the bottom shoulder popping forward. This makes it weaker and more prone to injury.

Press your shoulder back firmly, so that you feel the muscles of your upper back working. When you’re in the pose, look down at your bottom arm. Rotate the crease of your elbow forward. This is external rotation, and you need to carry the movement all the way up to your shoulder joint.

The Foot on the Ground

Your bottom foot is one of the keys to the pose. If your ankle is floppy and collapses towards the ground you’ll not be able to gather much power in your legs. Instead, lift your hips really high and press the sole of your foot down. You should be nearly standing on the sole of your foot with as much of the inner edge of it down as possible. Trust me, it works!

In Ayurveda (often referred to as yoga’s "sister science") cannabis is generally viewed as something that can be useful, but here too, it’s not to be taken lightly. "In Ayurveda, cannabis would be taken as part of a remedy, not alone, or for recreational value," explains Ayurvedic practitioner and therapist Kathryn Templeton. "It’s considered a minor herb in Ayurveda. There are remedies that include cannabis mixed with counterbalancing herbs that will support stimulating digestion and removing phlegm. It’s not a common remedy, and it’s not used in countries where cannabis is illegal." Cannabis remedies have also been used for dulling pain, or to expedite herbal Ayurvedic formulas, as cannabis is sharp and heating in quality.

Cannabis is initially rajasic (agitating or over-stimulating) and with extended use, tamasic (bearing qualities of inertia and lethargy), creating mental imbalances in all dosha Prakruti (individual constitutions) with recreational use.  When used without a counterbalance, marijuana is considered to be either agitating or dulling to the mind.

"The general consensus" says Templeton, "is that cannabis is initially rajasic (agitating or over-stimulating) and with extended use, tamasic (bearing qualities of inertia and lethargy), creating mental imbalances in all dosha Prakruti (individual constitutions) with recreational use."

In other words, no matter what your dosha is, from an Ayurvedic standpoint, smoking or otherwise ingesting weed for fun definitely isn’t recommended. "All plants are useful for creating balance," reminds Templeton, "but if they’re not used for balance, they create imbalance."

The Law of Detachment: In detachment lies the wisdom of uncertainty . . . in the wisdom of uncertainty lies the freedom from our past, from the known, which is the prison of past conditioning. And in our willingness to step into the unknown, the field of all possibilities, we surrender ourselves to the creative mind that orchestrates the dance of the universe.

I will put the Law of Detachment into effect by making a commitment to take the following steps:

1. Today I will commit myself to detachment. I will allow myself and those around me the freedom to be as they are. I will not rigidly impose my idea of how things should be. I will not force solutions on problems, thereby creating new problems. I will participate in everything with detached involvement.
2. Today I will factor in uncertainty as an essential ingredient of my experience. In my willingness to accept uncertainty, solutions will spontaneously emerge out of the problem, out of the confusion, order and chaos. The more uncertain things seem to be, the more secure I will feel, because uncertainty is my path to freedom. Through the wisdom of uncertainty, I will find my security.
3. I will step into the field of all possibilities and anticipate the excitement that can occur when I remain open to an infinity of choices. When I step into the field of all possibilities, I will experience all the fun, adventure, magic and mystery of life.

Daily InspirationWhen all your desires are distilled; You will cast just two votes: To love more, And be happy-- Hafiz

It’s Spring and according to Ayurveda winter is dominated by the qualities of Kapha, whose characteristics are cold, heavy, stable, dense, and viscous; this is why we find ourselves moving slower, craving heavier foods, and longing for more sleep. Just as nature is confused as to which season she belongs to, it’s common to experience an internal clash during this time as we begin to feel “spring fever” yet we’re still stuck in the energies of winter. As Yogis we seek to move with whatever sensations, emotions, or energies arise for us; trusting the wisdom of intuition and moving in harmony with her rather than resisting that which we don’t like; resistance not only creates suffering but it is a subtle assault on ourselves. Dr. Robert Svoboda, preeminent ayurvedic scholar in the west says “You retain your health only so long as you are willing to forgive your stresses, shrug off adversity and adapt to new situations.  Resistance to change always impedes the workings of your immunity”.

It is wise to move with gentleness during this time of year. Allow yourself to move slowly; spend time observing nature’s spring. Remember that all re-birth comes with great struggle and effort. The practice of compassion and ahimsa towards self helps to ease the transition.

Allow yourself the pleasure of sleeping more, or engaging in quiet activities, this helps pacify aggravating qualities as we ‘die’ to this season and prepare ourselves for our new awakening.