Staying Power

It is so incredibly easy to begin to lift out of our bodies and allow them to become automatons without our conscious awareness to steer and observe them. The body has to scream from muscles and organs and symptoms to capture our attention and often like a beaten dog it cringes in our accusatory response. It is essential for our first step to be the realization that it was our mind and our decisions that brought our body to this point, and it was our absence from our personal temple that created such a disconnect.
It is not always easy to get back in touch with the body, especially as a lifestyle choice instead of simply "checking in" from time to time. There are multiple obstacles to get through and over and crumble in the presence of before feeling comfortable in one's own skin. The most obvious to me is the Negative Mind.
The Negative Mind is defined in The Aquarian Teacher textbook for Kundalini Yoga instructors as follows: "The Negative Mind is given for survival. It is reactive, protective, and searches for potential danger. It is sensitive to pain, and it shields you from the forces that may disrupt or destroy." The Negative Mind can be used productively and is indeed crucial for our discernment in life. But. I believe that the Negative Mind often runs rampant inside of people, turning against the very person who keeps it alive when it grows bored or is allowed to have the drivers seat in life. This particular aspect of the mind gloms onto the Egoic part of ourselves that doesn't like change. These two can become good buddies and prevent the individual from escaping a horrible cycle of self-hatred, constant judgement and a strong sense of separation.
Here's the kicker: all that we can't deal with; all that we hold onto that isn't actually true but we are unwilling to let go of sinks down into our bodies as we slowly disintegrate out of our being and become talking heads. In my opinion the antidote to this horrifying phenomenon is to get back into the body and put it in the drivers seat of our lives. The body speaks the truth. It doesn't have an analytical mind that interprets pain and suffering, it simply calls for observation, awareness and care. The body speaks the truth because it exists in the present moment; the present moment is the only truth there is. No stories, no excuses and no fear the body "show's up and see's what happens." This is something the Negative Mind refuses to do.
Everyone has different ways of getting into their body; yoga, exercise, outdoor activities, martial arts, dancing, meditation and so on. There is no one way and there is no wrong way so long as it's serving the union of one's consciousness and the body. Personally, I meditate regularly and practice yoga routinely. I attend a weekly group exercise class which is fun and so I enjoy going. I stretch all the time, whether it's at the office or home or in line at the grocery store. Most importantly I listen to my body as a way of life. If it has a strain or discomfort I deal with it immediately. If it's asking for certain nutrition I deal with that too. I must also state here that when I "deal" with my body it is always with a positive, same-side mentality that I approach it; never blaming or angry I work as a partner to my body.
Beloved, sit somewhere quiet today for three minutes. Close your eyes and focus them just between the eyebrows so they're almost crossed but not quite. Breathe in through your nose deeply filling the belly slowly and then the ribs and finally the upper chest. Take a short pause before exhaling and reversing the order when emptying the thoracic cavity. Touch your first finger lightly to the tip of your thumb and allow your wrists to rest gently on your knees as you tune in. Once you've settled into this pattern, breathing in and out with intention, check in with your body and ask it how it's feeling. Then just listen. It's not always a language that comes back. It's not always words that fill your head, in fact it is rarely words that have answers. Just feel. What is it like in your skin? Now pay attention, beloved, this is important! DO NOT listen to the Negative Mind in this moment, even just for this moment. It will want to say all kinds of negative things, whether they be about you or this experiment, and your job is to simply observe it. DO NOT attach to the words, simply watch the river flow in front of you without trying to impede its path. Start here, start somewhere. Your body is waiting.