Being Present X Backbends Among The Fields X Heart Chakra

“Happiness cannot be traveled to, owned, earned, worn or consumed. Happiness is the spiritual experience of living every minute with love, grace, and gratitude.”

— Denis Waitley

BEING PRESENT

Do we really know what it means to be present and in the moment? Sometimes we get so caught up in the lives of other people or the problems that exist around is. It can add so much stress to our lives that we start to forget what is important, we forget to take care of ourselves. 

To me, being present means listening, not just hearing what others say. It means having empathy for one's circumstances, but remaining detached, so as not to take on their reality.

It means less self comparison. It's easy to get caught up in images, status, past memories, competitiveness or the desire to "win". But when we take a moment to pause, turn our energy and focus on our own accomplishments and dreams, we realize that we are exactly where we are supposed to be. The feeling is so comforting! Because we are owning our place in life and loving ourselves for where we're at.

Staying present means taking care of our bodies and loving our bodies each day. We must make positive affirmations daily, speaking to ourselves kindly and without judgement. A house takes many bricks to become a home, so think of each step forward as laying cement and one brick at a time. You can't expect a house without making progress, and the same principle applies to our health. We must make conscious steps in the right direction. If we fall off, we don't demean ourselves. It's about acknowledgement of the self and moving forward.

BACKBENDS IN THE FIELDS

My favorite playful pose is a backbend! It's very challenging to me but it opens my entire body and focuses on the heart chakra! Through this pose I've learned how to stabilize my sacrum, strengthening my inner thighs, hips, abdominals, and shoulder muscles. It awakens the other half of our body that we sometimes ignore. It's important to be mindful of what our bodies allow and to get into poses safely and with purpose.

Stabilization is key and it is also symbolic. When you stabilize your core and spine, you can create flexibility throughout the body, and into your life. It brings a special flow of energy towards us! As I breath into this pose, I try to focus on openness and healing. Movement in yoga, to me, excretes such energies, like drawing our own medicinal properties into the ares that need it most.   

The heart chakra is opened through back-bending. The heart chakra symbolizes love for ourselves and for other people, compassion, forgiveness, and transformation. Typically it is the color green and located in the center of our chest. When it is opened, you experience a higher connection to others around you. When it is closed, you experience codependence, painful memories, or feeling closed off to the world. You can strengthen this chakra by taking in a beautiful scene or being in nature, through gratefulness, or working to forgive those who have hurt us.

I use this pose to stay present because for me, it brings love and happy energies into my life. My hope is that you can also feel the benefits of this pose and to be open to your own chakra flow. Be playful and explore your own abilities in this pose, and remember to open that heart chakra just a little bit more!