As we’ve learned the last
few weeks, some of the ways Laskmi’s presence is experienced is as internal
abundance and gratitude. The definition of gratitude is not only to feel
thankful, but also the desire to give back, to bless others, and this is
also one of Lakshmi’s gifts. She is there in our giving
and receiving when they are in balance.
My husband is in an industry
where often different companies will offer “Incentive Programs” to the sales
force as a method to drive business. There
is a well-known industry story from years back about a beloved Administrative Assistant who wanted to
take her niece on a vacation. She was
patiently and diligently saving what little extra money she had each
month. Some of the upper management got wind of
her ambition and decided to, unbeknownst to her, create a program to help send
her on her way. The sales force and
customers felt so good about this that they all participated generously and
willingly. Within a month they had
raised enough to send her, her sister and her niece on a beautiful trip. When she was presented with the gift everyone
that participated was so proud and happy. She got her vacation, the sales force and the
company offering the incentive had a great month – everybody involved won on
every level.
This is a perfect example of
how when we give we open up channels to also receive. If you can offer that which you want the most
to someone else, it often works to bring the same to you. Many of us are inherent givers, because
honestly it is almost always easier to give than to receive. But are we opening ourselves up to receive in
the same way?
Consider this: all of us are
“getting” stuff all the time, but are we really receiving? It’s a completely different thing. To receive requires grace, vulnerability and openness
of mind and heart. My husband is
constantly frustrated with my utter inability to accept, well, pretty much
anything graciously, whether it be a compliment, a gift, or an offer of
help. It is hard to open ourselves up
that way! Yet when we put ourselves in
the seat of acceptance of whatever is being offered, we offer the giver the
gift of allowing themselves to express their love and appreciation. To shun that can be upsetting and hurtful to
those who making a heartfelt offering.
Think of it this way – have you
ever given someone a gift that they have obviously (even quietly so) been
unhappy with? Maybe they were expecting
something else, maybe they just felt like they didn’t deserve it, maybe they
were just being rude and ungrateful – the reason doesn’t really matter. Do you remember what it felt like? Kinda crappy.
That’s what I’m talking about.
As we know, balance in all
things is the key to gracious and mindful living. When we give too much we become depleted,
resentful, undernourished. When we
receive too much without giving back we become narcissistic, arrogant, and
entitled (this includes “getting stuff” without really receiving in a heartfelt
way). Sally Kempton: “When you can allow yourself to
receive with the feeling that you deserve the gifts of life and then give with
the feeling that others deserve them also, you find yourself in the “auspicious
state of mind” where shree is just flowing through you.”
When you find the balance
between opening up to receive what is offered, and offering back all you are
able to, you connect with your family, friends, community and environment in a
profound way and with that comes a feeling of deep fulfillment.
Off the mat:
An exercise from Awakening Shakti by Sally Kempton:
What would you like to
receive more of now? Reflect on all
areas of your life – spiritual experience, love, success in your career, fun, health,
money. Focus on one thing. Ask yourself how your life
would specifically benefit from receiving this?
How would others or the world benefit from it? How are you blocking it?
Now consider what gifts you
have to give, what you yourself have to offer.
How can you offer a gift or blessing as an exchange for what you want to
receive?
What specific thing(s) can you
do today or this week to make this offering and open up the Lakshmi channels of giving and receiving?
How can you help someone else to receive the gift that you desire? When we cultivate generosity of spirit we
invite more of the same back to ourselves. And everybody wins!
On the Mat:
In my classes this week we worked deeply with the breath, the pulsation of which mirrors the pulsation of giving and receiving in our lives. With each inhale we receive the gift of life, of prana, of breath. With each exhale we can offer our unique energy, life-force and essence back to the universe. We worked with the pulsation of Muscular Energy (receiving energy) and Organic Energy (giving energy), the balance of which is needed to work into balancing poses of all kinds.
For the Anusara Junkies:
Open To Grace:
Fill up with breath and
fill up with what it is you wish to receive more of in your life. Invite it in by opening up space inside to
let it move into you.
Muscular Energy: (related to
receiving)
Hug into what you want more
of in your life – receive, receive, receive because you deserve it!
Draw in to (the focal point from the foundation) what you wish
to invite more of into your life.
The more the muscles tone, the more strength and integrity the bones receive.
What is it you want for your life right now? How much do you want what
you want? Hug in that much!
Inner Spiral:
Move the sit bones back and apart and make space for what you
want to invite in. Everything you want
is available to you, sometimes its just a matter of opening up to what is
already there.
Outer Spiral:
Anchor your intention and your tailbone in
whatever it is you want to receive.
As
your low belly tones and engages, solidify your resolve to manifest in your life
what you want for yourself.
Organic Energy: (related to giving)
Offer, offer, offer wildly and without abandon the
gifts you have to give, because everyone else deserves it too!
Offer energetically what you
have to share with those in the room and beyond.
Offer blessings with every
cell through the form of your pose.
How grateful are you for all
that you have? Energetically offer back out that
much.
