Februarys theme for practice was the Heart Chakra, purely picked out the air by the influence of Valentines day, that even as its a day that comes around every year love is something to be celebrated every day, and also, could it be a gentle reminder to love yourself a little bit more. I didn't go into the realms of love for the theme of the Heart, if anything I allowed us to loosen the grip of attachment and gain more of a connection to true openness, physically and emotionally and the one word I really honed in on was 'acceptance'.
The Heart Chakra governs qualities of acceptance, forgiveness, compassion, empathy and of course what most often comes to mind first, love. The element of the Heart Chakra is air, an all encompassing force that is invisible, fluid and has the ability to interweave and flow through, within and around. I love to visualise that love can share the same qualities, that its unending and has no barriers or edges. Its soft, it allows us to be soft and within that softness we open. Acceptance shares the same value, by allowing ourselves to be accepting of all that is we hardly have any resistance to fight against, did you know that most of the resistance we create is within our minds? True! We are emotional beings and I feel its so important for us to feel our feelings, it leads us to another pathway of acceptance, we can accept how we feel. Happy, sad, angry, irritated, numb, overwhelmed, bliss, calm and all of the other emotions that come with being human are there for a reason and the more that we can accept that its okay to feel them the more we can grow into the character and person we are. Society, social media and outward pressures may have taught us from a young age to sit still and be quiet, you may have been laughed at for sharing your opinion, you may have had a boss who doesn't care what you say as long as you do your job, there are pressures from social media to look and act a certain way. All of these things (Im sure you can think of many) have an influence and mould us in such a way that its hard to be accepting, and certainly towards yourself.
Allow yourself to feel your feelings and know that as the heart chakra lifts us in to the qualities of spaciousness that you have the ability to create more space. You can change your mind, opinion, hair colour, words, job. Just like the air you are free. Let the heart lead you back home to yourself, know that what ever you feel is valid and by acknowledging and accepting those feelings you are stepping into a softer more present version of you.
Simple practices for the heart:
Breathe. One of the most profound and simple exercises you can do is to notice the breath. We do it in meditation and by allowing yourself to notice your breath you are out of the mind and in the body.
Create and find an appreciation for beauty, whether it’s in nature, friends and family a place or within creativity.
Practice self-care and find a little you time. Whether this is reading a book, sitting in a cafe with a warm cuppa, a candlelit bath or a gentle yoga practice opening the heart area.
Cultivate self-compassion and acceptance, especially with regards to your emotions and body.
Engage in activities that feed your heart, walking, cycling, swimming, a gym session, running, get that heart pumping!
Focus on receiving if you are naturally inclined to be a giver; and on giving if you’re more inclined to receive.
Reflect on old wounds or hurt, whatever the experience and situation may have been allow yourself to come to terms with them compassionately; practice forgiveness deep within your heart.
Express your gratitude, you don't need to say it out loud. What are you grateful for right now?
Here you can find a full write up about the Heart Chakra, more of an insight into the qualities, imbalances and how you can help to heal this beautiful space.
So to summarise our February of 2023 we opened up. Physically and emotionally, we found our feet on the ground and we allowed ourselves to take full depth breaths with full awareness and presence. Here I am. Here you are. Together we are connected, individually we are free.
V x