Wisdom of the Earth
As we usher in the new year, many of us are cursing the one we are leaving behind with good riddance. We’ve all had a rough go of 2020, and for some it has been worse than I can even conceive. Still, amongst all the hardships, there have been many blessings – blatant and in disguise. My gratitude pours out for the love and support of family and friends, and for the yoga students who have entrusted me as their guide through the stormy seas of the past ten months. T H A N K Y O U !
Early last year, a young woman from Brazil set a world record in Nazaré, Portugal. Maya Gabiera rode the tallest wave ever by a female surfer. For someone of a 5’6″ stature to go up against a 73.5′ wall of water, I imagine, there has to be a perfect balance of control and complete surrender. Every ounce of Gabiera’s being had to be in alignment with the very molecules of that wave. Her mind had to succumb to it’s wisdom, lest she perish in it’s engulf.
Watch the video of Maya Gabiera hereThis past year has been a bit like ridding a giant wave, and just as it it crashes, another one is cresting. The turbulence is waning, but the storm is not over. As we know, the only constant is change, and according to many world traditions, we are at the precipice of a major transition. Can’t you feel it in your bones? I have hope that we are headed in the right direction and the changes to come are positive. In the meantime, the liminal stage is uncertain and unstable. Stay steady, my friend, low to the ground and close to the earth. Aligning ourselves with nature, being quiet enough to listen to the wisdom of the plants and animals, being still enough to feel the earth move beneath our imprint, I feel, is the avenue away from overloaded trepidation into the arms of trust and surrender.
Through the practice of yoga and meditation we align ourselves with our inner nature, the wisdom of the earth and pulse of the universe mirrored in our bodies and breath, the undercurrent beneath the rational, controlling mind. Through movement of the body and conscious breath we assimilate earth wisdom to cultivate loving kindness and compassion for conscientious action in the world. It is time to set human strategy aside in favor of a greater wisdom we are an intrinsic part of, like a molecule of water in a giant wave.
The Andean Ceremonial Leader Arkan Lushwala reiterates my sentiments, and more, in this video. The shift is inevitable and we can align ourselves with it and ride it out gracefully, or resist and be engulfed. We each have a contribution, and however large or small it may be, it is essential. How to fulfill our responsibility and reciprocate with the world we are interconnected with is something we know, but may have to dig deep to remember. This is where self inquiry, facilitated by yoga and meditation, comes in. What is our role in birthing a new vision and scale of values that replaces division with integration, exploitation with cooperation, and domination with mutually respectful partnership? How can we turn the fuel of wisdom and compassion into conscientious action to create the world our hearts know is possible?
Devi Corona says, “You have to stay home a little longer, you haven’t finished your work, dive deeper, take a closer look, listen to the wisdom of the earth”. Here is a little advice on how to endure in this video How to Be at Home
I hope you are healthy and well, and stay that way. I wish for earth’s abundance to fall on you like gentle snow.
The sun shines on everyone,
Sonya Luz