Fasting is considered a detoxification tool along our journey, but as we detoxify and let go of what we no longer need in many and all levels of our existence, we also create room for rebuilding our new selfs. As we fast we allow our bodies to balance and realign themselves with our natural rhythms. In the Science of Ayurveda these rhythms are of ultimate importance in our journey to balance and optimal health. These rhythms govern every process in our bodies. Think about it for a second, the beating of our hearts has its own rhythm, our breathing has its own rhythm. From the rhythm of each and every cell process, to the patterns and rhythms of our days, rhythm is everywhere, inside and out!
In Ayurveda, the more we are in alignment with our own bodily rhythms and with the rhythms of the Macrocosm, the more we will experience radiant optimal health. It reads so easy, doesn't it?, yet its a process to do, to stay in tune with your self and the rhythms that surround us as to stay open for the gifts of alignment to shine in.
As 2014 moves along, and we find ourselves, day in and day out, in our routines and daily habits, doing something like a Juice or Liquid Fast, breaks the rhythm of routines & habits, for better or for worse, it breaks down the wall of delusion, it allows our soul to shine a mirror to our ego, it allows us to think and question, allows us to quiet our self, our minds, our hearts, and our bodies so we can then establish new or re-establish old rhyhtms that serve us better. Think of it as a breathing break in the midst of climbing to the summit.
The best time to start a Juice or Liquid Fast is when your body is asking you for it! Either we will be in alignment and know that it is right, or we will be spinning out of control, emotionally, physically, spiritually and suddenly something happens that points us in the direction of taking time to restore. A good idea when fasting is to also align ourselves with the rhyhtms and cycles found in Nature. Many civilizations prior to us, practiced fasting in alignment with the Full & New Moons, as well as, at the time of Seasonal Change. The energy is different at these times, and the veils between the physical and the sacred become more palpable. Aligning ourselves with these energies or change in the energies,with the intention of Alignment of Self has magical synergistic effects on every aspect of our being.
The meditation practice is a great support tool when Fasting because it allows us to be a 'witness' to ourselves and find more compassion and self-love in our process of letting go. Meditation also restores our nervous system, something that the process of fasting and what we 'release' can sometimes challenge. It provides the space for Sacredness and for the unseen to become seen.
As tomorrow's Full Moon approaches I invite you to dust-off your juicer and juice it up! I invite you to sit in meditation just for 5 minutes at the beginning or at the end of your day or both if you can!!! I invite you to participate in the 7th Annual "Winter Feast for the Soul", a free 40 day commitment to the personal practice of stillness.
It's been two years since I did my fist 40 day Juice Fast and the 'Winter Feast for the Soul'. Since then I have found new depths in my meditation practice and the stillness within, in my awareness, in my understanding of energetics, in my relationship with food, with life, with love and with Spirit.
Juice it up and bring it on! Align yourself with the forces of the Universe and keep your heart open to receive the gifts!
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Juice it up and bring it on - check this recipe!
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"The real skill is to raise the sails and to catch the power of the wind as it passes by."- Thomas Berry
