I’m sure we all know someone going through a difficult time right now. Perhaps you just went through one yourself. This has got me pondering on what we can lean into in ourselves when the tough times hit, when the curveballs come out of the blue and life feels topsy turvy!
Recently I had some difficult news come my way and at the time it felt like a body blow. For two days my solar plexus ached and I felt a sense of hollow emptiness descend. A few weeks on, now I feel like I’ve emerged out of that place my gaze has lifted and a more positive mindset has returned.
There was a valuable learning that came out of all this. One thing is I realised I just had to allow for these feelings, knowing that soon they would move through me, trusting in that process to take place. I also had to really draw on all the work I’ve done to this point, all my work with meditation, all my work with the breath and coming to a place of peace and stillness within.
Yoga philosophy provides a lot of wisdom when staring down the barrel of life’s unexpected challenges, but today I’d like to share the angle that is perhaps most important to remember: that everything is temporary. The Sanskrit word for this is ‘Anitya’ …
I recalled too how things have a way of working out in life, and remembering all the magical synchronistic times I’ve experienced, which to me feel like ultimately the universe has my back, as it has yours too. Just as the flowers know when to bloom, there is a season to all things we face in this life.
I also used my oracle cards each day – which was incredibly helpful. I shared what was going on with trusted friends and asked my guides for help. I leaned into gratitude…all the many things I’m so grateful for. In those darkest moments (mostly in the middle of the night) I prayed to all the beautiful souls I have known on Earth that have now passed on to the next realm, asking for help, asking for guidance. I called out to the spirit planes for support and little by little I felt a lightness of being return and could see a new path forward.
How Hakini Mudra can Help
The Mudra of the Mind
One thing I really had to watch during this time was making sure that I ate well and looked after my physical body. It’s something that can so easily fall by the wayside, when emotions take hold. I also used some special mudras specific for balancing energies, and lifting into a more positive mindset. My ‘go to’ was Hakini Mudra. It activates the third eye chakra and has a beautifully calming effect on the mind.
To use Hakini, simply bring all pads of the fingers together into a pyramid shape and hold it at your heart or 3rd eye chakra. I found this mudra helped me lift above the ‘stickiness’ of ordinary emotions and find a new perspective. Remembering to connect to the Divine, was so important in finding my way back to balance within myself during this time. When those harder times come, it’s like your life raft is ready to set sail on those choppy seas, toward a sunny and calm ocean.
‘Anitya’ – Everything is Temporary
Yoga philosophy provides a lot of wisdom when staring down the barrel of life’s unexpected challenges, but today I’d like to share the angle that is perhaps most important to remember: that everything is temporary. The Sanskrit word for this is ‘Anitya’ which teaches us about the impermanence of all things. Good times, bad times, happiness, sorrow – they all come and go and are all to be welcomed as the fabric of this life. Without one, the other doesn’t exist.
In the polarity of these shades of experience, there is also a harmony, like the yin and yang symbol. This is beautifully summarised by the old saying “this too shall pass”. Acceptance of these polarities allows us to move with more grace into all the shades of our life experience.
In an interview HERE, Kris Carr shares what sustains her while living with intense challenges. She’s a remarkable human who has been ‘thriving’ with stage IV cancer for 20 years. There are many gems to glean from this interview.
I’d love to hear what you lean into during the difficult times and if any of what I said resonates with you. Please comment below.
Remember, difficult times are opportunities for growth – they spur us on to create the life we know we deserve. It’s the friction, heat and pressure applied to coal that creates the most brilliant diamonds.
Love and mudras,
Explore more mudra goodness:
- How do Mudras Work?
- What are Mudras?
- Yoga Mudras for Immunity
- Energy in your Hands
- Mudra for Focus, Intuition & Balancing Energy
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Please note: mudras are simple ancient tools for exploring energies of heart, mind and body and are not presented here as an alternative to professional medical advice.
