Mandala is a Sanskrit word meaning ‘Circle’. Sand mandalas are an ancient Tibetan art form. Experience the power of creatively working with this circular art form at a Mandala Nature one day workshop. Mandalas allow you open to your inner healing wisdom and facilitate an experience of moving towards wholeness. The workshop includes some meditation and lectures. Lunch and materials are provided.
www.mandalanature.com
By Joel Young
Folks who learn NPA – and consistently practice it – report that all those sticky, awkward, interpersonal blocks just slide away and the quality of their personal interactions with people, across the board, improve dramatically.
In case you haven’t yet heard of NPA, it stands for ‘Non-Personal Awareness’ and is a really simple 6 line, spoken word process that helps you let go of the yucky stuff and let in the yummy stuff of life. It does that by helping you touch into the awareness that everything is energy and fundamentally non-personal.
So, how can this be? How can an approach that helps you focus on the ‘non-personal’ nature of reality improve your ‘personal’ interactions and relationships?
In common language use, making relationships more ‘personal’ generally refers to offering more of yourself; being more open, more authentic and more available.
However, what present themselves as obstacles in the space between people is our seemingly immoveable, pervasive self-identities.
NPA works to dis-identify you from your ‘stuff’. Somehow you just realise that your ‘stuff’ is not ‘you’, it just ‘is’. And the personal investment in the story of you, or the concept of who you are supposed to be (or not be) lessens. Ultimately, your hand-me-down survival strategies and ego games become meaningless. What you are left with is the freedom to Be!
And what is ‘The freedom to Be’? Well, on a practical level, there is no image to protect when you interact with others; no false walls between you. Who you are in the moment has space to breathe and live and express itself. Self-consciousness dwindles, and radical self acceptance emerges. This is where true self-discovery begins. Or, you could say, this is where True-Self discovery begins.
It’s the wonderment of discovering who you are in this environment or that environment, with this person or that person. The unconditionally loving witness is awake and aware, resting as the foundation of wellbeing, at the heart of your life experience.
On a very down-to-Earth level, what emerges from this is a much more open, authentic and available inter-personal experience.
Gill and John are a couple who came together to an NPA event and decided to use their process time to work with each other. Gill had told me that she and her husband were working to improve their relationship. She had done a lot of this sort of thing before, and he really hadn’t. An identity gulf and a lot of frustration had built up on both ‘sides’.
In the morning, where we use NPA to ‘let out the yucky stuff’ – in other words, let go of our attachment to painful false self-identities that are so often fiercely protected – I watched as Gill and John’s walls came down.
In the afternoon, where we ‘let in the yummy stuff’ – in other words open the doors to our authentic, natural expression – I watched Gill and John opened to the real heart of each other, and melted into the love that had always been there between them.
At the end of the event, I found a testimonial penned by John. It described NPA quite simply as: “A Gateway to Intimacy.”
The NPA Expansive Weekend, Dublin.
October 8th & 9th
Use discount code ‘positivelife’ to get €100 off!
Contact Sarah Bird at sarah@sarahbird.ie or +353(0)872193343
www.NonPersonalAwareness.com
The NPA Process
Answer Q1 or Q2 (as feels appropriate).
Q1… What are you experiencing that you would like to allow to pass?
Q2… What are you not experiencing that you would like to allow to come?Say the following sentences out loud, using your answer to Q1 or Q2 to fill in the blank. Stay present to your experience as you say the words…
This _______
This Energy of _______
This Pure Energy of _______ is not personal.
This Pure Energy of _______ is not personal.
This Pure Energy of _______ is not personal,
And I am willing to experience it.Now be inwardly still. Let go and give yourself space to simply be with your experience. Whatever emotion, sensation or thought arises, be still until you feel a natural completion.
By Michael Tanner
I was teaching Yoga and running a centre in the UK. Then, after I moved to Ireland, I started Eireventure Paragliding School. I also started Second Byte, selling second hand Apple computers to provide income on rainy days.
Alan Dare, who had a Health Food shop in Bantry, had found Grapefruit Seed Extract to be the best way of dealing with Candida, and would encourage his customers to try it. Two customers wrote a book about it in German, which was very successful. The publisher sent them a disc with an English translation which they could not open as they had a Mac, which I had sold them, and the disc was in a different format. They gave me the disc and I ended up rewriting the English version, which gave me lots of scientific information and some money to invest.
That’s how the Aisling Foundation, who specialise in Grapefruit Seed Extract, got started. Aisling is our youngest daughter and is Downes Syndrome.
We now have a range of Grapefruit Seed Extract products and a business that started in a one room shack and now exports all over Europe.
The realisation that Life guides and supports us, in so far as we allow it to, is my core belief; and I thank Life for providing me with such a wonderful gift that enables me to make money using a waste product that helps people to become more healthy.
www.aislingfoundation.com
“You can’t change the body without changing the self,
and you can’t change the self without bringing in the soul.
It’s all one process, and it begins with knowing that your
body exists to mirror who you are and who you want to be.”
~ Deepak Chopra
By Michelle Hardwick
Our soul communicates to us through our thoughts, feelings and emotions. In times of silence, it is our soul that speaks to us through the small quiet voice within.
As children, we are taught go with our logic rather than listen to our feelings – often paying more attention to outer authority figures instead of our ‘inner authority’. Sometimes events occur in our lives and our inner safety and trust is compromised. A deep sense of fear results. Fear is the language of the ego and disconnects us from our soul.
Longstanding issues can be messages from our soul as to the fact that we are disconnected from it. They relate to fundamental aspects of who we are as a person and spiritual being. We struggle between what our ego ‘wants’ in order to be safe and what our soul ‘needs’ to experience for our spiritual evolution. Often we become ‘too human’, avoiding the truth of our soul and listening to messages from our ego. We yearn for a sense of belonging – a sense of connection – but get stuck in the disconnection or illusion. We have stopped living a life of potential with trust and love.
When we are connected to our soul, we are more emotionally authentic, more fully connected to our intuition, our purpose here on Earth and the truth of who we are. We reclaim gifts that are inherently ours.
For help in reclaiming your soul’s gifts, call 0871492338 or visit www.michellehardwick.com
By Sharyn Cunneen
Love. We all want it. We all have it already. We all are it. But, we don’t seem to know it. The way to remember this and to have what we are all searching for is to give it to ourselves. Self-love. It seems like an obvious choice. The reason we have forgotten that we are loved, and are love, is because our mind plays tricks on us. It does this to separate us from each other and to try to make us feel important. As we can’t turn our minds off, another option is to watch it, listen to it and love what is inside you unconditionally.
Love is all embracing and accepting of everything. In Love, there are no judgements. Being gentle with yourself and the opinions of your self is self-love. In Love, everything is OK. That includes all perceived negative emotions such as anger, guilt, jealousy, etc. We are human, and it is perfectly OK to experience them all.
Parents love their children unconditionally. No matter what the child does, the parent continues to love. They can understand the child’s innocence. You are that child. You are innocent. Choosing Love over the judgements of your mind will bring you back to you inner state of joy. Showing yourself this type of unconditional Love can allow you to feel safe in the world, and enables you to give this unconditional Love to others. Love yourself and see yourself evolve in Joy.
www.howtobehappy.tv
Facebook: I Choose Happiness
Competition Winner
Last issue we asked people to send in their own Positive Irish News stories to win a copy of Siobhan McKenna’s new book The Lingerie Designer. Here is one of our winners.
By Suzi von Mensenkampff
The last 7 years have been an incredible journey for me which really kicked off when a friend gave me a present of Deepak Chopra’s The Seven Spiritual Laws of Success. I had just set up my own business and was both excited and terrified.
He also introduced me to setting goals and affirmations and using visualization techniques (I was like his guinea pig). It was amazing how easily opportunities came my way and how I began to transform from a wine drinking, smoking, crazy working mum to a calm, happy, peaceful, optimistic, loving being.
I think Deepak Chopra and Eckhart Tolle’s books provided me with huge inspiration, along with an incredible Yoga teacher with whom I learned meditation and mindfulness. But I guess they were my guides, and it was something that happened within me that really created the change that has transformed my life.
Reading Siobhan’s article has inspired me to take a leaf out of her book and become “even more diligent about my thoughts and visualization.” It also “reminded me to trust the Universe and stop trying to control the outcome.”
We need to hear lots more Siobhan McKenna stories. Although, I must say, I think there is a huge positive surge of optimism among people who are now beginning to look within themselves for inspiration and are creating changes in their lives. Look at the allotments cropping up everywhere and everyone growing veg, becoming more energy efficient, recycling materials and looking after this incredible island on which we live…at last!
There are days when I feel like I’ve won the Lotto of Life, and I thank the Universe every day. Even when things seem difficult or painful, I know that every cloud has a “silver lining”.
www.inblueinteriors.com
24 Hour Solar Power
While Americans celebrated U.S. history on the Fourth of July, a company in Spain celebrated an historic moment for the solar industry: Torresol’s 19.9 megawatt (MW) concentrating solar power plant became the first ever to generate uninterrupted electricity for 24 hours straight.
The plant uses a Power Tower design which features a field of 2,650 mirrors that concentrate sunlight onto a boiler in a central receiver tower. The plant also utilizes molten salt as a heat transfer fluid that allows it to generate electricity when there’s no sunlight. Recharge News reported on the milestone:
After commissioning in May, the plant was finally ready to operate at full-blast in late June and benefited from a particularly sunny stretch of weather, according to Diego Ramirez, director of production at Torresol. “The high performance of the installations coincided with several days of excellent solar radiation, which made it possible for the hot-salt storage tank to reach full capacity,” Ramirez explains.
Torresol says that the plant will provide electricity for about 20 hours each day on average, with numerous days in the summer seeing 24 hours of supply. How does that compare with a similar-sized photovoltaic plant? The 21.2 MW Solarpark Calaveron in Spain generates about 40 gigawatt hours (GWh) a year. This smaller 19.9 MW Power Tower Plant will generate about 110 GWh per year.
www.torresolenergy.com
RenewableEnergyWorld.com
Go Wild, Stay Well
UK mental health charity Mind has always campaigned for greater understanding of mental health issues. Now, through an experimental new project, Dave Urwin is using the therapeutic benefits of nature to help people with mental health problems.
The Go Wild, Stay Well initiative is taking place across a variety of nature reserves in the Quantocks and Blackdown Hills. Urwin explains: “It is a collaboration with Somerset Wildlife Trust, and during each session an employee of theirs will take the participants for a walk around the reserve, explaining about the different species of flora and fauna they see.”
Urwin has also recently led the Walk on the Wild Side challenge; a fundraising activity that saw 5 participants complete a 30 mile walk on the Quantocks, with 11 more joining them at the halfway point. Through their combined efforts, the participants raised just over £4,000, an achievement that Urwin admits was both incredibly rewarding and empowering in light of his own past battles with depression.
“On the day there was a wonderful sense of camaraderie,” remembers Urwin, “everyone completed the challenge and the weather was kind to us. The walk was through stunning scenery, and allowed people from different walks of life to join together and share a powerful sense of achievement through a common goal.”
Mind also have a project entitled Grow Well, which is in partnership with the Langley House Trust, and enables people experiencing mental distress to take part in horticultural activities.”
The projects are examples of ecotherapy, where the therapeutic benefits of nature are used to help relieve anxiety. Project manager Dave Topham explains however that ecotherapy is, “just a posh way of saying, ‘Get out into the natural environment, do something physical and you’ll feel better about yourself.’ It’s not complicated, but it’s very effective.”
www.bmycharity.com/walkonthewildside
www.mindtws.org.uk/gowildstaywell.htm
Law of Mother Earth
Bolivia is to become the first country in the world to give Nature comprehensive legal rights. Developed by grassroots social groups and agreed by politicians, the Law of Mother Earth recognises the rights of all living things, giving the natural world equal status to human beings.
Once fully approved, the legislation will provide the Earth with rights to: life and regeneration; biodiversity and freedom from genetic modification; pure water; clean air; naturally balanced systems; restoration from the effects of human activity; and freedom from contamination.
The legislation is based on broader principles of living in harmony with the Earth and prioritising the “collective good.” At its heart is an understanding that the Earth is sacred, which arises from the indigenous Andean worldview of ‘Pachamama’ (meaning Mother Earth) as a living being.
Bolivia’s government will be legally bound to prioritise the wellbeing of its citizens and the natural world by developing policies that promote sustainability and control industry. The economy must operate within the limits of nature and the country is to work towards energy and food sovereignty while adopting renewable energy technologies and increasing energy efficiency.
Following a change in Bolivia’s constitution in 2009, the law is part of a complete overhaul of the legal system. It represents a shift away from the western development model to a more holistic vision, based on the indigenous concept of Vivir Bien (to live well).
The proposal for the law states: “Living Well means adopting forms of consumption, behaviour and conduct that are not degrading to nature. It requires an ethical and spiritual relationship with life. Living Well proposes the complete fulfilment of life and collective happiness.”
Nature’s Wealth
The hidden economic value of the UK’s natural environment has been highlighted and quantified in a ‘groundbreaking’ new report. Nature is worth tens of billions of pounds a year in benefits to wellbeing in the UK, according to the first extensive financial assessment of the environment.
Our quality of life, health and economic prosperity are crucially dependent on our natural world, its different ecosystems and its biodiversity, according to the UK National Ecosystem Assessment (UK NEA).
Published on June 2nd by the UK government, the report provides “a new way of estimating our national wealth” and represents the first time any country in the world has quantified the economic, health and social benefits of its ecosystems in monetary terms.
500 experts in ecology, economics and social sciences calculated the value that habitats across the nation, from mountains to cities, moors to woodland and lakes to coastlines, add to the economy each year. They assessed the worth of “ecosystem services,” such as how the natural world supports the basic infrastructure of life, removes pollution from the air and provides cultural benefits through spaces for recreation or places that offer “an enhanced sense of spiritual wellbeing.”
Pollinators, such as bees, are worth £430m per year to British agriculture, while lakes, rivers and other wetlands provide £1.5bn of benefits to water quality. Living with a view of a green space creates £300 worth of health benefits per person per year.
These and other “non-market benefits” of nature have not previously been taken into account, the report states. Valuing them properly will enable better decision making in areas such as development, transport, agriculture and energy.
The Department of Food and Rural Affairs (Defa) said that the report strengthens the argument for protecting and enhancing the environment and will be used by the government to direct future policy.
uknea.unep-wcmc.org
Leaps of Faith
A UK-based performance company is showcasing the talents of young Colombians that have risen from the streets and forged a career in the arts thanks to a unique circus school.
Hailed as a groundbreaking social project, Circolombia returned to London’s Roundhouse theatre for a string of performances in April of this year, marking a promising year ahead for the Colombian circus troupe of 17–28 year-olds.
The second run of their show, Urban, was as raw and explosive as its 2010 premiere. Dare-devil stunts and incredible acrobatics were performed against a backdrop of Cali, Western Colombia, home to the company’s humble beginnings.
The idea for the performance came from the personal stories of each artist, says José Henry Caycedo Casierra. “It is a small showcase of the lives that each one of us has lived in the past – such as gang members, the madman of the ghetto or the recycler – which in some way are the spirit of the neighbourhood,” José explains.
Giving something back is a lesson woven into the fire and attitude of Urban, a message Circolombia hopes will go global.
www.circolombia.com
www.urban-circolombia.com
By Open Minds
The ancient practice of Yoga has witnessed a surge in popularity in Ireland in recent years, and more and more people are discovering the many benefits Yoga can bring. This has in part been helped by the increased accessibility of Yoga classes.
Opened in a two-floor studio space on Pearse Street in the centre of Dublin during the winter of 2009, the Open Mind Yoga studio’s goal was to not only help share the benefits of yoga, but also to show how Yoga was for people from all different walks of life.
Initially, they experimented with a timetable of donation-only drop-in classes to tempt those who may have been unsure about giving Yoga a try. These classes proved very popular, leading the studio to switch to a fuller timetable offering a larger selection of classes, still at affordable rates.
The continued growth of the studio allowed them to open a second studio on Temple Lane South in Temple Bar in May of this year. This studio is the largest Yoga studio space in Dublin. The studio building also includes a soon-to-be-opened tea room/café, and alcohol and drug-free venue, called The Green Temple.
On Saturday evenings, The Green Temple runs a regular alcohol and drug-free club night called DanceWave. And both studios now offer a wide range of yoga classes, along with workshops featuring some of the best-known national and international Yoga teachers.
www.openmindyoga.ie
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