Do you know that feeling when it feels like you're taken under by a riptide? When you can't tell which way is up and which way is down. When it almost feels like you can't remember who you were the day before and not quite sure of who you will show up as tomorrow?
It can be so disorienting and scary. No sense of direction, choices or possibilities that might lie ahead. The uncertainty is the most worrisome part of it all because the comfort and security of predictability and consistency is where we feel safest. In the Ayurveda glossary, Shunyata or in Sanskrit SÅ«nyata translates to emptiness, hollowness, voidness. It is described by OSHO as "no-thingness". When we are in that hollow empty space, only then do we have room to let something new in. We need to first empty our cup before we can refill it. That void is where absolute potential lives.
Knowing that change begins at the edge of our comfort zone, what if we began to view those moments a little differently? What if we began to be grateful for those experiences? What if we took a deep breath, felt trust in the journey and allowed our perspective to shift? What is happening in those moments is that we are transforming into a new version of ourselves. What if we welcomed the discomfort and just allowed ourselves to sit with the feelings and experience it with every cell in our bodies and just try to find the comfort within discomfort.
All too often when we feel this uneasy feeling, we look outside of ourselves to see what is causing this disorientation and try to assign a cause, blame or reason for the disruption so that we can control the situation. The impulse to try and change or control the feeling can push us to seek out external stimulation or distraction to try and "fix" how we are feeling on the inside. Often those things we impulsively gravitate towards are the very actions and patterns that will hold us back and prevent us from moving into our new expression of self that is forming!
"Life is a series of natural and spontaneous changes. Don't resist them; that only creates sorrow. Let reality be reality. Let things flow naturally forward in whatever way they like" ~ Laozi
What if next time we felt ourselves gravitating towards these impulsive actions, we took a moment to pause, look inward and come home to ourselves just as we are. We could use the opportunity to sit quietly with ourselves and get to know the new version that is about to emerge. We need to make room and hold space for the new to feel welcome.
My favorite go-to when I am feeling this way is meditation and journaling. Meditation doesn't have to mean you are reaching a higher level of consciousness and connecting to universal energy for 2 hours. It doesn't have to be and often isn't that epic. Usually for me, it is just allowing myself to feel and get to know my breath, my body's needs and a time to just listen.
Try to quiet the mind and if there are many thoughts, thank them and let them pass like the clouds. Allow yourself to see where the silence takes you.
All you are doing is getting comfortable with the present moment and allowing the new version of yourself to integrate. Listen for the whispers that feel like they are coming from a more simple, pure place.
Journaling random thoughts and feelings in a way that feels effortless and easy for you to just get the swarm of, often contrasting and contradicting, thoughts out of your mind and release them from taking up space.
I invite you to practice this shift of perspective with me and see how this new understanding of what is taking place resonates with you and transforms how you experience these inevitable moments in our lives. This state of being is where pure potential lives. Trust the process. Know that something sacred is about to be born.
Shanti ~ Shunyata ~ Ananda
Peace ~ Emptiness ~ Bliss
All the love,
Pamela
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