“Who am I?” The query has probably fascinated mankind since the dawn of civilization, and remains today one of the most vexing of all human questions. Answers have been offered which range from the sacred to the profane, the complex to the simple, the scientific to the holistic, the political to the individual. But instead of examining the multitude of answers to this question let’s look instead at the two zones of the human body that relate to the sense of self. An experienced yogi would hastily point to the solar plexus as the seat of selfdom. And energetically this reference would be correct. However, physically the key girdles that are considered the body’s truth detectors are in fact the hips and the shoulders. We can always tell from the body language – rigid shoulders often denote low self esteem, while tightness in the lower back and hips signals an inability to release outdated patterns and shed the old shell. In both cases our personality is eclipsed by a host of assumed identities as we turn from our real nature in order to embrace boundaries.
Since early childhood we identify with roles imposed by family, society, schooling – shaped by specific demands of an outside environment. Our inner reality is confined to the narrow awareness of our limited self, as the boundary line between the true nature and the assumed identity is being firmly drawn. Accepting our divided self we tread our programmed path hoping to become the individual we ought to be. As the expectations rise and the mental pressure escalates we relentlessly begin to chase our shadow self. Suddenly we assume an identity that conforms to how other people may perceive us versus being true to who we really are. Tension creeps in our physical body to compensate for the outward drive and most of the time we end up agonizing in shoulder and hip pain. In turn this painful identity creates a constricted reality that we begin to battle with on a daily basis.
Yoga teaches us that unless we alter our sense of self-identity, in Sanskrit also known as “ahamkara”, the universe, which is just a massive field of energy and information, will dispassionately and readily respond by fulfilling our hidden desires and create countless realities that host our multiple selves. A regular asana, pranayama, and meditation practice guides us into re-drawing our boundary lines. In a sense, we can remap our soul and find in it territories we never thought possible, attainable or even desirable. We begin to expand our self awareness to embrace the entire universe, and become a reflection of a coherent integrity.
According to the ancient Vedic texts, the Mayan Calendar, the Egyptian mystical tablets and Kabbalistic sources the new age that we have been ushered into since December 2012 is the era of re-inventing our self to embody our truth at a higher frequency. Deep revision of how we think and do things is required for this profound shift as an expanded perception allows us to rewire the brain, creating new pathways, new habits of sensing, new relationships. If we resist – the process will happen anyway. If we let go with conviction and trust we will not only dissolve nasty energy knots in the hips and shoulders, but will also open to all the ideas, resources, and dimensions that are available and possible in the unified field. Then all the faces of our identity will become mutually inclusive and supportive. Experiencing the truth of unity reveals the dynamic of our dawning “intuition age” – an emerging epoch of expanded self-awareness and rootedness in the center of the present moment.
As we re-invent our self, we learn to use our inner powers wisely and create effortless realities that are worthy of who we are.
Hip & Shoulder Opening Yoga Routine: Reinvent Yourself (open level)
This open Yogea sequence dissolves stiffness in the hips and shoulder girdles, as it lubricates the ball and socket joints and sooths tension build-up in the lower back and neck. A brief shoulder and elbow warm up starts off the sequence, offering deltoid pulls and gentle side bends and twists to secure fluid motion in the hips and effortless binds. The shoulder girdle is further opened by a table pose in forward and backward motion to massage the rotator cuff, prepare the lower back and stretch the calves. Then standing and reclining bound and twisted shoulder openers are combined with external hip rotators and intricate arm meridian crossings. Forward bends couple with hip openers, while seated and reclining spinal twists lengthen the lumbar area to facilitate deeper gluteus stretching. Standing neutrally and externally rotated poses paired with various shoulder binds offer simultaneous extension of the hip and shoulder muscles. Abdominally invigorating and heart-opening back bends include shoulder and arm binds to provide a total stretching of the mid back and an elongation through the lower back and sides of the waist. Soothing inversions conclude the sequence and take the body into a calming relaxation. The sequence pulsates from standing to reclining, from bound to neutral, from inversions to hip openers, from shoulder stretches to forward bends to provide a total experience of releasing inhibiting identity patterns and rooting into one’s integrated self.
Leave a Reply