No Complaints -21 Day Challenge

Christmas is my favorite time of the year. Christmas lights and family gatherings, it really is a time of good cheer. As we get closer to Christmas though it can become a little bit stressful with shopping and parties and finding rest too. Crowded stores and short tempers, become the perfect Petri dish for for negativity.

This year I am going to try something new that will take me right up to Christmas. I just finished reading Will Bowen’s  A complaint Free World and I’m excited to take the 21 Day Challenge. No complaining for the next 21 days. http://www.acomplaintfreeworld.org/

Here is one of my favorite stories titled, “Thank You for Everything”

The story is told about a woman Zen master named Sono who taught one very simple method of enlightenment. She advised everyone who came to her to adopt an affirmation to be said many times a day, under all conditions. The affirmation was, “Thank you for everything. I have no complaint whatsoever.”

Many people from all arenas of life came to Sono for healing. Some were in physical pain; others were emotionally distraught; others had financial troubles; some were seeking soul liberation. No matter what their distress or what question they asked her, her response was the same: “Thank you for everything. I have no complaint whatsoever.” Some people went away disappointed; others grew angry; others tried to argue with her. Yet some people took her suggestion to heart and began to practice it. Tradition tells that everyone who practiced Sono’s mantra found peace and healing.

Are you with me? Let’s make a difference in our own life and the lives of those around us by being positive. We know that negativity and complaining spreads like a wildfire! So let’s make a difference this holiday season. Thinking before speaking…When we think before we speak, that little pause is all we need to create the happy, joyful life we want, filled with positivity and awareness.

Happy Holidays!Karin xx

Be Still and Be Grateful

As we jump in with both feet to the beautiful month of November, we focus on Gratitude. Hot Yoga University is offering a 21 Day Gratitude Habit. Studies show there is no better way to increase happiness than to be thankful for what you already have. Setting an intention as you step on the mat and finding time to be still to reflect on gratitude during your practice will definitely change your life!.

How important is it to our students to practice gratitude?  Well… we ran out of cards on the first day! The students couldn’t wait to get their gratitude cards and hang them up on the wire outside the yoga room. After class, sweaty blissful yogis can be seen writing down their gratefulness for the day; “my family,” “my God,” “my yoga teacher,” “my health” etc..

What is the top reason why living with a grateful heart so important for our well-being?

Gratefulness = Connectedness

By being grateful we feel more connected to our family, our work and most importantly, more connected to our spirituality. Our gratefulness ultimately connects us to our source and with that Divine connection we are free to live our life in a way that has depth and meaning. Knowing that our blessings come from a source greater than us but is also a part of who we are, creates a faith in us that ultimately leads to more abundance and happiness in our life.

Living with gratitude for every experience in our life, even the ones we find challenging creates an environment of health, wellness, positiveness, growth and evolution on our journey.

Here is one of my favorite Rumi poems:

The Guest House

This being human is a guest house.
Every morning a new arrival.

A joy, a depression, a meanness,
some momentary awareness comes
as an unexpected visitor.

Welcome and entertain them all!
Even if they are a crowd of sorrows,
who violently sweep your house
empty of its furniture,
still, treat each guest honorably.
He may be clearing you out
for some new delight.

The dark thought, the shame, the malice.
meet them at the door laughing and invite them in.

Be grateful for whatever comes.
because each has been sent
as a guide from beyond.

~Jelaluddin Rumi,

What Rumi is so eloquently expressing, is something we already know… Life is all part of a perfect plan. So have faith, be grateful and enjoy the journey.

Karin xx