Listening to Your Inner Voice with Stillness

Last month, Renée Konan, an entrepreneur and also a former colleague during my time at the United Nations in New York, shared with some wisdom nuggets. I called her up on skype and recorded our conversation which is filled with laughs and giggles. She speaks with so much ease and confidence about listening to our inner wisdom and makes it simple to do.

So take a watch and enjoy this jubilant personality, Ms. Renée Konan. And share in the comments below how do you listen to your inner-guidance and intuitive nudges?

How I Dealt With Someone's Words That Were Hurtful

(plus, how you can stay peaceful in such a situation)

You consider yourself a positive person, generally upbeat about life. You focus on your work, are kind to people and work towards making a contribution to this world. But then, someone says something that just throws you off your positive-horse, so to speak.

Does this happen to you? I just experienced this.

In this video, I share with you how I dealt with just such a situation and also the positive nuggets that I learned which  can help you stay happy and peaceful when facing something similar.

Plus, I have just put into place my new studio set, right in my living room and I loooove it. With new lights, filters and camera stand, the video quality just went up a few notches. Have a look yourself!

And this month, we will have a special Live Video Event, "Happiness Intention" to explore simple, practical ways you can boost your quality of life, daily. So look out for an invite for that coming soon.

Lots of love to you,

Sophia
Helping You Live A Happier & Simplified Life

PS: Do let me know how you deal with hurtful words from someone in the comments below.

How To Be Content, Right Now?

You know, I have been looking and searching for the last six years for specific answers to questions that so many of us face. And I am fortunate that teachers have come into my life at exactly the right time, teaching me just what I needed to know in that moment.

When I do learn something I want to begin implementing it right away and sharing it right away.

And I made a video for you that I think will be very useful if you are thinking about questions around contentment.

In last month's post, I shared with you my thoughts on how to create happiness every day. I introduced the idea of generating happiness and making a decision to commit to being happy. Today, I want to share with you a bigger theme: contentment.

Being happy when things in life are smooth sailing is one thing, but how to go deeper than that? How to be content with life despite hardships, despite challenges? Is it even possible?

The answer, of course, is "Yes".

It may be a black-belt, ninja-level, yogi-on-the-mountain-top-level master skill. But I believe it is DO-ABLE.

In the video below, I share with you what I have learned about being content right in this moment, no matter what is going on in our lives.

Do watch it and share with me in the comments, your biggest frustration with being content on a daily basis.

Peace and love to you,

Sophia
Helping you live happier and simpler life.

PS: Want to see us Live? Cristof and I will be going online Live for a new visualization meditation evening.  Join us! October 14, Tuesday, 7pm Eastern

How to Create Happiness Every Day

Even though happiness seems like a mystery at times to some of us, we can create happiness every day. Read on!

Happiness is a personal responsibility just as a clean home or a healthy meal is. To keep our kitchen sink clean what needs to happen? We need to take the scrubber and wash the dishes and clean the sink afterwards. Then, to continue to have it this way, we need to do it everyday. Now we have a nice, tidy kitchen sink on a daily basis.

Creating happiness is something like that. We need to take ACTIONS to first create it and then to maintain it. We need to do this everyday. Yes, it is true that happiness is never lost; it is always within us at all times and to say 'create' belies this fact. I will still like to use the word 'create' because it brings home the fact that in order to experience happiness we need to actively participate.

It is really imperative that you and I do this. Because happiness doesn't usually happen to us although we wait hoping for it to come to us. Yes, some people seem to be inherently happy. But they too do things, albeit, so naturally that they may not even be aware that they are doing it. They do things to help generate the feeling of happiness.

So, there it is, the key phrase: generating happiness.

Before I go into generating happiness, I would like to salute all those who say that happiness is something that just happens. One needs to meditate and be in the present moment and voilà! we will be happy. Although, I love meditation and love the teachings of being in the present moment, a lot of us, myself included, are not there yet to just feel happy at all times. Side note: happy=content=at peace. Not everyone is a regular meditator and many of us are not always present. So if this describes you, then read on.

The essence of what I am saying here is that we actually need to do something actively to generate happiness. We need to take conscious actions.

1. We need to look deeply at what generates happiness. For each one of us it is different.

Two things happen when we begin to dissect those things that make/generate happiness for us. One, we begin to see that there certain things that we want in our lives. And we think once we attain them, we shall be happy - the pursuit of happiness, which really is the cause of unhappiness. It is something in the future. We can never attain something that is in the illusory dimension of time which is conceptual. There is only the present. So, if we cannot feel or generate happiness in the now, the idea that 'someday' I shall be happy, is just a way to trap ourselves in a perpetual circle. This way, we see that what we think will make us happy in the future is nothing but an illusion.

So, the 'happiness' is not happening in the future. It is only happening now.

Second, when we look deeper at what generates happiness, we realize all those things that our heart really really values but our mind or the ego, doesn't want to give it importance. These are all the things that are not connected with status, fame, success, security, wealth, reputation and the face we show in society. What our hearts value are things that are very deeply personal and unique to each one of us. And of course, it varies greatly.

Some of these things for me are:

having plenty of time for breakfast (not rushing)
watching birds fly (I love to gaze at the sky)
playing with my cat (being around animals)
creative activity (writing, editing videos, cooking, designing websites)
reading (i love to read uplifting books)
watching the sunset (having grown up on the west coast of India, the sun setting into the ocean is truly special)
walking on the beach or in the woods (this unique connection with nature is beyond words)
sitting in the hammock with a notebook and a pen (I love writing in my hammonck)
meditating (regardless of how still my mind is during a meditation, after the session I have a wonderful sense of joy for having shown up for it)
playing badminton with my neighbor-kids
chatting about the nature of life and universe with friends

...and so on.

Not one item on this list is something money can buy. Think about your own list. What kinds of things make you happy; things that your heart values?

It seems that many of these activities we don't give value to ourselves, even though deep down we love them. We enjoy them, but somehow we find other more important things to do - often things that directly generate money or status - which we think will get us all those happiness-making things in the future.

Do understand me right. We certainly need to take care of our needs and do the necessary to take care of our livelihood. But I am talking about what comes after that - after you have done the necessary and covered the basics.

This is what seems to happen.

Everything externally seems to be going well, just as you planned. You are doing everything that society has asked of you, you even excel and create immense monetary success, but you feel cheated, tripped up. That something is not right, not fair. Inside you, there is a deep rumbling of dissatisfaction, discomfort, restlessness, even sadness and inexplicable sorrow. And you think at first, it is something out there - somebody said or did something or didn't say or didn't do. Or it may be that some situation is not working out the way you planned. These external events become a trigger - a light switch that is turned on to then make you feel really really bad. You even realize that your reactions seems out of proportion to the event you are facing. And then you begin to wonder what in the world is going on with you?!!

All that has happened is that your inner-spirit, your essence, your soul is suffocated. You have not been doing all those things that make you truly happy. You've had too many stresses and pressures of life that you needed to cater to. Too many fires to put out for others, that your inner-fire is fighting for air. The inner-fire will never be put out - no matter what you do. But we do need to help this little fire, this litter flame to breathe, to grow, to expand and to shine through us.

When, that doesn't happen, we feel ill, we feel restless, we drop into depression and into anger.

We need to play, we need to do more of the things we love to do. More of the things that makes us happy - make us feel good.

But how to do it? How to do it when our days are full and our responsibilities to others take all of our time?

It may seem hard, but really it isn't.

2. All it takes is a decision.

We need to decide that kindling our inner fire is important to us. This is what generates happiness for us. And a happy person helps his/her community in infinite ways.

So, after we make that decision, we need to commit to generating happiness in the next 24 hours. We need to pick something small.

Whatever creates true happiness for you, do that, even if it is only for 15 minutes.

Then, make a new commitment for one more day and for just a few minutes. And each day renewing your commitment to take care of your inner-light.

You will see that your inner-fire starts rekindling. It gets a little air to breathe. There comes a smile to your face. You begin to generate happiness; instead of waiting for it to happen to you. You are allowing your spirit to flourish.

So, happiness - feeling light and happy - is your personal responsibility, like brushing teeth, showering and keeping a clean kitchen sink. And you can do it - start small and soon you will create a momentum of continuous and exponential increase in happiness and in a sense of well-being.

Love,
Sophia

Happiness Begins Now By Doing What You Love

Listen up. Today you are on assignment. Think of three things that make you happy. Go do that.

Now, this instruction sounds simple and easy, and in essence it is. But because some of us are so disconnected with our true selves, we find it difficult to follow this very simple instruction. Another reason is that we think ‘the thing’ that makes me happy has to be big, huge. That it is connected to our career or some grand, artistic self-expression. No. It can be as simple as making a cup of tea and sitting in a hammock. Or going for a stroll in the park or the woods. Or playing with dogs or cats or any pets. If this is what makes you happy, go do it. Some other hurdles are: the thoughts that say, “I need to be productive. I need to do something to be useful. I need to do all those projects, first.” These thoughts keep you away from your true joy. Your true happiness. And you postpone and you postpone and it never happens. Of course, your inner-child continues to be deprived. And eventually, if affects your life in ways that will finally snap you into doing what makes you happy.

Also, the idea that happiness comes from doing things you love, being the way you like to be, is unfamiliar to some. The thought says, “I will be happy when I acquire stuff, or when I achieve this or that, or when I find my life-partner, or when I look or feel a certain way physically.” All that’s common among these thoughts is: happiness is postponed to some future time.

How about pulling those happiness strings back, rolling them back into the present. What if we began with the premise: “I am happy, right now.” Thoughts of gratitude help a great deal too. So now, the underlying vibration is: “I am happy.” Put a smile on your face and begin to deeply appreciate the gift that life is. It may be challenging to do this or it may be easy. But if it is challenging, then help yourself by doing it during “low-stress” times. This is your training period. The more training you get in during this time, the better your “performance” when the situation is more challenging. Then comes your test period. You are now to practice what you’ve been training for.

Help yourself to be happy by repeating, “I am grateful for my life. I am happy.” Begin to notice how you feel and when you feel happy. Note it down. And actively repeat those actions and situations that fill you up with joy. Gravitate towards that which you enjoy.
And then the assignment stated at the start of this chapter will be natural, simple and easy to follow. And if you already can do at least one thing that makes you happy, go do it now.

Thank you.

Gratitude Leads to Spiritual Compassion

Gratitude. Gratitude is a disguise. It is you showing the Universe that you recognize the beauty, the oneness of it all. You show gratitude to your friends, your family, you show gratitude to the Universe. The flow of life is much much more expansive than a single life-form, yet without each life-form it is far from whole. Each one is a vital, essential part; the Universe works through each with similar compassion.

Yes, the Universe is compassionate. Not in the human sense. In a spiritual sense. Spiritual compassion is about un-conditionality in the absolute sense. Spiritual compassion is not just for living things but also for everything else that exists. For processes and for principles and for characteristics. It is boundless. It sees through illusion.

And in a way, we all have the capacity to tap into that kind of spiritual compassion. We can enable ourselves, through practice, to let that flow through us. It develops and grows gradually for us. When we contemplate on spiritual compassion, the rational, conceptual elements seep through us and eventually, we get beyond those layers, through to the essence - the essence of spiritual compassion reveals itself to you. It blends and merges with you. You ‘get it’ on a deeper level, on an emotional, vibrational, spiritual level. It then begins to emerge in you as waves. Waves that are like sound, like water. And the ripples made in this water reach the far corners of all that exist and all that is beyond existences. It is sensory yet without sensations and it embodies the paradox. Seemingly conflicting things co-exist within it. It is symbolic of how life is.

And all of this is available for human beings to experience and comprehend on a deep level, in a deep way.

Thank you.

Heal Others By Asking For Forgiveness

Just on the flip side of forgiving others is asking for forgiveness.

And this is how you heal our world - ask for forgiveness. Admit that your words and actions may have caused others pain. And then ask them to forgive you. This applies to both your conscious and unconscious actions or words. Even actions or words not spoken can cause hurt. And you can heal that. You do that by saying, “I am sorry for my words and actions that hurt you. I am really sorry that I hurt you. Please forgive me.”

This is the trigger for peace in the other. They may or may not understand it. They may or may not be prepared to forgive. But now, they have been offered a chance to heal something they might not be able to do easily without your help. So, make that effort. Take that step. Help heal the hurt you may have caused someone consciously or unconsciously. Ask for forgiveness.

Thank you.

Forgiveness Creates Peace In Our World

Forgiveness. Forgiveness is a powerful way to peace. You may have heard it said that forgiveness is something we ‘do’ for ourselves and it has nothing to do with others. It is partly true. Yes, when we forgive someone, we feel the burden lift from us. The pain, hurt and anguish release their grip on us and we feel as if we are set free. We feel light. A sense of peace descends upon us. Or put another way, we ascend into a state of peace.

There is another element to forgiveness. The one who you forgive, feels it too. Yes, they feel the peace. Think of someone you asked for forgiveness and they truly forgave you. And you knew they had forgiven you because you felt it energetically. You felt light, loved and accepted by them. Can you recall such a moment? A moment when you felt a sense of peace when the other forgave you.

So, by practicing forgiveness, we are actually creating peace in the lives of others and in our world. This is one powerful way of creating peace. And it also applies to forgiving those who have already passed away. The past, present and future exist simultaneously and so when you forgive those who have crossed the rainbow bridge to the spirit world, they too shall find peace.

Forgiveness is a spiritual muscle which you can build with practice and in this way, contribute to peace and love in your life and on our planet as a result.
Thank you.

Stillness Brings You Infinite Love

Be Still. To negotiate the turbulent waters, be still. Let it all flow over you. Let it all tumble through you. Become the witness. See it happen and then see it dissolve. Tides upon tides flow and embrace you. Slowly grace surrounds you, envelopes you with infinite love. Love that is so glorious, you merge with it, losing sense of self, of time, of space. All becomes one. All is one and you glimpse that in a deep way. The Universe is a friendly place. It all happens for good.

Thank you.

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Be The Love You Wave On

Let us talk about relationships. Relationships with people are really just reflections of yourself. How you treat yourself, is how you treat others. And any deep friendship is build on an acceptance and on freedom. Freedom of being, freedom of doing. Judgment, expectations and resentment foil and destroy any deep friendship that emerges.

How you feel about others is how you feel about some aspect of yourself. Unearth that. Find it. Let go of it. And then bring in love. You can create love. It is within you. You can tap into it and let it flow out into your life.

Just let all that you do not need fall away. Let love be the wave you ride on. Be the wave of love. Be the love you wave on.

Thank you.

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You Can Make Heart-Centered Choices

There is much I have to say. The things that matter most are not things. It’s vibration. Staying in a light-hearted disposition, in a cheerful mode, does more than create pleasant company. It creates a sphere of creativity, self-expression and joy. It is an enabling mode; it is a receptive mode. For love and harmony to flow and to create waves of joyful peace, restrictions need to be loosened. An attitude of ‘yes’ is beneficial and helpful.

The sphere has many dimensions and many offshoots. It teems with life and vitality. The journey is really a sequence of now-ness - a consequential pattern emerging in the moment. So really, when they say that you have choice in every moment, it is absolutely the truth. That’s also because you are not connected with past and future the way you are connected with the present. The beauty of choice is that it follows conscious awareness. Before you are aware, your actions are unconscious actions not choice in the true sense of the word. When you make a choice, it means you already have an awareness. You have realized some truth about yourself. From the awareness and realizations, you gain a level of understanding that is both mental and emotional. This makes an action stem from that inner-alignment. The alignment of the heart, mind and spirit. And now, when you are aligned, you can take actions that reflect choice in the true sense of the word.

This is the process - the process of making heart-centered choices.

Thank you.

You Can Be Detached

Just know that the web of life is intricate but simple. To understand it all, you just need to quiet yourself, sit in stillness. All shall be revealed to you. You are as much a part of mystery as the rest of it. Seeds of love and compassion are already within you and you know how to grow them. You know how to water them. Forgiveness. Letting go. Being detached from what happens, lightens your heart. Being unaffected by what is frees your spirit. Letting others off the hook allows you to keep your energy, your focus on yourself, on your part of the equation. It frees up energy for your creative expression; for your experience of joy. And the more you do it, the easier it gets. It becomes a way of being - a way of life. It becomes a way of receiving that which you experience and it becomes a way of how you act in the situation that you are in.

Compassion, forgiveness, detachment, are key to your functioning in a healthy manner. Let us say, you are new at being detached. No worries. When you find yourself engaged in a situation where you are taking things personally, just make note of it. Identify it as what it is: “I am taking it personally. Ah, I want to practice detachment but here I find myself taking it personally. I am aware. I can see that I am not out of its power on me. And I can see that any emotional distress I am experiencing is because of my own thoughts and because of my own process of moving from taking things personally to being detached.”

That awareness, right there, will rescue you. The next time you are in it, you will bring more and more awareness and zoom, you find that things don’t bother you that much; you have greater understanding of yourself, of others and of the situation; and you are able to respond and act with more compassion and greater effectiveness.

Thank you.

You Can Receive Direct Guidance

Write. Write. Write it down. Whatever you feel, write it down. This is your channel of release. You cleanse and let go when you write. It is such a secret but it’s got to be shared. You do not need perfect language skills. Just write down all, whatever seems to be bothering you. In this way, you energetically let it out of your system.

Daily Writing. Writing for guidance has a simple formula. You start writing, “I love you, ...” and then your name. For example, “I love you, Sophia.” Keep repeating this line, line after line, page after page, until you hear a subtle voice. A small transparent voice - a thought. It is an energy field that you tap into. And then jot down whatever you are dictated to write down. You can ask this voice to slow down or pause or to speed up. The voice will respond. You can also ask questions. And the voice will sound like your own voice. This is simply to make things easy for you. It will answer all your questions.

It is magical. It is indeed a way to access truth, knowledge and inner wisdom from the Source. And it gets easier and easier as you do it. It becomes so easy that you can eventually drop the formula I mentioned earlier. And just start writing or just start speaking. It is that powerful and that accessible.

So use this exercise daily - to build your muscle. For 20 minutes.

And remember to thank this voice. At the end of the session say - Thank you.

Thank you.

You Are Being Helped

You are loved. All is well. Be at peace about all that is happening. It is to free you of many things and you will see many new and amazing ways of being. You are to be successful in many ways. Just listen to your instincts. Just listen to your voice within. You are doing great. Be assured that the best, most fulfilling life experiences are coming your way. You are constantly being watched and listened to. You are being helped. You are being assisted.

Just know, trust and have tremendous faith, unrelenting faith and expect only the very best. Expect only the very very best. You are to keep the faith. Do your best. Be unaffected by seeming challenges or things that are not going the way you planned. There is divine blessing in every moment, in every situation and in every experience, in every person you meet and encounter. You are to be sure that the best outcome is being delivered. You are being guided. Listen and act in inspired ways.

Thank you.

You Are Blessed

Do you know how blessed you are? Right now, blessings are pouring onto you. You are a divine child and you are on the right path. Sink into a permanent state of faith. Trust that all is well. Keep asking for that which you want. Know that we only want and work for your success. It benefits the whole when you are at peace.

Good that you are following our message as they come to you as hunches. Keep doing it. Continue to take steps of active faith. We will direct you and guide you. Yes, trust and know that it is all happening. We shall guide your actions and look out for those messages that come to you in your ears - like whispers. Follow them. It will be easy.

Today, go to a pond with your notebook and pen. Sit by the water. All is well. Blessings upon you. You are blessed.

Thank you.

With Patience Wisdom Emerges

Above you see a photo of me taken in one of my preferred places to write. I sit in the hammock on the front porch with a notebook and a pen and allow inspiration to guide me. From such a writing session, I would like to share with you a piece from a series, I call, Messages from Spirit. This one is titled, With Patience Wisdom Emerges:

With Patience Wisdom Emerges

The way things unfold in life have divine logic. The rolling of the seasons, changing path of the clouds, the way the sun shines is divinely orchestrated. The beauty of it all is in the knowing that you, too, are part of this universal plan. You, too, are intricately intertwined with the web of life, the magic of it all. So if at times you feel that you do not understand your part, you don’t ‘get it’, know that that is also part of the divine structure. Your not knowing, not getting it is only a part of your journey in which you are revealed what your part is.

So, practice patience with yourself and your stage in life. The knowledge that you want, the inner-wisdom that you are seeking is all within you. And as you accept yourself, it becomes clearer. And as you let go of facades that cover you, it becomes clearer.

Eventually, it reaches a point when you, your inner-self and wisdom are inseparable. You are unified, you are ‘at one’ with yourself and the world. These are the potentialities that exist for you. Knowing this, you can help yourself be more patient with yourself and the stage you are in.

All becomes clear to you. All that you need on your journey is provided for you. Become still and practice patience. This patience oozes from the understanding of the big picture and from the faith that all is exactly how it is meant to be and that all is well.

Thank You.

Spring Flowers and Smiles for You,
Sophia

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Keep a Green Tree in your heart and perhaps a singing bird will come. -Chinese Proverb

A tree is nourished by the sun, by nutrients in the soil and the air and the refreshing rain, among other ideal conditions for its growth. So is our being nourished in different ways. We are nourished by external factors such as movement, fresh air, nutrituous food and so on. There are also internal factors that give us nourishment such as healthy thoughts and beliefs, receiving and expressing love and a life of purpose and contribution. To me, 'the green tree in your heart' refers to keeping your heart and mind and body open and nourished.

Yet, when the tree has poor access to the nourishing conditions, it becomes ill and eventually dies off. This pattern shows up in humans too. How to create then, internal nourishing factors for our green heart? One way is to know that it is we who need to change and not so much the rest of the world. We need to do the "work" to clean up and clear up the toxic thoughts and beliefs that lie within us. Cleaning up does not mean here that we judge ourselves and make ourselves "wrong". However, it does mean that we need to take active steps to resolve and release the guck and the muck that is sticking to our consciousness. Think about what filth keeps your window opaque? Which dirt blocks you from a crystal clear vision? Take a mop and wipe it. Take a vacuum cleaner and suck it. Clean it up. Clean it up. If this sounds too difficult a task, then break it down. For example, first begin with a little corner of your external life such as your home which has been gathering dust or is sitting cluttered. Next, bring this idea to your inner world. Well, this is exactly what I am currently taking up.

One of the results of this process might be that one can become more open by cleaning up the residue in their consciousness. This is then the 'singing bird' in the proverb: the result or the positive change that comes from keeping a 'green heart'. Once we embark on the ongoing process of nurturing our 'green heart', then the appearance of a songbird become real. In other words, the experience of joy, love, freedom and peace become real.

The 'perhaps' in this proverb throws me off as it calls us to be detached. It seems to mean that we can clean up the toxic elements in our being and maybe we find the peace and joy. There seems to be a fine line here: between expectation and detachment. This is a dilemma that I am currently pouring my mind over: How do I lead a life of expectation of only the best, of peace on Earth, of joy for all and simultaneously detach myself from the results? Detachment would mean that I do not care about the results and the outcome, right? What frame of mind or what state of consciousness do I need to be in in order to navigate this with ease?

For now I cleanse the muck and then as a second step engage with the challenge of detachment!

I welcome your insight if you like to share it with me.

With love,

-Sophia Ojha