Ep #32: Limb Two Niyamas, Svadhyaya: Self Study, "Superpower of Awareness"

Slayer shares some recent digressions from her health path and what it has inspired within her own spiritual journey. Leave inspired to find ways to create more Svadhyaya in your life.
Slayer continues to make the practice of yoga accessible and relatable to our every day lives. This episode gives us pause to consider how much time we are taking to study ourselves. Can we increase our joy by understanding who we truly are? Once again we dive into these big questions of life, in the midst of a weight loss quest and a heroes journey full of all the roadblocks and clues on the path one would expect.  Here are the tips Slayer wraps up for us to start working on:

Steps to Svadhyaya

·      Create some time for Self-Study and self-reflection in your day. Schedule it on your calendar. When you first wake up as part of your AM habit stack is great

·      Choose a book, quotes or maybe a card deck to draw daily inspiration from and reflect, ask what the message is for you that day? What did you learn? 

·      Get a book about a topic that interests you that you haven’t started learning about

·      Look for an online course about something you are interested in

·      Choose some podcasts to listen to that will inspire you

·      Open yourself up to your signs—start to explore your heart’s desire. Are you seeing the doors? 

·      Join a group with similar interests and goals

Mentioned in this episode:

Books:
Meditations from the Mat: Daily Reflections on the Path of Yoga (by Rolf Gates)

Single Wide Female: The Bucket List Mega Bundle - 24 Books (Lilliana Blake)

The Sober Diaries: How one woman stopped drinking and started living (Clare Pooley)

5 AM Club, The: Own Your Morning. Elevate Your Life. (Robin Sharma) 

The Artist's Way: 25th Anniversary Edition (Julia Cameron)

To Reference more on Patanjali and the Yoga Sutras:
The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali (Sacred Teachings)

For the Chariot story about the King of Death and Nacheketa, Preya and Shreya
The Upanishads, 2nd Edition

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Transcript

Welcome to Episode 32 of the Heartsing Podcast. I found such relief from myself this week as I was researching this episode. Have I told you guys lately how much I love what I get to do? I have created this life where I get to study what intrigues me and in turn it hopefully helps inspire  on your journey of self discovery. In this adventure inside ourselves, as we start to cultivate the awareness of who we truly are, we are in essence studying ourselves, perhaps the most intriguing inquiry of all! And that is what this episode is all about this week—Svadhyaya, or Self Study. I like to call this our superpower of awareness. 

If you have been following along as I’m breaking down Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras, this is the 4th Niyama, of the 2nd of 8 limbs of yoga that give us guidelines to the greatest awareness—of our Highest Self. When we discuss yoga in this episode, I’m referring to the union of body, mind and soul, and not the asana yoga practice—the one on the yoga mat that in the western world we identify with yoga. We are expanding our knowledge in this series—that we are indeed all yogis and yoginis right now as we are on this path of personal growth. If you are just jumping in to the podcast, or picked this one out, don’t worry about doing them in order—just like the paths themselves you can dive in and experience and practice them at any of the 8 limbs. 

The relief I found this week was from myself, from my focus on my mind that had become scattered and drawn to my old ways a few times recently. In these moments I have been almost frantic about trying to figure out why…what is Wrong? 

Why am I making these decisions on the path of Preya, when I know my heart sings so radiantly when I’m on the path of Shreya? Last week, I shared a story about Preya and Shreya, but let’s just say Preya being those choices that don’t serve us—such as Chinese food, Ben and Jerry’s and red wine, and Shreya being the choice of prepping the salad and salmon planned for dinner. 

Picture this—I felt like I was in the bottom of a well, and I felt myself frantically clawing at the top of the well…like I’m stuck in there, but I can see myself stuck in there, and I don’t seem to be able to find a way up. My self up top is talking me up…she’s not yet throwing me a rope to help me scale the walls either. No, she is patiently watching me battle my mind and waiting for me to get still and listen. 

This smacked me in the face as I was listening to Meditations from the Mat by Rolf Gates and he shares a nugget…well a bunch of nuggets’, but this one was like BOOM! Yes, that’s me! And, I might relate myself to Jesus here, but just know that I’m quite sure he wouldn’t mind. Heh

Rolf says that one day we make wake up and it’s just harder to get to our yoga mat, or our other healthy practices we’ve created. The old behavior rears its head, and regressions like this are signs that we are getting nearer our truth. We see this in the stories of Jesus and the Buddha—both these men were beset by their demons even as they moved unerringly toward their dharma…and both were able to meet their challenges and move on. They are examples of this potential we have and as we meet our demons these are part of our path. The heroes’ journey is a journey in…. 

So, you see…yes, just like Jesus and the Buddha, these challenges have risen. And, while I might not dispel them as unerringly as these two icons of Spirituality, I do indeed have my own journey, and will tackle my challenges as they arise, and when I can use them to increase my knowledge of self. 

So, I’m sitting still in the bottom of the well for right now. Listening to my Self and noticing the light that I know is there, and listening for the path out this time. Instead of frantically fighting and worrying and having all the thoughts and judgements about it. Observing myself and turning to my spiritual practices as much as I can feel called to embrace them, and we will cover some of those today. 

And brings us to todays topic. 

Because in the application of putting something like Meditation from the Mat in my ear instead of something less thought provoking in the morning, I have completely shifted my perception of what I am going through and now I am curious. 

You know what else this led me to? Another breadcrumb on my path to Namaslayer, that’s my new future self, BTW—the light warrior, the ethereal being, almost non-human version of me. 

So, as I was listening and really loving this author’s words it occurred to me…

…hmmmm…I wonder what Rolf’s physical yoga practice looks like? 

I love when my asana yoga practice is interlaced with spiritual guidance including fun things like stories of Hindu gods and goddesses, so fun! 

And if you have been following along, you know that being a yoga instructor is on my list of 5 occupations if I’m reborn. Heh. 

Well, the first thing I saw on Rolf’s site was online teacher training. 

Interesting 

So, I sent off an inquiry. I will see if the Universe agrees that this is the time for that and watch for the signs that it’s right. 

I know I need to write the book, that is clear, I got the message, but I am also needing a new knowledge path to continue my growth, and I’m thinking this is part of my discomfort right now. I’m a bit stagnant. I continue to learn things—to read and self-study, so I don’t know how to explain it, other than I know there is something else coming and I’m keeping my heart and mind open to receiving those messages.

Also, I’m not known for my patience, so I’m really trying to just chill in the bottom of the well and cultivate some. 

I share this with you because I want you to see how this journey unfolds, from following one little breadcrumb to the next, and not letting eating some crappy food or having some drinks guide me away from my true calling—and all of our true callings—to seek the greatness inside of me. 

So how do we do this? 

We have learned many of the ways already as we discussed the Yama’s—remember those, the guidelines for how we interact with the world outside of us—through trust, love and letting go. Serving in non-voilence to all beings, living in love and not fear. Releasing judgement of self and others. And we moved into the Niyamas, of which we have covered 3 of: saucha or purity, santosha practicing contentment and acceptance right where we are and tapas-creating that fire to help us perservere and get up no matter what. 

Where tapas are the fire that burns within us to seek health, today’s Niyama, Svadhyaya, or self-study is where we start to cultivate this super power of awareness and really turns the journey inward continually. 

Setting up a practice of Svadhyaya is another game changer. 

You know I love to say knowledge comes for you when you are ready, and this is an episode all about that—about the knowledge, and what we can learn, but not just from teachers, but from within ourselves. Because we are already complete and have all knowledge, power, light and love right inside of us, but on this journey, we are working our way back to remembering. 

When you find something that fascinates you and causes you to reflect on the greater creativity of the Universe, or you get inspired in some way—keep your focus there. 

Dig in. 

Consider it a big Ass Breadcrumb

You see it come up over and over again in conversation, emails, your news feed, groups you are in? Grab it. Allow your mind to open so you can plant the seeds of intention and desire

I can tell you that bread crumb about yoga certification online with Rolf is planted, and maybe it won’t be with Rolf, or online that this happens, but it is something I still want more knowledge on and will keep seeking. 

What is that for you? 

What is next on your list, or are you in dedicated study right now? 

Have you done the 5 Rebirth careers exercise yet? 

Let’s do it right now if you haven’t, and refresh your list if you have. If you can pause me and think about this and write them down, do so, even if it’s in a text to yourself.

 Taking massive action baby! Writing things down starts to put them in process. 

So, ask yourself this, and don’t allow yourself to be restricted by anything—money, gender, skills, physical abilities—because this is a clean slate. Ask yourself, “If I were to come back in another life and I get to pick anything I want to be in the world, what profession would I pick?” 

Note if you are censoring yourself. 

You do not exist as you do now, it’s just the energy within you. What would you choose? 

There is no family, debt, pets, location, houses, nothing yet, you just get to choose what you want to be—from your heart’s desire, and you can be the most successful at it—whatever you decide successful even looks like

Write these 5 things down. Put a date on it. 

Start to see the universe bring it to you. 

In fact, you aren’t going to believe this, but I swear this is true, as I’m writing this podcast and I had already written about the yoga part and it being one of my 5 careers I received this message from someone who used to be in my Sisterhood, check this out, we will just call her my friend from down under:

Last month, I was cleaning my house (as you do) and I went to put some music on but your podcast came up and I pressed play…. I cried… It had come to me at the exact right time. I have been feeling very lost and have been allowing myself to fall into overwhelm…. I have binged almost every episode and I have been getting so many signs. firstly, a couple of days before I listened to your podcast on Abundance, Synchronicities and Spirit Guides, I wrote a poem on ‘looking for signs’. my mind blew open!! The next sign hit me like a train and I got instant goosebumps (ha-ha), I was in training for work and a book came up, Man’s Search for Meaning by Viktor Frankl with a quote from the book - “Everything can be taken from a man but one thing: the last of the human freedoms—to choose one's attitude in any given set of circumstances, to choose one's own way.” 

I don’t know Addie... I can feel to many things being sent to me!! I also (finally) did a vision board and I ended up cutting out 7 pics of camera from a bunch of different magazines and in my head, I was like the cameras will remind me of how I ‘want’ to look in photos. but the weirdest thing happened. You have spoken numerous times in your podcast about flow and 5 careers we would pick if we started fresh, at the top of mine without hesitation was photographer. I have always loved photography but moved that dream to the side when I was in my early 20s!!!! 

I think I was supposed to cut out those cameras as a reminder to pick up a camera again and start being creative (so I have started looking at cameras!!). I remember when I was younger, I would edit photos for ages and I would literally lose track of time. crazy right. its flow!?! When I first started thinking about changing my mind and soul (when we connected), I don’t think I was ready. I was going through so much with our youngest daughter and all my energy was there. I feel like things are starting to line up for me to make the change now. if that makes sense ha-ha!! 

Magical! Right? This is part of Svadhyaya too…this is self-study—exploring what lights you up! If we don’t make the time to do this intentionally, then we risk the possibility of going through life missing all of our signs! 

Those things we have shoved down because we didn’t think we were good enough, or didn’t have time for, or money, or ability…or whatever our limiting belief is. 

When we take time to do things even just like daring to dream! To start to ask what if? To making a vision board, and having a quote jump out at you that causes you to reflect on your inner self. 

We do this each day in the Mefirst Guide planner—draw either a card from a deck, I like my Yogic Path Deck, but we have such a variety the Sisterhood uses, it’s on my list to make my own MEfirst Deck! How fun with that be—okay, squirrel there!

Anyhow, page 2 of the Daily Action plan is all about Svadhyada and you can do this in your morning too. Read a page in a book that inspires you, pick a card or a quote. Ask what lesson you can learn today and see what shows up. Then we write either a message from our future self with wisdom for the day—remember you already have all the answers within. 

So often we are seeking counsel outside, which is great too, but sometimes we can just ask and be still. The answers are there, and this is how we fine tune our ability to hear what we intuitively know. 

Also thinking about how you want to show up throughout your day—to live with intention. For me this is self-study as well. It pushes me into the state of awareness in each moment. This is like you pick a word of the year for each segment of the day. Abraham calls this Segment Intention and is part of creating what we want. 

We have present moment awareness of self. I write these daily in my guide, how I want to show up for each work segment, coaching call, time with my family. 

This also forces me to study how I am showing up. 

All of these things are a great example of self-study through the path of Yoga and that it doesn’t need to be of a specific spiritual nature like old spiritual texts that we often see in religions—which by the way—does the book matter? 

Don’t they all have the same path—to enlightenment? 

And, I think it’s always fun to remember that enlightenment means to “lighten up”. 

We take it all so seriously—life that is, and this is what I have been doing. I need to remember to lighten up more as I’m awaiting my direction.

So, you don’t need to read things like the Upanishads, the Bible or the yoga sutras to get inspired on your path of wisdom. 

And in fact, when I first picked up the Upanishads and the Bhagavad Gita at the beginning of my Chopra Center teachers experience it was pretty Greek to me. 

As I have expanded my awareness, I now read from these daily, and don’t see that changing the rest of my life. I have also picked up the Bible again and the Science and Health from Christian Science, and it’s like I’m seeing colors where it was black and white before. 

Like I can finally read and see that it is a story and a journey inside that they are all trying to teach us. 

For me, these completely bored me or were painful to have to try and read and study, until I had the physical experience—or the experience I have had since expanding my awareness of consciousness through my meditation practice, but also as I’ve grown my self-awareness through life coaching, learning habits and self-help tips. 

All of this has expanded my awareness of self, and it’s working for you too. 

What is it you like to learn right now? 

There are all different kinds of ways we can increase our inner awareness! I don’t know about you but I like to do many of these things at the same time. 

Maybe it’s listening to something like this podcast (see what I did there? “Heh

Maybe it’s through people you encounter in life—someone you follow on social media, teachers or a coach.  

It doesn’t have to be through a book. 

Maybe there is someone in your life you learn from and you want to learn more. 

But what about inspirational books? 

I have mentioned a few on my journey that had a big impact on me and are not considered “spiritual texts” such as Single Wide Female by Lillian Blake—these simple little chicks lit reads about this over weight girl who made her everyday bucket list inspirited so much in my life, and led me to meditation. I gobbled the bucket list series up. It was just what I needed to Lighten up at that time—yes, I was reading to distract myself from my discomfort, but I was getting inspired at the same time. Priceless. 

Also reading the Sober Diaries—I haven’t read this in years, but it was my first awakening to what alcohol was doing to me—making me a drain in life. Sucking away my radiation! We can’t have that! Through her story I saw many truths in myself and also found inspiration to think, Hmmmmmm…what if I CAN have fun and live more radiantly on the other side of not having a glass of wine in hand at every gathering, function, sporting event—you know, all the places alcohol is. You might not even realize it until you stop drinking—it’s everywhere and such a part of our culture. For me, I knew it was not going to help me get to my weight loss goal and needed to go.  

The 5 AM club by Robin Sharma—I love this one on audible. Not everyone agrees with me on that, but I adore this book and found it so inspiring. I could literally highlight every page! This had such an impact on creating my future self-alter ego, uncovering these superpowers inside. “Stop being a prisoner of your past. Become the architect of your future.”

Of course, The Artist’s Way by Julia Cameron—her workbook was a huge part of my growth and I think where the 5 careers exercise came from. 

There are so many more!

What are some of your favorites? 

What about knowledge about our bodies that inspire us to get healthier and understand how this body works to greater facilitate my body mind connection? 

That list my friends is also endless! Most recently Dave Asprey’s Fast this Way, which is of course about fasting and full of knowledge about our bodies, but also full of spiritual references and more about understanding our bodies and connecting on a scientific level as well.  The Obesity Code from Dr. Jung is powerful too. Dave’s podcast is a great source of information—Bulletproof Radio if you haven’t listened yet. If you get inspired like I do about understanding what is happening in our bodies—this is the podcast for you and full of bio hacks to live a longer, healthier life. 

I’m currently knee deep in understanding everything I can about gut health and will be doing an episode on that after I finish out the 8 limbs of yoga. I continue to follow these bread crumbs of knowledge and I just go where it is fun for me…. where I want to learn. 

And then that is what I choose to teach, because that is when I learn the most, when I take that information and relate it to my life and experiment with it and then share it with you. Then I become the knowledge and take a part of that teacher with me. 

So, I can proudly say I now host a piece of Dave Asprey, Robin Sharma, Lillian Blake, Julia Cameron, Dr. Jung, Dr. Deepak Chopra, Roger Gabriel …I hold pieces of all of these teachers and many many more through all of the learning I have applied from them. 

It’s a beautiful thing to be part of something so grand. 

Who is a part of you? 

Ooooo…I hope you say I’m a part of you! How cool is that? Maybe you pick up one little thing here and apply it in your life and voila! You got some Slaya in ya! 

Hahaha…be ware, I know. 

Seriously though, don’t discount the power of who and what you are putting in your ear and therefore into your powerful mind. 

I know my choice this week, even when I woke up in a ball of discomfort to listen to the Meditations from the Mat book even as I bombed a million other things—was just what I needed at the time, and it helped me start to rise out of my funk and gave me 2 golden nuggests-

Frist, my thought correction about needing to get out of the well to it just being part of the process. 

And to remember, just like Jesus and Buddha, I’m going to fair just fine in the end. This is part of my yogic path—that journey inside, and maybe adding that extra education about the physical asana practice and once again expanding my knowledge and awareness of my inner self through my body is just what I need to get deeper in this practice. 

Here’s the thing—we can’t know unless we try!

Are you trying new things? 

So, what if they fail? What if I make this investment and it’s not what I needed or I hate it (BTW, that’s not possible but, let’s just hypothesize here). 

So what? Then I know there is another path and I can mark that one off, and will I have learned something? 

No doubt.

I think this is my next path on my journey not only to my overall weight loss goal, but on my path of self-discovery. 

I mean, heck, it was one of my 5 rebirth careers! I’m already on the path of the others—motivational speaker, author

And, yes, I need to write the book, and I will and while it might seem like a noble obstacle, and how will I have time for that and everything else I create? 

Well, I make time witches and bitches! When you want something badly enough, you start the probe, and you see if doors open. 

I sent off a message to find out more and I’ll see if it all lines up. If so, bada bing, bada boom! Done!

This will keep my eye on my spiritual ball as I write. Because writing, I love, but it also makes me want to jump out of my skin with pent up energy!

I want to take that energy to my practice on the mat. 

I didn’t really have that sorted out until I wrote this episode. Check that out. This is an amazing process right? 

What do you just love to learn about? What inspires you? 

I urge you to seek more of that. 

Whatever you are being called to—this will shift, like my sister from down under that shared about her photography journey now and it not being the right time—this—we need to be less obsessed about being loyal in our knowledge to others, and more obsessed about finding knowledge that we WANT to seek, that lights us up. 

This is why I don’t get upset when it’s time for people to seek another teacher, in fact, you should always have multiple teachers I think. 

This is like expecting our spouses to fulfill all of our needs. Is that really feasible that they are our best friend, confidant, cheer leader, lover, shopping buddy, and on and on? 

I don’t ever expect the women in my group to only learn from me, in fact, they better share who and what they are learning because sharing the knowledge is amazing—this is also how we learn. 

This is how I found Fast this Way, and the Obesity Code and many other things…was from others sharing their journey in our groups. 

Remember that—share your knowledge, not only will you learn more in teaching, but you will help others that is might just click for!

As a teacher it’s also important to stay open to all knowledge, to keep learning and growing. The more I learn, the less I know. Knowledge, like source is infinite. It’ very humbling. 

Also pay attention to who you hanging around? 

This can be just as important as it’s akin to “what’s in your ear”. We are being influenced by those around us all the time. Seek out groups that are on a path you want to be on, and know that it’s okay to set boundaries with those in your life who are not headed in the direction you want to go. 

Your social circle will change as you do. 

James Clear talks about the power of this in Atomic Habits—one of the best ways to make a habit is to join others who have that habit or are working on the same thing. 

Again, we are learning from each other, and we are also biologically set to want to be in packs. 

Let’s recap quick and give you some action items you can focus on, shall we? Pick one little thing to work on—remember it’s not about ALL the things—it’s about doing just 1% more each day. Tiny little steps. 

Steps to Svadhyaya

·      Create some time for Self-Study and self-reflection in your day. Schedule it on your calendar. When you first wake up as part of your AM habit stack is great

·      Choose a book, quotes or maybe a card deck to draw daily inspiration from and reflect, ask what the message is for you that day? What did you learn? 

·      Get a book about a topic that interests you that you haven’t started learning about

·      Look for an online course about something you are interested in

·      Choose some podcasts to listen to

·      Open yourself up to your signs—start to explore your heart’s desire. Are you seeing the doors? As I was messaging with my Aussie Sister, she sent back that she was listening to the Authentic Powers episode and she told me that one of mine was showing other’s the door and that there are paths if you just stay curious and listen. I truly hope you are all inspired in this way and are starting to listen too, or maybe you were already. Becoming the ever-curious student of life. Having an open mind and heart is so key on this path

And, lastly but not least--

·      Join a group with similar interests and goals

 And, if you are listening to this and aren’t in our Heartsing Podcast pack of amazing women yet, what are you waiting for? Hop on on. See the Show notes for links and information on the free group, all the books I mentioned and more. 

Find your Pack my Witches and Bitches!

Until next week!

Slayer out!