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by Erin Byron, MA
It is a busy world and most of our lives are full. So
full, in fact, that we barely have time to notice how we are living as
life hurries by. This sense of disconnected rushing leads to stress
and, in time, pervasive anxiety. Mindfulness, or the act of bringing
awareness to our thoughts, bodies, and the present moment, is a
powerful practice for reducing stress. Many of us experience different
kinds of stress as we move through our days, be it at school, work,
home, on the road, at the health club, in the dentist's office, or when
we are laying in bed at night. The following tips give you mindfulness
practices that can support you in various areas of life so that you can
spend more time focusing on who you really are and what is actually
happening and less time stressing.
- Mindfulness for Work Stress
Most people have a list of stressors that play out at work. Whether
your tension comes from deadlines, grumpy coworkers, or the sheer
volume of tasks, there are ways to bring mindfulness into your everyday
at-work situations and by extension your own heart and mind.
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by
Llewellyn
1. Llewellyn's Complete Book of Mindful Living is
the second book on which you've collaborated with Robert "Bob" Butera
(the first being, Yoga Therapy
for Stress & Anxiety). How did that
partnership come about?
 When I
was in graduate school studying to
be a psychotherapist, I ran a study at a sexual assault crisis center.
My thesis was that Yoga Therapy could help victims of recent and
childhood abuse. I needed someone with a PhD in Yoga to support my
studies, and through a mutual connection from The Yoga Institute of
Mumbai, I got in touch with Bob. That was fifteen years ago and we have
been friends and colleagues ever since! (By the way, the study showed
that Yoga Therapy had a big impact on physical and mental health.)
2. Mindfulness
is a hot topic these days. What exactly is mindfulness? Why is it
beneficial to our daily lives?
Mindfulness is the simple act of bringing
full consciousness to the present moment. It might also be called
"awareness practice" or "insight meditation." We become mindful by
observing what is being taken in by the senses and occurring around us,
as well as noticing the inner flow of thought and emotion. It's
important that our attention to these things is nonjudgmental; in other
words, you do not label your thoughts, feelings, and experiences as
"good" or "bad;" just let them be. Freed from judgment, we can have a
complete experience. The "mindful self" is an objective witness who
helps us gain a better understanding of our mental and emotional
habits.
Mindfulness is beneficial to our everyday
lives because mindfulness practices can be used anytime, anywhere, by
anyone. Mindfulness techniques give us a clear picture of our own
unique inner and outer reality. From this objective of nonjudgmental
awareness we are empowered to take conscious action and create the life
of our dreams. We come to know who we truly are and how to live in
accordance with that.
3. Can
anyone practice mindfulness? Is a background in other practices, like
meditation or yoga, necessary?
Click here to read
the full interview.
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Tarot As a Mirror
by Barbara Moore
Some say tarot reflects back what you think, feel, or
believe. Some say that it reflects back what you want to see. Whatever
you believe, you can blend these ideas into one process that helps you
identify your ideals and your practices so that you can be aware of the
distance between those two points. Then you can develop an action plan
to close the gap between your ideals and how you live your life. Here,
tarot expert Barbara Moore provides a process to do just that.
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Express Yourself with an Herb Garden
by Sandra Kynes
While we may think of herbs as unassuming little plants,
their importance and use is intertwined with human history. And herb
gardening need not be mundane, either—as The Herb Gardener's Essential Guide author
Sandra Kynes points out, it can be an exercise in creativity and magic!
Herb gardening creates a connection through time that binds us to the
earth, the ancestors, and to each other. You'll be amazed that
something as simple as an herb can be so powerful in so many ways.
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What Do We Put Under the Candle When Our Currency
Goes Digital?: The Future of Money Magic
by Gordon White
The global economy is changing, and we are moving to a
new form of money: a completely digital one. Most people will not
currently believe it, but such a world is almost here. How does this
impact money magick? Gordon White, author of the new Chaos Protocols: Magical Techniques for Navigating the
New Economic Reality, explains how we can navigate these
changes and how we might even benefit from it.
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The Magical Use of Prayer Beads
by Jean-Louis de Biasi
On the spiritual level, mantras and prayers can be used
in the same way; a precise and regular repetition of words that will
progressively build an inner core, allowing you to rise to the divine.
I am not talking here about hymns or declamatory prayers. Likewise,
prayer beads can be used in all spiritual and initiatic traditions to
help with this process of prayer and repetition, creating strength with
each refrain. Jean-Louis de Biasi, author of the new Magical Use of Prayer Beads, discusses their
history and power.
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