Sacred Baths in Australia

by Candace Vorhaus on April 30, 2012

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We just returned from a two-week trip to the magnificent land down under, Australia.  Hosted by our dear friends, the Lollback family, we were blessed with perfect weather and a wonderful reunion of kindred spirits.

There is no easy way to Australia, as our trip took 28 hours door to door.  Leaving Sag Harbor, NY, in the early afternoon on Saturday, we finally arrived at the Lollback’s gorgeous, north Sydney, water-view home midmorning on Monday.  Surprisingly, after a two-hour drive to JFK airport, two wonderful Qantas flights, long customs, security, and immigration checkpoints, I was so happy being in Australia, I didn’t feel a bit jet lagged.

PhotobucketAlisa Lollback, a leading and very talented holistic healer specializing in Body Psychotherapy, made sure we didn’t waste a moment of time and on our second day took us for a bush walk in neighboring, Ku-Ring-Gai Chase National Park, to visit ancient Aboriginal sites.  As a special treat, Alisa, asking the boys to stay behind, expertly guided us off the tourist trail, down a little known hidden path, under bushes and through brambles, until we emerged onto a stone plateau overlooking the stunning ancient valley.

PhotobucketAlong the plateau were several deep pockets in the craggy stone that when filled with rainwater became sacred Aboriginal baths.  For centuries, off limits to men, Aboriginal women came to this hallowed place to cleanse, purify and give birth to their babies.

Throughout history, many cultures have created consecrated bathing rituals to purify the soul, cleanse the body, and heal from illnesses.  In the Jewish tradition, the sacred, ritualistic, rainwater bath is called a mikvah.  Christians purify a new baby by baptism.  Catholics will travel to France to receive the healing waters of Lourdes so they can hopefully cure their diseases when doctors have decreed no hope.  In the Hindu religion, taking a bath is considered the most important daily ritual to prepare for the day ahead.

For me, I carve out a special time at the end of the day to make my own sacred bath.  To clean my body, purify my ch’i, and cleanse my spirit and soul before bed feels good, and I sleep better.  My family knows my bath time is mine and anything short of an emergency will have to wait.

To make my bath sacred, I light a few candles and play some relaxing spa-like music.  To the bathwater, I add soothing lavender oil, and a few handfuls of sea salt and baking soda.  To complete the ritual, I soak for at least twenty minutes.  When I emerge I feel renewed, refreshed, relaxed and free of the days worries.

A friend of mine, before entering the tub, uses a dry brush on her skin because she believes it cleanses her aura as well as stimulating blood flow and her lymphatic system.  Another friend enjoys a cup of herbal tea while soaking in a bubble bath, surrounded by playful and sensual bubbles.  However you decide to make your bath, set your intention to make it sacred.

Now, if only I could take a sacred bath again soon in Australia, I would be, well, ecstatic.

So tell me, how do you make your bath sacred?

 

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How High is Your Ch’i?

by Candace Vorhaus on March 27, 2012

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“A Jedi’s strength flows from the Force.”  Yoda

Robbie, and I went vegan for seven weeks.

After signing up for the local Wellness Challenge, sponsored by the Wellness Foundation in East Hampton, New York, we agreed to eliminate from our diet animal products, including meats, fish, eggs, dairy, oils, and processed foods, while eating live, plant-based foods.  We also agreed to attend meetings once a week that included wellness lectures, discussions, cooking demonstrations and food samplings.  At the end, Robbie and I lost weight, body fat, and our blood work was dramatically better.  We, along with about fifteen other participants in our group, successfully graduated feeling healthier and more energetic.

One of the funny things about tackling the Wellness Challenge was the reaction from some friends and, yes, even a doctor or two.

“You’re doing what?” we heard.  “That’s really radical!  You don’t need to do that.  You better be careful.”  We got that often.

The reality is we never felt better.  We enjoyed abundant meals made with fresh, colorful plant-based foods, including peppers, kale, bok choy, spinach, zucchini, basil, tomatoes, avocados, mangos, cilantro and other yummy fresh ingredients. The result was feeling brighter and more alive.  For us, trying a vegan lifestyle — even just for seven weeks — made sense.

We were amazed at how good we felt after eating a plate full of colorful fresh vegetables over rice or drinking smoothies made with fresh kale, basil, mint, banana, kiwi and an apple.  It’s been known for centuries that eating an abundance of live, colorful fruits and vegetables raises your ch’i, your life force, because you are literally ingesting life, nature’s vitality.

In my work, ch’i the vital life force energy is a critical component of the C3D path (color, clutter, ch’i and design) to an abundant life.  In the Vedic tradition, ch’i is called prana, in Hawaiian culture it’s mana, and in the movie Star Wars, ch’i is referred to as “The Force.”  Ch’i includes both your personal and environmental life force energy.

You want to raise and cultivate your ch’i to feel good, to strengthen your immune system, to sleep better, to increase brain function, to be more present and alert, more loving in your relationships, to become more compassionate, to perform better in your work, to become more intuitive, to attract more abundance, and just to be abundant.

A friend of mine says, “You are either involutionary or evolutionary,” meaning, in every moment you have the choice to either feel better or feel worse, lift or lower yourself and others, to lighten or darken.

There are many ways to elevate your ch’i and eating fresh, live foods is one of them.  Here are some ways you can raise your ch’i with food:

  1. Eat fresh, live foods preferably grown locally.
  2. Know the ingredients in the foods you eat.
  3. Eat a variety from a rainbow of lively colored, fresh fruits and vegetables.
  4. Eat organic whole foods as much as possible.
  5. Plan to take some extra time to lovingly prepare your meals.
  6. Limit fats, processed foods, animal products and dairy.
  7. Limit coffee and alcohol.
  8. Become mindful when eating.  Mindlessly stuffing yourself with unhealthy foods can lead to weight gain, poor health and low ch’i.
  9. Look to other cultures that have elevated mindful eating to an art form.

Other ch’i lifting questions are:

  • What are my daily choices for personal care and awareness?
  • What am I going to do today towards my growth and self care?
  • What is the ch’i of my home and personal spaces, and what can I do to improve it?
  • Am I making choices that raise or lower my spirit?

Your goal in life is to live more abundantly.  Here’s one of my mantras, and I’ll share it with you: “I am abundant.  I give and receive generously.  There is enough for everyone.”

Focus daily on the many ways to develop and lift your ch’i for more abundance, and you’ll see the results in your health, relationships, career and finances.  I send you an abundance of love and light.

So, how high is your ch’i?

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