Meditation and Contemplation for Fall: Cultivating Stillness in Vata Season
As autumn unfolds with its crisp air and golden leaves, the energy of Vata dosha becomes dominant. Vata is light, airy, and mobile—qualities that can inspire creativity and movement, but when imbalanced, they may lead to restlessness, anxiety, or difficulty focusing. This makes fall the perfect season to anchor your daily routine with meditation and contemplative practices.
Finding Fulfillment: A Journey Through Self-Inquiry
This prompted me to explore the concept of fulfillment more deeply. According to the dictionary, fulfillment is defined as the fulfillment of a promise, completion, a contented feeling, and the achievement of a desire or promise. Inspired by this, I decided to delve into some self-inquiry questions to better understand the promises I’ve made to myself and what fulfillment truly means to me.
Ayurveda Winter Wellness: Balancing Kapha & Vata for Seasonal Health
The first snow of winter carries a magic of its own—the crisp air, the scent of earth beneath fresh powder, and the quiet stillness that signals a new beginning. Just as the seasons shift, so too do the rhythms of our bodies.
In Ayurveda, winter is primarily considered Kapha season, with its cold weather, increased moisture, and hibernation-like energy. But in places like Colorado—where winters are also dry and brittle—Vata qualities are just as present. The stillness and isolation of winter can aggravate both Kapha and Vata, making it important to follow a supportive seasonal routine.
Detaching from Illness: A Buddhist Practice for Healing
When we face illness—whether a sudden diagnosis or a lifelong condition—it can be difficult to remain positive and trust the process of healing. The mind naturally attaches to labels such as “I have diabetes” or “I am overweight.” Yet from a Buddhist perspective, these identifications can actually strengthen our suffering rather than support our healing.
Breaking Patterns: How Awareness Leads to Lasting Transformation
A few weeks ago, I jammed my toenail. It turned black and eventually fell off. But when it did, I discovered something surprising—a completely new, healthy nail was already growing underneath.
For years, ever since breaking this toe in 2003, I had accepted the strange, misshapen nail as “normal.” Suddenly, after all this time, it was gone—replaced by wholeness.
This small experience reminded me how often we accept unhealthy patterns or imperfections in ourselves, not because they serve us, but because we’ve convinced ourselves there’s nothing we can do. We tell ourselves, “This is just how it is.”
But just like that new toenail, transformation is always possible.
Mindfulness of the Emotional Body: A Guided Practice for Awareness & Healing
There is an intimate partnership between the weight we carry on the physical body and the weight we hold in our emotional body. The emotional body is part of the subtle energy field that surrounds us, directly connected to the chakras (energy centers), the aura, and the energy channels that run throughout our system.
Mindfulness of the Body: A Daily Practice for Awareness & Healing
In our busy world, the body often becomes the last thing we pay attention to. We push through exhaustion, run from one responsibility to the next, and overlook the signals our bodies send us. It’s no wonder so many of us feel overworked, tired, and disconnected from our physical health.
How often have you discovered a bruise or soreness and couldn’t remember where it came from? Or reached for pain medication without stopping to ask why the pain was there in the first place?
This is the cost of living in a constant state of distraction. But through mindfulness of the body, we can restore awareness, compassion, and connection with ourselves.
The Life Pie: Balancing Your Time Through Self-Inquiry, Six Sigma, and Coaching
Take a moment. Draw a circle on a blank sheet of paper. This circle represents 100% of your time—all the hours you spend awake and asleep. Inside this circle lives your entire life: work, relationships, family, health, spirituality, and rest.
Now pause and contemplate: What compartments exist in your life, and how much time do you devote to each?
The Power of Self-Inquiry: A Path to Awareness and Transformation
Meditation and journaling often bring peace, clarity, and unexpected answers to life’s challenges. Yet there is another practice—more demanding, but deeply transformative—known as self-inquiry. While meditation soothes the mind and contemplation nurtures insight, self-inquiry asks us to turn inward with courage, confronting the uncomfortable patterns and emotions that shape our lives.
Journaling — A Path to Awareness and Emotional Healing
Do you keep a diary or write in a journal? Many of us have half-filled journals lying around the house—beautiful covers with only a few pages written before the habit fades. For some, journaling feels like a chore. With busy schedules, carving out consistent time for writing can be difficult. Yet, much like meditation, journaling is one of the most powerful tools for self-awareness, emotional release, and creative flow.
The Power of Contemplation: Slowing Down to Discover Truth
In a world where most of us are conditioned to react instantly, contemplation invites us to pause, breathe, and consider. Rather than rushing into action from fear, stress, or ego, contemplation allows us to hold space for the situation, letting wisdom ripen before we act.
Even comedy captures this truth. In a classic Monty Python sketch, philosophers line up to play soccer. Instead of kicking the ball, they all stand still, stroking their chins, deep in thought. Finally, one philosopher has an idea, kicks, and scores. Funny—but also a perfect picture of what contemplation really is.
Meditation: Cultivating Presence and Mindfulness
Meditation is the ancient practice of returning to the present moment through breath and focused awareness. It is where we connect with our Truth—what the Yoga Sutras call Satya, or truth with a capital T.
Satya encourages us to live in alignment with what is, not simply our judgments or perceptions. Through meditation, we cultivate mindfulness: the state of calm observation where we accept our thoughts, emotions, and sensations without clinging to them. This awareness leads to clarity, healing, and higher consciousness.
Forgiveness Practice for Healing Relationships
The idea of forgiveness has come up often in my sessions recently. Forgiveness is not about condoning someone’s behavior, nor is it about forgetting what has happened. It is about releasing the toxic energy of anger, resentment, and pain that keeps us bound to the past. True forgiveness creates space for healing, freedom, and compassion—both for ourselves and others.