Successful window

Life is much more successfully looked at from a single window.
- from The Great Gatsby, F. Scott Fitzgerald


A single window: what about that?
Maybe Nick would pop up in flesh and bones from the first chapter of Francis Scott Fitzgerald's novel to tell you that people who look at the world one way and are great at the one thing they do are actually the most successful type of people. He thinks that through "one window" you will get the clearest view of what you're looking at.

In some yoga techniques we focus on one thought, one sound, one object, a single element that helps us to concentrate and calm our noisy mind, crowded by so much more than a single element.
The word "yoga" means "union" and yogi is that person who finds neutrality between polarities: day/night, male/female, good/bad, etc. A neutral mind's talent is accepting the "twos" and merging into "one" so that happiness naturally comes as we are aware that joy and sorrow, ups and downs in life are only parts of the same beautiful experience that life is.

So it is not "one way", but it is all about oneness along a two-way road.
Do we agree about one single window? How many would say: if I look through one window only, won't I be missing all the stuff that I might see from another one, maybe even better located, right on the main square?
I don't know about you, but I thought about it. And things came out.
Why do we suppose there should be so many windows? Who said that our house should have many little windows and not, for example, just one huge window? More light would come in, to begin with. Anyway, who said that we should stay closed inside a house to look through a window?
We tend to look outside for things that satisfy our needs. We look for success in the world outside, expecting to see good things knocking on our comfortable house's door and dwelling in a structure that we built up exactly for that, according to our vision. But are we sure it is the right vision? Are we sure that we know what is the best for us?

What is the secret of success? What makes us happy and prosperous?

There are two possibilities: either we put windows in walls trying to let in some light and look at the world through them or we can realize that we are the window and there's no walls at all.
If we focus within, if we realize the window looks on to ourselves and not only on to the world, the view is complete.

In the biggest companies (I was a communication consultant for a couple of multinational corporations and I took advantage to observe the dynamics there) the window is very important: only it comes with different names. You will hear about external and internal communication, brand personality, vision... But it is always about the same thing: a simple, single window. The view must be looked at from the same one window, the vision must be shared with every single element of the company and multiple thoughts and ideas should merge into one common goal, in order to make effective communication happen and the company be successful.
Every company is like a person: the more oneness and cohesion there is, the more it works. When lots of people are involved, lots of minds are involved, and it is perfectly normal to have different points of view and different ideas: as soon as differences are accepted and channelled into one voice, all of that becomes the company's strength. It is possible and it actually happens everyday in good companies, with good leaders and communication teams who take care of it.

Practicing yoga stimulates the nervous system and, through meditation, we also eliminate multiple personalities so that our authenticity and creativity come out freely. In other words: we get rid of stress and all garbage we accumulated in our subconscious by playing many roles for years. All the structures and foundations of our house usually reveal how much fragile they are at the first shake, windows included.
By changing perspective, by realizing that we don't need to build any window because we are the window, prosperity starts flowing.
Yogi Bhajan said: "when you don't go within, you go without". If we focus within, everything will come in and out freely through us. Air flows, energy flows, ideas flow, creativity flows. As windows we can open up or shut down according to the circumstances, able to recognize immediately whether what enters is good smelling flowers or dirty dust from road work and then act with intuition, catching good opportunities and defending ourselves from potentially harmful situations. Our vision of the world outside is not filtered by something our mind made up from the subconscious, instead it corresponds to reality seen through our awareness and a direct view from within to outside.

"Life is more successfully looked at from a single window". Apart from Fitzgerald's novel, where Nick lives in the America of the Twenties and expresses his wish of fitting in the society and impress his family, quoting him here was just a source of inspiration to say that success comes from consciousness, unity, non-duality. Success means happiness: by keeping joyful neutrality between ups and downs of life and letting things move, liberated from blocks and stagnation, opportunities come.
The secret of success is believing in ourselves without prejudices about how our talents will find their way in this world and developing a neutrality that makes us intuitive and receptive to everything that surrounds us so that we can grab the best opportunity at the perfect moment.
Then, once we have explored our creative potential, we will put our soul into it with great honesty, commitment and transparence: we don't want to disappoint ourselves!

What is so beautiful in you that the rest of the world should know about and enjoy? Open your window, let your talent come out and communicate it to the world!

Thanksgiving: angels on the road

FL-5 North, Florida

In Italy I lived in Milan for several years. Back then I was far from home for the very first time, completely on my own. I was looking for the job of my dreams, jumping from a train to the other, running next to other people. I worked hard, spent the most of my time between an office and my small apartment on the Navigli. I have been butterfly in every rainy day: little drops like waterfalls, my wings shaking every time I missed my island, the sun of Sicily in the south of Italy, the smell of the sea. I looked at the giant cathedral, Duomo di Milano, and I grew up.

They were there, even in Milano. In the subway, behind a desk, in the office, at the park, while riding the bike, in my 30 squared meters apartment.
Then in Rome, next to my bed at night, they were tall, winged and so bright that I couldn't see their face.
They were in a church to be married, next to me, in my spouse's eyes.

They have always been here in fact, since I cried for the first time, when I was born.

The sky and the ocean, flying over Peru

Today I don't run anymore, like a snail I carry my home, even in this America where there is enough space for everyone. And they are still here, on the road. You don't need to call upon them, you don't need to beg them, but if you pray you can feel those soft and white clouds pampering your heart.
They tingle at home, they lift me up from the bed and from the couch, they write messages on boards, magazines and TV, they save me twice in the same day from a too fast car, they inspire me, they attend the yoga class, they invite me at a party, they wake me up from nightmares, they talk to me, they blow on my head when it is too heavy and they refill my heart when it gets flat under pressure.

They are always there for us.
Why do we have to remember them only when there is a reason (or a festivity) to give thanks? There is no conditions in love.

Be grateful every moment, for every moment. Grateful, here and now, in opportunities as well as in challenges, focusing not only at the heavens but also at the Earth. Catching every subtlety, every spark, every divine message around us which is source of inspiration and creativity.

Thank you people I know, I have just met, whose hearts I didn't touch yet but you already smile; thank you people who give me so many possibilities, turn your eyes on me along the street, send me love from across the ocean; thank you people who pray to possess, live in my nightmares, disguise your innocence: you are people who take the worst off from me, so that what remains is the best; thank you people who give unconditionally, accept to be helped, open up and trust; thank you people wearing a t-shirt with butterflies on it and I had foreseen coming, people who see the light in my eyes, who squeeze water from the stone and smiles from my heart.

I thank you God for most this amazing day: for the leaping greenly spirit of trees and a blue true dream of sky; and for everything which is natural which is infinite which is yes. - E. E. Cummings

Air yoga

Read my twin article of this post featured on TheYogaBlog.

Isla del Sol, Titicaca Lake (Bolivia)

While visiting the Lake Titicaca area, I and many other travelers experienced something that we won't easily forget: altitude sickness.

There's no way to avoid it at 4000m above sea level: the thinner air causes a speeding heartbeat, panting, headache, vertigo, nausea, loss of appetite, insomnia... Symptoms may vary, but each one of them make people miserable with equal intensity.

That kind of tragedy inspired me. While tempting to not faint at every step I took uphill, to recuperate both the pleasure of traveling and the ability to fully breathe during my daily meditation, I realized how the altitude sickness isn't that far from the challenges we face in our everyday life at sea level.

Stress, anxiety, vertigo, bad digestion, phobias, separation, deadlines, panic attacks... These are some very common circumstances and the predominant feeling is lack of a way-out and of air.

I missed air so much during my travel around Peru and Bolivia. Exhausted by hiking, I put together my resources to take care of altitude sickness: info on internet, locals and other travelers' advices, yoga techniques.

The following is what came out: a tragicomic decalogue to survive altitude sickness, but also anyone who doesn't let us breathe (including ourselves!).

Whenever we run out of air, this is the Decalogue to catch our breath again:

1. L.D.B.

It's not a synthetic drug, it is the acronym of one of the most effective yoga techniques: the Long, Deep breath.

In case of emergency it calms the mind, slows the heartbeat down and expands the lungs, so that a big shot of oxygen goes to the brain.

The breath can also be held in for a few seconds, as long as it doesn't make us feel dizzy!

2. SIESTA.

Rest is a must. Sometimes we are not able to take it easy and relax, running from an appointment to the other or becoming slaves of our agendas.

Fighting unexpected circumstances only produces more stress: we'd better wait for the worst to pass by, patiently. No complain, no tension, no blame: statistics demonstrate that it just gets worse otherwise!

When the worst arrives (and it always does!) we will look it in the eye without moving a muscle, possibly sipping a hot relaxing infusion: we will be more observers and less victims.

3. FOCUS.

Connected to the previous point, this one is for those who think "I can't stop, my agenda is more important than me!", people who don't know how to stay still.

While traveling I realized that resting for someone is not so easy to practice. They want to get everything done, possibly right away.

If that is what happens, at least we can try to focus on one thing at a time.

By engaging the brain on one item only, we avoid to overwhelm it during the emergency that it is already trying to deal with.

4. CALM.

The heart pumps faster to take the missing oxygen to the brain, provoking panting every time we go uphill (in life as much as on mountain trails).

Visualization, associated to a deep and aware breath, is very good to calm down in case of panic. The image of a placid and clear lake, for example, helps whenever we freak out (lake Titicaca was my best friend for a while!).

5. SLOW DOWN.

The body needs to recuperate and adapt to the new circumstances: we can't overload it by moving as usual.

One step after the other, one heartbeat and then the next one, one thought at a time and so on: movements should be sweet and aware, through tensions, stress, panic and anything else.

6. LOOK AT THAT!

Get yourself distracted from the tragedy going on: the more you look for air outside of you, the least you find it within.

There are always very interesting views right in front of our noses and we might lose them if blinded by stress.

7. BUON APPETITO!

A healthy diet is fundamental to manage stress: it would take chapters to write about this but here we will go through some highlights about altitude sickness and relative stress.

First of all, eat often and light: we don't want our body to be too busy taking care of garbage we ate, otherwise it will be even more difficult to manage the sickness. Plus, if we are going up to 4000m today, let's start to eat light a few days before.

When air lacks cereals are good, because carbohydrates provide oxygen. Eating bread or crackers alleviates nausea.

Herbs: ginkgo against physical and mental tiredness and ginger for a healthy stomach. Chamomile and valerian are very relaxing.

In Peru infusions made of coca leaves are very popular. Yes, coca leaves: it looks like in very small doses it is not a drug and is actually a good remedy in case of altitude sickness and bad digestion.

Last but not least, the best remedy for a good health: drinking lots of water. It cleans the blood and improves circulation.

8. TRIPLE E.

E stays for Early, the key word.

Have dinner early, go to sleep early, wake up early.

Digestion will thank us and so will our body consequently.

9. SWEET DREAMS

Sleeping may be very annoying when we lack of air: headaches can be more intense when we lie down because the blood goes to the brain more rapidly. The direct consequence of that is the dark force also known as insomnia.

LDB, the first technique listed here, is helpful in this case: if practiced right before going to bed it makes it easier to fall asleep and it soothes the headache if practiced as we wake up.

Breathing from the left nostril has a calming, relaxing and refreshing effect.

Laying on the right side stimulates the breath from the left nostril.

If the headache is unbearable, we can also sleep in a semi vertical position, by putting a pillow behind our back.

10. NEUTRAL COMMUNICATION.

Dulcis in fundo, this point couldn't miss here. If it is not the mountain but a partner, relative, boss or any "vampire" human being specialized in not letting us breathe, it's time for us to communicate.

We will use few, simple, kind words to tell the vampire how much its bite is draining us.

If that wasn't enough, we would wish the poor thing a good trip on another boat, because sailing together on ours would make us flip over and drown in the middle of that huge ocean that life is.

Each one of us is on a journey and, along the path, things don't always go on as we expected, provoking frustration. Stress, panic attacks, choking relationships, blocks or obstacles along the itinerary that we had planned so passionately are part of the experience.

Altitude is good (remember the ooh aah point we explored on this blog? If not, the post is still there!). From a higher point we can see what is going on with us, including what we might not like and might react to. When our mind gets entangled with denial, the body manifests blocks by getting ill or out of our control. That is a good starting point, because we can work on our mind to heal the body also.

Meditating every day while feeling sick for the altitude, I experienced that kind of transformation.

What happens is that, after a while, the body adapts itself to the new altitude and the breath fills it with the fresh and pure air of the mountains. From that moment on, we enjoy our journey more than before.

Wow, the higher thinking!

Grand Canyon, Arizona

Along one of the South Rim trails at Grand Canyon there is a gorgeous panoramic view called Ooh Aah Point. The naming couldn't be more appropriate: it sounds like wow and the view is wow for real!
Some experiences cannot be easily described with words and we can just use sounds to express our participation. Still, what if I have to write an article about a difficult and vast topic, using a limited number of words and for which the deadline is like... yesterday?

There is a gurmukhi expression (which also is one of the most beautiful kundalini yoga mantras) that communicates that total sense of astonishment in front of the Infinite: it is Wahe Guru.
If you try to pronounce it, Wahe really sounds like wow! And that's it: a feeling of expansion and totality, an higher state from which we can see what is happening down there, where our human nature is having fun on Earth.
Guru is not only a famous brand, neither is just the Indian guru that we are used to see in pictures and documentaries on TV. Guru is the teacher and the word literally means "from darkness to light": in a nutshell, it is what enlightens us when we are totally wandering in darkness and don't know what's going on.
It is interesting to acknowledge that there is a guru inside each one of us and we all are teachers: we have the ability to see the big picture from above. Like from that Ooh Aah Point.

The topic can be difficult and the time given to us to write about it very short: instead of wandering in darkness and panic, we can take a step behind. Better, a side step. Even better, we can fly.
It is all about changing perspective: someone calls upon the lateral thinking, I would call that higher thinking instead. In place of bypassing the obstacle, we face it from above: we fly, hover and look at ourselves looking at the view. We may look like little points from there, compared to that vastness, but if we are able to see us is because we are flying. That should be enough.
To deliver as fast as possible, containing all the vastness of the topic in that limited number of words, we have to become innocent again: by forgetting our huge talents (and ego), we will simply say "wow" like a child would do (or maybe Wahe Guru, if we practice kundalini yoga)!
No efforts, just wow. The more the topic is difficult, the more words must be simple. Simple words take little space and time, both for the writers and for the readers. 

As human beings we are already microcosms who are part of a macrocosm, so we know from within the language to express that vastness in few words. We just have to work on our awareness to access those resources within ourselves, in order to have a sharp, fast and effective mind that serves our creativity.

Still Words in the giant forest

Sequoia National Park, Sierra Nevada, CA

In silence trees speak. As giant and thousands-year old sequoias they have even more to tell.
They told me about bears, deers and squirrels. About birth, life, death and rebirth. About the wounds from fire and the way they bear such a pain by keeping up in life.
I saw their blood, their scars, their wrinkles and their arms reaching out towards the sky whereas they are rooted on the ground.
I heard their breath, pet their wrinkled trunk, felt their roots under my feet, busted bears climbing on them. Like a little child, under these giant creatures I played the role of Dorothy in the world of the wonderful wizard of Oz.

Sequoia National Park is an enchanted forest like those I read about in some fantasy novels, a forest where you wouldn't be surprised to see some Tolkien's Hobbits or the trees themselves moving like human beings.
Into the wild it is easier to reach a meditative state of mind and creativity spontaneously comes up. This post comes from that wildness! Inspired by the forest I literally visualized some writing and communication techniques in the shape of trees.

How to manage the flow of our creativity? What are the steps to take in front of a blank page?
Trees are a good source to refer to: they suggest how we can stay with our feet on the ground but also reach our higher consciousness, where the best ideas come from.

Every time we draft some writing or we say something, words are like leaves. They are so many at the beginning of our flow of thoughts that we can't even count them.
If we don't want to be lost in the labyrinth of our mind, we need to realize that there are branches behind those leaves.

Branches are the grid, the structure through which we spread our thoughts and what we want to communicate. We can concretely organize this process by using a bulleted list of our ideas, so that we both leash our mind and keep the thread very clear to us from the beginning.

Branches are also connected to the trunk: if we write or talk far from our centre, we will deliver just fantasies without conveying a real message and there will be lack of personality.
The trunk is the power of connection between our pure creativity and the instruments that we use to express it: from that centre, all the points of our writing (the branches) and the words that come from those (the leaves) will be strongly anchored to the roots.

The roots are our experience, the background (or the underground stuff, we might say in this case!), the earth that ultimately nurtures our words. They also are the channels through which we connect to all the other trees (our public): words spreading from those channels express a conscious creative process.

How much better would it be if everybody trained their mind to think before speaking and let just flowers come out from the mouth?
If writing is both creative and rational, if words are under control and consciously expressed, the final product will have more chances to communicate with neutrality.
Neutrality corresponds to the ability of listening to the whole forest (environment) around us, from an higher point of view that allows us to see every detail, and also to the capacity of expressing ourselves with rooted wisdom and depth.
Neutral communication, as the result of the consciousness applied to each step of our creativity, is powerful and its feedback is long lasting. Just like a giant sequoia in the forest!

Independence

Boston, The Esplanade

3am. New York City shines from the bridge, as always. This time we won't stop by though, because we are heading to New England.
The streets seem to run too fast under the wheels, specially when there is calm within. Sitting in a funny crossed legs position on the seat of the car, in deep meditation by looking at the tip of the nose, I spend my time as my husband drives.
Seven hours on the road, before getting to Boston at dawn and greeting the sun with the Aquarian Sadhana chants.

What is this trip about? Independence: the red freedom trail in Boston is long but already walked by others before me, so I just follow the steps.
July 4th, parades and fireworks on the Esplanade. Rainbow flags, Harvard clothes, beer (and tomb) of Sam Adams, demonstrations against the NSA to the sound of "no more spying!" and "restore the fourth!" to make me aware of the US a little more.

Here we drive again: scenic drive towards Cape Cod, town after town, along meadows, ponds, colonial houses, white churches, graveyards, windmills, restaurants specialized in lobster rolls and seafood that I will never try since I am vegetarian. Beaches, lighthouses, sand dunes, until reaching the furthest point: here Pilgrim Fathers stepped on the American soil for the first time. I realize I have always been a pilgrim.

Independence and freedom sustain diversity in the little streets of Provincetown, crowded by the proud gay community.
"Love is equal" on the mirrors of some shops. "Rainbow pride" on several boards and many flags. "Be confident, own your sexuality, get tested for free" to fight the HIV. "Unattended children will be given espresso and a free kitten", reads a sign hanged on the door of the shop right next to it. Leashed pigs, wrapped in the American flag, draw the attention. Art galleries along the sidewalks are just a frame of this multicolored and original picture, expression of total freedom and creativity.

From the pink atmosphere of Provincetown we dive into the unknown darkness of Salem: fear and hysteria can still be felt at every corner of the town. Both authentic spirituality and fake shows for tourists exorcise the visitors' fears.
Witches are wise and radiant women who love life. Unfortunately, the witch hunt is not past history, because certain human beings are still dominated by fear and they keep on judging "different" what they can't control.

Curtains are down, lights are off: do we really need to put make up on our face? It comes out there is equality in diversity: uniqueness is something different, something that makes us recognize that the other is you.
We are ourselves, still we wear masks. We are free, still sometimes what we think to be a bright sign from the sky is just some fake fireworks: seductive lights but not really enlightening. Independence is something else: it is the freedom from our fears and the courage to express ourselves by following our true identity, our pure creativity. It is the unique way we have to communicate as authentic, liberated human beings.

*"Sadhana" is the daily practice of yoga. The Aquarian Sadhana is based on Yogi Bhajan's kundalini yoga teachings and includes the chanting of seven mantras, each one calibrated to sustain human beings through this time of deep transformation that we are living, the age of Aquarius. For further information: http://www.3ho.org/3ho-lifestyle/aquarian-age.

Boston, Freedom Trail

Yoga in the Everglades

Everglades National Park, Florida

I found Infinity in a swamp.

Walking along one of the trails in the Everglades National Park, a sign drew my attention. It was different from the others that I had read: it didn't just describe flora and fauna.

"There is more here than meets the eye". How many people do we meet here on this planet? How many experiences are we doing on this Earth?
Sometimes our relationships are challenging: we really meet rabbits, lubber grasshoppers, snakes, alligators, shy birds... Most of the time we think we meet these animals outside, but the truth is that we can encounter them even within us.

Every human being is sort of an animal. But there is an Italian word that is "anima" and it means "soul". Isn't it interesting? Anima is contained in the animal.
In every human being there is more than meets the eye. There is the soul.
The soul is fearless, far from being a rabbit. It is not clumsy, far from being a lubber. It doesn't need any poison to defend itself, like a snake does. It is neither aggressive like an alligator nor shy like a little bird, because it is beyond the environment that make those animal behave like that.

Our mind is perfectly able to make us behave like animals though.

"Stop for a minute, listen quietly, look carefully". Who wrote this sign, Patanjali?
I stopped for a minute, I listened quietly, I looked carefully. I found my breath, the synchrony with each sound of the environment around me, the vibrations resonating beyond shapes and colors. My soul, ultimately: infinite, eternal, free.

Do we really need to be anima-ls? The answer might be surprising as much as finding an anonymous sign like this in a World Heritage site: yes, we do.
What we can do is becoming aware of that "mental animal", recognizing it and taming it so that it becomes a friend and not just our mask anymore.

We can walk that path to understand who we really are, to let the anima inside the animal shine and show us the right directions.

I want to follow that light, full of gratitude and surprise in front of myself and any other human being, because "life here is abundant, but not always obvious".