Intro 0:04 This recording is an offering of Networks for Training and Development's Online University. Rosa McAllister 0:15 Hi, Aloha, welcome. Hi, Aloha, welcome. Hi, Aloha, welcome. This is Rosa McAllister. And this is our monthly Healing Circle where we come together to just try to breathe together,spend a little time (just 20 minutes or so), being together, sharing space, caring about one another and remembering that we're not alone, that we're in this together. And as seems fit, here we are at another interesting time. Today is October 1 2018. In the last couple of days, last week, has been a rather tumultuous one for many of us here in the United States. And worldwide. There's been how many hurricanes and how many storms and how many acts of nature happening. There's one - there's a hurricane Rosa, a tropical storm Rosa swirling right now in the Pacific. I can't help but feel like it's a little part of me that's spun off uncontrolled, swirling into a vortex and turning up the oceans. Hopefully not causing any damage. But many of us I think, feel like a bit of a tropical storm or hurricane or HIM-icane or whatever-icane right now with world events, things happening all around us. Not only acts of nature, but acts of man and woman. In the last couple of days in particular in the United States has brought forth, kind of to a head. A couple of things regarding male and female-ness with the case, a very famous case with a very popular comedian and actor, being sentenced to jail time because of his believed acts of impropriety against women, one person in particular, but many who had come forward. We have a Supreme Court justice nominee happening right now. And many are questioning him... in questioning his previous behavior and who he is. And again, women coming up and saying this guy is no good. This guy is a problem. This guy is an abuser, and assaulter. And what it's causing is such a split between so many of us, men and women, men versus women, women versus men, Republicans versus Democrats, Democrats versus Republicans, liberalists, etc. Many, many different types of splits are happening, and some finger pointing and questioning. But what's also happening, for many of us is questioning within our own selves. For many of us women, in fact, I personally believe most of us women, if not all of us women, we have at some point in our lifetime, dealt with some assaults to our very nature, to our femininity. We've questioned our femininity. We've questioned how we're supposed to be in the world and how we are to interact with men, and whether we should shun our sexuality and sensuality in our femininity, or whether we should embrace it, and potentially bear the cost of it. And I've had some interesting conversations with men who are really questioning themselves now and questioning their own behavior and questioning, how do they move forward? What has been flirtations before - is that now in proprieties? What has been deemed as male experiences and the way men are supposed to come onto women - is that no longer appropriate? I know many men who have no idea how they're supposed to act. They're not sure whether they should even tell a woman that she looks pretty or that they like her, or how do they even go about letting someone know that they care about them or asking them out for a date? Or heaven forbid, asking for a kiss. And I think that's it. It's the asking, that's so important that many have not done. For women, the guard is up. Many, many women, the band aids have been ripped off, the airing of so much going on around them of issues with Bill Cosby, with the Supreme Court nominee, with so many other things bringing up issues from the past. But part of what I'm struggling with myself, and I can't help but wonder if I'm alone in this, (and I don't think I am) is the struggle of keeping my femininity when I feel like I'm needing to be a warrior right now, which is more of the male counterpart within myself. I can be pretty outspoken and I can be pretty tough and I can be pretty big. And I can get really pissed off and I'm not one to hold my tongue, which is more what we think of as the male counterpart or characteristics. And yet, I also embrace my femininity, my sensuality, and how at this point in my life, do I balance these two when I am hurting and I want to be Kali-like, the Hindu goddess with a sword in their hand and chopping off heads when I'm not sure that that's the appropriate response? I'm also trying to keep my femininity, my divine feminine, very presence [sic], very present. And so I'm calling on Pachamama, which in some cultures is the goddess of fertility, and the earth mama, Gaia. Similarly, Lakshmi. While also calling in Pele, who is our Hawaiian goddess who brings fire and truth, but also brings growth and newness and fertility. So how can I be both? How do we find that in ourselves? And this isn't just a woman thing. This is for men too. How can we all find both the male warrior if you will, and the female, feminine creator, vulnerable one? How can we find that in ourselves - both parts? So for me, I've been doing lots of reading. I've been participating in two very important courses right now for me, helping me kind of relook at myself at this stage in my life, not just because of these recent situations, but because of who I am at this point in my life. And interestingly, both courses that I'm taking right now, very, very different in scope and practice, in their very purpose, are all coming to the same point of trying to find that balance within ourselves. That balance of who we are, naturally, our basic characteristics, who we wish to be, and calling on that which is deep within us, that sometimes is hidden, and yet is part of our truth of who we are. So, in studying and looking for answers for myself of how I should move forward, so that I'm not just Kali with a sword and slicing heads off and saying things that I really want to say. And yet I'm also not a meek, feminine vulnerable, either. But that somehow I'm evoking both. And for me that means speaking my truth. Speaking in however, in careful words. And speaking it in a way that I'm showing and showering love, which is hard when I'm angry, but that's what I feel called to do. So in reading and looking and searching and thinking, part of what I've come to is some of my favorite chants from some of my spiritual practices. And the one chant in particular, that has really called to me within the last couple of days is the Adi Shakti mantra. It's also known as Adi Parashakti mantra. It's a very, very powerful meditation. And it calls upon the Greek goddess. It calls upon Shakti, [the] concept or personification of defined feminine creative power, the primordial sacred cosmic energy, and it represents the dynamic and powerful forces that are thought to move through the entire creation. The Goddess Adi Parashakti is believed to truly embody the Supreme Spirit without form. She embodies the entire universe as her creation. She is victory. She is the manifestation of victory itself. She is the great goddess and she is a source of other goddesses. Within her resides many faces, many, many forms, many characters, caricatures, many other Hindu goddesses: Mother Durga, Goddess Parvati, Goddess Lakshmi, Kali, all of these others goddesses who take on strong natures, strong purposes. They are all part of Shakti energy and the primal Divine Mother source. She's acknowledged as the One. She is the one that controls she is the one that can find the blend of the masculine and the feminine. She's the one that can hold her tongue while also sharing her thoughts. She's the one that offers love and nurturance while also setting the stage and setting the score. So I offer to you today, a meditation: the Adi Shakti. And this is my favorite version of it because it's sung by a male and a female which I think is very important for us. To remember that there is that male and that femaleness in all of us, regardless of how we present male or female in this world, we are both and we can call upon both parts of ourself at any time or one over the other. So I offer to you the Adi Shakti. Audio 12:23 [Adi Shakti Chant Audio] Rosa McAllister 19:17 So as we move through these times, where we are challenged, where we might find anger, coming up more than we'd like, where we find tears or rage, or numbness, or remembering times, we've tried to forget remembering situations when we don't want to remember where we might feel guilt that we didn't speak out previously, for someone else or for ourselves. Where we are unsure of who we are in this world or what we believe in, or how we're supposed to move forward. The best thing we can all do is to breathe. Not in shallow, short breaths, but in deep, controlled breathing. Other things we can do for ourselves is to move, to dance, to rake our skins gently with our fingers, pulling off issues and shake our body and shake our limbs. Talk to one another. Talk to someone you feel you can. Be kind to yourself. Love yourself. Practice extra beautiful self care. Take warm baths, go for a walk. Listen to your favorite music, dance some more. Find things that you can find joy in. Laugh. Garden. Play with a child. Hug and get hugged. And know that this is all a trying time for all of us. And oftentimes, chaos brings new birth and beauty and the goddess within all of us will help do that. So I leave you with my blessings, with my love. We'll chat with you again the first Monday of next month of November. I wish for you all peace and love. Namaste and Aloha. Outro 21:41 Thank you for listening. We hope the information provided was helpful. Don't forget to stop by our website and take advantage of all we have to offer Transcribed by https://otter.ai