The winter solstice is the embrace of the sacred feminine, the cosmic womb, the immaculate heart.

This beautiful portrait of the divine feminine by @rattlesnakesandrainbows expresses EXACTLY how I feel at this time of year.

The artist describes the mother goddess as the “doorway to life, and the portal through which spirit is brought into form.”

Now is the time for deep inner listening as we reflect on this spiritual truth.

Deep inner listening requires Soma, the nectar of grace that we receive from meditation and inner quietude.

When we turn our awareness away from the noise, distractions and cravings of the world - there is grace.

This grace guides us into a knowing beyond the mind. Into the light of our inner sun (the christos).

This light is our spirit, a small golden seed in the background of our awareness, ready to be born.

Our inner light helps us reflect on what is essential, and allows the warmth and joy of our hearts to be reborn and renewed.

This is the gift of all gifts.

Because we know life is hard, and we can forget about what is true and essential. We can forget our light, and to nourish our light.

Each year, we reenact this mystery inside of ourselves. The sacred pause, the pregnancy, the birth of renewed light.

When you pause and listen today, what inner knowing do you receive?

Heart of the Heart | Membership Survey 2024

Today, we are mid-way between winter and spring. Can you feel the new seeds within yourself beginning to emerge from underground? 

I would love if you took 2 minutes to fill out my annual membership survey > https://bit.ly/membershipsurvey2024

I want to hear from you! Your experience in the membership is important to me, and helps me build future content that is meaningful to YOU. 

Warmly, Kristen 

Welcome to the Heart of the Heart membership community. I'm so happy you've joined us.

In the yoga tradition, a sangha is a community of like-minded souls that gather together to learn and grow through our yoga practices.

In this space, we're connected by the invisible thread of light from our hearts, that offer us a source of inspiration and nourishment on our path.

This online community is dedicated to holding space for healing, for thriving, and for being - as we return to our authentic inner centre.

You're invited to step into this circle, to share your practice, find support, ask questions and self-reflect, and be a witness for others.

Here, I'll drop seeds of inquiry into our practice from traditional yoga therapy, and offer seasonal wisdom, practice highlights and tips.

Your contribution and engagement is very welcome.

COMMUNITY GUIDELINES

Please help us keep this community circle space supportive, authentic and valuable. Here are some guidelines to keep in mind:

1. Please personalize your profile, and introduce yourself to the community below! Where are you from, why have you joined the membership, and what do you love about your home practice?

2. Maintain a communal space of mutual respect. Please interact and reply to others from your heart, and stay on the topic of yoga practice.

   
   

3. Share from your own experiences, rather than with unsolicited advice. Remember, we are all students of yoga who are learning and growing.

   
   

4. Please do not offer posts unrelated to the content of the membership, or that promote yourself. This community circle is to explore the practices and experiences that we're having here.

   
   

5. This isn't a space for tech issues or membership questions. If you need support, then please email art.science.light@gmail.com.

   
   

6. Be compassionate with yourself. Your practice is unfolding perfectly, and has valuable insight and wisdom for your personal growth. Your voice, insight and contribution is honoured here.

With gratitude,

Kristen

Dear friends,

Many of you have been practicing the Yoga Nidra meditations in the membership (and I’ll be adding more in the future).

I wanted to include an explanation of the inner map of practice, and how you can explore this practice in-depth in my online program this Spring. 

The inner map of the Yoga Nidra practice guides us through the maya koshas, the five layers of our soul.

Our journey begins with the physical body, and guides us layer by layer, to the innermost centre of who we are.

Each layer of the soul is interconnected to the whole self, and unfolds toward our centre like the petals of a flower 🌸

Stress and trauma that arise on one layer, will inevitably effect the whole self, until it is resolved deep within our centre.

My online program, Journey Into Wisdom, explores the inner map of Yoga Nidra practice, and how it can become a vehicle for healing on all levels of the soul.

Each module of the program guides you through a journey of self-understanding, healing and inner transformation:

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🌸SANKALPA - create a seed of light from your heart to guide you forward on your journey. ⠀⠀

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🌸PHYSICAL LAYER- Balance your nervous system and step into right relationship with your body and the natural world. ⠀⠀

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🌸ENERGY LAYER- Awaken the flow of life force energy through your chakras, and let go of emotions that keep you stuck in the past.

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🌸EMOTIONAL LAYER - Shine a light into the subconscious patterns that you’re ready to transform through compassionate awareness.

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🌸WISDOM LAYER - Return to the inner knowing of your heart, and resolve the unconscious belief systems that separate you from the source of Love.

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🌸BLISS LAYER- Open to the innermost space of stillness, and integrate the flowers of new consciousness into your life. ⠀⠀

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Do you feel a call to explore Yoga Nidra?

JOIN me for a 6 week transformative program: 

www.kristenannmccarthy.com/yoganidraprogram

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Registration is open until Sunday April 16th 🧘🏻‍♀️

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You can also explore the meditation catalogue in this membership! Yoga Nidra is perfect after a yin yoga class. 

Warmly, Kristen 

Dear friends & community,

I'm wondering how you have connected to the Ma Kali practice that was released this month in the library?

I'm inspired to share what's arising for me after spending some time with the goddess Kali and her teachings.

The divine mother first came to me in the form of Kali a few months ago, when I was processing grief in so many ways.

She guided me to the cremation ground of my heart, and asked me to spend time releasing and letting go.

This was my inspiration for sharing this practice with you, and I've continued to meditate on these teachings since.

Recently, in meditation, I found myself feeling a sense of loss for a time /place/ people that have passed -

And I was gently guided away from the sense of loss, and into the light of my heart.

There, I felt the beauty and wisdom that was gifted to me during that time from the past.

And I realized that the past wasn't the past. It was an eternal presence within me that was always there.

It was not lost, but instead integrated into my soul.

The light of the past (time / place / people) is available anytime I rest my awareness between the spaces of time.

Anytime, we can peer through time, through the cloak of grief, and into the eternal.

I hope this sharing resonates with you, and I would love to hear what Ma Kali is teaching you!

Warmly, Kristen

PS: I attached Ma Kali's Yantra, which is a point of meditation that awakens our consciousness on levels beyond the intellectual mind.

Beautify your five senses, so that you perceive the consciousness of all living things.

When we dull our senses with pollutants (media, audio, visual) our mind darkens, and we suffer in the darkness.

But when we absorb impressions of beauty, our perception opens to the light of consciousness, and we are renewed.

Consciousness is reflected in beauty, like light on the water, and this brings peace of mind.

This is Pratyahara, the 5th limb of yoga practice.

When we cleanse the palette of our five senses, the wisdom HIDDEN in your yoga practice comes to LIGHT.

This month, reflect on what you feed your eyes? What you feed your ears? What you feed your sense of touch? Taste? Smell?

How does this change your perception? 

Warmly, 

Kristen 

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Photo: 

@mandalaexpert

Dear Yoga Community, 

I know that we are practicing together from all over the world - Northern and Southern Hemisphere - and our rhythms reflect the seasonal cycle of yin or yang that we are currently moving through. 

Here are some yoga therapy tips for late winter / late summer energies:

Yoga Therapy Tips for Late Winter | Northern Hemisphere

❄️Honour Deep Rest

This is the season to rest and digest with supported inversions, reclined twists, and restorative meditations like Yoga Nidra. Inner stillness helps us cultivate Ojas, the nutrient fluids of the tissues, which build the foundation of our immunity for the year ahead.

❄️Tend to Your Fire

When the days are short and cold, tend to your inner fire (Agni) with yin and yang flows that warm your body and balance movement with stillness. Subtle heat cleanses undigested wastes and pathogens from the deeper tissue layers of the body, and creates vitality in our body and mind.

❄️Brighten Your Heart

In the darkness of winter, open your heart with supported backbends to release any heaviness or congestion from your chest. The heart is the deepest tissue layer of the body, and the doorway to the Hridaya Guha, the secret cave of the heart. Here, we dissolve the knots of the heart that have caused grief, pain and sorrow, and rest in the joy of our true nature.

Find my top practices for Winter here > 

Yoga Therapy Tips for Late Summer | Southern Hemisphere

🌸Nourish yourself with the earth element. 

The earth element is connected to the prana of our food, and the organs that transform nutrients into sustenance for body, mind and spirit. Nourish your body with sweet foods like rice and yam.

🌸Support your energy.

The earth element is connected to the stomach and spleen energy channels. Yin yoga postures that massage the front line of the body (quads, hip flexors, abdomen) will move stagnation from the energy body and help you source from the earth.

🌸Care for your mind.

Take time to ground, cool and release worry from your mind. The tendency to worry can create digestive disturbances and prevent us from absorbing the sweetness that life can offer us.

Find my top practices for Summer here > 

Healing arises from our yoga practices when we make space to honour the timeless wisdom of each season.

Namaste, Kristen