How often do you take the time to be still, so still in fact, that you can hear the breath moving in and out of the body? There is this magnificent power in stillness, it holds the ability of transformation on a physical and soul level. Some may even call this a form of meditation. Connecting to the feelings and sensations that exist within the human body will take you on journey of self-discovery; the benefits of stillness are well known for their felicities.
I get still when I am:
- Stressed because it helps me relax
- In doubt, it brings me clarity
- Looking for inner guidance it helps me to focus
- Feeling depressed, it increases happiness and makes me feel lighter
In fact, being still potentially saved my life.
A few years ago, I was hiking Haleakala, a volcano on Maui. On the top of this volcano is a gift shop where I purchased a book titled “Pele Goddess of Hawaii’s Volcanoes” by Herb Kawainui Kane. In this book, Pele, the goddess of fire has this epic battle with her sister, goddess of water. Pele’s sister wins the battle and it ends at a hill named Ka-lwi-o-Pele. Here lies Pele’s Bones metaphorically because Pele’s Bones represent the last bit of Lava flowing into the sea during the creation of Maui. I did not find this out until I researched this location.
I landed near Hana at a placed called Koki Beach Park and decided to climb up the biggest hill to get a look at the landscape. When I got to the top of the red hill I noticed what looked like a tent. Then an older man to my right yelled, “Get out your trespassing.”
This man had a long white beard and an explosion of trash all around him, he was clearly not the owner of this land. He began to cuss and insult me so I decided to turn around and head back down to the beach. Half way down I decided to sit on the side of the trail and be still. I was a little stressed and I still needed direction to Pele’s bones.
As I closed my eyes, my awareness dropped to my breath. A few minutes later I heard sticks breaking underneath the jungle brush from the trail above, I immediately froze.
Picture a red head in bright orange pants in the middle of a luscious green jungle. I would be hard to miss because I was literally sitting roughly 10 feet from the trail. I saw the cantankerous hermit making his way down the hill when I closed my eye and became very still.
The words I am invisible rang in my head as I kept focusing on my breath. When I opened my eyes again I saw the hermit had passed and he was making his way towards the beach. In my mind there is absolutely no way he did not see me and by his previous response, there was no way he was leaving me anywhere near his things.
Did my stillness detour a potential negative situation, did it save my life? Maybe saying it saved my life is going a bit far, but what it did do for me is:
- Normalized my blood pressure
- Reduced my anxiety
- Increased positive thinking
- Developed inner strength
- Increased awareness to my own spiritual path
I invite you to give yourself permission to be still, focus on the breath and just notice the changes in your physiology. For more information about being still, meditation or yoga you can contact me, Misty Green at m@agelessyogis.com or visit my website agelessyogis.com
