Embodied Awakened Child

The Dimension of Loving-Playfulness

Inspired State is Mindfulness

Builds the Capacity for Dual Awareness

 

Nourishing, Healing, Safe

The Fox knows not only where to find the necessary food for health and vitality, but where to find nourishment for the spirit. There are many possible places to rest and to grow and to heal. Here he is depicted in his natural sanctuary, a chapel to which he belongs, a bower that offers renewal and respite from the two-legged predators who have claimed the world. He will return here as needed to nurse his injuries and to find his balance.

He feels the sunlight on his fur, notices the vivid colors and forms and textures, the patterns of sky overhead seen between the leaves. He smells the flowers, the scent of the forest fertilizing into the ground beneath him.  His powerful muscles find some flexibility and softness. His panting slows. His hyper-alertness dials down. The mind is quiet, fully in the spaciousness of an infinite moment.

Nourishing

Why this painting?

The Fox wears a soft smile because he has a feeling of emotional balance and a sense of order. Embraced by Earth Mother energies, he is grounded in a nurturing and nourishing source, grateful for her bounty and blessings.

In this state, we can achieve the capacity that therapists call dual awareness, which in mindfulness practices is more often referred to as “meta-awareness: or the “observer self.” It is the ability to observe one’s thoughts, emotions, and bodily sensations without getting caught in them.

Inside-Out:

If you have been struggling with distressing emotions, perhaps finding it hard to feel a sense of control and safety even in your own body, experiment with ways to relax and to self-sooth. Unfortunately, the usual mindfulness practices that involve quieting your mental chatter can paradoxically raise anxiety if it feels like an invitation to let your guard down; If you have been traumatized, that can feel terrifying.

You may find it more helpful to locate a place to walk, allowing yourself to bring up emotional energy and put the energy into motion until you begin to relax. Or you might identify an imaginary location such as a beach, forest, or comfortable room or a fantasy world. Use your senses to imagine the details of this place, focusing on what you can see, hear, taste, sense, and touch.

If you are comfortable using visualization to self-regulate, you can also invite animals like this Fox, or any imaginary helper, to join you. Add whatever brings positivity and support. Experiment and develop a routine practice of returning to this healing vision whenever you start to feel overwhelmed. It can be a powerful coping skill.

There are many other ways, of course, to manage triggered states which a competent therapist can suggest.

Upside-down:

If you have been working hard yet experiencing no pleasure from your work, pushing yourself to burn out, however your mind (or career, or family, or the media) cons you into thinking this is OK for you, your nervous system is being pushed into hypervigilance by stress, reinforcing an appraisal that the world is dangerous. Are you starting to feel paranoid?

Being a worker bee is unsustainable. Living in stress eventually leads to looping thoughts and obsessions, increasing adverse emotional states—sadness and panic and anguish—which feel permanent and is permanent if you don’t make a change. You might be able to find ways to numb what is happening, but your body will continue to live in constant tension, eventually giving rise to physical illness.

Reflect on external forces that may be promoting constant activity and draining you of focus and presence. Recognize your limitations. Take a break and find some time for your precious self. If you cannot find a way to peace, then recognize that you are being driven by old unconscious forces that need to be explored.