Mary Flanagan Gleason's Blog, page 12

Beyond the Seven Main Chakras: Soul Star

This week, I continue to share what I am learning about the transpersonal (external) chakras, those that align with the seven main chakras and are located outside the physical body.

Learning about the seven main chakras (root, sacral, solar plexus, heart, throat, third eye, and crown) is one of the most helpful tools I could have ever hoped for. They act as a barometer of physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual health. This life-changing journey now includes the lesser-discussed chakras, numbers 0, 8, 9, 10, and 11.

Today I am exploring the eighth chakra: the Soul Star.

Located just above the crown, the Soul Star connects to our higher selves. We begin to work more closely with our guides, taking in information and calling on them for assistance. This star works in conjunction with the Earth Star, marrying the Earth���s ancient wisdom with the higher energies of the Universe. With each successive, upward chakra, we connect with greater and more far-reaching wisdom. From Mother Earth (0) to our higher selves and guides to the Universe (9) to the Galaxy (10) on to the Divine Gateway (11). Each soul goes at their own pace. You must still pay attention to the lower vibrations as much as the upper energies. The goal, as with the seven main chakras, is balance.

The Soul Star is the center from which you access Divine love, the highest frequency in this Universe. It���s worth the journey!

In this pink chakra, closely tied to our heart chakra, we learn to let go of beliefs around karma and karmic debts. We learn to accept ourselves as beings continuously learning in this lifetime as well as past lifetimes. In short, as this chakra awakens, you begin to remember the incredible being that you are outside of your body and current experiences. You are opening the Akashic records and appreciating your journey. You are a better person to all moving forward because you feel better at your core. You enter a flow state.

According to April Pfender���s book, The Complete Guide to Chakras: Activating the 12 Chakra Energy System for Balance and Healing, ���[the eighth, ninth, tenth, and eleventh chakras] open only after significant work and clearing on the inner planes and heart coherence has been reached.��� In other words, no baggage or critical judgment of self is allowed. You have evolved past this limited way of thinking about yourself. Acceptance of self and guidance from above are vital to ascending your soul���s experience. 

To get in the flow, you must first relax. To engage your Soul Star chakra, ask Spirit to help you in your meditation to connect your heart and mind beyond your earthly understanding. Ask to be shown your true, glorious colors.

I am happy to discuss this and other Charka concepts further. Simply schedule a discovery call on my calendar.

Mary

Beyond the 7 Main Chakras: Ground Zero

Lately, I’ve been curious about the��other��chakras. The transpersonal chakras located outside of our bodies and flow through our core, connecting us beyond our bodies’ wisdom.

In my��book, I talk extensively about the seven main chakras that run from the spine’s root to the head’s crown. To understand the chakras is to understand the powerful flow of energy you can control through your body, thoughts, emotions, and spirit.

And there’s more. Lots more.

The first of the transpersonal chakras is Chakra Zero or Earth Star.
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It is located below your feet and connects through the soles (souls?) directing the earth’s energy straight to the nervous system.

As April Pfender says in her��book,

“ This portal connects us to the heart of Gaia [ Mother Earth] and her crystalline iron core. The ground spirits, as well as the gem, microbial, and mineral kingdom, hold the wisdom of our ancestors and collective consciousness in this layer. ��� Personally and collectively speaking, this connection strengthens intuition and builds a greater awareness within the harmonics of the natural world, including the entire earth.”

The Earth Star���s element, iron, is the strongest of all Earth’s elements. Its color is brown, like the rich soil it represents. It anchors us and conducts energies that allow us to explore this earthly life we have chosen with wisdom obtained throughout the entire existence of earth and our soul’s journey. Ultimately it connects with Chakras 8, 9, 10, and 11. (More on that in my next few blogs.)

This new study endeavor comes from my readiness to go deeper into this system, adding to my wealth of wisdom from within and around my physical being. I have been pleasantly surprised by what I’ve learned so far.

One of my first experiences with guided meditation nearly 20 years ago, I ran into this chakra, although I had no idea then. When I read about its uses and powers, a deep knowing, an instant recognition flooded forth. Here is how Pfender puts it:

 “���the Earth star is one that you are born with as innately activated Re-remembering is all that’s needed to fully connect to this special gateway.” 

If you love gardening, hiking, being outdoors, you have likely remembered this connection on some level. Connection to this chakra heightens all your physical senses. Breathe in the pine trees, the garden sage, the red rock energy. They are your birthright. Or simply stand barefoot and feel your connection with Mother Earth growing deeper. (Rubber sole shoes repel energy.)

As you connect to this chakra, offer gratitude and consider how you can help replenish the earth with a bulb, a seed, some needed water. Create a reciprocal relationship with the Earth Star and feel its presence increase daily, leaving you stronger and wiser.

It’s exciting to have you join me in this exploration. Next week, I want to share more about the eighth chakra, the Soul Star, and how the Earth and Soul Stars align for you.

Mary

I’m Back!…

If ever I wondered whether anyone reads my emails, I no longer do. Thank you to everyone who asked me where I’ve been and whether I will return soon. It touched me deeply.

I was just out of gas and going in directions that weren’t true to me. At one point, I started sounding like a time management expert. That’s when I knew I needed to step back and reconsider what I was all about.

This has been a time of refocusing and determining ways I can best serve you. And it all came back to basics.

Foresight. Insight. Easier Living. 

With foresight and insight, challenges become easier to address. It doesn’t matter what the challenge is, only that it becomes conscious, and that you develop productive, positive skills to address it. Both psychic readings and hypnotherapy can help you accomplish this.

My intuition coaching practice is still something I enjoy very much, and I would love to work with anyone who wants an easier time eliminating barriers to their ideal goals using all of my tools and lots of one-on-one time.

I will be offering a series of workshops later this fall. Some online, many in-person, all tailored to help you become more in tune with your own intuition and understanding of your inherent power in any situation. Stay tuned for more details.

Meanwhile, I am available for psychic readings and hypnotherapy services. The information is on my website (also being updated), as is my online calendar. I hope to hear from you soon.

Don’t hesitate to get in touch with me if you have a specific topic you would like to know more about. I’d love to be of service in this way.

Mary

What Does It Mean to be Woke?

I want to believe I am woke, but I know I���m not. At best, I am waking. I am a ���Karen��� trying hard to understand others lived experiences.

I prefer to say that I am waking. It acknowledges my intentions while also acknowledging that I ��� any of us ��� will ever truly be woke. Wokeness is not an achievement. It���s a never-ending journey.

Wokeness is not reserved for white people. We all have biases ��� some we are aware of while others we are not. We find them when we run up against our assumptions or expectations.

We are at once all connected while living separate lives. Separate journeys. Separate purposes. There are two action items for me in this parallel knowing.

First, when someone tells me their story, I must believe them. Even if I don���t think it���s true. Seek to understand. Listen. Learn. Consider.

When I worked at an organization that offered ESL (English as a Second Language) classes, the instructors reported that students wrote about and shared their journeys at the end of each term. As immigrants, they were often seated next to others who were hated in their home countries. But, after listening to their experiences, many walls broke down, and new understandings were created. It was not uncommon that the two factions would hug.

Second, when someone tells me their truth about me, how they perceive me, I believe them although I may not always agree. It���s up to me to decide for myself without telling the other person they are wrong. They can have their experience of me separate from me. Yet, it is worth considering how that perception came to be. Did I stumble on a different cultural norm? Did I offend them in some way I���d not realized? Did I use language that holds a different meaning for them?

Wokeness is an ideal state that says we can see the humanity in another���s situation. The bootstraps analogy many talk about may be significantly different from another person���s. Some of us were born on third base and think we hit a triple. Others had to cross continents in hopes for a chance at the plate.

It is always possible to start your waking journey. Believe, consider the truth of what you hear, and remember that your experience will be different from the next person���s. The goal is not to be done but to continually expand our understanding of the world.

Some routes to waking include journaling, meditating, reading, asking questions, exploring different cultures, getting to know about new geographic regions, cultures, and traditions, and accepting yourself as a work in progress.

Mary

Meh���

I have to be honest with you. I���m not just feeling it today.

I sat down to write my weekly blog post, and everything felt forced.

It���s been a great week, especially celebrating my birthday with so many new friends and a few family members. There���s nothing to complain about.

Still, my motivation to motivate is meh.

Ever feel that way? Honor it.

Forcing something that isn���t there exudes disinterest and disingenuousness.

Here���s what I am feeling. Like I want to serve people, engaging in one-on-one conversations.

If you���d like a psychic reading or to connect with past loved ones, I am offering half off on a one-hour session. Just go to my schedule, select an intuitive reading, and enter the code HalfOff.

I���m always feeling ���it��� when talking with Spirit and you.

Mary

I see you.

I���m starting to hear this everywhere. ���I see you.���
 
Its very simplicity is powerful.
 
It wasn���t that long ago that I felt invisible. Not because I was ignored but because so many people were confused or uncomfortable with who I was becoming. Rather than lean in and ask more questions, they changed the subject or pretended not to notice.

Finally, I was prepared to be seen for who I was or do away with those who could not see me in a new way. Drawing that boundary for myself relieved me of that tug-of-war to change another’s perspective.
 
Do you feel seen? 
 
You may be in the middle of a transition like I was or hiding something you think makes you unlovable. Even the most introverted person in the world wants to be visible for who they are at their core.
 
If you don���t feel seen, it���s possible that you are not showing up as the real you or you are with the wrong people. Either way, you deserve to be welcomed on your own merits and through your metamorphosis. We are all still evolving.
 
The power of being seen first comes from within. 
 
Here is a simple exercise to get you started.

Relax. Gently close your eyes or lower your gaze. Picture in your mind a place or circumstance where you feel unseen. Notice everything about it. Who is there, where are you, and what is your role? How does it make you feel? Feel that resting in your left hand.Picture a place or circumstance where you feel seen and welcome. If it doesn���t exist, imagine what it would be like. Again, notice everything about it. Who is there, who is no longer there, where are you, and what is your role? Feel that resting in your right hand.Once you have done this, bring your attention to your left hand and examine how you got into this situation. Maybe you were born into it or settled for something else, or it no longer suits you. What are you willing to do to change it? Shift your attention to your right hand, where you feel seen, accepted, welcomed, and joyful. Notice the feelings that come with that and remember them. Allow those feelings to guide you when you are in their presence as a place of belonging, and seek more of that. 

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The results can be a small change, like deciding to stop taking calls from a particular person. Other times the difference may be more significant. Sometimes it can mean leaving your biological family for your preferred family of friends. Other times, you might confirm it���s time for a new job or career. All of these are valid answers worthy of your consideration.
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You must find your worth and then settle for nothing less than respect from yourself and others.
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I am happy to share more about my experience and invite you to try some of my techniques.

Mary

Things NOT in the Brochure

Mark and I love our new home��� for the most part.

It is everything we wanted��� and a wee bit more.

It’s not what was said that gives me pause. It’s what wasn’t said.

Things not in the brochure include things like recurring 40-mile-per-hour wind gusts that send us scurrying to retrieve the patio furniture from the neighbor’s yard. Some locals say it gets better after spring, but we have yet to be here long enough to assess for ourselves.

“What wasn’t in the brochure” has become a running joke for us and has begun to spill into other areas of life like marriage, a new job, parenthood, aging parents, etc.

Still, developing your intuition can help you limit the number of times you have to experience to know more about a situation, a person, etc. The secret is to trust it when it comes up. I took a position I knew I shouldn’t have. Every fiber of my being screamed, “Run.” Still, I talked myself right into it and left with my hair on fire. There was no one to blame but myself. I ignored my intuition.

I trusted my intuition about marrying Mark as we approach 35 years this July.

When it came to our new home, my intuition steered us right. We have great new neighbors, a fun community, a lovely house, a beautiful view.

Part of listening to your intuition is recognizing its voice, sensation, and vibration.

Do you know how your intuition shows up for you? Do you trust it when it chimes in? Or do you overthink it and talk yourself out of believing with logic and overthinking?

Want to know more about your intuition?

How to use it?How to call on it?How to trust it?

It is a journey worth taking. I took it for myself, and life has gotten better, more predictable, and more satisfying. It would be an honor to help you achieve this as well.

Mary

Opening Day = Hope

I am writing this on Opening Day for major league baseball. Every year, my hopes are HIGH that the Mariners will go ALL THE WAY!
 
That feeling of hope and possibility greatly boosts my psyche, ushering in the promise of sunshine, warmth, and excitement.
 
It leads me to wonder how many opening-day scenarios we can create for ourselves:

the beginning of a new projectthe start of a new jobrecommitting to or leaving a relationshipeven starting treatment for an illness

So, what is your goal for this season?
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Opening Day = Hope
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Consider making today Opening Day toward a new, more hopeful future for yourself.
It’s important to remember that setbacks and challenges are inevitable when working towards any goal. Instead of giving up when faced with difficulties, try to view them as opportunities for growth and learning.
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Like baseball, it takes more than words and promises to yourself. It takes a team.��

Surround yourself with positive and supportive people and be especially kind to yourself.
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I would love to be on your team. As a coach and hypnotherapist, I can help you identify your underlying barriers and make��progress slowly, together up the mountain.
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Go Mariners! Go You! Let’s be a team.

Mary

Why is it that things have to get worse before they get better?

Is it mandatory for things to get worse before they get better? Like all hypothetical questions, the answer is “it depends.”

For example, if you want to clean a closet, you must haul out all the junk that has been gathering for years. What was taking up a few shelves and a small hollow space now consumes the entire room. It makes a big mess.

The worst parts are the myriad of decisions that follow. Each item is a keep, toss, donate, or giveaway decision. And sometimes, that requires reliving the memory or recovering things you had given up for lost.

What you thought might take an hour consumes the better part of the day.

The next step is to put the “keep” pile back in, in order, where you can easily access each item in the future. Then you must do something with the leftovers. Haul them to the garbage, trudge them to a donated items bin, or send them to others.

Now things are better.

Sorting your feelings can be much the same process.

You must go through them and decide what to keep and which to let go of around a situation or person.

The process usually includes bravery to acknowledge the work ahead, the righteousness of feeling the victim, the shame of feeling the villain, the anger of feeling cheated, etc.

Do you want to keep these feelings? What still fits, what no longer serves, and what can possibly be better for reliving and sorting through that mess?

Everything.

Hypnotherapy provides a safe space to sort through those feelings by understanding where they came from and how best to deal with them. You decide what to revisit and how to resolve issues moving forward.

My job is to help you to enter and maintain the trance space that allows for essential exploration and understanding.

If you want to know more, please make a discovery call appointment. I am happy to talk with you.

Mary

���We make ourselves miserable or we make ourselves strong. The amount of work is the same.��� -Carlos Castaneda

My aunt loved to be miserable. The world was a dangerous place filled with potholes that could trip you up at every turn.

Some sure-fire ways to stay miserable are to recall every slight regularly, take every red light as a personal offense, decide what others who do for themselves should have been for you.

The ways to stay strong are through forgiveness, understanding, and compassion for self and others.

When old slights or traumas surface, acknowledge their presence, then let them go. Sure, they come back from time to time. But how much permission do you give them to ruin the day you are currently having?

In my personal practice, I am learning to welcome the things that cause me pain into my heart and to understand they are just part of life. In this simple act, I greatly reduce their power. It helps keep me strong and focused on what matters which is now.

It takes energy to hold on, catalog, and constantly recall all of life���s perceived unfairness. It takes equal amounts of energy to consciously love, forgive, and have compassion for self and others.

The first leaves you angry and defeated. The latter leaves you feeling lighter and more optimistic.

The choice is yours. If you���d like to know more about how to direct your energy, I have some exercises that can help you do just that. They are kind, patient, and confidential.

Mary