Transformation and Working Life

If a hermit was to emerge from his reclusive cave, and step through time to see what the current practitioners were up to, he would be impressed at the juggling act, if a little astonished at the amount today’s meditators are called to try to balance in their lives.

In the past, spiritual practitioners entered into a monastery where meditation, prayer, and purification could take place without interruption in a serene, natural environment. There was time to be with inner bliss, and time to deal with new energies and arising shadows.

Here in the city, working 9 – 5:00, there is an expectation that everything should remain perfectly regular, on-time and ‘normal’. You can’t phone in saying, “I’m really open – I need to spend some quiet time,” or “I need to release past wounds that surfaced during some recent energy work,” you just have to keep going, keeping up the façade that nothing is going on inside – or perhaps even that there is no ‘inside’!

It can be a great relief to know that you are not the only one experiencing the way that you do, and that seemingly physical sensations may have energy-related solutions.

Becoming more aware heightens sensitivity. This is a wonderful gift, but not always a comfortable gift in today’s city buildings. Strip lights, air conditioning systems, synthetic materials, over-breathed air, and the rays of computer monitors are all keenly felt by sensitive people, as are shopping malls and the increasing density of radio waves everywhere. A good portion of the tiredness experienced at the end of the day is just from being in that kind of environment. Gone are the days when everyone can open a window. If you have the choice of a healthier environment, go for it. Otherwise, taking regular breaks outside is next best remedy. (If you don’t smoke, pick up some confectionary cigarettes!)

Combining spiritual openness with the rigour of full time work can also give rise to certain kinds of headaches. Headaches associated with higher energy often feel like pressure in the head, sometimes as if a force is pushing up through the crown, or that there is too much energy in the head. Everyone has natural cycles of outgoing and inward moving energy. In a natural environment we can follow the flow, to be more still for a while, then more active, whereas 9 to 5 workers have to keep going regardless.

Sometimes opening the crown chakra releases the energy upward, sometimes releasing the neck works. The back of the neck is the chakra which is most involved in being on time and keeping control over our lives. Incoming energy through the crown meets the constriction in the neck, has nowhere to go and so builds up in the head. A meditation or walk in the woods would quickly return balance, but the likelihood of the boss understanding the cost effectiveness of the short break is slim!

The best prevention is to remain relaxed, keep your neck released through regular neck rolling (every hour if you can remember), and remain well-grounded. To ground, take a few deep breaths, relax your body, send your attention down your legs, to your feet and into the earth. Grounding is also the best way of counteracting the dizzy, spaced-out feeling that comes when there is more high vibrational energy than earth energy.

From time to time, people experience energy moving through their spine; patches of heat, often at the base of the spine or crown; odd, often migratory pains; and tickling or electrical sensations in the limbs. A traditional physician is unlikely to diagnose anything simply because their training and physical instruments and are not designed to pick up subtle energy. It is worth getting a check if it puts your mind at rest, but when conventional medical tests prove negative, you are not imagining the condition. A good Ayurvedic, Tibetan or Chinese doctor can do a pulse diagnosis and give you an idea about what is happening in your basic energy constitution.

As we become more spiritually open, we have more energy flowing through us. This is wonderful, but does mean that constrictions need to be released to allow the increased flow, and that we need to be more tuned in. Take time to sense what that area of your body is expressing to you. Stretching the area can release knots of resistance.

While these unusual energy phenomena are not generally spoken about, they are quite ‘normal’ in the realm of spiritual transformation. Keep your eyes open for colleagues, family members or friends who may have these experiences and not know what is happening. Unusual energy sensations can happen to anyone, whether practicing or not. A little information can go a long way.