Air is.

Air travels though you all the time, mostly without your awareness. Air is the space between. Air transports vibration, communication. Air is associated with the mind, the mental plane. Air is where the thoughts live. Air is essential to life, breath. The air compartments in the body are the lungs, linked to the heart chakra (center of love, compassion, grief). Air is sometimes dry and brittle. Yet, just before the rain it is heavy & dense. Air is wind that comes and goes so quickly, you may not notice it has touched you, yet the evidence is felt. You cannot hold air in your hands, it will always, always slip through your fingers.

Air in the wild.
When we are looking to the wild for guidance, Air inspires us, helps us take flight & sometimes, sends a lighting bolt that knocks us over or cracks us open. Air blows in the new idea that lights up our hearts. Air gently pushes us forward or back, this way or that. Depending upon the speed it is moving, Air, in the landscape of our internal space, has the power to lift us to great heights or leave us disheveled, confused, lost.

Air in the body.
Balanced air experienced in the body comes in with breathe, calm inspiration. Like the great idea that seems to waft into the body on a walk in nature, balanced air is uplifting. Balanced air can be channeled into form: a sentence, a poem, a project. Excessive airiness can feel a balloon which is floating up and up and up. There is little ability to focus, hold onto a singular line of thought. Of course, without air: fire dies, there is no wind to tickle the plants, no way to pull the tide. Without air, we are left to our ways, nothing new, same, same.

Channeling your Air.
If one wishes to walk on the path of one’s own true nature, the inner air must be cherished, channeled & tended to with great care.

Grounding: For the Naturally Airy Constitutions

For all of us, the air plays in our daily lives, some more than others.

For your airy folk: those with strong Gemini, Libra, Aquarian astrological aspects and/or those who have a lot of Vata in their Ayurvedic constitution. You may feel the ever shifting internal winds blowing stronger than others. When the inner air (ideas, inspiration, communication)is not channeled it can feel like a tornado inside: this thought, that thought, up, down, Duck! There is an anxiety, overwhelm, indecision, destructive movement, poor communication. In the body, this can lead to headaches, anxiety into fatigue, perhaps extra tension in the neck and shoulders.

The Medicine.

Airy folks need the medicine of Meditation, accompanied by breath work. Seek out a yoga teacher, a meditation course & cultivate a daily practice. Airy folks will also do well to write in a journal & make lists at work. The air carries in it, the world of ideas, concepts, visions. If you can organize the inner space, you will be able to receive, assimilate & express information with intellectual mastery untouched by the other elemental constitutions.

Get physical, feel your body. Feel the earth under your feet, unplug from the many communication tools, and see if you can relax. A relaxed air constitution channels brilliance. You must find the thing that calms you and clears your head. When you do, your talents for inventive communication, comprehension of complex ideas & visionary thinking will soar.

Your mind is a precious instrument; keep it tuned.

Caution for air folk: Do not make major life choices when the inner winds are high. Aim to pause & ground.

Prayer for the air folk: May the power of your intelligence be channeled and may it always be a faithful servant to your loving heart.

Cultivating Your Air~ for my watery, earthy, fiery friends.

It should be noted that the other elements have the most amazing gifts to offer (and challenges too) which I will write about in future. See last week’s fire post. For today our exploration is the magnificence of air.

We all need healthy air in our lives. The air is where we are able to communicate, not only with the people in our lives, but also with ourselves. The air is where the good ideas enter. The air is where we can imagine, where we breathe, where we can connect to the infinite space above our heads.

Universal caution: Many of us are experiencing the quite visceral affects of air in the form of communication technology: the internet, social media, texting, even the electromagnetic pulsing from our many devices & networks. It is a whole new world, in this regard. So those who do not naturally have as much air, now have this method to tune into the air energy in a way that has never existed before. We are a generation of pioneers, navigating new airy terrain that our ancestors could have only dreamed about. Keeping a purity in our relationship to the air quality is more important than ever. Which really requires of all to take the Meditation/inner clearing advice given above so as not to get lost in the cloud: Confused, mentally cluttered by the tumultuous winds of the information age.

To increase your pure air: Explore Breath Work/Pranayama which will help you literally bring air into the body. The results will be more balanced vitality, mental calm & openness to the world around you. Try going upside down: cartwheels, inversions. Walk in nature inhale the oxygen the plants are sending out and lovingly exhale the carbon dioxide that will fuel them.

Write a poem, sing a song. It’s not about perfection, just the streaming of ideas into form. Play. Think lightness of being. Read an inspiring book or essay.

Caution for the more dense constitutions: Beware of the tendency to stagnate.

That is:
To run the same passionate ideas in your head, on repeat. (fire folk)
To stay stuck in habits and situations that feel safe, yet uninspired. (earth folk)
To let your inner waters become murky and puddle-like. (water folk)

Prayer for the more dense constitutions: May you marry your gifts to the stream of inspiration available to you in any moment. May you trust & open to life changing ideas, for the greatest good of all.

In closing.

I wish to bring our attention to 2 things:

#1: The magical qualities of air. We know it is there, yet we can’t see it or hold it. Air is like the fairy godmother sending in gifts constantly, if we have the eyes to see ‘em & hearts to feel ‘em!

#2: Discernment. Guard your mental space with wisdom and ferocity! Be discerning about what you intake, as you are what you eat.

Go forth & be inspired.

QUOTE OF THE WEEK

I am suffocated and lost when I have not the bright feeling of progression.

~Margaret Fuller, 1810-1850

American Journalist. Women’s Rights Advocate. Transcendentalist.