Have you ever thought something along the lines of “there must be a better / simpler / easier way to create balance in my life?”
I definitely got to a point where I felt I was overcomplicating everything from my health, to my work and even my spiritual development.
This was the point where Sound & Ayurveda entered my life, seeming now as if someone came and waved a magic wand in terms of simplicity, ease and joy.
I had already been practicing yoga for many years 🧘🏽♀️ and had an established daily sādhanā and what I felt was total commitment to the spiritual journey. However, working 12 hour shifts as a hospital doctor 🩺 between my twice daily 3 hour routine of complicated yogic practices didn’t leave much room for sleep, good food or fun. My physical and mental health started to show cracks 😵…
In me this manifested as dramatic mood swings in between numbness and nearly complete loss of social skills! I went to see an Ayurvedic physician who I felt as if she immediately saw my problems from a higher view perspective and therefore understood how to address things much more simply and directly. The diet changes and herbal medicines were not what I expected – including coconut rice for breakfast and no more tomatoes or salad for this salad queen! 👸🏼🥗🙅🏻♂️ But to my surprise after a few months a few niggling health issues disappeared and I not only felt more balanced and nourished physically (including unexpected weight loss) my mind was suddenly much calmer. I felt like I had a buffering capacity and was generally feeling much more connected to my sense of self as well as nature.
It was shortly after this that I was given the advice by my spiritual teachers to develop my work with sound as a focal point for my ongoing inner process. Although I had been offering kirtan for many years before that, by diving into the singular sound of om ॐ and the other bija (seed sound) mantras, as well as exploring the notes of the indian raga system, my relationship with sound steadily deepened. It brought me to a point where I can literally depend on a simple 5 minute practice requiring only my voice to restore my mental harmony, or I can prepare a space for deep meditation for myself or others without complicated or extensive means. The kirtans over the last few years have reverberated in a more profound way than I ever thought was possible, and apart from that – participants often share with me just how joyful, liberating and beautiful it feels to sing together with all your heart.
Most transformative for me in particular, was that my lifelong struggle with extreme internal ups and down seemed to dissolve almost altogether. Although I am not yet at the point where I understand the mechanics of how this happened fully, I am sure that working with sound on a regular basis has meant that sound waves have become a medium which I started to understand on an experiential level. Therefore the ‘waves’ of thoughts and emotions simply can’t fool me into a tiz-woz so easily these days. The ‘madhya’ or middle way seems to just present itself in a way that I could previously only dream of.
The reason for sharing these snippets of my journey are that I have realised the power and simplicity of Sound and Ayurveda to provide a real and easily reachable tonic for physical, emotional, mental and spiritual wellbeing. I’ve just come to the end of a 3 year Ayurvedic practitioner and consultant training from the same Ayurvedic doctor I saw back in 2017… Alongside this I’ve been distilling and honing the sound and vocal practices which I use every day so they are easily accessible and highly effective for others. It now feels like the right point in my journey, to start to really share these tools with anyone who feels that they are missing a piece of the puzzle to gaining a sense of balance in this modern life or wish to regain a true feeling of sovereignty over ones inner space.
Lots of Love
Daisy 💗
