Creating mindfulness rituals can be a simple way to bring more awareness and calm into your life. As the seasons change and we are moving into hibernation mode this is the perfect time to introduce nourishing and wholesome rituals into your daily life. They can be very simple. Sometimes simple is the most effective. For a more complete program on moving inward to nourish mind body and souls - see our flagship program here
Just one mindful breath per day.
Days are busy and pressure to do and to be so many things is exhausting. As time is so limited, the thought of taking up a new practice that will demand time that you don’t have, can feel too much. So for now, don’t.
Just make a solid commitment to have one mindful breath per day. Mindful simply means being present to what you’re doing. Everyone has time for that and hey, you have to breathe anyway so if you are very goal-oriented, you can even view it as multi-tasking. Just one mindful breath per day. You will deepen this moment if you apply Yogandha Ground to your wrists and temples. Applying these sacred herbs – sandalwood, cedarwood, jasmine etc will give a deeply meditative quality to the moment. It takes only one breath, but will deeply effects your whole day.
The Yogandha range was created specifically to bring calm into the every day. It is based on the fact that our sense of smell has an immediate effect on the nervous system. An aroma can change how you feel, take you somewhere else, to a memory, a dream… They can be uplifting, soothing, stimulating or grounding. Using scent in your daily life will immediately affect your mood and energy.
So how can you embrace aroma as a mindful ritual in your daily life?
Wake up and smell the coffee. Yes, we know coffee is a stimulant so we can substitute with any beverage of our preference. But as we wake up and make our cup of tea/coffee/juice take pleasure and time doing so. Smell the aroma of the coffee beans, the tea or herbal blend, experience the touch of the tea bags or herbs, choose your cup with awareness. And choose the cup you really love.
Can you practise mindfulness as you wait for the kettle to boil, can you take a few mindful breaths? Taking care as you sit down, smell the aroma of your beverage, how does it make you feel? Then taste, really taste, and enjoy your drink. Feel the texture and temperature. This is mindfulness in practice. And this becomes a practical meditation - without adding extra tasks and to-dos to your life.
Can you practise the same when you are cooking?
We love tasting and smelling the ingredients of our food. Crushing fresh marjoram between our fingers before adding it to our soup. The sharp scent of fresh ginger as it is crushed for a vegetable stir-fry. Allow your cooking to be practised as an act of mindfulness.
Aromatic oil meditation
Enjoy the use of natural herbal oils. Add a few pumps of Yogandha Muscle Soothe into your hands and rub the palms gently together. Cup the hands in front of your nose and inhale. How does the scent make you feel?
This oil includes cedarwood which is wonderfully grounding and perfect for meditation. And petitgrain aiding the digestive and nervous systems and brings a state of equilibrium mentally and physically. As well as balancing lavender essential oil. Now apply the oils to your skin feeling the touch of your hands on your body. Even self-massage can become mindfulness ritual.
Now the oils are truly multi-functional. I use Yogandha Muscle Soothe on my son after football (it's great for quick bonding!) and I love that it also helps keep coughs and colds away. I use Yogandha Relax as my nightly face oil – exhaling and letting go. Feeling my body and mind relax as I apply it. I also use it to take my make up off – oil does everything and nourishes as it cleans.
We hope these aromatic rituals will bring more mindfulness, awareness and calm to your life as the seasons change and we get ready to hibernate.