Clear as Quartz

Meditation: unravelling the myths

I really like this post on Yoga-Abode, the site of Lucia Cockcroft, a friend of mine. Lucia says that "You don't have to wear orange robes and sit on cushions in an incense-swathed room. Anyone can meditate, and even a minute a day can pay off," and with this, she basically deconstructs the idea that mediation is something that only gurus people can do.

In this post, Lucia provides a simple guide on how to begin this very beneficial practice and interestingly, notes that one the most difficult things to take on board is that meditation must be practised without a specific goal.

How to get more people to read your work

If you are a therapist and you write a blog or own a content-driven website, you will want to find ways of getting more people to read your articles on your site. I have found one little way (amongst the many!) that might help.

You could try writing an article for GoArticles.com and link to your site or blog within the piece. I'd originally written the How to Choose Your Spiritual Mentor feature which appears on this site for Vision magazine, before it folded, so rather than 'waste' the article I not only posted it here, but put it on GoArticles a few days ago. The feature has since had 6 requests - which means my work and my blog are getting circulated.

Dr Kevin Ross Emery: Managing the gift

Dr Kevin Ross Emery is an eminent US spiritualist coach and counsellor, who has written a number of interesting books on various aspects of spirituality and psychic-awareness, but most notably, Managing the gift: alternative approaches to attention deficit disorder.

I met Dr Emery last year in the UK at a bit of a spiritual soiree and he is most definitely an interesting guy. In Managing the gift, Dr Emery claims that the 'ADHD impacted person is part of the evolutionary process of humanity', and in his view, we must recognise and appreciate the gifts that people with attention deficit disorders bring to society.

The New Encyclopedia of Flower Remedies

The New Encyclopedia of Flower Remedies by Clare Harvey (published by Watkins) is a wonderful book of incredible detail and knowledge about flower remedies across the world (and it's a gorgeous bright pink!).

Many of us just associate flower remedies with Bach Flower, but there are thousands of others from across the world that could possibly be used. Whether Deva Flower Elixirs from Europe, or Andreas Korte Essences from Africa and the Amazon, Harvey lists them all in a comprehensive and easily-used resource.

Harvey's book begins with a history of the use of flower essences, as well as including a detailed description of how they work, of energy fields and of the effects of stress, shock and pollution on humans.

Meditation books worth checking out

With reference to my last post on meditation techniques, I thought it might be worth rounding up some of the good meditatin books out there to buy.

Meditation for Dummies by Stephan Bodian is a very simple, easy to use book which is perfect for beginners. Okay, it doesn't look like something Deepak Chopra might have lying around on his coffee table, but it 'does what it say s on the tin'! It's available from Amazon currently priced at £10.39.

Meditation techniques and free lessons

Meditation is the one thing that everyone in the world can benefit from, and daily practice (or as often as you can begin with, even if just once a week to start) can really enrich your life - quietening the mind, providing focus, producing a sense of calm, and allowing physical relaxation.

For those who are completely unfamiliar to meditation, in the most simplest form, you can begin by sitting in a comfortable position, closing your eyes, taking deep breaths, and allowing your mind to empty. Thoughts will come in, but just let them go.

smile like a star

It doesn't exactly fit into the 'therapy' bracket, but it does fit into 'beauty' - as I've got together with my friend Alison Levelsey to begin a new business venture in teeth whitening. smile like a star is the name we have given to our laser teeth whitening service, and I'm currently undergoing my training so that I can safely see clients myself and whiten their teeth.

Alison has been set up with the equipment and training for a while, but just needed someone to help take it forward. So, spotting a good idea when I see it, I was happy to jump on board with her. I'll be doing much of the marketing to get our name out there, and hopefully, much of Manchester will soon have shiny white smiles down to us!

Champagne charity event at SPACE.NK. for St Ann's Hospice

If you're interested in supporting the work of St Ann's Hospice and live around the Manchester or Cheshire regions, then they would very much welcome your attendance at a champagne & canapes charity event being hosted at SPACE.NK.apothecary in Wilmslow (11c Water Lane).

The event takes place on Thursday 6th December at 6.15pm and costs £15 to attend, with a goodie bag to take away included in the price. The evening is focused around skin and hair care and make up demonstrations with expert advice, and of course, champagne and canapes! To book your place contact Dipti Lahkani on 0161 498 3644 or email dlakhani@sah.org.uk for details and the address to send your payment.

Those self-obsessed Leos...

I love this site, videojug, which sells itself as being 'life explained on film'. When browsing around it this morning, I discovered it has a video for 'a day in the life' of each sign of the zodiac. How fabulous!

And for each video, it shows you how many people have clicked on to watch it. I wasn't surprised to find that when I surveyed the page, the gregarious and self-centred Leos have been interested to view their video a whopping 2,841 times, compared to the more introspective and humanitarian Aquarians - the group to have viewed their video the least, only 542 times. Quite a difference hey?

How to choose your spiritual mentors

Whether you want to learn Reiki, begin Chakra healing, develop psychic awareness, or embark on other spiritual pursuits, picking the best people to offer guidance through your journey is crucial to your development. You need to find people you can trust and who you resonate with, because deciding to develop your inner wisdom is a very important stage of your life.

When Soul Coach Alison Levesley, based in Cheshire, was first setting out on her spiritual path and wanted to learn Reiki, she knew the instant that she walked into Farnham’s house that he was going to be her Master, because the energy between them was so right.

As is wont to happen in circumstances of shared intuition, Farnham experienced the same feeling that this was meant to be. But up until that point, Alison had been looking around the country for the 'right person for the job'.

“I was booked to do Reiki Level I with another Master,” says Alison. “But our booking was cancelled 5 times either by me or her. I began to question this and realised I was being shown that she wasn’t the Master for me.”