Letting Go of Limiting Beliefs – karma yoga style

Oh how natural it is to get into patterns of thoughts and beliefs that keep us small and fearful. It’s time to let go of limiting beliefs!

Our egos, our small selves, hang on to these untruths, illusions and delusions because it thinks that’s what’s needed to keep us safe. All it does though, is keep us in the status quo. And how is that working?!

Letting go of limiting beliefs is part of that essential stretch of the comfort zones that leads to emerging more as our True Selves.

Here’s a story from my life that illustrates how feeling the fear and doing it anyway, when intuitively guided, can open up so much!

When my Higher Self clearly guided me to sign-up for the karma yoga program (volunteering through service) at Ananda Village in the Sierra Foothills of California for 2 months, my little self balked. 

“I haven’t lived on a set schedule for years! What if I can’t stay awake in the evenings? I’m so used to getting up before dawn and watching movies energy-less in bed after supper?!”

“What if I can’t keep up to all those young ones?! I’m not a very physical person. Apart from long sauntering walks in nature and restorative yoga once in a while, I don’t do much. My upper body is so weak. I never use my arms except to type at the computer or sit at the painting table.”…

“I thrive on being alone! As an introvert, I need a lot of alone time. There, I’ll be sharing a bedroom and constantly working in a team. I’m a much better leader than team player.”

“What!? the toilets are in a separate building than the bedrooms? Last year in March they were buried in snow. I’ll never get back to sleep if I even make it to the toilets in that cold.”

These are only some of fear-based thoughts and limiting beliefs that spun in my head along with the excitement of knowing that if I was guided, it was for my Highest Good. Now, I chuckle as I type them out for you.

From baby steps to leaps of faiths, I’ve had a lifetime of learning to trust my intuition. So if Guided, nothing can stop me.

As you know, I did sign-up for this stretch of my comfort zones.  I was part of the karma yoga team for the full months of March and April. And I thrived, so grateful for this gift from the Universe!

Sure, I was really tired, especially that first week. But I was also happy. The group was great. The variety of ways we served kept my mind, heart, and body active. The prayer, chanting and spirituality in every part of the day was so aligned with who I am. And when I put my head down on the pillow, I slept solidly.

Yes, there were adjustments. I learned not to drink water after supper, even if the evening shift sometimes ended past 9:30pm. That way, I only woke up at 4 or 5 am. I’d grab my pre-packed bag of clothes and quickly run up the few flights of outdoors stairs up to the washrooms for relief and a good shower before moving on with my day – reading before the 6:30 am yoga class when I wasn’t scheduled for the breakfast shift.

I ended up loving the simplicity and flow of our busy schedules. I like routines, and I like variety. We had both!

Our karma yoga shifts worked my body in a way that motivated me to attend, when possible, the 2 yoga classes a day (3.5 hours). Oh how those stretches, affirmations, energization exercises and meditation fuelled me. And the yoga made it possible for me to fulfill my physically demanding service duties.

This body had been used to way too much sitting in a day. But as you can see in this Breakfast Boogie Timelapse video (top of page), I benefitted from lots of exercise during my 2 months. I’m now stronger and healthier!

What you’re watching in the video is the end of the dishes shift after a light supper and my solo breakfast shift the next morning from 5am-8:15 am. Being on my own, I decided to play with my 2 iPhones to create this 4-minute glimpse into my life there. That shift officially starts at 6:15, but if I wanted do it in a relaxing & playful way, and since I could only carry 1 floor mat in from the back dock at a time, I decided to give myself an extra 75 minutes …. and needed it, especially when we had big groups. On this day, it was a small group.

As for thinking I couldn’t keep up to the young ones, it turned out that at 57, I was of average age. And the beauty of teamwork is that if I couldn’t lift the mop bucket to empty it in the tiny sink room, others could & would.

By week 3, I felt such joy that I could lift the heavy wooden cover to the large garbage storage container outside, something I couldn’t do on my first day.

Evening shifts remained more challenging for me, but it gave me great practice at observing and controlling not only my energy levels, but my irritability and patience levels. I (and everyone else) noticed that I had a tendency to be a task-master if I became afraid we’d be there too late. Some got engaged in conversation, slowing down the completion of everything on the checklist. I was given plenty of opportunities to recognize how I valued the goal more than the process. After all, this wasn’t just a physical boot-camp, it was a spiritual one too. Luckily, I went into the experience already knowing that if I were triggered, it was more about me than anyone else.

Our days were beautifully balanced between yoga, meditation, karma yoga shifts, delicious vegetarian meals, spiritual philosophy classes, special activities, Sunday service, and yes, once in a while, alone time.

There was always a table for those wanting to eat in silence instead of socializing. There were plenty of nature spots to retreat to in order to read, take photo walks, etc. And every week we got to indicate what shifts we wanted off. I’d always ask for the lunch shift off after the Crystal Hermitage Garden shift so I could stay to picnic and bask in the beauty with my camera for an extra couple of hours before the beautiful 1-hour walk back through the forest and village. I’d also ask for Friday evenings off so I could join kirtan (devotional chanting) in the temple.

By the end of April, I could envision doing this for a few months every year, either in California or at Ananda Assisi community in Italy. We’ll see…

I’m just so glad that I didn’t let my fears or limiting beliefs stop me from a Spirit-guided opportunity to experience 2 beautiful months fulfilling my life purpose – to travel the world exploring and expressing my love of beauty and the beauty of love.

What about you? What limiting beliefs are standing in the way of your emerging more fully as your True Self in the world?

What are you being Guided to be, do or have that requires a stretch of your comfort zones? Can you take baby steps? How about leaps of faith?

Ask your Team of Divine Helpers to

• guide you to what’s in your Highest Good
• help you see and let go of your limiting beliefs
• feel the fear and do it anyway
• live the amazing life you were meant to live.

May it be so. Namaste (the Spirit in me bows to the Spirit in you).