by Cynthia Bischoff | Jun 30, 2012 | Heartliving
You may have uttered the word “Om” during yoga or meditation, but do you know its history, significance and restorative powers?
The Sanskrit word “Om” is actually an intonation, which, like music, transcends age, race, and culture. It is probably the oldest chant known to humankind and believed to be the basic sound of the world and to contain all other sounds.
The word is made up of three Sanskrit letters “aa, au, and ma.” Combined together they make the sound “Aum” or “Om.” The correct pronunciation of “om” is a long “O” and a drawn-out sound of “M”–sounding like “Ohmmmm.”
If repeated with the correct intonation, it can resonate throughout the body so that the sound penetrates to the center of one’s being or soul. In fact, research has shown that chanting OM can alter brain waves from Beta to Delta (from a waking consciousness to a deep state of self-hypnosis).
We know that sound has a powerful effect on the mind and body and when combined with meditation can facilitate healing and spiritual growth.
by Cynthia Bischoff | Jun 23, 2012 | Heartliving
What follows is a beautiful poem that someone sent to me in an e-mail. May it inspire you as it did me!
INTERVIEW WITH GOD. . .
I dreamed I had an interview with God.
“So, you would like to interview me?” God asked.
“If you have the time,” I said.
God smiled. “My time is eternity; what questions do you
have in mind to ask me?”
“What surprises you most about humankind?…”
GOD ANSWERED…
That by thinking anxiously about the future,
they forget the present, such that they live in
neither the present nor the future.
That they live as if they will never die, and they die as
if they had never lived…”
“That they get bored with childhood – they rush
to grow up and then long to be children again.
That they lose their health to make money and then lose
their money to restore their health.
God’s hands took mine and we were silent for a while
and then I asked…
“As a parent, what are some of life’s lessons you
want your children to learn?”
God replied with a smile:
“To learn that they cannot make anyone love them.
What they can do is to let themselves be loved.
To learn that what is most valuable is not what they have
in their lives, but who they have in their lives.
To learn that it is not good to compare themselves to others.
To learn that a rich person is not the one who has the
most, but is one who needs the least.
To learn that it only takes a few seconds to open
profound wounds in persons one loves, and that it may take many
years to heal them.
To learn to forgive by practicing forgiveness.
To learn that there are
persons who love them dearly,
but simply do not know
how to express or show their feelings.
To learn that two people can look at the same thing and
see it very differently.
To learn that it is not always enough that they be
forgiven by others, but that they must also forgive themselves.
And to learn that I am here — always.” (Author Unknown)
by Cynthia Bischoff | Jun 16, 2012 | Heartliving
Do you know the origin of Father’s Day?
In 1910, Sonora Smart Dodd invented her own celebration of Father’s Day to honor her father who was a Civil War veteran—William Jackson Smart. He was a single parent who reared six children in Spokane, Washington, and his birthday was in June. His daughter Sonora felt he should be honored in a dedicated celebration.
In 1913, a bill to create national recognition of the holiday was introduced in Congress. In 1916, President Woodrow Wilson went to Spokane to speak in a Father’s Day celebration and wanted to make it an official holiday. Congress instead resisted the idea, feeling that the day would become commercialized.
President Calvin Coolidge recommended in 1924 that the day be nationally observed, but stopped short of creating a national proclamation.
Finally, Maine Senator Margaret Chase Smith wrote a proposal in 1957 suggesting that Congress was ignoring fathers for over 40 years while honoring mothers. (Mother’s Day was established in 1914.)
In 1966, President Lyndon B. Johnson issued the first presidential proclamation honoring fathers, designating the third Sunday in June as Father’s Day. Six years later, in 1972, President Richard Nixon signed the holiday into law, making it a permanent national holiday.
On this day, take a moment to reflect on your father figure and honor his spirit.
by Cynthia Bischoff | Jun 12, 2012 | Heartliving
Greetings, Hearts!
I will be offering the Reiki Level One Workshop in Norfolk, VA, in August or September. The date will be selected by responses from those interested. This is a one-day workshop (8:30-3:30). If you are interested, please read the information below completely and email me before Tuesday, 6/19. I will reply to all emails on 6/20.
WHAT IS REIKI?
Reiki (pronounced RAY- key) is a natural Japanese healing art that helps balance and activate one’s physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual bodies. It reduces stress and fatigue and serves in preventative health maintenance and as a transformation tool for spiritual growth. It activates what is innate within ourselves and returns us to wholeness. Reiki has been especially effective in helping heal trauma from abuse and addictions.
Reiki focuses on the flow of the “universal life force energy” through one’s hands to balance the body, mind, and spirit. Reiki treats the whole person including body, emotions, mind, and spirit and creates many beneficial effects including relaxation and feelings of peace, security, and well-being. As part of the curriculum, the student learns how to give a Reiki session on others as well as self and also receives a Reiki attunement by me as Reiki Master Teacher. This is an amazing stress-reduction technique to learn and administer.
I teach Reiki (Levels 1, 2, 3 and Teacher Training) as well as Mind/Body Energy Medicine in Japan as well as in the U.S. and will be teaching these programs in Japan again this year (June 28 to July 18)–my 10th visit.
Please notice the suggested dates for the program in the U.S. (we will select one date). If you are sincerely interested in committing to the program, please send me an email indicating that and also tell me which dates you CANNOT do among those listed. I am hoping with our flexibility to come up with a date that works for all. (While preference can be indicated, I am really looking for dates you absolutely CANNOT do so we can find one we can do.) See dates below.
WHAT: REIKI Level 1 Workshop
TIME: 8:30-3:30 one day
DATE: We will select ONE DATE from these dates (RESPOND to Cynthia with any that you CANNOT DO):
Monday, August 6
Wednesday, August 15
Monday, August 20
Wednesday, September 12
The group is limited to 10 participants.
PROGRAM NOTES
The program will involve an entire day of learning the history of Reiki, studying energy work and learning the Reiki techniques, as well as receiving a personal energy attunement from Cynthia. Participants will receive a Reiki I Certification. The program includes a $20 book, as well as lunch and beverages.
ABOUT YOUR INSTRUCTOR: Dr. Cynthia Bischoff
Cynthia Bischoff is a Reiki Master Teacher who teaches in the U.S. as well as in Japan. She is trained in the Usui Shiki Ryoho traditional Reiki method. In terms of lineage, she holds a position of being “third from Master Takata” who westernized Reiki in the U.S.
Cynthia holds a Ph.D. in Metaphysics and is a certified hypnotherapist who has advanced certifications in varied alternative therapies: Breathwork, Acupressure, Bio-Energy, Shamanic Studies, and Medical Intuition.
Highly intuitive, Cynthia has been a life coach and trainer since 1980 and is the developer of the popular Heartliving programs.
Once the date has been decided and participants selected, a registration form will be sent. Cost of this training program is $188 ($100 deposit now and $88 on class day) or $178 now paid in full ($10 savings).
Email Cynthia at heartliving@cox.net to express interest.
I hope to have the pleasure of working with you. Many blessings!
by Cynthia Bischoff | Jun 9, 2012 | Heartliving
Imagining your best possible self can be a powerful and positive catalyst for change. You can do this through active visualization or meditation, not unlike one would daydream the best possible future life scenario.
This activity of positive visualization simply involves imagining yourself in the future in the best possible circumstances after everything has gone as well as it can. You see yourself happy and peaceful, having realized your desires and accomplished your potential. You simply focus on the best possible way that things might turn out in life.
Instead of focusing in your visualization on WHO else is with you or WHERE you are exactly, keep your focus on the most positive and peaceful feeling state you can imagine for yourself. In fact, often we do not know the details of what will bring us the greatest state of peace and happiness.
Researchers and psychologists have found that imagining or writing about your “best possible self” can create healthy emotions, increase your positive outlook, and fortify you to meet any challenges. In addition, it also changes the expectations you have of yourself, allowing you to release old limiting beliefs and break free of constraints.
You may have uttered the word “Om” during yoga or meditation, but do you know its history, significance and restorative powers?
