I AM ANGRY & AFRAID, BUT GUNS ARE NOT MY SECURITY

• Today's suggested practice: Day 26 of seven minutes to sit with your overwhelm ... (see below)

• My playlist while writing today's meditation: Pärt: Alina https://music.apple.com/ca/album/p%C3%A4rt-alina-spiegel-im-spiegel/1440748495

• My morning practice: 60 minutes of physical, yogic, and meditative practice, including Linking with the Infinite mantra and pranayama, and Solving Communication Problems kriya

• My vulnerability practice: xx

—Hans Peter Meyer

TODAY'S MEDITATION 

I am angry. And I am afraid for children in America. And in Canada, because we absorb so much from our southern neighbours.

I am angry. And I am afraid for children but I am not a warrior. It is the trope of the warrior that is part of the mental illness that sees children being sacrificed on the altar of solving fear with defensiveness, with guns.

It's two days since another mass shooting incident in the USA. It's two days and the apologists for guns are baroque in their reasons why guns are a primary issue.

I am angry to be so powerless in the face of this willful barbarity. I am angry because this is not my country I’m so upset about, and so my protests and my votes are irrelevant. I am angry, and breathing into this anger I know that I am being asked to look at my own life, my own willingness to sacrifice others on the altars my fears.

The change I want to see in the world around me, my resistance to what is, begins here, in this body-mind. In this heart. And that change begins with my breath.

I am grateful that, sitting in a San Francisco workshop with 40 men, all of us wanting to learn about how to be masters of the sexual yoga, our teacher dropped this bomb: The opening we seek in women depends on becoming the man who is absolutely trustworthy, who is absolutely safe to open to.

My understanding, and my teaching since then: Our gift, as men, is our capacity to create and hold safe space for the feminine —particularly for women and children, but also for other men, and for ourselves. Our work, as masculine-identified men, is to learn how to do that, consistently, for all whom we meet on our path through our hours and days and life.

I am not powerless here, though my anger rails against feelings of impotence. I am not powerless in this moment of tragedy. Indeed, I am a powerful force of love and compassion, and I am able to change myself, to bring my presence to bear, from a million miles away.

I am here, in this moment, to feel my anger. I am here to hold holy space for my anger. I am here to hold holy space for my sorrow, and the sorrow of others who feel overwhelmed by this tragedy, one of many tragedies of a culture where we, as men, are not creating and holding safe space for our children.

I am here to teach myself and other men that we do not sacrifice children on the altar of our insecurity, our fear, our defensiveness.

To become so safe, and to become the creators of a culture so safe for the feminine, is hard work. We lay down our weapons. We open our hearts and our arms. We receive love. We become love.

ps. If you are feeling overwhelmed, angry, afraid after yet another sacrifice of childrens’ lives, please reach out for support. If you don’t have someone at hand, please DM me or email me at [email protected]. For this May and June I’m offering a couple of sessions a week at no charge at sacredbodies.ca

TODAY’S INSPIRATIONS

🌀The Conscious Warrior honours and protects the feminine, both in himself, in women and children, and in the world. (John Wineland, Precept 8)

🌀Breath is the vehicle of consciousness and so, by its slow measured observation and distribution, we learn to tug our attention away from external desires toward a judicious,

intelligent awareness. (B.K.S. Iyengar)

🌀Our prayer is that you are in love with your mastery and are always willing to learn something new. (Guru Singh & Guruperkarma, Teacher to the Master)

🌀I’m always impressed by you. (My beloved, my Oracle)

TODAY'S SUGGESTED PRACTICE

Day 26 of this month's practice, seven minutes to hold space for whatever you are feeling ...

Please read through first, then ...

• If you don't have the Mera Man Loche on iTunes https://is.gd/uqOxd8 you'll find it here on YouTube:

As everyday of this practice, let the vibrations of these sounds lead you to feel longing and sacrifice, impatience and patience, and devotion to yourself as a more powerful presence than you've ever known yourself to be...

• Sit. Align yourself. Breath slowly through your nose and only your nose and into your belly. Let the top of your throat become soft so that you are almost snoring as you breath in... Let your body settle and become heavy. Tuck your chin and feel your spine and your heart drawn upward, opening ....

• Turn the music on, and close your eyes.

• Feel the stillness of your body.... and, sitting still, breathing, feel whatever needs to be felt in this moment... sadness, fear, anger, maybe something has moved you to feel joy, maybe you are feeling numb or confused... Let your breath and your posture hold this space for you to feel. This is your (masculine) structure holding space for your feminine - all the feelings, all the sensations, everything that moves and changes and is beyond control...

• Feel it all, whether it is a lot or nothing, feel into whatever these few minutes of stillness bring to you. Receive this as a gift. Offer your stillness and acceptance as a gift. Allow for no solutions, no need to respond, no need to figure anything out...

• As the song ends, allow yourself feel your depth and solidity. Know how powerful and safe you are for this moment. As you step into your day, know that you will encounter yourself and others in ways that challenge your steadfastness. Remember: Whether you are feminine-identified or masculine-identified or otherwise-identified, you have this sacred masculine capacity to hold space for all that comes to you. The world needs your gift.

More meditations, practices, and inspirations at apprenticeshiptolove.com

Please share with a friend, where appropriate.