If exercise has become synonymous
with torture, it is time for a fresh perspective. Why not bring the recognition
of Magick and energy from your Wiccan or Pagan practice into the work out for a
full body-mind-soul charge? To begin, we need to flex one of the most important
parts of the body- the brain! Decide for yourself why it is important to engage
in physical activity. Better health? Less stress? Endorphins? Once you have
clarified the basic reasons you have been working out in the first place, it is
time to extend beyond the mundane in true Witchy fashion and start to discover
what more the practice of regular physical activity has to offer.
Could this half hour to hour of time
dedicated to the body be a way to seek solace in your physical form, while
realigning energies of your body with your intentions for the day? Why not make
the work out a sacred time, free from distractions, out of reach of the demands
of work, home and other obligations? What if the process of working up a sweat
was also the process of cleansing the body of toxins, refreshing you cell by
cell? The view of exercise begins in the brain. Extend your list of reasons to
be active further now, including benefits to your mood, as well as cultivation
of a specific type of energy. Now that you are closer to the zone, let’s
explore other ways to make Magick at the gym!
Sacred Time for the
Body
If an exercise routine has become
boring it is time to reclaim the routine! Instead of a chore, consider this
time - however long or short it may be- as sacred time. This is your body’s
time to play! The experience of your body stretching and moving is a gift to be
cherished. This is your time to let the parts of your body that have been
cooped up at a desk or in mundane routines thrive and wander through movements
that you don’t typically get to enjoy. This is also your uninterrupted sacred
time. For your next routine of whatever length you can devote to yourself
without interruption, unplug or silence the phone. Limit distractions like
television. If music helps to charge you for your work out, that’s fine: set a
playlist on your music player and use this and not clocks or watches to keep
the boundary of time in which you will relish in movement for the sake of
reinvigorating your body.
Sacred Motion for the
Body
Forget bicep curls, jumping jacks,
or stair climbers. These terms are boring and lack life. When you engage in
lifting a weight toward you, imagine that you are pulling forth refreshing
energy. Align your actions with spiritual intent and expand the meaning of the
motions you are making. Your movements are sacred, filled with energy both
expanding and constricting, bringing harmony and growth. Consciousness makes
all the difference. When running, try to align your physical sensations of your
motions with a purposeful sense of spirituality. The legs are not just
repeating the same forward movement; they are carrying you through the breeze.
Jumping Jacks are not a means of repeatedly pounding your feet on the floor
while flinging your arms carelessly, they are an opportunity to raise energy
from the Earth below you and collect energy from the sky above you, this energy
being drawn in as your arms lower and collected when arms are outstretched.
Explore other ways motion common in your exercise of choice draws or repels
energy, and then add the factor of intent.
Visualize
As you engage in the practice of
cycling, swimming, weight lifting, walking or other physical activity,
visualize in this delineated time of sacred communion with the body, and what
you are striving for too. It may be a mental representation of a goal, each
motion bringing you closer to your dream. It may be a color or image
representing the energy cultivated in your exercise. Consider the process of
exercise much like the process of raising energy in a magickal circle, you are
building up this energy with some kind of intent which can be as magickal or
mundane as you would like.
Release and Cool Down
Don’t forget the importance of
cooling down the body. This provides a transition time between your sacred
motion and re-emergence into the mundane world. This is an opportune time to
release the energy raised during the work out. Visualize sending out the excess
energy raised to take its course toward manifesting that which you intended. It
should be for positive ends at all times. Stretching will open up the body to
realign and adjust, allowing for more energy to refill and replenish. Use this
time to focus on refilling your system with renewed energy, intending any
stagnant, negative, or residual energy having dissipated through the cleansing
activity. You have allowed motion to regulate and refill your body’s energy.
Don’t forget the cleansing power of water as well, and be sure to stay well
hydrated even if you don’t think you need it. Remember, water is powerful and
can be charged to provide another source of reinforcement to your original
intention.
As always the goals of these
practices are to bring connection to the body and not to cause harm to one’s
self or others. If the body is giving signals that certain activities are
beyond your current capacity, then activity should be modified to prevent
injury. This should be a process of celebrating and joining with the body, not
fighting against it.
Article by: Angela Kaufman. Angela is a Priestess for the Dragon Warriors
of Isis Coven in Upstate, New York, and the co-author of Wicca: What's the Real Deal?
She is a professional tarot reader.
For more information about Wicca:
What's the Real Deal? visit http://www.wwtrd.webs.com.
