I love Chinese holidays. Nearly every month we something - from Tam Kung, the God of the Weather to Ching Ming honouring our ancestors, to dragon boating and Bun festivals each has its own myths and colourful traditions.
Chinese new year celebrates renewal. Unfortunately the festive spirit is dampened by government limitations. Yet 'Spirit' is derived from the Latin meaning 'breath'. So how can we breathe new life into age old practices?
Here is a wonderful example by my friends at Harbour City. I invite you to watch these cheeky lions with personality plus as they cavort down Canton Road and through Ocean Terminal. It's fun, lighthearted and uplifting. I could not help but smile and hope you do too. https://youtu.be/cjN36m5eDcw.
We rekindle the festive spirit with rituals such as cleaning house, hanging red decorations, preparing Lai See, and of course breaking bread with family and friends. My sincere wish is that we pass through this wave healthier, stronger and more agile. For now, Kung Hei Fat Choy and I sincerely wish you and your loved ones a very happy, healthy and as my friends say, PAWsperous Year of the Tiger.
Dreams beget vision, vision begets reality
Add the numerals of today’s date (1-22-2022)
In numerology 11 is a Karmic number associated with spiritual awakening. This number is said to offer insight, higher energy, inspiration, and creativity. How true this week.
Lately I’ve focused on here and now, living day to day. However in the past week I reconnected with friends from around the world rekindling my purpose.
Purpose will make you realise the reason of your existence, it will restore your mind sight, you will start to dream and you will see visions. Dreams lead you to set goals, goals lead to mission accomplishments and vision takes you to the higher places. Euginia Herlihy
First, think big. George Lucas said You can’t do it unless you can imagine it. And then you shall find the way. Abraham Lincoln. Stay focused. You’ve got to think about big things while you’re doing small things, so that all the small things go in the right direction. Alvin Toffler Then Hold the vision and trust the process. Esther Hicks
My 2022 will be a year to remember. What about you?
Gong for a Walk
When the going gets tough, the tough get walking.
The studio is closed due to government restrictions. Serendipitously I received an invitation for the HK Coastal Trail Challenge. Honestly I had never considered the possibility of circumnavigating the island but Everywhere is walking distance if you have the time. Steven Wright
My team name is 'Gong for a Walk'. Armed with a titanium gong and looking like a teenage mutant turtle we started walking clockwise towards Pok Fu Lam spreading positive energy and intention one step at a time.
With the gyms closed I turn to Walking as the most ancient exercise and still the best modern exercise. Carrie Latet. Plus you have time to explore, discover and make new friends. I look forward to the next stages with optimism for with each step I Walk towards the good in life and one day you (it) will arrive. Atticus
Here you come again
For when you come back to me again, you will realise you’ve never left. Varshitha
We had a wonderful gong on the beach last night with an unbelievably warm evening, clear skies, crescent moon and gently rising tide. While floating in gong bliss I received a text announcing the new government directive invoking mandatory closures of all studios for 2 weeks from midnight tonight. Immediately this song came to mind….
Here you come again
Just when I've begun to get myself together
You waltz right in the door
Just like you've done before
And wrap my heart (life) 'round your little finger
Listen here to Dolly Parton
We have to Accept what is, let go of what was and have faith in what will be. Anon
The gong bath tonight is ON. Thereafter between Jan 7-20 we are closed. We are issuing refunds today for every booking during that time. Our scheduling thereafter is dependent on govt’ regulations regarding social distancing. So please do keep an eye on the website and newsletter.
They say that Every setback leaves behind a path to make your comeback. anon. For me the The past is a place of reference, not of residence. So, face forward into the new year. One day at a time. As Martin Luther King Jr says, You don’t have to see the whole staircase, just the first step.
Dream Big
Music washes away from the soul the dust of everyday life. Berthold Auerbach
What better way to wash away the memories of 2021 than with an all night puja. Those that came entered the new year cleansed, relaxed and optimistic. Astrologers and numerologists predict a year of major transformation and manifestation. So start by setting BHAGs or Big Hairy Audacious Goals. To create reality focus beyond the outcome, as if it had already happened. Gregg Bradon.
When we strike a gong, the surface of the metal vibrates creating a shimmering plasma surrounding it. So too do we when our thoughts, actions and words are coherent. As Abraham Hicks said it is not our work to make it happen. it's our work to dream and to let it happen. This is the Law of Attraction.
If your dreams don't scare you, they are not big enough. Anon. Plato said the three wishes of every man are to be healthy, to be rich by honest means and to be beautiful.
What are yours? Now multiply by infinity. Happy New Year.
Peace Begins With Me
Oh peace, there you are
Where have you been
All this time?
Right here inside you.
anon
Peace does not mean being in a place with no noise, trouble or hard work. It means to be in the midst of those things and still be calm in your heart. anon
Nobody can bring you peace but yourself. Ralph Waldo Emerson
And As you change your thoughts the world around you changes. Louise Hay
So if there is to be peace in the world, there must be peace in the nations. If there is to be peace in the nations, there must be peace in the cities. If there is to be peace in the cities, there must be peace between neighbours. If there is to be peace between neighbours, there must be peace in the home. If there is to be peace in the home, there must be peace in the heart. Lao Tzu
Therefore, as gentle as a snowflake, let peace enter your heart. Japanese Proverb
And what better way than a visit to the studio?
Limitless
To the universe and beyond. Buzz Lightyear
Infinity means boundless, eternal and everlasting. In math the sideways figure 8 means any number which is higher or greater than any larger or real number possible. In the spiritual realm it helps remind us to balance and focus while retaining harmony and peace to achieve oneness. Infinity implies limitless possibilities. Yet our time on earth is limited.
We are travellers on a cosmic journey, stardust, swirling and dancing in the eddies and whirlpools of infinity. Life is eternal. We have stopped for a moment to encounter each other, to meet, to love, to share. This is a precious moment. It is a little parenthesis in eternity. Paulo Coelho
The variation of infinity above is Swedish in origin called Malin. The arrow reminds us that in order to grow we need to overcome setbacks and challenges in order to reach our full potential. This week, go outside, look up at the night sky, take a deep breath and appreciate the vast panorama before you. Your limits are somewhere up there, waiting for you to reach beyond infinity. Arnold Henry.
Remember
Today we remember those that came before us who gave their tomorrows so that we may have our present. anon
Yet after decades of peace we find ourselves at the 11th hour for planet earth after which it will be too late to recover the damage to our biosphere. Do we want to be remembered as the generations responsible for self extinction?
Oftentimes our finest hours just follow our darkest. Neal A. Maxwell
In numerology 11-11 represents rebirth and the wisdom to write a new chapter in your life. Churchill said that to each there comes a special moment in their lives when they are figuratively tapped on the shoulder and offered the chance to do a very special thing. Today let us give thanks to those who came before and let each of us seize the moment to fulfil our collective mission to save planet earth. Simply switching off lights and refusing plastic is enough. Cumulatively small decisions, choices, actions make a very big difference. Jane Goodall Small acts multiplied by millions, can transform the world. Howard Zinn So Don’t ask. Act. Let your actions define you. T. Jefferson and Let this be our finest hour.
Sounds and Silence
Silence is essential. We all need silence, just as much as we need air, just as much as plants need light. If our minds are crowded with words and thoughts, there is no space for us. Thich Nhat Hanh
The dictionary definition of silence is the complete absence of sound or to prevent one from speaking. In music silence is the opposite of striking a note and is called a rest. Something we could all use more of.
Silence is a metaphor for inner stillness bringing one to connect with one's divine nature, or yoga. Anechoic chambers are rooms designed to completely absorb reflections of sound or electromagnetic waves. Steve Orfield, founder of the quietest place on earth (according to Guinness) explains that within thirty seconds to a minute, you start to hear the sounds that your ears make … within twenty minutes, the sounds of joints….. thirty minutes –your heartbeat and maybe the sound of your lungs. And eventually as John Beaulieu discovered, the sound of his own nervous system. Ironically we enter a noiseless space only to discover we are the noise.
Eckhart Tolle says silence can be seen either as the absence of noise, or as the space in which sound exists, just as inner stillness can be seen as the absence of thought, or the space in which thoughts are perceived. To make the right choices in life you have to get in touch with your soul. To do this you need to experience solitude, which most people are afraid of because in the silence you hear the truth and know the solutions. Deepak Chopra
This week park your monkey mind, ignore the FOMO (fear of missing out) and make space to simply be. Be still. Be quiet. Be connected.
The Day of the Dead
The boundaries between life and death are shadowy and vague. Who shall say where one ends and where the other begins? Edgar Allen Poe
The end of October is universally recognised as a time to remember the departed. The Celts called it Samhain. Halfway between solstice and the equinox they welcomed the harvest and ushered in the dark half of the year. At this time they believed the barriers between the physical and spiritual worlds were open. Fires warded off evil spirits and they served ‘dumb suppers’ inviting their ancestors to join the feast by leaving windows open.
Honour me not by mourning my death but by celebrating my life. anon
In Mexico the Day of the Dead is a joyous festival featuring parades of skeletons, visits to cemeteries, making sugar skulls, building shrines and preparing feasts. The dead are welcomed by hanging colourful marigolds representing rebirth.
The life of the dead is placed in the memory of the living. Cicero
This weekend I invite you to keep alive the memories of your loved ones. For those that love with their heart and soul, there is no separation. Rumi
PS Did you know Mexico City only started the Day of the Dead parade after the filming of James Bond’s Spectre in 2015?