Meditation for beginners

Most of my twenties I suffered from a very severe anxiety. I was unable to relax and constantly worried about something. I tried many things to help me, but nothing really did the trick. During the endless search to get out of this storm, I discovered the teachings of Kadampa Buddhism and a beautiful practice called Meditation. I began taking Kadampa Buddhist meditation classes, which made a wonderful shift in my life. I also started practising meditation at home. Every time I felt the feelings of discomfort and anxiety floating into my reality, I knew I needed to go home. I knew, I needed to reconnect to my truth, to my soul by meditating. Now, I cannot imagine my life without meditation. It is something I try to practice on a daily basis, whether it’s just for 5 minutes, an hour or more.

What is meditation?

Meditation is a beautiful practice that can change your life in many incredible ways. I dedicated an entire page on my website to Meditation, and if you are new to it, I recommend checking it out: https://www.mysticbutterfly.co.uk/meditation/ You can also find some of my guided meditations on this page.

Many people say to me, they don’t know how to meditate. A wonderful Indian yoga teacher, ayurvedic healer and scholar Tirumalai Krishnamacharya used to say: “If you can breathe, you can do yoga.” Well, I say the same to people, when they say they say they don’t know how to meditate: “If you can breathe, you can meditate.” I am very excited to share with you my brand new guided meditation, which I created for beginners. Get your headphones and find a comfortable place, where you are not going to disturbed for a few minutes. Let my voice guide you to the place of stillness and peace, and enjoy the wonderful benefits meditation offers.

***For this meditation, I recommend to be seated in a chair, with your feet ‘planted’ firmly all the ground. ***

Meditation for Beginners


Recognising your Self-Worth

A dear friend of mine is currently going through some ups and downs in her life. She asked me, if I could write an article about self-worth. I said, absolutely. This is a very important topic to discuss, and I have some tips, which I believe can help you when you are feeling a little down or unworthy right down. We often forget to look after ourselves properly. We’re unintentionally putting other people’s needs before our own. This can be very tiring. We may start feeling emotionally exhausted and this can lead to resentment and unhappiness. Remember, you are the most important person in your life. By important, I don’t mean being selfish. By important, I mean having a healthy respect towards yourself and recognising your self-worth.

Love and acceptance 

When you learn to love and accept yourself fully, others will love you and accept you too. Accept yourself for who you are and don’t try to be someone you are not. I talk from my own experience. I learnt this the hard way, but ever since I began loving and accepting myself for who I really am (even the flaws I used to dislike) I liberated myself! Here is a suggestion for you: Take a deep breath and recite this affirmation either silently in your mind or aloud: “I love and accept myself just the way I am.” Keep reminding yourself these powerful words every single day. A slight willingness to love and accept yourself just as you are, will open you the doors to a more fulfilling life. A few months ago I have written an article about self-love. If this is something you currently struggle with, you can read it here https://www.mysticbutterfly.co.uk/not-selfish-self-love/ You are unique soul and a human being and that’s what makes you beautiful. Remember that.

Surround yourself by the right people 

Surround yourself by the right people. The people who remind you of your self-worth. People who are there for you when you need them, not only when they need something from you. Surround yourself by people who encourage you and make you feel good, not drain you of energy. Sometimes we need to do an inventory in our own lives, and really decide which people are meant to be sharing this journey with us. Stop pleasing and impressing others. The right people who are meant to be in your life don’t need any kind of approval. They will come to your life naturally and will stay there. The right people won’t leave you when you need them most. Don’t judge those who do, instead remind yourself, that their path is different from yours. You both learnt what you needed to learn from each others. Then let them go and let them be who they want to be.

Self-care 

You are important and you are worthy, because you exist. You deserve the same amount of love, support and care from yourself as you give to others. We often forget to look after ourselves, because we are too busy living lives. Your mind, body and your soul deserve an equal nourishing. You need to treasure and look after your being as whole, and make your self-care a priority. Eat healthy food, exercise your body, take a hot bath, go for a walk or go to the theatre. Do what makes you happy and learn to start nourishing your entire being. Your wellbeing is important. Looking after yourself will make you feel more energised and you will become happier. You deserve it!

Your dreams  

Do you have a dreams you would love to accomplish in the next five years? Do you want have your own art studio? Buy a house? Write a book? Get your first degree at the age of 50? Why not! It’s all possible. Focus on what you want and take the steps towards your dreams every single day. It doesn’t matter how small your steps are. Do something every single day, that will bring you closer to your dream. This is your life and only you decide what you want to do with it. You are worthy of anything you choose. Take that first step today and focus more on what you desire in life.

A thought to keep 

Recognise your own worth and you won’t be drawn to those who won’t see it ~ Doe Zantamata


The art of slowing down

Life can get very hectic sometimes. Meeting deadlines, planning ahead, looking after children, going to work. We often see many signs of slowing down, but we don’t always choose to acknowledge them. We only do this when something goes wrong, when we get tired or suddenly realise, we can’t carry on like this anymore. I’ve been inspired to write about slowing down last week, when I found myself rushing around London. I often notice many spiritual signs around (I talked about them in the last week’s blog), but this time, they were literally screaming at me. Traffic lights turning red when I was driving, queues at every shop I went to, even the internet connection not working when I tried to send a quick email on the go. At that point, I couldn’t ignore the universal message anymore. I needed to slow down. I decided to stop, and finally acknowledge what was going on. Here are few things which helped me, and I hope they will inspire you.

Stop and take a deep breath 

When we are so drawn into our hectic lifestyle, we often forget to breathe properly. Stop reading right now and take a deep breath (slowly and deeply). Inhale through your nose and exhale through your mouth. When you inhale, visualise, you are breaking in all the positive energy this Universe has the offer. When you breathe out, visualise, you are breathing out everything that is no longer serving you. Repeat it for about 3-5 rounds. How do you feel now? Calmer? Practise this exercise daily. It’s a simple, but effective meditation you can do anywhere.

Focus on one thing at the time 

Focusing on one thing at the time will not only create the best results of what you are trying to achieve, but it will also keep your attention in the present moment. If you read my blog regularly, you know I often talk about the present moment. Present moment is the only place where the real life exists. Focus fully on one thing at the time and stay in the moment.

Listen to your Soul 

Listen to your inner wisdom. Rest, when you feel tired. Take some time off, when you need to. Do activities that bring you joy. Listening to your true self (your soul), is one of the wisest decisions you will ever make. Your soul reveals to you everything you need to know. Get silent for a few moments today, and listen that quite little voice which is whispering to you all the day long. It has some important messages to share.

Connecting with the natural world 

I alway go to nature to align with my truth. When I try to control outcomes, when I get tired or when I just know something’s not flowing in my life, I know I need to get home’. Nature always helps me do that. The same applies, when I need to slow down. Nature is a powerful example of how life suppose to flow. Find some time to connect with the natural world. Even if you live in the city, find a local park where you can relax and detach from the hectic world for a while. It will bring some fantastic benefits into your life.

A thought to keep! 

Don’t think slowing down or taking some time off is a waste of time. You will actually gain more time. You will become more energised and rested. You will be surprised, how much more you will actually be able to accomplish. Slow down today!


Yes, your dreams can come true!

Beautiful girl in jacket standing next to war aircraft. Retro photo.We all have dreams, desires, something we really want to accomplish in our lives. It can be something we have always been dreaming of ever since we were children. Something which makes us very excited every time we think about it, but we never had the courage to do it.

I always dream big, and I believe my dreams can come true no matter how unrealistic they may seem to others. We are all allowed to choose whatever we want to do in this life. After all, we are souls with a free will (when we look at this life from a higher perspective). I am very pleased to say, many of my dreams became reality thank to my strong will, perseverance, hard work and a support from some fantastic people. This is the reason why I chose this topic, and I believe I can give you some useful tips from my own experience how not to give up on your dreams even when you are feeling discouraged, you’ve lost your confidence and everybody is telling you your dreams are just too big for you.

To accomplish something great in your life is not an easy journey. I can talk a lot about my own challenges. For example when I was learning to fly. Sometimes I took three steps forward, another time five steps back. Even though I wanted to become a private pilot so much, I sometimes created many excuses when things got difficult (as many of us do) e.g. this is so hard, I can’t see myself flying solo, English isn’t my first language, some of the flying maneuverers are just too scary to face, I don’t like maths and physics, and many other excuses of that kind. Luckily, amongst all those excuses, I always believed in myself and I never gave up. I didn’t hang around in this state of mind for too long. Instead, I focused on what I had to do in the moment and I learned to motivate myself on a daily basis. This is what helped me moving towards my dream even when fears, excuses and obstacles crossed my path. And so can you…no matter how difficult or “unreal” your dream may seem. If it’s important to you, you will always find a way. If not, you will find an excuse. You are capable of achieving your dream if you are willing to do the hard work, focus, persevere, step out of your comfort zone and face your fears. No matter how old you are or how long it can take. Are you ready?

I have a list of tips, which can help you on your own exciting journey towards your dreams. Take whatever feels right for you and discard what doesn’t. This is your journey and only you decide what you want to do with it.

BELIEVE IN YOURSELF

This is a first tip and it is crucial. You have to believe in yourself to make your dream come true. Who is going to believe in you, if you don’t believe in yourself? Theodore Roosevelt said: “Believe in yourself and you are halfway there!” I can’t agree more.

TAKE ACTION (DAILY)

To accomplish anything in your life, you always have to take action and you have to be disciplined. Start doing something right now, which will get you closer to your dream (do your research, read a book on your chosen subject, take a weekend course which will give you more information about what you want to accomplish, talk to people who have done it and are successful in what you want to do). Then, the hard work starts. Do something every single day that will get you even closer to your dream, even if it’s only for 15 minutes. Study hard and make yourself proud. You can do anything you set your mind to. If it’s important to you, you will make it happen. Have discipline and keep going. I would also like to add visualisation exercise to this process. I am a great believer in the effectiveness of visualisation. I always use this powerful tool and it works. When you visualise, you can easily attract what you want into your life. If you have ever daydreamed, I am sure you know exactly what I mean. Visualise and feel the feelings of how you would like to feel once your dream is manifested (fly that plane, sing on that stage, run the marathon etc.). Go as far as possible in your visualisation and feel those good feelings now. Visualise people congratulating you on your big success and feel proud of yourself now. This is a fantastic tool and I strongly advice you to add it to your daily routine when taking action.

SURROUND YOURSELF WITH PEOPLE WHO BELIEVE IN YOU

When you decide to do something and it’s something “out of ordinary”, it may scare some people around you. There will be people who will tell you that your dream is just too big for you, you don’t have the grades to start that course, you are just not strong enough, wise enough, pretty enough to do that. My advice? Don’t listen to those people. The reason they tell you those things, it’s because they think, they can’t do it. But that’s their reality, not yours. Sometimes, they may get worried and want to protect you from getting disappointed. That’s fine too. Always be polite and say: “Thank you for your concern, but I believe in myself and I am willing to try and see if I can do this. It may not be easy, but I am up for the challenge!” Surround yourself with positive people who believe in you. They will always support you and encourage you on your journey.

FOCUS

Focus is so important in the process of working towards your dream. You’ve made an important decision what you want to do. Now, you have the opportunity to manifest this dream into your reality. Don’t let anything or anyone distract you. Always remember you are more than capable of accomplishing whatever you have decided to do. From a spiritual perspective there is a divine reason why this dream (this idea) came to you. Follow it! I am not saying it’s going to be easy, I am saying, it’s going to be worth it! Obstacles always come our way, but they are teaching us some important lessons. Trust and know no matter how long it takes: You can do it!

Good luck my friends and remember YOU CAN DO ANYTHING YOU SET YOUR MIND TO!

If you have any further questions or comments, please send them to: jana@mysticbutterfly.co.uk and I will be happy to answer them.


Higher power and positive energy

I often talk about frequencies, the power of our thoughts, feelings and how we are responsible for what we see in our lives. Your life is a mirror of your inner state. It is reflecting back to you what you believe and what you have planted deeply into your subconscious mind. When you think a thought, whether positive or a negative, it sends out a vibration out into the Universe. Now, you are “vibrating” on a certain frequency and the whole Universe is actually affected by this.

Many of us don’t realise, our thoughts and emotions affect the whole world around us. We think, we are just too insignificant to make a difference, but this is far away from the real true. Why am I saying this? Because, I want you to find out what you really came here to do and to start sharing those gifts with the world. It is your responsibility to find out what it is, and that way to fulfil your mission in this lifetime. By doing so, you will automatically raise your “vibration” which will affect this entire creation.

I think as humanity, we were asleep for a very long time, and now is the right time to finally wake up and realise how powerful we are. We are powerful beyond measure. We need to rise up and find out the answers for ourselves and stop believing everything that we see on the television, we read in a paper etc. The human Soul is a pure, beautiful beacon of light which can lights up this Planet, the entire Universe, when we start following it’s voice.

Where there is love, light, peace and happiness, the darkness cannot stay present for too long. The darkness can no longer be fed by our energy, because we “vibrate” higher.

There are few very simple suggestions I am going to present here, which we can do on a daily basis (or as often as possible) to start  “vibrating higher” and start healing this world.

1.THINK POSITIVELY

As mentioned above, behind every thought there is a vibration which effects the entire Universe. Choose your thoughts wisely.

2. DON’T WATCH OR READ THE NEGATIVE NEWS OR AT LEAST REDUCE IT 

Many of you will say, I need to be informed of what’s going on in the world? Okay, but listen, this will only lower your frequency, you’ll feel weaker and not as positive, even when the sun is shining outside today. Instead of that, you can invest your precious time and energy to do something more productive, and to do something which makes you happy.

3. NATURE IS A GREAT HEALER 

Go to the woods and connect with nature today. Experience the benefits of grounding yourself and absorbing the goodness and the fresh, vital energy of our ”mother”. It’s priceless.

4. MEDITATE

By meditating, you are automatically raising your “vibes higher.” In stillness you can reach for some very high frequencies and slowly, but for sure realise the real truth of who you really are. You’ll feel at peace, centered, confident and ready to go forward in whatever is that you desire.

5. HEALTHY LIFESTYLE (healthy eating, lots of water and exercise)

Whatever this means for you…do that. If you are unsure, do some research. These days there are so many Health coaches, Nutritionists, Yoga instructors, Fitness instructors, who will be able to advise you. Get healthy and energised.

6. DE-CLUTTER YOUR LIFE

Take an inventory of your life, get rid of the old and bring in the fresh and new. It can be from cleaning up your draws, to selling or donating some old stuff. The important thing is to make space, so you can breathe easily in your home environment, your office etc. It’s essential.

7. DO WHAT MAKES YOU HAPPY AND ACT ON YOUR IDEAS 

Ask yourself- “What makes you excited and happy?” Every idea you get, comes to you from the ”Divine” and you should act on it and never take it for granted. You are more than capable to do anything, so realise that right now and start. If you get stuck, have faith in the “higher source” to guide you, the next step will be revealed to you at the right time, even if the journey seems difficult right now. Go slowly, but move forward daily. It’s important not to ignore the call from the ”Divine”.

8. BE “THE LIGHT” 

Don’t argue, don’t manipulate, don’t do what you don’t want others to do to you. Just a quick example from my own life….A few days ago, I had a discussion with some people about the topics I believe in. Most of those people I had the dinner with wanted to know what I do and were interested to find out more. It was so exciting for me to share some powerful spiritual, metaphysical examples with them and I was amazed, how many of those topics resonated with those people. Well, accept one person. After a few minutes of me sharing my insights with lots of excitement, this person, who’s energy was already showing how sceptic he was, really started verbally attacking me, raising his voice at me and telling me front of everybody, what I am saying has no logic at all and any scientist or physicist would laugh at me. At that point, all I wanted to do, was to start crying and leave. Everybody was very shocked, because nobody expected it. Luckily, my Spirit (my Soul) supported me, held me there and let me be the “THE LIGHT”….. I listened to this person, feeling so much compassion and understanding towards him and realised, that he is not ready to discuss these kind of topics, there is nobody to judge or no reason to hit back. I immediately felt empowered, because I didn’t let the darkness overtake the conversation and bring me down in the end. We’ve changed the subject and the energy shifted immediately. I was so grateful for the experience. All I say, be “THE LIGHT”, even in the midst of those challenging situations.

So, I hope those few suggestions will help you start “vibrating higher” and raise the frequency of our Planet Earth, and that way start healing the entire Universe.

With love,

Jana x