How the Enso Symbol is my reminder to practice grace and acceptance in the continuing journey to love all my parts.
Hey there,
I hope you have been well; and, if not, I hope you are healing and I am sending love to you.
We all have our road to being well, with all its ups, downs and plateaus. Our "wellness journey" is just that- a journey, an expedition full of surprises you didn't plan for. And no matter commonalities, no two look the same.
A brilliant therapist friend recently commented how "far along I am in my healing journey." I didn't interrupt or disagree, but it did make me pause in thought. "Really, she sees me deep in my journey?" Most days I feel such a newbie, so disarmed by the presence of my shortcomings and not enough-ness.
Her words encouraged me to take a look back onto my path and revisit it with curiosity and calm acceptance. Where have I walked, crossed over, pushed through and failed? Where am I now on this path of Self love and acceptance?
"Two Ears, One Mouth"
To really know yourself and to connect with the wise part, you must get quiet.
So quiet that you begin to notice the messaging of your body...not your mind and the stories (the replay), but from your body.
You know: the small ache, the whisper of knowing, sudden goosebumps, the shake or shiver on a warm day, a gut feeling. The subtle vibrations or sense of shadow that your skin messages; memories held in your body to be recognised, remembered and released or held close. You get to choose.
All the parts of you have been witness and player to the experience of your life AND lifetimes. Don't they each deserve acknowledgement and respect? Imagine what answers lie there!
THE ENSO (my only tattoo, 8/2022. Stardust Tattoo, N. Charleston, SC)
The Principle of Enso Symbol
From one of my most beloved books, "Healing Collective Trauma"
Resonance. Coherence. Re-membering. Fulfillment.
"The ancient enso symbol found in Zen school of Buddhism, sometimes called the "circle of enlightenment" or the "infinity circle" is frequently depicted in Japanese calligraphy as a perfectly imperfect open circle. The enso is often used to represent satori. The words satori and its relative kensho- which translates into "seeing into one's true nature" -are commonly translated as enlightenment. The sacred symbol of the enso represents vast space, that which lacks nothing and yet holds nothing. It simultaneously depicts cycles of beginnings and endings and the greater infinity that contains them. It symbolizes both completion and the space of opening in renewal."
What resonates with me deeply and that i anchor into everyday, no matter the hat i am wearing, is this- to love myself is to welcome home my whole self. And this whole self has many parts with many names and roles: protectors, ancestral guides, inner child, wise elder. And like the enso reminds, i am a perfectly imperfect self, already Whole and complete. I am not in need of "fixing" and neither are you. I am not a "fixer." The struggles, missteps and mistakes, your rough edges and imperfections are essential parts of the journey and not to be shunned or embarrassed of but held close and appreciated. There is opportunity for forgiveness, growth and deep love and it begins with honoring all your parts with acceptance, respecting the deeper message and making the choice to set free the trauma and its Protector or keeping it, but differently--from the place where you stand now--in your deep knowing of your perfectly imperfect powerful and beautiful Self.
How do you find peace with your parts?
Practice Yoga
Join a supportive community
Meditate (there's SO many ways)
Have an anchor- a palm stone or crystal, tattoo, a poem, word or manta
Do things that offer love to yourself
And remember:
"You are amazing, unique and beautiful. There is nothing more you need to be...You are perfect just as you are."
Jynell St James
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