The key to a limitless mind is already in your mind.
On this blog, we provide the mindset tools, affirmations, and wisdom to help you turn that key.

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Sophia Ojha Sophia Ojha

New Podcast and Video Series: Uplifting Stories Now Online!!

Today we are launching our new audio podcast and video series called, "Uplifting Stories". In this series, we will share with you stories that uplift us in some way. They can be reflection, humorous, thoughtful or simple a fun story to share with you. Watch out on this blog under the category Uplifting Stories for all of them in one place.

To watch the video series, go to http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLC14D258FD891B3EB&feature=view_all

To download free audio podcasts, go to http://soundcloud.com/reflectionpond/sets/uplifting-stories-podcast-series

As always, we love hearing your feedback. Write to us or make your own video response and send it to us!

Love,

Sophia + Cristof

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Sophia Ojha Sophia Ojha

Reflection Pond is featured in Australia

This was so much fun. I got connected with Kathy Wilson of mydiamonddays.com who has created a unique site to offer people 10 minutes of meditations daily. We got talking about the practice of meditation and about collaborations. Below you can see a snippet of that interview, thankfully I did not know I was being recorded until later, and so she got me in my natural mood! Kathy is also going to host my new e-workshop on meditation coming up later this summer. So exciting!

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Sophia Ojha Sophia Ojha

Help yourself to get in the right frame of mind: Get a Life-line!

Thoughts that bring you in a negative, pessimistic or plain lousy frame of mind can quickly turn into a downward spiral. If we want to stop slipping down the slippery slope it is important that we catch the slide when it is still just happening.

Become aware is certainly a critical start. You begin to notice what is going on. Then you help yourself to come out of it. Think of it like this. There is a well. You fall into it. You realize it. Now you help yourself to reach for the rope to come out of the well. And move on.

What are some of the things you can do when the mind starts attracting not-so-good thoughts?

There are many things you can do. And to know what your options are in advance, when you are feeling happy and uplifted, makes the difference. Because when you are in the not-so-positive mood, nothing seems attractive. Okay, I am exaggerating. Some things may look appealing. But it really depends how intensely you are experiencing low-energy-negative thoughts.  

So, PLEASE take this time to write down 10 things, or at least 5 of your most favorite things to do that give you joy, make you smile, just simply make you feel good. When you write it down, you become aware of it and this awareness can become your lifeline when you really need it.

5 things that are MY LIFE LINE....things that make me feel really good:

1. Watching the clouds roll by across a blue sky. Looking at the big sky, day or night, shifts me to a whole different level.

2. Playing with my cat-friend, Sunflower.

3. Watching a film, especially animation or a comedy. I get a feeling of coziness and home.

4. Listening to the Dalai Lama. I just Google Dalai Lama or go to the Dalai Lama website to listen to this compassionate soul. I can't help but smile when I listen to him.

5. Hanging out with friends or just calling up a friend and saying, "what's up" makes my day.

And 5 more things....

1. Taking a shower. Soothes and relaxes my mind.

2. Meditating. Closing my eyes, breathing and just sensing the vibrations in my body.

3. Playing a board game. This necessitates buddies! When possible the jungle jam makes the day!

4. Getting outside for a walk out in nature and remembering how we are so abundantly blessed and have all we need within us.

5. Watching a funny video of kittens or puppies or any nature documentary. Smiles. Smiles and even Giggles are a result!

So what are your 5 things that serve as your Life-line? ...and then try coming up with another 5!

 

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Sophia Ojha Sophia Ojha

Power of Positive Intention. What do you intend each day?

An important aspect of a positive mind-set is positive intention. Intention-making has come into the mainstream thought intensely in the last few years both in the spiritual growth realm as well as personal development arenas.

What is positive intention, in short? It is not that complicated. Basically expressed, with positive intention mind-frame, we set an intention for our life. It is completely trusting the higher forces, but even more importantly, completely trusting the deep wisdom and peace within you. It is about having full faith that things are working out beautifully. When you have this frame of mind, you let go of the worries and the anxiety of your ego-mind. You are at ease, with yourself and with the world. Isn't that a beautiful "side-effect"? Infact, it is an absolutely beautiful main-event. 

So how do you do it? Very simple:

Daily Intention: Take time each day to set an intention for the day. It can be something like this, "I intend to have a joyful, fulfilling day". Start off with one thing that you would like to happen, something related to your desired effect. It may be something like this as well, "My intention is for an effective, harmonious and successful meeting for all people involved." It may be an intention for the world, "May all living beings be in peace". It can be anything you want to happen or create in your life that is for your highest good.

The idea is to intend positively. You may soon find that your intentions are indeed materialized, as I have found and become aware of in the last four years, ever more each day. It is a beautiful, powerful exercise that sets an upbeat, positive tone and mood to your day and your life. And before you go to sleep at night, you look back at the day and realise that your day has turned out just like your intentions set in the morning or even more than what you intended for!!!

 

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Sophia Ojha Sophia Ojha

Compassion for warm-heartedness

One of my favorite teachers is the Dalai Lama. He is authentic and conveys his message with simplicity and humor that warms up your heart. His openness and his embrace of science is another aspect that I admire about him. And he calls for a new path to that which is divine: being compassionate to all living beings including ourselves.

Here is a short clip on Compassion and warm heartedness from the Dalai Lama.

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Sophia Ojha Sophia Ojha

Asking and receiving

This week, I invite you all to ask questions.

The right kind of questions.

For any situation you are facing, learning to ask the right kind of questions can make a big difference for you. If something is not working, rather than asking why is this not working, ask: "How can I help this to work?". If you are in pain, rather than asking, "Why am I in pain?", ask, "How can I help myself heal?"

Somemay say, that it is important to know why something is not working in order to resolve it. I do not agree. By asking ourselves and the Universe, how we can help ourselves resolve a situation, we may get insights and help that may also shed light on the 'whys', but most importantly, we will focus on the resolution.

So, ask your guides and the helping spirits for guidance. Ask them to give you hints and clues and answers. And then just trust that the answers are flowing to you instantly. The more we quiet our minds, the more we will hear the answers.

We are constantly being guided to the unfolding of our highest self. Ask the questions, quiet the mind and listen-in to the magical vibrations of inner guidance.

Love,

Sophia

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Success Mindset Sophia Ojha Success Mindset Sophia Ojha

Waiting room meditation

Living in a community means using services with fellow human beings. In our fast-paced life, this becomes a source of impatience and annoyance because this means waiting in line to be served. Whether it is at the doctor's office, at the Post Office, or at the grocery store! This may be standing in a queue at a ticket booth or at a bookshop or at your favorite store.

One other place where a lot of waiting happens is at convergence points, such as train stations, on the road, bus stops and at airports. Airport waiting can often be frustrating especially when there is no clear information available about the departure or arrival of a plane.

All of these occasions are great opportunities for meditating. Sitting at the Airport Terminal, just close your eyes and take a few minutes of space, extracting yourself from the "waiting" and transplanting yourself to "being" status. If you prefer, you can keep your eyes half closed or even open, looking at a general area in the distance. When standing in a line, you can maintain your alert mode and bring focus to your breath. This practice also helps you to be in the moment and shift from an impatient waiting mode, to merely being, observing, enjoying being alive.

Remember that meditating in a public place means you find a spot where you can be secure and safe. Then while meditating, you allow yourself to become acutely aware of your environment. Sounds and vibrations become more apparent to you in this state. 

So give it a try. And next time you have to wait anywhere, think of it as a divine gift to be present, a chance to tap into the vast ocean of consciousness.

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Sophia Ojha Sophia Ojha

21 Positive Things I Noticed Today

Here is a practice that will change your vibration by the time you finish it and it takes only a few minutes. All you do, is to think about your life, your environment, your world and notice any positive aspects that you can. You can begin with something like "the sun rises every day", or "I am alive" to get you started. There are no restrictions on which positive aspects you notice. So here is what came for me:

Today, I notice the following 21 aspects of life:

1. There is blue sky and sunshine today for all to enjoy.
2. A cat came to visit us. She is full of good energy and love.
3. I was served absolutely delicious home-made food made with love.
4. I am full of good mood, health and joy.
5. There are millions of beautiful flowers on our planet.
6. The sky is vast and beautiful.
7. The sun rises every day.
8. My body is in complete harmony.
9. My mind and spirit are healthy and dynamic.
10. Internet exists.
11. I love skype for making communicating with people fun and easy.
12. I feel centered and at ease
13. There is abundance and harmony in this world.
14. I woke up today with a smile.
15. There are so many fun things to do.
16. The mountain view is a blessing.
17. My home is warm and loving.
18. My loved ones are close to me.
19. My mom is loving and sweet and she just called me.
20. People love and adore me.
21. The right teachers show up right on time for me.

Thank you. Wow, this feels good. I am happy.



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Sophia Ojha Sophia Ojha

Moving from IG to IG: Feeding From Within!

Let me diffuse the mystery behind the acronym right as we start. This post is about moving from Instant Gratification (IG) to Internal Gratification (IG) or Internal Gratitude (IG).

It has been for me a personal journey and continues to be one of finding myself and loving myself. In this quest, I have at times forgotten and am now remembering that the love and approval that I am searching for needs to come from myself. There is nothing for me to look in the outside world, except for the reflection of my inner world. So when I am looking to others for appreciation, approval, praise or any form of external prize, it is really something that I can reach within me and offer myself, in plenty. And I believe that there is plenty- an infinite source of love and appreciation that exists within the depths of who I really am.

In the past, we may have lost focus or even awareness of the fact that the dissatisfaction, pain and hurt that we feel, is really not inflicted upon us by others. In fact, our experience has really not much to do with others. Yes, they serve as reminders and as symbols of our own life experiences and our life path. Yet, I believe that what we make of the situation or from the interaction with a person is a lot about us. There is a wonderful woman in my family and one of her favorite quotes is: "When life gives you lemons, you make lemonade". This is a great way to look at things. To see the potential in any situation and make magic from it, is the gift. So, to realize that the instant gratification I have been looking for is really a deep desire of internal gratitude, is a really a powerful, expanding and enriching realization.

And it gets easier with practice! It seems natural that we should give ourselves the love and appreciation and it is something that is already a part of who we are. It is not so much that we need to learn how to love ourselves (because that is at our core) but about unlearning the ways of self-criticism, self-loating and self-pity that we may need to let go.

It seems that many of us are ready to let go of all of that and dive in deeper into self-love: Love of the truth that is within us.

And Goethe's quote is truly inspirational here: "(S)he who is plentously provided from within, needs but little from without."

So, I invite you to reflect on this. And here is a reflection exercise for you!

1. Take a few minutes to grab a warm cup of tea or juice. Get yourself into a calm and quiet space.

2. Take a few deep breaths. Breathe in. Breathe out. Breathe in. Breathe out.

3. Then ask yourself: Have I been looking to the outside world for appreciation, expecting friends, family, colleagues or the world at large to provide me with that which I am looking for - whether it is love, security, respect, prosperity, and so on?

4. Ask yourself: Can I begin to give myself all that I am looking for? And in what ways am I already doing that?

5. Finally, think of 1 thing you can do when you realize that you are searching in the outside world for that which you can provide for from within. Or, think of 1 way you can love yourself more deeply.

It is only a few questions, yet potent ones. And I hope that it will be the seed for a delicious new fruit emerging from your soul, or perhaps it can water the new sprout that is already growing within you. And having said that, it is YOU who is doing all of that and more.

Much much love from the beautiful mountains,

Sophia

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