Coping With Fear: Tuesday's Reflection

"Fear not."

"Be not afraid."

Easier said than done. you say. 

Especially since there is so much to fear.

What to do? How to cope? 

Ta'i Chi is one of my spiritual practices because it is a way to integrate the body with the mind and spirit. It is not enough to tell your mind to turn off the racing worries. And it may not be enough to invite spirit to whisper reassurances. Doing Ta'i Chi is one way to ground yourself, to steady yourself, even as you allow healing energy to restore and relax you.

One of the movements I teach specifically addresses the presence of fear. It is called Embrace Tiger. Tiger is anything you are currently facing in your life. Sometimes it is as big as a Bengal Tiger with blazing eyes and barred teeth charging at you out of the jungle.

Or it may be something smaller, but irritating and frustrating that prevents you from living with joy. I remember doing T'ai Chi by our pond when we lived at Sweetwater Farm in Ohio. The barn kitties, whom we called Edith Wharton and Henry James (no good reason) would scamper out of the barn and grab onto my pant legs as I did the Ta'i Chi choreography until I gently shook them away. 

In the Embrace Tiger movement, we look that tiger--that fear, that challenge--right in the eyes. We name it. We clarify it. And after doing that we send it back into the jungle, reducing some of its paralyzing power over us. Only when we know the fear can we begin to do something about it or at least not allow it to surround us. 

I invite you to Embrace Tiger. 

Begin by standing with your feet shoulder width apart and knees slightly bent. Keep your head level with your shoulders and your eyes looking straight ahead. Rest your arms at your sides. 

Allow yourself to feel grounded and stable. This posture is called Mountain Space because mountains may blow their tops or experience rock or snow slides, but it is rare a mountain falls over.  

Take a deep cleansing breath. 

Bring your hands together in front of you, palms up. Gently move them up the core of your body towards your heart chakra. Unbend your knees and stand straight, firm, and tall. Look at your hands, imagining them as the eyes of the tiger. 

Take another deep cleansing breath and then turn your palms down. 

Slowly, lower your hands down your body, sending that tiger back into the jungle. As you do that, return to mountain space, again slightly bending your knees.

Repeat this move as often as you wish, remembering to breathe. 

Even if you can't physically do this move, for whatever reason, imagine yourself doing it. Envision yourself embracing tiger and letting it go. 

Or when you feel shaky, stand or imagine yourself standing as a mountain. Feel the earth beneath your feet and allow earth's energy to enter the bottom of your feet and move throughout your whole body, nourishing you, reminding you that you are not alone. 

How good it would be, also, to write about what you experienced doing these moves. Did anything change for you? What did you learn? Was your tiger different from what you thought it was? 

As I do T'ai Chi in the coming days, I will open my heart to each of you, praying that you may be well. 

An Invitation

What most frightens you right now? What are your strategies for coping with that fear? I would love to know.