The Real Secret of Life! Sometimes before a workshop or class Ravi will ask the group: "If a genie were to pop out of a bottle and grant you one wish, what would that be?" Peace of Mind. Happiness. Good Health. Love. Success, World Peace are some of the more popular answers. Balance also comes up once in awhile. Balance is one of yoga's favorite buzz words and for good reason. Usually balance in yoga refers to physical balance. Balance in our yoga practice also means keeping up yet not working so hard that we tense up and lose our breath and sensitivity. This strategy is key to mastering any yoga pose. There is another type of balance which Yogi Bhajan often referred to. It's the balance between our inner and outer, and it relates to our Navel. Inner/outer balance works like this: When our Navel is strong we are able to invoke whatever we need from the inside to stay positive in the face of whatever comes our way from the outside. How's that for the ultimate in self reliance! Most of us are guilty at some point in our lives of thinking that the secret of life is something external: the right strategy, the right contacts, the right look, the right resume...Navel Power is the real secret to living in fullness and effectiveness. When our Navel is balanced we have the on-the-spot ability to adjust our inner reality with our outer circumstances. We can orchestrate our outer life as an extension of our inner positivity. We can be active participants in the flow of events rather than just observers. We can be proactive not reactive. We can make things happen rather than have things happen to us. On the other hand, many people already have beauty, power, knowledge, wealth, and success. Everything they thought they needed to be happy, but the essence of life still eludes them. What's missing? Balance. Very often what it took to attain those things was to live out of balance for a very long time. How to achieve this balance? It's called Navel Power and when its on automatic a beautiful balance naturally ensues. Navel Power is one of those intangibles that we read about but aren't always able to implement. Many yoga and martial arts systems speak about the importance of Navel Power but don't give specific directions on how to access it. Thank Guru for Kundalini Yoga! Because of this supreme science, we can actually do something about it! But first some information on the solar plexus (which is part of the same energetic constellation as the Navel Chakra). The solar plexus is where we let life in. This sensitive area relates to our intuitive self. It's where we get a sense of our environments, the people in them, and even their intentions towards us. To enjoy life we need to embrace reality and be able to immediately invoke our inner energy to optimize it. As Yogi Bhajan has stated, whether we eat honey or red chiles, the sensation of taste is immediate. In life we are meant to experience our experiences as we live them and simultaneously rise to the occasion. A balanced Navel Chakra is key to experience life in the fullest as it happens. This isn't a function of the brain, or the hips, or our skin and senses. It's a function of our Navel. Yogi Bhajan always reminded his students of the importance of being diligent in our practice so that Navel Power would be something immediately available to us when we need it. "That infinity, that God, that pure power is in your navel point. You can't buy it, you can't sell it, and I cannot give it to you. But I can give you technological knowledge from which you can initiate it. Then it will start working for you. What will that mean? I am not saying there will be no problems. I am not saying there will be no rush. I am not saying there will be no hassles. But you will be untouched. You will sit like a lotus in the muddy waters and enjoy life. That is the power of the third chakra. It gives you instant, infinite experience of your life. No time can measure it." There is a concept called axis mundi which means navel of the world. From Mt. Fuji in Japan to the oracle of Delphi in Greece to the Black Hills of South Dakota. Sacred sites in many traditions are claimed to be the center of everything. Our Navel Center is the center of our life, emotions, will and positive expression. Our navel is a living sun that gives energy to our attributes. It gives us patience and power. It purifies and protects. It's important to activate our Navel Chakra before we walk out the door each morning so that we can be the best us we can be. It's one of those things that should be on your checklist along with brushing your teeth and eating breakfast. So, how do we invoke our mighty manipura (third chakra)? Stretch Pose, Sat Kriya, and Back Bends with Breath of Fire. These exercises also center the navel pulse which is important for our health and well-being. Chanting from the navel and speaking from the navel also help us to be master of our own life. Don't speak from your throat but from deep in your belly. Speaking from the navel makes us authoritative, and confident. When we vibrate sacred sounds (mantras) from the navel it's impossible to stay negative or depressed. The real secret of life is not something that we know or convince ourselves about. It's not a passive proposition. It's something we do and something we are. That entails activating our Navel Chakra daily and not living our life apologetically. Embody balance. Practice being powerful, purposeful and pure and powerful, purposeful, and pure you will become!