About: UniversalEmpress
Posts by UniversalEmpress:
Lost Then Found, in the Spirit of a Trance.by Nadine McNeil on Apr 19, 2013 Music dances through me—slow, fast, rhythmic, pulsating, soothing, igniting, erupting, I explode. 83 views |
Unity in Diversity: In Celebrating our Differences We Become One.by Nadine McNeil on Mar 25, 2013 It is not our differences that create dis-harmony. Rather it is the large un-willingness to accept, honor and celebrate them. As the Bali Spirit Festival, held annually in Ubud, Indonesia continues to evolve and grow from strength to strength, it brings together a kaleidoscope of people all of whom are traversing the path of re-discovery [...] 152 views |
Facing My Tiger: Creating Peace & Tranquility.by Nadine McNeil on Mar 20, 2013 … 88 views |
Forbid & Forsake Me Not: Why Would You Want to Forget Me?by Nadine McNeil on Mar 13, 2013 As we continue to enhance, improve and uplift ourselves, it seems to me that an integral part is missing from this process; namely, how we relate to our masculine selves in particular, and the men whom we encounter in general. Especially within the professional arena where masculine traits, particularly as they pertain to management are encouraged and celebrated, the feminine is either minimized or downright ignored. Yet it is our feminine edge that when embraced and understood, provides our ‘edge’ within the marketplace and beyond. 157 views |
Serving Time: My Prison Volunteer Experience.by Nadine McNeil on Feb 21, 2013 Why in God’s name would I want to spend my time volunteering at a prison facility one might (understandably) argue. My response to this is that until and unless we understand the underbelly of any society, we’re unable to heal it and progress. Some of our greatest minds are behind bars for one reason or another. No one in their right mind has an ambition of going to prison but once there, time is all you have. 346 views |
Yoga for a Peaceful Jamaica. {Video}by Nadine McNeil on Oct 13, 2012 “Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed it is the only thing ever has.” ~ Margaret Mead Yoga for a Peaceful Jamaica is a shining example of this. In one of the world’s most notorious and vulnerable cities plagued by socio-economic and political woes, a small community [...] 156 views |
Yoga for a Peaceful Jamaica.by Nadine McNeil on Sep 29, 2012 Twelve years ago, I was led to the path of yoga. Who I am being today is a direct result of my being committed to being on the path. 303 views |
Then & Now: from Rescuer to Healer.by Nadine McNeil on Aug 17, 2012 Archetypically, both represent the same coin; one side shadow, the other side light. I now realize that buried in my old way of being were the seeds for my emerging self. The rescuer is an addict. The drug of choice is to “fix it,” whether “it” is a person, situation or thing. Driven by fear [...] 709 views |
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“Life begins at the end of your comfort zone.”by Nadine McNeil on Jun 4, 2012 Another key point to being with ourselves and our emotions is to sweat the small stuff. That seemingly insignificant, no-big-deal, thing that incessantly annoys us when left un-attended, eventually balloons into a lethal, uncontrollable time-bomb. Can you identify one tiny thing in your life that you’ve repeatedly dismissed? Can you remember the first time this little thing happened? How did you feel? As you recall this incident, observe the where in your body is registering this feeling. Is your heart pounding, is your belly “flip-flopping”, do your legs feel wobbly? Or are you feeling dizzy or nauseous? 915 views |
Universal Mother.by Nadine McNeil on May 13, 2012 Yet one inevitable Karmic day 124 views |
Made in Africa.by Nadine McNeil on May 10, 2012 Thank you Africa, for being intrinsic in [re]shaping me into the person that I already am. 275 views |
Re-defining Procrastination: Ask Yourself Six Key Questions.by Nadine McNeil on Apr 28, 2012 What is the payoff that I’m gaining from not doing something that I said I would? 478 views |
Are You Ready to Re-write Your Story?by Nadine McNeil on Apr 23, 2012 Our stories are encrypted in our DNA and each human being’s story is unique. Yet, our stories needn’t define nor limit us. With each breath and in every moment that life presents us, we get a chance to re-write and fine tune our script. 321 views |
Christianity, Communism, Yoga & Mediocre Chinese Food in Italy.by Nadine McNeil on Apr 12, 2012 As my appetite continues to be satiated by our riveting exchange, we’ve shifted gears from yoga to political systems, Communism in particular. Together we agree that there may be some merit to this system insofar as humanity’s basic needs of food, shelter, education and access to healthcare are largely met. We both hasten to add that this is not an opinion that we’d openly share with others and agree that it is not a matter of exclusivity of communism or capitalism but rather where we are able to find and live within the balance of both. Neither [ideology] is entirely bad or good; both have failed to deliver, leaving the world in a quandary of, what’s next? 157 views |
Building Community through Global Sisterhood: An Interview with Shanti Ambassador, Danielle Hoogenboom.by Nadine McNeil on Apr 2, 2012 I believe that when you commit to a life of service with an open heart you are the one that is being served. I have received more blessings, lessons, moments of pure bliss and absolute awe from living an awakened, involved life, than I could ever imagine giving back. 476 views |
Forgive Me Not: Truth, Dare & Consequences.by Nadine McNeil on Mar 16, 2012 As that water pounds against our wounded hearts, we wash away our grief, letting go of the pain that lay upon our chests like a brick of immovable iron. 716 views |
Celebrating the Feminine: A Daily Invitation.by Nadine McNeil on Mar 10, 2012 As women, it is up to us to join hands in solidarity, step forward and claim our rightful place on the human spectrum. International Women’s Day is only a brief pause in the liberation of our cause. 437 views |
Honor Your Feelings, They’ll Set You Free!by Nadine McNeil on Mar 2, 2012 Our feelings are all we’ve got as our trusting compasses as we wade through this thing called Life. Not only do children feel, they also express. We know when they’re happy, sad, hungry, angry and tired. As we grow chronologically older, we are trained to suppress our feelings, the end result being depression. 827 views |
The Effects & Benefits of Eliminating Those ‘Teeny’ Indulgences.by Nadine McNeil on Feb 27, 2012 Even though I still maintain my basic mantra of everything in moderation, one year of moderately yet consistently consuming coffee, alcohol and dark chocolate does accumulate! Already in 5 days that nagging feeling of tiredness that I found myself struggling with is dissipating. 483 views |
Igniting My Seva through the Caribbean Yoga Conference.by Nadine McNeil on Feb 21, 2012 As a yogini humanitarian, my life mission or seva is to be a catalyst from transformation in the lives of others, from a place of compassion, humility and most of all love. The sangha or community that was born out of CYC arose from a place of utter love. 206 views |
A Six-Step Recipe for Life in 2012.by Nadine McNeil on Jan 10, 2012 Life is like cooking, it’s the love, combined with the [other] ingredients that makes the difference between an average meal and an exceptional one. 496 views |
Five Invaluable Lessons: My Gifts on Christmas Day!by Nadine McNeil on Dec 28, 2011 Christmas with all of its expectations and fanfare gave me a refresher course in one of life’s key lessons; acceptance. In choosing to accept being here in Bangui, Central African Republic, I experienced the festivities of the season through curious eyes. To see, for example, tinsel and glitter mixed in with deep, rich, red African dirt against the backdrop abject poverty led me to yet another reminder – the human quest for happiness, even if it lasts a mere 24 hours. 339 views |
 What does Peace mean to you?by Nadine McNeil on Dec 21, 2011 As America withdraws its final troops from Iraq for example, does this act mark the attainment of peace – finally? And if so, for whom? Presumably for the families and loved ones of these service men and women who have served their country presumably in the name of peace, even though we know that war can never bring forth peace; certainly not without a fair share of strife and reconciliation. 347 views |
Let your [inner] child be your guideby Nadine McNeil on Dec 1, 2011 During dark times, we’re likely to make decisions that looking back upon them appear to make absolutely no sense. You see, as I once read somewhere, ‘the light at the end of the tunnel isn’t an illusion, the tunnel is.’ The light is always there guiding us along; it is our fear that blinds us to its rays. 280 views |
Rastafari and Yoga: Team Jamaica quizzes Universal Empressby Nadine McNeil on Nov 19, 2011 Both Rastafari and yoga are for me, movements, in and towards consciousness, ways of being that share the following basic tenets; proper breathing, proper diet, proper exercise, positive thinking and meditation, ahimsa or non-violence and proper relaxation. How an individual then chooses to invoke either in their lives may take different shapes and forms. Inclusivity, Oneness, Unity, Universality; these are the hallmarks of yoga. 554 views |
Let go and Live!by Nadine McNeil on Nov 10, 2011 “Why do we latch onto people, place and things when in fact what we ought to be doing is letting them go?” While the pieces of our puzzle may seem dis-jointed as they are unfolding and our hearts are breaking and our victims and egos are engaged in their own battle of wills, we come to realize that letting go is perhaps our only and healthiest option amidst times of uncertainty. 347 views |
Stuck is not a location, it is a state of mind.by Nadine McNeil on Oct 29, 2011 I accept the highs and the lows and ride the waves accordingly through awareness. Keeping in mind that whatever I am feeling right now is transient and temporary, rather than try to rush through the feelings, especially those squeamish, uncomfortable ones, I am learning how to stay with them, like a caring watchful mother and inquire, “situation, what are you here to teach me?” 900 views |
Occupy Self: re-claiming my yoga grooveby Nadine McNeil on Oct 14, 2011 Occupy Self is about discovering and re-claiming [our] sense of purpose. Only then can we truly be of service to self and others. Self-ignorance is humanity’s biggest downfall. 316 views |
Mind the Dot.by Nadine McNeil on Oct 8, 2011 We/I often talk about the process of journaling as being a cathartic one. However if you’re like me, we write the stuff and then close the book, pretty much like all of the other stuff that we have swept under the carpet of shame, buried in the basement of fear or shoved into the attic of anger. 269 views |
Sleeping with anger: what happens when I take it to bedby Nadine McNeil on Sep 30, 2011 Pre-dawn anger is the one I slept fitfully with and dragged into my sub-conscious. It catapulted me out of bed and had me in such a frenzied state that I was compelled to discharge its energy by engaging in some physical activity. 1,851 views |
When The Way no longer fits.by Nadine McNeil on Sep 23, 2011 In shedding The Way, I’m discovering a new path. As I bid The Way farewell and embark upon I don’t know I humbly accept that had I not traveled along The Way, I may never have been able to appreciate and embrace the limitless magnitude of the unknown. 1,940 views |
Memories: do they keep us stuck in the past or do the enable us to envision a brighter future?by Nadine McNeil on Sep 17, 2011 Many of us, me included, are carrying around baggage that we ought to have left ages ago, on the other side of the river. Parasitic in nature, ultimately these germs weaken our terrain. And even though we may have managed to cross the river, our journeys would have been far more enjoyable if we’d lightened our load. Intellectually, many of us know this. What we lack are the ability and tools to release that which no longer serves us. 970 views |
Jambo! A refreshing encounter in a taxi-cabby Nadine McNeil on Sep 10, 2011 …the root of Africa’s problems rests with leadership. “We don’t have leadership here, what we have is king-ship. Someone comes to [political] power in Africa and they are exalted above and beyond reproach. These same people are the ones who fought for their freedom only to turn around and suppress their fellow countryman.” 455 views |
Whatever your story is, re-write it.by Nadine McNeil on Sep 2, 2011 How would your life be different if instead you had been told to do onto yourself as you do onto others? Herein lies the delicate balance between selfishness and selflessness. Inbalanced, many of us are left feeling angry, afraid, resentful and weary. 1,714 views |
Let’s chant: how sound accelerates our spiritual developmentby Nadine McNeil on Aug 14, 2011 There are a myriad of reasons, many of them scientifically proven, on the healing effects and impacts of sound on the body. Experiencing this first hand however is an entirely different – wonderfully so – matter. 1,153 views |
Independence, a mis-diagnosis?by Nadine McNeil on Jul 31, 2011 To strive for freedom is a natural phenomenon of the human condition. To attain independence is a privilege that can only be exercised by those who are empowered by virtue of their freedom. The notion of independence is an intoxicant to a large extent, one that has left the vast majority of its off-springs feeling largely abandoned. 514 views |
Devotion in motion: prayer’s essenceby Nadine McNeil on Jul 24, 2011 The act of prayer can take many shapes and forms. Its beauty lives in its commonality – to unify. All beings irrespective of belief or non-belief have some conceptual impression of prayer and its absence or presence in their lives. 271 views |
Mindfulness, over a pot of vegetable soupby Nadine McNeil on Jul 15, 2011 Suddenly, the seemingly mindless activity of preparing my day’s sustenance takes on a sacred new meaning. As I slice the onions, I become aware of the tears inflicted. Shaped like a Bartlett pear, as I split the pumpkin apart, I notice how young and fresh it is, its butternut color and a few white seeds form its heart center. Chopping the celery, I inhale its distinct aroma. 310 views |
Calm down, shut up, and cheer up: how are you really feeling?by Nadine McNeil on Jul 9, 2011 Being open, aware and conscious are the elements that unlock our hearts and allow us to gracefully wade through our emotions. In a world that is strung up on the perpetual pursuit of happiness, our natural instinct to minimize pain and suffering when possible is quickly becoming a need to avoid suffering by any means necessary. Until we come to the realization and acceptance that suffering and happiness exist in tandem, people will continue to feed either one at the cost of starving the other, creating imbalance. 1,553 views |
Yogis and Yoginis, Pump Up the Volume!by Nadine McNeil on Jul 2, 2011 Who says there ain’t no yoga in tae-bo? It felt as though I was having an out of body experience – Nadine the yogini was observing a shadow of her former self, engaged in this high intensity form of exercise. I reminisced about how I used to be addicted to ‘the pump,’ and how when I moved away from it, yoga entered my life. 296 views |
Who are you being in your love relations?by Nadine McNeil on Jun 25, 2011 … our intimate relationships are perhaps the most all-encompassing and challenging roles that we take on in our lives. It is no wonder that many of us, after having been repeatedly wounded – or at least this is how we see it – opt to close down our hearts and stay away from relationships as though they’re some highly contagious and incurable dis-ease. 1,372 views |
Refusing to be boxed in!by Nadine McNeil on Jun 17, 2011 …why do we have this incessant need to place ourselves and others within the confines of a box? What does outrage me is when systems that are intended to educate and enlighten, by virtue of their actions instead perpetuate such lines of exclusion and divide. 243 views |
3 Big Questions. First one: what does it mean to follow your heart?by Nadine McNeil on Jun 12, 2011 ‘Twas a week and then some! Three questions knawed at me of which the main underlying one was, what does it mean to truly follow one’s heart? An asana practice provided fertile ground to begin the inward journey of delving deep to reveal meaningful answers. 781 views |
Overcome Fear and Become Your Dream: All You Need to Know Lies Within.by Nadine McNeil on Jun 4, 2011 As I journey through life, several doors with different colors, shapes and sizes will appear along my path. Rather than view them as obstacles I alter my perception and with gratitude I accept that beyond each of these doors lies an opportunity laden with a wealth of abundance. 639 views |
My Bathhouse Massage in Casablanca Was Amazing, Until My Credit Card Didn’t Work.by Nadine McNeil on May 28, 2011 When the going gets tough and unpredictable, breathe deeply, invoke your mantras with unyielding faith, send healing light to the situation and then without attachment, just watch the miracles unfold before you. 1,151 views |
Is yoga for people of color an oxymoron?by Nadine McNeil on May 22, 2011 Given that the reported origins of yoga are born in regions comprised of populations that are essentially of color, the potential for segregation of yoga in the West is for me, disturbing. Why would we want to perpetuate this when we have been given a gift and an opportunity to truly heal as spiritual beings? 1,995 views |
Understanding our emotions: the key to unlocking our fullest Life potentials.by Nadine McNeil on May 15, 2011 How do I wish to spend the remainder of my life on this planet Earth? More to the point, how and where can my Divinely bestowed talents be of the greatest good to humanity as we strive for a new way of being? 789 views |
Honoring the mother within, in spite of her Self.by Nadine McNeil on May 10, 2011 Mother and all she was supposed to represent became my ultimate litmus test in empathy, forgiveness and ultimately love. 194 views |
Where and what is this place that I call home?by Nadine McNeil on May 5, 2011 Reflections on global and personal events as they’ve transpired over the past week. This musing has raised a very significant question for me, which serves as the title to this piece where the socio-political reflects my own personal realities. 294 views |
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