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Patricia L. Atchison

YA Fiction & Non Fiction Author

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Shin Dao Institute

Elevate Your Spirit – Pillar Four (of four) Inspired by the Shin Dao Institute

May 3, 2017 By Patricia Atchison Leave a Comment

I had the honour and pleasure of being asked to write a series of articles for the Shin Dao Institute’s Heart and Mind Matters Newsletter in the fall of 2016. The fourth article is based on the fourth Pillar of the Shin Dao Philosophy – that of “Elevate Your Spirit”. In this article, I talk about – having a wild or domesticated spirit.

Are You Wild or Domesticated?
by Patricia L. Atchison (Heart and Mind Matters 12/13/2016)

Ah, the spirit. I’ve been thinking of my own definition of ‘spirit’ and what it means to ‘Elevate your Spirit’ (the last of the Four Guiding Pillars of the Shin Dao). A simple definition of Spirit by the Merriam-Webster Dictionary is:

•    the force within a person that is believed to give the body life, energy, and power
•    the inner quality or nature of a person
•    a person

I always think of horses when I think of a definition similar to the above. In central Alberta, by Sundre, we have wild horses. (Google: Wild Horses West of Sundre.) They roam free, unencumbered by fences and owners. I can feel their spirits soaring as they look over the foothills, their manes flowing and swaying with the breeze. They canter, gallop, and step freely in only a way that a wild horse can. (As a side note, biologist’s figure that the wild horses of Alberta were all once domesticated, but they have broken away from the herds.)

There are also domestic horses. Over the centuries horses have been trained and ‘broken’ to be work or entertaining animals. I’ve haven’t personally seen a horse ‘broke’ other than in a movie (or read about it in a book). What I’ve learned is that horses are worked around and around an arena or corral and motivated into relaxed movement that soon takes their ‘spirit’ and squelches it, molding it into a way that the animal will suit a particular job (etc.) per the owner’s needs.

So we have one horse, which is free to live with their spirit roaming wild, and another horse who has had their spirit tamped into a manageable focus. Do you see how this analogy above could be the same as our own lives?
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Filed Under: Newsletter Articles, Published Articles Tagged With: elevate your spirit article by Patricia L Atchison, Shin Dao Institute

Inspire Your Mind Article – Pillar Two (of four) Inspired by the Shin Dao Institute

May 1, 2017 By Patricia Atchison Leave a Comment

I had the honour and pleasure of being asked to write a series of articles for the Shin Dao Institute’s Heart and Mind Matters Newsletter in the fall of 2016. The second article is based on the second Pillar of the Shin Dao Philosophy – that of “Inspire Your Mind”. In this article, I talk about – You Are What You Read.

You Are What You Read
by Patricia L. Atchison (Heart and Mind Matters 11/29/2016)

We have four separate, yet wholly sustaining entities, that make up our ‘selves ‘ or our ‘being’. You’ve no doubt heard about the Mind, Heart, Body and Spirit connections. All function as a whole, but are often separated as individual pieces in written articles, general topics of discussion, and courses that are offered everywhere, such as: Learn How to Open Your Heart; Listen to Body Wisdom; Gain Spiritual Growth; Mindfulness 101.

One of the guiding principles of the Shin Dao Institute is, “Inspire Your Mind”. An easy task, but what does “Inspire Your Mind” really mean?
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Filed Under: Newsletter Articles, Published Articles Tagged With: Inspiring your Mind article by Patricia L Atchison, Shin Dao Institute

Develop Your Body Article – Pillar One (of four) Inspired by the Shin Dao Institute

May 1, 2017 By Patricia Atchison Leave a Comment

I had the great honour and pleasure of being asked to write a series of articles for the Shin Dao Institute’s Heart and Mind Matters Newsletter in the fall of 2016. The first article is based on the first Pillar of the Shin Dao Philosophy – that of “Develop Your Body”. In this article, I take an enlightened look at:  If my body could speak – what would she say to me?

Ever ask your Body, “Hey how’s it going?”
by Patricia L. Atchison (Heart and Mind Matters 11/22/2016)

I was introduced to Nia dance fitness several years ago when looking for a new way to stay active and healthy. I took classes with Tina Thrussell and immersed myself into Nia’s first principle, Joy of Movement, sensing Life Force Energy, moving ‘Your Body’s Way’. This led me down a path of getting to know my body. Who is she, this package of bones, ligaments, tendons, muscles, joints, organs, etc., etc. ?

The practice of Nia discusses sensing your body. How could I sense something which I had ignored for too many years to count?
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Filed Under: Newsletter Articles, Published Articles Tagged With: article by Patricia L Atchison, Develop your Body, sensing your body, Shin Dao Institute

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