Prosperity is a Choice- Lessons of Lakshmi.

Lately, I have been extremely fascinated with the Divine Feminine in mythology. In order to learn more about it, I have been invoking the archetypes of goddesses in my classes. This week I have been working with the Lakshmi. Considered the most beautiful of all goddesses in Hinduism, she represents the energies of abundance, generosity, and loving-kindness.

I like to think of mythological archetypes as both aspects of the self and of universal energy. So, the journeys of these mythological characters have taught me to explore not only my own behavioral patterns, but patterns implicit in nature, culture, and the collective consciousness.

Coincidentally enough, the day I started planning my Lakshmi classes, I deep cleaned my house. As I started reading about her, I realized that this is one of the first ways to start calling her in. Realizing this has helped make cleaning so much more enjoyable. Now, I can pretend like it's an offering to the Goddess of Abundance instead of a simple toilet clean. (This has been extremely beneficial for my relationship with my housemates... already a Lakshmi win.)

After doing some journaling and meditation practices, I realized that I had a couple fears around abundance. Mainly, I have this long standing belief that I won't be able to create prosperity for myself as I grow older. At the moment, I am making more money than I ever have. But at the same time, I am spending more and saving less than when I was making half of what I make now. And I am pretty sure that if I was making more money, I would find more stupid things to spend it on. Observing this really stressed me out.

As this overwhelm in my story line came up, I investigated something simple... a daily ritual that I have. I love almond milk flat whites. They're like my daily does of crack here in Melbourne. And probably just as expensive. Adding up the amount I spend per week on coffee, I realized I was spending about 2,000$ per year... on coffee! In ten years, that's 20,000$. Delicious, but an absolutely stupid investment.

So, in case you were wondering, I have decided to give up coffee. Instead, each day that I make it without buying a coffee, I am going to transfer the money I would have spent on coffee into my savings account. In fact, I am keeping a photo of my vision board on my phone so I can look at it when I am tempted to buy a coffee.

Vision requires action. And this exploration inspired by Lakshmi has allowed me to pick one simple thing to change in order to create more prosperity in my life. I realize that I am incredibly abundant and capable. It's just that paradoxically, I need boundaries and focus to expand. I need to focus my energy (including financial energy) on the things that are most important to me so I can create the life I want for myself.

I would love to hear some practices you have implemented to create more prosperity in your own life.