• Creativity

    The best books on creativity and spirituality

    I love a good book list, so this week I’m doing another roundup of the books that I can’t live without! Recently I did a post on my favorite books about Ayurveda, so this time I want to share my favorite books on creativity and being an artist. Specifically, all these books have a spiritual component. Then again – I can’t imagine a book on creativity that doesn’t, to some degree!  The authors of these books know that creativity is a mystery. But that doesn’t mean that aren’t things we can do to welcome more of that mystery into our lives! I find so much inspiration in the pages of…

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  • Creativity

    Ama: how to clear writer’s block the Ayurvedic way

    If you’ve ever attempted to write anything, you’ve probably experienced writer’s block at some point. I’m having it right now actually, but I’m going to get through it… And in this piece I’m going to show you how I do it. I was recently listening to an interview with one of my favorite singer-songwriters, Phoebe Bridgers, on the podcast Song Exploder. Host Hrishikesh Hirway asks Phoebe if she’s ever experienced writer’s block. Phoebe laughs before replying, “Yes, I feel like I experience it 100 percent of the time.” Even the most prolific and gifted artists among us seem to suffer from this dreaded syndrome.  Where do these blocks come from?…

  • Creativity

    Agni: how to stoke the fires of your creativity

    Digestion is considered to be a “sacred fire” in Ayurveda. The ancient Ayurvedic texts refer to this fire as agni. Attending to our agni is one of the best things we can do for our health. As my teacher Katie Silcox writes in her book Healthy Happy Sexy, “The best food on the planet can’t help you if you don’t have the digestive fire to transform and assimilate what you are putting in your body.” Addressing digestive issues is traditionally the first place you would start when working with an Ayurvedic practitioner.  But be warned; this isn’t your typical article on ways to strengthen your digestion! What made me fall…

  • Creativity

    Recovering from perfectionism

    “Perfectionism is not a quest for the best. It is a pursuit of the worst in ourselves, the part that tells us that nothing we do will ever be good enough.” – Julia Cameron, The Artist’s Way On long summer days, is it easy for you to find time to relax and let the worries of the world melt away? Or do you find yourself working even longer hours at your computer, driving yourself to accomplish as much as possible? As the hot, sharp qualities of pitta rise in the summer, we may find ourselves getting more intense, judgmental, or critical of our own work. I’ve previously written about ways…

  • Creativity

    Five ways to spark inspiration when you’re stuck at home

    We are all living different lives right now due to COVID-19. We are trying to adjust to the new normal. There are ups and downs. Some days, I feel like I’ve cracked the code on this stay-at-home life, and other days, everything feels like it’s falling apart and I don’t know why. I have to remind myself – this is not normal life!  I’ve been keeping myself to a pretty strict routine, scheduling my work/meals/exercise for each day, perhaps to make up for lack of external schedules that I am used to. It had been going well, but the past week I found myself feeling drained and uninspired. This shouldn’t…