Wake Me Up: Morning Positivity - Morning Routine for Good Karma

Episode Date: January 27, 2020

Good karma. We all want it, and this morning routine will help you foster it. Enjoying Wake Me Up? Get ad-free access to the entire WMU catalog + bonus content by joining the WMU Premium Feed. Sign up and start your 7-day free trial at https://wakemeup.supercast.com/. Follow the show on Spotify - Apple Podcasts - Podchaser Say hi or request an episode at www.wakemeuppodcast.com/contact. See visual guides for the yoga and stretches in WMU episodes at www.wakemeuppodcast.com/stretches. And find the podcast on Instagram and TikTok. **Only partake in the physical movements suggested in Wake Me Up episodes if you are physically able and in safe surroundings. All movements are done at the individual's own risk. Be safe, and always consult a doctor if you have any questions or concerns.** Have a wonderful day 😃 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

If you'd like to enjoy Wake Me Up completely ad-free and get access to exclusive bonus content, check out the link in the show notes for the Wake Me Up premium feed. Good morning and welcome to Wake Me Up. This is where morning people are made. The way this podcast works is pretty simple. Just turn on an episode while you're still in bed. All you have to do is follow along. As I guide you through a refreshing morning routine, that's sure to leave you relaxed and excited about your day. You see, to have consistently great mornings, you really just need to have a regular morning routine. And that's why wake me up works. If you tune in consistently,

you'll become a morning person in no time. And you'll find that if you consistently win your morning, you'll consistently win your day. If you're enjoying the podcast, please leave a review. And I'd love to hear your stories and ideas at wakemeuppodcast.com. Be sure to subscribe and follow the podcast, so you never miss a great day. Now let's get started. You can just listen to my voice while we take the next few minutes to wake up.

And I'm not sure exactly what will wake you up the fastest. But whatever it is, you'll wake up in your own way. If you're still in bed, you can roll onto your back and open your eyes. Enjoy this moment of quiet and take some deep breaths, inhaling deeply into your belly, and then exhaling. There's no need to use any force. We just want to give the body some fresh oxygen, some fresh energy. So take a few more breaths just like that at your own pace.

And if you're in bed, you can begin to bring some movement to your body. Whatever feels good. As you're beginning to wake up now, appreciate that a brand new day lies before you. It's a clean slate, a blank canvas. You can paint whatever you want. So do you choose to create the same kind of day you've always had? Or will you create something different? Whatever you choose, this day is about to start.

and you have the power to make whatever you want out of it. So take one more deep breath in and exhale. If you're in bed, roll over on your side, place your feet on the ground and stand up. Feel the energy beginning to move through your body and enjoy this moment of being alive, of having a new day. If you'd like and you're able,

you can take a gentle stretch by reaching your hands to the sky and then folding forward at the waist. Just keep it nice and easy. And now that you're beginning to wake up, let's take a moment to get ready for a bit of meditation. Have a sip of water if you'd like and make your way to a comfortable, seated position. You can sit anywhere. Just don't sit in bed. And while you get situated, I'm going to talk a little about karma, since that's what this episode is all about. Although it originates with Eastern religions, karma is a concept that has permeated throughout modern life. As a basic idea, it's quite simple, but it can get complex

once you move beyond that. Not to worry, though, because I'm going to summarize it succinctly right now. And feel free to send me questions if you want to learn more. In its simplest form, karma means that the sum of your past actions determines the outcome of your fate now and into the future. So if on average you did positive things in the past, your life will be better than if, again, on average, you did negative things in the past. And that's basically what karma boils down to. But in reality, it's much more nuanced. Here's an example to help explain. Imagine a pebble dropped in a perfectly still pond.

The pebble would send ripples in perfect circles from its landing point, which would spread all across the pond. Let's treat that pebble as a single action in your life. And the ripples are the karma created by that action. Now imagine all of the actions in your life, and all of those pebbles dropping in the pond in their various places. sending their ripples across the pond. It becomes quite complicated to track the ripples from each pebble, right?

And then, imagine all of the pebbles from everyone else living right now, dropping into that pond. At this point, we've got a complete mess. My point is that it's basically impossible to track the karma from each individual action you take. Sometimes, you can get a good idea of it when the karma comes right back at you. But that's rare. Most of the time, karma comes back over the long term, and you'll never really be able to track it. If you expand on the example of the pebbles in the pond, you'll recognize that there's such thing as familial karma, societal karma as well.

And you'll notice that every action always has both parts. positive and negative karma. There's no purely perfect or imperfect act. So it's safe to say that you can't always control or keep track of the karmic forces at play in your life. But one thing you can control is your production of karma that is largely positive. And that's what we're going to do today.

So on that note, let's turn to a bit of meditation. As always, we begin with slow and steady breaths. Draw them deep into your belly, feeling your diaphragm expand, and hold the breath for just a moment. Before exhaling slowly. And you can just let the air fall out.

There's no need to force it. And you can continue breathing in that way at your own pace. Today we're going to go a bit deeper into meditation than usual. So if you'd like, you can count your breaths from one to ten and then when you get to ten you can just start back at one and as you're doing this allow yourself to draw inward if thoughts arise that's perfectly fine

just note the thought and let it go use your breath as an anchor to keep you in this moment and if your mind drifts you can just bring yourself back and allow yourself to draw deeper and deeper as you watch your breath. Now, in this calm and deeply relaxed state, remember a time when you did something nice for someone else, and it made you feel good. It doesn't really matter what it is. It can be anything, and it doesn't need to be particularly important.

Bring yourself into that moment as though you're relieved. living it. And notice all of the details in this moment, what you were doing, who was there, and how you felt. Begin to be aware of the light that illuminates this memory, the light that allows you to see this memory. And then, as though you have a switch to adjust the lights, turn the lights up, make this memory brighter. So you see yourself in this memory, helping this person, and it's brighter. You can see everything more clearly. And let it play back again in this brighter setting, allowing you to notice everything more clearly.

Everything you see, everything you hear, everything you touch and feel. It's more clear this time. And as you experience this memory with more light, the brightness begins to warm you from the inside out, starting with your heart, spreading through your chest and your back, down your arms and legs, all the way to your fingers and toes. Finally, up your neck and around your head. And as this sense of brightness, this warmth envelopes you, you continue to take. Continue watching the memory playback with that good feeling of helping someone, seeming larger, more fulfilling, and more enjoyable. And after you finish watching this memory playback one final time,

you just dim the lights slowly and completely, letting that memory fade away for now and bringing yourself back. to the present moment, but holding on to that sense of warmth and that good feeling you had from helping someone. Feel your breath move in and out. Notice the sensation of the chair beneath you and feel your feet on the floor. You can begin to wiggle your fingers and toes, bringing a little movement back to the body. And when you're ready, you can slow.

Slowly open your eyes and take a minute to collect yourself. And while you do that, it's time for today's send-off. In this final portion of the podcast, I share a bit of positivity to motivate you for the day ahead. You may never know all of the forces at play in your life. You can't always control the creation of negative karma, since we can't foresee all the ways our actions may impact others. But what you can do is control your production of karma that is largely positive. You can build a bank of good karma and stack the deck in your favor. By creating more and more good karma every day, you'll tip the scales of karmic forces in your favor.

The effects will be both immediate and long-lasting, because, as we discussed, It often takes a long time for karma to come back to you. A great example of putting positive karma into the world comes from Swami Vishnu Devananda, a well-known yogic leader. He conducted peace flights over the world's troubled spots, earning the name the Flying Swami. In the 1970s and 80s, he flew over war-torn areas in his peace plane, spreading the message that people are as full.

free as the birds. He flew over Pakistan and India, dropping flowers and leaflets encouraging peace. He flew from West Berlin to East Berlin in a highly publicized and dangerous mission. And he didn't drop bombs of war. He dropped love. And when he landed in East Berlin, he thanked the East German leader for allowing him to share his message. That is self-list. That is love, and that is good karma. Now, you don't have to be as bold as Swami Vishnu Devananda. You can create good karma in small ways as well. But the best way is to build it into your daily life.

Make it a routine to be kind to others, to ask how others are doing, and to genuinely care about their answer. Instead of throwing your leftovers away, away, you can give them to someone less fortunate. Instead of ignoring that person who always seems left out, you can give them your attention. Instead of beating yourself up for making a mistake, you can laugh and appreciate that life keeps you humble. Instead of arguing with someone, you can seek to understand them. The more good you put into the world, the more good will come back to you. That's what karma teaches us. So go out today and put some good into the world.

The more you do, the better you'll feel and the better your life will become. That's all for today, my friends. Thank you so much for tuning in. I really hope you're enjoying the podcast. And if you are, I encourage you to subscribe, leave a review, or share it with a friend. I would also love to hear from you. So send me your thoughts, stories, and ideas at wake meuppodcast.com. I'll talk to you tomorrow morning. And until then, I hope you have a wonderful day.