How to Balance Your Divine Masculine and Feminine Energies
As children, many of us are pushed into the box of male or female. Many cultures struggle with the ‘in-between’ and so pink-painted bedrooms lead to frilly lace dresses and a whole laundry list of stereotypical female expression while blue walls and toy motorcars lead to defining the stereotypical male expression. Meanwhile the ‘in-between’ – trans-gendered or non-binary – are often pushed to the fringes of expression.
Often this push to associate with the one or the other gender identity begins the difficulty in feeling whole and balanced. The qualities that belong to the divine feminine are not the sole possessions of women no more than the qualities of the divine masculine belong solely to men. So what helps integrate these two powerful energies?
Try This Exercise
Sit towards the edge of a chair with your back straight, your knees at 90 degrees and your hands resting on your knees. Close your eyes gently and breathe easily. Feel into the left side of your body. Notice any fullness or emptiness that might be present. Now, feel into the right side of your body. Notice any fullness or emptiness there.
Imagine a showerhead above you. In front of you, there are knobs for masculine and feminine ‘water.’ Reach out and turn on the divine water, allowing it to flow over and through you. Notice how the water easily reaches some places within you and that perhaps there are areas of resistance. Invite those resisting areas to open and allow the flow of divine energies.
Now imagine you are completely full of the divine masculine and feminine water. Allow the energies to mix from side to side and top to bottom. Notice the feeling of fullness. Embody the following mantra:
I am a being of light and energy. Masculine and feminine energies fill me and it is through these energies that action is possible.
Flowing Through the Throat Chakra with Saraswati
A while back I finally had my Vedic astrology chart done and was informed I had the goddess Saraswati in my chart as well as the lord Hanuman. I love to sing and chant in my classes and lead Kirtan, so this all made sense to me because Hanuman loves to fly and was known for his love of singing. Meanwhile, Saraswati rules the throat chakra and is the goddess of music, clear speech, knowledge, and communication—things I’m always striving towards.
Leading a retreat in Bali, I had been drawn to statues and images of Saraswati and brought some home. I realized that my own need to balance my throat chakra through chanting was an aspect of Saraswati in me. And if you’re ever in need of speaking your truth or communicating more clearly, invoking the essence of Saraswati can be very helpful.
Saraswati and the Sound of Om
At the beginning of everything, when the Universe was a swirling mass of nothing and everything, Brahma stood staring at the chaos. Brahma, of the Holy Trinity of Brahma, Vishnu, and Shiva, was well-known as the Creator and representative of brighter, new beginnings. He stood scratching one of his four heads in confusion. He wasn’t sure how to get started with his task of creating something of a Universe out of a gurgling, swirling, bubbling mass of chaotic energy. Saraswati, who was Brahma’s wife at the time, saw Brahma’s confusion, so she decided to help in her own way.
Brahma heard the sound of a great rushing cascade of water, but looked around and saw nothing. It was from the depths of his being where the water moved and flowed through his throat. A great waterfall poured out of his mouth, and with the waterfall came Saraswati.
She was fascinating and beautiful to behold. Her skin as luminous as the moonlight, her hair as black as night with no moon. She held a stringed instrument in her arms and began playing. And with her music, she spoke. She told Brahma she would give him one sound, which he was to use to create order from chaos. The sound held three syllables: A, U, and M.
