Learning to Live Aloha

by Heather SullivanHo'opiapia O Ke Nalu - show up perfect wave, please. So I can meet you. So I can be receiving.This traditional Hawaiian chant is from the legendary surfers - calling in the perfect wave. This call for the wave is both "a surrender to the mighty ocean and a command flying gloriously over it." I felt a call or a push to visit the Hawaiian Islands this January. Without any planning, I embarked on a journey with a good friend Naomi from Yosemite to the exotic islands. We found every day to be a wonderful wealth of abundance, experience, and receiving.Just as I'd been called to Hawaii, I was also called to enroll in an eight-day yoga and massage training at Kalani Retreat Center on the Big Island of Hawaii. The focus of the training was on Sacred Lomi massage. Relying on faith, I showed up the first day of the course with zero background or history in what Lomi Lomi is all about. What unfolded before me was a beautiful healing lineage and modality that is deeply rooted in the natural world, in community, in breath, in music, in the ocean, and in the sacred connection to all.Our class of 37 practitioners and students shared beautiful classroom space and beach time, communal meals, and an intense week of giving and receiving. There are several different lineages to the Lomi Lomi tradition and the one we studied has its foundation in the "intention of awakening the divine in every cell and in the spaces between cells. The energy work and healing experiences we received on and off the table were unbelievable as there was a focus on "unraveling deep ancestral or childhood patterning to enlighten cell and embody divinity in daily life."Tom Cocoran and Donna Jason were fabulous facilitators, organizers and instructors and it was a delight to share the experience with their son, Jonah who was on the trip. We were blessed to have a blessing and hula lesson by local resident Jonathan, and a talk with Kahuna Harry Uhane Jim.The tropical setting of Kalani relaxed us, the delicious locally grown and made food nourished us daily, and the ocean was a constant teacher, reminding us of the vastness of our beings and all that we are a part of.Here I was introduced to the Seven Hawaiian Shamanic Principles:These principles seem to echo many other earth-based traditions of spirituality and ways to live that I have studied or come into contact with over the years.The Sacred Lomi Principles we learned can apply to the sessions as well as to daily life:

• Prayer and Intention
• Breath
• Movement
• Focus and Attention
• Change in Flight
• Sacred Space
• Sacredness of all things: Honor/Respect/Divinity
• Presence
• Facilitation
• Feng Shui

I actually found the principles of Sacred Lomi to mirror the way I prepare my yoga classes as well as structure a Balanced Rock course - almost exactly. I believe this is why I am drawn to both the work of Balanced Rock and Sacred Lomi healing modality.This week was a true gift. I felt and still feel the waves of Aloha (love) continuously wash over me, healing deep places I didn't even know need healing. I feel continuous gratitude for all the teachers and lessons in my life and deep acknowledgement and love for my family and friends.I feel blessed to share this experience with my community.Aloha.www.sacredlomi.comwww.kalani.comCalling the Wave. Photo by: Naomi Chakrin