The Image of Sumo
Do you remember being a kid and tying a belt around your waist, squatting low to the ground and wrestling with your friends, pretending to be sumo wrestlers? Each time we were playing at sumo, we were having fun with feeling big and strong. We loved the feeling of power in our bodies and were proud of how big our bellies were, having no need to understand the purpose of this ancient Japanese tradition. Sumo dates back more than 1,500 years, with some documentation indicating that it was performed as part of sacred rituals.
I saw a Sumo demonstration recently and was in a state of awe, not only to be in the presence of these mythical beings, but to see the pride with which they carried themselves. While most of us would shudder at performing in front of a crowd, draped only in a mawashi, the belt that covers about 10% of the body, these men exemplified the intensity and honor of their sport. And they did it with pride. Pride in their respect of the ancient traditions, and pride in the perfection of bodies that were finely honed to be the ideal shape for their sport.
In Western cultures, body shape has long been an obsession, judging ourselves and others as too much of something or not enough of something else. What would it feel like to stand proud in the knowledge that your body is serving you perfectly right now? Your mindset plays a large part in creating that feeling, it has to begin from within. Why not step into appreciation of the strength of your legs rather than focusing on their size, or embrace the scars that reflect your journeys through life rather than view them as symbols of imperfection?
How you see your body and the grace with which you choose to carry it has an enormous impact on your life force energy, and of course on how you energetically present yourself to the world.
Notice what changes in your life when you embrace ALL of your physical self with a cloak of loving appreciation.
for the rest of my Sumo photos, visit my Facebook account
The past three days have been a series of birthday celebrations for me, each with a different intensity and style. I participated with joy in each event, not just because I was the guest of honor, but because I saw each one as an energetic gift to myself. Each aligned with my natural flow of energy and added fuel to my inner fire.
I have been called an “energy warrior” by one friend, a term referring to someone who vigilantly attends to and protects their life force energy, the flow that nourishes life. I pay attention to what fills me up and gives me the energy I need to do what I want to do. People who aren’t listening to their inner energy warrior can be knocked off their feet by people and situations that drain their energy. Notice how you feel after spending time at an obligatory event compared to one that you chose out of sheer pleasure. Which one feeds you, filling you up so that the rest of the day you are flying with enthusiasm?
Being an energy warrior is a simple practice, all you need to do it pay attention to what gives you a lift, what brings you joy, what enriches a moment or a day. I chose small parties with friends and family and working my garden as my celebrations, each of them providing more pleasure than a night of drinking or wild partying. Reduce or eliminate those “should” and “have to” situations that lower your energy to the extent that you have nothing left when the opportunity to play comes along.
Your LIFE is your party and ultimately, only you can decide how you will celebrate.
Personally, I choose artwork based on where I need SUPPORT in my LIFE at that moment. I try to remain aware of the shifting balance between body, mind, spirit and emotion, the fullness of each is nectar to a juicy life of pleasure and meaning. I love it when a particular piece of art touches me: as an emotional experience, a physical sensation, a spiritual connection, or a simply flight of the imagination.
My photographic subjects are intuitively found, as I am guided to shoot pictures that feed the intangible desires in my life. My body of work encompasses such subjects as Passion, Joy, Beauty, Power, Spiritual Energies and Reflection.
What do YOU desire? Freedom? Peace? Passion? Adventure? Within my body of work you will see images that can be a catalyst for expressing and reaching YOUR desires, the desires that keep you aligned with your life purpose, whether you know what it is or not. It is the recognition of a basic truth about yourself, a higher purpose type of truth, that inexplicably attracts you to one of my photographs.
Be your authentic self, express your desires, live your purpose.
Liz Schneider
Ravenlight Studio, Fine Art Photography
www.ravenlightstudio.com
