December is a month full of cravings for slow living, restoration, and connection with friends and family. As the year comes to an end, it’s time to wind down and close off what has been. This is very much a month of reflection, reward and creating space in the soul for a reset.
This month on the Soul Sanctuary, we’re focusing our energy on the wind down and living intuitively with the season. For many of us, December can feel chaotic with many festive plans going in the diary, so it’s very normal to yearn for grounding. Through the practice of yoga, meditation and sound, we can find the opportunity to tune into what nature intends by living life at a slower pace with this month’s theme: The Wind Down.
Why we need moments of The Wind Down in every season
In our modern world, it is easy to be so focused on the next move that we lose touch with the importance of slowing down and investing in time to rest, being in a gentle state of presence. The routine and chaos of daily duty often means that we live in a constant state of ‘doing’ - season in and season out. In reality, nature intended us to transition through periods of doing vs. time allocated to slowing down in line with the changes of the seasons. We slow down seasonally to create more room for growth during the phases of development. The benefits we reap from restful phases are a lot more complex than simply feeling rejuvenated. When the mind, body and soul receive the opportunity to take things a little slower, we can create, think and move more successfully during seasons of activity. By giving rest a much more important place than we commonly offer it in today’s world, ‘doing’ becomes a lot easier. The keys to enjoying beautiful seasons of success lie in preventing fatigue. Just as animals take ‘torpor’, a short period of rest outside of hibernation to preserve energy - our bodies (and minds) need this too!
Seasonal rituals
Our seasons, nature and living intuitively
We move closer to achieving balance when we equip ourselves with the tools needed to live a life more in tune with the seasons. Let’s take a look at how our energy transitions in line with the ebbs and flows of the seasons.
Spring is a time for new beginnings in our lives in the same way it is time for new life in flora and fauna. Spring is the pivotal time we start to ‘plan’ and ‘do’. The practice of rituals like Spring cleaning came from this concept. This time in nature is a phase of channeling our energy to think, plan and start. These energies are mirrored throughout the animal kingdom, in Spring we see the birds build nests, farm animals give birth to new life and the bees begin to buzz.
If Spring brings the birth of ideas and creativity, Summer is the season this yang energy reaches a peak. Summer is when the seeds bear fruit, literally and metaphorically. It is our primary time to take action on the ideas born during Spring.
As we enter Autumn and nature begins its own process of closing chapters, the temperature becomes cooler and the leaves begin to fall, it is also time for us to begin the transition towards the season of restoration. Throughout this transitional season, we begin to feel those first cravings for yin living. Naturally, we want to begin or end the day at different times in line with darker skies. We can find comfort in warmth and nutrition. These urges we feel called to adhere to are our intrinsic desires to move a little sower, as the season demands. Autumn tends to be challenging for many people to make the shift into slowness, as we live in a world where we have lost connection to this way of living. After a possibly frantic, yet fun and successful summer, it can be easy to assume we should continue in this way, but we must remember that balance is key.
When Winter arrives, yin energy is in full bloom. Much of nature comes to a standstill through hibernation and cold weather. As nature closes off this cycle of its journey, we begin to wind down too. The nights become longer, acting as our signal to take more time for rest and recuperation in preparation for the season of doing.
Tapping into these natural energetic ebbs and flows will give us the foundations we need to live a balanced life.
This month, the Soul Sanctuary is honouring this season of slowing down and closing the chapter for 2023.
How can we embrace The Wind Down on and off the mat?
Slowing down physically
Changing the way we move offers the opportunity to embrace yin energy when we crave moments of calm. A yin asana or stretchy flow (like the ones arriving this month at the Soul Sanctuary), can provide just what we need to wind down. Slowing down physically can also mean choosing a 30 minute asana instead of a 60 minute asana, or moving at a slow and steady pace.
Eating according to season
Choosing to fuel the body with seasonal foods helps to provide us with the nutrients required for sustenance during those months. Eating seasonally for Winter in the northern hemisphere can look like including root vegetables, more protein and more fat.
Honouring the season your way
Honouring the seasons can look different for everyone. What works for you may not work for someone else and this is something to remember! Slowing down for the season is more sustainable when creating rituals and setting boundaries that fit in practically for you. Enjoying a season of slowness and a year of balance is within you.
The Wind Down
Journal prompts and affirmations to guide your self-study during this season of slowing down with nature.
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Journey with us this month as we slow down, rest and reset in tune with the season of The Wind Down.
December suggested calendar
Our suggested calendar has been carefully curated to give you the option to practice flows from the Soul Sanctuary back catalogue that will help you explore winding down throughout the month.
Flows from the back catalogue are in black and upcoming new flows are in colour.
The calendar is print friendly.
You can find back catalogue practices in the calendar function on our beautiful app or search for them on the membership on the website via desktop.
