My inspiration for this month’s blog originated with St. Patricks Day. I grew up in Rhode Island and it was quite a holiday there. Once in elementary school, we had a contest for wearing the color green and not only was my clothing that hue but I had also used green food coloring on my lips. My competitive nature drew me to think a bit outside the box.

Aside from green lips, I associate St. Patricks day with luck, which makes me think about fate and destiny. In the Indian culture, we have word called Kismet, which means destiny. My romantic and optimistic sides love the concept, though I believe we can influence our kismet - believing we can create what we perceive as luck through positive thoughts which lead to self fulfilling prophesies. I believe our kismet is a framework and it is up to us and our actions to fill in the framework or kismet of our lives. I choose to have my actions be positive thoughts which lead to self fulfilling prophesy – this creates responsibility and ownership for one’s actions versus leaving life to kismet alone. Wellness practices force us to be in touch with our own essence so that we can be our true and authentic selves. The better we can understand our self, the more comfortable we can be to being open in life, allowing us to have rich and unique experiences that some may refer to as lucky – I certainly feel this is how I have been living my life.

Cultivating Luck to Create your Kismet

My tips and guidance for creating your own luck and influencing your fate, destiny and Kismet:

1. Open your eyes and ears to opportunities. This requires a healthy amount openness to life. It’s like the lottery: you can’t win if you don’t play.

2. Choose the color lenses that are in your glasses. Believe me, I have had times in my life where they have been grey and black, but when I practice putting my rose colored glasses on, positivity reinforces itself.

3. Count your blessings. Begin and end each day filling your mind with all that you are grateful for.

4. Smile and laugh everyday.

5. Ask yourself "what makes me happy" and act on it!

6. Ask yourself "what do I want to do" and act on it!

When you are living your life in harmony with your life’s path (the aforementioned framework), then things will go smoothly and more signs will appear, it will be easy to keep the rose colored glasses on, you WILL laugh and smile a lot and you will naturally fill your head with gratitude.

Namaste,
Shaffali

Luck or Kismet? I was invited by a friend to teach yoga at THIS private island for a month at a time when I badly wanted to escape the NYC winter. It was a dream experience in every way possible. I certainly feel lucky and am full of gratitude. I also feel this was a part of my Kismet, perhaps due to a VERY clear message I had on a vision board (elaborated on in my vision board blog) which stated: TEACH IN PARADISE. And there you have it.