Yoga to open your heart – Find your own light

 

 Ullis Karlsson

Yoga to open your heart Find your own light

By Fatima Gorezi

Ullis Karlsson is a well known Swedish Yoga teacher, author, lecturer and soul coach, working on a global arena. She has been studying Yoga, and other alternative disciplines for over 25 years. Her experience is both on a private and professional level, and she is considered to be an expert in Stress and Relaxation.

Ullis is working with clients that come from all fields of life; people longing for more inner peace, a juicier, rich, fulfilling and balanced life. She helps her clients to reduce stress and increase the connection with their true essence and their inner desires. Her vision is to create this world a softer, happier more loving world to live in.

 Can you tell us more about your entrepreneurial journey ?

My entrepreneurial journey is probably a bit unusual. It originates from a time when I was too sick and depressed to continue working as a preschool teacher, a job that totally drained me of my life energy, so I finally resigned. This decision had been ‘brewing’ for many years, since my job was my only financial ‘life line’. I ended up being on sick leave for many years, went through a difficult divorce, but I emerged from it as stronger person. More aligned with my inner essence. I then used all the experiences of my own inner journey to create my business and move into my life purpose.

[rml_read_more]

When was your very first introduction to yoga?

It was already in 1993. I was in Australia and I encountered a physical form of yoga. It was something that resonated with me, with the restless and worried soul that I was at the time. When I got back to Sweden, I found my way to a yoga practice by myself. It wasn’t very common in Sweden at this time, so there weren’t many options to enroll in classes. But I still continued, and at times went to some classes as well.

How did you build up an entrepreneurial spirit, do you believe you were born with it or you developed it?

It has evolved over time. But I wasn’t aware of it in the beginning. I think I was born with some entrepreneurial qualities, but I’ve also had to work really hard, being persistent, and even also persevered when there has been obstacles in my way. It was also the matter of survival, I really had no option and I needed to support myself and my two children, being a single mother.

Eventually, life has shown me that I actually have an inclination towards being a business owner. My passion and perseverance made up a good combination in becoming a successful entrepreneur.

You are now a Yoga Teacher, Yoga Therapist, Lecturer and Author. Can you share with us some insight of your new book named ‘’ The Journey Home to My Heart’’?

One important insight is that I, before my life crisis, wasn’t aligned with myself, nor with life overall. I came from a fear based perspective, a way of living that had generated from scarcity. This forced me to live in a constant and complete struggle, in every aspect of life. But no matter how my life looks like, I am always responsible for it. I’m the creator of my life and I need to choose whether it is to live in the negative polarity, or the positive. So when I decided to change the aspects of my inner realm, my outer realm changed as well.  Another insight was that even during the darkest hours of my soul’s journey, when I even contemplated ending my life, I was still guided by something larger than myself. This guidance saved my life, and I am forever grateful for this experience. So, as I write in my book, I allowed the longing of my heart to become greater than my many accumulated fears.

In the book you tell details about your long transformation, from being suicidal to becoming a spiritual teacher. How have you found your own light?

This was a long and very challenging process, it took me many years and I went into this process with both determination and persistence. I knew I couldn’t make any short cuts. It was a question of life and death for me. I even left my family to “travel” into the mystery of the unknown, the journey home to my heart. I was completely unsure of what to expect, even terrified, but I had no other choice if I wanted to survive and live the life that was intended for me. I also had to meet the darkness within me, face all my fears at the time and allow the process of transformation to occur. This life changing healing demanded not only a lot of time and energy, but also a willingness to look at the more uncomfortable aspects of myself. Why had I chosen this journey? What was the purpose of it? The more I explored the darkness, the shadows within, the more connected I got with my inner light. To be aligned with the gifts of the soul, enables the life energy to flow vibrantly and effortlessly. This has also become one of my major teachings.

Do you think your mindset has anything to do with your success?

Of course, it absolutely has, but even more so being connected with my heart, my inner essence and therefore also my inner truth. For me, the way we look upon life belongs to an old paradigm. A way of being that is attached to our ego’s wants and desires. We have so many illusions that we want to hold onto, everything from how much we weigh, to how much money we have in the bank account. We also hold onto, really cling to at times, our thoughts, emotions, relationships and old destructive behaviors and this is limiting us in so many ways. The comfort of staying with these old things is just really an illusion, and when we hold onto it our soul energy isn’t moving freely. We tend to control our life so rigidly, and by doing that we both exclude and block the infinite possibilities of an abundant way of living. There are really no limits to what we are able to achieve and create if we have full trust in the Universe and surrender to it. I call it ‘relaxing into expansion’.

As an entrepreneur, what is it that motivates and drives you?

Well, this might be a bit surprising, but one important aspect has been courage. Because I haven’t only been afraid, I’ve even been terrified so many times. But I have done it anyway. I’ve really stared into the eyes of complete darkness, isolation and despair and I’ve managed to walk myself through the sufferings with a great deal of courage. Because you can’t be courageous unless you are afraid. Courage also comes from the French word le coeur, meaning the heart. So by connecting to our hearts we can overcome almost anything. It is great comfort in knowing that, and it can also put the old expression ‘love conquers all’ in a completely different light. Our heart filled intentions can conquer most inner and outer conflicts, if we allow it to guide us.

What do you hope to see happen in the near future for women in businesses in the Sweden?

I believe we are creating a new leadership, not only in Sweden and for women, but all over the world for us human beings. It is so profound so it not only touches the leadership perspective, but also the overall aspect of the foundations of our societies. We are shifting our perception from a ‘me consciousness’ into a ‘we consciousness’. Being in togetherness is the most crucial part if we want to have deep impact on future generations and our environment, even for the survival of our planet. Greater accomplishments, including a more sustainable world, can only be achieved together if we combine talents and knowledge in the best possible way. Diversity also has an inherit gift, as we by learning about others can create more acceptance and love for one another. And as an extension of that, create new ways of cooperating and finding solutions to previously unresolved problems. But it has to start with inner change as the outer world is always a reflection of the inner world. All changes starts from within, so therefore we all need to become better leaders in our own life. When we fully embrace and transform our own inner darkness, we can also be unified with others. This process can create togetherness and a world in alignment with the new paradigm.

Review – 2:47 AM – The Journey Home to my Heart

By Ullis Karlsson

2:47 AM – The Journey Home to my Heart is an autobiography depicting the story of a life in transformation. It’s not onlý a journey with a soulful perspective, but also a hardcore one.

When Ullis Karlsson shares her story she is not avoiding pieces that are ‘less tasteful’ or not appropriate. She shares it all. It’s a raw, truthful and authentic story about the highs and lows in a human being’s journey, and it’s recognisable to anyone who has travelled through life with days of doubts.

I believe that every single person that reads this book will at least have a couple of deep realisations, moments of recognition with an inner ‘yes, me too’ coming forward. I’m also convinced that some will receive flashes of insight that will actually change their own journey, moving forward. It could be getting in contact with pieces of ourselves that we are not so willing to acknowledge, or even admit that we have.

Ullis Karlsson’s journey is deeply personal, and it’s a journey of a conscious human being who, in the moments of great despair, on the edge of committing suicide, instead decides that she is going to dive deep into herself, confront her fears and unravel the mysteries of life.

2:47 AM  – The Journey Home to my Heart is both a novel and a book of poetry. It is inspiring and it is challenging. It’s exhilarating, and even makes you nauseated at times. But it’s always with a sense of respect and honour. If you are open, or have just a tiny opening into your inner space, your consciousness will be tickled and your heart will be shaken ever so gently. If you are a reader open to change, interested in personal development, and also curious about the sexual perspective of transformation, I highly recommend reading this book as it leaves you with a strengthened inner knowing.

We are all guided by something larger than ourselves. Choose hope. Choose love. Say yes to living life to the fullest as a human being. It involves every aspect, light and dark, but if you meet everything from within, it will let you live life with an inner flow. If you’re worried about how … just take Ullis Karlsson’s words as a reassurance that everything will be fine: ”Relax, Release, Receive”.

Kicki Pallin

Facts:

Ullis Karlsson is a Swedish Author, the Owner of PlainYoga and also an International Yoga Therapist and Soul Coach