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Originally from Australia and now living in London, Belinda Matwali is a Spiritual Mentor and Meditation Guide. Passionate about meditation, nutrition and nourishing ourselves on all levels to ensure individuals thrive and not survive. Her depth of knowledge on meditation and consciousness awareness practices are centred on her desire to ensure we overcome challenges, instead allowing it to pull a veil over our intuition and authentic being. She has trained extensively with meditation Masters in India and travelled around the world to learn with various teachers. Here, she joins Balance Holidays to share her thoughts on ‘Bliss Body’, ‘Spiritual Nutrition’ and her journey to self-discovery.
Q: How do you start your day? Any non-negotiable rituals?
Belinda: I have several non-negotiables to start my mornings, which I think are crucial because we sometimes travel or are out of routine so it is important to keep up some structure. Firstly, I take a cold shower to re-energize my physique. I then drink lemon water, meditate for a few minutes and engage in gentle exercises to move my body. If I am time constrained, I will stretch and shake while listening to music.
Q: Do you have a go-to playlist to accompany your meditation practice?
Belinda: I have several playlists, which I choose from based on my mood and the season. Since relocating to the UK, I have adjusted my morning routine to the seasons. In the winter, I am more sensitive to my energies and prefer something upbeat so the tracks tend to be slower but still uplifting. Whereas my summer playlist is more upbeat.
Q: Can you tell us your journey to meditation and spirituality? When did you start practicing it and what motivated you to become a Spiritual Mentor and Meditation Guide?
Belinda: My journey began about ten or eleven years ago when I was in investment banking. I was just getting signals from my intuition that there was more to life. I was going through a tough time and sought for answers. I then resigned my job and moved to South America because I felt obliged to. I had no idea what I wanted until I met my first spiritual teachers and learnt how to meditate. After spending a year in South America, then Bali and finally India, where I met my key masters and professors, who I went to work with for over a decade and are considered a meditation university for me on numerous levels. I was finally able to feel like I had found the missing element within me that I could not find in London. That moment was a soul recognition and sign for me. From that point onwards, I discovered how crucial it was to follow those instinctive callings, even if they seem strange at first.
Q: Is that where your inspiration came from to become a Spiritual Mentor?
Belinda: During my time working with the masters, I had studied to be a nutritional therapist. I was working online with people one-to-one and I realised early on that a lot of people knew or had some idea of healthy eating. However, I noticed how common it was for different people to feel like they were missing something inside and using food to fill up that gap. That was the moment I started to bring meditation into my work. It was an organic development and an almost natural inclination for me to want to help others struggling with anxiety, depression, stress or burnout following my own Big Change.
Q: What is Spiritual Nutrition?
Belinda: I am a nutritional therapist. I enjoy learning how vitamins and minerals nourish us and make our bodies work. Realising that even with the best physical nutrition, we can still feel anxious, depressed and malnourished because of other areas beyond our food and drink consumption and in our life. When we meditate, we are able to take higher energies and digest them in our bodies. Hence, there's a lovely quote that says, "Love is divine food, meditation is digestion." The universe is 99% space, there's always extra energy. We concentrate on the 1% of life that we can see and touch. There is a lot of energy and frequency in 99% space. Meditation allows us to assimilate or digest those energies and frequencies in our body. I believe that is where we can find nourishment. This energy helps reorganise our entire body. If I'm feeling stuck in life, sitting and meditating invites that energy in. When we meditate, I feel an organising force in the universe that really helps to nourish inside and out.
I do not believe we ever receive the entirety of what we eat. For a long time, nutrition and exercise are emphasised, yet we also have an energy body that we lose as we move about. When we are amongst many people, we lose part of our energy and we absorb their’s. That is why we feel exhausted after a flight, since we have expended some energy. For example, we cannot see our energy but we may retrieve it via practices that deal with our energy meridians. That is what I refer to as energy nourishment. It will also help someone experience the balance and layers indicated. The core concept of Spiritual Nutrition is that humans have several sides, many of which are invisible, consisting of 99% space. We do not always make the best use of the resources available to us because we have a tendency to focus only on the material.
Q: What is a Bliss Body?
Belinda: In India, it is called Annamaya Kosha. They talk about layers of bodies, like the physical, energetic and subtle body of mind and wisdom. We have many subtle layers that we do not see but are very real. The traditions I studied taught us that our essence is made of love, bliss and consciousness. These are higher realm energies. We cannot see or feel them but they are vital. The Bliss Body is part of us but we are taught to ignore it. When you see a child, they are usually still in their Bliss Body. They are excited by everything and marvel at the world. It has a lot to do with our social conditioning but we have all shut down that part of ourselves for various reasons. Adults, or those on a spiritual path, normally remember and want to nourish it. When we are separated from our Bliss Body, we are naturally drawn to some sort of bliss or ecstasy, since both are necessary for survival. Yet, we are left with poisonous substitutes when we are unable to get the genuine source of it.
To obtain that bliss hit, some people may resort to substances. If the pattern remains, it becomes the backdoor to bliss. That is because they have forgotten how to obtain it and our bodies follow the same behaviour. In moderation, turning to substances to fuel the Bliss Body is welcomed since it is about the approach. However, not so much when it is used to fill voids. Many methods exist to nurture our Bliss Body, most individuals start with meditation. Escaping barriers and rediscovering our nature and joy. Creative and fun activities may help but are often overlooked in our society's push for productivity and other objectives. This is a cultural issue that the creative side of this is increasingly valued by self-employed individuals who seek inspiration for their undertakings. Regrettably, our original civilization does not appreciate it.
Q: Your mantra is “Nourish the invisible to make the visible epic”. Can you tell us some more about what invisible and visible factors you are referring to and what role does spiritual nutrition play in cultivating and maintaining a Bliss Body?
Belinda: This is where spirituality becomes truly unique. It is possible for two people with the same issues to come to me for Spiritual Nutrition therapy but how they got there and what they need to relax is independent. When working with something like the Bliss Body, the blockages might be large or it can be someone's low self-worth. Some think it is silly because it is about letting go of ego and mind control. People are afraid to talk about things like bliss and ecstasy because of social conditioning. You may have wanted to participate in a painting competition in school but were told to read a book instead. You may have been told you will be in trouble if you just dance during sports class. Those are just a few examples but they limit our creativity and force us to control ourselves to be accepted, validated, and loved. In Spiritual Nutrition therapy, it is about letting go of those barriers and coming to terms of being comfortable with who you are at the core. We do not need to create more bliss or places, instead it is about removing the blockages and letting go of the mental and material barriers and self-control for acceptance and love. This then creates a space for energy and creativity to flow through us. That is the invisible part where energy is waiting for you to work again.
Q: Why do you feel it is so important for individuals to take care of their Bliss Body and proactively nourish it?
Belinda: It brings joy, passion, creativity, and makes life magical! It is what converts the mundane into the sublime. That is a big one for people and living life to the fullest. The more you can bring, like creativity and passion and feel excited about your work, the more it filters into everything we do. It makes the business more successful when you are enjoying what you are doing. From there, your radiance and magnetism starts attracting more synchronicities into your life, which manifests into what we refer to as ‘the results and changes you have been craving.’
Q: What are the indicators of a malnourished Bliss Body?
Belinda: If I am feeling sad, depressed and notice myself reaching for substances or engaging in certain behaviours to displace my emotions. I have been sober for 10 years now but I ha've been down that path. When individuals are sad, they often go out and party in order to alleviate their distress. Your body seeks food in strange areas when you are hungry. As I already said, there is nothing wrong with people to starve for anything. It is about moderation.
Q: For those living in fast-paced, urban environments or feeling disconnected from their goals and self, how can Bliss Body nourishment be adapted and achieved at home?
Belinda: I am not going to advise you to do a half-hour ecstatic dance every morning. Ask yourself questions, such as "what energises me?", “how can they be included into my day?”, “what have I already accomplished?”. Those guiding questions will provide a unique viewpoint. Allow yourself to follow the flow of the day and do what you feel like doing. Do not be afraid to try something you have been told you are not good enough at.
Find Belinda on the upcoming Elevate and Nourish Mallorca Retreat between, 29th April - 03rd May 2022.
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