Shobana Cooke Wellness

23/11/2025

Tying a cot/ baby cradle at a Hindu temple is a symbolic offering made by couples praying for progeny. The ritual often works through sankalpa, setting a clear, focused intention before the Divine.
Tying a cradle gives physical form to that prayer, making it concrete and emotionally resonant.
A cot represents the future baby. Offering or tying a small wooden or cloth cradle expresses the devotee’s heartfelt intention and aligns their mind with the blessing they seek. The cradle symbolizes the child you are praying for.
Devotees tie the cradle as a vow and often return with an offering when their wish is fulfilled.
Some of the temples in Sri Lanka you see this practice at;
• Koneshwaram Temple, Trincomalee. Lord Shiva and Goddess Parvati, the cosmic parents
• Kataragama in Sri Lanka,the abode of Lord Murugan.

18/11/2025

A vow is a living part of Tamil Hindu devotional culture. It blends bhakti, folk ritual, and Dravidian temple tradition. A vow is a sacred promise made to a specific deity in exchange for;
help in a crisis, healing, protection, success in an exam or job, resolving family issues, obtaining progeny and/ or fulfilling a pilgrimage. A vow is less a “bargain” and more a “surrender”, a sentiment where the wish maybe as follows;
“please lift me out of this difficulty, and I will come back in gratitude.”
Sankalpa;setting an intention. The devotee mentally states their purpose and what they promise to offer. This can be done silently, with a simple prayer, or in front of a priest.
The idea is expanded within your heart. This brings emotional relief and spiritual grounding.
“I give the burden of my problem to you.”
When the wish is fulfilled, the devotee returns honouring reciprocity, often with symbolic offerings to show gratitude and humility.

📸

16/11/2025

Sit quietly.
Place one hand on your heart.
Take a slow inhale, as though you are breathing light into a place inside you that feels heavy.
Exhale softly, offering that heaviness to the divine.
Ho‘oponopono begins with noticing the “knot” the place inside where there is tension.
Ask yourself gently;
🩷Is it a memory? A relationship? A belief?
🩷What have I been carrying that is not mine to carry?
Invite the four phrases, one by one not as apologizing or pleading, but as keys that unlock the heart.
I’m sorry.
I’m sorry for the pain I have held.
I’m sorry for any part of me that believed I must carry this alone.
Please forgive me.
Please forgive the places in me that acted from fear, confusion, or hurt.
Please forgive the old patterns that no longer serve me.
Thank you.
Thank you for the lessons.
Thank you for the chance to heal.
Thank you, life, for guiding me back to balance.
I love you.
I love all the parts of me , the vulnerable and imperfect.
I love the wholeness beneath the wounds.
I love the possibility of peace.
Observe the sensations within, that knot, does it soften a little with each exhale.
Feel the space created inside you.
That space is where forgiveness lives.
Peace begins with me

07/11/2025

Recently I revisited some notes I had written on forgiveness. And the practice of Ho‘oponopono resurfaced. It means “to make right twice” and “to restore harmony.” It’s about setting things right within oneself, between people, and in the natural and spiritual world.
Before it became widely known as a personal healing method, Ho‘oponopono was a communal ritual led by a kahuna lapa‘au (healer) or elder in Hawaiian families.It was a way of life to Hawaiian people. It involved:
🩷Gathering the family to address conflict or illness.
🩷Prayer to invite divine presence.
🩷Discussion — each person expressing hurt, guilt, and responsibility.
🩷Confession, forgiveness, and release (kala).
🩷Closing prayer and symbolic act of letting go, restoring peace (pono).
🩷sharing a meal.
The premise was that illness or whatever misfortune came from broken relationships and unresolved anger. Healing comes from restoring harmony.
This reflection also reminded me of the importance of neutral spaces. Communal spaces. Spaces that allow for healing to take place. And the role of the Kamatha in Sri Lankan paddy cultivating communities came to the forefront of my mind. The Kamatha, refers to the traditional circular threshing-floor,the place where harvested paddy is brought, stacked and then threshed. A communal space where cultural and religious rituals are performed and sacred markings are made to consecrate the space and place. It is then used as a gathering place, a communal labour site, a space for social and community activity. And most importantly it becomes a unifying space where an interdependent community shares tasks and roles across households. Where dialogue, celebration and reconciliation are intertwined.
Places where we can sit quietly and say;
I’m sorry
please forgive me
thank you
I love you 🩷
🙏

04/11/2025

Purpose of Pancha Bhuta Shuddhi
is to purify and balance the five elements within the individual, so that:
Energy flows freely and health improves.
The mind becomes calm and clear.
The individual aligns with universal intelligence.
The ego’s dominance over nature is softened into harmony.
“To purify the five elements in you is to make the body a fit temple for the Divine.”
~Swami Sivananda
When the five elements are purified through Yogic and Ayurvedic practices, the body becomes light, energetic, and disease-free.The mind becomes tranquil and receptive. One can then experiences unity with the cosmos,the individual self dissolves into universal consciousness.Bringing alignment between the individual microcosm and the universal macrocosm

02/11/2025

In the Vedas, Vayu is the God of wind the life-breath itself. Vayu is divided into five vital airs (Prāṇa, Apāna, Samāna, Udāna, Vyāna).
Each Vayu is personified as a semi-divine force within the human microcosm.
Apāna Vāyu governs:
• Elimination (f***s, urine)
• Menstruation, childbirth
• Grounding, rooting, and stability
It is said to reside in the lower abdomen and tis Vayu moves downward, symbolizing the pull toward earth and death. Udāna Vāyu, lifts consciousness upward toward liberation.
In Yogic symbolism, Apāna is linked with the elephant Airāvata, guardian of the south and associated with the mulādhāra (root chakra).
Just as the elephant grounds itself in the earth, Apāna anchors the human body in the physical world. When disturbed, grounding is lost,leading to instability, fear, or elimination disorders.
Practicing the Apana Vayu mudra, returns us to a place of harmony and equilibrium.

01/11/2025

The Pancha Bhuta, the Five Great Elements. These elements form the foundation of both Yogic philosophy and Ayurvedic understanding of life, matter, and consciousness. These five elements describe how the entire universe, including the human body, is composed and sustained.
☁️ Space/Akasha – the space in which creation arises
🍃 Air/ Vayu – the movement or life force that animates (prana)
🔥 Fire/Agni – the transformative power
(energy, will)
💦 Water/Apas – the cohesive and emotional essence (love, connection)
🌏 Earth/ Prithvi – the manifestation, the tangible and stable form
Together, these five elements symbolize the journey from the subtle to the gross, from spirit to matter, this is the process of manifestation itself.

25/10/2025

The tarot “8 of Cups” signifies leaving behind/walking away from something that no longer serves you, maybe it’s a job, a relationship, a mindset. A reminder that sometimes we need to make necessary and sometimes difficult decisions to leave behind the past and make space for growth on a new path
In such times, the practice of Pratipaksha Bhavana from the tool box of Yogic philosophical teachings would be a helpful practice. Pratipaksha Bhavana helps us to “cultivating the opposite attitude.”
to transform negative or unwholesome thoughts into positive, life-supporting ones. It is a powerful mental and spiritual practice from Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras (II.33). Pratipaksha Bhavana is not about denial, it’s inner alchemy.It trains the mind toward sattva (clarity and balance), dissolving rajas (agitation) and tamas (inertia). Over time, this practice cultivates equanimity and ahimsa (non-violence) in thought, word, and deed.

19/10/2025

Jupiter is exalted in Kataka rasi is from 18//01/25 to 5/12/25. Jupiter and Moon are friendly planets, their combination ushers in wisdom, compassion and emotional intelligence. It’s a nourishing and nurturing time.
Guru is the compassionate protector, the archetype of the wise parent, the teacher who cares extra, and the priest /priestesses who feeds others before themselves. The tarot King of Pentacles is an embodiment of this archetype associated with a strong and grounded Jupiter. A reminder of Guru/Jupiter’role on the material plane, linked to prosperity, abundance with wisdom in dharmic work. A time for us all to lean into our intuition and faith in Divine order.
word of warning for the following rasis :Danu,Sinha, Kataka and Makara
watch out for;
-being overly attached to family and relationships
-having an air of moral superiority
-challenges in maintaining boundaries in roles where you are the nurturer

19/10/2025

Jupiter is exalted in Kataka rasi is from 18//01/25 to 5/12/25. Jupiter and Moon are friendly planets, their combination ushers in wisdom, compassion and emotional intelligence. It’s a nourishing and nurturing time.
Guru is the compassionate protector, the archetype of the wise parent, the teacher who cares extra, and the priest /priestesses who feeds others before themselves. The tarot King of Pentacles is an embodiment of this archetype associated with a strong and grounded Jupiter. A reminder of Guru/Jupiter’role on the material plane, linked to prosperity, abundance with wisdom in dharmic work. A time for us all to lean into our intuition and faith in Divine order.
word of warning for the following rasis :Danu,Sinha, Kataka and Makara
watch out for;
-being overly attached to family and relationships
-having an air of moral superiority
-challenges in maintaining boundaries in roles where you are the nurturer

15/10/2025

Join me
On 25 October, at 11am for a Community Circle with friends and colleagues who are healers and holistic practitioners for an open conversation on the Big C, from diagnosis to healing ❤️ and everything in between.

Circle Facilitator
-Shobana Cooke, founder of 1948 Shop, Homeopath & Yogic Lifestyle Counsellor

In conversation with,
-Dr Vaish Sathasivam, Homeopath

-Dr Tyrol Ferdinands, Practitioner of functional & integrative medicine

-Karishma Pandit, Aromatherapist

-Ruvi Rodrigo, Founder of Ayuwanna by Barberyn Ayurvedic Resorts

-Rejanne Perera, Mystery Painting & Compassionate inquiry facilitator & level 5 Pranic Healer

-Anushi Senanayake, Aroma Therapist & founder of Aritha Essential oils

- Dheeshana Ameresekere, Hatha Yoga teacher (RYT 200) and Yogic Lifestyle Counsellor

When & Where - Saturday, 25 October at 1st Floor, 41 Horton Place, Colombo 07 at 11am

Sign up here -

On 25 October, join us at 11am for a Community Circle with Shobana Cooke Wellness — an open, restorative session with focused on connection, awareness, and holistic wellbeing Circle Facilitator -Shobana Cooke, founder of 1948 Shop, Homeopath & Yogic Lifestyle Counsellor In conversation with, -Dr V...

15/10/2025

Join me
On 25 October, at 11am for a Community Circle with friends and colleagues who are healers and holistic practitioners for an open conversation on the Big C, from diagnosis to healing ❤️ and everything in between.

Circle Facilitator
-Shobana Cooke, founder of 1948 Shop, Homeopath & Yogic Lifestyle Counsellor

In conversation with,
-Dr Vaish Sathasivam, Homeopath
-Dr Tyrol Ferdinands, Practitioner of functional & integrative medicine
-Karishma Pandit, Aromatherapist
-Ruvi Rodrigo, Founder of Ayuwanna by Barberyn Ayurvedic Resorts
-Rejanne Perera, Mystery Painting & Compassionate inquiry facilitator & level 5 Pranic Healer
-Anushi Senanayake, Aroma Therapist & founder of Aritha Essential oils
- Dheeshana Ameresekere, Hatha Yoga teacher (RYT 200) and Yogic Lifestyle Counsellor

When & Where - Saturday, 25 October at 1st Floor, 41 Horton Place, Colombo 07 at 11am

Sign up here -

On 25 October, join us at 11am for a Community Circle with Shobana Cooke Wellness — an open, restorative session with focused on connection, awareness, and holistic wellbeing Circle Facilitator -Shobana Cooke, founder of 1948 Shop, Homeopath & Yogic Lifestyle Counsellor In conversation with, -Dr V...