Becoming One with Carson City

Close your eyes. Clear your mind. Sit back and take some deep breaths. Relax.

Have you ever tried meditation? Day after day, we all lead busy, hectic lives filled with distractions everywhere we look, minute after minute until we lay down to try and sleep, our brains still buzzing with activity. Can we just shut it all off, just for a few minutes, and make ourselves feel better?

I seem to believe we can. And there’s so much to meditation as an art — holistic practices, mindfulness, spirituality, becoming one with Earth and nature. All of these are connected.

One of my favorite things about Northern Nevada is this sense of artistic expression through meditation, spirituality — all that stuff. It might be our proximity to the annual Burning Man festival, which seems to embody that sense of open-minded expression. But I love how these philosophies have ingrained themselves into our culture, just below the surface. And it’s up to you to find it.

Now, not all of us are ready to drop our everyday lives to live in the forest or even begin to adopt the lifestyles of hardcore Burning Man acolytes. But I’m here to tell you that incorporating some of these practices into your life is as accessible as learning a new hobby, and it all starts right here in Carson City.

Start simple at the Carson Mall. Crimson Moon Intuitive Arts is a store that may as well act as a guide for the early stages of your journey. You’ll find new age and metaphysical books for getting in touch with your inner self, but it’s also a place where jewelry, accessories and gifts bring those ideas to abstract life. There are gemstones, healing stones, crystals and bohemian clothing as well as candles and decor for bringing the vibrant energy home with you. I see the store as an appropriate gateway into the world you may be ready to enter.

Then, head to Carson City Psychic on Carson Street. The thing I love about psychics is that even if you don’t fully believe in these mystical energies, you’re still in for a memorable time and a great story. But if you do believe, you might be in for something a bit deeper. Downtown Carson City’s resident spiritual healer is all about helping you recognize obstacles in your life and learn to overcome them. A visit to this psychic is about clearing the path to tomorrow, then discovering what tomorrow might have in store. Don’t be nervous — it’s all part of Carson City’s good-natured artistic spirit.

Not far in the historic area of downtown Carson City is Sierra Nevada Holistic Services. The psychic may have induced some stress, yeah? Come work it out here, with a variety of services dedicated to releasing your everyday anxieties and diving into a much calmer state of mind. Here you can try a Meditative Massage, designed to address the connectivity of mind, body and spirit. You’ll be able to completely clear your head while experiencing a therapeutic massage, taking you to a state of relaxation you might never have experienced before.

And that’s just the beginning of Sierra Nevada Holistic Services’ therapies. There are practices to energize your body and mind or to help you slip into a worry-free meditation. Either way, these will completely rejuvenate you and ready you for the new week ahead.

Last, I invite you to head to Yoga Sol for a quick yoga class. You may be more familiar with yoga than anything else on this guide, but after experiencing these other kinds of mind/body practices, yoga is undoubtedly going to feel different.

You might be more in tune with Yoga Sol’s meditation classes and open to techniques that suit you individually. Or you might be willing to take a trail yoga class with a hike to the nearby mountains, paying special attention to your own connection to nature. I’m guessing these experiences will deepen the benefits of yoga and meditation and surely bring you back for more.

Try learning meditation, treat yourself to a relaxing massage or yoga session and perhaps even dabble in the psychic and metaphysical arts. Carson City is truly a hotspot for these types of experiences, so go see what discoveries you can make.

And, be sure to check out our Daytime, Nightlife and Community pages for more weekend events.