Hello and welcome! Today I have the pleasure of interviewing the amazing Sarah Balmer from Sarah Belle Style. Thank you so much, Sarah, for being here today.
 

Sarah Balmer: Thanks for having me!

Ashley: I am really looking forward to this! Obviously, this is not the first time that we've connected. You're a student at Love & Light, but you also do your own amazing work in the world. Not to forget, you were a part of our Crystal Mastery Conference last year.

Sarah: Yes, I was!

Ashley: And that was such a special event because you talked all about crystals and how you incorporate them in your yoga practice. You do so much more than that, though. In today's interview we're going to be talking about your passion for working with Malas, particularly crystal Mala beads.
So can you tell us a little bit about your background and your story? How did your own Mala work play a big role in your spiritual growth?
Sarah: Yeah, so that is a lot to unpack, but I'll tell you a little bit about my background. So I teach yoga, and I like to create a really rich spiritual practice with a lot of meditation. In addition to that, I'm also a jewelry maker. I feel like that's really where the Malas come in. They're where those two passions of mine intersect to create this love that I have for Mala beads.

So interestingly, a lot of people think that Mala beads are just yoga jewelry because a lot of Yogi's will wear them around their wrist. However, what people don't realize is that they can also be such a rich tool for expanding your meditation practice. So I guess that's a little bit about what took me to Malas.
Ashley: Now I just want to share my own personal favorite Mala story, because I have a few sets of Mala beads myself.
I know some people have loads and loads of them, but I just have a set that I made personally for myself. It's really special to me because it combines tons of different kinds of crystals. Each bead is a different stone and they all mean something to me. So when I was adding each bead and creating this Mala I was holding the intention that that's what that crystal would help connect me with.

Another experience that I had working with my Mala beads that I will treasure for the rest of my life was when his Holiness the Dalai Lama came to Madison, Wisconsin. He's actually come several times but at one of the times that I went to see him speak, I decided that instead of just listening to his wisdom and his words, this time I wanted to be in his presence. I wanted to be in this amazing environment full of people who are here to listen to him speak and share his wisdom and his knowledge.
I brought my Mala beads and I silently said mantras to myself and worked with my prayer beads while listening to this amazing spiritual teacher and leader.
It was such a profound experience for me. I found that they really helped me be in the present moment. The first time that I heard him speak I went in with this intention to really be present and listen and absorb but just by having that little bit of touch point, that connection point, it really helped me be there.
I'm curious for you, was there some kind of experience or experiences that really stood out for you when you were working with Mala beads? Anything that made you dive into them a little bit deeper? 
Sarah: Yeah, so one of the really wonderful things about Japa-Mala practice is that it incorporates sound and vibrational healing. There's so much power in sound healing. A lot of times whenever we meditate, we're just sitting there in silence. You know, trying to tame the monkey mind and all of that. But the wonderful thing about a Mala practice is that you have a mantra that you're working with and you repeat that mantra over and over and over. So you're using not just using sound, but your own sound that you make.