Michele's Personal Blog

Michele's Personal Blog: Maya and the Matrix: Cracking the code from the la...

2011-12-24T14:25:00.000-08:00

Michele's Personal Blog: Maya and the Matrix: Cracking the code from the la...: Maya and the Matrix Cracking the code from the language of yoga...

Maya and the Matrix: Cracking the code from the language of yoga.

2011-12-05T08:03:00.001-08:00

Maya and the Matrix
December 24, 2011

Cracking the code from the language of yoga.

My dharma talks in yoga class will often imbibe some reference to the movie The Matrix. Have any of you noticed? Yes, after all of these years, (1999) I am still pondering the multiple dimensions that relate to my own personal spiritual, philosophical studies, life, and destiny in this movie. I have always been very strongly drawn to The Matrix, even though I am not typically impressed by chase scenes and action. I do somehow feel a strong pursuit in translating what this movie and concept means to me, and how I can apply some of these teachings to my life. In studying it further, I have found so many translations, and of course, each commentator translates it according to their experience, their influences, their studies and lens. There is a wide range of background in the commentary. I am no different. I have gone out of my way to study some of the proclaimed influences of the Matrix beyond my own familiar radar. I am primarily versed in Yogic (be it Classical Yoga, Advaita Vedanta or Tantric), Tibetan Buddhist, Mayan (as in pre-Spain Mexico on the Yucatan) and a touch of Tree of Life philosophy. This pursuit is interesting unto itself.

The deeper I go, I feel my life is becoming this movie. Sometimes I honestly wonder where the dream begins and the "waking" state ends. I often wonder if the movie is really happening and which is real. The Wachowski brothers, who are the creators of the film, are quite clandestine about their influences. They rarely comment on the infinite depth of debates by others, namely sci-fi, techie, cyberpunk, psychedelic and religious in their nature (Christian, Gnostic, Kaballah, Hindu, Buddhist, to name a few) on their movie. They seem to stay out of imposing their intentions and beliefs of what the film is about, as if to, out of respect, not adulterate the ideas of the viewer. We have never heard the movie's exact message or purpose from the creators, as iconic (and iconoclastic) as it has become.One thing I do see, it gets you to question everything, if you can see past the slick scenes, music, and moves, which are really cool too. Most stop there, as it set and actually implanted many fashion trends, style, and fads in a growing 90's underground scene. I was a fashion designer then, and too found it very impressive, but it is inviting you look into your life, without being so distracted, more deeply. The movie used distractions to force you to do the work, and investigate it's depth. In this case, the outlandish and breath taking vinyl style and Japanimation like martial arts in the movie is literally used to draw you in. It is yet another trick. It is merely incredible decoration. There is far more to the message here, quite profound and presented quietly.

The Matrix a viewer's movie, with complete freedom to decide what it means to the witness. It is not imposing one particular belief system of any sort, making it far beyond the promotion of labels, styles, and hipster trends. This stand back approach in their creation strikes me first by two words in Sanskrit... "Smirti" and "Shruti". These words apply to the art of message and communication. Shruti implies that there are sacred words that exist in the material world that were (or still are) direct messages from the Source that we can listen to. This is a direct phone call, already existing in the atmosphere and from God. They were unadulterated and had no translation, which means, in this case, the message was able to stream into the matrix and be heard, but did not come from inside of the matrix. Smirti is more a remembrance of a direct line of ultra communication. It gets channeled through a commentator, or a person within maya, and often written down. Once it is written down or translated, it can be adulterated and mixed, and is now a message sent through the lens of the presenter. The Wachowski's first amazing feat was keeping silent. It seemed to make the movie very pure and direct, like an omniscience both excellent and rare. When something we "hear" strikes us with such poignant resonance, it is like it came straight from the seed ( "bindu" in sanskrit), beyond the mind, like a direct knowing. When you get those chills that run all over your skin, pay attention to what you just heard or experienced. There is even a Sanskrit word for this, when your hair stands on end because something hit such a deep cord..."Viloma".

Many people believe that this movie was meant to break down codes and constructs. Hollywood is in this case the representative of collective, programmed consciousness, which does a good job, like magazines and television, at telling us how things are, what we need, and who we should be. Just like advertising, it is trying to capture our attention all the time. Our attention is energy, and potent energy at that. Anything that grabs our attention is an unconscious influence, streaming right into our being. This movie is a deprogrammer and a code cracker, which is where the movie begins, with neon green codes falling from the sky like our own mathmatical equation waiting to be solved, yet at the moment, because of it's color, still artificial. This movie is literally using the palette of the movie industry paradoxically to break down what mass consciousness can do to us; hypnotize. If ever we are seduced into sedation, we have just given up our free will, which, according to the laws of karma took great work. Free will came from our past merit. Choice is a human gift. Very few beings have total free will. Humans do, yet often get bribed into giving it up. This movie used a mass consciousness tool to break down the hypnosis of movies and the matrix and was successful at it. It is a movie to deprogram Hollywood, which is programmed to program us. This is the cracking of the code you see at the very beginning in neon green. You even see it in the manipulation of the label of the Warner Brothers insignia. Crack the code, and you are free to create your own real world. May all beings be free.

There are a few words in studying the etymology of the word matrix that relate to the veil...the sanskrit words ma ( mother earth), manas (mind) and maya (illusion or time), related to the english words material, measurement, manifest, matter, math, montage, movie, manipulate... The definition of a "matrix" is a situation within which something else originates. In mathematics, it is an array of symbols, numbers, and expressions that contain both column vectors and linear equations, just like it's shape, with both vertical lines (Shiva) and horizontal lines (Shakti) that create a grid like set or constructed tapestry. Baudrillard, one of the film makers only proclaimed influence besides the obvious cyberpunk movement, of which they asked the star, Keanu Reeves to read before accepting the role, described this, the "manifest as most know it and experience it, is a fake, artificial copy". He turned to Walt Disney as his greatest example of how the majority experience the world; those caught in the collective of artifice and copies of something original they have not really experienced at all yet, yet they think they have. He called this "simulacra and simulation". In the movie, the matrix refers to anything material which only creates bondage if we do not know it's essence. The movie is insinuating that far fewer than we think are really experiencing the essence. Even those that seem to be portray spiritual awareness do not know, like Zypher, (Lucifer) originally on the rebel upper worlds side.

If we do not know how to hack the system and get to the Real, we are ruled by trickery and artificial intelligence, portrayed as machines in the movie... much like people who have no self realization or Universal consciousness. Experiencing the world this way is like eating what we think is real, but is empty food and fake, enjoying fabricated art and having artificial reproduced relationships, yet being fooled that it is the real deal, which might even feel pretty amazing, albeit a fraction of what you could experience from it or create, free of the puppetry. Unless we question how things are, we could be the one hypnotized, and this makes us dangerous to ourselves, others, and the environment as a whole. It could be you, the one reading this right now, even if you think you are not. This is when the kingdoms in the matrix get out of order. I see The Matrix movie as a modern day ancient plea from the spirit world, begging us to crack the code, and be ready to fight our deepest battles to realize the truth of origin of all things, getting to the real with a capital "R".

The movie revealed an extremely uncomfortable process for us if we too choose (remember how important choice and free will is here) to endeavor the journey to "beat the system". Trinity and Neo were famous underground hackers who did. They pulled out and unplugged their programs in the matrix. If we too can do this, things like art can actually be new creations, and relationships can have soul recognition, free of being bound by our creations or our relationships. You can be above and below. This is why I do not like the word "transcend". Remember when the movie showed small machines sucking on many human life forces for juice, like human batteries? (I can not stand that scene. It gives me the total creeps) Remember how Neo was called Coppertop? (a Duracel battery) It is because WE are the portals. We contain Real life force. Why would I want to get out of this? Instead of "transcending", I like to think of "preserving" my essence. Know your essence and you are no longer dangerous to us all. Keep your eyes wide open though. The thing is, you will now be perceived as a threat to those that are still enslaved. Did you see how many agents tried to stop Neo's freedom? That is very very real also. There are agents. If you are a "hacker", you are now able to communicate with the Upper Worlds and the rogue rebels concerned with justice. The agents do not like this.

The Nebuchadnezzer ( historically a king who sent the "pure race" into exile) in the movie is where the rebels reside. They live outside of the matrix in the Upper worlds. They too each cracked the code, or were not born into the matrix to begin with (the idea of a true Zion that existed before man fell). These rebels have the ability to pull out of the group hypnosis into the upper worlds, yet still have the choice to enter into the matrix anytime they choose. Because they know the reality about the enslavement of those that still do not know or are not ready to crack the code, they are threatened by agents each time they enter, who do not want to see them free. According the the movie, anyone that does not know how to crack the code, like the hacker/hero archetype Neo (anagram of One) is a slave, and those bought into the system, "plugged into the machines" are unfortunately all dangerous, like a pandemic disease, until they are ready to find out the causal measurements and equations. Those sedated or falsely medicated still can turn on you. "They can even look like normal people that we know. They can be on the television... they can be there when we pay our taxes..."

The "rebels" are not this. That is why they are stripped down in the movie, even in their clothes and surroundings. What you see is the real deal. Nothing shiny or deceiving. They have gone through a questioning period to pull out of all of this, called "neti neti" in Sanskrit, which means to go through a very intense discernment process of "not this, not this. The word for discernment in Sanskrit it "Viveka", and is the primary theme of Patanjali's Yoga Sutras. The rebels unplugged from the masses so that they could no longer be programmed by "machines"( heartless, unintelligent, and those that never question, but just follow all commands). I have a current teacher who repeatedly emphasizes to me how important it is that at some point in our lives we question everything. We must never become an "agent" to anyone or anything, not even a teacher we love, or a practice we have invested in, but to find our personal purpose. We must be completely willing to do things differently, and to activate the new, never done before. I know many yogis and others that are radical and choose to experience radical affirmation. The Bhagavad Gita, the most popular book in India and obvious parallel in this movie is a timeless example of this. Arjuna, another hero archetype, had a meltdown in Chapter 11 with Krishna as his guide (like Morpheus) where everything fell apart after he was given a glimpse of the secrets of the Universe. He was not quite ready to see this, but, because he questioned everything, there was power in concern for justice, which brought real sovereignty to an entire kingdom.

How quickly the seeds multiply

In many scenes in the matrix, the agents who are after the hero and "One", Neo, seem to multiply according to his capacity. As Neo grows, his resistance grows, and when this realization begins to trip him out, the seeds in his own mind seem to produce even more agents. So often our yoga practice is about the expansion of our container and potential, according and directly revelatory to our training and work, which we all need A LOT of. It is work, yes indeed. It is interesting to note, as the spiritual warrior Neo begins to own his purpose, and to know and accept himself more, his shadows also multiply in their measurements. His resistance resists more as he contains more light and self realization. Is this another trick in the matrix? Also, are there really forces out there that do not want us to be liberated, and want us to remain in bondage? It is a good question to ask ourselves, especially as we increase our awareness and unpeel the layers of what is real and sound. These are the battle scenes in the matrix, so classic in many myths. When the stakes are high the battle increases our strength, strategy, and capacity. This gets us to encode divine origin. It also shows us there are those in the spiritual world that want us to do this, to attain self realization.

There are power in numbers when we gain access to above as we live in below. We learn this in our reiki attunements... there are spiritual guides, guardians, angels, archangels behind maya and the veil, rooting for us, fighting for us, and wanting us to get out of any possible manipulation and in the essence of the real, where things can be appreciated and supported to the ultimate divinity, if only we communicate with them. Sacred word and sound is also an ongoing theme in the movie. It is how the rebels can travel above and below. Neo (Son of God), Trinity (Spirit), and Morpheus (Father) were all able to be in both the Matrix, and the Upper worlds, where most all others, including the agents, where trapped in the Matrix and had no idea how to break the code or find the key. It is why they were so interested in Neo. He could do both. He was above and below, but not trapped. He could communicate telepathically, as well as in analog and digital. Analog represents frequencies that are able to be picked up and received anywhere. It is how they entered the matrix, where digital, as when the rebels used cell phones, is only picked up by like frequencies, or like others. This type of communication was the most direct.

Remember when Neo starts to become the mirror, and the mirror (another word for maya and matrix) starts to take over his body? This happens once he decides that he wants to really know what the matrix is. His life feels empty and he no longer believes what everyone else does. To do this, he must take the red pill, where he then gets unplugged from the system that everyone is plugged into. He is asking questions, and he wants to self examine, and decode to then reprogram and encode the truth. Did you see how hard that was? He was tossed into sewers, raw. It did not look comfortable. He looked around, and everyone was "asleep" in controlled incubators. That use to be him. How disturbing is this, especially when they may be your loved ones, or you? This is truly draconian in it's affects and proportion. This time of year (Holidays) is riddled with simulations in images, advertising and media. It is really a time to question and be careful about what images we choose to imprint into our consciousness, what truths we tell ourselves, and what coding we allow into our DNA. Deprogramming is not easy.

There are 2 things that Neo has on his side, that I feel as a modern yogi, are the key ingredients to our liberating desire, moksha in the moment.... One is to keep good company, "Sanga" in Sanskrit. You are the company you keep, and the words they say. Neo, like Arjuna in the Bhagavad Gita, keeps very good company when he chooses Krishna to be on his side. It is not a lot of company. It is a smaller group, which can make it feel deceiving and lonely (as the desert of the Real in the movie suggests, or more so warns that we all feel when we get closer to the Truth), but he has Morpheus (the ruler of dreams) and Trinity ( the Holy Spirit) on his side. He has the best company, and the spiritual world, as well as the physical is praying he/we get it together enough to recognize the power in being a rebel of the real. Morpheus and Trinity had to collect Neo in the underworld with Rob Zombie playing in the background, and he was the Savior and One. Maya/matrix at work again. You just never know.

The second ingredient...When Neo enters the Oracles kitchen (who is the all knowing Divine Mother), the message above the door (our personal door into ourselves that we all must enter) says "Know Thyself". I believe this sums up what the matrix is, and why it is here. Know thyself truly, be see through, get your strands decoded, and we will stand up time and time again, even in challenge, by choice. This choice will then also be in communion with the Upper worlds. You will have Trinity and Morpheus on your side. What more do you need? The thing is, do we truly know ourselves? The movie questions the choices you are making, and whether you allow your stakes to be high enough to know. Would you risk everything and do whatever it takes? When the stakes are high, you are getting closer to the Real deal in the Upper worlds. The stakes must be high for us to feel what is real, and there is always risk involved because there will inevitably be so much change. Some, as the movie says, are so plugged into the system, so entangled, that they are just not ready for change like this. For those masses, change will happen to them and at them. This can not be escaped. But "know thyself", and we experience the electricity of our essence, self reliant...which raises the odds that others now currently in the system will too. Everyone must know themselves, or it will never work. I remember a dear Buddhist teacher, Geshe Michael Roach, saying this to me. Otherwise, we are all always at risk. I found an old buddhist saying one time on a tea bag that took me a very long time to understand..."Act as if everything you do matters tremendously, until you realize what you do matters nothing at all."

"There will come a time when you dodge bullets no more."

What is the matrix? It is what gets us to ask what is the truth, and what is real. According to the movie/maya, it is the only way we can support the matrix, by first asking the question. When Neo is waiting to speak to the Oracle, he meets a young Buddha. The Buddha has realized the nature of an object he is holding, which was a spoon. Once he does, he can bend it. He reveals that it is not fixed. This is the same for us. Our imprints, "samskaras" are not as fixed as we think, and you will be able to call out quite quickly "glitches in the system" before they actually activate and change you. Remember when Neo saw a deja vu? It was the repetition of a cat walking forward and back. It was a glitch in a program. They were able to call out this program before it became complete chaos. He was no longer going to allow a loop to play out again. He got out of the loop, and his guides helped him see this. Watch for those programs you have. Watch for familiar moments. Know what it is. Know where all things come from. Knowing where all things come from, you could stop chaos from happening before it entered your periphery. You could walk through a wall right now if you really understood this statement. Chapter 3 of the Yoga Sutras speaks all about doing this. These super powers are called the Vibutthis, and we all have them, but they are dormant and numbed in most all of us. We must pull the anesthetic out, and train to handle them, flying, just like Neo does at the end. , Morpheus did tell Neo, "there will come a time where you dodge bullets no more." You can do anything, and nothing can get at you anymore.

As the young buddha said in the waiting room of the Oracle; "Do not try to bend the spoon. That would be impossible. Instead, find the nature of the spoon. Only then will you realize there is no spoon." And then there was light...

Picture of Neo at the very end of his purpose.

Michele's Personal Blog: Yoga Teacher's Blueprint: Our Holy Grail For Teach...

2011-09-04T13:16:00.000-07:00

Michele's Personal Blog: Yoga Teacher's Blueprint: Our Holy Grail For Teach...: Yoga Teacher's Blueprint: Our Holy Grail For Teaching Yoga September 4, 2011 (When others come to your yoga class, it is an honor. To b...

Yoga Teacher's Blueprint: Our Holy Grail For Teaching Yoga

2011-09-04T08:42:00.000-07:00

Yoga Teacher's Blueprint: Our Holy Grail For Teaching Yoga
September 4, 2011

(When others come to your yoga class, it is an honor. To be truly affective and magnetic, yoga teachers must practice living the teachings, and not just "know" the teachings or vocalize them well and with wit in class. Bowing in kindness, compassion, and service is the greatest gift you can give your students. Be kind, warm, and inviting. The first thing I look for in a yoga teacher is, are they happy? Does what they teach actually work?)

This is a Holy Grail of key notes, or "bindus" for our Swans. These bindu key points have been absorbed throughout my years of teaching and implementing yoga, in blessed settings, with Master teachers, and high resonate teachings. For our Swan River Yoga Teacher Trainings in our 6 month program, these key elements will assist the certified teacher as a holy check list. This is a paradigm that has assisted my refinement through the years. It is one that is ever expanding. Our teachings are not static, and I find the greatest teachers are willing to explore getting better, and taking their students along with them. If we teach with the same quality each year, our students will not grow. It is vital as a yoga teacher and healer to continue to finesse with passion and enthusiasm, so others are moved and inspired by every yoga class that they experience. One class is a big deal.

(Michele and Alethia getting proper eagle eye and staging to scope out what the students need, and to best be seen by them for the greatest connection. Mid-City Mandir)

I encourage any yoga teacher or yoga teacher to be to read this, no matter what your style of yoga is. It is meant to uplift and bring the most impeccable teachings imaginable to our community. For our Certified Swans, it is a must, and to graduate or call oneself a Swan Teacher, this is our Holy Grail Blueprint of which you experience in our classes. Enjoy!

Key notes for creating the optimal experience in sequencing & leading a class.

These are things I look for in a complete class:

(Michele and Aaron teaching voice, bhakti, and kirtan in Lafayette, LA. Be sure that you move, speak, act, serve from the heart as a teacher.)

5 elements of a Swan River class incorporated. Every yoga teacher at Swan River must do this...
1. Dharma Talk. Inspire their mind. Air/Vayu
2. Chant/Devotion. Stoke their heart. Fire/Agni
3. Breath and/or meditation. Give them grounded tools of independence. Earth/Prathivi
4. Equal balance of alignment instruction and flowing asana. Neither one not the other is to be left out. Siva/Shakti is present. Water/Jala
5. Theme infused 3 times throughout the class. Tell them why they are doing all of this. The metaphysical must be there as much and in tandem with the physical. Ether/Akasha

( Tirrumanavalai Full Moon Siva Pilgramage in India Feb 2011. Shiva/Shakti, Ardhanarishvara, is in perfect balance in every class w pose/repose, physical, metaphysical, alignment/flow.

5 Bindus points to articulate/call out a pose to a student, closest to this order as possible:
1. Name in Sanskrit and English
2 .Gross form- the obvious structure of the pose
3. Alignment- detailed according to your theme & from the foundation up
4. Theme/Metaphysical (3 times minimum throughout the class)
5. Breath steady and even like a human metronome

5 Bindus for a complete and successful dharma talk. Align with the energies currently exisisting for the best theme of your yoga class.
1. Name the title
2. Say the title 3 times during
3. Relate a personal story
4. Include and tie in a yogic philosophy
5. Relate to how they will practice this on the mat
*A students should be able to name the theme of your class after they take it.

(Swan Teacher Jacksun listening to the Dharma talk. The theme of the talk is based on what is happening in the moment for efficacy and relatibility.)

Technique:
*Do not do yoga with your class. You are there to serve them. Once you have taught for 10,000 hours or 10 years, you may consider this.
*All poses are linked and always instructed with the correct breath. Never overlook the importance of transition.
*The alignment and form (note the difference) is instructed from the foundation up always
*Narrow down your alignment instruction by relating it to your theme for focus
*Move from gross to more subtle, or easiest to most challenging.
*Use the bell curve, which peaks 2/3 into the class
* The most challenging poses are complete after the apex of the bell curve
*Always have a peak pose, and infuse the theme in the peak
*Take out all unnecessary words such as "try to", "on the inhale", "from here", "sorry", "please", and all "ing" words.
*Always compliment, and speak in the positive. No "do nots" or "if you can't"
* Compliment first before correcting. Correct general issues first, before detailed issues.
*In general, do not give the students choices. Do not give into their preferences. Instruct everything, and instead, provide modifications and variations.

(Moving Shri... Interact with your students so they feel you, and feel that you are there for them. Walk around the room, and do not stay in one place as you teach)

Demos:
*No more than 3 demos in a level II open class. Students need to exercise.
*Keep it dynamic and in the appropriate length. Do not stay there too long.
*Pick students to demo more than doing the demo yourself.
*2 types of demos. Demo correctly and appropriately.
1. Informal Demo: when they are in flow, but in clear confusion, and looking around the room. Give them a quick visual but do not stop the class.
2. Formal Demo: Linked to your theme and purpose, stop the class officially. Have them gather around. Be sure everyone can see. Go through, in detail some key information that you want them to work on. Then have them go do it, or assist one another in doing so.

(A formal demo, where everyone is gathered around to view the shoulder loop. Anahata was the Theme of the class, so the demo relates to the theme. Workshop at Krama in San Jose, Costa Rica)

Staging:
* Circle the entire room clockwise during the warm up to see where your students are at that particular day, their mood, observe new students capabilities, what they need to work on, and to move the energy in the room.
*Stand in a place where you are always facing them when holding poses. If you have them face the right side, move to the right side of the room so they see you.
*Stand in a place where you get the best eagle eye possible.
*Do not move around while they are balancing.
*Get out of their periphery when they are balancing.
*Best to not stand behind them. It throws them off.
*Do not stand in one place for too long. It will stagnate the teachings.
*Move the energy of the room with your body by walking around, and keep it orderly.
*Never sit down. Work just as they are working.

(Keith Porteous, Co-owner, adjusting in a sequential order at our First Grand Opening of Swan River Yoga Mid-City Mandir.)

Assists:
*Assist in a sequential order in the room, moving from one person to the next. Every person has something to work on. Do not scramble all around the room unorderly.
*Assist gross alignment first, and the most critical for safety.
*If you assist them on one side physically, you MUST do the other. Remember who you assisted.
*Know everyone's name, and call them out.
*Do verbal assists first before physical to empower their capacity.
*Do global verbal assists first (when the majority of the room is doing something out of alignment) before personal assists.
*Do not ignore new students, nor stagnate the flow of the class by over-assisting them.
*Provide props right away when necessary and have them nearby
*Breath with them, and move them with their breath

( Pincha Mayurasana assist, where everyone will be encouraged to assist one another in Mandeville, LA)

Voice:
*Be dynamic, like you are doing the pose with them in your voice.
*Do not use a monotone voice.
*Keep it real and not fluffy.
*Use encouragement. If it is hard, use that inflection in your voice. If it is an internal pose, guide them spaciously with your voice.
*Be sure they can hear you, and that your volume is perfect
*Use a lower resonance and pitch in general for better absorption
*Bring the voice up to the upper palate and nasal range so you do not blow your vocal cords
*Pose/Repose...Have moments of silence in every class where you do not talk at all and the room is silent.
*When nervous, listen, and speak from the heart.

(Black and Gold Who Dat Superbowl Yoga class. Align with the season for the optimal theme of your class.)

Examine afterward:
*Did the above blueprint happen, and what can be improved?
*Was the class all about serving them?
*Did you set your "stuff" aside appropriately to teach them?
*Did your student leave life affirmed, even if they were challenged, having a hard day, or where new?
*Was the class moving?
*Did you invoke a sense of community?
*Did they get greeted by you, if not vocally, energetically, no matter how large the class was? Did you look at them in the eye?
*Did you touch every single person in some way?
*Did you push them to their edge, and no further?
*Can they apply this in their life, and did you remind them to?
* Did they experience kindness, joy, creativity, celebration, learning?
*Did you do your best as a teacher?
*Did you do everything from the heart?
*Were the 4 tenets of a Swan River Yoga class there?
1. Community 2. Integrity3. Art 4. Beauty?

Lotus flower in Portland OR

Congratulations dearest yoga teacher! You have offered up an impeccable class if everything has been checked off of this list, which will ever expand and refine also.

(Santa Teresa Shiva/Shakti Yoga Retreat 2011.) Check in as a yoga teacher... are the students life affirmed, and were they moved in some way?)

Remember, every student that comes to you is a messenger, mirroring to you Divine gifts. Leave your stuff behind, and bow to them, the real teachers. Namaskar

Blue Swan Unveiling

2011-08-19T20:50:00.000-07:00

Blue Swan Unveiling
Sept 1, 2011

I have been tremendously blessed with the opportunity to be around some of the best healers and teachers in the world, truly. It humbles me so to be in the midst of such inspiring greatness so often. I never had any direction growing up, and being around this angels embodied became iconic for me. From my beginning in 1996, I discovered yoga in the Catskills of upstate NY in a Sivananda Ashram, and later that magical summer sat next to the statuesque Sharon Gannon and David Life nightly for dinner with expansive conversation at a dear Jewish Retreat without even knowing who they were. My life was forever changed. I decided I wanted to be just like them when I grew up.
Since my Spirit infused trek began then, when my life really started to spiral upward, I started to seek as much yoga as possible in the form of many high quality styles, teachers and places, from large oversized conventions, to small private secretive settings, even on the phone, from India, to suburbia. You never really know when the Divine will appear, coming in many forms. Your eyes must stay pealed wide open. I remember a great teaching from the Ramayana about Hanuman that I never wanted to forget once hearing it. It was a revelation of his devotion when he as even able to recognize God in form, in this case Ram. Most people walk right by God daily, and miss it. Hanuman was quite evolved to "see" right away.

My first icons, Sharon Gannon and David Life, the founders of Jivamukti Yoga.

  Now that I have been graced with offering so many guests that are considered the best in our country, and High quality events in New Orleans, I often receive such gracious personal attention and insight not only in a classroom setting, but also in a very personal one in my home. The real jewels are the moments you get to hang out with your teachers in the everyday. If ever you get the chance to be with your teacher, do it, not matter what. It will have the strongest impact on your life. I have had the likes of my dear teachers Shri Sharon Gannon, the founder of Jivamukti Yoga and Kelle Eli, my Kabbalah and Energy Teacher stay with me in my home. The most precious moments were often just sitting on my couch, where I get to ask whatever I want. The real juice.
   I have stayed in John Friends home, the founder of Anusara Yoga, taking notes in his extensive library of rare additions, meditating with him in his puja room, and watching the Cowboys and the Saints take one another down. I asked, and have been Lama Christie McNally's chauffeur right before she did sacred Tibetan Buddhist Rituals to Kali while in New Orleans. I have spent personal time with Jai Uttal in Maui, and swam in the Pacific Ocean with Ram Dass and John Friend there, a satsang on the beach. I have learned about sacred plants, the Mayan calendar, and many forms of ceremony's in private settings from Shaman's, and been to the origin of both yoga and Shamanism, India, Mexico and Peru, from sweat lodges in an Astro Lodge to being in the Astro fields myself. Most recently, I have been delving into the realms of Thai Yoga Therapy with Sudevi, as soon we will take students to Thailand. Oh my goodness, the list goes on. There are so many cultures and beliefs to draw upon, and in the end, what resonates with you comes directly from your Higher Self. Looking back from time to time I can not believe the blessings that come, and I see it is a matter of wanting it so much One must first recognize the moment is so precious, and beyond your wildest dreams, before ceasing the moment as it appears.
   One of my biggest dreams is to share with my community all of the blessings I feel I have received. I have been exposed to some pretty esoteric forms of healing that to some are the regular everyday for them, and to others, are way out there, and very esoteric. It is my humble humble joy to now present a list I have been working on, dreaming about, and downloading directly from Source in my meditations.
This is a dream menu to me, as we begin to expand our horizons of what yoga and healing truly is. It comes in many forms.

  Please enjoy the list from Source that we will now share with you in the Blue Swan Healing Room, newly renovated with the Highest Vastu, in the Mid-City Mandir of Swan River Yoga.

Blue Swan Holistic Programs

by Michele Baker

Specializing in Anusara Inspired Therapeutics, Reiki Energy Clearings,Yoga Nidra, Vedic Thai Yoga, Puja Ceremony, and Vastu Space Consultation.

Menu:

*Private Anusara Inspired Therapeutic Yoga Session: A personalized, physical prescription for optimal health, reducing injury and prevention of pain .

Telling Gabbi Salazar, from Costa Rica, about the correct alignment for her shoulder after a shoulder injury, so she can safely practice advanced poses like she use to.

Private physical therapeutics is based on the Anusara Universal Principles of Alignment. In this private, receive a full analysis of the framework of your body from the hips down and the shoulders up. Looking at the "loops and spirals" of energy within you, as based on this method, you will gain knowledge to the tendencies the body has built, and receive personal ways to regain and implement symmetry for optimal health and vitality. This session is effective for injuries, daily and/or chronic discomfort, and personal alignment or health issues, unable to always be addressed in a general class. Take advantage of in depth discussion and time for questions. Personal homework will be prescribed for you in your practice daily. This session is meant to give you tools that will leave you feeling more aware and confident about taking control of your health, practice, and life safely, skillfully, and joyfully. The efficacy and quantity of sessions you need is dependent on the severity and action that you put forth. The tools are "Universal", meaning, that they work the same every time, if done correctly, and consistently, revealing to us our optimal health.

*Energetic Kundalini Reiki Clearings: Clearing stuck energy, holding, and attracting a clear source of light.

Kundalini Reiki Energy clearings is working with the subtle body to navigate more light into the physical by means of the direction of the Higher Self. Based on the 3 Levels of Reiki that Michele has graduated from and practiced since 2003, as well as her mentoring Tree of Life Program, this method is subtle energy work of the Pramamaya Kosha, the energy sheath. Based on the Chakra system, each of your chakras will be read to determine their level of clarity and strength. Guiding life force into the central channel, Reiki will tune misaligned chakras back to their natural frequency. Beyond traditional Reiki, this session more specifically assists one in getting to the core issue of energy blocks and patterns that no longer serve you. These patterns often disconnect us from our maximum potential of flow within our health and lives.

A Reiki session clears psychic debris and entanglements one may feel caught in energetically and prevents patterns from re-occuring with protections, attracting light more consistently. Lead by the guidance of Spirit, your Higher Self, and Spiritual Guides, this session can also clear a path for new goals to manifest by releasing the causal residue of past experience or trauma, radiating light.

*Vedic Thai Yoga Therapy: An elegant Ayurvedic Healing Style of Receiving Gentle Yoga and bodywork.

Based on the Nuad Boran Thai Technique of the Vedas, this is an Ayurvedic healing style of "receiving" yoga. The recipient, lying down, receives yoga positions and a unique form of Thai bodywork. This consists of following and clearing the "Sen" lines, or nadis, in a rhythmic manner for the release of pressure points, called "marmas". The therapist uses all parts of their body for the rhythmic stretching, through pressing and compressing by use of their feet, hands, palms, arms, knees, legs. Gentle pressure is given from head to toe, freeing all the systems of the body, including the lymphatic system, detoxifying, and softening tense muscles and mental blocks. It frees inertia, emotional stress, and tranquilizes the entire body by creating a harmonious symbiotic communication integrating all of the bodies systems. A yoga practitioner will recognize many of the poses, known as asana, all gentle and done in repetition for efficacy, as well as the breathing techniques implemented, known as pranayama. Revered as a medical folk art for it's dignity and sophistication from India and Thailand, it is similar to having yoga done on you while getting a full body massage at the same time; the equivalent to heaven, Samadhi.

*Vastu Shastra Space Consultation: setting up and clearing a space for optimal energetic flow in your environment.

"Vastu" similar to the Japanese concept of "Fung Shei", is translated as "essence in form" in Sanskrit. It relates to the directional and architectural design of a space. Vastu aligns with the optimal flow of energy with the 4 corners of the earth, and the 5 elements, called the "pancha maha bhoota" . Michele was taught, in her many years of training in Ashrams and temples, this way of setting a space, and all spaces, like a temple. It recognizes, as an art, where things should be placed, as well as their aesthetics for optimal "Shri", or shine, like the temples in India. In a Vastu consultation, Michele will go through and energetically cleanse spaces such as your home or work with the order given in the Vedas, ceremonially, and with rearrangement advise. Enjoy the maximum potential environmentally, remove stuck or negative energy, redecorate and reorder your home so that it is fresh, mirroring to you the greatest abundance, health, creativity, healing, joy, intuition, love, and lucid dreams possible. In India, all architecture and dwellings is a human temple, a "manushyalaya". It is not just utilitarian. Vastu aligns us with the patterns and qualities of nature, invoking ecological friendliness so that our everyday is a sacred shrine.

*Ceremonial Pujas for newborns, weddings, or special occasions: Make poignant times in your life a memorable yogic celebration.

Brigs and Brigette for the welcoming of his soul and dharma in puja

There are many special occasions in our life that can be honored in a creative, colorful, elaborate, and yogic way. Puja is yet another way to bring the yogic teachings into your life in a vibrant manner. The word "Puja" is translated as "ritual" and is performed daily in India. It is an offering to honor and support special people in our lives and their memorable moments, such as their birth, birthday, accomplishments, new ventures, weddings, and leaving their body upon their last breath in life. Pujas can also celebrate specific deities and cultural events. It can be an extravagant festival or a private ceremony, where gifts and offerings are brought to the individual(s), and to the altar or setting present in invoking Spirit. Sweets are often brought by the guests as "prasad" (blessed food), which are blessed by the participants of the ceremony through song and prayer. Numerous devotional chants are sung to provoke high vibrations, and there are specific ingredients, attire, mannerisms, colors, and order to the puja, according to the Vedas, depending on the ceremony and ritual one is celebrating. A form of Bhakti Yoga, the yoga of devotion, it is a special way to invite offering and more ritual in our lives, even beyond the mat, and a thoughtful way to honor others.

*Yoga Nidra: guided sleep trance states to clear & re-pattern the autonomic nervous system & enhance the theta state of mind.

"Yoga Nidra" is the sanskrit word for "yogic sleep". Different than regular sleep, it releases trauma, tension, anxiety, insomnia, & old constructs that no longer serve you. Similar to hypnosis, it can assist in freeing old patterns, addictions, compulsions, attachments, fear, paranoia, illness, & illusion. From our mental seeds, physical ailments can result such as unease, anxiety attacks, palpilations, chest pain, sweating, or stress related pain of any kind, making one feel out of control. Yoga Nidra trains the mind to gently guide us back into our original state of bliss, accessible to us all. It is a state halfway between wakefulness and dream, opening deep phases of the mind that have somehow become shut off. Nidra is a tantric practice called "Nyasa", mentally placing all of the body parts back in order so that the nervous system discharges the memory of the tension first implanted, as it awakens the most relaxed wave of the mind, the Theta wave. Lying down in Savasana, a soft voice will lure you into safe a internalization, rotation of the mind, breath awareness, awareness of opposites, visualization, and externalization, which is the prescribed order of Nidra. Although one appears to be sleeping, a profound repatterning of the body is taking place and the mind is "rebooting". This is a communion with your Higher Self and the Divine as the Ultimate guide, who have no agendas or imprints, reminding you of your inherent freedom.

*Ionic Kriya Foot Bath:

"Kriya", translated as purifying action, of which then creates pure actions, is an important first stage in our yoga practice. In the Hatha Yoga Pradipika, numerous unusual Kriyas are listed. This Kriya, or purification practice, clears out the lymphatic system of many modern day toxins such as draining heavy metals, toxins, pesticides, and pollution. Balancing your PH level in your body and rejuvenates your energy level back to a heightened state of harmony, where you may discover more energy than every before. This is good if you ever feel overloaded, inert, sluggish, or toxic, so that you feel vibrant once again.

This is done with an Ionic foot machine, immersing your feet in a saline water solution. The feet have an incredible amount of pores to release toxins within you, and any good healer will tell you, if you don't have time for much, go directly to the feet. Enjoy a foot spa treatment after one of your sessions for an extra kick of detoxification.

Michele's Personal Blog: Peru; The Magical Mystery Yoga Tour

2011-08-13T10:45:00.000-07:00

Michele's Personal Blog: Peru; The Magical Mystery Yoga Tour: "Peru; The Magical Mystery Yoga Tour July 21- August 4, 2011 Amazon River Morning Sunrise before Meditation (Tess Monahan) July 2..."

Peru; The Magical Mystery Yoga Tour

2011-08-12T22:46:00.000-07:00

Peru; The Magical Mystery Yoga Tour
July 21- August 4, 2011

Amazon River Morning Sunrise before Meditation (Tess Monahan)

July 21"Feels like something that I've done before"

"Feels like something that I've done before"... A line from " Inertia Creeps" by Massive Attack. This song was in one of my favorite movies, The Matrix, and I am listening to it now on my way to Peru, up in the sky, where I love to be. I have been feeling like this a great deal lately, such familiar reminders of something unraveling, something done again, but deeper and maybe in an accelerated frequency . Do you know those deja vu's where time and space seem to stop, and everything pauses, and you can't help but wonder, "something is happening again that has already happened," yet it makes no rational sense? It is so far out of the mind that neuro-pathways seem to get ruptured, rattled, or, more so raptured.
Something is getting revealed to me at this very moment, and many moments lately, but I can't quite see it completely clearly. It is a familiarity, a culmination, a profound assimilation in a glimpse. I can feel it, sense it, almost see it and taste it. It sometimes distracts me and is far from practical. It is like tapping into a new form of communication. A new telephone line from the future, or, would it be remembering something past? So many things are lining up. Is this the next phase of recognition, these epic pauses where all phases of time meet? Is this a stage closer towards "knowing"? The immense amount of synchronicity I have been experiencing in alignment with something greater has me floating, giddy, unrested, and full of pure joy, all at once.

We were there for the 100th Anniversary Discovery of Machu Pichhu

It will be very interesting to see how I feel about the magic and energy of Peru based on how I feel at this moment in my life. Sometimes I feel strange feeling and sensing this way. It has been more for me lately, and I wonder if there are others that "feel" this way.

The long bridge at Jangala leading to our palapas in the jungle. The bridge represents taking careful transitions in our yoga practice.

I had a vision of me meditating in Peru. I could see my sahasrara chakra so clear. It was blasted out to the Cosmos like I had never seen it before. I often picture a sort of blue ray when I meditate that hits a collective grid at some point. This vision was a blue ray that shot so far out into the infinite that there simply just was no end. It was galactic. I have heard many tales of E.T activity in Peru. I also hear it is pretty common talk amongst the locals, especially in considering the shape of some of the landscape seen from the sky, or just exactly how in the world Machu Picchu could have been built. I hear a great deal about metro pilgrims coming to receive clairvoyance to the Andes, or immense healing that can be found in the mountain spirits and the space surrounding it, well known to the indigenous. For now, as I visualize some of the potentials of the atmosphere and feel there, I ask to see more visions as to the continuous synchronicity, familiar experiences, teachings, lessons, and deja vu's I am feeling. I would love to feel more clarity in a more expansive way than ever before with the assistance of this new blessed environment I am about to be immersed in. What gifts.

Sunset with the Pink Dolphins on the Amazon River near Iquitos Peru

July 22 A boat down the Amazon River

Iquitos is our first destination. It is the largest city in the world that you can not get to by car. Amazing, since the population is larger than New Orleans. There are no roads that can lead to it as it is surrounded by jungle, and, to get to our retreat center, you must take a boat down the Amazon. It is already exciting. This is the furthest that I have been down south.

Our yoga studio right on the Amazon River. We did many meditations, singing, praying, and asana here.

It is the first time I have been in South America. The furthered south I have been before, in this hemisphere, is Panama. Iquitos is very close to Colombia and Brazil. Iquitos is also known as the city of Shamans, sacred Shamanic song, called Iquaros, and Ayahuasca. I can hear gringos on the plane talking about Ayahuasca already, quite loudly, as though it were like a night out at the bar. Ayahuasca is a sacred medicine plant indigenous to Peru and the Amazon jungle. it is quite serious and holy in fact, and once ingested is at least an eight hour journey into your consciousness and the Cosmic collective. It is done in protected setting, lead by a Shaman, with prayer and ritual. In the states it is illegal. Here, it is a primary way that many heal from depression, trauma, and a means to getting a glimpse of God consciousness by visiting their bardos, since it is also known as the " plant of death."

Ayahuasca vine and palm fan for building local homes

July 23
The Amazon!!! At 4,000 miles long, it is the longest river in the world. It looks like silver milk, metallic, mystical, and seductive. We sang to all of the river Goddesses on our first night of yoga. Our yoga shala is right next to the sacred Amazon so the shakti that spills off of the river is quite alluring and powerful. Here in Peru the Amazon has a very soft and feminine vibe, not so much like the dark tales you typically hear about the Amazon. Silver is the color of the feminine, and this color is quite prevalent in the insects, the sky, and all of the eyes you see hiding behind the flora.

The jungle," la selva," has a way of slowly unfolding before your eyes. At first everything appears brown and muddy. Once you become more sensitive, and retrain your eyes, you realize there is power, movement, and diversity far beyond your first urban trained scan of your surroundings. There is far more going on here than what seems to first appear.

Primary rainforest...all the roots and vines look like snakes

I had a vision while meditating that the river Goddess here, after singing to Ganga Ma, Saraswati Ma, and Amazonia Ma, that a giant silver like Goddess arose from the river and got as big as the sky. She was so pleased that we acknowledged her. In our chant, we asked permission to be here in this new environment and stated our intentions of aligning more fully with the kingdoms and all of their spirits, and paid our Highest respects to the dear Rio in front of us. I feel it was truly felt, and that the river was so touched that we asked, blessing and gracing us. The next day a hawk appeared right at the entry way to our yoga studio and stayed for quite a long time. Oh how it moves me to align with nature in this way.

Downward facing tree with the old arbol near the Amazon River and our new friends

With each inhale we took in all of the teachings in nature that surrounded us. With each exhale, we vowed to give back, show our gratitude, and participate in being in stewardship and protection with all that is clearly so sacred in this vast Amazonia Temple. After having a monkey crawl on top of my head today, trying to eat my feather earring, (for real) and a Taucan sit on my arm on our visit to Monkey Island, I feel blessed in deep profound connections I never thought imaginable.

Rachael Durston, who rocks, doing Astavakrasana on the Amazon River

July 24
This morning we did a very early meditation, getting up before the sun came out fully. The sun rises right above the Amazon where we are at, and sets of the jungle tree line. The morning reminded me of the Ganga River in India. There was an enveloping, caressing mist that hovered over the river, glitter like and smoky. It made it feel so very magical and mysterious. The river truly is a bit deceiving and complex in this way. It is clear how powerful it must be if the locals do not swim in it. There is far more going on than one might initially perceive.
We have been doing an incredible amount of mantra and meditation along with our asana. I can feel our skin softening into the elements, all becoming a part of us. Some of her powers and healings are clearly making their way into me, and us all.

We took a long jungle hike after a powerfully moving Amazon class.

We walked by a few homes out in the jungle where many Peruvian families live. They have so very little, and the jungle is not easy on them. It is quite sweltering hot and unsanitary. No coverings on the homes, and the children very malnourished. We are so far out here in the middle of no where. You can not drive here. It is so quiet and sparse with humans.

Our new dear friends in the nearby village that came to our last yoga class

This is probably the furthest "out there" I have ever been. It blows my mind that these families live out here, but clearly there is no choice in their position. I wonder what they think of us? I go out of my way to get as close to them as possible, to interact and say hello. This is so important to me. It is a serious reflection of how lucky we all are, and who is to say who is truly happy, and who is not. I am concerned for their health, but they seem to know what to do, far beyond what I understand as survival skill. Many family members die out here in the jungle, and a clinic is not close. They own nothing.

Small "typico" village home near our retreat at Jangala

In India, even when I saw a family own nothing, everything was still brightly decorated, celebrational and vibrant. I do not see sadness here, but the Peruvians are very humble, simple, shy, and truly keep to themselves. There is no decor, at least here in this region. They work very hard' laboriously and daily. I respect where they have landed themselves in this particular life time. To me, it does not look so easy.

Later on this afternoon we are going on a boat to explore the pink dolphins. These are fresh water dolphins that are direct natives of the Amazon! I love dolphins. I have swam with them a few times in Florida. It is both humbling, because they are so big, and awe inspiring to have one come near you, as if curious enough, they will draw near and talk to you psychically. I have encountered this. There are just so many teachers in nature. Right now, I hear many different insects, frogs, birds, and who knows what else. They make the most curious sounds. Some sound like that tape loops on old comedy shows where there are crowds of people laughing in the background. Some sound like plops of something dropping into a still pond. Some sound like growling animals. The orchestration out here is really tuning us into an audible, sound reality that is healing for us all. There are not many people, but wow, is there a lot going on, and there are a lot of others.

Monkeys on our visit to Monkey Island

July 27 Welcome To the Jungle

Welcome to the jungle keeps playing in my head, along with the Iquiros of one of our Qundanyeros, or spiritual healers, Christina, from Peru. On this day we went on a serious jungle hike, 5 hour long, deep, quiet, and remote, and I could hear her kechuwa and Spanish chants the whole way. The boat dropped us off in a very small pueblo with the towns people, as always, working so hard. We were lead by 4 men with machetes into the mystery that the jungle always invokes. It is a wonder, the many types of flora and fauna, the new sounds, smells, and the slight unease of the unknown of what is happening next.

Caretaker of many wild animals that get saved from the black market. A real tree hugger.

We hiked through a secondary rain forest into a primary one towards the end. This is a hike that many students wishing to be shamans go on by themselves. They are then to stay in the house where we had lunch by themselves for one month and drink Ayahuasca every night to ask for visions and fast. They are to find the oldest tree, of which we did too, that was somewhere between 300-500 years old at least, and talk to it. We did this also. This tree had to have been one of the oldest I have ever been around, and for sure touched,, sat with, and talked to. It was just divine in its wisdom, and so humbling.

Some of the damas feeling and talking to the Arbol Ceiba tree, 500 years old

After returning from the ancient feeling of the rainforest we just visited, we were all in jovial spirits. We sat around and showed our Peruvian escorts the craziest yoga poses we could think of, and had them give it a try. They were amazing. They clearly work so hard, and are so in tune with nature. Teaching them yoga was easy. Over lunch we talked about aliens visiting Machu Pichhu. Our Peruvian escorts talked about how this was in the news. It was very common knowledge, and something many commoners in the country acknowledge as being true. This place at times does feel other worldy, tis true. It is indescribable.

500 year old tree that Shamans in training come to talk to on their 1 month silent retreat

I kept thinking this on our walk back, which we practiced in prescribed meditational silence, called" Mauna" in Sanskrit. We did a 2 hour walking meditation, which was much needed so that we could go deeper within. On our walk, I had a baby wild boar follow me for a very long time. Typically these animals are quite aggressive, but it seemed quite comfortable with me and us all. To me, any animal getting that close is a messenger, and it is good to pay attention. To be near something that you think is aggressive and fierce, but is reflecting peace as it's blessing, free of provoking fear was the direct message to me, and something to pay attention to. How often do we make our fears inflated, and once finding peace in our minds, find it to be so small? I am just mesmerized, and at the same time, at the edge of my seat, knowing there is a lot going on that I can not imagine in the midst of all of this energy and communication with the spirits of nature. Thank you wild boar, for the appropriate and prophetic message at this time in my life.

Silent meditation walk called "Mauna" for 2 hours, lead by Only and his crew, all with machetes. Then the wild boar came.

July 28

Oh leaving the Amazon was so difficult for all of us on the yoga retreat. We. Had grown very close to our hosts, and to the villagers near Jangala on each side. The last class we even had all of the children come into our class, and a dear mother brading our hair. It was so precious and pure. It was a priceless journey into the dear Mother Earth, Pacha Mama. She taught us many things.

Giant lily pads deep in the jungle near the home of a shaman

We each felt so embraced. The day we left, we had a macaw parrot come visit us right over head ( a new one according to Andres, our host), and on our last yoga class, we had dolphins come to us right in front of our yoga palapa to say good bye to us, yet another extremely rare occurrence, as the dolphins don't usually come to that area of the Amazon at that time of day. We had so much Grace on our journey in Amazonia. We sang to her in our gratitude and gave pryers to our hosts for treating us with such Divinity.

Our 2 friends with Hannah and Mary... they came to watch us do yoga on the Amazon River

"Baja Ma Ma Amazonia Ma Ma Sushumna Ma Ma. A nada Mayi Ma Ma. Ananda Rupa Ma Ma."
Another song...
"The river is flowing, flowing and flowing, the river is flowing back to the sea. Mother carry me your child I will always be. Mother, carry me, back to the sea."
And another, learned from our many ceremonies we have done (and sang by Diago Palma)... Sugghosi buddhosi..
" You are forever pure you are forever true, and the dream of this world, it could never touch you, so give up your attachments. give up your confusion. Abide in the truth thats beyond all illusion."

Some of the dear ladies on our Magical Mystery Tour on the Amazon with our host, Andres.

Much as Gracious Amazonia. A dream has come true in being near to you, and you, forever in our heart.

July 29
Lima Peru...
Lima is a gorgeous city enveloped between the Andes and the Pacific ocean. It claims 4 million people, and some of the best surfers and futbol players in the world. It is more cosmopolitan and slick than I had expected. Everyone is dressed in fine alpaca clothing and shoes. At night there is a giant statue of Jesus lit up on the cliff, overlooking the rough and loud waves of the ocean, filled with surfers. What a switch.

My Peruvian Rocker friends, playing The Strokes band really loud out in the country side. New and Old come together.

I love the dynamic qualities of our lives, how in one minute, we were ok doing without, living off of very little in the jungle, no lights, no stores, very few people, and so remote, being the only transportation was a boat. The next minute we are admiring the fine fabrics and textiles, dressing up, enjoying fine dining and an apertife.
Our dining consisted of exquisite ceviche and potato dishes with cream sauces, sure to be on the menu of any Peruvian fare. The whole experience was a nice treat after the jungle, and reminded us of small things that can make you happy... A warm shower, clean clothing, a lush bed, a telephone call to a loved one, dressing up, and shopping.

Foreshadows of Shiva/Shakti in the Lima airport with Yma Sumac and Pedro Sudrez

I love life and all of it's offerings. I am a firm believer in enjoying it all, and practicing discipline also. To me, ts is an expression of balance. This is so Tantric, a philosophy natural to me even far before I learned more about it in my Anusara teachings. Tantra means to weave. It is the sacred web. It looms the everyday experience into the spiritual, right here and in our lives. In the Shiva Shakti school that we learn from in our Anusara teachings, we speak of this .It reminds me of all of the alpaca weavings here.

Llamas and Alpacas waiting to be fed by Elaine

There is a horizontal thread, which represents the Divine, or in Quechua language from the Indigenous people here in the Sacred Valley, called the Amaru, "Pacha Mama". The looming is the Goddess, nature, all things manifest in the horizon. The vertical line when weaving represents the God line to the sky, where the condor lives. It is the connection to space and the celestial, Pacha Papa.

Local weavers in a small community of Quechua

Marrying time and space in our lives is Tantra. I find it also important to see that this equilibrium is in all of our experience. There is so much to learn from both, and the balance creates the art of our most sacred happiness and fulfillment possible.
Another reminder here in Peru of the sacred web or weaving is the symbol of the Inca found everywhere, called the "Chakana". The Chakana is the sacred Incan cross of both the vertical and horizontal and four directions. Chaka means leg or bridge ( our lives) and Kana means the celestial world.

Lynda learning how to cut the wool of the alpaca. They do not kill their animals. They are vegetarian. They wait for their animal to pass before the use the entire animal.

July 30-31
The Sacred Valley

Going down... to The Sacred Valley

Going from Lima to Cuzco is a short flight and two different worlds. We instantly land at a very high altitude of 12,000 feet. This can be a drastic change for some people, and many get altitude sickness from the quick variance. Moving from the jungle lowlands to a high peak in the Andes couldn't be more different. Our first stop was to a llama alpaca farm to feed and learn about the different types of species so common here. We are not in the jungle anymore, nor the city.

Pisac Incan Ruins

We got taken to our next dear retreat spot, "Paz y Luz, or Peace and Light." It is just outside of the dear town of Pisac, next to a river that goes all the way through the sacred valley and to Machu Picchu, called the "Wilcamayu". It is nestled between numerous red mountains, and right above us are the sacred Incan ruins that see less tourists, yet are so immense. Our spot is also next door to a famous shaman for anyone into sacred plants and medicines, Diago Palma. Our friends that we see each year in Mexico study with him, sharing Icaros and heavenly music.

Our retreat Center at Paz y Luz in the sacred valley outside of Pisac. We were surrounded by mountains on all sides, a river, and the Incan Ruins.

Pisac is filled with Shamanic shops and altar items, such as condor and eagle feathers, crystals and minerals from the Andes, " Santo Palo", which is a incense from a tree used in ceremony, crystal pendulums, dream catchers, and very specific altar items known to just this region, such as rainbow confetti, sugar, salt, Porto, Florida water ( Agua de Florida), powders, and altar kits.

One of our dear friends, Chaz, son of Michele and Yuan, from Costa Rica, blessed by a Shaman

This reminded me of India, where puja or ceremony is very primary in importance. The market here is quite well known, and beyond the Alpaca weavings of all kinds from the Indigenous here, called the Amaru people( which means snake). It is indigenous heaven and altar galore.

Ollantaytombo Market

We took many tours to very special sights in this region. One of them was to a home, where we learned how to build an altar, which I loved, and found so interesting. For a proper Peruvian altar by the Quechua people of this region, one must have all of the goods from all of Peru and each of it's Eco-diverse regions. This could mean a shell from the ocean, minerals from the mountains, flowers or food specific to each place in the is rich land. A very specific statue of a small stubby looking man brings the best of luck. He has an opening in his mouth where he must always have a cig in mouth that must be burned. This brings prosperity.

Typical altar in local homes of Incan artifacts, bulls, and the man that must be fed

2 statues of black bulls either on your altar or on top of your roof protects your home with great strength. Somewhere too must be the three representatives of the three worlds, the snake, the puma, and the condor. One must always have condor feathers especially for all of the ancestors that have left the physical plane as a way of gracing them into the celestial world where the condor lives, up high. Traditionally, the skulls of your ancestors must be saved and placed on your altar, along with their pictures for the best blessings from them. I many of the homes, the skulls were placed very close to the kitchen.

Ancestors skulls are best to keep for the honor of your lineage and their blessings

Foods, plants, powders must be burned at winter and summer solstices, as well as sprinkling rainbow confetti in all four corners of your home for Pacha Mama day, of which we happened to be here for, every August first. This is their New Year, and conveys the amount of abundance their farmlands will produce, according to your honor of Mother Earth. All of these goods were to be found everywhere in Pisac. Ceremony with and for Pacha Mama is very important to the people here, as well as the ones that come to live or visit.

Tess and Michele above the Pisac ruins

The sacred valley has a tremendous amount of magic and energy moving around in it's atmosphere. I can feel it even more dense, whirling and saturated than the jungle, which has surprised me. Many people come here seeking guidance, and getting in touch with the energies and spirits of the area. I can feel it. It is very dense, both in dark and light, perhaps being in a valley, it gets enveloped more here. It wasn't until we made our way up to the Incan ruin the next day that I felt like I was able to clear the energy and captivate my own clarity, free of the massive amount of psychic stuff flying around, even in it's mysticism. Being up high has a way of clearing out any psychic debris in the atmosphere.

This Incan ruin hike was amazing. We hiked for hours through picturesque rock formations that overlooked Pisac. Each step I felt more and more aligned with a greater, more refined clarity than ever before, and was very grateful for the hike. It was like taking a Cosmic shower. My thoughts became lucid and I felt tremendous synchronicity. I even met a fellow hiker up high who had a tattoo of the shirt I was wearing. Talk about getting synched up. He was also from the same area I am in the North West. I had my Michael Franti shirt on "Power to the Peaceful" that has picture of a strong fist and roses around it. He had this tattooed on his arm.

Power to the Peaceful synchronicity on top of the Incan Ruins in Pisac

I love signs from the Universe that tell you you are in the right place and time. It also reiterated to me exactly what is powerful, and beyond measure when you choose to align with it... Being a provider, devotee, and servant of Peace. This is what I am and nothing will stop me, even if being human, I do get confused or attached at times.

"So give up your attachments, give up your confusions, abide in the Truth that's beyond all illusions".
This has been one of our theme songs on the trip, both an Icaros and a Mantra. I am so grateful for beatific hikes such as this. I feel so healthy, vibrant, fresh, and alive.

August 1 Pacha Mama Day. The Peruvian New Year.

How auspicious for us... To be here for Pacha Mama day! We were told be a native Quechua if all of the Peruvian flowers are in full blossom on one tree, that it would be a fruitful abundant season for everyone, and for their crops. There were bring red and orange flowers everywhere, so " Shri " is here. The word " Shri" in yoga means shine, illustrious, abundance, beauty, and flowing in the peak moment of value and Grace. Shri is another word for Laxmi, who is the Goddess of beauty in Hinduism. Pacha Mama is Mother Earth, the Supreme Goddess and Shakti also.

Pacha Mama Ceremony and offerings with the Quechuan

On this day we went with a Shaman, named Cerafino, to a sacred ruin called Moray. Cerafino was from the Quechua community, and was teaching us how to build altars, honor The Divine Earth, and talk to her in ceremony, as well as her elements, and directions. A cleansing and purifying ceremony in Quechua is called a "limpia". A limpia means an medicinal cleanse, both spiritually and physically. I have received limpias before with our teachers from Colombia and they are tremendous in their clearing ability. The ones I have had before consisted of a blend of alcohol and herbs distilled in blessed, holy waters, called "Agua de Florida", or Florida water. The healer, or dear Shaman, gulps the water and spits it on you, all over your body, in prayer and purification. This is often also done with sacred mantras,brushing leaves or feathers around you to clear you aura, or even the Shaman sucking out impurities through your crown chakra, the Sahasrara, spitting it, or purging it out of you.

Sacred Coca Leaves

This limpia that we did on Pacha Mama day, had a very specific order, and was in a very magnetic space that was pre-Incan. It had infinite layers, like a round vortex, leading to a very small center at the bottom, carved into the land, where there were already numerous offerings for Mother Earth. The Shaman, one of the oldest in the community, asked us before coming to gather limpia kits and offerings in the Pisac market. Cerafino talked to Pacha Mama and asked for her blessings. He also talked to all of the surrounding mountains, and asked their spirits to be with us. The mountains hold the masculine energy, Pacha Papa. He said we were graced by their presence, and that they were with us now, a very auspicious sign. We then were to pick out 4 coca leaves. These leaves are thought to make all Peruvians tranquilo.

The Coca tree is sacred in this part of the world, and many Peruvians will chew coca leaves all day long, getting a mellow buzz that is thought to connect them more with Pacha Mama. Coca leaves are also used for for readings, where you can toss them in certain ways, and according to how they land, will give you answers to questions, direct from Pacha Mama. If they turn face up, it is a yes, down with the veins showing is a no, and the size and shape of the leaves indicate things also as direct messages.

Once we picked our coca leaves, we were to also stand up from the circle and blow on the leaves to all 4 directions and mountains, praying to them and invoking intention and abundance to mother nature. We then sat and burned some of the altar items, of which the Shaman took to a specific spot to bury into the earth, all directed again by the help of the coca leaves, and Pacha Mama, for safe keeping and connection to her.

The snow capped Andes behind us with our Quechuan teachers

Rising to the top of the ruins again, we were surrounded by the majestic and stoic images of the snow capped Andean mountains as we ate our picnic lunch with the dear Quechua and the yogis. Each moment and each day was immense. We sat in humble silence as we made our way back to the quaint cobblestone village of Ollantay, where even more ruins, Ollantaytambo, flank the village by a river. It is so picturesque. This landscape is a dream scape. It is quite a thing to wake up to. We are surrounded by all things old, steeped in tradition, yet, feeling fresh in the expansiveness that staying connected to the earth and honoring her can be.

The Quechua people and their teachings. Re-member reciprocity

There is much to learn from those that came before us. A wonderful translation of the word gratitude is a means of honoring, and looking back at all of those that came before, for they have assisted in setting up all of the gifts that we enjoy now. I am so grateful.

A deeply impressionable day on our trip to Peru was our visit into the sacred valley, further south from Pisac and up higher to a very small village of the indigenous Quechua. To get to this remote area, we rose early, driving up and up to narrower roads that became unpaved, as most walked this road, and very few had cars. Looking out the window, I saw how things shifted when everyone began to dress the same, as though back in time, and especially the woman. It began to feel like we were driving backwards in a time machine, and not forward on the path, the mountainous el camino.

The woman all wore very elaborate sequined and gathered skirts of striking colors, with brightly hued blankets tied around their backs to carry their goods or their infant. They all wore tall top hats; a borrowed tradition and trend from the times that the English came to build the railroads. What a mix. I just loved how those woman looked with their long braided hair and weathered hands and feet, full of warmth and humble experience.

My Peruvian hat, typical to women, is covered in rose petals thrown at us all in Divine entry into their village.

In the village that we visited we received a warm welcome with conch shells blowing and drums rattling. These precious peoples are ever so ceremonial. I noticed this once I saw a huge inlay of a condor on the front of their home, and rose petals being poured over our heads as we entered the ivy braided gates guarded by small children with big red cheeks. They greeted each of us as a brother or sister, hermano y hermanas...and said we should feel welcome, and a part of their family. This was followed by a personal hug by each person in the community, with all of us lined up in a row to receive the embrace. It is so important to me to honor the people that live in the places that I visit, and to connect to them on a heart level. It meant so much to me to be able to have the chance to do this. This was the real deal, even in their private and shy ways, we felt like kindred guests.

We were often mistaken for Peruvian, especially with my boots.

They taught us all about their way of farming and honoring Pacha Mama, as well as showing us many of the local herbs and tilling the land. We took a walk through the mountains and stared at the precious view, all chewing coca leaves from the sacred Coca tree together in silence, a very Peruvian tradition. I loved that moment. It was like the past and the future coming together at the same time, them curious about us we of them.
Time stood still as we chewed our leaves with that lush panoramic view. I will never forget it. I felt more connected to myself than ever before, and could feel chills running up me. Upon our return they showed us how to weave, spin alpaca wool, dye, and create textiles and textile art. These people work hard from sun up to down, aligned with the natural clock of the sun and moon.

    There are 3 Golden rules for the indigenous Quechua people that I love. It reminds me somewhat of the Yamas and Niyamas in Patanjali's Yoga Sutras, of which when broken down parallel some of the 10 commandments, among other religions. It seems every culture has an ethical system to base and remind themselves of the value of their lives.
    In the way that the Yoga Sutras were introduced to me by Geshe Michael Roach and Lama Cristie McNally from both a Hindu and Tibetan Buddhist perspective, these are innate ethics that exist as a part of the Absolute. This is not based on imposed and conditioned laws. There is no judge, jury, or judged. Nor are the codes in the Sutras black and white, meaning that we must discern what is best in each situation. The Yoga Sutras prescription for lucid discernment is meditation.
    Natural law takes tremendous self rule and clarity. It does not follow nor break rules. It has nothing to do with what is socially accepted, and quite often is not. Without natural ethics, natural order depreciates, as does the collective, and our connection to our Higher Self. No bueno.

The three golden rules for the Quechua people are:
Amakuya... Do not be lazy ( work hard, and daily)
Amazua... Do not lie
Amallula...Do not take from others ( and contribute)

The Salt mines near the Andes

A large part of a Quechua community is the concept of reciprocity. This means that there is a collective involved for which everyone works for, and receives back from, since every person in the community and their actions affects each individual in it. Even in acquiring land, if you are a new member of the community, the community must vote and approve of you. You must state your intention, and what you will contribute, and this must be accepted. This follows the concept of "Amallula" (do not take from others) in Quechua. Amallula means you can not receive the bountiful wealth of the land without reciprocity for the lands sake, and every creature that lives upon it.

Our site for our Pacha Mama ceremony at Moley, a pre-Incan agricultural site.

Our modern tax system is the reason our current Gregorian calendar came to be, in clocking when farmers had to pay the wealthy on a consistent basis. The word Reciprocity sets up a paradigm of innate, intelligent desire to want to contribute to the whole so that there is an equal exchange of energy at all times. This way, no one is taking from the earth, or another. This system is called the "Ayni" system, and is still implemented today, often free of the exchange of money. What is primarily exchanged, bartered, or traded are goods, talents and labor so that everyone feels they have something of value to contribute. The word "Minia" in Quechua means that everyone has to contribute equally and enjoy equally so that the community flourishes and Pacha Mama is happy. This would be a wonderfully organic " law" of nature to return to as the conditions seem to increase in our urban lives. Creating order in our actions aligns us with natural order. All things remembered. All things reciprocated.

Ollantaytombo Ruins view from our hotel

Re-member Reciprocity Re-member Reciprocity Re-member Reciprocity

The 3 Worlds to the sound of silence

There are three worlds honored in the Quechua tradition. We saw these symbols and reminders of the three worlds all throughout our entire stay in Peru, from the big city to the most remote village. Everywhere we saw images of snakes, pumas, and condors. You can also find this in the Chakana cross of Peru. There were also many images of three steps in the sun temple and the temple of the condor at Machu Picchu.

Snakes, Pumas, and Condors everywhere

The first world is that of the snake. The snake represents the gathering of knowledge In the dark underworld of death, very similar to Eve wanting knowledge by taking the forbidden fruit as suggested to her by a snake in the tree of knowledge in the bible, or the sleepiness of the kundalini snake resting at the base of the spine, waiting to get erect and awakened from inertia. In Quechua, The world of the snake is the underground, or the interior world, called " Uka Pacha.", where all must enter at some point to have full experience of the other worlds. The plant of the black snake, the anaconda, in Peru, called ayahuasca, was thought to be first created by a Shaman that left his body. In the cemetery where he was buried, his body became deep roots. The vines then extended out of these roots, with information on death and all things below. The vine became a great mother, a crone of wisdom, and partaking of her vine in a ceremonial and secretive way would give experience, information, and visions of death so that one could then have greater and more meaningful experiences of life. There are many symbols of the snake on all of the artisan work, architecture, and textile designs.
The second world is that of the Puma, called "Ke Pacha". The Puma is the largest cat in the jungle. In Peru, some Pumas are yellow with black spots. They are sacred for their brightness of color,which represents our everyday life. In the second world, you are to call upon the spirit of the Puma when needing assistance with the everyday occurrences of your life, swift and fantastical.

Sculpture of condor on many homes

The third, upper world is that of the condor. There are many images, stories, and music about the condor. Even Simon and Garfunkle bought the rights to the song " The sound of silence" form the Peruvian government, which originally was the "Song of the Condor." The condor represents the celestial world. It is very auspicious to see a condor, and is always a sign, as they live up very high in Andean mountains in tall peaks, far from view. One calls upon the condor when longing to access the Higher realms of spirit and communicating on the heavenly plane. The condor is also called upon for any family leaving their body and traveling to the next level, as the condor can assist them in communicating to the spirits in next journey. In Shamanic cleansings, Condor feathers are often used to brush the energy of the person off if ever they got hit by poison arrows of psychic attack, clearing their energy back to their original state of lint filled source.

In Machu Picchu, ,there was a beautiful Ruin within it called the " Temple of the Condor". It was the most fascinating construct there. Above the temple of the condor were the cells for the prisoners, and a place for mummification. This was placed above the condors holy sight o that the condor could assist those meeting their death. Below was a beautiful altar sight and many people praying and meditating in a circle. The condor represents our connection to spirit, so calling upon it can bring us blessings of heightened sensitivity to the expansiveness of infinite potential to other worlds. In Peru, the center of the world is in Cuzco, which is the Mecca sight for the Incans, originally called "Koricancha". This is thought to be the belly button of the world, and where one should seek refuge in any destruction of the physical or high states of consciousness, as this is where you can call upon the condor the most easily.
Many occultists believe that if the world is ending, this area of Peru, and especially in some caves outside of Cuzco, is where a selected few will be saved, with the condor's grace.

The Condors Song (The Sound of Silence)

Hello darkness my old friend.
I've come to talk with you again.
Because a vision softly creeping
Left the seeds while I was sleeping
And the vision that was planted in my brain
Still remains
Within the sound of silence

In restless dreams I walked alone
Narrow streets of cobblestone
Neath the halo of a street lamp
I turned my collar to the cold and damp
When my eyes were stabbed by the flash of a neon light
And touched the sound of silence

And in the naked light I saw
Ten thousand people maybe more
People talking without speaking
People hearing without listening
People writing songs that voices never share
And no one dared
Disturb the sound of silence

August 2 Machu Picchu is Pratyabijna

Classic Machu Picchu. Breath taking.

There is a joy in the air amongst us 5 remaining that will visit Machu Picchu.
This day marked the goal of us all. The train ride itself was enough. It was majestic. We saw the glacier filled Andes on one side, and the crystalline river with Incan ruins spread throughout the trail on the other.

The beginning of the Incan Trail. View from the train ride along the river to Machu Micchu.

On the train ride, one of the yogis was carrying a set of cards similar to Tarot for daily readings. We each picked a card. The card that I picked was "reflection", and it's explanation was "everything that you will see around you today is a reflection of who you are". I couldn't have picked a more stellar epic day to pull this card. Everything I saw humbled me, made me feel bigger, and brought great clarity to any small struggles I may have brought with me on my trip to contemplate. The size and environment of the Incan ruins was enough to bring true revelation of what is truly "big" and truly "important".

Reflection is an interesting concept, depending on your state of mind. I am sure it is the same for us all... Sometimes we like the reflections we see all around us, and sometimes we deny them all together, and any participation we might have in the reflection. In the yoga teachings, our life experiences are the greatest reflection of all. Every part has the role of reflecting back to us an individual aspect of our whole. This word in yoga is called "pratyabijna", and is often described as two swans meeting and staring into one another deeply, each showing the other what and who they truly are.

A very memorable part of our trek in Machu Pichhu was climbing Huanu Picchu, which means "young mountain". It is the classic tall mountain that you see behind all of the ruins, and the trail goes straight up to the top. I mean, straight up. Not for the faint of heart, lungs, or legs, or anyone afraid of heights. We had a few yogis go up this mountain with us that were afraid to go. I was so proud of them. It was a difficult climb. At one point, we all journeyed off on our own, and it became an incredible walking meditation. I kept thinking to myself, "have patience, go steady, and treat this like you would a dream, or something you really want with all of your heart, with the highest intention possible in the perseverance.

At some point we all made it to the top of the mountain, and we were so happy for one another. It was a triumph, and a personal one for each of us. A few of us kept singing " I am a condor"... A song we know from our Cajun dancing experiences in Lafayette at the Blue Moon. Up this high humming birds and butterflies were buzzing around us. We had been swept up in the clouds of expansiveness and tremendous freedom. We were living it. " The magical mystery tour is waiting to take you away, waiting to take you away..."

On top of the world. It was crystal clear at the highest point.

A few steps down from the top we all sat together and did a meditation over looking Machu Pichhu. We pictured blue rays of light extending from our Sahasrara chakra up into the Universal grid. Not difficult to picture up there. Our connections were crystal clear. We sang the Gayatri mantra up in the sky... Translated as "Earth space heavens, we meditate on the Divine source. May this activate our minds and our hearts." Om bhur bhuvat svaha. Tat savitur verenyum. Bhargo devasya dhimahi. Di yoyo nah, pratchodayat.

Tess is up there very high in the sky, like she always is.

Once we made our way down to Machu Pichhu, many crowds had cleared and it felt like we had the space to ourselves. The llamas came out to mow the green grass, and there was magic unveiled. We even ran into friends we knew too. It was a still and precious moment in time.

Just as I was thinking about Steph, she appeared around the corner.

Check out this bad ass who made it to the top of a very high mountain. Go Elaine!

It is interesting to ponder that some people believe these ruins were assisted in their creation by extra terrestrials. I felt Machu Pichhu to be a wonderfully deep reminder of our potential and a reflection of our beauty. Extra terrestrial or not, I believe humans have a greater capacity than what we give ourselves credit for. We are capable of so much and having so much. These ruins reminded me that anything is possible if we wish it so and do the work. Machu Pichhu is indeed a reflection of our grandness and immensity, as was this entire tour in Peru, our magical mystery tour.

The mystery for Machu Pichhu, being at least 500 years old, is that the conquistadors of Spain never conquered or discovered the real nectar of the region. How often do we do this? The mystery was kept a secret. This holy land was not discovered on a world scale until exactly 100 years ago. We were there for it's 100 year anniversary unveiling. This same mystery unveiling resides within us also. We are meant to do great things, give great things, and receive great things, but we often settle. It takes great courage and work to climb to the top of the unknown unforeseen mountain. It is available, and it is there.

"The magical mystery tour is waiting to take you away..."

SANSKRIT
Suddhossi Buddhossi Niranjanosi
Samsara maya Parivar jitosi
Samsara svapanam Traija mohan nidram
Na janma mrityor Tat sat sva rupe
ENGLISH
You are forever pure, you are forever true
and the dream of this world can never touch you
So give up your attachments, give up your confusion
and abide in that truth that’s beyond all illusion.
ESPAÑOL
Eres siempre puro, eres verdadero
y el sueño del mundo no te tocará
Deja los apegos, deja la confusión
y vive en la verdad más allá de la ilusión.

Stoking the Fire; An account on ritual

2011-07-18T11:16:00.000-07:00

July 18, 2011 Stoking the Fire

We have had a power house of workshops recently in the Swan Mid-City Mandir and Marigny locations. Just recently, we were also graced by Sudevi, an Energy Healer and Thai Therapy practitioner from Pensacola, one of my favorite beaches in the country. I am very drawn to Sudevi because we did our Jivamukti Yoga Teacher Training together, and I know she is highly sensitive to the Akasha (Space), or, the world behind the veil. Working with energy and having a direct line of communication from spirit into matter has been catching my curiosity more lately. I believe this has come with the practice of trust in your intuit capacities. Yoga and many of the healing arts are designed to make us more sensitive if we are doing it right. Being sensitive it Opening to Grace, the first principle. This may not be the intention for all, as being sensitive can also mean being more responsible, but I have seen it in so many students and teachers that carry High intentions in their practices. Becoming sensitive is like opening the gate to a more collective lens, beyond the density of our own.

I love to think of Shiva in this case, in his form as mountain dweller. In the yogic stories of his avatar, Shiva often goes off to Mount Kailesh to gain greater vision, clarity, and get a mountain view. Shiva can see the collective. He can see the chronological (Krama in Sanskrit) of all things past, present, and future. To him, they are happening all at once, and from his vantage point, not one of those events is inflated or in wrong order. He called on this capacity by meditating, listening, feeling, and seeing, so that he gains, or more so, re-members his direct communication line. For this reason, Shiva is very sensitive. He "knows" all things happening at all times, like a quantum escapade of theater.

I have been learning some very deep energetic techniques lately in a Tree of Life program that I am doing, currently as an apprentice. Looking at everything in terms of energy is assisting me to get to the seed of all realities much more quickly, as it thins the veil. This takes a tremendous amount of concentration at first. It is a tremendous amount of work on many levels, from being kind in adversity, to eating intelligently, to noticing the cues coming in from nature all the time, to looking at the message in our dreams, to moving the body so it is in flow, etc etc. To me, all of these things are yoga. It is not just asana. Taking the drivers seat in our lives is the real asana.

In the Vedas, there are many rituals one can do to clear their body, the mind, their space, their environment, relationships, etc. I have become more and more curious about these as I get more sensitive. I truly believe that these rituals do assist us in being re-aligned with our Cosmic vision, so that we do not stay in the small, gross and myopic. Ritual allows us to see that everything we do matters, and sends a message also about are place and our care in this world of many kingdoms.
Just like anything, ritual can also become a set structure that is dogmatic and full of symbols that are not truly "Divine". Some rituals are masked as holy, but, through my experiences on all sides of this, be discerning, yet another aspect of Shiva's mountain top vision about what you are calling upon. Be sure you feel good about it all the way, from the depths of your Higher Self. You can never be tricked by secret societies if you are talking to your soul, and invoking it in all of your experiences. Your Higher Self does not have selfish motives or agendas.

Tirumanavalai South India. The embodiment of Shiva.

Ritual is good "Vastu". Vastu is a Sanskrit word for fung shei. Vastu invites the maximum energetic flow in your body, your home, your environments, your experiences, your life. Everything in your life should have good Vastu.
To provoke good Vastu, one thing you can do in your home directly, as a form of self initiated ritual, is a fire ceremony. We just did one this past Friday in the Marigny location, and it was stellar in power. I highly recommend stoking your own fire, and getting familiar with the transformative qualities of this element. I did one fire ceremony this past New Years for my annual Tulum Mexico trip. We stared into the fire as a form of meditation for 8 hours straight with a Shaman from the Huichol tradition, only getting up if we had to go the the bathroom. I did not move, I was so captivated. I saw so many images come up in the fire, directing me with new information and releasing many deep grooves in my mind that were on rewind. The fire will unwind these and burn them, shedding light upon our blind spots.

A fire ceremony from the Vedas is called an Agni Hotra. It is a special blend of 21 Ayurvedic herbs, cow dung straight from India (that I saw being dried on the Ganga River in Varanasi, very very holy and sweet smelling), ghee, a copper pot, a copper spoon, and the correct mantras, in order, and for the perfect alchemy. This fire ceremony blessed the Marigny space with white flames. Sometimes I see the flames go black and wild, all indicative and good feedback for the observer. This one was all white. On the most mundane level, my headache went away. On a energetic level, the space became effervescent and my mind felt like I was high and floating in helium. Gravity was gone, and I was floating. My worries instantly felt so small. Everything looked more dazzling and sacred, and my samskaras showed their face, and quickly jumped into the fire. Bye bye.

When anything gets freed into the fire, yogis say "svaha", which means "throw it into the fire or moving on". SVAHA baby. Svaha-ing every day is very empowering. Then, we change by invoking our own free will, instead of being changed. I encourage more ritual in your life. It will extract the true beauty, clean the clouds, wipe the dust. The curtain will drop, and you will see that this planet is glowing. We are all electrical fractals of rainbow coming from One source, like the front of the Pink Floyd's Dark Side of the Moon. Fire sheds light and is very revealing. May you stoke your fire within you today, and change, instead of getting changed.
Svaha

To All Freedom Fighters; Yoga versus the State of LA

2011-06-23T08:00:00.000-07:00

To All Freedom Fighters; Yoga versus the State of LA

June 22, 2011

We made history in the state of Louisiana... Something that will affect all yogis now, and for ever in the marking of our history. Yoga now has it's autonomous mark in our legal system, once threatened by a board of members unsure of what yoga was. A dear coalition group in LA, including small studio owners, have been threatened for a few years about conducting yoga training's. Even under threat, we felt the strong desire and duty to challenge the interpretation of a law by a committee. After months of justice provoking of our spiritual rights in the House of Representatives legislature, the Senate, and now the official signing of the Governor, we have tasted sweet light filled victory. These trailblazings to our state capital where tremendous in their lessons for me about worlds I never enter, and how they work. It was an interesting blend of yoga and the state of LA meeting for the first time ever. Quite something really...History has now been marked forever.

A few yoga studio owners, including myself, have been receiving threatening letters from a board of education committee for 4 years now. The threats included enjoining us, suing, mandating, and regulating our trainings of any sort over 20 hours. To us this is a violation of anything that yoga stands for in it's radical, free thinking, and free practicing roots. It did not feel good to get these letters after working so hard to bring high vibes and healing to our city, which has been a determined goal of mine especially since Hurricane Katrina. We have been working very hard to get everyone self sustained, self realized, self medicated/self meditated, and our work throughout the community has spread quickly in such need.

I do not agree with mixing government authority and my spiritual practices. That is not a blend I wish to engage in, nor will I. Yogis have been underground for so long. Especially after visiting India for my first time, this type of regulation just seemed to bastardize the Vedic roots that we are preserving and fashioning to our modern urban lives. My experience has been, and what has drawn me to yoga, is that yogis go out of the box more often than not, and everything is questioned with great discernment, getting to what is real, and what is a false form of light being imposed upon us to sedate our innate freedom and self rule.

These letters truly disturbed me and have weighed on me for a long time. I want to do what is right and had to really check in. My tendency is to rebel, but I want to do everything for the right reason, and not just for the sake of a deep imprint of rebellion that I have. Also, these decisions will affect masses of community members for now and all of time. Through this process, I have been forced to practice great discernment... something I have really been working on more, since I am also such a lover, yet another thing yoga promotes and provokes.

So... these became my questions... Do I submit to every law? Are all laws just? Are all laws even interpreted correctly? Do those that create laws always follow the laws? Is it "spiritually correct" to question authority or does that disturb the peace? I received so much backing from all of my many teachers here, my parents, my loved ones, my business partner and teacher colleagues... all my heroes in thought, such as Dr. Martin Luther King, Mahatma Gandhi, The Black Panther Party and Herman Bell, who is still in Angola Prison due to his same dharmic need to provoke justice.... Herstory/History has revealed, that sometime a battle for a just and right cause is life affirming, even if truly difficult.

Check the Bhagavad Gita. Krsna would agree. Standing tall and standing up for ourselves is life affirming even when it can be confusing and it seems that it will harm others or stir up contempt. We do not have to be complacent to be a yogi even if we are promoting peace. It is tricky. We must know when to act, and when not to... "action in inaction, and inaction in action.." As the Gita prescribes, we must be truly aligned in our purpose and intent if we are going to play "God". Things like this can create shifts in the time continuum for the greater good, or greater layers of chaos. Light has prevailed this time. Gulf Coast angels are singing.

It is a great honor to go through the measures of challenging this, and to be one of those people, be it frightening and radical. Although harder than just complying, mixed with far more energy and uncertainty, it was time to stand up for our rights, and not just mine, everyone's . One state allowing this to happen may get more states to think about it. Because we challenged it, the rules are changing now. What if we would have just been submissive? Is that life affirming?

All of our rights tasted sweet victory today. Our Governor just signed off officially on all yoga teacher trainings being exempt from any regulation or government interference. In the house and senate, our proposal to amend a false interpretation of a proprietary school law which took away of free rights of spiritual practice and would diminish small yoga business owners was indeed, without question, accepted. It is gone, gone, real gone. Gate gate paragate...

Now, all yogis, small businesses included, and their bright futures will never be threatened, mandated , or regulated for the yogic teachings, some 3,000 years old from India, is in the state of LA, here to stay. Lets officially welcome yoga into our state. This is a wonderful thing to say. Let's let those that know about yoga and practice yoga monitor the teachings, and while we are at it, why not get the Higher Self involved, and flow with the Divine plan.

Once hearing the news, I cried all the way home from the Capital. I cried not only for me and all the work that we have put in, how much this all means to us, but for all future practitioners, that can practice, share and serve, free of the government participating, or harassing them ever. This symbolizes a lot, and it happened. I could feel angels singing in regional joy, after going through so much, and working on so much healing.

Our yoga community has come very far today, after tremendous work. Today is a threshold of power for all the radicals. In this experience, I provoke you to stand up always for what is right, if it brings greater harmony in the big picture. Power to the people. Yoga for the people. Stand up for your rights. Be bold, and promote what is just, even if it is not easy.

To all Freedom fighters and Cosmic lovers in the state of LA...OMOMOM

I would especially like to thank our lawyer, Jane Booth, our coalition leader, Michael Morton, my Cosmic Energy Advisor, Kelli Eli, Sean Johnson, my concerned rebel partner, and all the Swans. OM

The Tree of Life; Go to the Source, and the rest will follow.

2011-04-22T08:24:00.000-07:00

Tree of Life; Go to the Source, and the rest will follow.

April 22, 2011 Good Friday

We had a very High frequency weekend last weekend here in New Orleans. There were a tremendous amount of celebratory things going on, from Yoga Earth Day on the Bayou, to a Triathalon, to vigils and forums provoking justice and freedom for a Black Panther in Angola prison, unjustly accused, to Sacred Ceremonies from Peru, to one of my dear teachers in town who practices the Kabbalah, Kelle Eli. It made me so happy for our city, this growth, this light influx, and these healing social gatherings that are multiplying, where before, they were quite unusual. All of these events happened just before Passover, yet another high window and ritualistic opportunity to shift any imprisonments back to the Tree of Life, and I do feel a new movement of energy here, after hearing about 240 mini tornadoes reported whirling around all of the southern states, except our own.

Photo by Derek Goodwin

I myself was learning with Kelle, an energy healer, light worker, and Kabballist, along with 30+ other beings, all on light warrior paths. I am currently doing a mentor program with Kelle called the Tree of Life, and this window of grace is rocking my world, quite literally.

The Tree of Life in Kabbalah is our direct source to God, our antenna so to speak. This is used in comparison to the Tree of Knowledge, which is sort of a duplicate of the real image, but, it is indeed not the real deal. Our journey and purpose from a Kabbalistic point of view is to get ourselves back on the Tree of Life, because God wants to give us our birthright, our Ultimate Grace, our gifts, our dreams, our talents, our love, but, God can not if we sway from side to side, and do not stay in our center of the Tree of Life.

In yogic language, you could relate this to the Sushumna within you. It is a clear vessel of light, called a super highway. It is untainted, unskewed, and always pure. I can not be anything but this. The ida and pingala on each side represent us in our pendulums, moving away from our center, and sometimes very far from our center. It looks like the caducous that you see outside of many medical facilities, with serpents, a third eye upon, and wings. In Kabbalah, the left is about discernment, judgement, holding boundaries, strength, desire to receive, things taking form. On the right side, called pingala in yoga, the attributes in Kaballah are love, giving, flow, mercy, desire to give, distractions of bliss, and ego.

So why would some of these attributes be bad, you must ask? It is more about all things being in right relationship. Having balance in both the left and right is one of the commandments..."Honor thy Mother and thy Father", the left and right, black and white, sun and moon. We are very succespible when we are not in center, and we have the potential to create duplicate and false energy sources for our direct connection to God, getting way off track.

In Kabbalah, and in yoga, the human race is the bridge between heaven and earth as the caretakers to all the kingdoms. The sushumna, or, our Tree of Life that resides within us, is an infinite vertical God line, or pillar. It is our communication line to the Highest Self. When we are severed, and then return to our Tree of Life, we are like a lightening bolt of energy, and we get poured into as a human vessel, with infinite pure light. A part of fully containing the Tree of Life within you is getting out of the way. As we make this shift from the Tree of Knowlege, many constructs will brake down, resist, trick, and bribe us into getting back into the weaker duplicate of the Tree of Knowledge. We often find that many old set paradigms just do not make sense any longer as we experience this unification of our chakras, and often many things will have to change.

Yogis are bold and radical beings. They want to get to the root, this the word "radical", coming from rad or radish. Any prisons we have imposed upon ourselves will be revealed to us, for it becomes impossible to take on fake light, or let our light diminish, drain or be fed upon in any way. This lighting of the Tree of Life means our ego has aligned with Spirit. It is like a Cosmic "do over" of sorts. Humans have free will, and we can create, and recreate again until it feels totally right, assisted by the Creator, free of prisons or limits. This is very radical.

On Passover, I sat in a replicated prison cell, mocked like the ones in Angola, to raise awareness for a Black Panther that has been unjustly accused and sentanced to life in prison. As I sat in that cell for 1 hour, and getting to talk to many members and advocates of the Black Panther Party, it got me to face what prisons I create for myself in my own mind. What are the shackles that I obsess over and loose energy from daily, thinking that there will never be any escape. It showed me too, this time in the cell, how valuable our freedom is, yet, free inside, aligned with the Ultimate untainted source, we are always free. No one can take that from us unless we give them permission to do so.

On Passover, the idea is to offer up the first ego construct that comes to mind and binds you, so that you can then begin the process of rebuilding your free Tree of Life from the inside. Once set into motion, even someone literally bound by the slavery of an unjust and fearful prison system such as Angola can not take freedom away from those that are truly free, like the one still sitting in there right now as I enjoy my coffee on my porch overlooking the bayou.

The amazing wonder of the Tree of Life is from a Kabballah view is that God wants to give to us. Wants to give us everything, but the Source can not give if we are stuck, imprisoned, enslaved, or bound in any way from within. This is not what the Source wants for us either. It should never feel like anything has "got you". Nothing does, and it is possible to release the prison and the limits so that we can truly receive real light.

Photo by Derek Goodwin

The Tree of Life represents ouf Ultimate Origin and total freedom, residing within us. It reminds me of a Prince Song that I like to sing on my bike rides along the bayou...

"Be glad that you are free. Free to change your mind. Free to go most anywhere anytime. Be glad that you are free. There is many a man who is not. Be glad for what you have, and what you've got."

We do have it all. The Tree of Life is within you, and has been there all along. Divine order exists within your very being, as you "pass over" and into your new improved model. As many of my dear yoga teachers say, "go to the source, and the rest will follow".

Go to the Source, and the rest will follow.

Michele's Personal Blog: Journal of My trip to India. The Many Faces of Ind...

2011-03-05T17:20:00.000-08:00

Michele's Personal Blog: Journal of My trip to India. The Many Faces of Ind...: "Journal of My trip to India February 2011. The Many Faces of India This diary is for the gypsy traveler who wishes to embark upon the s..."

Journal of My trip to India. The Many Faces of India.

2011-03-05T08:45:00.001-08:00

Journal of My trip to India February 2011. The Many Faces of India

This diary is for the gypsy traveler who wishes to embark upon the sacred pilgrimage to India. It is meant for all yogis especially. Please read this in increments. The areas we went to are broken down into segments for you to read slowly. I have highlighted the key places on our journey that moved me, opened my heart, and shook my soul to it's profound edge. I have also included my favorite moments captured as much as one can, on a digital camera. India is the heart's essence of all things manifest in dynamic, raw form. I will never be the same. Enjoy.

Feb 7 Landing in the Persian Gulf
Even in the Doha Qatar airport I am blown away. I feel right at home and yet I look about as different from everyone else here as possible. I look very white...white hair, white shawl. Everyone here is in all black, black skin, black hair, black clothing. The airport itself is about 90 percent male, and any woman here is completely covered up. There are not too many women walking about here by themselves. It is just not is the custom here, so I may appear somewhat curious to some of them, since they are all clearly staring at me. I really don't mind.

From the costuming perspective of my past, when I dressed and costumed theatre, dance,opera, movies, shows, and adorned everyone for Mardi Gras balls,I feel like I am continuing to see costumes now. There are very elaborately adorned men in full white gowns with red braids around their head, or in full on black with large beautiful turbans, and women with only their slits of their eyes showing, wearing long black dresses with sequins, and their eyes done up more than I ever do. To me, it is just a veil, or costume, and that is how I view it. I feel like underneath these different cloaks, we are all the same.

I can't help but stare at the women. They become more interesting, lovely, and feminine covered up like this. They are all incredibly beautiful, and it makes me want to see more of them in all of their femininity. It is so interesting how the outcome of covering up something so great and Divine can bring to it even more beauty and allure. You can not help bot notice how extravagant they are, and how much they must go out of their way to hide themselves. They end up sticking out more than anyone else here, at least from my perspective and what I am used to. All of the other beautiful women who have somewhat infused themselves into the modern world, with modern dress, and their head covered, do not compare to this ancient elegance. I feel so far away form home, and quite comfortable at the same time. This is going to be quite a diverse, new, yet old adventure! My veil may be white skin and hair, but I have a feeling my essence will fit right in with where I am going.

Feb 8 Arrival in Kerala, India

India is enveloping. There is something so overwhelmingly consuming about it. She embraces you, and takes you over, with sounds, smells, colors, movements, and a rich, ancient depth like no other I have experienced. We are staying in a small fishing town in Cochi, w a Chinese, Portugese, Jewish, and Colonial English history. The tropical, humid environment feels quite familiar to me, just coming from New Orleans and the places I typically travel in Central and South America. Compared to the rest of India, this area claims to be a dreamy, sleepy part of the country, so this is a warm embracing way to ease in as we get acclimated from 2 days of travel. What has struck me first are the amount of birds singing songs I have not heard before in this tropical climate. They nest in some of the oldest and largest banyun trees I have ever seen in a city. The songs leave mystical vibrations in the air, inviting us in to a new mystery to be unfolded like a pandoras box.
Besides the unique way of fishing, the Jewish district, and amazing antique shopping, Cochi is especially famous for their theatrical performances, called Kathakali, based on chapters in the Ramayana, which we will see tonite.

KathuKali Dance Performance in Cochi.

There is also a lot of Ayurvedic massage offered in all of the hotels. Our first day also included Ayurvedic treatments from a dear, and small woman named "Ambika", a name for the consort of Siva. I told her that I love Siva too, and sang her a Siva chant after she rooted me back down into my body with sesame oil, which is typical in Ayurvedic treatments. I feel so at home here, just as I knew I would, and in every way imagined, or felt before, in this life time, and many. I feel fulfilled, complete, and alive being here.

Feb 9. Cochi, India.
I am in total heaven and have never felt more at home anywhere than I have here. I am in complete love in every way imaginable. I feel like I know everyone here personally, and am eating the best food, teas, and spices in the world, smelling the best oils, seeing the most murtis and Hindu art, dance, clothing, fabrics, song, beauty, prayer, architecture, landscapes, animals of all kinds, peoples of my life thus far. It feels like complete dejavu.

Laundry station for the entire area of Cochin, Kerala

Feb 10 Kerala Backwaters

Morning Sunrise view from our houseboat on the backwaters of the Arabian Sea.

I am sitting on a house boat right now in the heart of the southern tip of Kerala state in the deep Arabian sea canals and backwaters where small villages exist for harvesting the Keralan red rice fields. There is a mist surrounding me, I have meditated at the front of the boat for hours. I can hear Indian flute and someone chanting mantra far off in the background. When we hear and read that India is a mystical place, this is it, right here and now. There is just nothing like this, this bhava (elevated mood) in the air.

Our houseboat in the backwaters of Kerala.

We have been on the boat house all day,and will sleep out here in the picturesque rice paddies tonite under the stars. Today I have had much time to ponder many things in my life as we watched the local families wash their clothes and hair in the canal. My whole entire past has lead me to this very sacred time here in India that I am intoxicated by. Every experience and relationship has lead me to this long awaited time.

I have been waiting for this exact moment in India, where I root down in such a fulfilling state of calm, meditating and watching the sun go down over the rice fields of bright, anahata green. I am complete. I am whole. There is no moment like this one.

Feb 11-12 Paradisa Coffee Plantation in Kerala mountains

Sunrise on the mountains of Kerala.

We left the Arabian Sea canals up to a higher elevation, traveling through smaller bustling cities to a very private and tranquil coffee plantation amongst a great variety of trees, spices, and flowers growing all around us. We are totally submersed in the woods with lots of wind stirring everything about in wild cleansing and mystery. There is an Ayurvedic treatment center here, a pool, a spice walk, and lots of silence. It is claimed that from our view up high into the sacred valley, that the Pandavas from the Mahabharata lived for a time. We were also told about a temple 30 miles from here that claims to be the birthplace of Siva and Mohinis son, who was later left and then raised by tigers. Mohini was a form of Vishnu, who dressed in drag to seduce and trick Siva over a battle for "Amrita", (Divine nectar), that was at the bottom of the ocean of awareness.

The grounds at the Coffee Plantation.

There is only 40 days per year that visitors are allowed to come and visit this temple of the son of tigers, and last year there were 6 million. The son of Siva and Mohini was said to be raised by tigers. Very almighty, he became the ruler of the kingdom then, even before the heir to to throne at the time, the queens son. It is said that tigers are spotted often in the area, being a tiger reserve, and very consecutively around the temple. There was one found on the property here 4 years ago just below our place. Being in such an ancient land, with a history of avatars (God coming down in super human form) and deities ( Gods in individualized form), I can feel my shakti level has truly heightened with an old familiarity. It brings such wonder and mystery to my imagination and dreams to picture what ancient spirits are in the forests here, and what messages they would like to give me, or any of us here, willing to listen, especially in the whispers of this serious wind. It truly is that kind of place. If we sit still, and listen, there is much to learn under the ancient teak, mahogany, and palm trees.

Classical Indian Dance at the Coffee Plantation.

Feb 13 Journey to Chennai
Today is the last day of my 30's! It has been a traveling day down a tall mountain. Most everyone getting motion sickness. I must be very lucky. I must admit I have challenged my constitution a few times in my life with the amount of intensity that I seem to love, and my body and health has proven to be quite strong thus far. I have such blessings of health that I make sure to never take for granted. Now we are on a plane to Chennai, originally called Madras. The population is 6.4 million. Not a small town! Haha! Get prepared for our first taste of Indian madness! In Chennai we will visit Desikarshars hospital.

Desikashar's Mandir in Chennai.

Desikashar is the son of Krishnamacharya, the grandfather of all asana as we know it today, with Iyengar, Shri K. Pattabhi Jois, and Indra Devi as his pupils, in a school in Mysore. To visit Desikashar is to visit our roots. This is part of our family tree, our teachers teachers. What a blessing to have such a lineage and I feel it very important that we always honor all those that came before us. I have been thinking today how I feel like I
see family everywhere, in every face that we pass, and how that is helping me understand more about myself, my habits, my rituals, and my personality, my inclinations, especially since I do not know one half of my blood family. Here in India I find that this does not matter. Everywhere I look is family, and I am so grateful. I feel like I am visiting my ancestry here, and there are many mirrors pointing back at me as to who I am and have been before many times before. I know many of the words and phrases that I hear, see and read also in Sanskrit, and you can hear a lot of Sanskrit in the most common language here, which is Hindi, so I feel at ease in one of my most favorite art forms; communication. This trip is helping me to see so many things coming together in the culmination of my life in every way. I truly feel like I am at home, and am here experiencing the most full circle/cycle that I have ever experienced in my life, where everything, in a sensational extreme circus, is making complete and whole sense. This is very nurturing for me, as I experience the last of Siva's 5 acts, the endearing patience of revelation. ("All is coming" is a very popular Indian phrase). The next time I write, I will be 40. It is one of the happiest times of my life and I can say that with every ounce of my being. Hari OM

Picture of KrishnaMarcharya and our textbooks for Vedic Chanting lessons.

Feb 14-15 Katha Temples near Pondicherry
My birthday was filled with one of the most memorable days of my life. We went to the 5 Katha temples on our way to Pondicherry ( with a very high French influence), and got to see, first hand, after years of learning, the homes of Ganesha, Parvati, Siva, Hanuman, and Vishnu, and their ornate temples.

Ganesha Temple and puja.

It completely blew me away to be inside the worshipping grounds of the deities that I know so well. There was one Ganesha temple were we were able to take puja if we choose, and so I just copied the natives, took off my shoes, bowed down, offered ghee, and then placed sandalwood on my forehead, as I stood on the 4 billion year old rocks and caves that Arjuna, from the Mahabharata hid out in for a while after their exile from his kingdom.In one of the temples sites, just in front of Vishnu and Siva, was a moment I will never forget.

4 billion year old rocks, caves, and temples of the Pandhavas.

There were many school children seated in front on a field trip that were staring at me and giggling, I assume because of my hair, and so I said hello to them, and asked
if I could take their picture. Suddenly, by the end, I was surrounded by about 40-50 school children, all around me, staring at me in such innocent wonder, and I began taking pictures of each of them, and them showing them their picture. Each so beautiful. Each with an individual story to tell. Each with a unique, innocent sense of wonder gleaming in their eyes. This lasted for about 45 minutes. I taught them the word "beautiful", having them repeat it, sang" om namah sivaya" to them, and kept pranaming them with namaskars and Anjali mudra. Oh what a precious moment that I will never forget, and captured on film by many. It was a still moment in time, where all that I felt was the purest of all joy, completely present, and totally connected in every way, in heart, to these young natives around me.

The next day we went to see where Mahatma Gandhi ended his peace pilgrimage on the Bay of Bengal to make rice in the sea with the natives as the first claim to gaining back their country from Britain. This site was then followed by a trip to the Shri Aurobindo ashram, which I was really looking forward to, since my teachers, Sharon Gannon and David Life have talked about him, the Mother, & Shri Aurobindos "Integral Yoga" for years (along w Nancy LaNasa of Abhaya Yoga).

Gandhi statue at the Bay of Bengal, where he ended his salt pilgrimage, in Pondicherry.

I got a chance to bow down at Shri Aurobindo's grave site with other devotees, and could feel such a serene shakti on his puja site, where many Indians sat in silent meditation all around him and The Mother just next to him, right there.

Just outside the ashram was a Ganesha temple, guarded by a giant elephant that was decorated with henna and flowers. There were many bells ringing and drums banging inside the colorful and ornate sacred site. There was a long line of Hindus waiting to receive darshan (being close to the source of light) from the Brahmins (priests) inside doing sacred ritual that we got to go in and see. Each corner of the temple had another puja where you could take offerings and receive sandalwood on your forehead. It was loud, raucous, and buzzing in there with so much excitement that I was completely mesmerized,hypnotized, and wound up with the devotion so thick in the air. What a buzz, to be around so many beings devoted, gasping in awe at their chance to visit Ganesha. I said many prayers and in that building and continued to sing Ganesha chants as I walked throughout. I also sang to the Brahmins who blessed me, and our eyes met in such rapture for our mutual love of the Divine when they recognized that I knew the bajans too, and have as much love for all of these things.

Outside the Ganesha Temple in Pondicherry.

Mountain outside of Pondicherry w a Siva kingdom on top (and on the left side of the path, or marga, a Shakti kingdom).

Outside the temple there was every possible thing you could think of buying as a puja offering. The best altar supplies I have ever seen in my life, from large garlands of flowers to small bowls of ghee. I have felt so at home in the land of Bhakti, and especially in the south, which is truly the home of Siva, Parvati, and Ganesha. They are everywhere we turn our heads and open our eyes upon. I can not seem to close my eyes at this point in the journey even for a moment. I don't want to miss a blink of this blessing that I am enjoying the fruit of. India is and has been my home many times before. This has been the greatest birthday that I have ever experienced in my life, and has been really kept so honored here by the group that I am with, celebrating with me. The Redback tribe we are journeying with have all been so thoughtful in honoring my birthday and I am really grateful. This is greatest epic journey I have been on in all my life. Dreams do come true.

Giant Siva Temple, Siva Lingham & Nandi.

Feb 16 Tirumannavalai in Tamil Nadu; The embodiment of Siva

Sadhus in line for offerings of food at Ramana Maharishi Ashram.

Whoa. Is there more that I can say today, here in the serious land of Siva, Tirumannavalai , on the full moon. There are Saddhus everywhere in bright orange, owning nothing, and living as aesthetics and spiritual free roaming monks, with Shakti as their temple of worship. This is also the land of Ramana Maharshi's devotees, as he lived here years ago, gaining spiritual enlightenment at the age of 16, and then going to live underground in a cave for 20 days to realize the Samadhi embodied state of "I am". He humbly wrote many books and many devotees came to be near him in his quiet self realized state. We got to receive darshan in his cave dwelling, and then visit his ashram later for puja, prasad, and chanting. His ashram had many peacocks in front of it making their loud cat calls, and it is said that peacocks only stay in pure places, as they are free to roam about wherever they wish throughout the country, yet, there were many just right there,, on
the roofs and in the trees. The ashram had a very high vibration of tranquility and peace.

Peacocks at the Ramana Maharishi Ashram.

The Siva temple nearby was loud juicy cacophony that sizzled with so much shakti that I could barely understand the presence that it demanded in my ecstatic and surreal state.I felt like I was in another dimension, and that a quantum, parallel reality was striking me all at once, with many past lives, the stages of this life, future lives, and the direct hits of shakti all coming at me in massive doses all at once, and in serious waves. We received quite a few darshans with ash placed on us, and watched a few pujus for Nandi, who is the Brahma bull vehicle of Siva. There were many priests pouring sacred mild, honey, turmeric, and rice over the giant statue, with thousands of Hindus and Saddhus praying and praising.

Brahmins bathing Nandi, the vehicle of Siva, w milk, ghee, and tumeric.

There was so much Shakti today in these experiences that I feel electrified to a whole new level of capacity in this container. I once again have felt so at home even amongst the intensity, massive hoards of people, and uncleanliness, which
is what it might feel like from a different perceptive other than this one I am in right now, which is the greatest sense of wholeness I believe I have ever experienced. To me, it feels like loving souls coming together in total loving freedom and complete celebration of vibrance, rich and bright with all of the senses, joys and affections of others that you feel like you know very well.

Siva Temple in Tamil Nadu on the full moon.

This is what I felt like today, standing amongst so many other souls that are in love with Siva, with ritual, with the divine, and with the blessings of lustrous, rich presence that we all share in our hearts. We are near the end of our southern tour, and are surrounded by Siva, Parvati, Hanuman, and Ganesha everywhere we go.

Gathering for the full moon Siva and Nandi Puja.

Once again, I couldn't feel more at home, and buzzed with synchronicity that I do right now. Even bits of all of this remind me of New Orleans and why I have chosen to live there. I have never been more present than this right now. Everything is coming
together in ultimate revelation. It is full on.

Monkeys everywhere. Jaya Hamumate Namah.

Feb 17 A Samsara embodied around the mountain of Siva

Full moon like no other... In the land of Tirumannavalai thousands of devotees come each full moon to experience a sacred pilgrimage around the 4 billion year old mountain which is 9 miles in circumference, and thought to be the embodiment of Lord Siva in physical form, although he is said to reside in the Himalayans in Mt. Kailesh (Tibet). We walked with everyone else, them barefoot, in a Siva rite of passage as together a massive swell of souls created a live compressed form of the wheel of life, called Samsara.

Full moon pilgrimage around the mountain w 20,000 Hindus.

One of very few westerners on the walk, as we saw maybe 4 in 20,000, the walk- about was dense with every walk of native life, from regal family members, to old wise ones with canes, to beggars without limbs or body parts missing, to the blind gypsies, to golden embroidered saris and fresh flowers in the hair of divine goddesses, and white dotis or longis for the men, and far out saddhus that looked like a mix of a rastafari and sage, often with
dark glasses and serious dreads. This walk has created a large imprint within me that I will never forget that was both shocking and sensual. It felt like a living video, showing to us in one night, all that is possible in name and form on the full moon night of just 4 hours. It felt like time was suspended and did not exist as a condition. It was the perfect linking of time and space as Oneness manifest.

Sacred Prayer Tree on the pilgrimage.

Each step on this 4-5 hour trek felt like I was creating offering, and in that offering, a samskara from some past extracted, viewed like a clip in a movie, and then erased. I felt each possible emotion pass through me, horrifying and resplendent, like a cleansing purification. In that release I could see Lila, a divine play revealing in such amplified form the true nature of projection, film, & theatre in our vibrant veiled life of far beyond 4 hours.

Siva Temples everywhere on our sacred pilgrimage around the mountain.

Along the road side were thousands of stands set up as temples, shrines to swamis, saddhus, gurus, prayer trees, aratis, pujas, candles in the rocks, and mini altars for Shiva, Parvati, Ganesha, and Nandi. The shakti was so high and compressed that the immensity confused me at times, overwhelmed me, and also calmed me with the greatest sense of ease and devoted appreciation all at once. I was feeling so many waves of shakti move through me. I can not find words for all of the feelings that came over me, except that every moment was immensely present and large, new, yet old, and that everything was there all at once in one show. I felt very absorbed in the here and now of this massive power current that was flowing around the Siva mountain. I was so taken out of the reality that I typically experience that nothing else seemed as though it could possibly be happening, or that perhaps I had made my life back home all up and it simply just did not exist
in this throbbing moment I was now finding myself in.

Full moon above the Siva Mountain.

The mantra Om Namah Sivaya was a clear stream flowing through my mind even through this entire other thing I was witnessing and so amazed by. It allowed me to feel everything, and to be honest with the comings and goings, but I never got too caught up in each sensation, as i had to move forward, and on, just like everyone else. The propeller of mantra was moving me and every other soul in entrainment around what most believe to be the oldest rocks in the world, along with one of the oldest mantras in the world, and the oldest culture in the world. In this vivid moment, I was able to watch my mind and emotions, yet stay in the flow of consciousness, even in the unknown, like no other time before in my life, even when it appeared to be overwhelming in this boundlessness.

Nandi, the vehicle of Siva. All cows are holy.

This has been the most intense meditation and viewing of life that I have ever experienced. I felt like I released a tremendous amount of past imprints tonite and could watch it passing through, around, and out of me. I gained an experiential understanding of where all things come from, and how to respond to them, be with them, and yet remain absorbed in my ultimate center in the unexpected that came with each step. How could This have been anything less in the land of Siva? It makes perfect sense. I received the chance to view and extract more of my darkness for management and transmutation in this hazy place, and with a slight fever that is now quickly passing as we are about journey to the North to Delhi. This was a serious walk-about and right of passage for me turning 40.I know I will be forever changed in this magnitude of intense auspiciousness which Siva always delivers and I feel incredibly blessed. This day marks history in my wheel of life,
the Samsara, shaped like our walk tonight. I feel more space for light. Om Namah Sivaya.

Feb 18 A travel day to go North from New Delhi

All forms of transportation are available in Delhi.

I don't mind a day of travel right now. We are getting a lot of rest and I am tired. We have left the land of Siva and are headed to New Delhi for the night. Delhi has 13 million people living in it and is the second largest city in India, next to Bombay (Mumbai). This should be quite a "trip" to see; a more highly populated anomaly like all the anomalies in India.

The North is far more crowded than the south in India,which means more conditions, more people, more beauty, more garbage, as well as a more diverse variety of all of the flavors of life to explore. I hear it is quite polluted and can be hard to breath, and that the amount of people, especially children begging can be challenging to grasp.

New Delhi Hotel District.

I have of often felt so rich here traveling through the villages where some families clearly can not even afford shoes and it seems that their legs can barely hold them up, they are so thin. If it were not for my yogic teachings, I know I would have a far harder time with this, yet, I truly feel with all
of my heart that most all things are in there right place, learning just what they need to to expand into their next evolutional stage of consciousness.

Lots of garbage to be found by all sorts of sentient beings in Delhi.

I secretly whisper Lokah Somasta Sukhinoh Bhanvantu to many of these people I have already come across here on my trip. I have also discovered that looking everyone in the eye, and getting too involved in every interaction that I come across can actually be damaging for us both, as I do not want to toss pity energetically at them, and they do not want to feel " less than" from me, so, I often send secret prayers, and choose very specifically who interact with, which still is actually quite a bit, since it has been the thing that has brought me the greatest joy on this trip, these heart to heart moments. I do love the wonders of awe I get from families and children when they gaze upon my appearance; quite unusual in their eyes, all of this blonde, and gold, and white. Many families ask if they can
take pictures of me. "Yes!" I proclaim with excitement, because I am in just as much awe as they, and this is my organic moment to interact, talk, share smiles of loving connection, and express joy and appreciation at the diversity that life can present to us. I have many pictures of families and children that i have gotten the chance to talk to.

Rickshaws taking locals to work and school.

For the northern part of our journey, we are visiting Delhi, Jaipur, Viranasi, Dharamsala and the Taj Mahal before heading home. Jaipur crosses into the state of Rajasthan. Raja means "king or royal" and "stan" means "place" at the end of any word. The entire country or area where India is used to be called Rajastan. I am so excited to visit Dharamsala, the landing place of the Dalai Lama after being exiled from his home, and Varanasi where those about to pass this life hope to go to leave their body, and those that have passed get their body brought there to be burnt on the sacred river of the Ganga Ma, inviting a peaceful journey for their soul into the next realm. It is also thought to be the oldest continuously inhabited city in the world, and quite intense for most westerners to witness, since we tend to hide our age, calamities, and death. This is the place I look forward to going to the most for this reason,especially after all of the teachings i have
received from Ram Dass on aging and dying gracefully. He talked many times about Varanasi, and the teachings it brought to him.

Serious traffic but a lot to look at in Delhi. Even the trucks are works of Religious art.

Our first stop is Jaipur tomorrow, a 5 hour desert drive, if there is no traffic, which never happens from Delhi by the way... We may pass through many rural desert villages. I love that I really do not know what is going on, and where I am going at all truly, and it has been absolutely heart/mind-blowing as a result. In all of my studies, and as many movies and photos i have seen, you just can not begin to imagine this until you are in it.

Feb 19-20 Jaipur

The Amber Fort in Jaipur.

Oh India, the Motherland, where nothing can be predicted...a 4 hour ride took us 10 due to Delhi traffic which was for sure the worst traffic I have ever been in in my life. There have been many firsts on this trip. We may have went about 15mph most of the way, stuck between trucks named "Shakti" or "Shyam", with fringe, rajistani mirrors, and Shiva tridents in just about every one. I am learning more and more patience here amongst the new discoveries. Jaipur is a picturesque city, so it is very well worth it.

Inside the jeweled Amber Fort w our group leader from Redback Travel, Ashley.

One of the first among many epic visions is the Amba (Amber) Fort that extends up the mountain side, colored pinkish, that blends into the light red rock, full of intricate carvings, more complex and ornate architecture, and bedazzled with mirrors, crystals, and fine gems. There is such a dichotomy here that the mind just can not really participate in the experience since each moment you must let go of thinking that you might have some idea of
what it is that you are going to see next. It is best to expect nothing.

Outside of the jeweled gates are tons of beggars. The most that I have seen on the trip thus far. There are many children that get forced to show you how they are hurt, have body parts missing due to polio, or serious rashes due to malnourishment, barefoot, torn clothes, and completely filthy. You can see the mothers edging them to come touch our feet, pull on our clothing, and ask for money, showing us in full raw form their personal calamity, which is absolutely tragic for them and also unfair to us to shove this thing upon us in this way. So, bothered and confused, our next stop is then a rare gem store with 4 Roles Royces outside the driveway, and a kashmir store that was on Oprah, where shawls begin at $400 U.S. Dollars, as Jaipur is the most popular city in the world for these things, and many rich and famous people come here from all over the world to say that their golden emerald ring is from Jaipur.

Endless Markets in Jaipur, if you can handle the haggling, crowds & begging.

It made it very difficult to look around or want to purchase anything with all of this going on at the same time, yet it really is quite a cultural and learning experience. It is such a mix here that once again I feel like I am in some movie set. It is just hard to believe. It is fantastical, delightful, regal, rich, elegant, and totally dirty, disgusting, putrid, and exhausting all at once.
We are off to Varanasi, also called Kashi, or Banares, right now on the plane from Delhi. I have truly been preparing for this moment. This, and Tirumannavulai are the two places that I feel will be the most spiritually charged and meaningful for me.

Camels, Elephants, Boars, parrots, dogs, bulls, cows, & donkeys everywhere.

Feb 22 Varanasi Day 1

There is a peaceful amplified energy here undescribable. It is the most powerful presence I have ever felt in my life. Our hotel is right on the Ganga Ma river and I have now just seen her and sat next to her for the first time ever in this lifetime. I feel totally different here. It is like no other place I have ever been before, but only imagined. My body is swelling with clear, raw, primal power and we have only just arrived. I want to be by her side all day long tomorrow to watch the sunrise on the river, go to the main Ghat, do puja, kirtan, watch the sacred ceremonies of the burning bodies, and sing, meditate, and pray pray pray.

Sunrise on the Ganga River.

It feels as though anything you thought or said would have a reverberation into the atmosphere and just instantly come true, since we are in this place of truth. I am speechless, so overwhelmed with gratitude and awe, and grateful for the many lifetimes I have had that have lead me to this sacred place of deep
appreciation, alignment, and understanding of the sacred place that I am currently in. I can already feel this shakti in me hitting a new stage of boundlessness and more refined connection. This has been my favorite place, and I have a feeling it will be for me thus far on my trip.

Puja offerings on the Ganga w Melanie of YogaBirds.

I will be by the rivers side all day tomorrow, dear Ganga, the sacred central channel shakti of the world. Thank you thank you for this tremendous gift. I hope to take it in fully, and share the overflowing well being potential on an even greater level now, and when I return.
Hare Hare Maha Dava Shambho. Kashi Visvanatha Gange.

Early Morning Sadhu and is trident.

Feb 23 Varanasi day 2
Varanasi is the most sacred, beautiful, familiar, and favorite place that I have ever been to in my entire life. It was the first place that i just did not want to leave at all, and spent the most time away from the group so that I could soak it in as purely as possible. To be near the sacred Ganga has brought precious tears to my eyes of such deeply fulfilling gratitude, appreciation, magic, and wonder. The air is so charged with the juices of life's essence, Shakti Ma,

Ganga Ma and sleeping saddhu.

that I can hardly contain myself, as I have such a constant buzz and completeness. The veil feels so thin that standing on our rooftop, and looking onto the water, an overflowing wave fills me and I can feel that I must be still to contain it so that it does not overwhelm me with its tremendous power. I feel my body is so spacious from all of my years of hard work in asana, prayer, and meditation, that I adjust getting filled right up and can take the soft power right in. I can
feel so many familiar spirits and energies here rejoicing and honoring the devotion that I have carried out in my life and I am eternally busting with gratitude for this.

Gatherings at the Main Ghat.

Varanasi was originally called Kashi, and this means "city of light" in Sanskrit. Light filled indeed, as everywhere we walked, I was moved with an overflowing sensation of the nectar of life in something very primal in origin. To observe each colorful person so purely devoted to the Ganga brought peaceful warmth of familiarity to my soul that. There was so much of it streaming through this somewhat limited body that I couldn't figure out whether to cry, freak out, scream with so much joy, or softly smile in deep contentment. It felt that at all times I was doing a bit of both, and walking around with everyone, I feel " Indian" along with everyone else.

Offerings of hair and renunciation at the bathing ghat.

Kashi is truly the city of Bhakti. It is the purest definition of devotion, as it is everywhere at all times. One can go to witness it or become it in a city that has never been taken over by any other culture, religion, or modernity, making the bhakti very raw and alive. Its purity can trace back to the beginning of time, where with very few tourists, all things are being done as they have been done since we and it all began. Being the oldest city, it feels like the creative principle of shakti and all things manifest to the core.

Another city of Siva, this is where he lived when he was a city dweller, and came down from his mountain, Mt. Kailesh in the Himalayans ( where I am right now as I write this.) Being Siva's dwelling, there where many Siva chants being recited by each Sadhu that we passed, and many all night during Arati, which is a fire/light puja to invoke the utmost devotion for all gifts that we receive and participate in, happening as the sun/surya goes down.

Nightly Arati; Becoming and bathing in the light in offering.

This ritual has been going on every single night for at least 5,000 years, where thousands gather to participate from all over India, including pilgrims from the country that leave their small villages for the first time, and all over the world. There are 5 men that hold large cobra snake lanterns to Mother Ganga and move clock wise as they chant mantra to the four directions, including Purnamadah, the triumbhakam, and the Saraswati chant. I loved being able to sing all of the chants, and to recognize many of
the reasons for the precise rituals involved in the puja. It was the biggest Arati I have ever participated in, and naturally so, since it was also the place of the original one.

Main Ghat on the Ganga from our boat.

Kashi is very well known for it's ghats, which are groups of stairs that rise along the banks of the Ganga. There is a laundry ghat, where one can see the entire cities clothing and saris being washed and dried, a bathing ghat, where the families gather for spiritual cleansing, the main ghat, where weddings and rituals take place (and in so many classic photos of India)

Wedding at the Main Ghat. The woman always wears bright red.

and the burning ghat (no pictures allowed) where families take their loved ones to die, or to burn them, if they have already left their body. Death, being a primary element of Siva, is very apparent in Kashi (Benares/Varanasi),

and you see many plain dressed native country people come, along with many other Hindus, to bless themselves by the auspiciousness of the waters for healing purposes, or to plan out and have a blessed death. Many of pilgrims are older, or clearly not well, with shaved heads as an offering, in hopes of a healthy body,a healthy death, or a liberated soul from
the body in total Moksha.

Ganga Ma and man sleeping.

I looked forward to seeing the burning ghats most of all, to honor with all of my senses and purity of heart the reality of death, things ending, suffering, and calamity, and what it truly means to experience it so head on. Being so out in the open for everyone to see, it seemed to make it even more stark and strikingly real in that very moment, with little shock or repression for the family or anyone witnessing the death ceremony.

Burning Ghat. Auspicious for souls leaving their body.

As we approached the first burning ghat, there were three fires being prepared for three bodies. We tried walking closer towards the ceremony, but quickly realized what was going on, and that only family, and men, were allowed, the women are not allowed to witness the fire burning ritual. Keeping a distance, we watched them preparing a body with oils, flowers, ghee, cleansing in the water, and later placing the body on an open fire. It is a tremendous honor to be burned here, and invites a clean, quick liberation of the soul as it leaves the body. We watched this also later at the main burning ghat, where the body was much smaller. I was not sure how I would feel about all of this, but I felt really good to see it. It felt so honest, open, and clear. It made perfect sense to me to have it out so openly, and to allow the elements of Ma to be a part of the next transcendence. It was far less confusing and dark this way. It really gave me chills, in
such a pure and light filled way. I thought to myself that this is where I would like to be when this time comes to me. I know it is difficult to plan these things truly, especially since the Hindus believe that this must be done within 5 days time, but Varanasi struck a deep cord in me, and I would like to be here when I too leave this body. It is said that to pass in a way that is planned or benevolent is a great boon of many lifetimes of hard work and high karma. If ever I could be so blessed, I would like to wish for this on the Ganga. It would bring about the most complete full circle that I can possibly imagine, to be at the throbbing heartbeat and sushumna of the earth in a place pulsating like no other. Varanasi has won my heart, soul, and essence and I hope to be back many times, calling it another home.

Bathing Ghat on Ganga River.

There are many other elements to this Shakti Mecca, and it is Mecca to all Hindus, but one must go there for themselves. I too feel that all yogis should at least make it here to gain greater understanding of why it is that they practice yoga as it will bring a much deeper, more profound meaning.

Morning misty boat ride on the Ganga.

This part of the journey, and this city in particular, is too magical for many more words than I have already said. If you are a lover or a wisher of all things in total liberation, you must come to this spot for an infusion of experiential understanding, which will strike you in every layer of your being, past, future and now like no other thing has yet before in your life.

Dreamy night on the Ganga River from our boat.

Feb 24-28 Dharamshala
"All things are possible" is a very popular Indian saying that I have heard many times here from the natives, and it is absolutely true. Dharamsala couldn't be more different from Varanasi, and I love it and feel so at home here too. This is the most North latitude I have ever been in my life, and it is very cold compared to our southern tour. It is around 30'f up here in the mountains, and we are at about 4,000 feet high in altitude, which is only the foothills of the Himalayans.

Up in the foothills of the Himalayans.

They do not even consider this the mountains yet, but the roads are high, narrow and steep, and there is snow everywhere, with nothing but taller mountains, or the valley below in Dharamsala proper in sight. Although we are very close to Pakisthan and the state of Kashmir in India, it feels like we are in Tibet. For over 50 years the Dalai Lama has resided here, forced to flee, along with many other Tibetans that were lucky enough to escape. Now considered to be in exile, they
are unable to go back or to see their families, and can only pray that someday Tibet will once again be free, and that all. Those still there can come and go as they please. For now, if they are able to talk on the phone to their family, they are very lucky, as, sometimes, if the conversation goes either spiritual or political, the phone disconnects. The only way some Tibetans were able to escape was to prostrate for thousands of miles until they are out of the country. They found that that there is a very calm presence here, and the people are gentle, humble, and considerate. It is very clean and fresh feeling here, far more than any other place we have been, so it is a nice brake from noise, crowds, bartering, persistent begging, and pollution.

Lighting candles at the Dalai Lamas residence for my nephew Aaron.

I went to the Dalai Lamas residence for the first time and to the temple where all of the Monks live. It was snowing as I entered, and a gush of tranquility and deep respect flooded me as I went through each room. The room that touched me the most was the room that had thousands of candles lit, and is kept up by two nuns. There was so much light and high vibration in there, that it really moved me, the devotion of everyones thoughtful candle lit for a loved one. My first candle was lit for my nephew, who has recently found out that he has cancer, and at such a young age. I prayed very hard and earnestly for him, knowing that the Dalai Lama would be in soon to bless all the candles. We had a Lama come speak to us, and he too reiterated that the power of prayer, and also forgiveness can actually clear out others karma, not to mention the profound effects it has upon you, so, I prayed for hard for all of my relationships, for my family and their health
and hapiness, and for the longevity and right relationships of all the work that we are also doing in New Orleans between all students, teachers, and the future flowing opportunity to always service with impeccable depth and integrity.

I sat in the same temple that the Dalai Lama sits in for a very long time, praying, and inviting deep insights to enter me, so that i might see where it is that I block my consciousness with worry, doubt, judgement, attachment, jealousy... These types of things.
I had some very obvious visions of things that I can work on that do not bring my mind peace or rest, and I felt that this guidance was very benevolent, and that it came from an exterior source. One very profound insight was the concern of judgement, and it is funny, even the entire time I was a bit upset at a few things that I have been contemplating, there was a woman in the temple that brought her cell phone in, kept answering it as we all prostrated and meditated, and even ended up being one of the workers at the temple. I was very bothered by her. She was speaking very loudly, letting her phone ring many times, and although so passionate in her prostrations, also did those so loudly and dramatically that it bothered everyone also. "Amazing", I thought. "How can people not know how disrespectful they are being, and she works here! " it is funny, because it was like the Buddha was watching my whole inner dialogue, and I heard a voice loud and clear in
my head "Yes, you are correct, this is loud, and disrespectful. This happens often with all humans. Yet, your judgement gets them no where. It is not a matter of importance that you are right. What is important is that you recognize these beings that you must serve. Go out of your way to note the imbalanced acts of humans, and then serve them the most. Be their caretaker, and be the one that invites a harmonic environment once again. Do not judge them, but look for them, and serve them first." Aha! This makes perfect sense. Thank you Buddha. I was so grateful to catch myself, and to stop being annoyed, disappointed, angry, or unsatisfied. This insight will bring great assistance to me in all of my relationships and encounters. As the path is always deepening, it is so important to also note how our roles evolve and can always be refined also.

Tibetans in prostration in front of Lord Buddha.

The Tibetans here are so kind, even after having been through so much, that they are a great example to me. Every Tibetan here had to flee, and does not get to see all of their family, nor have total freedom to travel or do what they like. I can not imagine what that feels like. The more I travel through India, I just feel more and more blessed with great health, loving relationships, family, abundance, and of course the chance to do what i love so much, serve and teach. There are many here that do not have these things, and yet they are happy also. In fact, supremely and purely happy, owning little, and taken from all that they know, the chant that the Buddhists seem to recite the most rings very true and resonates here deeply...

Aum Mane Padme Om... Which means the jewel of the lotus is in the heart, or , in other words, everything that you need is within you... All things that you miss are inside of your heart, like an emerald jewel shining

Om Mane padme Aum spinning in these prayer wheels.

always. I will not forget the many encounters and cups of tea I have had with them, the Kashmiris, the Hindus, and the Muslims up on this mountain of snow, mantra, crystals, and dark red cashmere. I feel a deeper calm here than i have felt anywhere else that we have been.

View from the Dalai Lama's residence of the Himalayans.

Stupa at the Dalai Lama's residence.

March 1-3 Agra and the Taj Mahal
We took a classic Indian train to Agra to see one of the seven world wonders. The train in itself was an experience never to forget. I felt thousands of eyes upon me in wonder of my vision...having blonde hair, a bindi, nose ring, and Indian clothing. Considering the way I was stared at throughout my trip, I got the feeling that many Indians had never seen anything like me before, so I honestly did not mind to show them yet another possibility in this infinite world of diversity.

The sleeper car on our Indian train to Agra.

The train had many sleeper cars in in, and so there were many families in our car and it was quite an adventure. It was Shivaratri day, so the trains were full of celebrations to Siva, Indian travelers and talk of Siva in conversations and in the paper. There was a wonderful article about Siva on the front peg written by Shri Shri Ravi Shankar, and it took up more room than all of the devastating news we typically hear about.

The view from the window was a diverse experience for us all in itself. There were many slums along the way from Delhi to Agra. It is hard to see how so many families live, some in tents and some grass huts, but all surrounded by heaps of trash, dirty water, and lots of animals. There were lots of Indians squatting on the country side openly, just in front of the train. We rode by them all one by one, and they acted as though we just were not there. This was mixed by yet another beautiful sunrise in the country, with rice fields, tropical trees, a morning mist, and an orange sky that was so Divine that you felt like it was the only magical place on earth and that there just was no other. I have felt like this many times on our trip. India has a way of making you feel that way. It makes you feel that all things are.

The Taj Mahal
Oh what can one say about this? Something so immense, and created for the purpose of love, as an emperor had lost his loved one, and had something built to proclaim his loss to her, even amidst all of the thousands of concubines that he had. Our first vision of the Taj was at sunrise, and very few people had entered the Taj yet, so we got a chance to see it in it's striking beauty, with very few people there. It is just so hard to grasp or comprehend. It is the most magnificent vision built by humans that I have ever seen. It truly reveals our potential and we can are capable of, this sight. It was awe striking and almost appeared to not be real from afar.
There was an incredible amount of sacred geometry down to finite details, and many inlaid precious stones, large slabs of marble, and unique curves to the architecture like none i have ever seen. The emperor was said to have thousands of concubines, and there were many rooms for them, entertainment areas, and a living room that was like a dream. Imagine peacocks walking around, yards of fine silks, silver dining ware, and fine sandalwood furniture. I just can not even imagine the riches here after going through so many slums to get to the Taj.

The riches and finest things that I have ever seen have also been in India, along with unhealthy living conditions. There is a difference though in happiness that is unique. I honestly have seen very little complete unhappiness or aggression in our travels. Although there appears to be so many with so little, and a few with a lot, the brightness is contagious and is a way of life. India, the land of devotion, has me in total love with her. I feel i have so many lessons to learn from the Motherland, and have yet a deeper and more refined appreciation for all things in my life, for my blessings, and for the offerings and gifts that come in intensity as you travel this endearing and beloved land.

I am sad to say that soon I must go home. I. Have never felt so at home than in India, and it is the hardest place for me to leave.this will be a practice in itself, yet I know I can bring India home in my heart. I make the journey now from Qatar to DC, to my sweet abode in new Orleans. The world seems so much bigger to me now. There is so much more I want to explore,a nd i know that I will. I have only just begun.

March 5. Back home

The first thing that I have notIced in being back home is how much space we have, and how quiet it is, especially after having left from New Delhi, which is very over populated, polluted, noisy, with litter and raunchy smells everywhere. Living right on the bayou in a very quiet part of New Orleans, I feel like I am living in a forest on the cleanest waters I have seen in a while. My home feels like a luxurious mansion compared to how I saw many people living, most notably in the slums, with homes made of tarp, next to huge garbage piles, where Indian women often go in their brightly elegant saris sifting through the piles for anything valuable.
Sitting on the plane after this trek, which was a 15 hour journey from Doha Qatar, I pondered just how seemingly poor, on the surface, many Indians were,yet, in all of my pictures and memories, I truly saw the happiest people that I have ever been around, and with the greatest amount of devotion for their gift of life. Many natives had no shoes, for example, and had the warmest greetings of pure love and friendliness, although we seemed so "rich" with our things, our many suitcases and high tech gear. I honestly enjoy having these things in moderation, and employing a modernity to the refinement and simplicity of a traditional past, yet i could see how these things truly can weigh a person down, and did not promise in depth happiness of any sort. Many Indians commented, with great compassion and concern, on how much Americans eat, and how many seemed so unhappy, or empty to them.

In being back just a few days, and not able to take my mind and heart off of India, I think about what it is that I miss so much, and why I am so struck by this country. One thing I have noted, and a worthy one I feel for all yogis; since yoga is very mainstream now, and a major way for westerners to exercise and train the body, it is vital to preserve the depth of the practice, while honoring our modern lives. I feel that anyone getting really into yoga, and all yoga teachers especially, need to make it a major goal to trek on their own sacred walk- about to this ancient region where holiness and devotion are the only ways of life, and inspires their every action.
India is not an easy place to visit. It is very extreme in every way, it is both spiritually and sensually exhilarating. It can also be totally revolting and disgusting if you are not able to look at and deny any part of the experience of the vast spectrums of life. India does indeed push you to your edge so that you are forced to look at things about yourself that you may not even know, all reflecting back at you in every way imaginable. I saw many westerners had a hard time with this, or in the least, really just did not understand the ceremonial, devotional nature of such edgy intensity, and lowered it to being something archaic and unusual.

India is throbbing with a heart beat like no other place I have ever visited. I always felt, at all times, a mix of fulfilling exhilaration, and an overwhelming awareness that I am not in control of anything, and must learn to flow and experience each moment to the fullest, or it would just get overwhelming. The sincere amount of devotion I saw is something everyone should see, and especially anyone saying that they are into yoga, considering that India is the birthplace of it, and the birthplace of many things. I feel now that my practice, my life, and the yogic teachings are now infused into my soul, and has, with tremendous gratitude, activated a remembrance in me that is stoked with such an old appreciation, newly remembered again. I feel that I am India.
You will not be going to India to get you asana practice in greater depth necessarily, so let go of any expectations of what you think yoga or India is. What you will be going there for is to embody the devotional aspects of it, and in all things within India's culture, to a maximum that you just can not imagine until you are there. You will go there to feel a closeness, like no other, with the heart of the world; the birthplace of life and its awesome, super charged force, in every frequency and manifestation possible.
I learned so much by just being with the natives, going out of my way to talk to them about how they live, their families, their way of life, as well as being in all of the sacred temples, which totally blew me away. If you are still, you can feel the primal origin of all things, around the whirling amounts of people that are praying and honoring the sites. It is intense and slightly frightening, how powerful this is, and that is exactly why one must go. It has truly revealed to me so many reasons as to why I am the way that "I am". I feel more authentic in my practice, which is life, and with a new refined depth that is a part of me forever. I feel more steeped in my heart with so much joy to have reflected to me in full force the "vidya" (to truly see) of our lives, our interconnectedness, our shared traits of humanity that is nothing but magnified to the greatest extent in the Motherland.

The Mother is not for the faint of heart, nor for anyone who is attached to organization, being in control, or unable to mutually look at the gore as well as the gorgeous, yet they are all one in the same, if you can "see". If truly you desire to grow, and see the essential core of all things, free of fear or bound denial, a trip to India, the heart of the source, is a must. I am forever changed, or more so, feeling more back to my original state of being, more than ever before in my life. I am forever grateful to the Motherland, dear India. I have a heart ache for you right now, and know I have only scratched the surface in seeing you all the way. I will be back many times over, watching each time, my heart growing in it's fondness for you. Thank you dear Mother.

Shri Ram. Jaya Ram. I will be back. Thank you India, for all that you have taught me.

Namaskar, Michele Baker

*A little bit of India is here with me, as I settle back into my home in New Orleans. I will be back. Join me and Melanie for our Journey to the Motherland Tour, Feb, 2012 to the South.

Planting Seva seeds in Arabi; Down By The Riverside

2011-01-21T11:22:00.000-08:00

January 21, 2011

Arabi Altar in Swan River Community Center. "Like a tree, thats planted by the river, we shall not be moved."

Last night was yet another heart felt triumph of joy, as we added our 4th location to include Arabi, LA. Arabi is located below the Lower 9th Ward, in St. Bernard's Parish. It is a close knit neighborhood that is still clearly recovering from the after effects of Hurricane Katrina, and driving there, it is a clear reminder of something that seems so foreign and far away now for so many of us. Truly, in all of my years of teaching here in New Orleans, I would have never pictured this day that "da Parish" would welcome, want, and encourage the perhaps esoteric healing that comes from India in the form that we bring it, with respect to the real deal and yet still implemented into our modern lives...juicy chants, progressive and bold yoga philosophy, loving meditation, and physical exercise, the asanas. Yet, quite the contrary! Last night, we had 80 new students sign our guest log, and we had around 20 Swan teachers come support us. Good thing, as many of the teachers had to manage the hallways, and translate our yoga class, which streamed out each end of the hall, to the entrances. We had people doing yoga in our back room closet, and in the desk area. There was so much high vibration and enthusiasm in the air, that it humbled me. It humbled us all, the support and encouragement that we felt.

*Co owners in the front room, Haiyan Khan, Michele Baker, and Keith Porteous

   This new center will be a community center, and is donation based. We are planting seeds of SEVA in Arabi. Seva is a Sanskrit word, translated as "compassion in action". It is a "kriya", which means it is a cleansing action, or flipped around, it means that by doing purifying things, the action itself becomes pure. This begins to permeate all of our actions as a result. We become far more conscious of our alignment of all actions, being steeped in them fully, and with all of our hearts.
   A tricky part of Seva is also the idea that we are only "in" the act itself, as that is all there really is, and all that we have. In the full absorption of "now", we are not seeking an approximated, controlled outcome, and have no pressing expectations, or future plans that we are attached to in the result of our actions. This is one of my favorite lessons that comes from the Bhagavad Gita. "act without expectation for the fruit of your action, and this will create a pure action". Not see easy, huh? Yes, not so easy.
So, with our Seva Center, we are living in total faith, and creating an opportunity for us to learn what it is like to just enjoy the work, the now, and the community, in service. That is all! With this, we trust that we are aligned with Spirit and the great Cosmic order of all things, and that by aligning in this co-participation, it will indeed work out, free of disappointment, mixed motives, conscious or not, and the mistake of blocking all that Spirit wants to give. Perhaps it does not exactly turn out as we would have pictured. I myself would never have exactly imagined a Swan River in Arabi, yet, it's a good thing that we were open to receive the fruit of the results, as this is better than I/we could have ever imagined. Being in the heart of now, it allowed it to happen, as I nor anyone else did not squelch the flow of this great gift.
   The last song that we sang after Savasana was a Johnny Cash gospel favorite..."I shall not be moved". 100 people in the lower lower 9 were singing this song with all of their determined hearts. We changed some of the words to go like this "Glory Hallelujah WE shall not be moved, this yoga studio, by the Mississippi River, WE are not moving..." OM OM OM
It rattled all of St. Bernard Parish with high vibrations to sing this song and to extend it out to our community. Community truly is the most important part of our yoga practice. It teaches us to share. Sharing, and getting closer, makes us all stronger. Always. We are so honored to share, and to learn from the yogic path of Seva down by the riverside.

PS Did I mention it is such a heartfelt story that ABC's "Good Morning America" wants to come tour it, learn about Seva, and do some yoga with us in our studio? January 24th, 2011 at 5am CST. Check it!

The Mayan Star Children; Telepathic Teachings from Tulum, MX

2011-01-07T11:58:00.000-08:00

January 7, 2011

Twelve light filled yogis joined me this year on our annual New years eve yoga retreat in Tulum, MX, where the energy is truly beginning to vibrate at higher frequencies with the end of their calendar drawing near. I love visiting Mexico and the Yucatan for so many reasons... the food, day of the dead art, the Mayan temples, the sacred cenotes, and the crystal clear beaches. The people are so warm and loving, and especially where we stay, at Uno Astro Lodge, there is a sacred Galactic community forming like no other I have experienced in my travels yet. The Astro Lodge is like a portal, where you feel more apt to receive healing, clarity, and telepathic information, honor your body as a temple through dance, flying yoga, meditations, and lots of song.
Each year we go we receive new lectures about the concept of time and 2012. The Mayan Long count, 26,000 years, was our last teaching. The Mayans live off of an organic, natural calendar, ruled by the moon, with 13 months representing the 13 times the moon circles the earth (instead of 12 unnatural months). This gives us 28 days to each month, in synchronic, cosmic order, providing evenness and steadiness instead of random numbers each month, using nature as a reference, as well as the natural gestation process of humans, as we align with our celestial bodies. The Mayans were inviting us to align with the preciousness of the now, in a more radial, cyclical reality, as oppose to being ruled by a linear, uneven, and confusing one based on paying our taxes. As the rulers of time, we align more fully with the atmosphere of our mind and of the Cosmic mind in this setting.

   A Mayan long count is 1/5 of a procession of equinoxes, or 26,000 years. On Winter Solstice of 2012, this long count is ending. With it, it is believed that the planet will experience a serious shift in social, environmental, and governmental changes, as well as serious inner uncoverings and unveilings of our own, so that we are primed for such a drastic movement in time and can handle it.
A very large part of our retreat was to create offerings of our own blind spots and darkness and to invite for their extractions with great compassion for one another. These blind spots make it very difficult to really see or experience the now completely. This is what the "Kali Yuga", the cycle we are in now, is all about. It is a shorter period of time than any other yuga, where everything appears more chaotic, events seem faster and unorganized, and we feel like we may be getting spun in a Cosmic perculator. The Kali yuga is inviting us to activate our complete intelligence and Cosmic consciousness of the heart, and to stay centered amidst the struggle of the last remnants of darkness getting pulled out of us.
   The Mayan Calendar was precisely measured by keenly observing the stars, and honoring that all of us are star children, coming from this luminosity. As we link to what is light filled and natural, we are synchronized with nature, and each window of frequency of the day can be utilized for our greater potential, as a powerful allie in our development. Once we are noticing more synchronicity, we are re-membering the Cosmic plan, not as a coincidence, but as a powerful, enchanting, and magical gift not to be overlooked it's perfection of Union. We no longer feel desperate to grasp onto the magic of what moves us, for we are being moved all the time, in each moment.

   The "dark rift" in the mayan philosophy is the black hole within the milky way in Mayan philosophy. The dark rift is Kali, the birth canal, or womb, or which we all must enter to re-birth ourselves into a new level of consciousness through a rite of passage. The milky way is Siva, the Soma, the milky nectar of supreme awakening, surrounding Kali in the sky. This is the most expansive fractal that we know of, and entering the birth canal, there is more. We are a small fractal of this. As above, so below, and the invitation is the entering of this, with all of our tools, our intentions, our hard work. This is the total Galactic alignment, happening within us, and around us, in nature, and above us, in our solar system, and beyond.

The North pole in the central channel of the body is the polestar in the sky. As we clear our obscurations, we will see more clearly. We will see the vast potential of the stars within our body. The North star is also our bindu point, our third eye seed of awakening, activated by offering our confusion, cloudiness, despair. We can not remember that we are physic without first doing this, and the Mayans (and ancient yogis and indigenous cultures) believe that we are all telepathic beings.
Televisions, telephones, computers show us what it is that we are already capable of doing from the inside. Lets begin now to access some of the teachings of our origins of the stars, being more perceptive than ever to a clear direct message from the inside out, as star children. So much is coming, and this will make the ride smooth, just like the essence of the cycles already happening in nature, it is already happening within us also.

Michele's Personal Blog: Our foundation; Saraswati, a River, and a Swan.

2010-12-23T14:30:00.000-08:00

Michele's Personal Blog: Our foundation; Saraswati, a River, and a Swan.: " The Herstorical Roots from where we lift off...Swan River Yoga dug it's roots into the earth beneath sea level here in New Orleans fir..."

Our foundation; Saraswati, a River, and a Swan.

2010-12-23T14:27:00.000-08:00

The Herstorical Roots from where we lift off...Swan River Yoga dug it's roots into the earth beneath sea level here in New Orleans first in 1998. Founded by Michele Baker, she began teaching in New Orleans just after her first yoga teacher training with Sivananda. Her first classes taught were in the Bywater on Piety street, and at the New Orleans Athletic Club.

After Hurricane Katrina, and finding the community disheartened and dispersed, Michele became very inspired to bring the community together in yet an even deeper way, in a building where healers, other teachers could be trained and teach, and numerous diverse events, healings, massage, could take place...

Thus Swan River Yoga.

She began writing 2 books while she was forced to leave her flooded home; A" Swan River Yoga Teacher Training Manual", and "Sacred Chants Iluminating Consciousness", already land marking her dream in writing, though there was no guarantee of being able to move back, due to the levees break of surging waters.

Her greatest goal become to share the joy she has always felt as a teacher by offering trainings, and to open the doors of Swan River Yoga, determined to come back, and to have a more healing relationship with water.

One key element had to be there before this could happen fully... meeting her business partner and fellow Jivamukti peer, Keith Porteous. Once these 2 converged, the cycle was complete. So many others have come into the mix now, and this potential has given us now 4 yoga studios in 3 years time. Each person has been a vital addition to the whole and reflects such benevolence and greatness in their servitude.

The first yoga studio opened in 2008 on Magazine street, along with the first ever in recorded history Yoga Teacher Training, Swan River Yoga Shala in March of 2008.

Holy Waters...Saraswati, a River, and a Swan.
Our region has a unique relationship with water, and we are being invited to deepen it.In India, a river is very holy. It represents our central channel, loaded with goodness and vast, infinite potential. When our central channel is clear, we are ourselves and in total union with the luminous life force. To deepen our relationship with water, we hope to bond with the grand waters and our own inner waters, deepening and healing the flow of our lives.

Our "Ishta Dev", or the personal energy in the form of Goddess that we desire to connect with the most, is Saraswati. The vertical direction of the stem of a lotus is represented by the Goddess Saraswati, connecting us to Mother Earth and Father Sky; as above, so below. She is the great reminder of the expansive ability to hear this in our lives. The linear shape of the stem represents great organization and Cosmic order. The stem is like an antenna, reminding us of our ability to transmit and receive. Saraswati is the Goddess of refinement, art, methodology, the stars, music, and celestial knowledge. Lotus stems grow longer than any other in their environment. The stem mirrors our ability to draw into the wild, unknown darkness and experience it as something informative and organized from which we can grow and evolve. Evolution will bring greater wisdom and appreciation for where we came from, as we align with the great Cosmic web, creating more art, music, and beauty.A swan is found at the side of the great Goddess Saraswati in Yoga. Saraswati is the creative force, the Cosmic stellar birth of reality. She delivers eloquence in the healing aspects of art, music, dance and sound.Sound is thought to be the birth of our existence. To embrace sound is to come back to the source of our creation, knowing that this can happen at any moment.

The swan is the experience of our Highest Self and brightest potential.The swan swims in murky, dark waters, seducing us into our Highest potential, and elegantly reflecting to us our poise amongst struggle .May we bathe as the swan in artful connection together, experiencing the dynamic celebration and gratitude of our lives, which is new at each moment.

The 4 Tenets of Swan River Yoga

Swan River Yoga has 4 tenets that mile mark the experience you will have at any studio location or with any teacher that has trained in this method. Everyone involved with Swan River desires and embodies these things. It is why it is such a high vibrational, blessed group of light beings.

1. Community; We find community to be the modern day translation of what yoga truly is. If one person is left behind in their evolution, we are all left behind. Practicing yoga now means beings concerned about others, and getting them involved in their own independence. Community comes first at Swan River. Everyone that comes to us, or facilitates healing in some way, has a tremendous amount to give, and we want to see it. To us, it is about activating the Highest in each person so we may celebrate their greatness. It is important to know that is is possible to always have a place to go to vibe on the direct , positive transmission of one another, counting on a chosen family tribe. We are in service to our community, and want everyone to shine equally, and in the Highest.
2. Integrity; Every teacher must sign an extensive Ethics form to teach at any of our locations. To have the humble opportunity to serve others is a tremendous gift and High responsibility that we do not take lightly. We know the trusting purity of the relationships we are cultivating, and maintain daily practices ourselves to provide consistent quality to all that we serve, to the best of our human capacity. It is important to us to always do our best, and give our optimal. We are all reflecting to you your greatest potential and we are so blessed that you come to see what that is. We are so humbled by the trust bestowed to us. It keeps us working very hard to heal and clear ourselves, so that we have the best to give in every way.
3. Art; We honor the exciting diversity of all beings. The more different the better. We invite all walks of life to be with us. We never want to promote homogeny. We promote Oneness. Yogis are radical beings, and those that want to get to the roots of all things are wild, even in their loving compassion. Yogis are making art, in the form of asana, song, dance, spoken word, and a creative life style. Yogis are bold beings that enjoy going first, stepping forward, dissolving boundaries, and seeing things in unusual, dynamic, and celebratory ways. We highly promote this at Swan River. We promote our classes being taught creatively and honoring all of the paths of yoga as art forms. We promote our students beings as unique in their experience as possible, and openly revealing it, feeling comfortable and accepted in who they are. This is an exciting way to learn and grow. We want to be sure we give out the real deal.
4. Beauty; Beauty comes in all forms. It is not always so obvious at first. It is not always what seems pretty. Challenge can be beautiful. It is what brought Swan River Yoga to it's resurrection, and brought us all together. Every student should leave Swan River Yoga feeling life affirmed and more beautific, whether they are in challenge or celebration. Yoga is our lives. It is not a separate practice. When we connect with the beauty of the moment, and we are here and now, there is total alignment of the Grace of the great River. It is our goal that, to the best of our ability, as a teacher or in our studios, each student always leave with this direct experience of grace flowing through them like a river. If they do not feel life affirmed, we as leaders and teachers must directly look into ourselves to see what we overlooked in our desire to serve in the highest. In all things, we wish to exemplify a quality of beauty.

"The river is flowing, flowing and flowing, the river is flowing back to the sea. Mother carry me, your child, I will always be. Mother carry me, back to the sea." Celtic Folk Song

And Then There Was Light; The Day After Winter Solstice

2010-12-22T14:21:00.000-08:00

December 22, 2010

Winter Solstice is such a nurturing reminder to slow down, cultivate ideas for new seed planting, cloak ourselves, sit in silence, introspect, and be honest. I love to use this as a time to meditate more, be quiet for hours, and to ask nature, my spiritual guides, teachers, and Universal Grace to give me the chance to see more clearly, my blind spots, so that I might grow in personal harvest. This is not always a pleasant process and there are parts to this time of year that are challenging for me in it's shadowy nature. I am often a very Yang/Sun like, outward soul, as I am in front of the public, and am gathering a network at all times, socially concerned and in love with my community. This time of year I get more sensitive, and I can see some of my own personal resistances, or deep grooves of my personality, become exposed. I ask for this each year and wish for it to be so. It is a time of uncovering and going in, getting comfortable in the dark by softening into what is uncomfortable. There will always be pain and challenge. The key is to cultivate a practice where we do not harden around it more. My inner, personal honesty does evolve the more that I practice this consciously. I know exactly what it is that I want to work on, transmute, shed light upon, tackle, however you see it, every time this season comes about. I am grateful for this. Each time I offer these disconnected resistances, I feel a bit extracted, dismantled, and pulled a little bit apart. It can leave one feeling quite raw. And I ask for this for the holidays, each time they come!
Something that I have learned, in this amount of exposure and transparency that I desire, is that I must create offering, and get real. It is not always about bliss, peace and happiness in the moment. It is like homeopathy, we offer our resistance to make the resistance come out, and it will grip on for a short while longer, with even more intensity. Resistance wants one last chance.
That is why this time of year can really be used as a window of opportunity for us all, as we gather, support one another, and create warmth so that no one is left in the dark. It is a chance to have exposure, a micro apocalypse, and to get these things out into the light, and offered up into the light, thus accessing more light that already resides within us. A wonderful Mantra that comes in handy for this... "Svaha"... "I offer it up into the fire", or "moving on".
After the shortest day of the year, where there is the least amount of light, many ancient cultures and yogis used to believe that the sun was indeed never coming back, due to it's low horizon, closeness, and shortened duration. It was only until the repetition of this cycle, and through noticing and being in deep wise connection, that humans noted that the sun did indeed come back. That the darkness was not forever, even if it felt like it at the time. Thus, it brought greater value to the sun to see it again. It shone brighter than ever before. This was the day after Winter Solstice, where the darkness was indeed the cure for shaking us up a bit, diving into the mystery, and coming out, exposed as we are, even more resilient, more luminous, more radiant, and wildly strong, like the element of light/fire, and the life giving quality of the Sun.

I was just in Hattiesburg, MS at The Yoga Room for a Winter Solstice Celebration of yoga, chanting, meditation, and storytelling. It was a direct premonition of this earth holy day. Just as I was just finishing up talking about darkness, and speaking of the greater profoundness of light after it is dark, a fire broke out in the studio, right before my eyes. For real! It burned the floor and was difficult to put out. It showed us all, in that moment, all 40 of us from the south, the transformative qualities that we all embody. It was a direct, tactile reminder of our courage to go in, know the dark well.... and bring it out into the fire... And then there was light.

I am so grateful to all courageous souls that want to know the truth, and life authentically to carry this within them. It is a wonderful lesson that I have learned. Even in the ebb and flow of our lives, up/down, in/out, there is always a great center we can access, in rawness or joy, and in either of these cases, we are always protected and nurtured in our center. It doesn't lesson in either case, because it comes from within, free of any conditions at all. May we honor the sun and the moon, the dark and light within us all. It is vital on the abundant pilgrimage that we are on. Everything is of great worth. From the vantage point of our center of balance, like the unusual eclipse we just had, we will always appreciate and notice the holiness of which we are a part.

Lift Off From the Foundation

2010-12-15T08:07:00.000-08:00

December 15, 2010

   In our yoga classes this month, our studios are focusing in on a book from one of my very first Jivamukti Yoga teachers ever (after Sharon Gannon, who was auspiciously my first in 1996) , Lady Ruth Lauer, entitled "Sweeping The Dust". I love her emphasis that when you practice, A LOT, you become more simple, more sensitive, with a greater appreciation of preciousness to everything around you. You see the life eco-system that we all reside in and are, and that this system has specifically been created, upheld, and protected just for us, just for you, to be able to enjoy and further explore the blessings we partake in daily. When I was in Mexico last year on our annual New Years Retreats, a had a Huichol Medicine Man tell me that I have many ancestors that are assisting in holding me up, and in providing for me. They pray for me daily in the Akasha, and want the most tremendous amounts of freedom and happiness for me. That was a sacred, still moment for me. I had realized there was a certain part of my familial line that I never have considered, or noticed, or taken the time to thank. Then I began to note that perhaps I am also doing this with the animals around me, the earth beneath my feet, the water that I live on. It gave me a whole new understanding of all things that have been set up just so for us to be in this holy moment. The whole idea is that once we acknowledge all that has come before us, there are many things in nature and in the spirit world, that want to provide even more, and they can not, if we do not notice. This was a valuable teaching to me, and each morning I thank my ancestors, my teachers, embodied and not, animal teachers, plant teachers, mineral teachers, etc, along with obvious friends, family, students and companions that wish these things for us also.
   It is so vital that we feel encouraged and supported by the co-participatory atmosphere in which we are a unique and crucial part. Especially as we ever expand and grow, as conditions can increase, there is still an essence of simplicity connecting us all together in a shared eco-system of wild love.
   We now have 4 studios in the making at Swan River Yoga. One in each each neighborhood of the city, the Marigny, the Lower Garden District, Mid-City, and now, coming January 20th, in Arabi, LA, http://www.arabi.swanriveryoga.com/ just below the Lower 9. To have been able to even consider this a possibility, there are so many others that have come before us, to "sweep the dust", and create space for this to happen in our area. This is history in the making in New Orleans and the greater area, and everything had to be just so, perfectly set up in the environment, in the region, in the meeting of souls, all on the right path, getting to this place, and yearning for the same thing.

     Eka Pada Galavasana in San Jose, Costa Rica

In our culture, it is not quite as popular as in others to honor those that have come before us, be it the spirits, or perhaps those older, as the wise "crones" that know. Age is not popularized in our media at all, yet, it is through this depth that we are able to truly move and push through a stuck energy, with all of those rooting for us, and offering us tremendous wisdom, for indeed, little do we know, they have set the stage. It is unbelievable to me that we have come this far in the south with so many healing arts now available, and ever spreading. I would never have imagined this when I first began teaching in my home on Piety street in 1998. Yet, what happened before this? Who was there, re-arranging things for all of this to come to be? I thank those beings and spirits, for sometimes, I have not always wondered, and do not know.
   To witness those that crave this same inter-connected path, and strive so hard daily, to keep the momentum moving forward, humbles me, and even more so now, as I see just how relentless and determined one must be for good. When I get the auspicious gift of being around my teachers, I do see just how hard they work, practice, move energy, for the sake of all beings. They do it all the time. They do it in the sleep, when they eat, when they are on their computers. A great quote from Ruth's book... "when you know where everything has arisen from, you become humble". To imagine those working in other planes, having set up the alignment of all of us having the opportunity to do this healing work truly does humble me. To me, it is the greatest gift we have, to offer our purpose and service to others, and so many others are doing this for us right now.
  Each morning I remember to say thank you, everything amplifies. I thank all beings that I may not even know that are assisting me, and it all just gets bigger as a result. It all feels more profound, more full of purpose, more aligned, and very protected and supported. I wish to thank all the beings that have invited the lift off for us. We have a solid foundation in the swamp. That is miraculous in itself. And there is so much potential in that freedom flight, due to our free will to align with all that supports us. The mystery of the Universal network brings great wonder in it's origin. We are all so honored to be granted and aligned with this gift of flight. May we all be able to remember where all things come from, far beyond any one of us, yet totally in co-participation with us in elegant, magical synchronicity. May we all get synched up with the simple wonder.

Sivas Dance of the Divine Gulf Coast Tour; The Cosmic Mirrors

2010-12-12T14:27:00.000-08:00

   Each year I travel the Gulf Coast Region in various studios in Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, and Florida, just after our Swan River Yoga Teacher Training has completed.
It brings me a great Cosmic view, to witness the looming of our region, and the Universal order that time and space provide, if we remain in that big picture. Being a gypsy at heart, I love to network, gather, offer and amplify the purpose of each being that I come into contact with. One of my spirit animals, truly surprising to me at the time, is a spider. A spider likes to gather those into the great Cosmic web, and to story tell. It blows me away to see the great Cosmic mirror that gets placed before me each time I interact with and meet another soul and honor their connection the the web of which we are all a threaded, sewn part.
   The Gulf Coast is unique in that we have a very sacred, and personal relationship with the element of water. Each time I leave New Orleans, in any direction, I am reminded of this in an instant. There are waterways, lakes, bogs, and bayous in any direction you take out of town, and an entire Gulf in close reach. Each one of us in these states has had numerous, up close, and personal encounters with the element of water. We all share a unique karma, with interwoven teachings from this element. This seems to happen again and again.
  I see the Gulf yogis as serious pioneers in their relentless determination for healing and the perseverance of warmth and community. Water is an element that connects us all together, in her softness, her reflection, her cleansing, her reception, as well as her power, fierceness, and swelling destructive traits. These same qualities I witness, and a more elevated level, each time I visit all of the studios and yogis. Each time I see a greater being, a drop of the ocean, connected to the whole. I see more depth, more authenticity, and a deeper concern to connect to the flow of their lives and surroundings. I also see stagnations that once before seemed so stuck for us here in the south washed away, and a greater healing community swimming in their current, creating a deeper relationship with their surroundings of which they are a part.
   There are often great, dense forces in our region that can truly be resistant to change, or to light. I feel the charge of the currents of the life force of shakti moving in relationship with these energies, and all of us gaining momentum and permission to truly be able to do our work of service, healing, sharing, loving, living fully.

I was just in Baton Rouge all day yesterday, have been in Pensacola, FL at Abhaya Yoga, Ocean Springs at River Rock Yoga, Lafayette, LA, and soon I will go to Hattiesburg, MS to the Yoga Room and Fairhope, AL to YogaBirds... I am truly honored to have such luminous reflective mirror from each of these yogis, working hard to keep it real, to cleanse, and swim in the currents, waves, swells, swamps of our life. Thank you dear Gulf Coast Yogis are being the great Cosmic Mirror, and setting examples to others in the world of the shimmering potential within us all. We are all on the same team, this blue grid. Lets continue to reflect the strength of the web to others ever feeling the struggle of disconnect.
Om Namah Shivaya.