Heidi

I would love to get a photo of each of you in your favorite asana.

Patanjali

Patanjali brought together and condensed many philosophies of yoga into a relatively clear text - the Yoga Sutras.  He lived in India around 200 BC.  As with many important historical figures of that time, there is a lot of myth associated with Patanjali.  One is that he is an incarnation of the snake that Vishnu rests upon (which has many names, one of which is Shesha Nag).  He came to Earth to learn to dance (to please Vishnu) and was born to a yogi woman who passed her vast knowledge onto him.
The name Patanjali can be broken down into "pata," which is translated both as "fallen / downfall" and "leaves," and "anjali," which means "offering / gesture of reverence."  Because of the story of Patanjali being an incarnation of a god, I like the translation "fallen offering," or "fallen angel."  However, as we're learning, there are many interpretations of sanskrit, and as Manorama taught us, you can't learn a facet of something and check it off the list of things to learn.

Bette is my hero. 83 and still rocking Bakasana...

Love Skool, Love Truth

I wanted to share that my personal experience from Day One of "Love Skool" until now can be described after a long list of adjectives... but one things sticks out is the love. I sometimes find myself sitting alone (always being an observer) during our short meal breaks and admire the togetherness of everybody, if we are "buddies" or not, if we see each other outside of the Lotus or not, we have become friends, and in some cases, family.

We were strangers just over a month ago, most of us, and of course, to live without any expectations or judgments are pitfalls of the human mind, and it is a struggle to not see someone - without having a mere second of getting to know them - to let our purusha do its thing. Without naming names, I have seen the truth of people pour out of their pores. You can't judge a book by it's cover. Just in our skool, our satsang, there are shy people with warm hearts who love to laugh and sing; there are those with stern faces who hide in the crowd and yet have something to share if prompted; there are those who are giving and kind and yet cannot express deep emotion and truly have that burning desire; some who are shy and only when they are in the spotlight do they shine; some who don't know how to be and yet there are amazing just as they are and they just need a little more time to realize it... it goes on and on... And sure, sticking my camera in your faces gets me closer to you, but in those few moments, I can usually see the truth - I have had many strangers (camera shy and/or self-conscious) warm up to me in minutes, their light quickly shining; and if not in the school setting and a more relaxing atmosphere, maybe my photo-relationship with some of you would be more soothing, more chill, and not invasive.

My point of this is to say that you all surprise me every time I see you. Perfect, whole, beautiful beings with pieces of hearts to give, souls to share. Deep love.

My question is: How are we when we are out of Love Skool? Are we the same person? Do we act the same? If not, do we act and play roles? Are we still true? Do we act the part of being true, speak the lingo, riding this wave for these few months, or are we honestly true? That's something to ponder. One experience of my spiritual roller coaster I'd like to share, is that even before applying to the Love Skool, and doing my own reading and meditation sadhana, I was learning the power of now and how to grab a hold of it, and becoming more comfortable with other human beings (strangers), no matter who they were; and now, where I am now on this coaster, with our education and all of your personal influence on me (not to forget your extremely kind words regarding my dad), including the incredible beautiful things that are said that move me greatly, I am becoming a better person and truly-honestly-genuinely-feeling the love.

And as I learned in class today, I will end with my go-to: "Very nice."

Thoughts by

Gabriel Sanders

Namaste.

Purusha

The seer, the observer. The inner being (perfect, whole, strong, beautiful, and vital), separate from our mind, separate from our body. Our truth, our light, our, pure Self.

We are a being before we become human, while we are in the shell of humanness, and when we die. Our being is timeless, shapeless.

Imagine wearing a pair of glasses. The frames are your mind, the lenses your ego, and you - the observer, are your purusha - but you are also the purusha, you inner being watches life through your mind, and your ego corrodes the lenses with scratches, blemishes, cracks - these are your doubts, your judgements, your critiques, your imprints from your past haunting you, your worries of the future, etc... constant thoughts... constant fears. This is your ego. It not only prevents you from seeing yourself clearly - your perfect, whole, beautiful, strong Self; but also everyone and everything else - you cannot see anyone else clearly with scratched lenses. But if you remove the glasses, and let your inner being - your purusha - see clearly, just observing, then the light of your inner being is let out, shining on everyone and everything else - seeing their beauty and truth as well.

Try it -- just sit on the subway and just look at people without judgements. Let your purusha shine through.... this might make you smile or laugh at the wonderment.

We as beings are here to observe through this body we are given during this lifetime. Let's make it as powerful and special, truthful and beautiful as it can be.

As Shakespeare said: "To thine own self be true."

Santosa

Santosa

-Is one of the niyamas

-Modesty and the feeling of being content with what we have

-A feeling of well-being no matter what

-Acceptance of whatever happens (and learning from it)

-A feeling of happiness that we don't have to go outside ourselves to find

-Different from satisfaction - satisfaction is the result of having a desire fulfilled

-We don't need to do anything to reach santosa other than look within ourselves

-Encompasses our mental activities such as study, physical efforts, how we earn our living

Namaste,

Cat

Avidya

4. Anityasuci duhkahanatmasu nitya suci sukhatmakhyatir avidya.

Ignorance is regarding the impermanent as permanent, the impure as pure, the painful as pleasant, and the non-Self as the Self.

Avidya is often spoken of in metaphorical terms as a veil that separates the illusory world from the eternal truth of Oneness. However, I tend to think of avidya as more of a quilt than a veil. A patchwork quilt, to be precise. With each action that perpetuates avidya, I sew another patch onto the quilt of ignorance. It grows larger and larger, more colorful and grotesque. 

Every time I make statements of identification - "I am this, you are that" - I reinforce a false notion of division. I am attaching myself to temporary states of being by mistaking them for permanent. When things shift, as they inevitably will, I experience suffering in the face of change as a result of my own grasping.

This is not to say we do not each possess unique qualities and characteristics. Those qualities and characteristics are earthly, and do not make us who we are as spiritual beings. It's the soul that travels on, reincarnates, and, if liberated from the wheel of samskara, finds union with the great beyond. All of the "I" statements  - markers of the small self - must drop away.

When I convince myself that my thoughts, words, and deeds are pure, when they are in fact rooted in jealousy, anger, or resentment, this is another expression of avidya. I am not speaking or acting in the grace of satya, and thus avoiding the truth of Oneness.

Emily Stone articulated this dilemma quite poetically in one of her Lotus Flow classes a few weeks ago. She said, "If you have to ask yourself before speaking, 'Does this bring me closer to speaking my truth?', then you should probably keep it to yourself."

Regarding the painful as pleasant can show up in habits that we insist upon maintaining, despite the pain, confusion and suffering they might cause. Take a moment to consider something you do that hurts you but has become acceptable, and yet does nothing to further you along on the path towards samadhi and moksha.

Another way I like to think of avidya is in the context of Lacanian psychoanalysis. I won't go too much into detail, and I will say that there are vast disparities between yogic philosophy and Lacanian theory. In any case, Lacan spoke of language as a system of symbolic references that ultimately fail to get at the heart of the matter. When we speak, we are speaking from history, from ancestry, from the depths of the unconscious. We are saying things we don't mean to say and we are rarely saying what it is we truly wish to express. Our arrangements of words eventually compose our self-images and understanding of who we are, in the broadest sense, but this is a false understanding. 

The "goal" of Lacanian analysis (if you can call it that) is to reach a point at which you can truly speak your desire (the definition of desire here goes far beyond the mundane). Until one reaches that place of truth-telling (and few people ever do), we are weaving tapestries of illusion with failed communications and false transmissions. We are circling and circling without reaching the center. 

For me, this concept embodies avidya to some extent. Avidya feeds on the addition of patches to the quilt, or on the continued laps around a seemingly unending course of language that does not carry truth.

Recipes

Dear friends,

Thank you so much for all the beautiful stories you shared yesterday. For some reason, I was really hungry when I got
home, and a friend passed along this vegetarian blog with yummy recipes. There are so many great ideas on here! See you later today. Ommmmmmm

Betsy

burn after writing

burn after writing

burn after writing it she said

but i want to tell you what i feel i said

there is no need she said

but i thought we love each other i said

loved she said

stop thinking she said

its over she said

i know i said

but where will my feelings go i said

i don't need to know she said

will we ever speak again i said

don't hold your breath she said

you have feelings too i said

not for you she said

i had she said

it's over she said

i know i said

we shared for so long i said

there's no time for that anymore she said

i still have things to say i said

i know she said

lets clean up the air i said

its too late she said

its over she said

write them down and burn the paper she said

did you ever listen to me i said

did you listen to me she said

i made mistakes and apologized i said

you hurt me she said

so long ago i said

and i will never forget what you did she said

we still stayed together for so long i said

and i told you who i wanted you to be she said

i know i tried i said

its too late she said

its over she said

i know i said

who is he i said

who she said

your new friend i said

not you she said

how long i said

leave me alone she said

its over she said

i know i said

write what you want to tell me and burn it she said

then why should i write it down i said

because you are bothering me now she said

my words are pure and honest i said

there is the door she said

i entered that door many years ago i said

i have things to do she said

i know your schedule i said

i don't have time for this she said

maybe we can talk again some day i said

talk to the paper and burn it after writing she said

i understand i said

good

bye

gabriel sanders

10.13.10

Palestinian Parkour

Thank you!!!

After a tough day yesterday, I loved waking up this morning and exploring so many of your personal blogs. Thank you for putting yourselves out there! Inspirational and comforting at the same time.

Helpful Links

Happy Friday, Beauties!

So that we have them in one place. here are some of the links you all have shared via email in the past:

From Gilda:
"I wanted to share this helpful link I found...if you look under the "prayers" tab you will find our Togetherness Mantra, and the asana tab is quite helpful too  :O)"

http://www.tilakpyle.com/sanskrit.htm

From Betsy:
"I stumbled on this chart this morning that lists a lot of great information (color coded!) about the chakras. Passing along if it might be useful to you like it was to me. Namaste."
http://www.chakraenergy.com/chart.html


Please feel free to keep adding to this!


Shanti, hk

Some visual inspiration from the amazing human body... click here for more!

If you ever need a smile on your face...

Watch this video!!  The kids are so adorable!  And it is a great reminder that yoga should be fun and silly.

-Cat

Good NY Times Article - When Yoga Hurts

Togetherness Mantra

Om Saha Navavatu
Saha Nau Bhunaktu
Saha Viryam Karavavahai
Tejasvi Navaditam Astu
Ma Vidvisavahai
Om Shantih Shantih Shantih