bhakti

One of my favorite parts of yoga is that there is something for everyone. In the West most people are only familiar to Hatha Yoga, but sun salutations are not what makes someone a yogi. There are actually many margas (paths)...

• Raja Yoga: Path of Meditation
• Jnana Yoga: Path of Knowledge
• Karma Yoga: Path of Selfless Service
• Bhakti Yoga: Path of Devotion

Of all the different margas, bhakti yoga is what resonates with my heart and soul. I enjoy the rituals, chanting, dancing, japa, pujas and other types of bhakti practices. So I was beyond excitement last weekend when I had the opportunity to spend an entire day with the ultimate bhakti yogis: the Hare Krishnas. The day included a beautiful aarati, a poetic translation of Chapter 5 of the Bhagavad Gita, a blessed feast, and a sweet asana practice.

Between the events I had an opportunity to visit with one of the devotees to learn more about her life at the farm, Krishna consciousness, and her spiritual practices. There are many different rituals and practices they do at the farm, but she says it all revolves around three things:

1. Chanting
2. Dancing
3. Feasting

I thought to myself, I can get down with that :)

It was a beautiful day filled with many lessons. As I drove back home I began to think, what am I devoted to in this lifetime? Is there anything I love as much as they love Krishna? What am I committed to?

The only answer that I can find is to simply grow. I want to grow in every way possible... as a spiritual being, as a sister, a yoga teacher, a daughter, a web designer, an artist, a seer, a tambourine master (haha)... I want to grow in all the directions of my life that bring happiness to me. And that's what happens when I chant, dance, perform pujas, etc... I fan that fire of love and devotion to grow.

Gratitude to Sri Michele Baker, Yogindra and all the other Krishna devotees who organized a very special day in the back woods of Mississippi. Hari bol!!!

om namah shivaya

Om dhyayet nityam mahesham rajata-giri nibham

cara candra-vatamsam ratna kalpo-jvalangam

parashu mrga vayabhiti hastam prasannam

padma-sinam samantat stuta-mam raganair

vyaghra krtim vasanam vishvadyam vishva bijam

nikhala bhaya-haram panca vaktram trinetram

I meditate on the one who shines like white mountains, ornamented by a crescent moon on his head. His body shines like jewels. His left hands hold an axe and the deer mudra while his right hands show mudras of blessing and fearlessness. With beautiful form, and wearing a tiger skin, he sits in full lotus. Celestial beings sing gems of praise on four sides. He is before the universe and the cause of the universe. His five faces and three eyes remove all fears.

One's True Nature

Bliss. Oneness. Nirvana. Heaven.

We have all experienced samadhi (union with the Divine) whether consciously or subconsciously. Sometimes it lasts only a second and other times, when we are truly fortunate, it lasts a few breaths. Many things can bring us to this euphoric state… Hiking to peak and being awestruck by god’s beauty, meditating after a rigorous yoga class, or looking into a loved one’s eyes feeling your heart open and knowing everything is as it should be. In this fleeting moment, we experience our true nature.


So what happens the rest of the time? We lose sight of who we truly are and get caught up in the illusions.

Through yoga, mediation and other spiritual practices I have been blessed to experience different levels of samadhi. It is like nothing I’ve experienced before. To be immersed in cosmic consciousness is indescribable. I know what our true nature is… I have experienced it in the core of my soul.. So how is it I forget it so easily?

This is my current struggle. I feel myself getting caught up in the “stuff”. I know it’s petty and its illusion is creating more samskaras, but I still give it the power to take me away from what is real.

When I feel myself slipping into these unhealthy patterns I’ve started a new practice. I try to remember the other states of consciousness I have experienced to remind myself… There’s more than this. This is simply form… formlessness is who and what we really are. I do not try to recreate the sensations of samadhi, as it is different each time, but I use those experiences as a reference point.

This is the practice… Every day, every hour, every minute and second of our lives… To re-member these precious moments when we feel at One with the Universe/Divine/God.

Only when we recognize and live in recognition of our own true nature, can we truly begin to serve.

"house of cards"

gratitude

"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.

Abide in the Truth that's beyond all illusion."

Gratitude to Sri Michele for guiding me through some of the most confusing days of my spiritual path. Her greatest gift is her unconditional love. Thank you for always reminding me of my true nature. Jai ma!

Peace Offering

Dios De Los Muertos

Today we celebrate Dios de Los Muertos - Day of the Dead. Right now the veils between the spirit world and physical world are very thin. It is the perfect time of the year to honor our ancestors and all this who have gone before us. When we tune in to our source/spirit, we can receive lessons from our angels, spirit guides, and ancestors.

This holiday ends with the sun goes down. The day in its entirety is like a breath. The day time is the inhale, and the darkness is the exhale. Sunset is the transitional part of the day, just as the most important part of the breath is the space between the inhale and exhale.

As you watch the sun go down, send love to all of the angles who support and carry you at all times. our breath connects us to Spirit. Follow it and list to the gifts of the dead.