You are certainly the non duality we all emanate from. The quest for knowledge is to realize the infinite in our current incarnation. This incarnation expresses in duality and we tend to identify with this expression but, through careful practice, we can enlighten ourselves past this expression (ego) and achieve oneness
Category Archives: Insights
Nonviolent Food Protest
In one of our last postings there was a beautiful poem, from Chad, which noted the importance of nutrition– as it relates to sadhana. The way we approach eating, furthermore our perception of food, is integral to our spiritual development. Naturally, this creates space for a lot of debate; including: morality, the karmic energy of the food we eat, and meeting our nutritional requirements.
In this tradition we subscribe to the idea that we are not merely a body (I use the word “merely” because it is not that the body is unreal– it is simply not who you are at the deepest level). In this tradition, and many other mystical philosophies, the body is the outward, gross, and transient projection of an eternal and perfect source. The body is an instrument in which to experience this world. If one’s goal is enlightenment, like a virtuoso, one must tune, clean, and treat their instrument with respect.
I work in health and wellness as my profession, although I am not a nutritionist, and I have a strong understanding of the purpose of food. As my teacher says, “food is for the cells“; ironically, a baby knows this– they do not come into the world wanting chocolate or candy. However, somehow along the way– we lose sight of this and we begin to look to our food to fulfill a longing in ourselves.
In the Yoga Tradition, the desire to eat is considered to be one of the four primitive fountains: sleep, sex, self-preservation, and food– these are the primal urges from which all other desires “spring forth”. These impulses are inherent to the souls incarnation in a human body.
The problem is that we are so deluded, so entrenched in our body identification that we let these urges, which help to keep the body functioning, run amok. We say things like, “I want sweets, I want alcohol, and I want to lie on the couch”. Truthfully, the urges are imbalance and unchecked– “I” never wants for anything because “I” is a manifestation of the ego. “We” are perfect and whole; the body needs sustenance to function optimally. But, we are looking outside and finding disastisfaction. Then we indulge these cravings and we are sad and disappointed– they do not bring us true joy.
If we are seekers, then we begin to revere the body as a great gift and we want it to assist us in pursuing our spiritual endeavors. In order for the body to facilitate the pursuit of transcendence, we must consider the significance of the foods we ingest. Ann Wigmore aptly said, “The food you eat can be either the safest and most powerful form of medicine or the slowest form of poison.”
Yet, it’s more than the nutritional content of the food that must be considered. Most of us are intelligent enough to know if our food promotes health or harm. However, it is also the sensory experience we are trying to derive from our fuel. We want food to be exotic and fascinating. Since we are all one, we must consider the impact, environmentally, on the quest to have a mango in December. Consider eating in a monastary, food is simple and often taken in silence. When we eat slowly, mindfully, and with gratitude we may discover untapped joy in taking in the energy of God to reconnect us with that which we are.
Death is a transition…
Death has not been as proximal to me as it has been to others. I have never lived in a war zone, I did not have friends succumb to violence in youth, my grandparents, parents, sibling, and spouse are either alive or have transitioned at a ripe old age. However, this year two friends, both in their middle thirties and who I had been very close to several years ago, passed away. Whenever death makes a showy appearance it causes me to reflect on impermanace and transition.
My husband, one of my greatest teachers, refers to death as the great equalizer–it is the one experience we are all guaranteed to partake in. However, it is also the one we have no concrete information on… we will only know when we arrive.
Here arises the question, how do we best prepare for this unavoidable journey? One place is with an understanding of the concept of avidya— the primal ignorance of identification with what is not who we are.
The Himalayan Tradition holds to the belief that, to the uniformed individual, what we appear to be and what we truly are is often misunderstood. What we are, according to this nondual tradition, is eternal, perfect, pure consciousness. What we appear to be is temporary, greatly flawed, and governed by the laws of the physical world–avidya is this misidentification.
How do we begin to dissolve the grip of avidya, the first step is knowing of it’s existence. The second is through our meditation and adjunct practices.
In meditation, we, initially, set down the false identities that are closer to the surface: teacher, student, asana instructor. Gradually progressing to the deeper ones: wife, mother, woman. Eventually to the deepest ones: human, fearful, temporary.
Many traditions discuss practicing for death– I particularly resonate with the sibling tradtion of Tibetan Buddhism and their “Death Meditations“. The Himalayan Tradition explains we must be a scientist “an interior researcher“– we musn’t subscribe to a belief because of blind faith– we must develop experiential knowledge. We can lightly knock on the entrance to deaths door by moving into the causal plane of consciousness with Yoga Nidra in savasana (the one asana that no one seems to translate into English “corpse pose”); or, we can move into superconsciousness with meditation and experience the Silence of the Center. Although these are temproary states, little by little one develops a knowing that these states are closer to our intrinsic one.
I have no intention of belittling the grief that we experince with the “passing” of a loved one through the veil. However, as this transition is inevitable for all of us it would behoove us to be as comfortable and unafraid of this journey as possible.
The Pinnacle of the Three Streams
Sometimes you learn a technique, teaching, or explanation that cannot be trumped. I was on Facebook reading a fellow teachers notes and they reminded me of Swami Jnaneshvara’s succinct cumulative definition of Yoga. Since it is not something that can be intellectualized, this definition is comprised of a few ways to gain a mote of “comprehension” of something that is purely experiential. I have added links to every one of the Sanskrit terms. Learning these relationships is a great asset in the development of a Yoga Meditation practice. Thank you, Swami J, for your compilation. (The full text from which this definition is drawn can be found here)
Traditionally, Yoga (Sanskrit: union) has referred to the realization through direct experience of the preexisting union between the microcosm of individuality and the macrocosm of universality, Atman and Brahman, Jivatman and Paramatman, and Shiva and Shakti, or the realization of Purusha standing alone as separate from Prakriti.
Yoga is the union of the
– Microcosm of individuality and the
– Macrocosm of universality
Yoga is the union of
– Prana vayu (the upward flowing prana) and
– Apana vayu (the downward flowing prana)
Yoga is the union of
– Atman (Center of consciousness, Self; Vedanta) and
– Brahman (Absolute reality; Vedanta)
Yoga is the union of
– Jivatman (Soul as consciousness plus traits; Vedanta) and
– Paramatman: (Self/soul as only consciousness; Vedanta)
Yoga is the union of
– Shiva (Static, latent, unchanging, masculine; Tantra) and
– Shakti (Active, manifesting, changing, feminine; Tantra)
Yoga is the dis-union of
– Purusha (Untainted consciousness; Sankyha-Yoga) and
– Prakriti (Primordial, unmanifest matter; Sankyha-Yoga)
Where two or three have gathered…
This week has been one of many opportunities to connect, spiritually, with many similarly minded individuals. I travelled to my teacher’s ashram in Fort Walton Beach and participated in meditation sittings and two group discussions, I had a birthday and (experienced Facebook at it’s best) received prolific blessings from loved-ones and associates, I lead an ongoing meditation group, I participated in Unity’s World Day of Prayer, I began a new weekly meditation group, I participated in the Women of Unity meeting, and lead a workshop in the North Georgia mountains–phew! Now, that is not a typical week; I feel as though my spiritual cup is full to the brim. I also feel that this chance to share sacred space was a reminder of the importance of satsang–keeping company with the truth.
It is so easy to get caught up in the mundane: work, family obligation, and general busyness. Therefore, the Himalayan Tradition recommends sitting to meditate daily– connecting with your source regularly. When you are “plugged in” to the source, you are more inclined to remember that all that is “outside” of you is merely the “Divine Play“.
However, sharing space adds another dimension to one’s spiritual practice– above and beyond merely sharing similar ideas. When you are with other sadhakas (aspirants), you are reminded that your center is the same as theirs. It injects you with an optimism that there are others on this quest and reminds you, that despite all the negative images and sound bytes in the media, that there are others who are on a quest to really know themselves as well.
We all here about retreats; it is good to get away and be alone. But, propagate that energy and get together are share sacred space too!
My Mental Meditation Pillow
A few months ago I was being coached by a wonderful teacher, Radhika Shah-Grouven, about how to keep doing “this” when I am so busy. I know we all feel very busy– and, with regards to scheduling, I am: the family, full-time job, additional clients, commuting, this blog… this list could be endless. However, I find that I am only as overwhelmed as I believe that I am– of course, this falls within certain physical parameters: I must get sleep (although I get 5.5-6 hours), I must eat well, I must drink water, I must exercise, and I must meditate. Meditation doesn’t cause me to suddenly have a “stress”-free life. However, it does cause me to be very aware of my reaction to stress. It has afforded me enough self-awareness to realize how much I can take on or how much I must put down. I definitely experience times of ambivalence and apathy– times where I would rather sit on the couch and veg-out. However, I would rather allocate predetermined amounts of “free-time” to meditation. My lineage recommends four times a day– that may seem daunting to a newcomer. I would recommend a newcomer dedicates time for one to two sittings. As I have stated previously, five to seven minutes; but, commit and do it. In the same way you wouldn’t consider leaving the house without brushing your teeth, commit to going inside. My teacher, Swami J, says to make it an appointment, like lunch with a friend. Furthermore, if you are late, you postpone and make it up, as soon as possible– like your lunch date. Life happens, I understand; but, as Radhika taught me, you have a “mental mat”– it goes with you every where. She explained that there were times when she just touched the mat while riding the train! The more you return to center, the more it stays with you. Many times my meditation pillow is in the cockpit of my car and my meditation room is a parking lot.
I Am Everyone…
I recently read a blog post, “I am (Not) Mike Brown“– which deeply touched me. Although my aim is not to politicize my blog, the title of the post evokes powerful concepts that are addressed in the Yoga tradition. There is an idea in conventional circles (I say conventional and not the West– some of the most amazing teachers live in the West), that Yoga is associated with an “anything goes” sort of attitude. While I cannot speak for other schools of thought and movements, I can say Yoga, at its center, has an ethical core. In my last post, “Begin to Meditate“, I present the concept of the Yamas and Niyamas from the Yoga Sutras. The first principle of which is Ahimsa, non-violence–to your Self and others. Some people have called the Yamas and Niyamas, the “10 Commandments of Yoga”– which I refute as having a punitive, patronizing tone. Yoga is about Self-direction, the sages do not tell us to fear the wrath of an anthropomorphized deity. However, they explain that we are all one. If we go inside, regularly, and establish a relationship with our transcendent existential core we will, inherently, not wish to harm one another. The brilliant late, Georg Feuerstein, a German-Canadian Yogi and Scholar, wrote extensively about morality as it relates to the Yoga tradition as well as an eloquent ethical guidelines for Yoga teachers. His writings affirm our natural ability to emanate goodness and to seek harmony when we frequently return to our center.
Begin to meditate
It’s wonderful and ironic how the idea of meditating has gained so much popularity. Naturally, after modern medicine “verifies” its benefits, many of the skeptics come on board (no real digs at modern medicine– I’m an exercise physiologist). However, according to the traditional teaching of the Yoga Sutras, meditation is not the first step on the path to Union, Enlightenment, Self-Realization, or Transcendence (whatever you may call the experience– not concept). In fact, meditation (dhyana) is the 7th of the 8 rungs. It is recommended to get one’s house in order prior to meditating. That presents a stark contrast to the modern/Western idea that meditation is for stress reduction or happiness. Meditation is work– but that doesn’t mean it is an unattainable feat. One doesn’t simply sit and meditate. When one has done the preparatory work, meditation more naturally unfolds. I mentioned in previous posts introspection and sitting in silence. It is my personal experience that when my life is in more chaos, meditation is not easily attainable. Listen to the inner call to deal with what it happening in your “outer” life that may be distracting you from the “inner”. In Setting it All Down, I discussed my personal drama with feeling attacked. That is something to address and not avoid– the spiritual path is not about avoidance. The yamas and niyamas can offer insight into areas of our life to balance which will incline us to naturally want to go inside. If you are still working with introspection– let this direct cleaning house. If you already meditating perhaps this will create a space to deepen your practice.
Setting it all Down
Recently, I was Skyping with my beloved teacher and asking him to disambiguate some confusing Yoga concepts. As usual I was over-thinking and entering into a very cerebral place about one of the many conceptual experiences the ancient Yogis describe. Swamiji asked me, describe 4 things that I am. I responded, “I am a woman, I am Black, I am a mother, and I have curly hair” (I’ll never forget those attributes I selected!). He said, “you are none of those things, those are simply roles you are playing.” We went onto to corroborate the nature of our true Self (notice the capitalization– it will be discussed in future postings). Furthermore, he expounded, “when you meditate you set those things [identities] down. Then, later on when you pick them up, they are a little lighter.” That’s it in a nutshell– meditation is practicing our true identity–which is something far greater than the illusion of words. Today was a day when I was particularly caught up in the mundane– I felt as if the outside world was against me. But, it can’t be… because like my roles the macrocosm has roles–and everyone in it is playing a part. They can’t be against me because we are the same. Meditation helps to establish awareness of that connectedness. Now, regardless of how my perceived conundrum unfolds, I will return to the Center and know that I am unchanged–for the better.
From the Gross to the Subtle 