4.11.07
I am sort of back on the electronic earth. Really I am 10x busier here than back in TX. How does it happen? I do not know. I'm sitting for about 18 hours of class a week (most is lecture, some mantra recitation and sanskrit practice. Absorbing theories of consciousness, rules of grammar and memorizing mantras and sanskrit paradigms is all a bit taxing....rewarding, but taxing. Couple that with a couple hours of "family time" per day, and somehow, the hours are just all gone!

Things were not so busy until I added a new class (meeting daily for 2+ hours). Thankfully, it is my favorite part of the day. I am sitting with a Belgian practitioner learning the lalita sahasranama stotra, which is a powerful mantra that honors/describes a more subtle form of devi (great goddess). It is beautiful and so powerful. It helps me to feel more concentrated and more in the flow of nature/life. Another great thing about this lesson is its location and company! Jan, my teacher lives at a tiny, lovely ashram right on the ghats. It has a full view of the river and of all 3 cremation grounds, the oldest one Harischandar ghat is very close. The head of the ashram is a jolly Naga Baba (red dhoti, dreadlocks, covered in ashes, rudraksha strands draping from his neck and cigarette dangling from his mouth) who loves to feed people! So, everyday, after we finish the lesson, I am invited to stay for the most delicious lunch. Babaji is a bit of an attention hound, so he loves people to come and sit and listen to his wild stories and tell him how wonderful his food is (it is!!!).

I am finally shifting to a new place. It is not such a great location, but the bathroom and kitchen are attached to the 1 room and it is private, so I do not have to worry about getting dressed to go to the bathroom or climbing 4 flights of stairs every time I forget something in the kitchen. I will miss the Ganges view, but hope to make a deal so that I can still use this roof for gardening and doing yoga.
My little garden is really blooming!! I have a few pots of Swiss Chard and some hollyhocks (all American seed imports... oops). When it came time to thin the Swiss chard, I had enough baby leaves to have a big green salad for breakfast. Eating fresh organic greens was more satisfying than you can ever imagine!! No worries of contamination from poop or pesticide! Ahhhh.....

So that is a snippet from life on the Ganges. Hope all are well back on the N AM continent!
Enjoy the pics. I took them on an early morning boat ride with some of my yoga students from Montreal (super cool gals!).