Oh Oh! Just a quick note to let all know I am alive. Fell off the face of the earth and into a little parasite hole! Will be back soon!
xo
g
Thursday, November 29, 2007
Sunday, November 4, 2007
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!).
Thursday, October 25, 2007
Life is rolling on here in Banaras. The cold is waning and I finally made it to the computer. Only for a minute. Thanks for all the comments! Yes, I did cut my hair. Sort of accidental. Deepa was convinced that I needed a new look so I went to the salon and they chopped me up. It is OK I guess, still getting used to it. Non-attachment right?
Tuesday, October 23, 2007
Life never turns out as we imagine it should or even as we imagine it might, but it is beautiful- even when it seems unpleasant! Today sitting in my room, nursing a cold brought on by changing season, too much activity and riding Beauty in “rush hour” heavy pollution traffic, I played “fortune teller” with a bag of Yogi Tea- Breathe Easy. In my mind, I simultaneously formed two burning questions about current situations over here and thought to myself that the Yogi Tea bag- with its little quote on the end of the bag- would have the answer! Ha ha… Sure enough, it did…. “Bliss is not disturbed by either gain or loss.” I guess that could be the answer to almost any question, but it made me feel a bit better about the needless fretting I have been doing. In fact, it caused me to have a good laugh. So as I worry about finding the perfect place to live and navigating culture and environment, I just have to remember that none of it really has an impact on the inner-bliss because it is constantly changing, every second and is not disturbed by gain or loss.
Aside from fortune telling with tea bags, there has been much celebrating and worshiping of the great Devi, Durga. Most of the celebration I’ve been privy to is on par with American style Christmas- loads of decorations, lights, parties, dancing and not exactly a whole lot of reflection or meditation on what Navratri itself. Fair enough! Gathering with friends and relatives does wonders for one’s spirit.
Last night Praveen, Deepa, Rekha, kids, their friend Rakesh and I went to a stellar party where we danced all night long, playing Dandia. Honestly, I am not quite sure what it is all about, but it was a blast. I know it is a dance form from Gujarat and I’ve seen it in Bollywood movies, but other than that….? Once you get the hang of it, it’s a blast! Can not remember the last time that I danced for so many hours. Actually, I won a prize. What for? I do not know. I guess because I was the only foreigner and I am tall and I danced a lot???? Even better than that is the fact that the lovely sari I was wearing did not quite fall off!
Tomorrow, it is back to studies and apartment hunting.
Aside from fortune telling with tea bags, there has been much celebrating and worshiping of the great Devi, Durga. Most of the celebration I’ve been privy to is on par with American style Christmas- loads of decorations, lights, parties, dancing and not exactly a whole lot of reflection or meditation on what Navratri itself. Fair enough! Gathering with friends and relatives does wonders for one’s spirit.
Last night Praveen, Deepa, Rekha, kids, their friend Rakesh and I went to a stellar party where we danced all night long, playing Dandia. Honestly, I am not quite sure what it is all about, but it was a blast. I know it is a dance form from Gujarat and I’ve seen it in Bollywood movies, but other than that….? Once you get the hang of it, it’s a blast! Can not remember the last time that I danced for so many hours. Actually, I won a prize. What for? I do not know. I guess because I was the only foreigner and I am tall and I danced a lot???? Even better than that is the fact that the lovely sari I was wearing did not quite fall off!
Tomorrow, it is back to studies and apartment hunting.
Monday, October 22, 2007
Sunday, October 21, 2007
Durga, Durga, Durga!
Varanasi is pretty wild and crazy right now! Durgaji, is everywhere. Many of the businesses and clubs have put up temporary installations of Durga slaying Demons. I will save stories until Tuesday when the whole festival is over. For now, enjoy the video below. Wild animatronic display of Disney proportions!
Monday, October 15, 2007
Mad bulls and Mantra
14.10.07
Every day in India is exiting but today was a bit more so. After morning “rituals” I clumsily rode Beauty to guruji #1’s (PSNM) house for a Sanskrit grammar lesson, ufff… and then to the internet café to connect to the world. While I was at the shop, Deepa and Rekha called me over for chai and to practice my abysmal Hindi. Lucky for me, they fed me lunch after which, I went back to my house and was fed a second lunch by the landlord (Pancam)! Might sound a bit excessive, but considering my intermittent lack of food, when offered, I will happily eat two lunches.
Because I am not enamored with my kitchen (3 stories away from my room), and because I might be just a tad lazy when it comes to cooking, most days I eat one meal plus a little snack for breakfast and maybe something little for dinner (a dwindling supply of Whole Foods bars). I could pretend to justify this by saying that yogis only need to eat one meal a day and maybe it is true, but I do not think it counts for “yogis” who are living in more or less urban India and walking or cycling all over town! I’m hoping to move into a new flat with a kitchen that is a little closer by! Ok, enough of the daily droll…
Now for some excitement… Today, I was saved from a mad bull by a herd of water buffalo! On the way to guruji #2’s (Markji) house the tiny little alley on which I was walking became suddenly treacherous. A poor bull had somehow broken his horn, was bleeding all over the place and clearly agitated. He was dashing side to side swinging his head, grunting and charging at anyone who got close. So, once again, I was forced onto a stoop to wait for some sort of solution. Luckily, after 2-3 minutes a cow-herd was driving his buffalos up the alley and forced the bull to move off to the side, so all of us waiting to pass joined in the water buffalo parade and dashed pass the unnerving bull.
Just FYI: Varanasi is famous for its tiny alley-ways (gullies) and plethora of cows and buffalo. Not an hour goes by when walking or riding in the city that you have to dodge some sort of live-stock.
------------------------
In this evening’s Tantra Sara lecture we studied the subtle energies of the letters, mostly relating to bija mantra and the significance of mantra (beautiful insights into the nature and power of mantra). I found this particularly interesting: The power of mantra is in its ability to free your mind from thought constructs so that one can rest in the pure undivided consciousness. Bija mantra’s are extremely powerful because they have no direct-literal meaning so there is no concrete concept for your mind to attach to and create thoughts around. They carry the resonance and power of the energy they represent/embody, but are totally free from the burden thought construct.
One other thought… The most meaningful lessons always seem like something your grandmother could have told you. See the following:
“The more attached we become to something the less we are able to use our powers of discrimination. The more detached we are, the better we are able to discriminate and make choices that will not cause suffering.”
Every day in India is exiting but today was a bit more so. After morning “rituals” I clumsily rode Beauty to guruji #1’s (PSNM) house for a Sanskrit grammar lesson, ufff… and then to the internet café to connect to the world. While I was at the shop, Deepa and Rekha called me over for chai and to practice my abysmal Hindi. Lucky for me, they fed me lunch after which, I went back to my house and was fed a second lunch by the landlord (Pancam)! Might sound a bit excessive, but considering my intermittent lack of food, when offered, I will happily eat two lunches.
Because I am not enamored with my kitchen (3 stories away from my room), and because I might be just a tad lazy when it comes to cooking, most days I eat one meal plus a little snack for breakfast and maybe something little for dinner (a dwindling supply of Whole Foods bars). I could pretend to justify this by saying that yogis only need to eat one meal a day and maybe it is true, but I do not think it counts for “yogis” who are living in more or less urban India and walking or cycling all over town! I’m hoping to move into a new flat with a kitchen that is a little closer by! Ok, enough of the daily droll…
Now for some excitement… Today, I was saved from a mad bull by a herd of water buffalo! On the way to guruji #2’s (Markji) house the tiny little alley on which I was walking became suddenly treacherous. A poor bull had somehow broken his horn, was bleeding all over the place and clearly agitated. He was dashing side to side swinging his head, grunting and charging at anyone who got close. So, once again, I was forced onto a stoop to wait for some sort of solution. Luckily, after 2-3 minutes a cow-herd was driving his buffalos up the alley and forced the bull to move off to the side, so all of us waiting to pass joined in the water buffalo parade and dashed pass the unnerving bull.
Just FYI: Varanasi is famous for its tiny alley-ways (gullies) and plethora of cows and buffalo. Not an hour goes by when walking or riding in the city that you have to dodge some sort of live-stock.
------------------------
In this evening’s Tantra Sara lecture we studied the subtle energies of the letters, mostly relating to bija mantra and the significance of mantra (beautiful insights into the nature and power of mantra). I found this particularly interesting: The power of mantra is in its ability to free your mind from thought constructs so that one can rest in the pure undivided consciousness. Bija mantra’s are extremely powerful because they have no direct-literal meaning so there is no concrete concept for your mind to attach to and create thoughts around. They carry the resonance and power of the energy they represent/embody, but are totally free from the burden thought construct.
One other thought… The most meaningful lessons always seem like something your grandmother could have told you. See the following:
“The more attached we become to something the less we are able to use our powers of discrimination. The more detached we are, the better we are able to discriminate and make choices that will not cause suffering.”
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