Last week while teaching, the song Magic( from Xanadu, sung by the fab Olivia Newton John) popped into my head and dropped me into the following memory:

I'm eight years old. I'm with my best friend, Yvonne, and we're holding hands, skating at the roller rink. I'm wearing royal blue terry cloth shorts with yellow piping, a pink t-shirt with a sparkly decal "FOXY" patched across the chest, over -the -knee socks that match my red, white and blue roller skates. My sweaty palm is gripping Yvonne's sweaty palm so tight and we go into a unified skid, squealing with laughter and abandon… as we slide then awkwardly pull each other up, Olivia is belting out the following lyrics:
"You have to believe we are magic
Nothin' can stand in our way
You have to believe we are magic
Don't let your aim ever stray"


Often when I teach, a memory, an image, a voice will pop in. Instead of letting it derail me, I have learned that most of the time, it 's there for a reason... these so-called "interruptions" are really gifts. So on this day, as Magic is playing in me head and I am transported into "my eight year old embodiment, I look out at the class and realize, that the yoga in the room right now is way too intense. So intense, is the focus and effort, that it has hijacked any lightness or joy. Taking my cue from my inner child, I get everybody to abandon their perfectly precise sun salutations. I invite everyone to stand up and start shaking their bodies. I invite them to forget about breathing. I invite them to just feel their feet on the earth and just be moved from within. It took some coaxing, but soon, we were gyrating, bouncing, dancing...we are shaking our arms, shaking our hair, shaking things we never dare to shake. We are a sea of rhythmic beings, smiling, laughing, sometimes screaming with delight as we move around the room like wild horses. All seriousness and control is obliterated. At the end of five minutes of this, we had all finally, dropped in. In a way that only play can. The quality of breathing in the room was amplified. The lightness had returned. The joy was radiating through the room.

When's the last time you actually PLAYED?

Have you been sitting around chewing on an important question regarding work, relationship, a possible change? And if you have, and you feel stuck because there are so many different voices, how do you know which one to listen too? How do you get in touch with the true voice, the inner guru?

Rather than think your way through, what often helps me to access clarity around a specific situation and be more in tune with my intuition, is to simply, play.

In Sanskrit, there is a beautiful word, Lila. Lila means play. Swami Muktananda in his autobiography describes the universe as a Play of Consciousness. The playful nature of the Divine is ancient and pervasive, going back as far as the RgVeda and the Upanishads. The word lila is most often associated with the play of the Divine, who creates freely, merely for the joy of it, out of spontaneous creativity, not by any need, lack or desire.
In Gitanjali, Tagore writes, "there is something in common between the lila of childhood and the works of God” . The notion of lila is also used to explain human suffering. Mysterious and tragic events are viewed as part of the mysterious play of the gods. Lila reflects the spontaneous nature of the Divine, being not entirely predictable. And while this concept could lead to resignation, when it is embraced, it is often regarded as emancipatory.

If we look at archetypes like The Muse, The Inner Child, The Trickster or the Fool, they all point to , this aspect or quality of lila. Its the part of our psyche that is frivolous, that just wants to have fun, that yearns to let the inner child OUT. . It's that part of you that wants to go to a rock concert. Or wants to learn how to surf, even though you're forty-five and never been in the ocean. It's the part of me that always wants to dance.

About ten years ago, while immersed in a weekend yoga retreat, my teacher and friend, Hala Khouri, threw me for a loop when she shared with me an observation she had. In her loving way, she said, "Kim, sweetie, you need to let your inner child be free."
     "But I am free," I protested. "I walked the labrynthe two times, I hiked to the top of the sacred mountain, I've journaled the last two nights, I did everything I was supposed to this weekend to nurture myself."
     She smiled, then I caught myself. We both began laughing. Even my inner child had an agenda! I realized that what I had to do was stop doing, and allow spontaneity to take hold of me. What I had to do was let go and be moved toward activities for just the fun of it. So I ditched the silent hikes and lost hours playing in the river, overturning rocks and seeing how far I could throw them. I hollered like a monkey in the middle of the woods. I stopped journaling and I collected leaves and sticks and made a necklace. I climbed a tree with my stick necklace. I hollered more like a monkey. I banged on a drum and didn't worry about trying to make a song. I hollered like an Indian chief and banged my drum and pretended the tree was my teepee.

The power of play is magical and profound. When we let our inner child come out and play – we immediately tap our RIGHT BRAIN and move into creative, intuitive mind. Neural pathways fire up. Linnear, rational thinking, things that make sense, go out the window. We get to taste, the rasa called Abhuta-that awesome quality of wonder, mystery, and deep penetrating aliveness. Magic.

I am so grateful to be a mother, because having a child doesn't make me more of an adult, it actually makes me more of a child. And I mean this in the best sense of the word. I actually get a chance to play again. To step into my daughter's world and practice letting my inner child out of the cage of reason and adulthood.

Just the other night, for example, she traipses into the kitchen and begs me to go jump on the trampoline with her. I am in the middle of cooking dinner. I'm tired and irritated. It's been one of those days of endless tedious bill paying, bookkeeping, and general painstaking adult b.s. It's 6:30. It's semi-dark. The chicken needs to get on the grill, the green beans have just started to steam, the rice is mid-boil. I almost say no. But I give in to my inner child (and my outer child) and I say to myself, fuck it...I'm going. We end up jumping for nearly 30 minutes and by the time we return home, I have laughed my ass off, I am winded, i am sore, and I am light. The green beans are brown. The rice is raw. And the chicken has yet to be cooked. It's a little past seven and we still haven't eaten or taken a bath. But when I feel my inner smile and see that same smile on my girl's face, how can any of that trump this feeling of bliss and connection?

If you're pondering a big important adult question, instead of trudging down the adult route, skip down the Lila way! Stop making pros and cons lists, stop having conversations with other adults you know gives great advice, stop fantasizing about how this or that decision will impact this or that, just give it a rest and play...

Here's sone suggestions for Lila practice: things that have proven successful for me in the past and in the present. It's just a beginning!
-do an activity that you always wanted to do but never did-for example, if you're like me and a closet dancer, go take an African dance class!
-buy a hula hoop. There's something about hula hoops that are just ridiculously fun. And no, don't go to a hoop class IF there is the corollary thought, "well, at least it will burn some calories, too." That's not Lila.
-Go find your nearest Rollercoaster park and ride one
-Play a kids board game. Candyland. Connect 4. Remember Pick up Sticks?!?
-Get artistic and creative. Visit the art store, pick up some supplies, and make something. If that's too intimidating, by one of those kids kits, like Make Headbands or Make Your own Jewelry.
-Craft stores are amazing Lila enhancers. You can find anything your inner child's heart desires. Look around. Kill, yes, kill an hour simply perusing all the wonderful options for tapping your inner artist.
-Decorate Your body: put on temporary tattoos, body paint, face paint, weird wigs, costumes. Don't wait for Halloween!
-Jump on a trampoline the next time your kid asks you too. In fact, when they ask you to do anything that involves non-adult like fun, DO IT WITH THEM. Don't just send them off on a playdate-be their playdate!

Whenever I'm getting too stressed out, too serious, I engage lila. It is a practice that has helped me understand how powerful play can be in opening up the possibilities for new and fresh understanding. When I play, my Guru shows up even more powerfully. The naive and the wise are really so close, aren't they?

 

Seals are highly symbolic of our feeling, sensual selves. The seal helps us to remember our connection to our deep inner rhythms, feelings, and knowing, as represented by the sea.

Changing my diet had forced me to literally re-wire the old ways I thought about food and in doing so had expanded my ability to SEE the old emotional and mental paradigms I was stuck in. This wave of change I had initiated 3 weeks ago, reached its peaked, then whoosh, it crested, took me with its barrel, smacked me around a bit, then finally spit me up on the beach, dissovling into the sea of consciousness once again.

Seals swim both below and above water, giving them the ability to experience both the inner and outer worlds. They teach us how to flow, how to hear, and how to discover the deeper mysteries of their true nature. We often fight giving in to these deep rhythms and are afraid of ‘losing’ what we consider to be ourselves. When we are afraid of drowning in these depths, Seal being a good swimmer and knowing how to flow with the ever changing current, reminds us how to swim with the current. When we do this the negative feelings we have created such as worry, fear and anxiety are released from our minds.

Water is a creative element and symbolizes the feminine imagination and intuition. If the seal appears in your life, pay close attention to your imagination and insight - in the waking state and in dreamtime. The Seal can show you how to develop and focus your imagination. Seals are keepers of wisdom. They reveal to us what is hidden deep within ourselves, and teach us how to integrate our imagination with the reasoning power of the intellect. This will give balance and harmony on all levels. Sleek and graceful in the water, Seal teaches us how to feel at home in our bodies, and to uncover our inner beauty.

Letting go. Just the phrase itself evokes a spontaneous exhale and a sense of peace. Because the nature of life is constant change, we are asked to surrender and let go over and over again. And yet, we fight change with all our might and want to be in control.

This denial and non-acceptance of "what is" serves only to bring us suffering. Embodying change in an vinyasa flow practice serves as a powerful, delightful way to learn to relax and trust the process of letting go. A body moving freely understands release on a primal, cellular level and can therefore embrace the creativity and gift of change.

Whether practicing at home or with a group, following these easy tips will help you relax deeper into letting go.

1) Surrender your head. Let the weight of your head fall off of your shoulders. Allow the momentum and weight to pull your body into spirals, towards the ground, shifting your weight from side to side. The head tends to stay rigid because people are so visual and want to see what's going on. Let go of needing to see and go inside. Surrendering the head is both a physical and metaphysical act. In releasing the neck and head, you are sending yourself the message that you are putting aside the thinking mind. The meditation aspect of flow yoga  is fostered by this simple act of freeing your head.

2) Tune into your body's innate wisdom. Trust your instinctual urges. For example, you might feel a longing to lay on the ground despite the wild beats of the music. Too often people censor themselves and will push away that little voice inside so as not to bring attention to being "weird" or different." Old patterns of conditioning come up around concepts such as: "being seen and not heard," "behaving yourself," "being proper," to mention just a few. Flow yoga invites us to let go of those internalized rules that no longer serve. Practice trusting your gut impulse. Let go of past conditioning and judgment.

3) Consciously focus on your exhale. With every breath, feel yourself relax deeper. Let the body fold in as the air is expelled and open with the intake of breath. Exaggerate the exhalation, perhaps giving it sound. Especially if you find your mind getting caught up in thoughts, bring your attention to the breath and you will naturally shift back into the present moment. The breath is an ever-present tool in any meditation. Simply bring your awareness back to it.

4) Be total in your practice. If you are not fully involved body and soul in the practice, that points to some part of you that is standing outside yourself judging. Let go of your judgments and how others may perceive you. Get into it!

5) Relax. Let your body be moved by the dance of your breath. Drop pushing yourself and making "something " happen. Save your cardio goals for the gym. You may get an amazing workout in yoga, but the essential difference is that it happens organically in yoga and is not part of the ego's fitness agenda. It's about being not doing.

6) Stay open to change. Surrender your ideas of what you expect to get out of it. Bring awareness to how you shift inside as the music and movement changes. Enjoy the ride of the variety of moods and emotions you experience. Also notice how fleeting they are! Appreciate that. Even the darkest mood may suddenly transform to smiles or even laughter. Notice if you are clinging to any particular state, your bad mood, your elation. Notice the clinging, exhale and let go.

These simple techniques will serve as a foundation practice to deepen your journey into flow yoga. Of course, you are bound to get caught up in judgments, thoughts, control and clinging along the path. Above all, resist judging yourself for that! Gently remind yourself to exhale, surrender your head, trust your impulse and relax. And keep moving!

Last fall, I attended a weekend training with Shiva Rea all about her Yoga Trance Dance experience. As soon as we began, I knew that this spiritual art form was a culmination of so much of my own personal interface with sacred movement, and I totally fell in love. Sacred Space will be holding its first Yoga Trance Dance on Saturday, March 20, from 7-9 p.m.

But what is it?

Shiva Rea describes it as "a contemporary exploration of the spirit of dance within yoga. Beginning with prana yoga or the experience of prana-initiating yoga asanas, yoga trance dance flows into an exploration of free-form, breath-driven movement to liberate one’s creative life force and cultivate embodied freedom!"

One form of prana yoga is that thing we often do in classes where we start on all fours, allowing the energy of the present moment to dictate the ways in which we move. Included in Yoga Trance Dance are kriyas (repetitive, energetic movements) and, of course, free-form expression.

Why do this?

I think it's vitally important for human beings to dance, to let the hair down (an actual sign in the Mediterranean and the Middle East ancient world that people had gone into states of ecstasy) and rock it out. Cultures around the world use primal dance forms in order to reach altered states of consciousness, thereby connecting to transcendent expressions of Mystery - a chance to discover the Mover behind the movement.

None of this is about aesthetics or "dance ability." Everyone can dance, and although I often get head-shaking in response to this statement, just remember, every child is born knowing how to move rhythmically. All it takes is an experience like Yoga Trance Dance to unwind any negative thinking around our innate power to dance.

We'll be harnessing the power of the world around us during this first Yoga Trance Dance. That day is the Vernal Equinox, when the moments of daylight are equal to the moments of darkness. We've come out of the long haul of winter and are about to burst forth into creation and awakening - it's a perfect time for this sort of practice.

So, liberate your body mandala and shake it for spring, the oncoming light, and your own primal, dancing, authentic self.

Some years later, I'm now teaching it. 

I reconnected with the group through a yogi I know, who passed my name along to the group's organizer as a possible sub opportunity, and after subbing a couple of times and talking to Kim and Scott about it, we've started up a men's naked yoga class here at Sacred Space on Thursday evenings.

So, ummmm, why is this important or even a trend?

I think it can become an amazing, Tantra-inspired practice. There's nothing quite like being naked in front of people in "vulnerable" positions to help you confront your body issues. Feeling "unattractive"? Thinking that you're not "pretty" enough or "perfect" enough? Perhaps you compare your body to others' in class, believing that you're somehow inadequate to so-and-so.  Don't like feeling exposed, emotionally or mentally?

When I took the class a few years ago (in a mirrored studio, no less!), I realized how much time I spent wondering how I looked. Did this asana do good things for me? Oooooh, I'm not so sure about that extended side angle. Maybe, I should suck my stomach in, so my abs look better. Blah, blah, blah. 

However, at a certain point during the practice, the mental chatter dissolved, and I was able to sink into the unbelievable difficulty of hanging out in that full wheel for what seemed like an eternity. Or, trying to embody Virabhadrasana I and still breathe. Or any of the other millions of things that an asana practice demands of the yogi.

One of my favorite parts of Tantric philosophy is that we don't try and transcend all the muck of our daily lives by running away from it. We go deeper in. We face it, head on, and stare it down, until we realize that the challenge itself is the vehicle to enlightenment. For anyone with body issues, which is a majority of us, heading into a naked yoga class is taking up those Tantric reins and riding that horse until we're experiencing the deep liberation of the ride, instead of the jostling and discomfort of the horse's gallop.

Plus, Tantra is very body-positive, especially compared to the previous yogic viewpoint of the body just being a bag of blood, pus, and bile that needs to be discarded in order to achieve union with the Great Mystery. In much of Tantra, the physical form is an embodiment of deity and the potentials of consciousness. If I don't like feeling mentally or emotionally vulnerable or unprotected, it can be extremely powerful  to confront that by taking off all my clothes in front of other people and still finding my flow, strength and authenticity. The body holds a mirror up to our internal landscape, becomeing a tool for us to unravel the old thought and emotional patterns not just around our bodies, but around our very way of walking in the world.

So, for all the gentlemen of Sacred Space, dare yourself to stop by some Thursday night at 8:15. The class is only an hour, but I promise you, it will have an effect (you all know how I roll). For the ladies, consider starting up a class of your own.

(My hidden hope is that one day, the men and women could do a class like this together. Take that repressed, body-hating, weird, patriarchal overculture!)

But, wait a minute! I'm a Jew! I'm a Christian! I'm an Agnostic! I'm a Goddess Worshipper! I think religion is utter rubbish! Why should I do a yoga practice focused on some Hindu deity who has no bearing on my life? Or, who am I to call upon this deity when it's not part of my upbringing or spiritual background?

Me, personally? I'm an equal-opportunity deist. I think we resonate with various spiritual expressions, because those are the ways we find our path into yoga. I'm not talking yoga as asana practice - I'm talking the Maha Yoga, the Great Yoga of Union. A spot where, from my limited understanding, we merge completely with that divine power which pervades everything.

Call that divine power Shiva. Call it Kali. Call it Adonai. Call it Buddha. Call it Jesus. Call it Allah. Call it Cybele. Call it Gaia. Call it the Great Spirit. Call it Quantum Physics. Call it Love. Call it the Universe. No matter.

I'm currently reading The Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna, one of India's greatest saints, who lived in the 1800s. In it, he tells a story directly applicable to these concerns.

A man goes out into the forest and sees a most wondrous red creature in a tree. He runs back and tells all his friends, "I saw this amazing red creature in the large tree at the edge of the forest! You should see it!"

One of the friends runs to the edge of the forest to the large tree and sees a wondrous creature, but it's green, not red. He comes back and tells the friends, "I saw an amazing creature, but you're wrong. It's green, not red at all."

Another friend goes out, and when he returns, he says, "Hah! You're both wrong! The beautiful creature is blue! Are you blind?!"

One by one, all the friends return having seen a brown, pink, polka-dotted, and no-color creature in the tree. Finally, they all go together, sure they're going to prove one another wrong.

When they arrive, they see a man sitting under the tree, and he says to them, "Actually, you're all right. You've seen a chameleon. Sometimes, it's blue. Sometimes, red. Sometimes, orange. Sometimes, it's no color at all."

So it goes with "God." This doesn't mean that God is a great goddess to me, but really, once you work through that, she's Yahweh. No, it means that it doesn't matter how I approach divinity versus how you do. What matters is the approach leads us to communion with the divine and, hopefully, a chance to emanate radiant, divine love into the world.

So, if you're in a yoga class or out at a Starbucks and you hear someone talk about their bhakti-like devotion to the Physics of Light, or Kali, or Shiva, or Jesus, take a moment and open your eyes, because the chameleon just turned pink. 

  Hello out there! I'm here inside... with no connect to the outside....

    No lights, no computer, no hot water, no heat, no music, spoiled food...... and a tree down in our driveway. YEAH! we are stuck . So why is it that "my modern family"seems to be so restless? Where had my mothering failed them that they could not see the extraordinary opportunities of being inside? Could I use this inside time to teach them more lessons on humbleness and gratitude. I tried, yet modern technology won! Pained without my caffeine fix, I managed to face the next day now that the cold eve was behind. Pablo dug himself out of the Alps that covered our front porch.  As the humanitarian, he went to deliver firewood to others who also spent the night freezing without electricity. So I pulled on the snow gear and faced my inner storm... shoveling! I traveled back in time when the natural elements actually were our modern appliances. I made minny igloos on our deck to store our food.  Fortunately my dogs left the "Amy's" organics alone and only dug up the processed junk!  I am a real pioneer! But really, who was I kidding, I was starting to feel a real disconnect.

       Was I getting to cold to listen to my inner voice? Had I gone blind in the darkness to see my reality? As grateful and appreciative of a person I am, I recognized how human I am, I MISS MY THINGS! I feel lost without my phone, disconnected without the internet, my heart and head are pounding without my love habit Starbucks! Etc...

      Wait..A flicker of light, let me rub the sleep from my eyes, my inner light is shining. I take a deep breath.I am a human reminded of my perfect imperfections! My medicine today: attachment to material possessions. I contemplate on my chosen path today, Living Tantra.   

   "A Tantric Practice ignites your innate power to grow and blossom in every aspect of your life."         To practice the Tantric path is not a life of attachment and bondage. Rather to a Tantric , being human we have the opportunity to be free to grow from experiences and to honor with total awareness our oneness with the universe.

          As I rub warmth into my soles of my feet, I give thanks to mother earth for putting a freeze to my life. As our space is covered in a blanket of snow, the darkness it has brought has also lightened my path even brighter.   Sending warmth and light.... mindy

Time to dig out people!  This magical gift of Mother Nature has given us a chance to stop, breathe and simply be, for a while.  The opportunity is always there, but there's something about a snow storm that allow many of us to just relax.  But did you relax?  Was your snowed-in experience interlaced or even dominated by thoughts of the things you weren't getting done?  The lost opportunities or the things that "should have been done".  Were you able to enjoy the opportunity and let go of the 'doing' for 1 day.  Bears retreat into their dens for months on end as a necessary part of their basic survival.  The bear energy inside each of us connects to this feeling of hibernation and rest.  This is why you may have made a special grocery store run or stood in line at Blockbuster for 20 minutes, gathering all your supplies for hibernation.  No matter what our minds may tell us about our lack of productivity, our body and spirit feel a sense of wholeness when we can retreat and let go completely.

Did you lose your power in the storm?  Notice the thought that may have just entered your mind...... the recalling of exactly how many hours you were left in the dark.  Why is that important?  Have you shared your tale of woe with any of your friends and family?  What are you filling in yourself by telling people about your 'hardship'?  Temporarily waiting for the power to magically come back on, inside your home that has enough food to last you a month, wrapped in a warm blanket... is this hardship?  Or maybe you saw the power outtage as a rare opportunity to sit by a fire with your loves ones and connect fully to the moment in it's perfection.  However you held it, you were fully in charge of creating that experience for yourself.  And noticing this  reveals a lot about how you see yourself and what you're projecting into the world.

Our 'yoga practice' gives us an opportunity to be present and start noticing our unconscious ways.  The thoughts we have, the movements we make and our emotional responses to our experience... these things are all revealed as we move our bodies on the mat.  The asana practice is just the mode we use to reveal our natural tendencies.  So, what was your snowy weekend practice like? Think about your experience this weekend and notice the things that came up inside you.  From the things you enjoyed and connected with to the triggers and irritations you felt.  They all have equal power to teach you something about yourself.  Life is the practice.  This is the yoga. 

In honor to all of the peace pixies, fairies and warriors, I dedicate a story of The Snow Pixies. This story I tell, is based on a memory from when I was a child making snow angels.

       Long ago,the season of Winter was very drab , droopy and gloomy. The trees were bare of leaves and the grass was flat, dry , and brown. Mother Nature  was feeling very down at how drab everything looked, so she decided she was going to make winter sparkle.

      She called upon new light beings. She took a deep ... long ....  cooling breath. I am sure Mother Nature recited several "OM's"  and poof! The little light spirits shimmered and glistened with all their mystical powers... The Snow Pixies were born. These little light pixies were now very busy weaving beautiful designs made out of a white cold and fluffy material. Mother Nature now kindly asked her snow pixies if they could please spread their light and take all of their sparkling designs and sprinkle them on earth in the winter. She explained that their designs would glisten and spread a beautiful blanket of pure magical white light over dreary Winter. The Snow Pixies were so excited that they created billions and billions and millions of snow weavings. When they were done, they danced a glorious symphony among the clouds. The more the Snow Pixies trusted their inner voice and trusted each other , the more they created. And then when Mother Nature said it was time.... together as one Snow Pixie... A perfect, harmonious DEEP breath in and then out.... AHHHHHHHH.

        The Snow Pixies did it! By working together in light and love, they turned  a dull brown winter into a splendid glorious earth, covered in a blanket of glittering white. The snow became shelter for woodland animals by making a cozy blanket keeping the blustering wind from their burrows and dens. And for children of all ages , laughter and giggles , and snow sports and games. Just as the outdoor animals found comfort in the snow, so did people. Everyone got to slow down, and go inside when they were ready and had enough!  

   Every winter since, the Snow Pixies gather and weave their winter white magic. Maybe if your lucky, you will get to be under one of the Snow Pixie clouds..... And if so, remember...close your eyes, even for an instance ,stick out your tongue  and feel the glorious magic. Go for it ..fall backwards and feel the pixie snow dust beneath you .Spread your wings ...create that snow angel, and remember to give thanks to those Snow Pixies who brought light and glimmering white crystals of beauty and fun.

              So my yogini friends... go grab those grown ups hands near by and make them play in the snow with you. You might even teach them how to make real Snow People and Goddesses. Have FUN!   And for those yoginis who have danced our "Bhakti Groove" try it in the snow!

Peace,LOVE and Fun.....Thank you Yoginis fir a very special class this week.  mindy

She fled, becoming a sadhu, a wandering ascetic, traveling much of Northern India on foot, and she remained a fierce advocate for the role of women in India. She wrote poems that were full of love and were often erotic, but they always related to the connection between humanity and God.

Here's the poem I came across:

The moon was perched like a golden hawk on

the mango tree.

I knew the moon was like me - in heat,

crazed and hunting.

So I climbed up there with that wild old gal-

thinking:

Two drunk beauties like us

will surely snag

Krishna

with our

eyes.

I adore poems that cast our relationship with deity as that of lovers. It makes an intuitive sense to me, partly because sensuality is such a vibrant way for us to connect to one another, so why not to God? If our creator(s) blessed us with a built-in expression of ecstasy, why wouldn't we be able to connect to Him/Her/Them with the same level of intensity and passion? It's a perfect embodied metaphor for yoga - union. In the best experiences of making love, we merge, our egos are obliterated, we worship, adore and, in a final moment of orgasm, connect with something cosmic. We're given a glimpse of that greater Mystery in those moments, and then we can begin to parcel them out into all the moments and interactions in our lives.

I was struck by this woman, living in a very traditional and at-the-time patriarchal culture, going to the mat for her beliefs around love and the transcendent mysteries of our cosmos. It gives me hope that if she can do it, then perhaps, so can I.

Thank you, Mira. Wherever you are, I'm sure you've snagged more than Krishna's eyes.

we have made this connection,than nothing can go wrong..."_ Swami Paramananda 

           This magic allignment is the place where I am when I share , teach and play yoga. I thought it might be helpful since my "sacred kids" class has just been born to give a little re-cap of some of the magic that has occured in class over the past three weeks. I have shared my feelings in previous entries yet have not shared the subject matter. Truthfully, the magic that occured could never be written in a curriculumn . However, by sharing some terms and fundamental components that I weave through every class, my wish is that these life "threads" will be integrated in home and LIFE outside of weekly class.

       Bhakti Yoga- The path of pure spiritual devotion ...... Yes, I followed my heart and introduced this concept to ALL of the little yoginis, and to my wonderment , they all understood in their own pure way. Each practice I begin class with everyone dedicating  either silently or aloud, their yoga practice to someone. (last week we devoted a special blessing to the children of Haiti in addition to personal dedications.)Having  explained  that we are building a strong foundation like a house.,we repeat and go over the concepts introduced in new ways: dance , song, story and game. In all ages to develop our breathing for instance, we played with straws and pom-poms blowing them across the room.(sounds easy until you try it!) Our Peace Pixies have been very busy flying and flapping thier wings through secret gardens and exotic jungles and the ocean. Yoga poses are introduced in all aspects.We are growing flowers in all corners of the class, some even smell like "green trucks". We all enjoy our yoga rest "shavasana" while I, as much as the kids relish in peace during foot massage. We close in our peace circle allowing time for special gratitude through song and honoring each other with a closing "namaste"    Our Light fairies and Warriors really have deeply welcomed the concept of devotion. I am so moved by the compassion and global concern our light yoginis have. This past week in addition, to our deeply devotional practice, I focused on beauty and strength from the inside out! This theme was integrated in dance and Yoga Flow. Our yoginis are really building on connecting their yoga poses.We also yoga moved our feelings... I named our dance "The Bhakti Groove" we hold in what we are grateful for and we let out what does not work for us! A dance we all should do around the house!And then, Aaaaaahhhhhh Shavasana and with the older class a guided meditation. I can not express deeply enough how our yoginis really love this magical time. I encourage them to share and continue this every day even if it is for a minute. Imagine how our life might be free of stress and illness had we been introduced to these concepts as children???

             I close... in Dedication to your children and all the children of the world, that they may be encouraged to cherish and nurture their sacred spirits.    Peace , light, and love...  mindy      

That said,  I appreciated it for its creative sequencing and Edward himself: his spray-painted black booty shorts and sweat soaked milky bare skin, all crowned by a wild mane of golden blond hair  like Daryl Hannah in Splash.  To get through his practice, you pretty much have to pass the Cirque Du Soleil auditions.  And while there were many things I just could not do,  I will continue to play with Edward on these cold winter days knowing that his influence on me ends there...I don't think I'll be teaching this stuff to my students.  Unless they promise to take full responsibility for getting hurt in class because they couldn't say "no" to the deathgrip of ego which pushes us to conquer all things that we should just say "NO" to.

(A side note for all students of yoga:  taking  full responsibility for your practice is a sign that you are advanced yogi. Blaming your yoga teacher for the "bad stuff"  that  happens in class OR attributing all the good stuff that happens to the holiness of your yoga teacher is plain stupid.   It is never the teacher's fault nor glory.  Your yoga teacher is your mirror.  Often, what you see is a projection of who YOU are.  Second side note: Unless a teacher has  their hands on your body, forcing you into a pretzel or  holding a gun to your head saying" DO this or Die," there is no way a yoga teacher ever makes you DO something.

But I digress.

Later that day,  a student  asked me what kind of yoga I teach. The great question. I hate this question.  I always want to say, I don't know and sometimes I do. And when I do, the result is  always a cock of the head, a squint and/or  feigned smile that says "oh- okay- uh-huh..."

So, I've learned to respond, as any human being does when they realize the discomfort of their listener and want to lessen their fear, in a "safe" way. Here;s my "safe" (some people call this "compassionate")  answer: "I've studied a lot of different styles of yoga with a lot of different teachers and  when I teach, I never know what part of my experience will enter. It all depends."  They still look at me, bewildered, and don't get it.  So then I go to the "safer" answer, as by this time, the temptation to make it all better has a deathgrip on me:  "I teach vinyasa flow yoga." The box is a bitch to crawl out of.

What I really want to say, if I were a perfect egoless being is :
Just come to class. If you like it , why worry about what its' called. If you don't like it, then it doesn't matter and you don't need to know.

It's always amazing to me that one teacher, Krishnamacharya, inspired such different styles.  This yogi was the heavyweight champion of yoga.  Here's a picture of him at age 99:

His  3 main disciples were:

Patabhi Jois (pronounced like Joyce),  founded astanga yoga, the vigorous, flowing style which led to the craze for power yoga (poster child: Baron Baptiste) and vinyasa yoga (poster child: Shiva Rea)in the west...  Jois teaches out of Mysore, India.  Astanga yogis are usually thin, Indie, and vegan.  They think people who practice other styles of yoga are wimps.  What I've learned from him is the wonderful joy of sweat, continuous movement and breath that create a static-free mind.





BKS Iyengar, the "Lion of Pune" is known for his fiery temper (don't let the smile and eyebrows fool you) and  teaches in Pune, India.  Iyengar Yoga is the style where they hold poses a long time, use a lot of props, and are obssessive about alignment.  Iyengar yogis are usually accomplished, militaristic, and neurotic.  They think people who practice other styles are hacks and frauds.
What I've learned the most from him is that alignment is necessary and to ignore it in your practice, means you might miss out on all that flexibility and coordination, balance, and spinal health you're coming to practice for.

Finally, "TKV." TKV Desikachar of Chennai,  who is Krishnamacharya's  son,  taught Gary Kraftsow (viniyoga's poster child-it is rumored that TKV and Gary hate each other now) and the famous philosopher Krishnamurti.  Viniyoga is by far the least commercially successful style of the three, and I don't know enough to make  generalizations as I have above, about viniyoga followers.  However, I have read TKV's book, The Heart of Yoga, a thousand times and it continues to spark reflection and new questions. What I learned the most from him, and took away from the whole thing, is this: every person has a different body history, so there is no way that every person can ever be in one yoga class and be "doing"  the same thing. His motto is basically that every person requires something different, so as a teacher, you  better offer a smorgasbord. You never know who's going to need what. This makes sense to me and I remind myself of this every time I teach OR practice.

Tensions run high among the three disciples, each claiming to represent the true teachings of the master.  Perhaps some day there will be a cage fight on MMA to settle it once and for all.

~Madame Buddhassah, aka k.groark

With every practice, I take home with me the wisdom from pure source, your kids. The creativity , imagination, magical thinking and pure heartfelt fun,  are the best lessons of life. Take time to share and hear what your light yogini or yogi has to say.... trust me, we all need the lesson of seeing the world through their eyes, thoughts and hearts.

IT IS NEVER TOO LATE FOR US GROWN-UPS TO STRENGTHEN OUR ROOTS AND GROW A NEW SET OF WINGS..COME ON...REACH DEEP INSIDE..... STAND UP SUPER TALL..... FLAP THOSE WINGS........ FLY.....THE UNIVERSE IS SUPPORTING YOU....

To all parents: Thank you for sharing your light yoginis with me in class!

Peace and Love,
Mindy

I kind of shudder to think how this pattern manifests off the mat, but this being yoga, there's really not another option. My family moved around a lot when I was kid, so much so that, until high school, I was never in the same school for more than two years in a row. Great importance was placed on the next adventure, partly, I think, as a way to ease the natural sorrows of leaving somewhere comfortable. I'd venture to say these experiences during my formative years left a mark on my psyche that contributes to the belief about moving on once something is "achieved."

I know I'm also not alone. How often do any of us think we have something and then we're done with it? Our entire culture is a disposable one. My father still talks about the day when Bic pens came into vogue and the throw-away concept was born. What are we so afraid of in terms of commitment and staying with something?

For much of my life, my own fear has been about "missing out" on the "greatest opportunity of my life," because I'm stuck in the present situation. This applied to jobs, homes, relationships - everything. I was terrified of not actualizing my potential, because I wasn't where I was supposed to be at the right time. Since coming to yoga, I've begun to learn that what's around the bend is completely out of my control, and the right here-right now is all that matters. In that case, why not go deeper into that Ardha Chandrasa or stay in pigeon for another breath...and another...oooooh, and one more.

I've been working my own mantra laterly, which is "Do It or Don't." Sometimes when I sit down to meditate, I'll think, "Oh, I don't have time for the full round. I need to do blah, blah, blah." A perfect time for the "Do It or Don't" mantra. Sit down and meditate or bake cookies. If you're going to commit, commit. Same with my practice, the laundry, calling a friend (oh, I hope I get her answering machine so I don't have to talk to her - "Do It or Don't"), or any of the other hundred choices I make each day. None of this is said punitively. It's just a simple recognition that we're either in the moment or we're pretending not to be.

Growing up in the Star Wars generation, I remember in The Empire Strikes Back how Luke Skywalker went to see Yoda. I clearly remember the aged master telling the young disciple, "There is no try. Only do." I was so angry at this, and even when I saw it as a teen or in my 20s, I thought, "Fuck you, Yoda. Trying is important. It shows we're attempting to work it out and make it happen."

Now I think my reaction was more because I thought "doing" was synonymous with my notion of success, yet what is that success really? In the Bhagavad Gita, Krishna says to Arjuna, "On this path, there is no failure." That's because walking the path is the goal. The same goes for Yoda's comment to Luke. And the same goes for my own distillation of all this for myself. 

Do It or Don't.

One of my all-time favorites is the Bhagadvad Gita as translated by Eknath Easwsaran. The poetry of the work is so musical, and the way Easwaran unpacks this sacred text is magnetic. The first time I read it, I honestly picked it up at any given chance - it was riveting. Plus, the Bhagadvad Gita is so central to the ideas of yoga, union with the divine. Mahatma Gandhi lived his life by this work, and it's obvious why. The scene is set on a battlefield where the warrior Arjuna is planning to lead his troops to victory in battle. But as he looks across at the "enemies," he recognizes childhood friends, cousins, uncles and other people he knows. Despairing at killing them, he sits down in his chariot, throws his bow to the ground and refuses to move. His charioteer is none other than Krishna, and for the following chapters, Krishna expounds on various spiritual truths that form the bedrock of a sacred life.

A classic of the modern yoga practice is The Heart of Yoga by T.K.V. Desikachar, the son of Krishnamacharya, who is credited as being the father of the modern yoga asana era. This books lays out the important elements of a yoga practice and includes a lovely exposition on Patanjali's Yoga Sutra, a seminal work of Yoga's classical era. There's so much to learn here in terms of asana and the philosophical base for a yogic life.

Yogic Secrets of the Dark Goddess by Shambhavi Chopra is an amazing book and is resonant for anyone interested in the goddess power of yoga. Chopra is a devotee of the Hindu goddess Kali, one of the great compassionate dark mothers of the world, and her writings about and in devotion to this power is inspiring and truly deep. I usually just read one 2-3 page chapter of this book at a time, finding that I need some more time to let it all sink in. 

For those yogis who love alignment and technical information, there's really no one who can beat B.K.S. Iyengar, one of the major students of Krishnamacharya. Iyengar's book Light On Yoga was one of the first major books on asana in the West, and it caught on like wild fire. Filled with pictures and lots of details on how to hold it down, it's an amazing work.

These are just a handful of the books out there on yogic ideas and practices, and they're some of the ones I return to again and again. During a cold February, it could be the perfect thing to curl up with by a fire when dreaming of spring.

Yesterday, I got on the Metro and picked up the Express, the Washington Post's commuter daily newspaper. The photo on the front cover was of a woman's face, smeared with ash and encrusted with blood. Tears welled up in my eyes, and I looked away immediately - disturbed, heart-broken, fearful. Did I turn away because the image reminded me of my own mortality? The possibility for tragedy every day of my life? Was it pain at seeing someone else in such suffering?

One of my favorite yogic goddesses is Kali, because she won't look away. No matter how ugly things get in the world (whether that's in our own psyches or the interaction between peoples), Kali is undeterred. She will gaze in love and transformative power at the things which cause terror, rage and despair.

What if we all could take that on, even just a little? We could sit and listen to a friend, lover, spouse or parent and truly just witness their experience without the need to fix, to get our own ego trip by "helping someone." We could hold someone while they weep or scream in pain without the platitudes of "It's going to be okay" that often soothe us more than the person we're with. We could witness someone's deep rage at injustice without their anger saying anything about who we are and what we're about. To be a deep witness means that we take the self out of the equation.

In one of my Body of Myth workshops titled Inanna's Descent, one of the main characters is Ereshkigal, the ancient Sumerian Queen of the Underworld. Similar to Kali, She, too, is a deep witness, listening to the laments and tales of all the souls who inevitably make their way to her kingdom. It's a compeling act and one not to be taken lightly. Yet, by invoking that power we can bring Divine Love into the darkest of moments, illuminating it all with a flash of compassion's lightning.

The final words of this post were written by a deep friend, mentor and spiritual guide along the path for many people: Donald Engstrom-Reese.

May our tears wash clean all that blur our vision.

May we again dare to dwell in beauty, balance and delight.

May we again dare to see with clear eyes and an open heart.

May our heart fires add flame to the Cauldron of Change.

Yet, this shift has also made me think about what that "regular life" really is. One idea, of course, is that there is no standard existence. The notion that any pattern is set or constant is total illusion, and we all know that. It seems as if one of the only true constants in the universe is change; states of peace, whether in my mind or on the world stage, will fluctuate and go through waves of manifestation and dissolution. So, perhaps clinging to a schedule or a way of life is just another example of tightly grasping the noose of illusion.

However, I think there's a more subtle reading to this. When we're attached to that illusion, then, yes, we enter dangerous territory, because the holidays do come around, bringing with them all their delights and frustrations. But, committing to a practice and staying focused on that joyful obligation is a powerful act with a long history of success. I meditate daily, and believe me, there are days when I don't want to sit down on the god damned pillow and breathe. Yet, I still do. Discipline, when applied with compassion and benevolence, allows us to sink deeper into whatever our focus might be - the gym, painting, playing an instrument, or asana. By introducing these commitments into our daily lives, we carve out time to return home to a place of expansion, whether that's for a skill set, a path to enlightenment or both.

It's only by coming back to the mat that we begin to really know the ins-and-outs of our bodies, hearts, mind, and breath, allowing us to change patterns and align ourselves with the abundant powers of love and transcendence. So challenge yourself in the first months of 2010 to commit to your practices, whatever they may be. Notice if you're able to do this in ways that aren't rigid. If the practice becomes more about anxiety or even pride, don't stop practicing - instead change the ways in which you approach it. Notice the negative thoughts and emotions you have around it, and then use the act itself to burn away any congested or imbalanced energy. (I often dedicate my yoga practice to burning away things that currently stand in my way of manifesting love and being a vessel of Shakti.)

Set an endpoint for these practices. The spring equinox could be a powerful marker or choose another day that holds meaning for you. Re-examine your commitments at that time and then choose whether or not to renew those same practices or shift them in some way. I find this tricks our mind into thinking, "It won't be forever. I can totally do this for a couple months." Setting aside a finite period of time also gives us the chance to change the practices to meet our growing skills and changing lives.

Discipline doesn't have to be a nun with a ruler. It can be a path to bliss. 

One of the reasons I practice in the ways that I do, a very flowing style, is because I believe that we are intimately connected to the world around us, and that world effects all the layers of our being - physical, respiratory, emotional, mental, spiritual, etc. We do not live in a vacumn, and, in fact, that's part of the richness of being alive. 

As the weather has taken a wintry turn and the wind has picked up, I've found myself responding accordingly. Joints take longer to warm up; there's a bit more crackling in the hips, knees, feet and shoulders. At times, I feel withdrawn, more interested in solitude and quiet. Sometimes, I'm downright crabby and distracted. My irritation level has been higher, partly because of the cold and partly because of the holiday vinyasas. Lately, when I've gotten down on my own mat, all I've wanted to do is open the heart and sink deep into the hips.

The challenge, of course, is to heed the natural flow. A couple times I've thought, "No, I'm just wimping out. I'll push my way through," and I start some core-crazy, arm balance extravaganza, which inevitably leads to more pissiness. When I've actually listened to my deeper needs, however, my body and heart have unfolded in surpising and healing ways.

We can even do this in a yoga class led by someone else who isn't necessarily on the same page we're on. If a teacher is going in a more active direction than you might feel you want, you can still transform the practice into a peaceful and quieting experience. Push-come-to-shove, it's all about our intention, so nurture a peaceful intention while doing those kriyas or an arm-balance practice. Focus on lengthening the depth and duration of your breath. Bring the gaze to "ardha drishti" - the eyelids lowered to half-mast, signaling the nervous system that everything is just chill. 

Whatever it is that you need, try to listen to the depths of your intuition and meet the Self in that place. Start from where you are - not where the ego thinks you should be.

Kali, Cybele, Ereshkigal, Dakini, Spider Woman, the Morrigan, Hecate - all these are ancient names of power relating to the goddesses of the night. Yet, that night is also a rich symbol of the dark, unfathomable mysteries in our human experiences - life, death, sex, transformation, and the bottomless wellsprings of love.

Take one look at our current Western culture, and it's not hard to see that we have issues with all of the above. Life? We spend so much time repressing it that we often miss it altogether. Death? Oh, forget it. We avoid, bargain with, cheat it, yet also court it at the same time. We deny it altogether (Terri Schiavo, anyone?), or use it as a blackmail tool (Sept. 11). Sex? Does anything really need to be said? Transformation terrfies us, usually, because it relates to death and endings. And love? Well, in a country where large groups of people would rather spend their time protesting a same-sex couple's right to express their love legally, I think the issues here are obvious.

One only needs to see these and countless other examples of societal derangement to discover that our relationship to the Dark Mother needs some serious work. Once we begin to embrace these qualities within ourselves, we can begin to heal them and engage in the world around us in a remarkable way. Making peace and even love to our deepest passions allows us to reach heights of great compassion for others and the world around us. A breaking heart or one that sings with joy is one that can connect to peoples of all backgrounds.

Recognizing that all of our experiences - life, sensuality, death, - are part of the divine "lila"http://www.sacredspacerockville.com/play of Shakti, yoga's primordial goddess power, means that absolutely everything is sacred. We are never out of the loop of holiness. We are always hooked up to Mystery. We can make poor choices, ones that hurt others and ourselves, but that doesn't mean we're somehow beyond the pale. Often through those very bitter nights, we come to appreciate the light of day in ways that were previously unimaginable.

Embrace the night and the delirium of moonlight. It might just change your life and even the world.

When you move your body, you elevate more than your heart rate: you also lift your mood and energy levels. You become more playful and alive; and with your heightened spirits, your power grows too. This force, prana, which you always possess and share with every individual, allows you to consciously manifest your dreams into existence.

When I was growing up in Hawaii, I was always fascinated by surfers.  They would come out, whether or not there were waves. They would paddle into the powerful and mysterious pacific ocean, knowing her mercurial nature and that at any given moment, a huge set or wave could appear and carry them into pure ecstasy or pure destruction. Surfers were my first teachers of people living the edge.   Surfing and it's culture was an education for me about  how to jump into the unknown, feel the fear and simultaneously, feel the sheer ecstasy of being alive and vulnerable. When I discovered flow yoga,  I felt I had found another tool to help me plug into healing movement.

Yoga helps you regain connection to your divine physical essence. Your body is an extension of your being and it's important to honor it with your attention and awareness. Your movements bring your consciousness forward in a pleasant way. You'll learn that you are graceful, attractive and fluid-qualities that the creator endowed you with long ago.  Recapturing the knowledge of these gifts helps you shine even more brightly.

Inner blockages, fear, pain, doubt, and even anger can all be channeled through the motion of your body, leaving you feeling cleansed both physically and mentally. As you move your body today, simply imagine any undesirable qualities being dislodged and transformed into energy, and see this energy exiting your body effortlessly. Affirm that you release these qualities with joy and thanksgiving for the lessons they have brought into your life, and allow them to move on to their next destination in the universe. 

Using physical activity to release emotional build-up helps us release inner blockages and empower ourselves with a healthy new mind-set. Just as negative thoughts and turbulent emotions can cloud our thinking, they can also make our bodies feel sluggish and heavy. By moving our bodies with an intention to burn off detrimental energy, we can raise the frequency of our vibrations and free ourselves from limiting beliefs. Not only does this make us feel lighter and happier but we are empowered with the knowledge that we can choose how we feel both mentally and physically. Through the magic of movement, you can release any unwanted emotions and embrace a new lightness of being today.


Riding the waves of life takes skill, patience, humility and a willingness to both fall to the deepest bottom and rise to the highest point. Some days, the movement is statcatto-the pah-pah-pah of hitting the boxing bag.Some days, its turning on the music and free form dancing. The rhythms of my yoga practice differ from dav to day depending on what the conditions are-like surfing, sometimes the ocean is flat with only the occasional 2 footer, and my practice takes on a more meditative, drifting tone. A lot of pauses, stillness and a whole lot of waiting for something to happen. Until I wake up and realize that something is happening!  Other days, there's a swell and I'm riding wave after wave, the movement intense and exciting.

Whatever happens, whatever the conditions, I know that any movement is worth it. There's not a movement that's better, that's sweeter, that yields a greater result. I know that if I just show up and move,  I will find  home. 

This can be used at various times, either for comedy or for augmenting reality. For example, when I'm at the Whole Foods and can't find  imported Italian hazlenut-chocolate spread and am forced to settle for Nutella, this is a perfect moment for, "Well, life is full of bitter disappointments."

On the rougher end of the spectrum is when something serious does go down the toilet, and then the comic nature of this mini-mantra takes on a more serious, and sadly true, resonance. 

But disappointment can be a great light on the path toward living a yogic life. Not getting what we want, whether that's imported Italian goods or a quick-fix to an unhealthy relationship, actually gives us the opportunity to practice on a deep level. Disappointment teaches us about the nature of our expectations and desires, how and where we hoped for something different than the actual outcome, and the ways in which that can throw our equilibrium out of whack.

It's hard to imagine a stronger testing ground for all these principles than when it involves our relationships with other people. There have been countless times in my life when my reactions to a person were less about them and more about my own self-cultivated disappointment in who they turned out to be (or really were all along). Often, we project ideas about who we think/want someone to be, and when they don't live up to our projections, we feel angry, hurt, betrayed, or any other host of powerful emotions.

Yet, this seeming disappointment is actually a light shining down on the little demons who've have taken up residence in our psyches. 

When I was in my early 20s, I used to work at a domestic violence shelter, and something that surprised me during my first week was that the women who sought shelter weren't always gals who wilted at the slightest raised voice. Oftentimes, they were loud, aggressive, abusive toward their children, manipulative and rude. I wanted them to be the damsel in distress, so I could tie on my hero cape and swoop down to their eternal rescue. I wanted them to be grateful toward me and the others who worked at the shelter. I wanted them to turn their lives around, leave their bastard abusers and start life anew. I wanted them to see the light!

You know what, though? The national statistics at the time (in the late '90s) stated that a woman goes back to her abuser seven times before she either gets out for good or is killed. And I saw plenty of that. Women whose children hated the idea of returning because daddy was terrifying, and yet for the women, the path toward liberation seemed darker than the path back into an abusive relationship. Off they went home to men who had tied them to the backs of trucks and dragged them over broken glass, back to men who burned them, choked them, and done things so horrible that a simple slap was amateur-hour. And sometimes it was with a big old "fuck you" to the staff at the shelter. No gratitude in sight.

Yet, my disappointment in who I wanted them to be revealed my own issues and needs of being a rescuer, someone who, at the time, needed to feel heroic, needed to feel...well, needed. And this, of course, didn't just apply to the women at the shelter. I played this role with everyone around me. It also showed me that alongside the genuine desire to help people in need, I wanted to be recognized by them and others as being a "good person." Oh, that was ugly. (This hooks into that whole non-attachment to the fruit of your actions mentioned in my previous blog.) However, without the feeling of being "let down," I never would have discovered these patterns in myself, and I would have been robbed of pulling them out.

So, when mistakes are made, and choices reveal a disappointment, lift your glass, chug down the acrid purgative and see what comes out into the light. That bitter disappointment could be one of the strongest graces you've ever received.

While I believe the holidays can bring out the best in people, they certainly have their dark side, and the season's rampant consumerism is one of their ugliest expressions.How many of us rush around trying to buy something in order to fulfill our obligations to others? Some people I know don't actually care what they get for a friend, co-worker or family member; as long as there's something wrapped up in reindeer paper, they feel like they've lived up to others' expectations.

The so-called "need" for more stuff reached an absurd and tragic low one year ago today. Thirty-four year-old Jdimytai Damour was trampled to death by a crowd surging into a Wal-mart in New York. The hundreds of shoppers became enraged when a store employee said that the store would open earlier than its already-early time of 5 a.m. and then told the crowd he was joking. They pushed forward in anger, literally tearing the doors off their hinges and knocked Damour to the ground, eventually killing him. First responders had difficulty even reaching the victim because of the number of people now pouring into the large retailer.

And what did they get from that slightly earlier opening time? More tubes of toothpaste for stockings? Perhaps a Polaroid camera on sale? Untold heaps of plastic crap made in China where factories are literally turning rivers black as soy sauce to meet the demands of Westerners' slavish devotion to conspicuous consumption?

Many yogic texts talk about the trends of grasping and aversion, which keep us bound to cycles of suffering, and the holidays create textbook examples of how all this works.

For example: I really want that amazing new phone I saw at Best Buy. I must have it for my spouse!!! Charge it up, sales clerk. (Shortly followed by) Oh, I shouldn't spent that money on that, especially when my rent is so high. I'm never going shopping again. I'll cut up all my credit cards right now. Despair! Infamy! Shame!

Both ends of the spectrum lead to imbalance, and part of the goal of yoga is to be alike when experiencing the pairs of opposites in our lives. When it's hot or cold, can we maintain a sense of equilibrium? When we're experiencing delight or despair, can we view these as transitory states not based in the transcendent reality of this divine manifestation? In the Bhagavad Gita, Krishna often tells Arjuna that people should work towards  being completely nonattached to the self-perceived worth of or emotional attachment to objects and situations.

Could there be a greater time of year to practice than right now? When our entire culture is burning the candle at both ends - financially, emotionally, socially - consider cultivating an attitude of equanimity and non-attachment to the entire melee. I think we, as Westerners, get freaked out about non-attachment, because it suggests non-involvement, but from my limited understanding, that isn't really the case. Again, in the Bhagavad Gita, Krishna says to act fully and completely, but with complete non-attachment to the fruits of your actions. He doesn't say, "Lie down in the road and wait for death to take you." He asks us to put our hearts and souls into the great works of love without thinking that we're going to get a karmic kick-back for it.

When you slave over that homemade gift and someone seems underwhelmed, it's easy to get disheartened, angry, or offended. (I know this one, for sure.) Instead, try making those homemade soaps with no hope that someone's going to like them or use them. Package them beautifully. Write personal notes. Put an intention into the soap as you're stirring it. Give it your all. And then let it go.

In one of her many books, American Buddhist nun Pema Chodron speaks of living without hope. At first, this went against every seeming impulse that had been ingrained in my life. How dreadful! That's so depressing! If we give up hope, what do we have left?

The present moment.

Without always hoping for something different at some future time (which, honestly, might not ever come for us), we can return to the here and now. The beauty of winter clouds scudding across the sky. The sound of a fountain. A full and resplendent breath. 

Dare yourself this holiday season to take your practice off the mat and into White Flint mall. Consider walking through all the shops and just experience the present moment. There will be no buying this day. No trying anything on. Just a stroll through stores, touching things, looking at them, observing what longings or thoughts of gifts arise, or even feelings of inadequacy about not being able to buy something expensive for so-and-so. Enter the now. Breathe. Feel. Search for yoga. 

The Tantric yogis believed that in a mad, mad, mad world, the old spiritual rituals no longer worked and we need to embrace the insanity of this world as the path itself. That includes holiday traffic. That includes family gatherings full of old frustrations and wounds. And that certainly includes a trip to Wal-mart. 

We Shook Our Stuff, Owned it, Worked it and Loved every single blessed moment of this workshop. 
You can count on seeing more of these workshops at Sacred Space Yoga! Check out the pictures on our Facebook Site! 

Being a gay man, I'm hyper-aware of the effects of patriarchy on culture. The definitions of masculinity and even gender are frighteningly narrow, only allowing for a set expression of manhood, womanhood, third-gendered-hood, or whatever. I see this extrapolated out into everything from spiritual dogma to advertising, and after even a short period of time, it gets really old.

I'm saddened to see women so tamped down because of current beliefs about what a woman should be, how she should act, and how she should present herself in the world. We do have a Madonna-Whore Complex that says, "Ladies, you can be the good girl in the white dress OR you can be the nasty girl in the pumps and black-lace teddy." What happens when we expect people to be one thing or the other? Total derangement.

A small example is that sometimes when I break out the bellydancing in classes, women get a little nervous about doing, what one amazing yogini described to me as, something "forbidden." It's not a far jump from women stifling their own sensuality to others doing it for them (e.g. genital mutilation).

Why can't a woman be both the Madonna and the Whore, especially when she already is, deep inside?

Look to older representations of women in art and myth. The Venus of Willendorf, a paleolithic stone-carved figure, shows a big-hipped, huge-breasted woman with one arm resting at her yoni and the other flung over her chest. One could suggest she's holding herself at the spots related to sex and love - major places of power - both the whore and the virgin (side note: in pre-patriarchal cultures, "virgin" meant a woman who belonged to no man, not a woman who never had sex).

In yogic traditions, we have the image of Kali, who's no joke. Dark-skinned, full of deep compassion, and also a gal who knows how to have a good time with her consort, Shiva, she's the totality of the Shakti-fied, essential woman, experience. 

In pre-patriarchal cultures, there were temple prostitutes, women (and queer men), who would have sex with people in order to bring those seekers closer to the goddess. This act was often sought out by kings, warriors, and holy men who were interested in cleaving to the divine feminine through a really clear, powerful, and beautiful way - the pleasures of the body.

Now, men and women both (because men are just as damaged by all this as women) are cursed with shame, hatred, and disgust over their bodies and the powers of sex and pleasure. Instead of seeing it as a manifestation of divine expression, the body is often a source of mockery, degradation and bigotry. Hell, we can't even talk about these things without someone getting all horrified and offended, because we're tiptoeing into seemingly dangerous territory.

We all have the possibility for the Madonna-Whore expressions within us, but instead of thinking we have to be only one or the other, let's realize that we are the total experience. If we're in touch with our sensuality, that doesn't mean we aren't full of deep compassion. In fact, I'd argue that fully understanding and embodying our totality means we have the greater capacity to radiate love for all beings. On the flip side, just because we pray to God every night or keep an image of the Virgin Mary in our house, doesn't mean we don't like a bottle of wine and someone who knows how to nibble our neck in the right way. 

So, let your hair loose (a sign in ancient times that you were a good-time party girl or boy), shake your hips, meditate on the Blessed Heart of the Virgin (old definition only, please) and embrace every single part of your divine embodiment.