The Satnam/Spirit Fest Experience

I just got back from Spirit Fest on the weekend, what can I say other than that I am humbled, I am inspired, I am moved. Not just by the musicians and the yogis but also by the people who attended. Basic humanity and love is missing so much from the world, I found it here, and it felt like home. The gifts of exceptional devotional music and yoga were only surpassed by the gift and presence of love.

I have never experienced an event like this before, where everyone I talked to was so warm, where everyone seemed so focused, where everyone seemed so genuine. I could sense the longing in their eyes for the truth, for a better way for themselves and for the planet.

The world needs people like this more than ever today. The world needs bearers of light, be it a matchstick, a candle, high beams! Every little light of awareness, love, illumination counts. You are capable of anything you put your mind to. Be the matchstick that lights the candle, be the car that turns on the high beams. Be the light onto yourself, show an example, challenge the status quo, show self disciple. Draw the arrows of discrimination, love and compassion, take a deep slow breath, and aim it straight at your own heart, at your own mind.  Be the leaders that the world needs today.

Brothers, sisters @ Spirit Fest, I am truly blessed to have met each of you...I went home and also feeling blessed to have a family that was waiting ever so patiently, that also gave me the opportunity to experience such a blessed event. We often don't see it, even another breath is a blessing to be able to let your soul shine through this mortal coil.

Peace,

Kirpal

Meet me @ Spirit Fest this weekend!

Simran my daughter started showering me with hugs and kisses last night coz I was going to be away for a couple of nights for Spirit Fest, where as my other kids did not bat an eye lid :).  Having a girl is such a blessing...

I really love how the American Sikhs have rejuvenated interest in the Sikh religion in their own way.  Whats interesting is the incorporation of Yoga, an infusion of cultures, music instruments, resulting in something really very unique.  Snatam Kaur for example is one of the leading new age artist today, when I went to her concert, I was quite suprised to see a handful of Indian Sikh, approximately 10% of American Sikhs, the rest was a totally diverse crowd.

I really look forward to experiencing American Sikhism first hand in the Kundalini Yoga and Music Festival. I grew up as a Sikh, no-one really showed me the importance of Yoga, my interest grew it in in my late 30s. Most people think Yoga is just physical stretching.  The ancient path of Yoga is much more than that, the physical aspect is just one aspect of Yoga out of 8, it itself is reduced to just stretching without the mental presence required of it.  I took out a excerpt out of one of my past post where I attempted to briefly describe the 8 fold path of Yoga:

Eliminate unwanted stress by doing the right thing (yama & niyama) , through your postures (asanas) enable yourself to withstand all sort of physical, emotional and mental stress, through the practice of mindful breathing (pranayama), gather the energy to manage your emotions and achieve clear thinking, next exercise control over your senses and actions with self moderation  (pratyahara).  Once you have this you are in a position to sit for meditation effectively, achieve concentration (dhyana), and reach beyond your mind to your Spirit (Samadhi)

Peace,

Kirpal

Power of Qi - Workers who do not do Yoga or Qi Gong are at a distinct disadvantage...

The healthy body is a flowing, interactive electrodynamic energy field.  Motion is more natural to life than non-motion, things that keep flowing are inherently good.  What intereferes with flow will have detrimental effects.  Valerie V. Hunt

Chinese Medicine has always indicated that a stagnation in Qi will result in ill health, and to remove blockages will return health.  Qi Gong is a powerful complementary way to restore balance to the body.  It is fluid, it is simple, however it does demand a mindful, daily practice.

Vibrant health is a condition of balanced and flowing Qi throught the body's meridians, chakras are synchronised and an energy body that is radiant and expansive. Stanley Wilson

Health is more than physical, it is mental, emotional.  I would say it is also Spiritual, because it forces the Ego to listen and change its way, to be more humble.

Read more here

Chapter 1.4 The First Session

Picture Escapade kindly provided by ξωαŋ ThΦt under CC

I pulled up a chapter on a book I started writing about last year, this is special because it started me believing that maybe I could write, Emeka was actually my Yoga teacher, a very unique individual, his classes were really something else, reality is blurred here between fact and fiction, I really loved writing this piece, maybe one day I will complete the book...Enjoy!

The next day started, I got out of bed half asleep, manage to get there on time, cursing him silently along the way, at least there was no traffic along the way, the road was free of traffic, sunlight was breaking, birds were singing, I enjoyed the scenic drive through the hills to his place.  After a while I realized that I could not remember the last time I got up at 4.00 am.  I got to his place a lot better mood that I was leaving the house.

I arrived at his home studio 15 minutes before 4.  A sign on the door said “Please leave your shoes and your wayward thoughts outside and repeat the word LOVE”

I open the door to find a young Algerian looking man, with short dreadlocks, sitting in deep meditation.  Seeing I was early, I thought I better not disturb his practice; I sat there repeating the world LOVE, and watching him.  He did not move for the whole time I was watching him, and it was difficult to describe, but it seem that a sense of calm was pulsating from the center of the room from him! I felt it almost immediately, and after 5 minutes was sitting with my eyes closed myself.  It was the deepest relaxation I had ever felt in the space of 15 minutes.

He tapped me on the back to stand up; upon standing up, he folded his hands together, bowed and closed his eyes and said “Namaste”.  He looked at me with his gentle eyes and said, “Welcome brother, I have been waiting for you, let’s have a cup of tea”

We went up stairs to his balcony, the view was breath-taking over the hills, and he poured me a cup of tea.  He asked me “Why do you want to do Yoga”

I answered “Well, tell you the truth, I don’t really want to do Yoga, I want to change my life around, something you have done with Carolyn”

He smiled and said:  “Changing your life around is only something you can do, Yoga is a means of achieving it, you already have what is needed, you need the key of Yoga to unlock it”

I replied “How does stretching on the mat, help me change my life around”

“It is not the stretching that achieves it.  It is the daily practice of self-control, self-awareness, self-direction, self-acceptance, self-respect, honest living and ethical behaviour on and off the Yoga mat that achieves self-transformation my friend. Life is a mirror, it simply reflects back to your internal condition through external results.  My work focus to direct you to work on yourself, all other external results follow automatically”

“That sounds absolutely amazing, does it really work” I said

“It all depends on how badly you want it, and how much faith you have in the Yogic process, to help you get there.  Initially you will only go by what others have told you, but if you stick with it, you will notice positive changes start happening around you as you start changing internally, this itself will translate to faith increasing in the Yogic process, more effort, self control and results with follow automatically”  Emeka said. “The external is a reflection of the internal, change the internal to change the external” he then said profoundly.

Silence filled the room, I thought about what he had said, tears welled in my eyes, I knew what he was saying was true, I look back in my life, and noticed that things really started going pear-shape, when the stress started hitting, I started taking on unwanted risk, getting distant from my family, started drinking, getting more and more irritated with people at work.  “Can you show me how to do this I said”, with tears then coming down my face.

“Of course my friend, he said as he handed me the tissues, everything will be AOK by the time we are finished, I can see it in your eyes that you want this, let this emotion drive you into making a permanent change”

“Why do you ask to repeat the word LOVE” I asked?

Emeka smiled as he said:  “One must always keep his mind focused in Yoga: in the Asana, breathing deeply, observing his body, or repeating something positive, this reins in the mind, and forces it to be in the present moment, the mind is restless, and gets easily distracted, this interferes with the Yogic process”

He paused then said “What better thought to repeat other than LOVE, GOD is LOVE, everyone can relate to it, even animals can express LOVE, because of the positive energy it carries, it helps you in your Asana in-directly in many ways”

Let me give you an example, “Put your arm out straight and resist my pressure”. I put it out; he put two fingers on my hand pushed it down without any effort. “Now let’s try again” Emeka said, but this time I want you to repeat the world LOVE for a minute before I do it. I put out my hand again, and applying the same amount of pressure, he was unable to push my hand down.

“That’s absolutely amazing!” I said, I must remember this one as a party trick I thought.

The hour was almost up.  “Are we not going to do any Yoga?” I questioned.

He smiled at me and said gently “Brother, we were doing Yoga for the last one hour, Yoga means to gain union with yourself and then the divine and we have plenty of time, by the end of one year you will be practicing every day”

“Sorry, I had some questions about the fees, is it true that I get a reduction based on every class I attend” I asked him as I was exiting the door.

“Yes that is correct brother” he replied.

“How do you make any money then? This is a bargain compared to others”

“True it is a bargain, but there is a reason why I do it, not all the classes are with me one on one, there is periods where you will need to do it by yourself and see me less often, as you get more proficient I have to see you less.  Also what happens, is a mental connection happens between the student, the disciple and the teachings if the right dedication is there, then time and space has no barrier, you start learning even when you are not on the Mat, and that's when learning really happens.  This also helps me avoid people who waste my time, and so they pay a price for it, at the end the whole thing works quite well for me in the end.

If you do your classes every time, I get a satisfaction out of it, and that to me is worth more than the money, also a lot of people give donations to help keeping the school running, though I never ask for it”

I thought to myself, he is a nice guy, maybe I will giving him a small tip as a donation, instead, sort of like in a restaurant, I was figuring out if 20% of what I owned him would be enough.

“I will see you tomorrow at the same time” he said with his arms folded together and bowing slightly

I left feeling very light, and thought to myself, I wish there were more people like him around.

Self - Alignment, the Zen Moment

Bonsai Moon kindly provided by h.koppdelaney under Creative Commons

It seems we are always playing an internal game of tug of war.  The senses of the Body are pulling in one direction, the Ego the other.  All these are pulling against higher facilities of the Mind, of Reason and Discrimination  and the intelligence of the Spirit.

Take for example, when I was in the Gym the other day, I looked around, and on the exercise machines around me, one person was reading a newspaper, the other person was bopping to music, the other person watching television, all of this happening while they are exercising on the machines.  Its like the mind is always somewhere else and the body is somewhere else.

Imagine four wheels of a car, each wheel representing the following Personal Dimension (Spiritual, Mental, Emotional, Physical), each on turning to a different direction, moving at a different speed, the car is not going to get very far.  The Spritual wheel always has its own direction and speed (Love, Compassion, Integrity), its a question whether the others are going to line up with this.

The internal tug of war is real, being pulled in all direction leaves you in a conflicted, confused and a stressful state (consciously or unconsciously) , a less than an optimal way of living.  Imagine the opposite, doing everything in line with your deepest values, being present in the current situation, with Mind (including Emotions), Body and Spirit all engaged, imagine how much more satisfying it is to be in that state, how much more effective that state is....

What we are talking about is the alignment of Mind, Body and Spirit, that alignment is a "Zen" moment, a Yogic moment, expansion of ourselves from the confines of our limited sense of  self and Ego.  This alignment when expressed is beautiful to watch, we are all in search of it, we want it, but we don't know its what we are looking for, we know its beautiful when we see it, we see it in personal triumphs of epic proportions, in music, art, poetry that seem to touch our very soul.

Only a person who has fully aligned herself can bring this out due to her own self mastery and seek to express it, so others can seek comfort in it "like shade under the tree under a hot summers day", and to inspire others to do so themselves in their own unique way.

What we have is a de-fragmented sense of Self, where the Mind is always somewhere, the Body is somewhere else, and the poor Spirit does not even seem to exist.  Yet it is the Spirit that gives us life, that powers our Mind.  Further more add narcotics, alcohol, drugs and a mindless diet, and no spiritual mentors, what do you get? An ordinary awareness the size of an apple...

We are but slaves, for the Mind is a slave to the Senses and the Ego and holds the Spirit a prisoner, we don't have any idea of freedom.  True freedom lies in being free from the whims and attachments of the Mind, Ego and Senses, it lies in the full expression of the Spirit within us, letting it go to actualize the inherit goodness, compassion and wisdom in all of us.  It lies within yourself like a diamond waiting to be discovered, we have to peel layer upon layer of our existence to discover it.

The Eightfold Path of Yoga (totally universal, not specific to any religion) is the key I believe.  I will attempt to explain it in a few lines:

Eliminate unwanted stress by doing the right thing (yama & niyama) , through your postures (asanas) enable yourself to withstand all sort of physical, emotional and mental stress, through the practice of mindful breathing (pranayama), gather the energy to manage your emotions and achieve clear thinking, next exercise control over your senses and actions with self moderation  (pratyahara).  Once you have this you are in a position to sit for meditation effectively, achieve concentration (dhyana), and reach beyond your mind to your Spirit (Samadhi)

Wishing you the mindfulness to align all your Mental, Physical and Spritual resources to get the most out of your life. 

Kirpal

The Eight Petals of Yoga

Photo kindly provided by h.koppdelaney 

Iyenger says:
There are eight petals of yoga that reveal themselves progressively to
the practitioner. These are external, ethical disciplines (yama), internal
ethical observances (niyama), poses (asana), breath control
(pranayama), sensory control and withdrawal (pratyahara), concentration
(dharana), meditation (dhyana), and blissful absorption
(samadhi). We call these the petals of yoga as they join together like the
petals of a lotus flower to form one beautiful whole.


What is important here is for transformation all petals are required. Think of each of these as legs of a table, where one or more is missing or short, there is a imbalance of the table.

Without yama and niyama, none of the rest is possible, even Iyenger says that doing yoga is simply acrobatics without them. One starts with Yama (external ethical actions), and this leads to NiYama (inner contemplation and internalization of values). Confucius says "A man cannot walk firm on tip toes", so it is with our yoga and meditation. This includes honest living, and practice of non-violence in all forms. Consider going vegetarian, here are some great sites:
http://www.thekindlife.com/
http://www.vegetariantimes.com/

Asanas opens the body and mind, tunes the chakras, keeping the body healthy to be able to work and sit for meditation. Asanas naturally enable better breathing patterns, which is further enhanced by Pranayama.

Withdrawal (pratyahara), concentration, (dharana), meditation (dhyana) lead to blissful absorption
(samadhi). All of these are related to meditation. This lets you go through life as Kabir would say as a Water Lily, where the roots are continuously tapped to water of the divine.

All of these support each other, without proper health, emotional stability and mental ability it is difficult to generate a decent income to support oneself, family and give something to charity. Without Yama and Niyama, we incur further negative karma and further complicated situations that draw out our energy unnecessarily. Without meditation, we don't give ourselves the spiritual re-charge that is much needed, to get through life.

Enjoy your Yoga and the fruits of it...


This work by Kirpal Chauhan is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License