of Yoga and Hummus

The Embrace- 2008 Edition

2008-07-02T19:00:00.001+03:00

Amma will be visiting NYC and North America again this summer, I am going with friends to the Devi Bhava on Thursday July 10th at 7 PM. This is a really fun event with music, a wonderful dinner and of course, a hug from Amma- come with us! For more information go to our Facebook Event or if you cant make it then go another day, you will never regret this....

With great gratitude to Sri Mata Amritanandamayi Devi, Amma, the Mother…

Drive your senses to Samadhi

2008-06-17T01:47:00.002+03:00

During a class with Kaustubha das the example of the horse and chariot as a metaphor of the body and soul was given.
“Five sense organs are the horses and mind is the rein. All the objects of senses, various enjoyments are the different path through which the horses work. If you have good control over the horses by the rein, that means you have got good control over the senses, then you can drive fast in the shortest possible path and can reach your destination quickly, without any accident. If your horses are beyond control then there will be accident, injury, delay and suffering.” Kriya Joga

Further more, the mind is the charioteer and the chariot- our body; in it sits our soul. To make sure our soul is in the right direction, we have to align all the different parts of this experience. Kaustubha das said that you start with the senses because: ‘The senses are the easiest to control.’ THE EASIEST??? THE EASIEST??? Just give me pets and good food, just make my senses happy and I am yours! THE EASIEST???

But there is an answer, or at least a place to start from. When our body, senses or mind are idle, they look for other things to do… or are the saying goes: “Idle Hands Are The Devil's Tools.” This is why we have yoga, if you keep your body and senses active in a focused way through the practice of asana, and the mind through meditation, you will learn how to control and focus them.

Pratyahara, the fifth of the Eight limbs of Ashtanga Yoga is a challenging one, again, the restriction, or withdrawal of the senses is such a difficult concept to grasp. When we learned about Pratyahara in my teachers training, one of my fellow students turned to me, and said very incessantly (and slightly frightened) but why? Why not enjoy our senses? My simple answer is that you need to make decisions based on a true understanding of the nature of the situation you face, when you are influenced so strongly by addictive senses of pleasure (or pain) it is hard to make that decision. Pleasure and pain (as well as other senses) should be taken part of consideration, but not hijack the decision making process.

I will end with a wonderful description of Pratyahara by SwamiJ: “The senses are said to follow the mind in the same way the hive of bees follows the queen bee. Wherever she goes, they will follow. Similarly, if the mind truly goes inward, the senses will come racing behind.”

Who is Not So Shai?

2008-06-12T01:57:00.001+03:00

So I know nothing of fashion, glamour, or trend. That is what you have friends for. Shai, who is anything but shy, writes about the latest trends in everything that is sexy and New York. Don’t be shy, have a look.

I am releasing my brother

2008-06-11T18:39:00.006+03:00

On Yom Kippur, two years ago, I was dealing with a difficult situation. The relationships I had with two of my most beloved men were very tense. Man One was very mad at me for something that, swear to God, I had no choice in doing. It was natural and out of my control. Man Two I was mad at, for decisions he made long before he even met me or knew of my existence. So as I stood there, asking God for forgiveness over and over again, I asked myself, how can I ask Man One to forgive me, when I don’t think I did him wrong; how can I forgive Man Two, while he didn’t do me any wrong. Is forgiving always only for an objective act of sin? Or is it in the eyes of the beholder?

The Mother is in town this week, and with it being 100 degrees outside the best activity we could think of was watching movies. This is what she wanted to watch this weekend:
Sex And The City
Mongol
A very eclectic choice of movies I must say.

Spoiler warning ahead; but nothing that isn’t obvious.

In SATC both Carrie and Miranda have to deal with forgiving their men, one for leaving her at the altar, the other for cheating on them with another woman. Not only do they both come to realize that they had as much to do with their man’s poor choices as they did, they also repeat the same mistakes.

In one subtle but genius scene in the movie, Miranda and Carrie are having dinner together on Valentine’s Day. Miranda comes clean about telling Big something she should have not. Carrie attacks her and Miranda uses the same defiance Steve used on her, WORD TO WORD. It is just a matter of time until we all commit the same sins?

In Mongol, Jamukha saves the life of Genghis Khan after he falls in a crack in the ice as a young boy. They made a vow to be brothers in blood. Though at early stages of the movie Jamukha assists Genghis Khan in his fights, he will not let him be the strong man he wants to be, the Khan, and eventually joins Genghis Khan’s enemy in a war on him. When Jamukha is captured by Genghis Khan, he releases him to freedom.
The surprised Jamukha says to Genghis Khan: “You are releasing your enemy” and as he rides away Genghis Khan whispers: “I am releasing my brother.” Forgiving Jamukha for his betrayal, understanding that he might have done the same thing.

Sharon Salzberg said: “The intention of forgiveness meditation is not to force anything, or to pretend to anything, or to forget about ourselves in utter deference to the needs of others. In fact, it is out of the greatest compassion for ourselves that we create the conditions for an unobstructed love, which can dissolve separation and relieve us of the twin burdens of lacerating guilt and perpetually unresolved outrage.” (Mrs. Salzberg will be teaching a workshop at The Shala on “tools for awakening courage, faith and compassion” on June 22nd)

"If we haven’t forgiven, we keep creating an identity around our pain, and that is what is reborn. That is what suffers” (Ajahn Pasanno, Preparing for Death)
Keeping a grudge, will create more “heat” around a painful area. If you keep on thinking everyday, “Ahhh! how much I hate him for leaving me!” you will remind yourself over and over again how offended you were when you were abandoned.

Forgive, for any reason you choose, because you were part of the problem, because you are brothers in blood, because you love, or for no reason at all, forgive, and good things will come.

I am also reposting אשם

Blame Synergia Words and Lyrics: Ron Hofmann and Roy Geffen

Only now I discover I am the one to blame,
I think of it and just can not take a breath.
I want to touch you; and you are so far off,
I need to know you are not in pain.

It seems you did it all as you planed,
You wanted more from me, I am so ashamed.
It’s not that I didn’t try; I wanted us to be one
I am on a fly and you just halt me, and then you tell me, I was wrong again.

Only now I discover I am the one to blame,
I think of it and just can not take a breath.
I want to touch you; and you are so far off,
I need to know you are not in pain.

I hoped that maybe you would see the good in me
But you just don’t want what I have to bring.
I thought I was the one that did, but I was the one with a hope,
That you will always be here, stay here, and now you are leaving.

Who is the Yogamaiden?

2008-06-08T17:57:00.002+03:00

When I started my Yoga Teachers Training over a year ago I didn't know what would come out of it. A year later I am counting my blessing. But no doubt one of the most magnificent miracles that I was blessed with was meeting Marisol. And now, she is sharing her wisdom at Yogamaiden
Read this:
My Teacher would often ask me, ” What’s the rush? “. Then I thought, what does that mean? I didn’t understand what he was really saying. It took me months to figure out the lesson in the question. Impatience is himsa. My impatience with my asana practice was an act of cruelty toward my Self. I now understand. The mat is a mirror. A reflection of our progression on the path. If we are truly to progress we must sincerely want to look into the mirror. We must make a choice and select the act of ahimsa. We must then choose to be kind and gentle with ourselves. This act on the mat will overflow to our life off the mat, which is where yoga is really practiced.

ॐ

2008-06-06T23:15:00.005+03:00

The focus of the moth is jump backs and jump throughs, the fear of any ashtangi over 90 lbs. You have to lift your body so high almost into a hand stand, then hug the legs in and jump through to seat with straight legs, on your way back, you lift off your seat so high that you can swing like a pangolin, and fly back in the air. There are many merits to this practice, but I think that the real advantage of mastering these jumps is to keep the practice in motion, smooth, as one unit.

We tend to chop our life into segments; for example into separate time periods, like when I say: “I used to get drunk all the time, but I was young and foolish” as if it was not those experiences (and others) which made me who I am today. Or sometimes we chop up our present, “Asaf of work,” the 9 to 9 hard working finance guy, and “Asaf out of work,” the free spirit yogi at all other times. Sometimes we even segment parts of our personality, and forgive me for not sharing here. It seems like it just makes our lives easier to manage when they are segmented, as if one does not have to affect the other.

ॐ, AUM, is the sound of the infinite, the sounds from where the world was created and where we will go, my teacher says: “focus on ॐ!!!” when we start asking questions that are beyond our level of understanding. Just go back to ॐ. Listen to the sound of ॐ, is starts all the way in the back of the throat, almost in the belly, and travels through the mouth to the lips where it seems to end. Many students and teachers neglect the last part of the ॐ, ending it abruptly. When you do that, you are focusing at the past and the present, but not the future. When you chant ॐ, elongate the vibration at the end, these vibrations will carry us into the future.

We have a nice practice when we sing Kirtan at The Shala to sing a rolling ॐ, you just start your next ॐ before the group finished the one before, and it goes on. This is something to do even when you are singing by yourself. Try to make your ॐ be a rolling ॐ to go on into the universe.

If we learn how to have a smooth, unfragmented practice on the mat, if we learn how to carry our ॐ so it has no beginning and no end, we will learn how to live our lives as a unit.

For some practical advice on jump backs and jump throughs you might like this tutorial from Mysore Musings

And this is a good short article on AUM

Go West Part 'א

2007-12-31T10:41:00.000+02:00

I would like to start with apologizing to the guy at seat A2 on flight CO648 on Thursday night. I know you were strong and healthy when you got on the flight and coughing and sneezing by the time we landed in SFO. Sorry.

It was getting to a point that I was fighting with anyone that was willing to talk to me. So I needed a break and, as I am on a low budget, I went on Craig’s List and found a couple that wanted to swap apartments, San Francisco for New York. Go West. Actually this is as west as I have ever gone without crossing the International Date Line.

This was the view I got up to on the first morning (not really)

This is what I got up to on the second morning (really)

It is very hilly! Reminds me of home!

Robb recommended I try out “The Rocket.” A Yoga Sequence based on the Ashtanga Yoga Series thought by Sri K. Pattabhi Jois. Most of my friends know me as a very liberal and progressive person, but there are some areas of my life where I am still a very “traditional” person. I was taught by my teachers that there are traditional schools of yoga which came from Sri Krishnamacharya who is considered the father of modern yoga as we know it. He thought Sri BKS Iyengar who is the founder of Iyengar Yoga, Sri K. Pattabhi Jois the founder of Ashtanga Yoga and his son T.K.V. Desikachar who teaches a form that sometimes is referred to as “Vini Yoga” but is really is a personalized therapeutic vinyasa yoga. What I am saying here is wrong, flawed and simplified but a good starting point. Vinyasa Yoga is an even more modern yoga practice that combines and draws from all the traditional ones. Anything that is not traditional yoga is Vinyasa. When you teach Vinyasa you can teach almost whatever you want, when you teach traditional yoga, you must stick to the original teachings. Now, don't get me wrong, I have been practicing Ashtanga for a while and I think that it is just not suited for a 200 pound Western man like me, but that is the teaching, and I believe that there is great value to sticking to the tradition. So when someone as smart and creative as can be “coins” a new style of yoga, I'd rather he just calls it what it is, Vinyasa. In any case, The Rocket was a REALLY fun Vinyasa class and It’s Yoga is a beautiful studio.

It was Friday, and my next stop was at the Shabbat services at Congregation Sha'ar Zahav, a very cool synagogue in the Mission district of San Francisco. Though there is a well-known church that became a dance club in New York, I think that a Christian funeral home that became a Jewish synagogue would win the extreme make-over competition.

I was not exactly sure why I decided to go to Shabbat service this week of all weeks; I thought maybe it was being away from home or not working on Friday which just gave me the chance to get to service on time, but then the Rabbi reminded me. He started his drash with something that sounded like this: “This is a weird time of the year for our people, a lot of Holidays around this time that are not ours.” I have become so submerged in the American Culture that I forgot that just seven years ago Christmas and the (Christian) New Year were things I only saw in movies and on television, and now I shop for gifts wrapped in green and red and make plans for the drop of the ball as if it was second nature to me. “TRADITION!” Chaim Topol was singing in my head for the second time that day.
But Congregation Sha'ar Zahav is not traditional for me. It is unfortunate that the synagogue that accepts me as I am is also the synagogue where I feel out of place. It is the unknown tunes to the prayers, and the additions to the Siddur, but above all it is this phenomenon:

וְהָיוּ הַדְּבָרִים הָאֵלֶּה, אֲשֶׁר אָנֹכִי מְצַוְּךָ הַיּוֹם--עַל-לְבָבֶךָ.
וְשִׁנַּנְתָּם לְבָנֶיך (ולבנותיך), וְדִבַּרְתָּ בָּם, בְּשִׁבְתְּךָ בְּבֵיתֶךָ וּבְלֶכְתְּךָ בַדֶּרֶךְ, וּבְשָׁכְבְּךָ וּבְקוּמֶךָ.

…and thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy sons (and daughters) etc.

Every place that has the masculine noun, the “new prayer book” adds the feminine. It drives me berserk! I too understand the effect of the spoken word on our thoughts especially based on the Sapir–Whorf hypothesis, but the Torah was given in Hebrew, which has the masculine and feminine, and yes, not fair, but it was mostly written in the masculine, and for the sake of tradition I ask that you keep it that way. The Shema Yisrael is considered the most important prayer in the Jewish tradition (according to Wikipedia! which is always right) it is ancient, traditional and should be unchanged.

Some things that are traditional in one part of the world but very new to us is feeding babies with chop sticks, a task that I got to do this week and found (especially because זאב is just so cute) to be one of the most enjoyable parts of my short trip so far. So I guess that adopting a tradition is fine by my book.

This is an optical illusion! I don't really have an arrow stuck in my head!

Society, you're a crazy breed

2007-10-19T18:06:00.000+02:00

I have conflicted feeling and thoughts about this movie, which I love. On one hand, I relate the feelings of a greedy society, and the need to find your space to brake free. On the other, I believe in life, in the preservation of life, and in the creation and maintenance of a society.
So I will just post the lyrics to this highly addictive song, performed by Eddie Vedder.

Society, Eddie VedderFrom the Soundtrack of “Into the Wild “

It's a mystery to me
we have a greed
with which we have agreed

You think you have to want
more than you need
until you have it all you won't be free

society, you're a crazy breed
I hope you're not lonely without me

When you want more than you have
you think you need
and when you think more than you want
your thoughts begin to bleed

I think I need to find a bigger place
'cos when you have more than you think
you need more space

society, you're a crazy breed
I hope you're not lonely without me
society, crazy and deep
I hope you're not lonely without me

there's those thinking more or less less is more
but if less is more how you're keeping score?
Means for every point you make
your level drops
kinda like its starting from the top
you can't do that...

society, you're a crazy breed
I hope you're not lonely without me
society, crazy and deep
I hope you're not lonely without me

society, have mercy on me
I hope you're not angry if I disagree
society, crazy and deep
I hope you're not lonely without me

Forgive me...

2007-09-28T22:16:00.000+02:00

As the summer comes to its end, I wait impatiently for the end of September. How is it that the one holiday in the Jewish calendar that I used to hate as a child, is now my most favorite?
And as Yom Kippur comes closer, feelings of uncertainty arise, like the once before a scary ride at Six Flags: you know you will be OK, and yet, you are apprehensive about how it will be. I am not sure what it is. Do I miss my Blackberry? It is the fast? Is it being at synagogue for so many hours without a change of scenery?

When the sun is high in the sky, and the sugar levels in my blood are low, my heart opens. At that point, I sometimes half-hallucinate that my family is next to me. It is always first my father; he wraps his Talit around my shoulders and holds me strong, as he always does when we are in Synagogue. And in ברכת כוהנים he places his Talit over our heads and we make a little tent. Then my mother joins, and my siblings. Some have never been to a synagogue before and now they are here with me. Last are the dead once, as if wrapping their arms around us. Maybe I should drink more water before the fast next year.

A few months ago I practiced Yoga Nidra with a class. Yoga Nidra means yogic sleep, a state of conscious deep sleep for extreme relaxation and subtler spiritual exploration. When we arose from the “sleep” we were all shaken up. I felt scared and alone; my friend Cori was crying. As you lie on the floor, withdrawing sense after sense, you stop seeing the black background that you see even when your eyes are closed and stop hearing the quiet hum that you hear even when you plug in earplugs. You actually don’t feel. It is an experience close to death. It reminds us that we are human, and that we, like everything else on earth, are temporary. That can be scary. On Yom Kippur we are reminded of our mortality. Depriving our bodies from water and food, and the senses that we indulge on, the scripts tell us of the ways that we can find our death this year.

ונתנה תקף קדושת היום כי הוא נורא ואיום, ובו תנשא מלכותך ויכון בחסד כסאך, ותשב עליו באמת. אמת כי אתה הוא דיין ומוכיח ויודע ועד, וכותב וחותם וסופר ומונה. ותזכר כל הנשכחות, ותפתח ספר הזכרונות, ומאליו יקרא וחותם יד כל אדם בו.

ובשופר גדל יתקע וקול דממה דקה ישמע, ומלאכים יחפזון וחיל ורעדה יאחזון, ויאמרו הנה יום-הדין. לפקוד על צבא מרום בדין, כי לא יזכו בעיניך בדין. וכל באי עולם יעברון לפניך כבני מרון. כבקרת רועה עדרו מעביר צאנו תחת שבטו, כן תעביר ותספור ותמנה ותפקוד נפש כל חי. ותחתך קצבה לכל בריה ותכתב את גזר דינם.

בראש השנה יכתבון וביום צום כיפור יחתמון, כמה יעבורון וכמה יבראון. מי יחיה ומי ימות, מי בקיצו ומי לא בקיצו. מי במים ומי באש, מי בחרב ומי בחיה, מי ברעב ומי בצמא, מי ברעש ומי במגפה, מי בחניקה ומי בסקילה, מי ינוח ומי ינוע, מי ישקט ומי יטרף, מי ישלו ומי יתיסר, מי יעשיר ומי יעני, מי ישפל ומי ירום.

ותשובה ותפלה וצדקה - מעבירין את רוע הגזרה

כי כשמך כן תהלתך, קשה לכעוס ונוח לרצות. כי לא תחפץ במות המת, כי אם בשובו מדרכו וחיה, ועד יום מותו תחכה לו, אם ישוב מיד תקבלו. אמת כי אתה הוא יוצרם ואתה יודע יצרם, כי הם בשר ודם. אדם יסודו מעפר וסופו לעפר, בנפשו יביא לחמו. משול כחרס הנשבר, כחציר יבש וכציץ נובל, כצל עובר וכענן כלה, וכרוח נושבת וכאבק פורח, וכחלום יעוף.

ואתה הוא מלך אל חי וקיים

אין קצבה לשנותיך ואין קץ לאורך ימיך, ואין שעור למרכבות כבודך, ואין לפרש עילום שמך. שמך נאה לך, ואתה נאה לשמך, ושמנו קראת בשמך. עשה למען שמך, וקדש את שמך על מקדישי שמך. בעבור כבוד שמך הנערץ והנקדש, כסוד שיח שרפי קדש המקדישים שמך בקדש, דרי מעלה עם דרי מטה קוראים ומשלשים בשִלוּש קדשה בקֹדֶש".

"The great shofar is sounded... A still small voice is heard...Even the angels are frightened... the Day of Judgment is here...
Who shall live? And who shall die?Who shall find rest? And who shall be restless?Who shall be raised up? And who shall be humbled?Who shall be rich? And who shall be poor?
“On Rosh HaShana they are written, And on Tsom Yom Kippur they are sealed.
How many shall pass, and how many created:
Who shall live and who shall die;
Who in their time and who not in their time;
Who by water And who by fire;
Who by the sword And who by a beast;
Who by hunger And who by thirst;
Who by disaster And who by sickness;
Who by strangling And who by stoning;
Who will rest And who will wander;
Who will be go peacefully And who will go violently;
Who will be calm And who will be harried;
Who will be poor And who will be rich;
Who will be degraded And who will be exalted.

By repentance, prayer and charity Remove the evil of the decree.

As for Man, he comes from dustAnd to dust he shall return..."

Man is like... Grass that withers... A flower that fades... A shadow that passes..."

As the day ends, we sing a hymn from Psalm 27, 4:

אַחַת, שָׁאַלְתִּי מֵאֵת-יְהוָה-- אוֹתָהּ אֲבַקֵּשׁ:
שִׁבְתִּי בְּבֵית-יְהוָה, כָּל-יְמֵי חַיַּי;
לַחֲזוֹת בְּנֹעַם-יְהוָה, וּלְבַקֵּר בְּהֵיכָלוֹ.

One thing have I asked of the Lord, that will I seek after: that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life,to behold the graciousness of the Lord, and to visit early in His temple.

Singing this hymn always gets me very emotional. What is it about dwelling in the Lord’s house? What is his graciousness?

Last year I was thinking hard about forgiveness. It is actually easier to forgive someone that has obviously done you wrong. But what about those people you are mad or angry at, but for reasons that are beyond their control. You know they have done no wrong to you. What about those people that are mad at you, but you know in your heart you have done no wrong to them.

A year has past, and as I was hearing the cantor singing “may I dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life,” I remembered that last year I found no good answers to my concerns of forgiveness. I looked at those painful relationships again and smiled. Over the last year, I kept my cry to the Lord to dwell in his house close to my heart, and there I beheld his grace: awareness, compassion, patience and love. One can’t always solve heartbreaking situations. Sometimes, all you can do is strive to be close to the Lord, so you can learn from him. Actively practice awareness, compassion, patience and love towards the people you can not solve difficulties with, and you might find out that with time, you will be dwelling in the house of the Lord together, again.

With Love and Appreciation to My Family

2007-08-24T20:16:00.000+03:00

As the mother of a gay son, I've seen firsthand how cruel and misguided people can be.

Many letters have been sent to the Valley News concerning the homosexual menace in Vermont. I am the mother of a gay son and I've taken enough from you good people.

I'm tired of your foolish rhetoric about the "homosexual agenda" and your allegations that accepting homosexuality is the same thing as advocating sex with children. You are cruel and ignorant. You have been robbing me of the joys of motherhood ever since my children were tiny. My firstborn son started suffering at the hands of the moral little thugs from your moral, upright families from the time he was in the first grade. He was physically and verbally abused from first grade straight through high school because he was perceived to be gay. He never professed to be gay or had any association with anything gay, but he had the misfortune not to walk or have gestures like the other
boys. He was called "fag" incessantly, starting when he was 6.

In high school, while your children were doing what kids that age should be doing, mine labored over a suicide note, drafting and redrafting it to be sure his family knew how much he loved them. My sobbing 17-year-old tore the heart out of me as he choked out that he just couldn't bear to continue living any longer, that he didn't want to be gay and that he couldn't face a life without dignity.

You have the audacity to talk about protecting families and children from the homosexual menace, while you yourselves tear apart families and drive children to despair. I don't know why my son is gay, but I do know that God didn't put him, and millions like him, on this Earth to give you someone to abuse. God gave you brains so that you could think, and it's about time you started doing that.

At the core of all your misguided beliefs is the belief that this could never happen to you, that there is some kind of subculture out there that people have chosen to join. The fact is that if it can happen to my family, it can happen to yours, and you won't get to choose. Whether it is genetic or whether something occurs during a critical time of fetal development, I don't know. I can only tell you with an absolute certainty
that it is inborn.

If you want to tout your own morality, you'd best come up with something more substantive than your heterosexuality. You did nothing to earn it; it was given to you. If you disagree, I would be interested in hearing your story, because my own heterosexuality was a blessing I received with no effort whatsoever on my part. It is so woven into the very soul of me that nothing could ever change it. For those of you who reduce sexual orientation to a simple choice, a character issue, a bad habit or something that can be changed by a 10-step program, I'm puzzled. Are you saying that your own sexual orientation is nothing more than something you have chosen, that you could change it at will? If that's not the case, then why would you suggest that someone else can?

A popular theme in your letters is that Vermont has been infiltrated by outsiders. Both sides of my family have lived in Vermont for generations. I am heart and soul a Vermonter, so I'll thank you to stop saying that you are speaking for "true Vermonters."

You invoke the memory of the brave people who have fought on the battlefield for this great country, saying that they didn't give their lives so that the "homosexual agenda" could tear down the principles they died defending. My 83-year-old father fought in some of the most horrific battles of World War II, was wounded and awarded the Purple Heart.

He shakes his head in sadness at the life his grandson has had to live. He says he fought alongside homosexuals in those battles, that they did their part and bothered no one. One of his best friends in the service was gay, and he never knew it until the end, and when he did find out, it mattered not at all. That wasn't the measure of the man.

You religious folk just can't bear the thought that as my son emerges from the hell that was his childhood he might like to find a lifelong companion and have a measure of happiness. It offends your sensibilities that he should request the right to visit that companion in the hospital, to make medical decisions for him or to benefit from tax laws governing inheritance. How dare he? you say. These outrageous requests would threaten the very existence of your family, would undermine the sanctity of marriage.

You use religion to abdicate your responsibility to be thinking human beings. There are vast numbers of religious people who find your attitudes repugnant. God is not for the privileged majority, and God knows my son has committed no sin. The deep-thinking author of a letter to the April 12 Valley News who lectures about homosexual sin and tells us about "those of us who have been blessed with the benefits of a religious upbringing" asks: "What ever happened to the idea of striving . . . to be better human beings than we are?"

Indeed, sir, what ever happened to that?

Sharon Underwood lives in White River Junction, Vt.
This editorial is from Sunday's Concord Monitor.
Sunday, April 30, 2000, By Sharon Underwood
For the Valley News (White River Junction, VT/Hanover, NH)

Miss Subway

2007-08-10T23:09:00.000+03:00

On a week like this in New York, when everyone is cursing the Subway system, it was a nice surprise when my cousin found this photo of my grandmother when SHE WAS Miss Subway.
I really don’t have anything smart or yogi to say about it, it’s just kind of cool.

Here is the Wiki article:
Miss Subways was a title accorded to individual New York City women between 1941 and 1976. The woman who was "Miss Subways" at any one time appeared on posters placed on New York City Subway trains, along with a brief description of her. The program was run by the ad agency "New York Subways Advertising". To be eligible, a woman had to be a New York City resident and herself use the subway. Winners were usually chosen by telephone-based voting, from among a group of contenders whose photos were all placed on the subways; the nominees were chosen by John Robert Powers, a modelling agent.
Around 200 women held the title during the program's run. The first Miss Subways was actress Mona Freeman; the last was Heidi Hafner.
The first African American Miss Subways was in 1947; the first Asian American Miss Subways was in 1949.
Ellen Hart Sturm, owner of the New York diner Ellen's Stardust Diner, was Miss Subways in 1959; her diner currently features photos of many past Miss Subways on the walls.
In 2004, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, in conjunction with the New York Post, brought back the program, though now named "Ms. Subways". A voting contest was held to determine the first winner, Caroline Sanchez-Bernat; Sanchez-Bernat remains "Ms. Subways". Current posters of "Ms. Subways" always appear with subway safety tips instead of biographical notes.
Miss Subways was a title accorded to individual New York City women between 1941 and 1976. The woman who was "Miss Subways" at any one time appeared on posters placed on New York City Subway trains, along with a brief description of her. The program was run by the ad agency "New York Subways Advertising". To be eligible, a woman had to be a New York City resident and herself use the subway. Winners were usually chosen by telephone-based voting, from among a group of contenders whose photos were all placed on the subways; the nominees were chosen by John Robert Powers, a modelling agent.
Around 200 women held the title during the program's run. The first Miss Subways was actress Mona Freeman; the last was Heidi Hafner.
The first African American Miss Subways was in 1947; the first Asian American Miss Subways was in 1949.
Ellen Hart Sturm, owner of the New York diner Ellen's Stardust Diner, was Miss Subways in 1959; her diner currently features photos of many past Miss Subways on the walls.
In 2004, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, in conjunction with the New York Post, brought back the program, though now named "Ms. Subways". A voting contest was held to determine the first winner, Caroline Sanchez-Bernat; Sanchez-Bernat remains "Ms. Subways". Current posters of "Ms. Subways" always appear with subway safety tips instead of biographical notes.

I will always be his little girl

2007-08-01T17:43:00.000+03:00

Guruji

2007-07-25T21:25:00.000+03:00

My Ashtanga teacher is on his way to meet his Guru, and will be away for over a month. So I woke up early this morning and went to practice, to be with my teacher before he leaves. I wasn’t the only one, so the Ashtanga room was packed.

I found a tight space between two other yogis at the front of the room, just in front of the door. This is where students say Namaste to their teacher when they finish their practice.
Today it was a longer “ceremony” as everyone wanted to say another word or two. I know I should be focused on my practice and not listen to the conversation, but it was just overwhelming. His students come to him every day, and the relationship of a teacher/student is developed. It is a relationship with very littlie words exchanged; based on trust and compassion. New students who come to Ashtanga sometimes are pushed away by the stern guidance, and the strong adjustments. But surrendering to your teacher is an integral part of the practice. Not because of the teacher’s ego or power strives; but because if you learn to surrender “on the mat” you will also learn: “Isvara pranidhnad-va” (Yoga Sutra 1:23); Or (achieving Samadhi is also attainable) by devoted self-surrender to the Lord.

On our journey to Samadhi, Patanjali is giving us another very important tool, surrender to the Lord. This is probably one of the hardest one for us as Westerner’s to practice, we are so pride and full of ourselves, it is so hard for us to surrender. I grew up in a Jewish orthodox home and school, I then spent three years in the army. The lessons of following a discipline without the consent questioning is one of the most important lessons I was giving between the ages of 4 and 21. There is nothing wrong with surrender; it does not make you weaker.

Baddhakonasana is where I learned to surrender, while my teacher climbed my hips again and again, I resisted, pushing up and back, struggling with my pain. Only when I surrendered to my teacher, I could breathe into the Asana and surrender to the feet , touching my head to my feet as a symbol.

I was emotional throughout the practice today; a young student placed his hand on my teachers shoulder and said: “Have a great trip Christopher.” I suspect my teacher was shocked by this display of affection, I started crying.

Or (achieving Samadhi is also attainable) by devoted self-surrender to the Lord

2007-07-23T21:27:00.000+03:00

At some point I would like to write more about the path of “Isvara pranidhnad-va” (Yoga Sutra 1:23) or Bhakti Yoga, the surrender to the Lord.

But for now I would like to bring this controversial but pretty story from the Gospel of Luke (courtesy of We, Like Sheep)

As Jesus and his disciples went on their way, Jesus entered a certain village, where a woman named Martha welcomed him into her home. She had a sister named Mary, who sat at the Lord's feet and listened to what he was saying. But Martha was distracted by her many tasks; so she came to him and asked, "Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me to do all the work by myself? Tell her then to help me." But the Lord answered her, "Martha, Martha, you are worried and distracted by many things; there is need of only one thing. Mary has chosen the better part, which will not be taken away from her."
(Luke 10:38-42)

The journey begins…

2007-07-23T18:10:00.001+03:00

With great appreciation and gratitude to my teachers, for setting the direction.
Bowing down to the teachers of the past, present and future, and the biggest teacher, the guru within, Om Bolo Sat Guru, Bhagavan, Qi Jai

An officer and a Gentlewoman

2007-07-18T20:38:00.000+03:00

My sister Noa finished the first part of her officer training! I am so proud of her!

Noa is someone that leaves the house without keys/money/cellphone. Gets stuck in the middle of an Arab village with no gas in the car. And now she is an officer in the IDF.

God, our army is in trouble!

Holding Out for a Hero

2007-07-16T18:03:00.000+03:00

I am reposting but this time with this amazing performance of Ms. Tandi Iman Dupree, courtesy of Pop Muse.

This is a good practice of practical Karma. When someone does something to you that you dislike (like taking your Hummus) your initial reaction might be, “that hummus hog! I am going to steal his hummus AND pita!” or just steal someone else’s Hummus if he is too big to steal from (which might be the case if he eats a lot of Hummus)
When someone does something pleasant to you, like “back נעימי/Naimi,” which is a combination of scratching and petting your back, you might think to yourself: “MORE! MORE! MORE!”
Now practical karma practice would suggest this; if someone does something you dislike, A. don’t do it to someone else, B. do something quite the opposite to your friend.
And if someone does something nice to you, do the same to someone else, now that you know how nice it feels.
Every time I listen to this SO GAY song by Bonnie Tyler (it’s on my GYM playlist) I imagine myself at a club (I have the club mix version) having a crappy night, and just waiting for that hero to change it all! And then I think that if I am holding out for an hero, there is probably someone out there that is holding out for me, so instead of holding out for an hero, I try and be someone else’s hero. And no, just buying someone a drink does not count! So be a hero, tonight!

Look how the Arab world treated me. I sure didn't deserve that.

2007-07-16T17:46:00.000+03:00

I always had this passion about Gazpacho soup, I never knew why until I saw Mujeres al borde de un ataque de nervios last night.
There were two main concerning facts about this event:
1. My BF said: “You will understand me better after you see this movie”
2. I saw it with a friend that just broke up with his BF, HE chose the movie.

It is one of those movies where you identify with more then one character throughout the movie which makes you feel you need therapy more then just once a week.

There is no doubt that Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown teaches us that to be passionate you have to be at least slightly insane.

Here are some of my favorite quotes from the movie:

Candela: Men keep taking advantage of me. I always realize it when it's too late. Look how the Arab world treated me. I sure didn't deserve that.

Paulina Morales: You're weak,

Ivan. Iv·n: Yes, sweetheart.

Paulina Morales: Don't agree with me.

Iv·n: But you're right.

Paulina Morales: Sometimes I like to be wrong.

PolicÌa I: What's going on?

Pepa: Nothing. Just discussing the lady's dress.

Candela: [in tears] It's awful!

Carlos: It's only a dress.

Candela: But it's awful!

And of course:

Pepa: I'm sick of being good.

We can all hug Part II

2007-07-13T17:04:00.000+03:00

These guys are huge on hugs.

And of course, Israel!

We can all hug Part I

2007-07-13T17:01:00.001+03:00

This story is from the Washington Post

A gate-crasher’s change of heart - Gunman bursts into party, tastes cheese and wine, gets hug, then leaves

A grand feast of marinated steaks and jumbo shrimp was winding down, and a group of friends was sitting on the back patio of a Capitol Hill home, sipping red wine. Suddenly, a hooded man slid in through an open gate and put the barrel of a handgun to the head of a 14-year-old guest.
"Give me your money, or I'll start shooting," he demanded, according to D.C. police and witness accounts.
The five other guests, including the girls' parents, froze -- and then one spoke.
"We were just finishing dinner," Cristina "Cha Cha" Rowan, 43, blurted out. "Why don't you have a glass of wine with us?"
The intruder took a sip of their Chateau Malescot St-Exupéry and said, "Damn, that's good wine."
The girl's father, Michael Rabdau, 51, who described the harrowing evening in an interview, told the intruder, described as being in his 20s, to take the whole glass. Rowan offered him the bottle. The would-be robber, his hood now down, took another sip and had a bite of Camembert cheese that was on the table.
'Can I get a hug?'Then he tucked the gun into the pocket of his nylon sweatpants.
"I think I may have come to the wrong house," he said, looking around the patio of the home in the 1300 block of Constitution Avenue NE.
"I'm sorry," he told the group. "Can I get a hug?"
Rowan, who lives in Falls Church and works part time at her children's school, stood up and wrapped her arms around him. Then it was Rabdau's turn. Then his wife's. The other two guests complied.
"That's really good wine," the man said, taking another sip. He had a final request: "Can we have a group hug?"
The five adults surrounded him, arms out.
With that, the man walked out with a crystal wine glass in hand, filled with Chateau Malescot. No one was hurt, and nothing was stolen.
In the alley behind the home, investigators found the intruder's empty crystal wine glass on the ground, unbroken.

Hanuman Meets Ganesh

2007-07-11T16:40:00.000+03:00

Michael is on the road again…

We drove from the Bhubaneswar train station directly to the Hospital. We were planning on spending one day at Puri beach to kind of acclimatize after the 24-hour train trip across India but Govinda told me Sunday was the busiest day at the hospital and we had several visiting doctors there for the day. We arrived after dark and the next morning the patients started to show up early. There were around 60 patients waiting in and around the hospital entrance and due to the visit of a gynecologist, Dr. Tappan, there were many female patients waiting.

There was an operation today at the hospital in Juanga that is worth noting. It was a 40-year-old woman from a village around 15-20 kms. Away! Her mother accompanied her to the hospital. She was suffering from an ovarian tumor. The family was extremely poor and her husband had abandoned the women with two children. The husband was a labor worker and just never came home. She moved back in with her widowed mother in the village of Galadhari. They are landless and get their food by one son who is doing labor work as well. Labor workers gets around 60 rupees a day (1.50 USD) and the rest of the family eat from this. It’s hardly enough to survive. So the mother was hesitant to seek medical attention for the growing tumor for fear of throwing the family into a debt that would ruin all their lives for at least this generation.

The tumor had grown to 4.2 kilos and needed to be removed for her to lead a tolerable life. The operation was a great success and everyone was amazed at the tumor sitting there outside the Operating theatre. But Dr. Tappan said he had seen far, far worse cases in these regions of persons living in poverty leaving them to extremely advanced stages.

After the procedure was over, I entered the office and the discussion of payment between Govinda (the Managing Trustee), Dr. Tappan, and a few other staff. This same procedure would have cost the family around 20,000 rupees (500.00 USD) in any other nursing home or hospital in the nearest cities. But do to the visiting Specialists charge and the rate of medicines we would usually have to charge at least 5,500 rupees (137.00 USD) But due to knowing her condition and after a long heated discussion about villagers having to pay something for the work, we all agreed on charging her 500 rupees (12.50 USD). Most village women, out of pride, wear a sari that was gifted to them at a wedding and tucked away in their mud huts in a plastic bag as a prized possession, only to be worn when they need to enter an official engagement like a government interaction or a hospital visit. This old frail women, dressed in nothing more then a tired thread bare sari, reached for a knot and small lump in the cloth holding all the money they could borrow to visit the hospital. I watched her hands trembling and the anguish on her face as she desperately untied the knot to reveal the waded up bills hidden in her sari. She handed the 500 rupees to the clerk in the office and then sat curled up on the bench in the entrance hall, quietly with a blank stare. I found this very unusual since her daughter was just operated on and Indian villagers can’t bare to be alone or leave others alone, especially at times of crisis. I knew what weighed on her mind was that even the 500 rupees would place an incredible burden on the families future and stability. I went up to my room and took out 300 rupees (7.50 USD) and reached around the corner and tapped her on the knee. She looked up and I handed her the rolled up notes and she gave back both combination of a smile, a look of shock and confusion. I placed my finger over my mouth and gestured for her not to tell anyone. She peered around to see if anyone was looking, then turned back to me and shook her head in agreement with a more confident smile.

I realize why the hospital wanted the patient to pay at least some of the costs. We can’t possibly afford to give everyone free care (presently, we barely raise enough funds for salaries). Also in some cases, villagers need to feel responsible for their care and take their medicines properly and understand what we tell them they need to do to get well. Many times if they pay something they are more apt to do this. But I do feel in the future it would be good to have some funds available for just such cases as this when they arise. As it is, I don’t know how Govinda and the staff deal with and function in such a poverty-stricken region and continue to maintain a stable healthcare for the villagers.

Photos by Hinda W.

2007-07-10T17:14:00.001+03:00

My friend Hinda is showing her photography in a new art exhibit in Tel Aviv, here are some of the photos:

Do your work, then step back

2007-07-07T18:49:00.001+03:00

Fill your bowl to the brim and it will spill.
Keep sharpening your knife and it will blunt.
Chase after money and security and your heart will never enclench.
Care about other people's approval and you will be their prisoner.
Do your work, then step back.
The only path to serenity.
--Lao-tzu, Tao Te Ching, ch. 9

Patanjali teaches us in the Yoga Sutra The 8 Limb Yoga, or Ashtanga Yoga. I tend to get stuck at the Yama (first limb) or Asana (third limb) and skip नियम Niyama, the second limb, which is translated at “the observances” or “the Do’s.”
The second Niyama after Shaucha: purity or cleanliness is Santosha: contentment or peacefulness. I find this “do” hard to practice. We live in a world where we are thought to want more and more, and honestly I find this quality attractive. And still, how can we progress with out contentment? The Buddha said: “I teach only one thing- there is suffering and there is an end of suffering.” It is as simple as that. But for us to be happy, to remove suffering to come, we must first be happy with what we have. Our lives are wonderful, they are full with glory!
So for this birthday, I take upon myself to practice contentment; I will fill my bowl only to the point that I need, I will sharpen my knife only so it is sharp, I will not chase money or security and I will not depend on people’s approval. I will do my work, every day, practice, practice, practice and I will step back.

Carpe Diem! Seize the day, lads! Make your lives extraordinary!

2007-07-07T17:55:00.000+03:00

A traveler came to the gates of a new city and asked the gatekeeper, “What kind of people live here?” The gatekeeper answered with a question of his own, “What kind of people lived in the city you came from?” The traveler replied, “They were mostly a cantankerous lot, greedy and self-centered.” The gatekeeper answer, “I expect you will find the people here just the same.” Soon after, another traveler met the gatekeeper and asked the same question. Again the gatekeeper asked, “How did you find the residents of the city you visited last?” The traveler answered enthusiastically, “They were warn and hospitable, truly a fine group of people.” The gatekeeper responded, “I expect you to find these folk just the same.”

For many years I was afraid (yes, afraid) of going to the Pines at Fire Island. I expected a nonstop party scene, drugs and alcohol. My friends kept on telling me that “Fire Island is what you make of it.” Last summer and this summer I learned that truth. I have been lucky to spend my days in Fire Island in the company of good friends, honest people, great yogis and remarkable personalities. I get to be close to Mother Earth, eat her offerings made by my company and not some stranger in a restaurant, practice Ashtanga Yoga in the company of great practitioners, discover over and over again how amazing, kind and smart my younger brother Amos is. And also see old loves, or people I might have felt anger to in the past, to them I come with a clean, simple and calm slate.

“Being present does not imply that we erase our past and the impact it has had upon us. Being present invites us to allow the memories and the stories rooted in the past to be just whispers in our minds that we no longer solidify with unwise attention. We free ourselves to turn a whole-hearted attention to this moment.”
--Buddhist Path to Simplicity

“Carpe Diem” Or “Seize the day” is not only “Eat, drink and be merry, for tomorrow we die,” is it also Live This Day Like Never Before. See each day as an opportunity to re-experience the world we live in, you might find it more beautiful then you have expected.

Photos by the wonderful person

Refuses To Go Like A Sheep Part III

2007-06-29T18:46:00.000+03:00

AT LAST! Mika Brzezinski also refuses to go like sheep!
When his newscaster sees that the lineup for the news is Paris Hilton AGAIN she tries to burn and eventually shreds the story.
Yes, change starts with one person saying: NO MORE.
Even if you know your actions will have no actual affect, the intention will change the course of things, either psychologically, energetically or karmaically.