HARI OM

Wednesday, October 20, 2008

Oct. 22 

This is a long one folks!  I promised to share my experiences of Navratri (and Devi Mahatmya) and include some pictures.  This actually occurred the first 9 days of October, and now we are gearing up again already for Divali on the 28th!

Devi Mahatmya is a scriptural account of the “creation” of Durga (and Her 9 forms she takes on) and Her salvation of the gods.  Essentially – the gods get kicked out of heaven by the demons, they pray to God and Durga is created.  She first appears beautiful, bearing magical weapons, and riding a fierce tiger.  She vanquishes the demons, the gods are deeply grateful and thank Her profusely.  She gives them a “boon” (a wish granted) and they ask Her to return to them whenever they are in need.  She agrees.  Time passes, a new baddie takes over, and the gods cry out to Mother to save them.  She comes, vanquishes several armies of demons, their generals, and finally the baddie himself.  So Navratri is 9 days, one day for each demon leader She slays.  People generally “fast” (see below) the first 8 days, and on the ninth day there is a 2-3 hour ceremony around a sacred fire pit, more chanting and feasting for all.  All the ashrams feed and offer gifts to 9 young girls (virgins) in Her honor.  The local girls go to several ashrams usually and get royally treated!  

First some explanation of what this all “means” and then something of my personal experience.

India and Hinduism are monotheistic – all these gods (and demons) are merely forms and names for different aspects and qualities of the Divine (the Formless One who is much too vast & comprehensive for mere names and forms).  Often the stories are really teaching us about ourselves.  Here, the gods and the demons are all US!  (Remember Pogo comic strip of the 60’s: “we have met the enemy and he is us.” ??  My Dad’s favorite quote!   We are really so often our own worst enemy!)  Anyway, so we all have good intentions, good wishes, selfless inclinations, etc.  yet we all can get sucked into bad moods, bad habits, overindulging in (fill in the blank), etc.  So we all have the divine spark/light inside and we all have a bit of devil too – and sometimes the demon (bad, lazy, angry, greedy, selfish…) part of us gets the upper hand and we get kicked out of heaven (happiness).  The lesson is to turn to God/Supreme Consciousness/Great Mother/Buddha/Allah/Higher Self… whatever name you use – for help.  The Indians (and many cultures) use the Great Mother Herself – because for most of us our first memories of “help” are of Mom, patching up a skinned knee, cooking us our favorite food, helping with homework, giving loving advice, etc.  So it’s natural to turn to Mother.  But sometimes the beautiful all powerful Mother Durga isn’t enough and fiercer forms are called for – enter Kali and other less “attractive” forms.  But She, in any form, is deeply compassionate for Her children and takes care of the baddies.  So the lesson is to surrender to Divine and you will be taken care of.  This doesn’t mean you will experience no troubles in your life – often our “troubles” are what shape us into the people we are, give us the skills and experience and wisdom we need to live our lives most fully.  But even when it’s tough we are not alone and Mother is on our side.  The Indians/Hindus have great faith in this and so this influences the culture to be much more accepting of ‘what is’ than are Western societies.  The upside is that they weather calamities, bad luck, poverty, etc much more “gracefully” and with less suffering than we do!

Now – about “fasting” – I thought fasting was just not eating!  Lordy its so much more complicated!  Generally most people do one of 2 things re food for Navratri: they eat only 1 time a day (no snacking!) or they eat 2-3 meals but no dairy or cultivated grains or legumes (and of course they are vegetarians already).  I elected the no grains version and so ate simple veggies and fruit.  Sometimes they make a chapatti out of something like buckwheat where the “grain” is really the flower of the plant.  I was quite happy.  That was the easy part!  But fasting also means, fasting from habits or thought patterns – e.g. not thinking of/wishing for what you are not eating, or a whole day of fasting on “violent” thoughts (e.g. not judging anyone or yourself harshly, not swatting mosquitoes, etc.)  Fasting simply on the “outer layer” (i.e. not eating) really doesn’t count for much here! 

Now – how we marked the days.  After the normal AM things (arising for 4am meditation, 5am worship, 6am tea) at 8 (or so) we started the Devi Puja (worship).  My “jobs” in prep were to sweep and pick up the puja room (which was one half of the dining hall), and to pick fresh flowers and decorate the altar.  There was a visiting Baba (an elderly holy man who has been connected here for many years and comes every few weeks to teach Gangotri more about ayurveda – India system of health and wellbeing.)  He wanted to chant the Devi Mahatmya (the scripture) – 13 plus chapters and 5-6 other “parts” that go before and after – each of the 9 days.  Mataji usually does 3-4 chapters a day and so only 3 or so times through the book during the whole festival.  But she looked forward to this.  The entire book and its accompanying “services” are all in Sanskrit (the swirly, arty letters) and as far as we know there is no transliteration to our alphabet.  So I couldn’t chant with them.  But Mataji said that there was always one person who didn’t chant, whose job is to do jappa (repetition of the mantra on a mala which is essentially the same as a rosary – the prayer beads I wear around my neck) continuously through out the chanting.  Great!  I learned the mantra (a prayer to Durga – about 17 syllables) and that was my job!  3 or so hours in the AM and 2 or so in the afternoon.  I have done lots of jappa over the years, but not so much and with so much focus!  And with the continual chanting of the others, the bells (Mataji rang a bell after each chapter), incense … it was truly remarkable!  You become (mostly) immune to flies and mosquitoes, immune to pain in your legs from sitting cross-legged on a pad on the floor essentially without moving, (getting up is a challenge!), and just filled with “other worldly” energy.  At times waves of love and gratitude simply washed over me… stay with the mantra, … waves of pain would wash over … stay with the mantra … worry about Jessie (I had just learned she was having health/emotional trouble) … stay with the mantra … a dozen or so donkeys clomping by the window bringing materials for a building project … stay with the mantra … sweating like a pig (it was HOT!)… stay with the mantra.  Bliss always came back.  I began to find myself in bliss more and more as the days passed – even when not in the puja.  I was a little sad when it was all over!  (oops!  There’s that attachment thing again!)

One day Sveta (a south Indian woman from NYC who has been here the last couple months) got us all inspired to do a traditional Gujarati (her family’s region of India) stick dance that the women do during Navratri.  This was new for the ashram.  She engaged some of the “kids” (young and old) to decorate/paint some bamboo sticks (about 15 inches long).  Indra (our cook) and Mataji’s daughters pulled out the saris they had and we all dressed each other up in beautiful saris and danced to Sveta’s instruction.  We were quite colorful!!  For those of you that remember my days Morris dancing in Michigan – this was a bit of déjà vu!!  The ancient Celts actually migrated up from the Indus valley (now north central India)– and lo and behold! The stick dancing forms had some remarkable similarities!  It was fascinating!  And HOT!  And a great antidote to all that sitting!   We did more with the 9 girls we feted on the last day. 

The tenth day the ashrams feed swamis from other ashrams (something about Hanuman) – I must have been too blissed out to get the details – but we fed about 40 swamis (holy men and women, all dressed in orange).  So it was a very full 10 days – no book editing, or other work.  Lots of cleaning to keep the ashram looking beautiful for guests.  I eventually learned a few of the chants in Sanskrit (Mandakini – one of Mataji’s daughters) transliterated a couple and I typed them.  The local bookstore is trying to find me a transliterated version so I can follow along next spring (Navratri happens twice a year). 

The next 10 days Mataji taught a new and wonderful course about the chakras, and I have embarked on a seven month program (one month on each chakra) of practice and study.  Some people left, and now a new course has begun, new people arrived ... and Mataji and I have turned our attention to the book.   HARI OM!

Pictures: top left: chanting and jappa (Mataji and I in front, Babaji and Gangotri closer to the altar; top right: dc in sari and Devi Yantra at altar; lower left: Yagya fire ceremony; lower right: Gujarati stick dance with girls (and Sveta & Mandakini)

Wednesday September 16, 2008

Hari OM!

I have been in India nearly 3 weeks now and still acclimating!  Days are in the low 90’s and 100% humidity.  I arrived at the Ashram at 4:30 am, went to morning prayers at 5, and class started at 6 am!  This course is a 3-week intensive called “Clinical Yoga.”  We do cleansings (neti – the nasal wash – is BY FAR the easiest!!!) from 6-730am, have tea, then asana 8-10, lunch about 1030.  Then we have time for rest, karma yoga (chores around the ashram, etc.) until the next class at 1-3pm.  Tea again, and Pranayama class from 430-6.  (I usually manage to fit in a dip in the Ganga to cool off!!)  Each 2 days the focus is on a different disorder (e.g. back pain, asthma, hypertension, constipation, etc.) and asanas and afternoon lecture follow the theme, and ayurveda (Indian system of medicine).  Supper is at 6, aarti (evening worship) at 7, meditation at 830pm.  Unless its Tuesday or Saturday – then we have kirtan chanting in the evening!  (see photo below - Mataji is playing the Harmonium!  perhaps close to an accordian - keyboard and pump)

It’s a really full schedule.  The cleansings this time in me have been intense – like my body knows I will be here long enough to really let go!  

We are a group of about 16 students for this course – from US, France, Mexico, Israel, Holland, Norway, Germany, Spain, Singapore, Belgium…and an Indian woman from NYC!  I think that’s it!  Its a wonderful group!  English is the common language – I feel very privileged – all the teaching and much of the conversation is in my native tongue!  

Last Sunday we went on a group trip up to Musoorie (a “hill station” in the Himalayas) and then on a hike up to a temple – at 3000 meters!  It was lovely steep hike.   And we got to sit a bit and meditate at the top.  And – it was actually cool!  A few hours of not sweating!!    (image below- I am center bottom with brown shawl)

In a few days a new course will start (one I have already taken) and the current group will go (or most will) and a new group will arrive.  Then I will turn my attention to work on Mataji’s book that I am helping to edit.  She wants to self publish it here – by February!!

Saturday August 30, 2008
Saturday August 16 was my 50th birthday and I celebrated entering the “3rd Ashrama” of life – where its time to retreat to the forest (well I already live in the forest!), to an ashram to deepen study and to withdraw from the hustle and distractions of a householder life!

So I had over 20 wonderful people here – friends, family, students – to help celebrate.  We did a traditional Indian ritual (as close as I could understand and replicate!) that included creating a mandala from colored flour, sand and rice and flowers, and lighting candles.  Each person lit at least one candle and offered something to the fire that they were ready to let go of.  And I was blessed beyond imagination!  (Literally awash in blessings and flower petals from people’s summer gardens!)  And of course we shared wonderful food and conversation.

A wonderful send-off as I leave for India tomorrow Sunday August 31!

Hari OM!

HARI OM
Tuesday August 12, 2008
I haven’t yet left for India – but Yogi (my first teacher) always said that the preparations are the beginning of the journey! In that case I have begun! I just spent a glorious day with Sharon (the replacement me) doing the fall schedule, flyers, website updating, etc. Oh and selling my car and teaching two classes. The end is in sight though!

Saturday is my 50th birthday and I will celebrate with my community – family, friends, and students- and it will also be a send off of sorts!

I feel so grateful for all the support I am receiving to make this incredible journey possible.

More to come! Stay tuned!