jump to navigation

The McGuffin’s MacGuffin, redux & reprised (the “missing” Tuesday post) August 13, 2024

Posted by ajoyfulpractice in Abhyasa, Art, Books, Buddhism, Changing Perspectives, Faith, Healing Stories, Hope, Life, Mantra, Meditation, Movies, Music, One Hoop, Pain, Peace, Philosophy, Science, Suffering, Tragedy, Vairagya, Wisdom, Writing, Yoga.
Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
add a comment

Many blessings to anyone observing Tisha B’Av and to everyone cultivating friendship, peace, freedom, and wisdom — especially when it gets hot (inside and outside).

Stay hydrated & be kind, y’all!

This is the “missing” for Tuesday, August 13th. Technically, it is also the “long lost” post for 2023 and a portion of the 2022 practice. It includes some previously posted information. You can request an audio recording of this practice via a comment below or (for a slightly faster reply) you can email myra (at) ajoyfulpractice.com.

In the spirit of generosity (“dana”), the Zoom classes, recordings, and blog posts are freely given and freely received. If you are able to support these teachings, please do so as your heart moves you. (NOTE: You can donate even if you are “attending” a practice that is not designated as a “Common Ground Meditation Center” practice, or you can purchase class(es).

Donations are tax deductible; class purchases are not necessarily deductible.

Check out the “Class Schedules” calendar for upcoming classes.

“Upanishad is the subtler, mystical or yogic teachings of the philosophy and practices leading to the direct experience of the center of consciousness, the absolute reality. ‘Upa’ means ‘near;’ ‘ni’ means ‘down;’ ‘shad’ means ‘to sit.’ Thus, Upanishad is to sit down near the teacher to discuss, learn, practice and experience the means and goals of Yoga sadhana or practices. The Upanishads are also known as Vedanta, which means the end or culmination of the Vedas.”

— quoted from the “Upanishad” page by Swami Jnaneshvara Bharati (“Swami J”)

Often translated as “sitting near devotedly,” “Upanishad” is the Sanskrit word assigned to a collection of sacred texts, the earliest of which were compiled (starting) in the last centuries of the 1st millennium BCE. The stories within the Upanishads were originally part of an oral tradition and they explain and explore the Vedas (which are more sacred texts). Scholars believe there were originally over 200 Upanishads, with some overlapping material; however, some have been lost. Of the 108 studied and practiced today, ten to twelve (depending on the tradition) are consider “major” and complete. Each one begins and ends with an invocation known as a Shantipat: a path of peace.

We start each practice with the “Teaching Shantipat” and I often bring awareness to the end: “Shanti Shanti Shanthi Om” / “Peace [within us], Peace [all around us], Peace [to and from everything and every one we encounter] With our conscious, subconscious, and unconscious mind and on every plane of existence.” The last “Shanthi” is emphatic, drawn out, and sometimes explained as “Peace [because I said so]” or “Peace [because I demand it].”

While the endings are the same, the beginnings of each of the shantipats are different. They are situational. So, today, I bring your awareness to the beginning of the “Teaching Shantipat.”

“May all of us together be protected….”

— quoted from the beginning of the “Teaching Shantipat,” chanted in Sanskrit by Richard Freeman (when we are in the studio)

The beginning of the “Teaching Shantipat.” is interesting (to me), because it is very similar to the beginning of the metta meditation: “May I be safe and protected.”

I find it very interesting that this invocation begins with a desire, a wish, a prayer for safety and protection. You could even think of it as a commitment — similar to ahiṃsā (“non-harming” or “non-violence”), which is the very first yama (external “restraint” or universal commandment) at the beginning of the Yoga Philosophy. The underlying implication to all of this is that there is something — or someone — from which we need to be protected; that there is some danger of which we must be mindful. In other words, it is almost a warning that there is something to fear.

Fear is an emotional response to a perceived threat. It doesn’t matter if what we perceive turns out not to be a threat; because, the emotion is real. The emotional reaction causes a physiological response: it activates the sympathetic nervous system, which causes a chemical change in the brain and a change in organ function. These changes are designed to protect and ensure survival, causing us to fight or flee or freeze (which is a form of collapse). This can all take place in a blink of an eye and in a heartbeat — even, again, when the perceived threat turns out to not be a threat and/or not a threat to survival. Although the initial reaction can occur in an instant, it takes a while to come down off of the adrenaline high and, depending on the reality and nature of the threat, the effects of the trauma can be life-long.

“It is not that you must be free from fear. The moment you try to free yourself from fear, you create resistance against fear. Resistance in any form does not end fear. What is needed, rather than running away or controlling or suppressing, is understanding fear; that means, watch it, learn about it, come directly into contact with it, not how to escape from it, not how to resist it.”

— Jiddu Krishnamurti

Yoga Sūtras 2.3 and 2.9 describe ābhiniveśāḥ (“resistance to loss, fear of death of identity, desire for continuity, clinging to the life of”) as the fifth and final afflicted/dysfunctional thought pattern that leads to suffering. This is consistent with the Ashtavakra Gita, which states “All sorrow comes from fear. / From nothing else. // When you know this, / You become free of it, / And desire melts away.” (AG 11.5) According to the Eastern philosophies, like Yoga and Buddhism, the remedy to fear is wisdom, which is considered to be the opposite of fear.

Wisdom is the ability, knowledge, and skill to respond to a given situation with awareness. Without wisdom, we react as if everything and everyone is a threat to our life, our livelihood, and those we love. We become like a “timid man” who flees because he perceives everything picked up by our senses as a tiger. (AG 18.45) We see this fear-based behavior each and every day, even when we don’t recognize that that is what we are seeing/experiencing. Wisdom, in this case, can also be defined as vidyā (“correct knowledge”) about ourselves and the nature of everything. It gives us the ability to pause, take a breath, and possibly discover that “Just as a coil of rope / Is mistaken for a snake, / So you are mistaken for the world” (AG 1.10) and that “a man without desires is a lion.” (AG 18.46)

“‘Work hard in the world, Arjuna, but for work‘s sake only. You have every right to work but you should not crave the fruits of it. Although no one may deny you the outcomes of your efforts, you can, through determination, refuse to be attached to or affected by the results, whether favorable or unfavorable. 

“‘The central points of issue, Arjuna, are desire and lack of inner peace. Desire for the fruits of one‘s actions brings worry about possible failure — the quivering mind I mentioned. When you are preoccupied with end results you pull yourself from the present into an imagined, usually fearful future. Then your anxiety robs your energy and, making matters worse, you lapse into inaction and laziness.’”

— Krishna speaking to Arjuna (2.47) in The Bhagavad Gita: A Walkthrough for Westerners by Jack Hawley

“You gain strength, courage and confidence by every experience in which you really stop to look fear in the face…. You must do what you think you cannot do.”

— quoted from You Learn by Living: Eleven Keys for a More Fulfilling Life by Eleanor Roosevelt

This tricky thing about fear is that the mind-intellect can perceive and process things in the past, present, and/or future; which means we may find ourselves having a fear-based reaction to something in the past or something that has not (and may never) happen. This is why fear can prevent us from achieving our goals and desires. It can also cause us to build walls — emotionally, energetically, symbolically, and physically. In fact, construction of the Berlin Wall, which began today on Sunday, August 13, 1961, was at the intersection of a lot of fear.

Remember, during the Potsdam Conference at the end of World War II, the Allies decided to split Berlin and the rest of Germany into four different regions controlled by four different nations. The Soviet-controlled areas became the German Democratic Republic (GDR or DDR; German: Deutsche Demokratische Republik), also known as East Germany. The areas controlled by United States, the United Kingdom, and France became the Federal Republic of Germany (German: Bundesrepublik Deutschland), sometimes called Bonn Republic (German: Bonner Republik), and known as West Germany. East and West Berlin, as well as East and West Germany, ended up with vastly different socioeconomic and political cultures. Right off the bat, people on the East side would travel to East Berlin in order to crossover to West Berlin and then, from there, gained access to the rest of the “Free World.” In fact, prior to the wall being constructed approximately 3.5 million people defected from East Berlin — at a rate of about one thousand a day.

The wall did not go up all at once. It started off as a little over 100 miles of barbed wire and fencing put up in the wee hours of that Sunday morning in 1961: 156 km (97 mi) between the western regions and the eastern regions and another 43 km (27 mi) of wire dividing the cities of Berlin. Then a 6-foot tall wall of blocks was constructed, with bunkers. Within nine years, that 6-foot wall of blocks had become a 3.6-meter (11.8-foot) tall wall, with the barbed wire (and guards in the towers). The final wall included 155 km (96 miles) of wall around West Berlin and another 111.9 km (69.5 miles) of barrier between West Berlin and East Germany.

The wall decreased the number of defections; however, it did not completely prevent them. Between 1961 and 1989, when the Berlin Wall “fell,” about 100,000 people attempted to defect and approximately five thousand succeeded. An estimated 136 — 200 people died attempting to escape. Many of the deaths were in and around a gap created between two concrete walls which formed the 27 miles of barrier dividing Berlin. Known as the “death strip,” the gap was full of anti-vehicle trenches, guard dog runs, floodlights, and trip-wire machine guns. It was also overseen by guards in watchtowers who were ordered to shoot on sight.

Remember, although decades had passed, the construction of the Berlin Wall happened in the wake of World War II. People were still processing the trauma caused by the violence of the war and of the Holocaust, which were themselves the source and result of fear.

“However, if the process of non-violence is to be effective in counteracting violence, we must first describe and outline it clearly and methodically. Because violent thoughts always precede a violent act, an act of non-violence will be effective only if it is preceded by non-violent thoughts. Violence is an active phenomenon, whereas non-violence is mistakenly thought to be passive – simply the absence of violence. But passive non-violence has no power to extinguish the fire if violence. Non-violence must be as active as violence itself.”

— commentary on Yoga Sūtra 2.33 from The Practice of the Yoga Sutra: Sadhana Pada by Pandit Rajmani Tigunait, PhD

“The opposite of racist isn’t ‘not racist.’ It is ‘anti-racist.’ What’s the difference? One endorses either the idea of a racial hierarchy as a racist, or racial equality as an anti-racist. One either believes problems are rooted in groups of people, as a racist, or locates the roots of problems in power and policies, as an anti-racist. One either allows racial inequities to persevere, as a racist, or confronts racial inequities, as an anti-racist. There is no in-between safe space of ‘not racist.’”

 — quoted from How to Be an Antiracist by Ibram X. Kendi, PhD

When I first heard about Dr. Ibram X. Kendi, who was born in Jamaica, New York City on August 13, 1982, I thought the term “antiracist” was something new. In reality, however, Dr. Kendi recommends and teaches an idea that goes back to the beginning of the yoga philosophy. (NOTE: I’m not saying he’s teaching “yoga,” even though he is working to bring people together. I’m saying that he is teaching ancient wisdom.)

This wisdom is not simply bringing awareness to a situation and neither is it not doing something overtly harmful. It is bringing awareness to what is happening beneath the surface and actively, skillfully, moving in the opposite direction. Again, the premise behind “cultivating the opposites” is that, over time, we neutralize the force of past actions and, as a result, our habits and thoughts change. When our habits and thoughts change, the world changes. Doing this work can be scary — in fact, you may already feel yourself tightening up just at the thought. But, we must remember that being fearless is not the absence of fear, it is how we show up when we experience fear.

“Courage is the strength to do what is right in the face of fear, as the anonymous philosopher tells us. I gain insight into what’s right from antiracist ideas. I gain strength from fear. While many people are fearful of what could happen if they resist, I am fearful of what could happen if I don’t resist, I am fearful of cowardice. Cowardice is the inability to amass the strength to do what is right in the face of fear. And racist power has been terrorizing cowardice into us for generations.”

— quoted from How to Be an Antiracist by Ibram X. Kendi, PhD 

None of this is about being reckless and putting ourselves (or others) in danger. Neither is it about ignoring reality. Instead, the philosophers and leaders quoted throughout this post encourage us to face our fears. Again, this is not new advice. As noted above, it is the same advice found in ancient texts from India and (as noted below) it is the same advice found in the teachings of the Stoics. In fact, I imagine that if you research all the indigenous and modern cultures in the world, you will find lessons on fear and advice on cultivating fearlessness that is very, very similar.

Furthermore, we have plenty of opportunities to practice studying, observing, learning about, and understanding our fears. We can do it on the mat or the cushion; we can do it as we move through our days; and we can do it when some form of entertainment push our buttons.

“[Spoken: Alfred Hitchcock]
Thus far, this album has provided musical accompaniment to make your passing pleasant
Our next number is designed to drown out the sound of shovels
Music to be buried by
[Music begins]

Of course, your assassin may have made burial unnecessary
So, if you are completely encased in cement
And are teetering on the edge of a pier
Please try not to pay attention to this next number
It is not meant for you
As for the others, if you spend your evenings watching murder instead of doing it yourself
You may recognize this”

— quoted from Track 5, “Alfred Hitchcock Television Theme” on the album Alfred Hitchcock Presents Music to Be Murdered By by Alfred Hitchcock and Jeff Alexander (narration written by James Allardice; “Funeral March Of A Marionette” by Charles Gounod adapted by Jeff Alexander and Stanley Wilson) 

Born today in London, today in 1899, Sir Alfred Hitchcock KBE liked to play with fear(s) and push people’s fear buttons. He directed and produced movies like The Lodger: A Story of the London Fog (1927); Blackmail (1929), was the first British “talkie;” The 39 Steps (1935); The Lady Vanishes (1938); Rebecca (1940); Shadow of a Doubt (1943);  Strangers on a Train (1951), Dial M for Murder and Rear Window (both released in 1954); Psycho (1960); To Catch a Thief and The Trouble with Harry (both released in 1955); Vertigo (1958); North by Northwest (1959), and The Birds (1963). He was also the producer and host of the television anthology Alfred Hitchcock Presents (1955–65) and often made cameo appearances in his own movies. Like so many directors and producers, he liked to work with certain people, including Cary Grant and James Stewart (who were each in four movies) and Ingrid Bergman and Grace Kelly (who were each in three movies).

In addition to having nine of his films selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry (as of 2021), Alfred Hitchcock received the British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) Fellowship in 1971, the American Film Institute (AFI) Life Achievement Award in 1979, and was knighted in December of that 1979, just a few months before he died on April 29, 1980. His work also earned him six Academy Awards and an additional 40 Academy Award nominations — including five in the Best Director category.

Despite never winning the Academy Award for Best Director, the “Master of Suspense” did such a good job at manipulating emotional responses that even hearing the music (often composed by Bernard Herrmann), seeing a murder of crows or a rear window, and/or being in the shower can start tightening up the body. His name, voice, and infamous silhouette became so synonymous with his work that they can also activate the fear response. Another common Hitchcockian element was a simple plot device that existed long before he was born. It became more popular and more well-known by a name coined by the screenwriter Angus MacPhail1: MacGuffin (or McGuffin).

“Hitchcock explained how the MacGuffin got its name:

‘Two men are traveling on a train to Scotland. One of them is carrying an odd parcel. The other man says, “What have you there?” and the other answers, “A MacGuffin.”

‘“What’s a MacGuffin?”

‘“It’s a special device designed to trap wild lions in the Scottish Highlands.”

‘“But there aren’t any lions in the Scottish Highlands.”

‘“Then, there is no MacGuffin.”

‘The MacGuffin, you see, is only important if you think it’s important, and that’s my job as a director, to make you think it’s important.’”

— quoted from “II. British Films: Cub Director” in It’s Only a Movie: Alfred Hitchcock: A Personal Biography by Charlotte Chandler2

A McGuffin (or MacGuffin) can be anything — or anyone — that people in the movie are seeking. It could be a briefcase (or something inside a suitcase). It could be a jewel-encrusted statuette. It could be $40,000 or, as some people see it, a place in the snow where $920,000 was buried. It could be state secrets. It could be A Girl. While the MacGuffin (or McGuffin) motivates the characters and keeps the plot moving, it is the exact opposite of Checkov’s gun because it is ultimately inconsequential. The characters seem to forget about it or just put it aside. In fact, sometimes it is as if it was never in the story. Other times it is just never revealed to the audience.

A McGuffin (or MacGuffin) should not be confused with a “red herring,” because it is not intended to confuse or misdirect the audience. However, to be clear, Sir Alfred’s movies also include red herrings — sometimes in the form of suspenseful music or shadows that keep the audience primed for something to happen. In other words, the MacGuffin (or McGuffin) motivates the characters and puts them in their situations, while the red herring conditions the audience to fear on command.

“Hitchcock’s example of the MacGuffin emphasizes its impossible status: not only is the object that one [never has], but one cannot even isolate it as an idea. It remains necessarily empty, and yet functions as an engine for the Hitchcockian narrative. The emptiness of the MacGuffin as an object permits spectators to locate their satisfaction in the striving that it unleashes rather than identifying satisfaction with the discovery of its secret.”

— quoted from “The Empty Object” in “27. Hitchcock’s Ethics of Suspense: Psychoanalysis and the Devaluation of the Object” by Todd McGowan (as published in A Companion to Alfred Hitchcock, edited by Thomas Leitch and Leland Poague)

Take a moment to bring your awareness to what happens when you experience fear.

Are you someone who runs away from it… or towards it? Are you someone who likes to be fearless and play? Are you someone who tears down walls and barriers? Or, are you someone who builds walls?

“This great Nation will endure as it has endured, will revive and will prosper. So, first of all, let me assert my firm belief that the only thing we have to fear is fear itself – nameless, unreasoning, unjustified terror which paralyzes needed efforts to convert retreat into advance.”

“Only a foolish optimist can deny the dark realities of the moment.”

— quoted from the March 4, 1933, Inaugural Speech by President Franklin Delano Roosevelt

“What conflicts with the courage of wisdom is desires and fears. The Stoics developed a profound doctrine of anxiety which also reminds us of recent analyses. They discovered that the object of fear is fear itself. ‘Nothing,’ says Seneca, ‘is terrible in things except fear itself.’ And Epictetus says, ‘For it is not death or hardship that is a fearful thing, but the fear of death and hardship.’ Our anxiety puts frightening masks over all men and things. If we strip them of these masks their own countenance appears and the fear they produce disappears. This is true even of death. Since every day a little of our life is taken from us–since we are dying every day–the final hour when we cease to exist does not itself bring death; merely completes the death process. The horrors connected with it are a matter of imagination. They vanish when the mask is taken from the image of death.”

— quoted from “Chapter 1. Being and Courage – Courage and Wisdom: The Stoics” in The Courage To Be (pub. 1952) by Paul Tillich

Tuesday’s playlist is available on YouTube and Spotify. [Look for “08132022 The McGuffin’s MacGuffin”]

NOTES:
1 Angus MacPhail worked with Sir Alfred Hitchcock on Aventure Malgache (1944, uncredited writer); Bon Voyage (1944, writer); Spellbound (1945, writer for adaptation); The Man Who Knew Too Much (1956, uncredited contributing writer); and The Wrong Man (1956, screenwriter). He very briefly worked on the script development for Vertigo, which may be why the movie opens with San Francisco detective John “Scottie” Ferguson (as played by James Stewart) involved in a rooftop chase.

2 Alfred Hitchcock used variations of this MacGuffin story on more than one occasion, including during a lecture at Columbia University in New York City (in 1939) and in a series of interviews. In some versions the conclusion was that there were no lions in the Scottish Highlands because the device in the parcel worked.

“We are very afraid of being powerless. But we have the power to look deeply at our fears, and then fear cannot control us. We can transform our fear. Fear keeps us focused on the past or worried about the future. If we can acknowledge our fear, we can realize that right now we are okay. Right now, today, we are still alive, and our bodies are working marvelously. Our eyes can still see the beautiful sky. Our ears can still hear the voices of our loved ones.”

— quoted from Fear: Essential Wisdom for Getting Through the Storm by Thich Nhat Hanh

Extreme heat (and traumatic events) can not only make people lethargic and unmotivated, they can also lead to extreme agitation and anxiety-based fear. We may find it hard to think, hard to feel (or process our feelings), and/or hard to control our impulses. If you are struggling in the US, help is available just by dialing 988.

If you are thinking about suicide, worried about a friend or loved one, or would like emotional support, you can dial 988 (in the US) or call 1-800-273-TALK (8255) for the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline. You can also call this TALK line if you are struggling with addiction or involved in an abusive relationship. The Lifeline network is free, confidential, and available to all 24/7. YOU CAN TALK ABOUT ANYTHING.

White Flag is a new app, which I have not yet researched, but which may be helpful if you need peer-to-peer (non-professional) support.

If you are a young person in crisis, feeling suicidal, or in need of a safe and judgement-free place to talk, you can also click here to contact the TrevorLifeline (which is staffed 24/7 with trained counselors).

### BE Fearless & PLAY. BE WISE.###

The McGuffin’s MacGuffin, redux & reprised (mostly the music) *UPDATED w/link* August 13, 2024

Posted by ajoyfulpractice in Art, Books, Changing Perspectives, Healing Stories, Life, Meditation, Movies, Music, One Hoop, Peace, Philosophy, Suffering, Wisdom, Yoga.
Tags: , , , , , , ,
add a comment

Many blessings to anyone observing Tisha B’Av and to everyone cultivating friendship, peace, freedom, and wisdom — especially when it gets hot (inside and outside).

Stay hydrated & be kind, y’all!

“May all of us together be protected….”

— excerpt from the beginning of the “Teaching Shantipat,” chanted in Sanskrit by Richard Freeman (when we are in the studio)

CLICK HERE FOR THE RELATED POST.

Please join me today (Tuesday, August 13th) at 12:00 PM or 7:15 PM for a yoga practice on Zoom. You can use the link from the “Class Schedules” calendar if you run into any problems checking into the class. You can request an audio recording of this practice via a comment below or by emailing myra (at) ajoyfulpractice.com.

Tuesday’s playlist is available on YouTube and Spotify. [Look for “08132022 The McGuffin’s MacGuffin”]

“Hitchcock’s example of the MacGuffin emphasizes its impossible status: not only is the object that one [never has], but one cannot even isolate it as an idea. It remains necessarily empty, and yet functions as an engine for the Hitchcockian narrative. The emptiness of the MacGuffin as an object permits spectators to locate their satisfaction in the striving that it unleashes rather than identifying satisfaction with the discovery of its secret.”

— quoted from “The Empty Object” in “27. Hitchcock’s Ethics of Suspense: Psychoanalysis and the Devaluation of the Object” by Todd McGowan (as published in A Companion to Alfred Hitchcock, edited by Thomas Leitch and Leland Poague)

Extreme heat (and hard memories) can not only make people lethargic and unmotivated, they can also lead to extreme agitation and anxiety-based fear. We may find it hard to think, hard to feel (or process our feelings), and/or hard to control our impulses. If you are struggling in the US, help is available just by dialing 988.

If you are thinking about suicide, worried about a friend or loved one, or would like emotional support, you can dial 988 (in the US) or call 1-800-273-TALK (8255) for the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline. You can also call this TALK line if you are struggling with addiction or involved in an abusive relationship. The Lifeline network is free, confidential, and available to all 24/7. YOU CAN TALK ABOUT ANYTHING.

White Flag is a new app, which I have not yet researched, but which may be helpful if you need peer-to-peer (non-professional) support.

If you are a young person in crisis, feeling suicidal, or in need of a safe and judgement-free place to talk, you can also click here to contact the TrevorLifeline (which is staffed 24/7 with trained counselors).

In the spirit of generosity (“dana”), the Zoom classes, recordings, and blog posts are freely given and freely received. If you are able to support these teachings, please do so as your heart moves you. (NOTE: You can donate even if you are “attending” a practice that is not designated as a “Common Ground Meditation Center” practice, or you can purchase class(es).

Donations are tax deductible; class purchases are not necessarily deductible.

Check out the “Class Schedules” calendar for upcoming classes.

### 🎶 ###

A Quick Note & EXCERPT: “The Practice of Observing Where You Are (and keeping notes)” August 10, 2024

Posted by ajoyfulpractice in Art, Changing Perspectives, Healing Stories, Hope, Life, Meditation, One Hoop, Philosophy, Science, Vipassana, Wisdom, Yoga.
Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , ,
add a comment

Many blessings to everyone and especially to anyone navigating the road(s) with friendship, peace, freedom, and wisdom — especially when it gets hot (inside and outside).

Stay hydrated & be kind, y’all!

“When I have got some more observations of it I shall bee [sic] able to tell you how long it will last and where it will pass[. At] present I dare not pretend to that knowledge.”

— quoted from a letter to “to Crompton [for Newton]” dated “December 15th (1680)” by John Flamsteed, the first Astronomer Royal

Every mindfulness-based practice is an opportunity for observation — for noticing what we notice and bringing awareness to our awareness. These practices are also a way to better study cause and effect, on and off the mat. One of the underlying intentions, especially during this year’s Saturday practices, is to notice cause and effect in order to better understand our trajectory — which, in turn, can help us navigate through life with a little more intentionality.

August 10th is the day the cornerstone for the Royal Observatory, Greenwich was laid (in 1675); the day Ferdinand Magellan set sail today (in 1519), with the intention of circumnavigating the globe; and the day the United States Congress passed legislation (in 1846) that established the Smithsonian Institution.

Click on the excerpt title below for more about observation, navigation, and preservation.

FTWMI: The Practice of Observing Where You Are (and keeping notes)

Please join me today (Saturday, August 10th) at 12:00 PM for a yoga practice on Zoom. You can use the link from the “Class Schedules” calendar if you run into any problems checking into the class. You can request an audio recording of this practice via a comment below or (for a slightly faster reply) you can email myra (at) ajoyfulpractice.com.

Saturday’s playlist available on YouTube and Spotify. [Look for “04192020 Noticing Things”]

NOTE: This is a 2-for-1 playlist. You can start with Track #1 or Track #14.

Extreme heat can not only make people lethargic and unmotivated, it can also lead to extreme agitation and anxiety-based fear. We may find it hard to think, hard to feel (or process our feelings), and/or hard to control our impulses. If you are struggling in the US, help is available just by dialing 988.

If you are thinking about suicide, worried about a friend or loved one, or would like emotional support, you can dial 988 (in the US) or call 1-800-273-TALK (8255) for the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline. You can also call this TALK line if you are struggling with addiction or involved in an abusive relationship. The Lifeline network is free, confidential, and available to all 24/7. YOU CAN TALK ABOUT ANYTHING.

White Flag is a new app, which I have not yet researched, but which may be helpful if you need peer-to-peer (non-professional) support.

If you are a young person in crisis, feeling suicidal, or in need of a safe and judgement-free place to talk, you can also click here to contact the TrevorLifeline (which is staffed 24/7 with trained counselors).

In the spirit of generosity (“dana”), the Zoom classes, recordings, and blog posts are freely given and freely received. If you are able to support these teachings, please do so as your heart moves you. (NOTE: You can donate even if you are “attending” a practice that is not designated as a “Common Ground Meditation Center” practice, or you can purchase class(es).

Donations are tax deductible; class purchases are not necessarily deductible.

Check out the “Class Schedules” calendar for upcoming classes.

### YOU WILL REACH YOUR DESTINATION! ###

A Note, Links, & Excerpt On The Cornerstones of Friendship & Liberty (a post-practice Monday post) August 5, 2024

Posted by ajoyfulpractice in "Impossible" People, Art, Books, Buddhism, Changing Perspectives, Faith, Healing Stories, Hope, Life, One Hoop, Pain, Philosophy, Suffering, Women, Writing, Yoga.
Tags: , , , , , , ,
add a comment

Many blessings to everyone and especially to anyone cultivating friendship, peace, freedom, and wisdom — especially when it gets hot (inside and outside). Stay hydrated, y’all!

This is a post-practice post related to the practice on Monday, August 5th. The 2024 prompt question was, “How long is your longest, ongoing friendship with someone perceived as being very different from you?” You can request an audio recording of this practice via a comment below or (for a slightly faster reply) you can email myra (at) ajoyfulpractice.com.

In the spirit of generosity (“dana”), the Zoom classes, recordings, and blog posts are freely given and freely received. If you are able to support these teachings, please do so as your heart moves you. (NOTE: You can donate even if you are “attending” a practice that is not designated as a “Common Ground Meditation Center” practice, or you can purchase class(es).

Donations are tax deductible; class purchases are not necessarily deductible.

Check out the “Class Schedules” calendar for upcoming classes.

“No man can read a fine author, and relish him to his very bones, while he reads, without subsequently fancying to himself some ideal image of the man and his mind. And if you rightly look for it, you will almost always find that the author himself has somewhere furnished you with his own picture. For poets (whether in prose or verse), being painters of Nature, are like their brethren of the pencil, the true portrait-painters, who, in the multitude of likenesses to be sketched, do not invariably omit their own; and in all high instances, they paint them without any vanity, though, at times, with a lurking something, that would take several pages to properly define.”

— quoted from “Hawthorne and His Mosses” [a review of the Nathaniel Hawthorne’s short story collection, Mosses from an Old Manse] by Herman Melville, published pseudonymously by “a Virginian Spending July in Vermont” (as printed in The Literary World on August 17 and 24, 1850)

As I mentioned a little over a month ago, friendship is highly regarded in the Eastern philosophies. The Buddha described sangha (“community”) as one of the three jewels; in other words, it is something of great value. In Yoga and Sāmkhya, two of the six Indian philosophies, the ability to “cultivate a good heart” (i.e., make friends) is so valued it is considered a great power that all humans possess. An underlying element to that discussion, and similar discussions about friendship, is how much easier it is to cultivate a friendship when the people involved are in close proximity and share similar backgrounds (as well as similar expectations).

All that is not to say that it’s impossible to make friends with someone who is different from you. However, consider how much easier it is to connect with someone when you can (literally) see yourself in their visage and when you share the same interests, the same passions, the same vocations and occupations — not to mention similar traumas — and have enough time to discover those similarities. This is exactly what happened when Herman Melville and Nathaniel Hawthorne met on August 5,1850, just a few days after Mr. Melville’s 31st birthday.

“I submit it, then, to those best acquainted with the man personally, whether the following is not Nathaniel Hawthorne,–to to himself, whether something involved in it does not express the temper of this mind,–that lasting temper of all true, candid men–a seeker, not a finder yet:–

A man now entered, in neglected attire, with the aspect of a thinker, but somewhat too rough-hewn and brawny for a scholar. His face was full of sturdy vigor, with some finer and keener attribute beneath; though harsh at first, it was tempered with the glow of a large, warm heart, which had force enough to heat his powerful intellect through and through. He advanced to the Intelligencer, and looked at him with a glance of such stern sincerity, that perhaps few secrets were beyond its scope.”

— quoted from “Hawthorne and His Mosses” [a review of the Nathaniel Hawthorne’s short story collection, Mosses from an Old Manse] by Herman Melville, published pseudonymously by “a Virginian Spending July in Vermont” (as printed in The Literary World on August 17 and 24, 1850)

The authors were part of a small group planning to picnic on the top of Monument Mountain in the Berkshires. When a thunderstorm sent the group rushing into a cave for shelter, the two writers had time to talk: time to talk about their love of literature, writing, and the sea. Perhaps they also had time to discuss the fact that they both lost their fathers when they were young. Mr. Hawthorne’s father died when the author was 4, and Mr. Melville’s when he was 13 (although the latter felt his father’s emotional absence long before his father’s death). Maybe they even discussed their decisions to change the spelling of their surnames. (Although that is highly unlikely.)

Mr. Hawthorne was a bit older (at forty-six) and had already worked for the U. S. Customs Service, for which Mr. Melville would also work a few years after their meeting. Additionally, they were in a community of writers and already familiar with each others work. In fact, they had reviewed each others work. So, their meeting was not impossible or improbable. Neither was it impossible that Nathaniel Hawthorne invited Herman Melville to spend more time in the Berkshires. In fact, given all the other factors, it was possible, even probable, that they would decide to live near each other and cultivate a very deep and close friendship for about two years. It is also not that surprising that, during those two years, they were both very prolific as writers and wrote (and/or published) some of their most popular works.

But, what if they lived on opposite sides of the Atlantic Ocean? You know, long before the internet. What if they spoke different languages and had different (cultural) experiences? Although the probability  would have been smaller, it is still possible that they could have appreciated each other’s work. It’s even possible that one could have offered the other a symbolic token of friendship, as Herman Melville did when he dedicated Moby Dick, or The Whale: “In Token of My Admiration for his Genius, This Book is Inscribed to Nathanial [sic] Hawthorne.” While not as probable, it would have been possible — especially when we consider an even grander symbolic token of friendship traveled across the ocean about 35 years after the writers met. And, the people involved in that transatlantic friendship overcame what seemed like an impossible obstacle.

The cornerstone of the Statue of Liberty’s pedestal was placed on a rainy Bedloe’s Island on August 5, 1884.

Click on the excerpt title below to discover why Lady Liberty and Mrs. Gertrude E. Rush (born today in 1880) are today’s “impossible people.”

FTWMI: The Impossible Cornerstones of Liberty

“Here at our sea-washed, sunset gates shall stand
A mighty woman with a torch, whose flame
Is the imprisoned lightning, and her name
Mother of Exiles. From her beacon-hand
Glows world-wide welcome; her mild eyes command
The air-bridged harbor that twin cities frame.”

— quoted from the poem “The New Colossus” by Emma Lazarus

There is no playlist for the Common Ground Meditation Center practices.

The 2023 playlist is available on YouTube and Spotify. [Look for “06172020 The Lady’s Power”]

If you are thinking about suicide, worried about a friend or loved one, or would like emotional support, you can dial 988 (in the US) or call 1-800-273-TALK (8255) for the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline. You can also call this TALK line if you are struggling with addiction or involved in an abusive relationship. The Lifeline network is free, confidential, and available to all 24/7. YOU CAN TALK ABOUT ANYTHING.

White Flag is a new app, which I have not yet researched, but which may be helpful if you need peer-to-peer (non-professional) support.

If you are a young person in crisis, feeling suicidal, or in need of a safe and judgement-free place to talk, you can also click here to contact the TrevorLifeline (which is staffed 24/7 with trained counselors).

CORRECTION: During some of the practices, I misspoke when referencing the year the cornerstone was laid at Bedloe’s Island.

### WE ARE EACH OTHER’S MIRROR ###

First Friday Night Special #46: Saying Yes to Life and to the “Impossible” & EXCERPT: “The Powerful Possibilities That Come From ‘A Brother’s Love’” August 2, 2024

Posted by ajoyfulpractice in "Impossible" People, Art, Books, Changing Perspectives, Dharma, Faith, Healing Stories, Hope, James Baldwin, Life, Loss, Love, One Hoop, Pain, Peace, Philosophy, Suffering, Traditional Chinese Medicine, Wisdom, Writing, Yin Yoga, Yoga.
Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
add a comment

Many blessings to everyone and especially to anyone cultivating peace, freedom, and wisdom — especially when it gets hot (inside and outside). Stay hydrated, y’all!

“The light that’s in your eyes / reminds me of the skies / that shine above us every day—so wrote a contemporary lover, out of God knows what agony, what hope, and what despair. But he saw the light in the eyes, which is the only light there is in the world, and honored it and trusted it; and will always be able to find it; since it is always there, waiting to be found. One discovers the light in darkness, that is what darkness is for; but everything in our lives depends on how we bear the light. It is necessary, while in darkness, to know that there is a light somewhere, to know that in oneself, waiting to be found, there is a light. What the light reveals is danger, and what it demands is faith.”

“What a journey this life is! dependent, entirely, on things unseen.”

— quoted from the essay “Nothing Personal” by James Baldwin (b. 1924), original published as part of a collaboration with Richard Avedon

Born today in Harlem, New York, in 1924, the author James Baldwin was — by his own words (see excerpt below) — an impossible person. He was someone who said yes to life and yes to the light inside of himself. He was someone, as Maya Angelou pointed out, who lived with his whole heart and encouraged others to do the same.

To live with one’s whole heart is the original meaning of “courage,” a word James Baldwin put in the same category as words like “artist,” “integrity,” “nobility,” “peace,” and “integration.” Words that, he said (in the speech “The Artist’s Struggle for Integrity”), “[depend] on choices one has got to make, for ever and ever and ever, every day.”

Of course, to make those choices wisely, we need to have some semblance of balance — especially as it relates to the heart.

Click on the excerpt title below for more.

FTWMI: The Powerful Possibilities That Come From “A Brother’s Love”

“I have slept on rooftops and in basements and subways, have been cold and hungry all my life; have felt that no fire would ever warm me, and no arms would ever hold me. I have been, as the song says, ‘buked and scorned and I know that I always will be. But, my God, in that darkness, which was the lot of my ancestors and my own state, what a mighty fire burned! In that darkness of rape and degradation, that fine flying froth and mist of blood, through all that terror and in all that helplessness, a living soul moved and refused to die. We really emptied oceans with a home-made spoon and tore down mountains with our hands. And if love was in Hong Kong, we learned how to swim.

It is a mighty heritage, it is the human heritage, and it is all there is to trust. And I learned this through descending, as it were, into the eyes of my father and my mother. I wondered, when I was little, how they bore it—for I knew that they had much to bear. It had not yet occurred to me that I also would have much to bear; but they knew it, and the unimaginable rigors of their journey helped them to prepare me for mine. This is why one must say Yes to life and embrace it wherever it is found—and it is found in terrible places; nevertheless, there it is; and if the father can say, Yes. Lord, the child can learn that most difficult of words, Amen.”

— quoted from the essay “Nothing Personal” by James Baldwin (b. 1924), original published as part of a collaboration with Richard Avedon

Please join me tonight (Friday, August 2, 2024), 7:15 PM – 8:20 PM (CST) for “Saying Yes to Life and to the ‘Impossible.’” You can use the link from the “Class Schedules” calendar if you run into any problems checking into the class. You can request an audio recording of this practice via a comment below or (for a slightly faster reply) you can email myra (at) ajoyfulpractice.com.

This Yin Yoga practice is accessible and open to all.

Prop wise, this is a kitchen sink practice. You can practice without props or you  can use “studio” and/or “householder” props. Example of “Studio” props: 1 – 2 blankets, 2 – 3 blocks, a bolster, a strap, and an eye pillow. Example of “Householder” props: 1 – 2 blankets or bath towels, 2 – 3 books (similar in size), 2 standard pillows (or 1 body pillow), a belt/tie/sash, and a face towel.

You may want extra layers (as your body may cool down during this practice). Having a wall, chair, sofa, or coffee table may be handy for this practice.

Friday’s playlist is available on YouTube and Spotify.

NOTE: The playlist tracks are slightly different in length and duration. Start with track 1, 8, or 10.

If you are thinking about suicide, worried about a friend or loved one, or would like emotional support, you can dial 988 (in the US) or call 1-800-273-TALK (8255) for the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline. You can also call this TALK line if you are struggling with addiction or involved in an abusive relationship. The Lifeline network is free, confidential, and available to all 24/7. YOU CAN TALK ABOUT ANYTHING.

White Flag is a new app, which I have not yet researched, but which may be helpful if you need peer-to-peer (non-professional) support.

If you are a young person in crisis, feeling suicidal, or in need of a safe and judgement-free place to talk, you can also click here to contact the TrevorLifeline (which is staffed 24/7 with trained counselors).

In the spirit of generosity (“dana”), the Zoom classes, recordings, and blog posts are freely given and freely received. If you are able to support these teachings, please do so as your heart moves you. (NOTE: You can donate even if you are “attending” a practice that is not designated as a “Common Ground Meditation Center” practice, or you can purchase class(es).

Donations are tax deductible; class purchases are not necessarily deductible.

Check out the “Class Schedules” calendar for upcoming classes.

### MORE LOVE ###

Quick Note & EXCERPT: “Dà shǔ ‘Major Heat’” July 23, 2024

Posted by ajoyfulpractice in Art, Books, Healing Stories, Health, Life, Music, One Hoop, Philosophy, Religion, Science, Traditional Chinese Medicine, Wisdom, Yin Yoga, Yoga.
Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
add a comment

Many blessings to everyone and especially to anyone practicing peace, freedom, and wisdom — especially when it gets hot (inside and outside). Stay hydrated, y’all!

“The center of most ancient cultures, from China in the second century B.C. to the twentieth-century native America, was the earth. Human welfare was attached to the rains upon the soil, the wind of the heaves and pliable trees embedded in an abundant forest. Chief Seattle, in 1854, summed up this ancient view of how humanity stands in relation to the world” ‘This we know – the earth does not belong to man, man belongs to the earth. All things are connected like the blood unites one family. Whatever befalls the earth befalls the sons of the earth. Man did not weave the web of life; he is merely a strand of it. Whatever he does to the web, he does to himself.’”

— quoted from “Chapter Three – Philosophy in the East: The Doctor As Gardener” in Between Heaven and Earth: A Guide to Chinese Medicine by Harriet Beinfield, L.Ac. and Efrem Korngold, L.Ac., O. M. D.

Since Raymond Chandler was born today in 1888 (and the first Batman Day was today in 2014), it is time to put on your detective’s hat and investigate what happens when it gets hot (inside and outside).

Click on the excerpt title below for the entire 2023 post.

Dà shǔ “Major Heat” 2023 (an updated and revised post) *UPDATED*

Please join me today (Tuesday, July 23rd) at 12:00 PM or 7:15 PM for a yoga practice on Zoom. You can use the link from the “Class Schedules” calendar if you run into any problems checking into the class. You can request an audio recording of this practice via a comment below or by emailing myra (at) ajoyfulpractice.com.

Tuesday’s playlist is available on YouTube and Spotify. [Look for “08222021 Fire Thread”]

“It’s not who I am underneath, but what I do, that defines me.”

— Batman (Christian Bale), quoted from the movie Batman Begins (written by Christopher Nolan and David S. Goyer, based on characters created by artist Bob Kane and writer Bill Finger)

Extreme heat can not only make people lethargic and unmotivated, it can also lead to extreme agitation and anxiety-based fear. We may find it hard to think, hard to feel (or process our feelings), and/or hard to control our impulses. If you are struggling in the US, help is available just by dialing 988.

If you are thinking about suicide, worried about a friend or loved one, or would like emotional support, you can dial 988 (in the US) or call 1-800-273-TALK (8255) for the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline. You can also call this TALK line if you are struggling with addiction or involved in an abusive relationship. The Lifeline network is free, confidential, and available to all 24/7. YOU CAN TALK ABOUT ANYTHING.

White Flag is a new app, which I have not yet researched, but which may be helpful if you need peer-to-peer (non-professional) support.

If you are a young person in crisis, feeling suicidal, or in need of a safe and judgement-free place to talk, you can also click here to contact the TrevorLifeline (which is staffed 24/7 with trained counselors).

In the spirit of generosity (“dana”), the Zoom classes, recordings, and blog posts are freely given and freely received. If you are able to support these teachings, please do so as your heart moves you. (NOTE: You can donate even if you are “attending” a practice that is not designated as a “Common Ground Meditation Center” practice, or you can purchase class(es).

Donations are tax deductible; class purchases are not necessarily deductible.

Check out the “Class Schedules” calendar for upcoming classes.

### H2O ###

FTWMI: If only it was Taco Tuesday… [with Good Advice] (a Monday post-practice post) July 22, 2024

Posted by ajoyfulpractice in Art, Books, Buddhism, Changing Perspectives, Confessions, Food, Healing Stories, Health, Hope, Life, Music, Pain, Philosophy, Suffering, Wisdom, Writing, Yin Yoga, Yoga.
Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
add a comment

Many blessings to everyone and especially to anyone practicing peace, freedom, and wisdom (inside and outside). Stay hydrated, y’all!

For Those Who Missed It: The following post-practice post (related to the practice on Monday, July 22nd) was originally posted in 2020.  Some formatting, quotes, and date-related information have been updated or added. Some links direct sites outside of this blog. The 2024 prompt question was, “What is your perfect taco?” You can request an audio recording of this practice via a comment below or (for a slightly faster reply) you can email myra (at) ajoyfulpractice.com.

In the spirit of generosity (“dana”), the Zoom classes, recordings, and blog posts are freely given and freely received. If you are able to support these teachings, please do so as your heart moves you. (NOTE: You can donate even if you are “attending” a practice that is not designated as a “Common Ground Meditation Center” practice, or you can purchase class(es).

Donations are tax deductible; class purchases are not necessarily deductible.

Check out the “Class Schedules” calendar for upcoming classes.

“I like it when a man puts thought into the kind of restaurant we’re going to. That doesn’t mean it needs to be fancy — some of the best meals of my life have been having a taco on a street corner.”

— Meghan Markle (now, Duchess of Sussex) quoted in an Esquire Magazine article dated Dec. 15, 2016

“I like to take a day off and enjoy fast food for what it is. I have to say that in New York I’m really partial about taco trucks. I mean I really can’t handle it. There is something about catching all those ingredients piled on top of each other it puts me in a tizzy. I love it. I’m kind of a taco truck junkie.”

— Alex Guarnaschelli (when asked if she eats fast food, TooFab 03/01/2011)

Imagine the perfect taco. “‘What is “The perfect taco?” Alex.’” What makes it perfect? Is it the outside? I mean, I know people who will throw down over hard shells versus soft. (And, just for the record, there’s no such thing as an “open-faced taco” — that’s a chalupa or a tostado, for goodness sake!)

So, maybe, what makes your perfect taco is what’s on the inside. Hmmm… given that everyone has different tastes, different needs, and desires, it seems that there could be a different taco for every person in the world (and two tacos per person on Tuesdays). The poet Emma Lazarus was born today (July 22nd) in 1849, so think about what “all your huddled masses” have been seeking over the years. I once heard Bryan Kest say that there’s at least one version of a pose for every person in the world. He estimated 8 billion ways to do every pose. And, it turns out that practicing yoga is a lot like searching for “the perfect taco.”

“Never underestimate how much assistance, how much satisfaction, how much comfort, how much soul and transcendence there might be in a well-made taco and a cold bottle of beer.”

— quoted from Jitterbug Perfume by Tom Robbins

I’m not much for beer, but I’m a huge fan of a well-made taco and I’m a huge fan of Tom Robbins’s fourth novel, Jitterbug Perfume. Born today in 1932, in Blowing Rock, North Carolina, Robbins is a self-described “hillbilly” who grew up in a Baptist household, went to a military college prep school, studied journalism in college, enlisted in the Air Force, and spent a year as a meteorologist in Korea and two years in Nebraska before being discharged. He returned to Richmond, Virginia (where his family had moved during his early childhood) and started reading poetry in a coffee shop.

Mr. Robbins returned to school and also put his journalism degree to good use, while (occasionally) hitchhiking, researching a book on Jackson Pollack, and (eventually) hosting a weekly alternative radio show for KRAB-FM, Seattle. All the while, Tom Robbins was writing — searching for his perfect writing style, his voice. He found it and used it to write Another Roadside Attraction, a novel that you could theoretically say is “just” about a kind of wacky couple who open a hot dog stand. His first novel had all the elements you will find in most of his novels: wacky, bohemian characters; strong-willed women; animals; religion; existential philosophical musings; science; food (always food); and the occasional mythical character.

Jitterbug Perfume definitely has all of the elements described above and, to me, it is one the most visceral novels by Mr. Robbins. They say a picture is worth a thousand words and yet, when I look at “Nighthawks” by Edward Hopper (who was born today in 1882), I may feel a lot, but I smell very little. On the flip side, I can’t even think about Jitterbug Perfume without smelling it. I know, I know, you’re thinking well, of course, the word “perfume” is in the title and it’s all about perfumers trying to capture this magical essence. That’s the way the brain works.

Yeah, no. When I think of this particular novel, I’m thinking about another element that shows up in all of Tom Robbins’s work: s-e-x. And Pan.

“The word desire suggests that there is something we do not have. If we have everything already, then there can be no desire, for there is nothing left to want. I think that what the Buddha may have been trying to tell us is that we have it all, each of us, all the time; therefore, desire is simply unnecessary.”

— quoted from Jitterbug Perfume by Tom Robbins

As we’ve discussed before, suffering is a part of the human condition. We can say, as the Buddhist and Yoga philosophies instruct us, that suffering comes from attachment; however, what we are really saying is that suffering comes from desires. There are lots of different kinds of desire, and they can lead to all different kinds of attachment (rooted in pleasure or rooted in pain); but, Mr. Robbins suggests in Jitterbug Perfume that the desire itself isn’t the problem. He suggests that maybe we suffer because “we do not desire wisely.” It’s an interesting thought — especially if you consider that we are psychologically and physiologically wired to desire, to want certain things and to not want other things.

Considering that there may be a better way to desire, makes me think of certain Buddhist and/or Yoga practices. For instance, shoshin is the Zen Buddhist practice of “beginners mind” and I often liken it to santosha, the practice of contentment, which is the second niyama (internal observation in Yoga). Just as Mr. Robbins says (above) the practice focuses not on the idea that we are missing out on something but focuses instead on the fact that in this moment there is something, something extraordinary, something… perfect. In Zen Mind, Beginner’s Mind, Shunryu Suzuki explains that “in the beginner’s mind there are many possibilities, in the experts mind there are few.” When we show up and practice shoshin and/or santosha we open ourselves up to find something perfect in the moment, be it the perfect scent, the perfect quantum physics equation, the perfect taco… or the perfect pose.

“If you lack the iron and the fuzz to take control of your own life, if you insist on leaving your fate to the gods, then the gods will repay your weakness by having a grin or two at your expense. Should you fail to pilot your own ship, don’t be surprised at what inappropriate port you find yourself docked. The dull and prosaic will be granted adventures that will dice their central nervous systems like an onion, romantic dreamers will end up in the rope yard. You may protest that it is too much to ask of an uneducated fifteen-year-old girl that she defy her family, her society, her weighty cultural and religious heritage in order to pursue a dream that she doesn’t really understand. Of course it is asking too much. The price of self-destiny is never cheap, and in certain situations it is unthinkable. But to achieve the marvelous, it is precisely the unthinkable that must be thought.”

— quoted from Jitterbug Perfume by Tom Robbins

Go back to the questions at the beginning of this post and think about them in terms of the “perfect” yoga pose. Even better, think about your pursuit of the perfect expression. Do you think about the inside first, or is your primary focus on the outside? Do you recognize that there are hundreds of thousands of elements, which translate into millions and billions of expressions? Do you recognize that there is no one way to do something and so, therefore, there can be billions of perfect poses? There is, however, an even more important question (inspired by one of my yoga teachers). Seane Corn said, “It’s not about the pose. It’s about the purpose. Be In Yours.” So, the better question as you seek your so-called perfect pose, is “What’s the purpose?”

When we get around to asking that question, we find that sometimes the perfect pose isn’t a taco at all… It’s a chalupa (or a tostado).

“When we accept small wonders, we qualify ourselves to imagine great wonders.”

— quoted from Jitterbug Perfume by Tom Robbins

As a former meteorologist, Tom Robbins would be familiar with chaos theory (the idea that small changes in initial conditions can translate into big outcomes) and it’s those little things that make a difference, unexpected differences, in his stories. Those little changes can also make a difference in your yoga practice…and in your meal preparation.

In the TV show Ugly Delicious, David Chang says, “The dishes that we’re making… it’s about telling a story.” The practicing yoga is also about telling stories, it’s about your body and mind telling your story. It’s about finding your voice, your themes, your ingredients, and then (as Tom Robbins has done all his life), putting it out there. It is, also, about listening — really, truly, deeply listening to your own heart, your own soul, and your own story. If you really listen, you can also hear the stories around you. And, it is delicious (even when it smells a little ripe).

“He was becoming unstuck, he was sure of that – his bones were no longer wrapped in flesh but in clouds of dust, in hummingbirds, dragonflies, and luminous moths – but so perfect was his equilibrium that he felt no fear. He was vast, he was many, he was dynamic, he was eternal.”

— quoted from Jitterbug Perfume by Tom Robbins

2024 NOTE: Today marked the beginning of Dà shǔ (大暑, “Great heat” or “Major heat”), which is the twelfth solar term and the last part of summer according to the traditional Chinese calendar (also known as the Agricultural Calendar). While I did not mention this in the practice, this season inspired the Yin/Yang sequence. Throughout this practice, you can follow the good advice of a guru: “‘Breathe properly. Stay curious. And always eat your beets.’” [Ibid.]

There is no playlist for the Common Ground Meditation Center practices.

The playlist used in previous years is available on YouTube and Spotify. [Look for “07222020 The Perfect Taco”]

“‘Their breathin’ was deep and smooth and regular. When they brought air into their bodies, they visualized suckin’ in as much energy and vitality as possible; when they expelled air, they visualized blowin’ out all the staleness and flatness inside o’ them.’”

— quoted from “Air” in Jitterbug Perfume by Tom Robbins

In case you were confused or missed it (above), only one of the Alex’s mentioned above is was born today in 1940!

ERRATA: Original post contained type-o related to Edward Hopper.

### WHAT’S YOUR PERFECT TACO? ###

[Still] Hooked by the Classics July 16, 2024

Posted by ajoyfulpractice in Art, Books, Changing Perspectives, Faith, Healing Stories, Hope, Life, One Hoop, Pain, Pema Chodron, Suffering, Tragedy, Wisdom, Writing, Yoga.
Tags: , ,
add a comment

Many blessings to everyone and especially to anyone creating peace, freedom, and wisdom (inside and outside).

“The work of artists is to find what’s humanly possible — possibility’s furthest reaches. But perhaps the work of citizens is to find what’s immediately possible. I can’t tell you how your work as artists contributes directly to your work as citizens, if in fact art does contribute directly, if in fact certitude and directness are not as inimical to art as despair is to politics. I’ve been writing plays for nearly two decades and I only know, or at least I think I know, that only in activism — organizing, arguing, fundraising, electioneering — can one exercise with some small degree of certainty one’s agency as an actor in politics, on the historical stage. Politics, as they say, is the art of the possible.”

— quoted from the School of Visual Arts commencement speech (in New York City, May 14, 2010) by Tony Kushner (b. 1956)

Please join me today (Tuesday, July 16th) at 12:00 PM or 7:15 PM for a yoga practice on Zoom. You can use the link from the “Class Schedules” calendar if you run into any problems checking into the class. You can request an audio recording of this practice via a comment below or by emailing myra (at) ajoyfulpractice.com.

Tuesday’s playlist is available on YouTube and Spotify. [Look for “07162023 Hooked by the Classics”]

In the spirit of generosity (“dana”), the Zoom classes, recordings, and blog posts are freely given and freely received. If you are able to support these teachings, please do so as your heart moves you. (NOTE: You can donate even if you are “attending” a practice that is not designated as a “Common Ground Meditation Center” practice, or you can purchase class(es).

Donations are tax deductible; class purchases are not necessarily deductible.

Check out the “Class Schedules” calendar for upcoming classes.

### 🎶 ###

A Quick Note & Excerpts About Origins and Memories July 10, 2024

Posted by ajoyfulpractice in Art, Books, Changing Perspectives, Dharma, Faith, Healing Stories, Life, One Hoop, Philosophy, Religion, Science, Wisdom, Writing, Yoga.
Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
add a comment

Many blessings to everyone and especially to anyone making memories full of peace, freedom, and wisdom (inside and outside).

“We are able to find everything in our memory, which is like a dispensary or chemical laboratory in which chance steers our hand sometimes to a soothing drug and sometimes to a dangerous poison.”

— quoted from The Captive, Volume 5 of Remembrance of Things Past (or In Search of Lost Time) by Marcel Proust

It is super ironic that I have a hard time remembering that today (July 10th) is the anniversary of the birth of the French author Valentin Louis Georges Eugène Marcel Proust, who was born today in 1871 (in Auteuil, Paris, France). This lapse in memory is not new. In fact, I could weave in a little Yoga Philosophy — see Yoga Sūtras 1.6, 1.11, 4.9, and maybe 1.43 — and tell you a long and funny story about the origins of this gap in my mind. However, my long story wouldn’t be nearly as long as the Marcel Proust’s most well-known tome: À la recherche du temps perdu. Known in English as Remembrance of Things Past or In Search of Lost Time, it is 1,267,069 words and was printed in 7 volumes over 14 years (1913-1927). At the time of its publication, it was the longest novel every written. Today, I believe it ranks as the 6th longest novel. (Although that ranking annoyingly places it behind The Blah Story by Nigel Tomm, which includes pages with just one word: Blah.)

Marcel Proust wrote all about the origins of our memories and how we recollect things, at will and involuntarily. In doing so, pointed out that we have fool hearted memories, whimsical memories, and memories that have gaps. That is just part of being human. We have faulty memories. Strong emotions (and preconceived notions) can sharpen our awareness of certain things, causing us to forget things, remember things in the wrong order, and/or misremember things all together. Another thing that can create faulty memories is the way we learn about things — especially things about which we (or our teachers) have strong emotions. Throw in a situation none of us were around to witness and watch the sparks fly.

“We will now discuss in a little more detail the struggle for existence…. I should premise that I use the term Struggle for Existence in a large and metaphorical sense, including dependence of one being on another, and including (which is more important) not only the life of the individual, but success in leaving progeny.”

— from On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection, or the Preservation of Favoured Races in the Struggle for Life by Charles Darwin (pub. 1859)

Today in 1925, The State of Tennessee v. John Thomas Scopes, better known as “The Scopes Monkey Trial,” kicked off in Dayton Tennessee. Click the excerpt title below for more.

FTWMI: The Origins of Litigation

“It has often and confidently been asserted, that man’s origin can never be known: but ignorance more frequently begets confidence than does knowledge: it is those who know little, and not those who know much, who so positively assert that this or that problem will never be solved by science.”

— from The Descent of Man, and Selection in Relation to Sex by Charles Darwin (pub. 1871)

Please join me today (Wednesday, July 10th) at 4:30 PM or 7:15 PM for a yoga practice on Zoom. You can use the link from the “Class Schedules” calendar if you run into any problems checking into the class. You can request an audio recording of this practice via a comment below or (for a slightly faster reply) you can email myra (at) ajoyfulpractice.com.

Wednesday’s playlist is available on YouTube and Spotify. [Look for “07102024 ‘Scoping’ Memories”]

In the spirit of generosity (“dana”), the Zoom classes, recordings, and blog posts are freely given and freely received. If you are able to support these teachings, please do so as your heart moves you. (NOTE: You can donate even if you are “attending” a practice that is not designated as a “Common Ground Meditation Center” practice, or you can purchase class(es).

Donations are tax deductible; class purchases are not necessarily deductible.

Check out the “Class Schedules” calendar for upcoming classes.

### [What] Will You Remember? ###

A Quick Note & EXCERPT:  “The best thing since…” (plus a weather update) July 7, 2024

Posted by ajoyfulpractice in Art, Food, Hope, Life, Love, Music, One Hoop, Religion, Wisdom, Yoga.
Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
add a comment

Many blessings to everyone and especially to anyone celebrating Ivana-Kupala, saints, and/or cultivating a heart full of peace, freedom, and wisdom (inside and outside).

“Wie ich Dich liebe, Du meine Sonne,
ich kann mit Worten Dir’s nicht sagen.
Nur meine Sehnsucht kann ich Dir klagen
und meine Liebe, meine Wonne!”

In which way I love you, my sunbeam,
I cannot tell you with words.
Only my longing, my love and my bliss
can I with anguish declare.”

— German and English lyrics of a love poem (to Alma Mahler-Werfel) associated with the final movement of “Symphony No. 5” composed (and written) by Gustav Mahler (b. 07/07/1860)

Born today in 1860, the composer Gustav Mahler expressed his love for his wife Alma with poems and music, like the Adagietto (“little Adagio”) movement in “Symphony No. 5.” In a similar situation, others might give the gift of chocolate… or bread, both of which we are celebrating today.

CLICK ON THE EXCERPT TITLE BELOW FOR MORE (including a fun video).

FTWMI: The best thing since…

Please join me for a 65-minute virtual yoga practice on Zoom today (Sunday, July 7th) at 2:30 PM. Use the link from the “Class Schedules” calendar if you run into any problems checking into the class. You can request an audio recording of this practice via a comment below or by emailing myra (at) ajoyfulpractice.com.

Sunday’s playlist is available on YouTube and Spotify. [Look for “07072024 Bread & Chocolate (with Mahler)”]

Music Note: This playlist is a remix (of a remix) with more “Chocolat” and more Mahler.

Weather Update: As many of you know, there is a hurricane (or possibly a tropical storm) heading my way. We have already lost power twice, but I am crossing my fingers and toes that we have smooth sailing during this practice. If you typically attend Sundays on Zoom, I will send you a back-up recording (just in case).

Click here for a previous post related to Ivana-Kupala, which some people started celebrating last night!

In the spirit of generosity (“dana”), the Zoom classes, recordings, and blog posts are freely given and freely received. If you are able to support these teachings, please do so as your heart moves you. (NOTE: You can donate even if you are “attending” a practice that is not designated as a “Common Ground Meditation Center” practice, or you can purchase class(es).

Donations are tax deductible; class purchases are not necessarily deductible.

Check out the “Class Schedules” calendar for upcoming classes.

### Enjoy Sustainable & Ethical C7H8N4O2 ###