“Happy Spring Festival!” Many blessings to everyone observing (or getting ready to observe) Lent. “Nine days and nine nights of blessings and happiness if you are celebrating Gupta (Magha) Navaratri!” Peace and ease to all throughout this “Season for Nonviolence” and all other seasons!
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. Donations are tax deductible.
“Here are some of the forms in which love manifests itself. First there is reverence. Why do people show reverence to temples and holy places? Because He is worshipped there, and His presence is associated with all such places. Why do people in every country pay reverence to teachers of religion? It is natural for the human heart to do so, because all such teachers preach the Lord. At bottom, reverence is a growth out of love; we can none of us revere him whom we do not love.”
— quoted from “CHAPTER IV. THE FORMS OF LOVE — MANIFESTATION” in The Complete Works of Swami Vivekananda — Volume 3: Para-Bhakti or Supreme Devotion by Swami Vivekananda
The word “reverence” may seem like an odd choice for the “Season for Nonviolence” principle of the day for February 14th. It comes to English by way of Middle English and Old French, from the Latin word meaning “to stand in awe of.” It a word used to describe a feeling or emotion of deep respect and can also be the actions that come from said emotions. Since it is often associated with religion and religious practices, we can easily see Bhakti Yoga (“union” through “devotion”) as reverence in action. What we may not immediately recognize is that an awareness and respect of something (and/or someone) other than ourselves is deeply embedded in the Yoga Philosophy. It is the underlying foundation of all of the yamas (external “restraints” or universal commandments) and most — if not all — of the niyamas (internal “observations”). In fact, the yamas and niyamas are sometimes referred to as “respect for others” and “respect for yourself.”
Just consider, for a moment, how different the world would be if we actually did have more respect for others and ourselves. Just consider, for a moment, what would happen — or not happen — if, instead of putting conditions (and labels) on our love, we put more respect on the way we manifested the energy of love.
“Such is the power of love. When a man has forgotten himself altogether, and does not feel that anything belongs to him, then he acquires the state of Tadiyata; everything is sacred to him, because it belongs to the Beloved. Even in regard to earthly love, the lover thinks that everything belonging to his beloved is sacred and so dear to him. He loves even a piece of cloth belonging to the darling of his heart In the same way, when a person loves the Lord, the whole universe becomes dear to him, because it is all His.”
— quoted from “CHAPTER IV. THE FORMS OF LOVE — MANIFESTATION” in The Complete Works of Swami Vivekananda — Volume 3: Para-Bhakti or Supreme Devotion by Swami Vivekananda
While people may not automatically think of reverence when they are celebrating Saint Valentine’s Day as a commercial holiday, it is important to remember that the day wasn’t initially associated with romantic love. It is actually a Christian feast day. It also was not the only (religious) holiday being observed on the 14th this year. It was also Ash Wednesday — which is the beginning of Lent in the Western Christian traditions; the fifth day of the Lunar New Year; and the fifth day and night of Navaratri, the Hindu celebration of the Divine as a woman.
These cultural and/or religious observations are “moveable feasts” (or fasts, in some cases), which do not always occur on the same day on the Gregorian calendar. (See link above for more on secular events.) Additionally, these rituals and traditions may appear very different on the outside and be rooted in different theology; however, at the heart of them all is the desire for deeper connections and that powerful love best described as “reverence.”
“The moment I have realised God sitting in the temple of every human body, the moment I stand in reverence before every human being and see God in him — that moment I am free from bondage, everything that binds vanishes, and I am free.”
— quoted from the lecture “Practical Vedanta (Part II),” delivered in London (Nov. 12, 1896), as published in The Complete Works of Swami Vivekananda — Volume 2: Practical Vedanta and other lectures by Swami Vivekananda
Hinduism is not the only religion where the feminine aspects of the Divine are celebrated. It’s not even the only religion where an observation related to a woman, as the Divine, is associated with a period of nine days/nights. To my knowledge, however, Navaratri (“nine nights”) is unique in that it celebrates many different aspects of a single woman. Each night/day is associated with a different manifestation of Durga/Parvati, the mother goddess, and is part of nine-part story cycle/journey that ends with a demon-king being destroyed. The fifth day is devoted to Skandamata, who is a fierce mother as protector — who simultaneously holds her baby, rides a lion, and keeps her eyes (especially her third eye) open for any and all danger.
In 2024, the fifth day of Navaratri also happens to be the fifth day of the Lunar New Year.
A variation of the following was previously posted.
For many people celebrating the Lunar New Year, the fifth day is the day to go back to work after a four-day holiday. Businesses opening back up are met with great fanfare: parades, music, and fireworks. There’s also the promise of “lucky money,” in red envelopes; which business owners will give to their customers — who will then promptly spend some of the money in the business. Some people will also celebrate the birthday of all cows. This fifth day is particularly auspicious in parts of China where it is recognized as the birthday of the God of Wealth.
Of course, all this focus on wealth, indulgences, and vices, makes me think about the things we like and the things we don’t like — and how those preferences contribute to our overall experiences of life.
Yoga Sūtra 2.7: sukhānuśayī rāgah
— “Affliction that has pleasure as its resting ground is attachment.”
Yoga Sūtra 2.8: duhkhānuśayī dveşah
— “Affliction that has pain as its resting ground is aversion.”
Very early on in our human lives, people start to establish preferences. There are things (and people) we like and things (and people) we don’t like — and we will spend an extraordinary amount of time creating situations and environments full of the things (and people) we like and free of the things (and people) we don’t like. When things are not to our liking we experience suffering that we often attribute to things not being the way we want them. However, according to Eastern philosophies, believing things (or people) can make us happy or miserable is ignorant. Specifically, in the Yoga Philosophy, this is avidyā (“ignorance”) related to the true nature of things, which is a dysfunctional or afflicted thought pattern. Avidyā is seen as the bedrock of four other types of dysfunctional/afflicted thought patterns — two or which are rāga (“attachment” or what we like) and devşa (“aversion” or what we don’t like) and it is these afflictions (kleśāh) which lead to our suffering.
To experience freedom from craving and liberation from avidyā, and the subsequent suffering, Patanjali’s recommendations include abhyāsa (a devoted and uninterrupted “practice” done with trustful surrender devotion) and vairāgya (“non-attachment”). What is always interesting to me is that when you combine abhyāsa and vairāgya with the niyamas (internal “observations”) you end up with a practice that can look very much like Lent.
“Remember that you are dust, and to dust you shall return.”
— Ceremonial words used on Ash Wednesday (drawn from Genesis 3:19)
“Repent and believe in the Gospel.”
— Ceremonial words used on Ash Wednesday (drawn from The Gospel According to Mark 1:15), Roman Catholic tradition after 1969
According to Merriam-Webster Dictionary, the word “Lent comes from the Middle English word lente, meaning ‘springtime,’ which is itself descended from the Old English lencten.” (Italics are mine.) It is also the past tense and past participle of “lend,” but we will get into that symbolism in a week or so. In most Christian traditions, Lent is a 40-day period (46 when Sundays* are counted) when people actively focus on their spiritual life and connection to God by fasting, praying, and either giving up something — something to which they have a strong attachment (or aversion) — and/or doing something positive. When people give something up they will often donate the money they would have spent on whatever they gave up.
The 40-day ritual is a mirror of the days Jesus spent in the desert and is an opportunity for Christian contemplation, discernment, and self-reflection. Like the observation of Passover, the holy month of Ramadān, and the Baháʼí Nineteen-Day Fast, observing Lent falls under the rubric of what Patanjali described as kriyā yoga (“yoga in action”): a combination of tapah (“heat, austerity, or discipline”), svādhyāya (“self-study”), and īśvarapraņidhāna (“trustful surrender to [God]”).
In many Western Christian traditions, the Lenten season officially begins with Ash Wednesday, which is a day of fasting and prayer — and it is also the day when people truly begin to get ready for Easter. Many take a moment out of their day to attend Mass or services and to receive ashes, which are traditionally made from the previous year’s Palm Sunday fronds. In a ritual that has ties to Judaism and Biblical times, the ashes are a sign of penance and preparation. They are sometimes sprinkled on the crown of the head; however, the more common practice in modern times is for a priest or pastor to use the ashes to make the sign of the cross on a person’s forehead. People are not required to wear the mark of the cross throughout the remainder of their day; however, many choose to maintain that link and reminder.
The practice is considered sacramental in the Roman Catholic tradition, but the ashes and receiving the ashes are not sacraments; which means they serve as a symbol and preparation aide for holy sacraments, as well as a reminder of the grace of the sacraments. The fact that receiving ashes is not a sacrament also means that, in the Roman Catholic tradition, anyone (including non-Catholics and those who have been excommunicated by the Church) may receive ashes.
Of course, if you are unfamiliar with these religious traditions and rituals, you may find it odd that people are walking around with a mark on their face. Or, perhaps you recognize the mark as a symbol of their faith, but you’ve been unclear about the symbolic significance (as mentioned above) or even why the Lenten season — like the other religious observations mentioned above — can be so powerful that the rituals and traditions have endured the test of time.
To understand the latter, we need to consider the desire for spiritual nourishment and then go a little deeper into that very common aspect of being human that I mentioned before: having preferences, and the absolute freedom that comes from trustful surrender.
“When I was in college, my Jewish roommates used to tell me what to give up for Lent….
Since then, for over 20 years my friend Rob has phoned me every Ash Wednesday to assign me a Lenten sacrifice. The sacrifices have grown easier over the years since Rob is running out of things for me to give up. For a few years he favored spices. One Lent I was suppose to avoid anything with oregano. It sounded easy until it dawned on me that pizza was out of the question for six weeks. Having another person choose your sacrifice adds an extra dimension to Lent. Since my penance is not within my control, it feels a little more spiritual. As with far more serious struggles in life, like an illness or the loss of a job, things outside our control are the most difficult to deal with. They are, in traditional Christian theology, crosses that eventually need to be accepted, much as Jesus finally accepted his cross.
When I was dealing with a long illness, I once complained to an older priest that I didn’t want that particular cross. He said, well it wouldn’t be much of a cross if you wanted it, would it?”
— Father James Martin quoted from the interview “Priest Lets Friend Choose His Sacrifice for Lent” with Melissa Block on NPR’s All Things Considered (2/28/2006)
Wednesday’s playlist is available on YouTube and Spotify. [Look for “One More for Ash Wednesday & Day 5 2024”]
*NOTE: Sundays during Lent are considered anniversaries of Easter and the Resurrection; therefore, they are not counted as days of penance.
It’s Mardi Gras, y’all! It’s also Shrove Tuesday and the last week of Shrovetide, for those who are feeling more prayerful!! “Happy Spring Festival!” Nine days and nine nights of blessings and happiness if you are celebrating Gupta (Magha) Navaratri!” Peace and ease to all on Galentine’s Day, Black Love Day, and during this “Season for Nonviolence” and all other seasons!
This is the “missing” post for Tuesday, February 13th. It includes some previously posted information (updated for 2024) and embedded links to related posts (one of which will be added after this is posted). You can request a recording of the related practice(s) via a comment below or (for a slightly faster reply) you can email me at 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. Donations are tax deductible.
The Tuesday before Lent has many names, but for a lot of people it is Mardi Gras, French for “Fat Tuesday,” the end of the Carnival season and the day before the Lenten season in Western Christian traditions. It is also known as Shrove Tuesday or (especially in the UK) Pancake Tuesday. It is a “moveable feast,” meaning the date on the secular calendar changes depending on the date of Easter each year. It also means that it coincides with different events each year. This year, Mardi Gras and Shrove Tuesday (in the Western Christian traditions) overlapped the “Season for Nonviolence” and coincided with day Galileo Galilee returned to Rome in 1633; the day Wendall P. Dabney started publishing The Union in 1907; the fourth day of Navaratri; the fourth day of the Lunar New Year; Galentine’s Day; and Black Love Day.
These observations, traditions, and rituals are very different on the outside, however, they are all inspired by similar beliefs and the very human desire for deeper connections with something Divine, something more than one’s self. While not religious, even Galentine’s Day (which is about celebrating friendship) and Black Love Day (which is about African Americans connecting/reconnecting with each other in a loving and kind way) are about making and reinforcing deeper connections within a community. And there’s the rub: While some people may think of community as being Divine, others think of “God.”
I would normally add, “Whatever that means to you at this moment” — which, on a certain level, is still valid in this discussion — but, one of the things these holidays underscore is that people have very different ideas about the identity of the ruler of heaven and earth. What the major religions seem to agree upon, however, is the idea that there is a Divine entity who can present as anthropomorphic (with human features, emotions, and motivations); that there are certain ways to connect with the Divine; and that some preparation is needed to make that connection.
Navaratri, the “nine nights” and days of celebration in the Hindu tradition, is different from the other celebrations, because it is a celebration that focuses on Durga, the divine mother, in various manifestations. The fourth day is dedicated to the Goddess Kushmanda who, it is said, “created the world with her divine smile” — a smile that also powers the sun. She is recognized as Shakti (the creative force) and associated with good health (specifically with improving health), wealth, and strength.
Although, I haven’t gone into it in detail, this year, the names of each of Durga’s forms is symbolic and each form is associated with different colors, which have symbolic meanings. Similarly, symbolic colors and names are part of the Lunar New Year celebrations and significant to the ways people prepare for the Lenten season.
“[Kushmanda] also lives in our hearts. The fact that she is smiling reminds us that we too are our most creative when we are smiling and feeling positive, courageous (a quality of heart), and strong. The fact that this goddess, like Chandraghanta, rides a lion shows that the power of love is just as potent as the fire of transformation. It reminds us that the ability to love comes from inner strength. When we feel clouded by fear, anger, and grief, it can be difficult to imagine one day having the strength to love again. But Kushmanda is here to remind us that, no matter how brokenhearted we may feel at time, the power of love lives within us, and we can tap into it and become our creative best at any time.”
— quoted from the “Knowing Kushmanda” section of “Chapter 4 — The Art of Loving Your True Self” in The Way of the Goddess: Daily Rituals to Awaken Your Inner Warrior and Discover Your True Self by Ananta Ripa Ajmera
For a lot of people who are celebrating the Lunar New Year, the fourth day is the day when things start going back to normal (whatever that is these days). People go back to work and back to school. People who were able to travel to see family start heading back home (or are already home). Even those celebrating the Spring Festival for 15 days will rein in the festivities a bit. However, each day still has significance and special rituals. For instance, the fourth day of the Lunar New Year is the birthday of all sheep (in some Chinese traditions) and also the day when the Kitchen God returns to the hearth.
According to one set of stories, the Kitchen God was once a man who was full of everything except virtues like humility (the principle of the day for the “Season for Nonviolence”). After gaining a certain amount of power and wealth, he abandoned his first wife and married a younger woman. Years after the original couple divorced, the man fell on hard times. He lost his wealth, his power, his second wife, and his eyesight. He became a beggar on the streets. One day, the stories tell us, the man’s first wife saw her former husband begging in the streets. She was a woman of great kindness and compassion and so she invited him to her simple home and offered him a shower, some food, and a moment of warmth by the fire.
Remember, the old man could no longer see; so, he didn’t know that this generous woman was the same woman he had treated so poorly. Full, clean, and sitting by the fire, however, he started to talk about his first wife. He lamented about his first marriage and the life they could have had if he hadn’t dumped her. In the process of soothing her now sobbing former husband, the woman revealed her identity and said that she forgave him. Miraculously, the man was suddenly able to see; but he was so distraught that he threw himself into the kitchen stove.
Legend has it, the woman could only save his leg — which became the fireplace poker — and the man became the “Kitchen God,” who leaves the kitchen alter just before the New Year and returns to heaven in order to give the Jade Emperor an accounting of each household’s activities during the previous year. In the final days of the old year, people clean up their homes — so the alter(s) will be ready for the return of their ancestors and the household deities. Sometimes, people will smear honey on the lips of the Kitchen God so that his report is extra sweet. Then, the Kitchen God and other household gods return (later in the afternoon or early evening) on the fourth day of the New Year.
I always imagine that some years the Kitchen God’s report is really, really, wild. Can you imagine? Seriously, imagine what he would say about the way we have treated each other over the last few years. Sure, some of us might not be portrayed too badly; but others of us….
More to the point, consider what might be included if the Kitchen God reported on Mardi Gras, Carnival, and Shrove Tuesday celebrations.
“Laissez les bons temps rouler!”
— Louisiana French for “Let the good times roll!”
As I mentioned before, the Tuesday before Lent can be a moveable feast day of indulgence, when people treat themselves to anything and everything — but especially the things they are planning to give up during Lent. It is, simultaneously, a day of self-examination, repentance, and amendments for Christians who are focused on “shriving.”“Shrove” comes from the word “shrive,” meaning “to absolve.” While people observing Shrove Tuesday or Pancake Day may indulge in “fatty foods,” they often do so with an eye on symbolism. Different countries and cultures have different traditional recipes, but the recipes generally include what can be considered symbols of the four pillars of Christianity: eggs for creation; flour as the staff of life or mainstay of the human diet; salt for wholesomeness; and milk for purity. Some churches will even make a point of ringing the bells on this day to “call the faithful to confession” — and to remind people to begin frying up the pancakes.
Carnival season begins with Three Kings’ Day (also known as Twelfth Night or Epiphany in some traditions) and ends with the biggest celebrations of the season, Mardi Gras (not to mention Lundi Gras)! In much of the Americas, Carnival and Mardi Gras are traditionally celebrated with parades, beads, masks and costumes, and parties from sunrise to sunset. Of course, Brazilian Carnival in Rio de Janeiro is the largest and most well known Carnival celebration — while New Orleans is practically synonymous with Mardi Gras. However, in the mid-80’s, Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras in Australia started drawing large numbers of celebrants from around the world.
In New Orleans, it is customary to celebrate with a King Cake, featuring a little plastic baby figurine. The person who finds the baby is promised health and wealth — and is often expected to provide the following year’s King Cake. While many people toss or “request” beads during the parades, very few people remember that there was a time when the beads were made of glass and that the bead colors had special meanings: purple for justice; gold for power; and green for faith.
“… don’t tell no lie! Cause we gonna have fun, y’all, on Mardi Gras! … I’m not gonna tell no lie. We not gonna let Katrina, y’all, turn us ’round.”
— Theodore “Bo” Dollis, “Big Chief” of The Wild Magnolias opening the song “Brother John Is Gone / Herc-Jolly-John” on Our New Orleans: A Benefit Album
Carnival and Mardi Gras have outlasted gangs, political coups, police strikes, hurricanes, and other natural disasters. In 2021, while much of New Orleans was shut down, the good times still rolled on — just not in a way that would turn Mardi Gras into a super spreader. Remember, as glutinous as the tradition may appear on the outside, its roots are deeply embedded in something more than the desires of the flesh. Thus, just as has been the case with so many other cultural traditions and religious rituals, the pandemic forced people to figure out how to honor the traditions while maintaining social distancing guidelines.
One New Orleans business owner decided to follow the normal parade route — but in his car and in the early, early morning. Of course, he was blasting New Orleans jazz all the way! Many others tweeted and created virtual events. Then there were the thousands of people who decorated their homes and businesses in the same way they would have decorated their krewe’s floats: They called it “Yardi Gras!”
In some ways, the creativity and ingenuity to work around challenging conditions while still holding on to what one values is very much part of the human spirit — and very much indicative of the spirit of New Orleans. It is is also a reflection of the seasons themselves: Shrovetide, Carnival, the “Fat” celebrations, and Lent are all about the dichotomy between what feeds the body and what feeds the soul. Of course, all this focus on wealth, indulgences, and vices, makes me think about the things we like and the things we don’t like — and how those preferences contribute to our overall experiences of life.
Remember, all of these observations, celebrations, rituals, and traditions are about making connections that transcend our mundane existence and alleviate suffering.
Tuesday’s playlist is available on YouTube and Spotify. [Look for “Mardi Gras 2023”]
NOTE:The first before/after music track hits different on YouTube. If you know, you know. Some before/after music has been added for the Spring Festival!
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.)
“Chag sameach!” to those who are able to celebrate Tu BiShvat. Peace and blessings to everyone!!
For Those Who Missed It: This is the second part of “Doing: Lessons in unexpected, ridiculously inconvenient, unplayable things (& ‘impossible’ people).” Some content has been added. A version of the following was originally posted in 2022 (and reposted, in a different context, in 2023). You can click on the aforementioned years to find the previous contexts.
“Thus svadhyaya means ‘to study, examine, and reflect on ourselves, our internal states, the objects of our senses, and the current condition of our body and mind, as well as on the thoughts, feelings, and options that are so dear to us.’ For the sake of simplicity, we can translate svadhyaya as ‘self-study.’ Self-study requires that we make an inventory of our physical and mental resources and assess the vitality of our body and the rate at which we are expending it. It also requires that we remain vigilant and avoid dissipating the power of our mind with unwholesome activities.”
— commentary on Yoga Sūtra 2.1 from The Practice of the Yoga Sūtra: Sadhana Pada by Pandit Rajmani Tigunait, PhD
How do you react when things don’t go your way? What happens when you are very specific about what you want and/or what you need, but then you don’t get either? Are you quick to anger? Or, do you get “hangry” when you haven’t eaten and you have to deal with irritating situations? Do you “see red” at the drop of the hat or the blink of an eye? If so, there are (obviously) practices for that.
There are also handy tips (even if you don’t have a mindfulness-based practice). For instance, it’s ideal to get a good night sleep, eat when you need to, and — as much as you are able — avoid situations and people that push your buttons. Of course, just to be on the safe side, you could just not leave your house on days where you might be easily irritated.
But, what if people are not only expecting you leave your house, they are expecting you to travel across the ocean and put on a show?
And, what if it was a show that had never been performed before?
“You always want to make it as good as it can be, but… But when you have problems that you can’t do anything about, one after another, you start forgetting what you’re actually doing, until it’s time. And that’s one of the secrets….”
— Keith Jarrett in a 2007 interview about his (01/24/1975) Köln Concert
In the 1970’s, 15-year old Vera Brandes started organizing jazz concerts and tours. At around 17, the German teenager started organizing the New Jazz in Cologne concert series. The fifth concert was scheduled for 11:30 PM on January 24, 1975, and it was going to be the first jazz concert at the 1,400-seat Cologne Opera House. The concert would feature a twenty-nine year old jazz pianist named Keith Jarrett, performing improvised solo piano pieces. Yes, that’s right, he was going to make it up as we went along — and the sold out concert would be recorded. (According to last.fm, the tickets were 4 DM [Deutsche Mark] or $5; Wikipedia indicates the 4 DM equaled $1.72.)
Here’s a few other salient details about the American pianist: He has perfect pitch and garnered some international attention (as a classical pianist) when he was in high school in Pennsylvania. He started playing gigs in Boston while attending Berklee College of Music and moved to New York City after about a year. In the Big Apple, he started making a name for himself, playing with jazz greats like Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers, Jack DeJohnette, and the Charles Lloyd Quartet. By the mid-to-late 1960’s, he was playing and recording with his own trios and that’s around the time that Miles Davis invited him to join his jams (alternating and/or playing with Chick Corea).
Keith Jarrett and his own band of musicians — Charlie Haden, Paul Motian, (eventually) Dewey Redman, and a handful of other similarly accomplished musicians (including Sam Brown) — recorded over a dozen albums for Atlantic Records from 1971 to 1976. In that same time period, one iteration of the quartet recorded an album for Columbia Records; but then the label dropped him — theoretically so they could promote Herbie Hancock. Right around the same time the Columbia-door closed, another two others doors opened: Keith Jarrett and his quartet got a contract with Impulse! Records and he was contacted by Manfred Eicher, a German record producer and co-founder of ECM Records.
ECM stands for “Edition of Contemporary Music” and the label is known for high quality jazz and classic music – and musicians who give the side-eye to labels. It was a great creative dwelling place for musicians like Keith Jarrett and Steve Reich, whose music I have also used in some practices. The professional relationship between Keith Jarrett and Manfred Eicher led to the “European quartet” collaborations, solo piano albums, and, eventually, to that legendary concert in Cologne, Germany.
Here’s another important thing to know about Keith Jarrett: He has a reputation for being very, very particular about concert conditions. He doesn’t like audience distractions, especially when he is improvising, so — at the height of his career — audience members were given cough drops during winter concerts and he would sometimes play in the dark to prevent people from taking pictures. He is known for vocalizing while he plays jazz (but not, notably, when he plays classical music) and reportedly led people in group coughs.
Now, imagine you are a musician like this — one who knows their stuff and is also very particular about the instruments you play — and you are presented “the unplayable piano” just hours before you’re meant to play a groundbreaking concert. What if you were also hungry, tired, and sick?
Would you see red? Or would you “accidentally” find goodness?
“KJ: When I was a teenager, my youngest brother had a lot of issues, and didn’t go to school. He couldn’t go outside, so he couldn’t have friends, so he was basically a prisoner in my mother’s house. There was an upright piano there. And occasionally, my brother, knowing zero — meaning really zero — about piano, would work out anger or frustration, which he must have had gobs of, by going to the keyboard and just playing some shit. He didn’t know what notes he was hitting or what would come out. But I realized there were moments that were so good and they came from his ignorance. I’m not sure he even knew they were good moments. But I found myself thinking: how would a pianist ever — how do you approach that if you know the instrument?
DS: How do you find the accidental goodness?”
— Keith Jarrett in response to David Shenk’s question about having a willingness or eagerness to fail, in “Keith Jarrett, Part II: The Q&A” by David Shenk (published in The Atlantic, October 13, 2009)
Keith Jarrett is known for eschewing electronic instruments and equipment. Obviously, he appreciates the “need” for recording equipment and he has recorded music while playing electronic instruments. But, it’s not his jam — and it’s definitely not the kind of thing he would request for a solo piano concert in an opera house in 1975. No, someone like Keith Jarrett, at that point in his career, for that concert, would request the piano equivalent of a Rolls-Royce. And that’s exactly what he did; he requested a Bösendorfer Model 290 Imperial, also known as the Imperial Bösendorfer or just as the 290.
The 290 is Bösendorfer’s flagship piano. It is an exquisitely beautiful concert grand piano with an equally memorable sound. In fact, it was specifically designed to be grander than any other piano on the market in 1909. And I mean that in every sense of the word grand. It has 97-keys and a full 8-range octave. For 90 years, it was the only concert grand piano of it’s kind. In 1975, it was easily recognizable by any professional pianist… but probably not by random stagehands (who hadn’t had any reason to deal with such a piano) and possibly not by a teenage concert organizer (who also hadn’t had any reason to deal with such a piano).
Keith Jarrett, however, immediately knew that something was off when he arrived at the Cologne Opera House to find a Bösendorfer baby grand on the stage. To make matters worse, he was tired after traveling and not sleeping for two days, his back hurt, and he was suffering from food poisoning. To add insult to injury, the piano was badly out-of-tune and basically broken. Some of the keys and the foot pedals, one of the distinguishing features on the 290, didn’t work properly. It was simply a rehearsal piano or something someone had put in a backstage corner to warm up their hands before the curtain went up. It was too late to find and move a new piano. Even if they could find what had been requested — or something close, like the Bösendorfer (which would have been 5 keys shorter) — it was raining and Vera Brandes was warned that moving such an instrument in that type of weather would make it impossible to tune in time for the concert.
“Don’t play what’s there. Play what’s not there.”
— Miles Davis
Improvisation – in comedy and in music – is known for things like not breaking the flow (so, not saying “no”); and the concept of “yes, and…;” staying present; and being open to change. But, Keith Jarrett had made up his mind. He said no to that baby grand piano. He declared it categorically “unplayable” and said the concert needed to be canceled. And there’s no indication, anywhere, that he was being a diva. He was just being realistic given his history and his frame of reference. The fact that he was sick and tired just made everything worse.
But the indomitable Vera Brandes had a different history and a different field of possibility. She convinced him that she could find someone to tune (and repair) the piano onstage, which she did. She sent Keith Jarrett and Manfred Eicher to a restaurant to grab a quick bite to eat. In some interviews, Keith Jarrett has said that they didn’t eat much because (a) he wasn’t feeling well, (b) there was a mix-up at the restaurant and their meal was delayed, and (c) they had to get back to the theatre. At some point along the way, they decided to keep the recording engineers — because they were going to get paid no matter what — and record what the musician expected to be a horrible and embarrassing disaster of the first order.
But it wasn’t. It wasn’t not even close.
Instead, the three improvised movements, plus the encore of “Memories of Tomorrow,” became the best selling solo album in jazz history and one of the best-selling piano albums. In the Spring 2019 issue of Daedalus, Dr. Gerald Lyn Early, who has consulted on several Ken Burns documentaries (including Baseball and Jazz), pointed out that Keith Jarrett’s solo concerts changed the sound and people’s understanding of jazz (not to mention, who played it); “…made solo piano playing commercially viable by showing that there was a considerable audience for it[;]” and “…proved that the public was willing to take such records seriously….”
From the very first notes, which sound like the warning tones the audience heard in the lobby before the show, Keith Jarrett carried the audience on a sonorous piano journey unlike anything they had ever heard. The album has been praised by musicians, critics, and publishers alike. It was included in Robert Dimery’s book 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die. Eventually, much to the composers dismay, parts of the composition became movie soundtracks. Many wanted Keith Jarrett to transcribe and publish a score of the concert, which he finally, begrudgingly, agreed to do in 1990. The transcribed score, however, came with a very intentional caveat.
“For instance, on pages 50 and 51 of Part IIa there is no way to obtain, on paper, the real rhythmic sense of this section. There is much more going on on the recording, but this “going on” does not always translate into notes on paper. Many notes are inferred by the rhythmic sense; others depend on the harmonics or attack of the previous note(or notes). So, writing down all the notes would give more of a false view of the sense of this section than selecting some notes. And yet, even this selection cannot reveal the real sense of this section as an improvisation, where listening is what determines the music’s strength.
So – we are at, let us say, a picture of an improvisation (sort of like a print of a painting). You cannot see the depth in it, only the surface.
As a result of all of this, I am recommending that any pianist who intends to play THE KÖLN CONCERT use the recording as the final-word reference.
Good luck!”
— quoted from the “Preface” to THE KÖLN CONCERT: Original Transcription, Piano by Keith Jarrett
Please join me today (Wednesday, January 24th) 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.
**HEADS UP: Houston is experiencing severe storms and power outages.**
Wednesday’s playlist is available on YouTube and Spotify. [Look for “0123-24/2022 Doing: Lessons in…”]
[NOTE: If it is accessible to you, please consider using the Spotify playlist (or this link with a Premium YouTube account) for the original music referenced in the practice. Even better, if you already have the album!
An authorized original recording is not available on YouTube (in the US) without a “Premium” membership and, after listening to several different “interpretations” — which do not / cannot include the vocalizations — I decided the Fausto Bongelli sounded the closest to the original. Sadly, one movement is missing and so I used a recording by Tomasz Trzcinkinski, who was the first person to record the music using the transcription. There are also now transcriptions for other instruments — which I didn’t sample, even though I think some of them would be lovely. There are also “covers” using electronic instruments, which I’m considering a hard pass (even if it seems contradictory to the theme), out of respect for the composer. ]
You can, as I did, also listen to the Cautionary Tales with Tim Harford episode entitled, “Bowie, Jazz and the Unplayable Piano” where ever you get your podcasts. My 2022 post includes a little information about how I came across the episode. NOTE: The related quote below is from a different episode of that same podcast.
“[Charles Lim is] a neuroscientist a surgeon a jazz saxophonist and one of very few people whose actually, studied the improvising brain. Lim researches people as they improvise inside brain scanners called FMRI machines…..
Through these experiments Lim and other neuroscientists have been discovering hints of what goes on in an improvising brain. There’s a distinctive pattern in the prefrontal cortex — which seems to be the seat of consciousness, memory, morality, humor, and even the sense of self. But, the pattern isn’t that the prefrontal cortex is lighting up during improvisation; on the contrary. Broad areas of it shutting down: the dorsolateral areas, either side of the top of your forehead, and the lateral orbital areas behind your eyes. Improvisers are escaping their internal restraints. They’re letting go.
Most of us go through our days holding back our mental impulses to swear or lash out. All this requires a degree of self-control; so that filtering is a good thing. But you can have too much of a good thing, says Charles Lim. Too much filtering can squash our creativity. Improvisers shut down their inner critics and allow new ideas to flow out. The improvising brain is disinhibited — although, not so crudely as the drunk brain. That is why improvisers can produce flashes of pure brilliance. It’s also why improvisation feels so risky….”
— quoted from the Cautionary Tales podcast episode “Martin Luther King Jr; the Jewelry Genius; and the Art of Public Speaking” by Tim Harford
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.)
May you be safe and protected / May you be peaceful and happy (and curious about all the ways you can breathe), during the 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-based Violence (November 25th – December 10th) and on all the other days of your life.
“Let us go forth awhile, and get better air in our lungs.”
— Walt Whitman writing about the new game, baseball, in the Brooklyn Eagle (07/23/1846)
Today‘s practice begins with the question at the end of yesterday‘s blog post — “What Helps You Breathe Deeply In and Breathe Deeply Out?” — and it becomes another opportunity to live, breathe, and explore questions about how we breathe and what helps us breathe deeply, every time we inhale and every time we exhale. It is, also, another opportunity to consider the situations when we shallow breathe and/or hold our breath due to situational or chronic stress, trauma, and grief (or even breathtaking beauty); to notice when those little moments become conditioned habits; and to begin playing around with different ways to break bad habits and/or change habitual patterns that no longer serve us. Finally, it is part of the process that allows each of us to more fully engage the vitality of our mind-body and the wisdom of our heart and spirit.
While we can do this together, it is very much an individual practice. Each of us has to acknowledge our own history and sore spots; each of us has to figure out what works for us based on what we have experienced in the past; and each of us has to put on our own (metaphorical) oxygen mask.
For Those Who Missed It: The following is a slightly revised version of a post from Saturday, December 5, 2020. The playlist has been updated with more “air” (so that the timing is the same, but it may feel different). Some embedded links will direct you to another site.
“There are thousands of postures. In order to heal our physical and psychological injuries we must learn to select the postures suitable to our specific needs and arrange them in the proper sequence. Sequencing of asana is crucial because, as with anything else, a change in sequence drastically changes the result. (YS 3:15). Next, we have to practice these properly sequenced postures while staying within the boundaries of our comfort. Then, we must take our practice to the point where we are able to feel and touch the threshold of our discomfort. We refine our practices as we apply the principle of effortless effort described in the previous sutra.”
— commentary on Yoga Sūtra 2.48 from The Practice of the Yoga Sūtra: Sadhana Pada by Pandit Rajmani Tigunait, PhD
All the cues on moving into and activating a pose can be really overwhelming. It can seem constant and continuous… because it is. I often tell beginners not to worry about doing what they don’t understand — or even, to an extent, what doesn’t make sense. Do what you can do, as much as you can do it, for as long as you can do it (to paraphrase a very wise man) and eventually things start falling into place. Literally, the more you practice, the more parts of you start aligning. Yes, it’s true, that you can practice incorrectly — and you can do it for a really long time. It’s also true that when doing something wrong becomes the habit (and the practice) things don’t fall into place… things fall apart. We see that in our mind-bodies and we see it in the world.
Do you ever wonder where all this information came from? Do you every think about that first yogi, Adiyoga, and those first seven students? Initially, no one told anyone how to do anything. The first seven were inspired by seeing someone else do something they thought had value — and then they listened to their own mind-body! The question is always: How can I breathe deeply here? Or, what can I do to breathe more deeply here? And the answer is already inside of us. We just have to “listen,” which in the case of our mind-body requires paying attention to sensation, to how we’re feeling and how we are responding to what’s happening inside of us and all around us. That’s the practice.
“You are so young, so much before all beginning, and I would like to beg you, dear Sir, as well as I can, to have patience with everything unresolved in your heart and to try to love the questions themselves as if they were locked rooms or books written in a very foreign language. Don‘t search for the answers, which could not be given to you now, because you would not be able to live them. And the point is, to live everything. Live the questions now. Perhaps then, someday far in the future, you will gradually, without even noticing it, live your way into the answer.”
— quoted from Letter #4 (dated July 16, 1903) addressed to 19-year old officer cadet Franz Xaver Kappus, published in Letters to a Young Poet by Rainer Maria Rilke
Being human, we have the ability to play, explore, and experiment; to see what works, when and where it works; and to notice for how long something works. Thus, someone started moving their body into different shapes and then breathing into those different shapes, which had different effects. Then they would move into the shapes in a different way, breathe into that different way, and noticed the different effects. Then they saw other people could do the same and experience similar effects. Then people, like Patanjali and Vyasa, started to codify the practice by writing it down. And this whole process and practice comes back to the breath, the spirit, the life force — and different ways to breathe, engage the spirit, and expand life.
— “Prāṇāyāma, which is expanding the life force by controlling the movement of the inhalation and exhalation, can be practiced after completely mastering [the seat or pose].”
— “The breath may be stopped externally, internally, or checked in mid-motion, and regulated according to place, time and a fixed number of moments, so that the [pause] is either protracted or brief.”
In the commentary for Yoga Sūtra 2.50, Swami Jnaneshvara Bharati is quick to point out that while stambha (“cessation” or “transition”) is often translated into English as retention and therefore equated with kumbhaka (which is retention), there is a subtle difference in the usage here. First, the practice involves awareness of three parts of the breath: inhalation, exhalation, and the transition (or pause) between the first two parts — which is repeated twice. Next, there is the slowing or expansion of the breath (as described in YS. 2.49). Finally, there is awareness and regulation of the breath in different places in the body — even directing it to those places; controlling the time (or length and duration of the breath); and counting (or numbering) each part of the breath.
Breath regulation in place, time, and by numbering can involve the practice of kumbhaka, which is breath retention achieved by holding the breath on the inhalation or exhalation, and/or stambha vŗitti kumbhaka, which is breath retention achieved in the middle of an inhalation or exhalation. Notice that the breath retention highlights transition.
Any breath retention is considered an advanced practice and, just as is instructed with more “basic” types of prāņāyāma, should only be practiced after mastering previous elements. Some teachers advise only practicing kumbhaka after it naturally arises in your practice. This does not mean that you are ready to practice breath retention when you finding yourself holding your breath or shallow breathing because you are overly challenged in a pose or sequence. In fact, it means quite the opposite.
“Patanjali assumes that aspirants who reached this level of yoga sadhana are familiar wth the practice of the seven pranayamas, which together constitute the practice of prana anusandhana. Therefore, these aspirants have built a strong foundation for practicing the three advanced pranayama techniques he is presenting here.”
— commentary on Yoga Sūtra 2.48 from The Practice of the Yoga Sūtra: Sadhana Pada by Pandit Rajmani Tigunait, PhD
The practicing of connecting the breath — and connecting to the breath — is broken down into the following seven steps:
Aharana prāņāyāma – which is “to bring back” and revolves around awareness of the breath and how it feels in the body, as well as positioning the body so there is no shakiness, interruption, or abnormal breathing.
Samikarana prāņāyāma – which is “to equalize,” and involves maintaining an equal calmness in the breathing and in the mind-body. There is also focus on certain areas of the mind-body.
Dirge-prashvasa prāņāyāma – which is “long exhalation,” and involves focus on certain areas of the mind-body.
Nadi shodhana prāņāyāma – which is alternate energy channel or alternate nasal breathing, and involves alternating the exhale and inhale between nostrils.
Anuloma prāņāyāma – which is “to follow the same path,” and involves rapidly inhaling and exhaling through only one nostril.
Viloma prāņāyāma – which is “to follow the reverse path,” and involves exhaling through one nostril and then inhaling through the other.
Pratlioma prāņāyāma – which is “to switch paths back and forth,” and is only practiced after the previous two are mastered.
Note that the last three are practices only intended for people who are healthy and have no underlying conditions. Additionally, please note that these terms are also sometimes used when referring to a specific pattern of breathing related to length and duration of each part of the breath.
Please join me today (Tuesday, December 5th) 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 (for a slightly faster reply) you can email myra(at) ajoyfulpractice.com.
Tuesday’s playlist is available on YouTube and Spotify. [Look for “10272020 Pranayama II”]
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.)
### To live is to breathe. To breathe with intention is the practice. To live with intention is the goal. ###
May all of us together be safe and protected / May we be peaceful and happy.
For Those Who Missed It: The following was originally posted in 2022. It includes history related to the next three (3) days/nights/practices. Class details (and some formatting) have been updated.
“Violence is clearly destructive. It springs from fear, one of the fundamental afflictions. According to this sutra, the practice of non-violence requires us to arrest our violent tendencies by cultivating thoughts opposite to violence.”
— quoted from the commentary on Yoga Sūtra 2.33 from The Practice of the Yoga Sutra: Sadhana Pada by Pandit Rajmani Tigunait, PhD
By all accounts, it started off simply and innocently enough. Just a few childish pranks at the end of Thanksgiving: knocking at the door that opened to reveal no one; random, unexplained noises, cabbage being uprooted and then tossed around; patio furniture inexplicably shifting and moving to a neighbor’s porch. You know, things that ghost, goblins, and devils might do when the veil between worlds was lifted. It was so simple and innocent, in fact, that in 1790, a headmaster at Saint John’s College in Oxford even ended a school play with a little encouragement: “an Ode to Fun which praises children’s tricks on Mischief Night in most approving terms.”
Mischief Night, the night before Halloween, is also known as Hell Night, Cabbage Night, Gate Night, Moving Night, Devil’s Night, and a variety of other names throughout the United Kingdom, Canada, and the United States. It was just supposed to be a little “trick” before the treats. References to Devil’s Night and Mischief Night in Michigan can be found as early as the 1910’s — when college students reportedly started bonfires and then handed cigars to the firefighters who came to put out the flames. However, the vandalism and arson increased in the 1930’s and 1940’s. By the 1970’s, the simple and innocent pranks in Detroit turned into criminal mischief and started extending into October 29th. From the 1970’s through the 1990’s, there was serious vandalism and arson that resulted in thousands of dollars worth of damage. In 1983, over 550 fires were reported. In 1984, the number of reported fires was more than 800. Some officials started theorizing that some people were using the reputation of Devil’s Night to commit insurance fraud. And, speaking of that reputation, by the mid-1980’s, people were not only driving into town from other states to watch the fires, they were flying in from other countries.
“Fire buffs, newspeople and just plain gawkers came to watch Detroit burn Wednesday night.
They even came all the way from Tokyo.
Director Nobi Shigemoto was here with an eight-person crew from Asahi national TV network. The crew planned to follow fire trucks Wednesday night and do a live shot from in front of Highland park fire headquarters before returning to Japan.”
“Shigemoto said Detroiters ask him why he is ‘looking at bad things.’
His reply:
This is the truth. US (is a) most rich country. When you look at Detroit, it looks nothing like rich.’”
— quoted from the Detroit Free Press article “Keeping the watch – Reporters, fire buffs, gawkers come to track night’s events” by Bill McGraw (printed in the “Devil’s Night” section, dated 31 Oct 1985, Thu)
In the mid-1980’s, then-Detroit mayor Coleman Young and city officials created the “No More Devil’s Night” campaign, which included a dusk-to-dawn curfew for teenagers, neighborhood watches, the opportunity to “adopt” empty properties, and a coordinated “patrol” effort by police officers, firefighters, and miscellaneous city workers. Over 11,000 volunteers participated that first year — and the number of reported fires was cut in half. Local cable television offered free access to premium channels so that more people would stay home. News outlets agreed not to air footage that might glamorize arson and/or encourage copycats — and the number of fires dropped. The number of volunteers rose (to ~17,000) in 1987, and again the number of reported fires dropped.
Detroit’s “No More Devil’s Night” campaign was so successful that when Dennis Archer was elected mayor, in January of 1994, he decided his predecessor’s official campaign was no longer needed. People warned him he was wrong. Unfortunately, those people were right. According to a New York Times article (dated November 1, 1994), there were 40,000 volunteers working to combat the arson and other criminal mischief in 1993 versus 8,000 in 1994. That difference in volunteers reflected a trend well established in previous years: more volunteers resulted in less arson and criminal mischief; less volunteers meant more arson. While there were significantly less fires in 1994 than there had been in 1984, one of those fires — set on October 30, 1994, in the same suburb Nobi Shigemoto filmed nine years earlier — resulted in the death of 1-year old Destiny Wilson and the serious injury of several others, including Destiny’s mother, 3-year old sister Ivory, and two older siblings. Then-mayor Archer and other city officials rebranded the original campaign and got more serious about cultivating the opposite energy; being angels instead of devils.
“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. 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 rebranded Angels’ Night(s) encouraged volunteers to do what they could to actively combat the violence with non-violence, from October 29th – 31st. It was based on the idea that if everyone cared, everyone could do something to make a difference. Some people volunteered to patrol their neighborhood with flashing amber lights on their vehicles. Others agreed to wear orange ribbons and participated in neighborhood watches — even adopting an “empty” property. Still others agreed to leave their lights on and to enforce — or honor — the curfew. Official activities were organized at recreation and community centers. Bottom line, there was a way for everyone, regardless of age or ability, to stay alert and stay connected. In 1995, 40,000 – 50,000 volunteers agreed to be “angels.” As before, arson and vandalism steadily declined.
While there was a spike in arsons around Halloween 2010, the overall decline in “devilish” activity continued through the 2000’s and 2010’s. In 2005, official “Angels’ Night” activities were cancelled as the entire city mourned the death of Rosa Parks. In 2015, there were “only” 52 fires (with 24 appearing to be arson). Interestingly, this steady decline around Halloween was paralleled by a slight increase in fires around the 4th of July. In 2018, there were only three reported fires and the city officially ended the campaign. Citizens, however, continue to be angels.
“The earliest recorded instance of someone saying ‘Hurt people hurt people’ appears in the Feb. 26, 1959, edition of a local Texas newspaper, the Amarillo Globe-Times, in its review of a lecture program put on by the Parent Teacher Association of Fannin Junior High School. The Globe-Times attributes the line to a speaker named Charles Eads, who, judging from the article’s description, spoke in the manner of vaudeville satirist and cowboy Will Rogers:…’”Hurt people hurt people.’ So, maybe before I wound someone next time, I’ll stop and think if it’s because I’ve been hurt, myself.’”
— quoted from the article “The History of ‘Hurt People Hurt People’ – The adage has been credited to everyone from pastors to self-help gurus to Andrew Garfield. It’s much older.” By Matthew Phelan (posted on slate.com, Sept 17, 2019)
We’ve all been hurt. We all suffer. According to the Yoga Philosophy, dysfunctional/afflicted thought patterns create suffering. The question – which is also addressed in philosophies like Buddhism, and even in the major religions – is, “What do we do with our own suffering?” Do we alleviate it? That’s the next question, because the philosophies say that we have the ability to alleviate our own suffering? Of course, there’s always the flipside, where our hurt/suffering becomes the foundation for more suffering and “devilish” behavior?
To answer the questions, take a moment to do a little svādhyāya (“self-study”) or discernment — what some might call “metacognition.” Consider your own reaction to the aforementioned Devil’s Night, especially with regard to the arson and vandalism. Consider, who you think was responsible — not only for the problem, but also for the solution. Are you keeping in mind that the initial fires, even in Detroit, were set by college students? Have you thought about what was happening in the world when the arson first increased? Did you remember that the Wilson family lived in the suburbs?
Consider how you feel when you take it all in and then consider how those feelings translate into thoughts that precede your words and then your deeds. Given the opportunity to counteract violence and destruction, would your active response to the “devilish” behavior be functional and skillful – or would it be just another form of damage?
In the first section of the Yoga Sūtras, there are several different ways in which we can achieve transparency of mind. One way is to focus on the breath. (YS 1.34) Another way is to “focus on someone who is free from all desire.” (YS 1.37) This is what people are ostensibly doing when they ask themselves, “What would … do?” Of course, the commentary indicates that in the absence of resonating with some great figure — from religion, philosophy, or mythology — we could focus on the best version of ourselves: What would we do/say if we were free from desire? What would we do/say if we were not attached to a particular outcome?
“Then concentrate upon [the] heart. Try to imagine how it must feel to be a great saint; pure and untroubled by sense-objects….”
— quoted from the commentary on Yoga Sūtra 1.37 from How To Know God: The Yoga Aphorisms of Patanjali translated and with commentary by Swami Prabhavananda and Christopher Isherwood
Another method for achieving clarity of mind, according to Patanjali’s Yoga Sūtras, is to offer friendliness to those who are happy, compassion to those who are suffering, happiness to those who are virtuous, and indifference/non-judgement to those who (we consider) are non-virtuous. (YS 1.33) I personally love this idea, but I also know it can be challenging. Different parts may be challenging for different people — and under different circumstances — but the part that is usually challenging for me is the last part: offering indifference/non-judgement to someone (I consider) non-virtuous — or whose actions are not virtuous. Sure, ideally, we could ignore those non-virtuous people/actions and they would go away or stop their “devilish” behavior; but, life doesn’t always work that way. Sometimes we have to directly engage and actively combat the violence in a non-violent way.
My non-violent way is logic. While I often believe that (my) logic will resolve conflict and/or get people to do what I think is right, that is not actually how the world works — because that’s not how the human mind works. Remember, according to Yoga Sūtra 2.20, we can only see/comprehend what our mind-intellect is ready to show us. This is not an idea restricted to the people we think are wrong in their thinking; this also applies to each and every one of us.
Don’t get me wrong. I’m not saying that logic doesn’t work. I’m saying that if someone we consider to be non-virtuous, or acting in a way that is non-virtuous, were to think (and feel) the way we think (and feel) they would speak and act the way we do. So, applying our own logic on someone else does not work. They have to apply their own logic. While we may be able to help someone apply their own logic, we can only do so with a clear mind.
In other words, to truly alleviate suffering, we have to turn inward. We have to understand our own feelings and thoughts and how those become our words and deeds. In turn, we have to understand the impact/effect of our words and deeds. It is only then that we can effectively, as Patanjali said in Yoga Sūtra 2.44, be in the company of angels.
“No, don’t give up
I won’t give up
‘Cause there must be angels”
*
— quoted from the song “Angels” by Tom Walker (written by Emma Davidson-Dillon / James Eliot / Thomas Alexander Walker)
Please join me for a 65-minute virtual yoga practice on Zoom today (Sunday, October 29th) 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 “10292022 Angels, Devils, Mischief, Cabbage”]
2023 NOTE: This playlist has been updated in a way that may slightly change the timing when paired with previous practices.
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.)
“Nine days and nine nights of blessings and happiness if you are celebrating Sharada Navaratri!” May everyone have peace and happiness. May everyone be healthy and strong; may everyone be peaceful and happy. May everyone follow through on a good idea!!
For Those Who Missed It: The following was originally posted today in 2020. Even though I will talk about elements of this post, today’s practice is REALLY not about the lightbulb (or dynamite). Class details have been updated.
“‘I never did anything worth doing by accident, nor did any of my inventions come indirectly through accident, except the phonograph. No, when I have, fully decided that a result is worth getting, I go about it, and make trial after trial, until it comes.’”
— Thomas Edison, as quoted in “A Photographic Talk with Edison” by Theodore Dreiser (printed in Success Magazine, Feb. 1898)
We often think of “ah-ha” or “eureka” moments, light bulb moments, and epiphanies as being sudden and unexpected. In fact, the word “epiphany” comes to us from Greek (by way of Middle English, Latin, and in some sense Old French) from a word that means “reveal.” And, one of the definitions is “a moment of sudden revelation or insight” – reinforcing the idea that something is happening in the snap of a finger. The reality, however, is that there is a back story to ah-ha moments, epiphanies, and even the Epiphany.
Consider that The Three Magi wouldn’t follow the star from the East to honor “‘the child who has been born king of the Jews’” if there wasn’t a foundation of faith. Theoretically, without his background in science, Ian Fleming would have returned to his lab and thrown out the culture plates he had forgotten to clean when he left for his 2-week vacation in 1928. Without all his previous years of research, he wouldn’t have known what he was looking at and he wouldn’t be credited with discovering penicillin. Then there is Thomas Edison, who had a lot of “light bulb moments.”
Thomas Alva Edison, born February 11, 1847, didn’t invent electric lights (or even light bulbs). They already existed when he set up his Menlo Park, New Jersey lab in 1876, but electric lights were too bright for household use, burned too quickly, and could be dangerous when they melted. So, most people just stuck with gaslights. The problem with gaslight was that it was also dangerous and didn’t provide consistent light (because it flickered). Edison decided he could do better… he just had to invent the infrastructure to safely bring electricity into people’s homes, interior fixtures, and some kind of cost-effective and efficient bulb. The bulb, it turned out, was the rub.
“I have not failed 10,000 times. I have not failed once. I have succeeded in proving that those 10,000 ways will not work. When I have eliminated the ways that will not work, I will find the way that will work.”
— (attributed to) Thomas Edison
Edison and his team spent several months working 16 – 18 hours at a stretch and testing at least 1,600 different materials – including fishing line, coconut fibers, beard hair, and platinum wire. The platinum wire was moderately successful in that it typically had a high melting point. However, additional research showed that air absorption weakened the filament causing it to melt at lower temperatures than expected. Edison, resolved the issue with a vacuum bulb, but ultimately deemed the design (with its low electrical resistance) too expensive. So, back to the drawing board they went; breaking up their hours upon hours of work with beer and music played (by Edison) on the lab’s pipe organ.
Some would say that the “ah-ha” moment came to Thomas Edison one night when he was “absent mindedly” rolling a piece of lampblack (or black carbon) between his fingers. But such a depiction ignores all the previous experiments, his scientific knowledge, and the fact he had used lampblack in his telephone transmitter. Such a premise also discounts the additional changes that would be made before the bulb was commercially viable. Either way, at some point late on the evening of October 21st, or sometime in the wee early morning hours of October 22nd, 1879, Thomas Edison, age 32, tested what we now consider the first successful (commercially viable) electric light bulb. The carbonized cotton could burn for up to 14½ hours. Later, Edison would switch to bamboo fiber, which lasted for 1,200 hours.
During his lifetime, Thomas Edison would be granted over 1,083 patents for things like the phonograph, the carbon transmitter, the motion picture camera, and the commercial electric light bulb. He was married with children, had influential friends in high (and low) places, and successfully ran an industry that provided for his family and the families of others. Then, at an age that was considered significantly old at the time, he lost “everything. At around 5:20 PM on December 9th, 1914 an explosion ripped through the lab, destroying ten buildings, thousands of prototypes, and years of research. By the time the fire was contained, a little after midnight on December 10th, the damage was estimated at over $2 million dollars and affected over half of the plant’s property. The loss was even bigger when people realized that the insurance wouldn’t even cover a half of the damage.
While those around him were devastated, the 67-year old was in awe of the fire produced by all the different chemicals, fibers, fabrics, and elements in the labs. He was also energized about the possibility of starting over the very next day! His resilient attitude was contagious and, thanks in part to a loan from his friend Henry Ford, the plant was back in operation within three weeks. By the end of the following year, the plant had almost $10 million dollars in revenue.
“It’s all right. We’ve just got rid of a lot of rubbish.”
— Thomas Edison (to his son Charles), as quoted in a 1961 Reader’s Digest article
“There’s only one thing to do, and that is to jump right in and rebuild.”
— A. H. Wilson, vice president and general manager of Thomas Edison’s Menlo Park
Speaking of resilience and starting over: Today is the anniversary of the birth of the chemist, engineer, inventor, and philanthropist Alfred Nobel. Born today in 1833, the founder of the Nobel Prizes was flabbergasted when his brother Ludvig died (in 1888) to discover that all of his efforts to make gunpowder safer had been completely misunderstood and condemned. A French newspaper erroneously reported the wrong brother’s death and proclaimed Alfred “The merchant of death” who “became rich by finding ways to kill more people faster than ever before.” Losing (yet another) sibling, reading your own obituary, and having your “death” celebrated by people who considered your life’s work to be evil would be devastating to most. And, it probably was to Dr. Nobel. It was also, however, the catalyst that led to the Nobel Prizes, which are given to “to those who, during the preceding year, have conferred the greatest benefit to humankind.”
Officially presented on the (actual) anniversary of Dr. Nobel’s death, December 10th (1896), the prizes in physical science, in chemistry, in medical science or medicine, in literature are presented at a ceremony in Stockholm, Sweden; while the Peace Prize, given to someone who has “done the most or the best work for fraternity between nations, for the abolition or reduction of standing armies and for the holding and promotion of peace congresses,” is awarded in Oslo, Sweden. In addition to the original five prizes established by Dr. Nobel’s will, there is a “memorial” prize in Economics, which is also presented at the Stockholm ceremony. Nobel Laureates receive a gold medal, a diploma, and a substantial monetary award.
“If I have a thousand ideas and only one turns out to be good, I am satisfied.”
— Dr. Alfred Nobel
Please join me today (Saturday, October 21st) at 12:00 PM, for a 90-minute yoga practice on Zoom. 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.
Saturday’s playlist is available on YouTube and Spotify. [Look for “10212020 Lightbulb Moments”]
“Go get your mother and all her friends. They’ll never see a fire like this again.”
— Thomas Edison (to his son Charles), as quoted in a 1961 Reader’s Digest article
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.)
“Nine days and nine nights of blessings and happiness if you are celebrating Sharada Navaratri!” May everyone have peace and happiness. May everyone be healthy and strong; may everyone be peaceful and happy on this International Day for the Eradication of Poverty.
“It is far more creative to work with the idea of mindfulness rather than the idea of will. Too often people try to change their lives by using the will as a kind of hammer to beat their lives into proper shape. This way of approaching the sacredness of one’s own presence is externalist and violent. It brings you falsely outside yourself, and you can spend years lost in the wilderness of your own mechanical, spiritual programs. You can perish in a famine of your own making. If you work with a different rhythm, you will come easily and naturally home to yourself. Your soul knows the geography of your destiny. Your soul alone has the map of your future, therefore you can trust this indirect, oblique side of yourself. If you do, it will take you where you need to go, but more important it will teach you a kindness of rhythm in your journey. There are no general principles for this art of being. Yet the signature of this unique journey is inscribed deeply in each soul. If you attend to yourself and seek to come into your presence, you will find exactly the right rhythm for your life.”
— quoted from Anam Cara: A Book of Celtic Wisdom by John O’Donohue
Here’s a little snippet from a 2021 post about finding the right rhythm for the present moment:
“… we condition ourselves to feel, think, and be a certain way. In other words, we get into a groove, very much like a needle on a record.
Then something happens, our metaphorical record gets scratched and we skip a beat. Sometimes there’s enough momentum for the music to continue. But, sometimes, we get stuck. The groove becomes a rut or a rake (or a record that skips) and we resist the change that would alleviate our suffering. We find ourselves ‘stuck’ even though we are doing the things that have helped us or others in the past. My yoga buddy Dave has a great joke about a groove, a rut, and a rake. What’s the difference? Perspective. Or how long you’ve been in it.”
Please join me today (Tuesday, October 17th) 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 (for a slightly faster reply) you can email myra(at) ajoyfulpractice.com.
Tuesday’s playlist is available on YouTube and Spotify. [Look for “10172021 Do It, But Differently”]
NOTE: This playlist contains Easter eggs! Did you find them. The three birthday ones are stacked together — and one is actually a double. But there’s one I didn’t mention in the practice. (They are all related to the date, and the theme, but don’t be surprised if you notice there’s one or two that are obviously missing.)
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.
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.)
### Wherever men and women are condemned to live in extreme poverty, human rights are violated. To come together to ensure that these rights be respected is our solemn duty.” — Joseph Wresinski, Text Engraved on Original Commemorative Stone [for the International Day for the Eradication of Poverty] in Paris, France ###
“Chag sameach!” to those observing the Sukkot. Many blessings to everyone!!
“Every relationship you develop, from casual to intimate, helps you become more conscious. No union is without spiritual value.”
— quoted from “Morning Visual Meditation” (Chakra 2) by Caroline Myss
In 99.99% of my classes, I reference “master teachers and precious jewels.” These are the people who push our buttons and “get us hooked.” These are the people we might think of as pains in our necks (or bums) and with whom we associate our suffering. These are the people we wish would see things our way (and/or do things the quote-unquote right way). You know who I mean; the brick walls in our lives.
In her 2016 Tedx Talk about “The 5 People You Need to Be Happy” (cheerleader, mentor, coach, friend, and peer), Stacey Flowers identified this type of person as a “coach.” These are the people who give us master classes in our selves and teach us some of the most precious things about our selves and about the way we interact with the world. If we look back over our lives, there are undoubtedly people who taught us lessons for which we are now grateful — even though, at the time we were interacting with those people, we might have wished they were not in our lives.
Take a moment to express a little gratitude for those master teachers and precious jewels in your past, and for the things you learned because of them.
Now, fair warning, this part is a little more challenging: Give thanks for your future master teachers and precious jewels. Express gratitude for someone you haven’t yet encountered who will challenge you and, in the process, make you a better version of yourself.
For Those Who Missed It: The following was originally posted in 2020. Class details, one date reference, and the Stacey Flowers video have been updated and/or added. Also, please note that the post below is directly related to a 2020 sūtra-focused practice that is slightly different from today’s practice.
“And this too shall pass.”
— The old saying “Gam zeh ya’avor,“ in Hebrew (with Persian and Jewish origins)
“It is said an Eastern monarch once charged his wise men to invent him a sentence, to be ever in view, and which should be true and appropriate in all times and situations. They presented him the words: ‘And this, too, shall pass away.’ How much it expresses! How chastening in the hour of pride! — how consoling in the depths of affliction!”
— Abraham Lincoln speaking to the Wisconsin State Agriculture Society at the Wisconsin State Fair, September 30, 1859
There’s an old saying in Hebrew, “Gam zeh ya’avor. This too shall pass,” that is often associated with a very wise Rabbi of old and also with King Solomon (although the words do not appear in the Bible) and has origins in Persian and Sufi poetry. American historians may hear the words and think of Abraham Lincoln speaking at the Wisconsin State Fair a year before he was elected president — although, he would end his speech with a bit of caveat, saying that he hoped the best things lasted. I think of my grandmother saying those words, a lot, but also of (what I was taught was) a Chinese parable.
In the parable, a farmer reacts to everything that happens to him (and around him) with the words, “We’ll see.” While others get excited for what they believe to be his good fortunate or agitated over what they perceive as unfortunate events, the farmer maintains a steady outlook and an understanding that all things are connected: every beginning is an ending and every ending is a beginning. As the parable progresses, the reader (and the farmer’s neighbors) start to recognize the wisdom in his attitude. Of course, in real life it is a little harder to let go of our desires and accept the present moment. Harder still is appreciating the present moment without judgment. The hardest thing, however, is to be open to appreciating whatever comes.
“Be joyful at your festival — you and your son, and your daughter, and your manservant, and your maid-servant, and the Levite, and the stranger, and the orphan, and the widow who live within your city.
For seven days you must celebrate the Festival to YHVH*, your God, in the place which YHVH* shall choose, because the Lord, your God, will bless you in all your produce, and in all the work of your hands, and you will only be happy.”
(*NOTE: YHVH is commonly translated as “the Lord” in English.)
— quoted from Devarim — Deuteronomy (16:14 – 15)
Around this time in 2015, I was so excited about all the things happening for me. Personally, professionally, and even spiritually, I was riding a high. I would like to think that, in the moment, I truly appreciated everything and everyone around me. I especially would like to think that considering that one of the highlights of that week was co-leading my first weekend-long Sukkot retreat in Darwin, MN, with Sandra Razieli. Sukkot is sometimes referred to as “the Season of Happiness” and there is an extra focus on gratitude. The thing is when I look back, and keep in mind how things changed after that retreat; I realize I wasn’t practicing what I preached. Yes, I was appreciating people and things in the present moment — but I was also attached to how I wanted them to continue.
As is stated in the Hebrew Bible and the Christian Old Testament, there is a period of time — after the harvest — when people are commanded to celebrate. The curious thing is that the passage related to the “Festival of the Booths” or “Festival of the Tabernacles” does not instruct people to celebrate the harvest they just brought in from the fields. Instead, people are commanded to gather and celebrate what will be. So, in some ways, the holiday which the Jewish community began observing last night at sunset, is all about having faith that not only will things pass, but that how things change will be a blessing. “Gam zeu tovah,” is another Hebrew saying. It means, “This too is for the good.”
— “From purity/cleanliness arises sensitivity to the unclean nature of one’s own body and [physical] unmixing.”
Yoga Sūtra 2.41: sattvaśuddhisaumanasyaikāgreyendriyayātmadarśanayogyatvāni ca
— “[From purity/cleanliness arises] pure wisdom of the heart, cheerfulness of mind, the power of concentration, victory over the senses, and the ability to directly experience our Self.”
Normally, when Sukkot rolls around, I am super excited to talk about Yoga Sūtra 2.42 and the how the second niyamā (“internal observation”) connects to the practice of gratitude and the emotional experience of happiness. However, we are not there yet. There is a preliminary practice, which actually gives us two sūtras on which we will focus. Part of me, was like, “Oo, they are short and connected.” Another part of me remembered something we kept saying back in 2015:
“Don’t be greedy, be grateful.”
Please join me today (Saturday, September 30th) at 12:00 PM, for a 90-minute yoga practice on Zoom. 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.
Saturday’s playlist is available onYouTube [Look for “Sukkot 1+”] and Spotify [Look for “Sukkot 1”].
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.)
### Sunshine, the practice, friends (and family) ###
Many blessings, to everyone and especially those celebrating Ganesh Chaturthi!! “Chag sameach!” to those observing the High Holidays and getting ready for Yom Kippur!
This is a “missing” post for Sunday, September 24th. NOTE: Some information has previously been posted in a (slightly) different context. You can request an audio recording of either 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.
— This mantra honoring “the One who carries the elephant head” is a reminder that if Ganesha can carry the elephant’s head to survive and fulfill his duties, we can all put aside our egos and live dutifully.
When we focused on the little things yesterday, I emphasized how little things get us ready for the big things. Little baby steps add up and become (what appears to some to be) big giant leaps. Little changes in routines become big changes in habits. However, I also mentioned how some people — myself included — can get impatient when we decide we are ready for change. We want things to happen right away. We want to click our heels and magically appear at home, surrounded by those we love. Or, we want a worm hole or a car with fancy doors that allows us to fly through time.
Of course, life doesn’t work that way.
If you are familiar with Ganesh Chaturthi and/or you a different faith where God takes away your sins or absolves you of your transgressions — but are not actually rooted in those faiths — perhaps you think that those are the easy ways out. Let someone else remove your obstacles and barriers. Let someone else wash away your sins, past mistakes, and unfulfilled vows. But, that’s not how mysticism works. People still have to do some work.
You still have to do some work.
You still have to do something in order to let go of what no longer serves you. You still have to ask (through prayer, reflection, and offerings) to have your obstacles removed. You still have to ask and/or offer forgiveness — when you’re ready. But, only you can decide when you are ready. Similarly, asking for (and accepting) help to get out of a bad situation is work that only you can do… again, when you are ready.
Just like no one else can do your work for you, no one else can decide when you are ready. There are, however, tried and true methods for getting ready. There are rituals and traditions that I often describe as being forms of kriyā yoga, that combination of the final three niyamas (internal “observations”): discipline/austerity, self-study, and trustful surrender to a higher power (other than one’s self). Whenever and how ever we practice these elements, we are confronted with the question, “What’s ‘In There’ That’s So Important?”
Sometimes the answer is, “Nothing,” and we just need to realize that we are holding on to our baggage out of habit. Other times, the answer (and the process to reach the answer) is a little more nuanced than that. Either way, the practice takes us through the journey of WHY & WHAT:
WHY hold on to things that hold you back? and
WHAT happens when you let go?
The following (slightly revised) excerpt is from a 2021 post.
— “A person firmly established in the non-possessiveness gains complete understanding of the “why-ness” (or essence of why) of birth.”
Like everyone else, I have my favorite stories for each season; but, I don’t get the chance to tell every story every year…. There is, however, a story I make sure to tell every year, right at the end of the High Holidays. It’s a Charlie Harary story with a timeless message.
Some people may believe that I save today’s story for the one of the final days of the High Holidays because it is sometimes an intense physical practice. But, in reality, there is a bit of symbolism that plays out in the story and in the timing of the story. You see, even though I don’t talk about the significance of Rosh Hashanah, the Ten Days of Awe / Ten Days of Atonement, and Yom Kippur until people are observing them; many people within the Jewish community start planning and observing (a time of contemplation and preparation) forty days before Yom Kippur. They listen for the call of the shofar and recite Psalm 27 twice a day. Some communities even begin a tradition of communal prayers for forgiveness (Selichot). For others, observation begins with Rosh Hashanah and the Ten Days of Repentance — even though, if they plan to go home and/or attend services, they have to make arrangements beforehand. Finally, there are people who may only fast and attend services on Yom Kippur.
There is merit toeach person’s timetable. And I see this kind of timetable in other communities — including in the yoga community….
“Had I not believed in seeing the good of the Lord in the land of the living!
Hope for the Lord, be strong and He will give your heart courage, and hope for the Lord.”
— quoted from Tehillim – Psalms (27:13-14)
Sunday’s playlist is available on YouTube and Spotify. [Look for “High Holidays: Drop Your Bags”]
NOTE: The YouTube playlist includes the Charlie Harary story that originally inspired this practice.
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.)
### MAY YOUR NAME BE WRITTEN AND SEALED IN THE BOOK OF LIFE & MAY YOU HAVE FEW OBSTACLES ###
Stay safe. Breathe. Hydrate and nourish your heart, body, and mind.
This is a “missing” post for Monday, August 28th. It includes some new and some previously posted material. You can request an audio recording of either 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.
“We all were sea-swallowed, though some cast again,
And by that destiny to perform an act
Whereof what’s past is prologue, what to come
In yours and my discharge.”
— Antonio, Prospero’s brother, the usurping Duke of Milan, in Act I, Scene i of The Tempest by William Shakespeare
In the early 1600’s, William Shakespeare offered what can be considered a very succinct explanation of karma (act, word, and deed – as well as the result or effect of effort): “what’s past is prologue….” As much as I love the quote, I hardly every use it, because Antonio (the brother of the Duke) and Sebastian (the brother of the King) are discussing murder – and I don’t want people to get it twisted. I’m not ever about justifying murder or violence. Today’s practice, however, does reference murder, violence, and war – as well as the ignorance, hate, discrimination, and inequity that has (historically) led to murder, violence, and war.
Sometimes, when I reference things in history (and how they parallel current events), I seem to be proving Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel’s point – “[that] what experience and history teach is this, — that peoples and governments never have learned anything from history, or acted on principles deduced from it.” Note that he references “peoples,” i.e., nations (and specifically mentions rulers and statesmen), which gives me a little hope in each of us individually. Perhaps, with a little svādhyāya (“self-study”), we can individually learn (collectively) and then come together in a way that proves Hegel wrong.
The problem with my theory is that not everyone is interested in svādhyāya – let alone in exploring history according to the rubric Hegel outlined in The Lectures on the Philosophy of History. Additionally, not everyone learns those various ways to discuss history. This is turning into a particular challenge in the United States, where some U. S. history is not taught. There may come a time when almost no one in the U. S. knows about some of the things that happened today, throughout U. S. history. But, today, despite the way history is taught in certain parts of the United States – and despite the way people are trying to change the way history is taught – most adults will have some passing knowledge of the events that I reference during the August 28th practice. Most people, however, will be most familiar with one particular event. Or, to be more accurate, people remember one part (of one part) of one event: Martin Luther King Jr.’s words about a dream.
In many ways, that dream, that speech, and that march 60 years ago today is both past and prologue. As Dr. King’s only grandchild pointed out this weekend, that dream, that speech, and the reason people were marching 60 years ago today are as much a part of our present as they are a part of our past.
“‘If I could speak to my grandfather today, I would say I’m sorry we still have to be here to rededicate ourselves to finishing your work and ultimately realizing your dream,’ [15-year old Yolanda Renee King] said. ‘Today, racism is still with us. Poverty is still with us. And now, gun violence has come for places of worship, our schools and our shopping centers.’”
— quoted from the August 26, 2023, Associated Press article “Thousands converge on National Mall to mark the March on Washington’s 60th anniversary” by Aaron Morrison and Ayanna Alexander
For Those Who Missed It: The following was originally posted in 2022. I have added an extra quote and a (tiny) bit of extra philosophy.
“Bringing the gifts that my ancestors gave, I am the dream and the hope of the slave. I rise I rise I rise.”
– quoted from the poem “Still I Rise” by Maya Angelou
Take a moment to consider how you deal with difference, imbalance, and/or injustice. You can consider it from your perspective as an individual and/or as part of a collective, a community… a republic. Either way you look at it, consider that your unique perspective – based on your past experiences – determines what you believe is a reasonable and rational way to deal with differences, imbalance, and/or injustice. Just to be clear: “past experiences” include everything you have felt, thought, said, done, and experienced around you. Past experiences make up your “mental impressions” (samskaras) – which, over time, can become vasanas, the “dwelling places” of our habits.
I was thinking about vasanas the other day when I heard Caroline Myss use the idea of living in a high rise as a metaphor for how we live in the world. The point she was making is that, if we live in the penthouse, we have a different understanding of the world and our circumstances than if we live on the first floor (or in the basement). Additionally, she talked about people not really caring about the problems people were having on other floors and she talked about perspective as it relates to the view outside, the vista. All of this made me think about how our perspectives determine how we resolve conflict.
Consider, if you will, that we “might be” in the habit of dealing with difference, imbalance, and/or injustice in ways that are not alleviating our suffering. I put “might be” in quotes, but let’s be real; if we look at some of the events that happened today in U. S. history (from 1862 to 1963 and beyond), we find a lot of suffering. Like a lot, a lot, of suffering. But, there’s not a whole lot of alleviation. We do, however, find dreams, hopes, promises, and possibilities.
As many of y’all know, I’m a big fan of “dwell[ing] in Possibility.” I sometimes wonder, however, at what point that idea becomes counterproductive. At what point do we have to pack up our baggage and move from unlimited possibilities to unlimited probability? At what point do we realize that moving means getting rid of some old, outdated stuff that no longer serves us?
At what point do we recognize that the problems in the basement (and on the first floor) contribute to the problems in the penthouse – and vice versa? And, at what point do we recognize that we are all in the same dwelling place?
Better yet, at what point do follow the Patanjali’s advice and steady the mind by “resting on the wisdom arising from dreams and sleep” (YS 1.38)? At what point do we recognize that it’s time to move from dreams to reality?
“[We are our] ancestors’ wildest dreams!”
– variations attributed to Brandan Odums, Darius Simpson, and others
There is no playlist for the Common Ground Meditation Center practices.
The playlist previous years is available on YouTube and Spotify. [Look for “08282021 The Heart’s Wildest Dream”]
“Let us not wallow in the valley of despair. I say to you today, my friends – ”
“Tell them about the dream, Martin. Tell them about the dream.”
[Clarence B. Jones to the person beside him: “These people out there, they don’t know it, but they’re about ready to go to church.”]
“So even though we face the difficulties of today and tomorrow, I still have a dream. It is a dream deeply rooted in the American dream. I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal.
I have a dream that one day on the red hills of Georgia, the sons of former slaves and the sons of former slave owners will be able to sit down together at the table of brotherhood.”
– words spoken by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., Mahalia Jackson, and Clarence B. Jones on Wednesday, August 28, 1963
“The place to improve the world is first in one’s own heart and head and hands, and then work outward from there.”
– quoted from Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance: An Inquiry into Values by Robert Pirsig
### To Have Wild Dreams, We Have to Live Wild Dreams ###
