Mind Over Mind (on April 20th) April 20, 2020
Posted by ajoyfulpractice in Uncategorized.Tags: Common Ground Meditation Center, Edgar Allan Poe, inspiration, KISS MY ASANA, meditation, Meditation Monday, Mindfulness, Murders in the Rue Morgue, ratiocination, yoga
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Yoga Sutra 1.17: vitarkavichārānandāsmitārūpānugamāt samprajñātah
– “[The process of concentrating] happens in four ways: gross/noting, subtle/examining, joy/bliss, and I-ness (self-identifying with object of concentration)”
“To observe attentively is to remember distinctly.”
– from The Murders in the Rue Morgue: The Daupin Tales (published 4/20/1841) by Edgar Allan Poe
Every meditation or mindfulness-based practice starts the same. Regardless of style, tradition, or format, the beginning of the practice is always to bring your awareness to something. Noticing something is the first step. Then, you notice what you notice. In noticing what you notice, you bring your awareness to your awareness. That final step (bringing your awareness to your awareness) becomes the practice.
I hear somebody now, thinking very loudly, ‘No, no, that’s not how it works! When I….’
Right…. Finish the sentence above and you will see the veracity of my earlier statements. Or, you can just start practicing.
Wherever you are take a moment to bring your conscious awareness to something that’s been teasing your senses. Notice a taste, a smell, the feeling of anything (and everything) rubbing against your skin. Play “I Spy” or “I Hear.” Notice what is on your mind…and how that thought feels in your body. Notice your breath, and the parts of the breath. Notice your body, reacting to your breath. Bring your awareness to the concept of love, kindness, friendliness, compassion, sympathetic joy, generosity, equanimity, grief, or peace. God, or G-d, or god. Notice how it feels to make a sound, sing a song, dance. Repeat, and repeat. Notice how it feels when you finish. Notice how you play. Notice how you feel in a pose. Notice how you feel as you move between poses. Breathe.
Take a deep breath in, a deeper breath out. And notice what you have decided to notice. Notice if it is something that holds your interest and holds your mind without a lot of effort. That is one way to practice. Notice if your mind is continuously jumping to something else. That is part of the practice. Notice if you go with the flow of the thoughts in your mind or if you are continuously pulling your awareness back to that which you first started to notice. Those too are ways to practice. Breathe.
Take a deep breath in, a deeper breath out. Repeat it all again.
Seriously, read those two paragraphs again and that’s 90 – 120 seconds, during which you focused and – in focusing – you started the process of concentrating, which leads to meditation. If you paused along the way and really focused, concentrated, (contemplated), and meditated – even for a moment – on any of those elements, you could have easily spent 5 – 10 minutes meditating. It’s that simple.
What is just as simple, but sometimes harder to explain is how you feel during all that. Did you notice your breath slowing down or speeding up as some sections of the sentences were easier to read than others? Did you notice that some parts felt really sweet to you, while others seemed boring or nonsensical? Did you ever feel uncomfortable? Did you notice your mind sometimes wandering off on a tangent or trying to jump ahead to figure out where I was going? That’s how the mind works. All of that…is how the mind works.
The mind/brain is responsible for keeping the body moving and operating, which means that the it is also responsible for keeping the body safe (and healthy). I’ve mentioned before that the mind/brain is constantly processing information, in the form of sensation, and then sending information (in the form of sensation) back to the different parts of the body. This is how it does its job. Successfully doing its job, however, sometimes means the brain has to solve puzzles that are missing pieces and mysteries with contradictory evidence. When our minds get in the habit of being Edgar Allan Poe’s Daupin, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s Sherlock Holmes, or Agatha Christie’s Hercule Poirot and Miss Marple, we find ourselves making up a story even when we don’t need the story – and then we make decisions based on that story. That’s how the mind works.
“There are few persons who have not, at some period of their lives, amused themselves in retracing the steps by which particular conclusions of their own minds have been attained. The occupation is often full of interest and he who attempts it for the first time is astonished by the apparently illimitable distance and incoherence between the starting-point and the goal.”
– from The Murders in the Rue Morgue: The Daupin Tales (published 4/20/1841) by Edgar Allan Poe
Some of the mind’s mental processing is conscious, but much of it is unconscious and/or subconscious. In fact, some of the ways in which we make decisions is due to this unconscious and subconscious processing / puzzle solving / mystery solving. When we take a moment to pause, and really notice what it is we are noticing, we bring some of that processing into the conscious mind. The more we get in the habit of paying attention to our mind-body-spirit, the more we get in the habit of understanding how we ended up where we are and where we could be going. The more we understand the cause-and-effect of our lives, the more we can alleviate some of our (physical) pain and much of our (mental) suffering.
It all starts by noticing what you notice, and bringing awareness to your awareness.
Please join me, if you are able and interested, today (Monday, April 20th) at 5:30 PM for another 75-minute practice where we notice things. This practice will be different from the Saturday and Sunday practices this weekend – except in the fact that we will be noticing things, virtually. Some of the new Zoom security protocols have definitely kicked in; so, please use the link from the “Class Schedules” calendar if you run into any problems. There is no music for this Common Ground Meditation Center practice.
Have you noticed I’m gearing up for Kiss My Asana to start on Saturday (April 25th)?
As I mentioned in Friday’s post, part of my offering to support Mind Body Solutions this year will be to tell seven special stories, your stories! Check out Friday’s post and then you can either email me or comment below.
Founded by Matthew Sanford, Mind Body Solutions helps those who have experienced trauma, loss, and disability find new ways to live by integrating both mind and body. They provide classes, workshops, and outreach programs. They also train yoga teachers and offer highly specialized training for health care professionals. This year’s yogathon is only a week long. Seven days, at the end of the month, to do yoga, share yoga, and help others. By participating in the Kiss My Asana yogathon you join a global movement, but in a personal way. In other words, you practice yoga… for 7 days
Hey, I still need your Kiss My Asana story!
You don’t need to wait until the end of the month, however, to consider how you might participate. Start thinking now about how you can add 5 minutes of yoga (or meditation) to your day, how you can learn something new about your practice, or even how you would teach a pose to someone close to you – or even to one of your Master Teachers/Precious Jewels.
To give you some ideas, consider that in past years my KMA offerings have included donation-based classes and (sometimes) daily postings. Check out one of my previous offerings dated April 20th (or thereabouts):
30 Poses in 30 Days (scroll down to see April 20th)
A Musical Preview (scroll down to see March 20th)
A Preview of the April 20th Practice (see “A Poetry Practice” link above for an actual preview)
“Between ingenuity and the analytic ability there exists a difference far greater, indeed, than that between the fancy and the imagination, but of a character very strictly analogous. It will be found, in fact, that the ingenious are always fanciful, and the truly imaginative never otherwise than analytic.”
– from The Murders in the Rue Morgue: The Daupin Tales (published 4/20/1841) by Edgar Allan Poe
### OM OM AUM ###
Noticing Things (on April 19th) April 19, 2020
Posted by ajoyfulpractice in Uncategorized.Tags: Alexandra Stéliski, KISS MY ASANA, meditation, Mindfulness, story, yoga
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“For me ‘plus tôt’ is a piece that talks about the sort of space and time that you’re in before things happen to you. The sort of calm you can feel when you don’t know that some events are about to change you. It’s the beginning of the trip. It’s the beginning of the inscape.”
– Alexandra Stéliski explaining the inspiration for the first piece on her album Inscape (the song title translates to “earlier”)
When do you notice things? And what do you notice? Our sense organs are always picking up information and, unless something goes wrong, sending that information to the brain in the form of sensation. The brain sifts through the information, works on the puzzle, and then sends back more sensation, more information. Sometimes we add a layer of judgment and a layer of story – especially when we don’t feel we have enough information or when the pieces are starting to fill in the gaps.
Our minds like a good story.
However, a lot of what the mind does is purely unconscious and subconscious processing. Someone will bring our awareness to something and we will say, “Oh, I didn’t notice that.” The reality is that some part of us did notice – otherwise we wouldn’t be able to recognize whatever it was that someone brought to our attention. What we notice ourselves noticing, when we bring our awareness to our awareness, is that which is in the conscious part of our consciousness.
Take a deep breath in; open your mouth, sigh it out.
Deep breath in through your nose; deep open mouth sigh.
Take the deepest breath you’ve taken all day; open your mouth and sigh it out.
As you inhale through your nose, and exhale through your nose, notice what you notice. Bring your awareness to your awareness.
There are certain times in our lives where we seem to notice – be conscious of – everything. Other times, it seems our conscious mind shrinks down and we are only aware of one thing. This can, and does, happen all the time without us ever thinking about it. But, what happens when we think about it?
A meditation practice, whether you are moving, sitting, or lying down is sometimes referred to as a mindfulness practice. Mindfulness being: the state of conscious awareness. In that state of conscious awareness there can be peace and calm, but not always. There are times when conscious awareness is neither peaceful nor calm (even though the peace and the calm is why so many people meditate). More than anything mindfulness, however you get to it, involves clarity and an understanding of cause-and-effect.
Sometimes we notice things because of tragedy. Sometimes we notice things because they are too beautiful to miss. Sometimes we notice things because we are “trippin’.” Sometimes we notice things because we are the person who just notices things.
Sometimes we notice things because we choose to notice things.
Please join me today (Sunday, April 19th) at 2:30 PM CST for a practice of noticing things, virtually. There will, unfortunately be tragedy (since we can’t change what’s in the past). There will be something beautiful and you will, if you like, have the opportunity to “trip” (or, maybe just gain some insight into that). Some of the new Zoom security protocols are definitely kicking in; so, please use the link from the “Class Schedules” calendar if you run into any problems. Sunday’s playlist is available on YouTube and Spotify.
You may notice that the playlist is longer than normal – that’s because it’s actually two (2) different playlists. If you are using the music, you get to choose your musical experience. That’s part of the trip.
Speaking of trips, I can hardly believe Kiss My Asana starts (this) Saturday, April 25th!!!
As I mentioned in yesterday’s post, part of my offering to support Mind Body Solutions this year will be to tell seven special stories, your stories! Check out Friday’s post and then you can either email me or comment below.
Founded by Matthew Sanford, Mind Body Solutions helps those who have experienced trauma, loss, and disability find new ways to live by integrating both mind and body. They provide classes, workshops, and outreach programs. They also train yoga teachers and offer highly specialized training for health care professionals. This year’s yogathon is only a week long. Seven days, at the end of the month, to do yoga, share yoga, and help others. By participating in the Kiss My Asana yogathon you join a global movement, but in a personal way. In other words, you practice yoga… for 7 days
Tell me your Kiss My Asana story!
You don’t need to wait until the end of the month, however, to consider how you might participate. Start thinking now about how you can add 5 minutes of yoga (or meditation) to your day, how you can learn something new about your practice, or even how you would teach a pose to someone close to you – or even to one of your Master Teachers/Precious Jewels.
To give you some ideas, consider that in past years my KMA offerings have included donation-based classes and (sometimes) daily postings. Check out one of my previous offerings dated April 19th (or thereabouts):
30 Poses in 30 Days (scroll down to see April 19th)
A Musical Preview (scroll down to see March 19th)
A Preview of the April 19th Practice (see “A Poetry Practice” link above for an actual preview)
### OM OM AUM ###
Another Midnight Ride Down the Mental Highway (give or take 12 hours) April 18, 2020
Posted by ajoyfulpractice in Uncategorized.2 comments
“Listen, my children, and you shall hear
Of the midnight ride of Paul Revere,
On the eighteenth of April, in Seventy-Five:
Hardly a man is now alive
Who remembers that famous day and year.”
– from Paul Revere’s Ride by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
“Listen, my children, and you shall hear…something very familiar.”
– the beginning of class on April 18th (starting ~2012)
The story of today, April 18th, is immortalized in a poem – which is a great reminder that, despite everything that has happened (and is happening) April is still Poetry Month and a poem is a wonderful way to tell a story. It is not, necessarily, the first way most people think of telling a story. After all, in this modern era we tend to equate the telling of a story with prose. Yet, if you go a little deeper you will find that there was a time when every good story was told in meter and rhyme.
(Did you see/hear what I did there?)
As I mentioned yesterday, the thing about a good story – regardless of the manner in which it’s told – is that it leaves an impression. Bits of it stick. How many times have you found yourself remembering a message or a situation from a story even when you don’t remember the title, the author’s name, or (sometimes) even the name of the main character? Something sticks. And, when the story is told well and with strong imagery, like that used in Longfellow’s poem, we believe what we are told. When the story is repeated, throughout our life time, certain things are reinforced…even when they are wrong. Authors, after all, are sometimes more focused on telling the story than on telling the truth.
Don’t get me wrong, Longfellow’s poem is a great poem: it’s dramatic, it’s visual; it sounds and feels like you’re riding with Revere; there’s a little bit of suspense (even when you know what happens); and – most importantly – it’s memorable. At least, some parts are memorable. Some parts stick. But, now that I’ve planted the seed of doubt about what is fact and what is fiction, how can you be sure if the parts that stick are the true parts? And what happens – specifically what suffering happens – when we believe something that is not true?
The nice (and I think cool) part about what I teach – and even the way I teach it – is that yoga is simultaneously embodied and experiential. Each person is encouraged to see if what the teacher (or anyone else) says is true. Adding the story just makes the experience richer. It’s another layer of contemplation (as Saint Ignatius would say) or another level of svādyayā (“self-study,” as Patanjali would say). You can’t necessarily go through your day doing Warrior and balancing poses whenever you need to tap into your strength, courage, wisdom, and balance. You can, at any time, however, tap into the story – and, if you practice yoga with the story, you now have an embodied experience. So, when you tap into the story, your muscle memory kicks in and you tap into your body.
At least, that has been my experience.
The tricky part about what I teach and the way I teach it is that a lot of Eastern philosophy (like yoga and Buddhism) focus on unpacking the stories we/our minds spin and finding the grounded/centered space where we are not constantly creating more illusion (i.e., more story). There’s a fine balance there; because even the aspect of non-attachment that is no-story is a story.
Yes, I know, it’s a bit of a quagmire and we are running concentric circles around it and into it. But that feeling of running around and around until you wind up running into the boggy land, where the ground slips out from under you, is the very nature of philosophy – and, can be, the very nature of life. Maybe that exact aspect of the human experience is why no-story/non-attachment is a story millennia of people have found eases or eliminates suffering.
Yoga Sutra 2.15: pariņāmatāpasamskāraduhkhairguņavŗttivirodhācca duhkhameva sarvam vivekinah
– “The wise person sees everything (all worldly experiences) inevitably results in pain, suffering, and sorrow, because everything is subject to change, distress, karmic impressions (samskaras), and natural opposition of characteristics.”
Yoga Sutra 2.16: heyam duhkhamanāgatam
– “The pain (suffering) that has not yet come can be avoided or discarded.”
There are different ways to look at Yoga Sutra 2.16, which will be our focus today (Saturday, April 18th). One way to look at this is to consider something I say often in class: What happens to us/our hearts in the past informs this present moment; how we engage our hearts (what happens to us) in this moment informs the future moments.
This is a basic way of looking at the law of karma. You don’t have to believe in past lives to see the validity of this. You can just think back to what you ate or drank (or didn’t eat or drink) two days ago and notice the effect that has on you today. Now, consider how the way you feel today (based on the decisions you made two days ago) and how the way you are feeling today informs what you eat or drink (or don’t eat or drink) and how that is going to affect you over the next two days. That’s still the law of karma.
Getting back to how this connects to today’s sutra, consider that you can’t go back and change what you ate or drank (or didn’t eat or drink) two days ago or how it has affected you. If, however, you are “the wise person” who is tuned into how you feel and is able to consider the cause-and-effect of how you feel, then you may be able to make a decision today that keeps you from continuing to suffer over the next two days.
Now, consider the wider implications of that lesson.
In Longfellow’s poem, Paul Revere warns the colonists about how the British are approaching so that they are prepared to avoid/end their colonial suffering. As you move through your practice, or even through your day, consider the sensation/information that warns you about the possibility of future pain and suffering. What if you consider (as YS 2.15 suggests) that everything will invariably lead to pain and suffering? As you consider cause-and-effect, consider how you make decisions in this moment and how they will affect your next moments.
I mentioned earlier that poetry “is not, necessarily, the first way most people think of telling a story.” Yet, a song is simply harmony added to the melody that is the poem. Please join me today (Saturday, April 18th) at 12 Noon, for a virtual yoga practice on Zoom, featuring songs inspired by the events of “the eighteenth of April, in (Seventeen) Seventy-Five.” Some of the new Zoom security protocols are definitely kicking in; so, please use the link from the “Class Schedules” calendar if you run into any problems. Saturday’s playlist is ONLY available on YouTube. (Too many songs from my list were not available on Spotify.)
If you are following the Orthodox Christian calendar and would like a recording of last week’s classes, please comment or email me.
If you are interested in combining a physical practice (yoga or weightlifting) with the Counting of the Omer, you can purchase a copy of Marcus J. Freed’s The Kabbalh Sutras: 49 Steps to Enlightenment.
Kiss My Asana is starting next Saturday, April 25th!!!
As I mentioned in yesterday’s post, part of my offering to support Mind Body Solutions this year will be to tell seven special stories, your stories! Check out yesterday’s post and then you can either email me or comment below.
Founded by Matthew Sanford, Mind Body Solutions helps those who have experienced trauma, loss, and disability find new ways to live by integrating both mind and body. They provide classes, workshops, and outreach programs. They also train yoga teachers and offer highly specialized training for health care professionals. This year’s yogathon is only a week long. Seven days, at the end of the month, to do yoga, share yoga, and help others. By participating in the Kiss My Asana yogathon you join a global movement, but in a personal way. In other words, you practice yoga… for 7 days
Tell me your Kiss My Asana story!
You don’t need to wait until the end of the month, however, to consider how you might participate. Start thinking now about how you can add 5 minutes of yoga (or meditation) to your day, how you can learn something new about your practice, or even how you would teach a pose to someone close to you – or even to one of your Master Teachers/Precious Jewels.
To give you some ideas, consider that in past years my KMA offerings have included donation-based classes and (sometimes) daily postings. Check out one of my previous offerings dated April 18th (or thereabouts):
30 Poses in 30 Days (scroll down to see April 18th)
A Musical Preview (scroll down to see March 18th)
A Preview of the April 17th Practice (see “A Poetry Practice” link above for an actual preview)
### AABBA ABABCCDDD AABBACCDD ABBCABC ###
The Power of A Story April 17, 2020
Posted by ajoyfulpractice in Uncategorized.1 comment so far
“The discrepancy between faith and the facts is greater than is generally assumed. The art of biography is more difficult than is generally supposed.”
– Brother Juniper in The Bridge of San Luis Rey by Thornton Wilder (b. 4/17/1897)
A funny thing happened on the way to the studio as I was getting ready for a virtual class the other day. A Psychology Today article about “Meditative Story” popped up in my news queue and I couldn’t click on the link fast enough. Created by WaitWhat co-founders Deron Triff and June Cohen, in partnership with Ariana Huffington’s behavior change tech company Thrive Global, “Meditative Story” is hosted by “meditation guide” Rohan Gunatillake and features “an original musical score that rivals the best in filmmaking.” Intrigued? So was I. And, it turns out it is exactly what it sounds like:
“Meditative Story was created to help people find an alternative way into mindfulness through story that has nothing to do with the traditional world of meditation. By taking what typically occurs on a cushion and introducing that same wisdom and that same state of mind, through mesmerizing narratives—interspersed with meditation “prompts” and breathtaking music—we’re seeing the kind of response from our listeners that speaks to a breakthrough in the world of mindfulness practice. Something very special is happening.”
Sound familiar?
It did to me – and I had a lot of mixed feelings about it.
For over a decade, I’ve combined storytelling, music, and meditation in classes around Minneapolis. For over a decade, people have said they haven’t experienced a class like the classes I teach. And, during that same period of time, I’ve told people I’m not the only one who teaches like this. What I don’t always explain is that storytelling, wisdom, and mindfulness have a reach history that goes back millennia. You just have to go deeper.
Take a moment to consider the source of what you consider to be deep wisdom. Depending on your personal history and culture, any number of names might come up for you, including (but not limited to): Patanjali, Buddha, Lao Tzu, Confucius, the authors of the Torah and Talmud, Jesus, Mohammad, Saint Paul, the Desert Fathers and Mothers, Julian of Norwich, Saint Teresa of Avila, Guru Nanak, Saint Ignatious of Loyala, Joseph Smith, and Bahá’u’lláh (just to name a few).
All storytellers; and those names cover quite a few sacred texts. One text whose title is particular telling is Upanishad. The Upanishads are actually a collection of texts full of stories, in the Hindu tradition, that explain and explore the Vedas (more sacred texts). They are classic existential texts on mindfulness, God, and everything in between. The Sanskrit word “Upanishad” literally means “sit down by,” but is often translated as “sitting near devotedly.”
Think back to those names of ancient storytellers, even the ones I neglected to mention, and you will start to realize that every story you’ve ever heard or read is just a written down account of what a teacher told their students/disciples when said students/disciples were sitting near their teacher devotedly. In fact, many Buddhists texts start with the words, “I have heard….”
What stands the test of time, what gets passed down through the ages, is the story.
Meditative Story is backed by a lot of heavy hitters, a lot of money, and a significant amount of research. But, after “seven months, 28 episodes, and more than three million downloads” they have “proven” what we already know: stories make a difference.
Kiss My Asana is all about making a difference.
So, for Kiss My Asana 2020, I am planning to tell you seven stories. I’ve got years (and years) worth of stories. What I would like to do, however, is tell your favorite story.
You can submit a story by emailing me or sending me a comment below. It can be a favorite story you’ve heard me tell. It can be your favorite story to read or hear. It can even be a personal story – over the years many of you have shared bits of your personal history with me and it has left an impression. Pretty please, could I tell one of those stories? You know…the one about your mom, or the friend you met at the Y, or that time you realized you had a calling, or the spouse you met at the Y. You can include a pose or a song that you think would represents some part of the story and off we will go.
Founded by Matthew Sanford, Mind Body Solutions helps those who have experienced trauma, loss, and disability find new ways to live by integrating both mind and body. They provide classes, workshops, and outreach programs. They also train yoga teachers and offer highly specialized training for health care professionals. This year’s yogathon is only a week long. Seven days, at the end of the month, to do yoga, share yoga, and help others. By participating in the Kiss My Asana yogathon you join a global movement, but in a personal way. In other words, you practice yoga… for 7 days
What’s your Kiss My Asana story?
You don’t need to wait until the end of the month, however, to consider how you might participate. Start thinking now about how you can add 5 minutes of yoga (or meditation) to your day, how you can learn something new about your practice, or even how you would teach a pose to someone close to you – or even to one of your Master Teachers/Precious Jewels.
To give you some ideas, consider that in past years my KMA offerings have included donation-based classes and (sometimes) daily postings. Check out one of my previous offerings dated April 17th (or thereabouts):
30 Poses in 30 Days (scroll down to see April 17th)
A Musical Preview (scroll down to see March 17th)
A Preview of the April 17th Practice
“The test of an adventure is that when you’re in the middle of it, you say to yourself, ‘Oh, now I’ve got myself into an awful mess; I wish I were sitting quietly at home.’ And the sign that something’s wrong with you is when you sit quietly at home wishing you were out have lots of adventure.”
– Thornton Wilder, author of one of my favorite books and one of my favorite plays
### LOVE ALWAYS WINS ###
The Cost of Freedom April 16, 2020
Posted by ajoyfulpractice in Uncategorized.add a comment
“Find the cost of freedom
Buried in the ground
Mother Earth will swallow you
Lay your body down.”
– “Find the Cost of Freedom” by Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young
Most people, I think, would agree that freedom is priceless. I mean, at least, I think we can all agree about that when we are talking about our own freedom. Things get a little twisted when we are talking about someone else’s freedom. How much do we value the freedom – or even the life – of someone we perceive as different from us? How much do we value the freedom – or even the life – of someone with whom we disagree about even the meaning of freedom?
What happens if you have to put a price freedom? What happens if you actually have to quantify the value of life, liberty, freedom (which is, ultimately, the pursuit of happiness)?
Did that last question take you back to the Constitution and the founders of the United States? Let’s really go back, get the full context, shall we?
“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.”
– excerpt from the Declaration of Independence as presented by the Committee of Five and approved and signed by the Second Continental Congress, 1776
Yes, yes; it’s inspiring and lovely – and I do love the sentiment: those are words to live and lead by. And yet…. And yet…. Here’s one of the interesting and twisted things about all that: The founders of the United States, who created a country based on those highly virtuous concepts outlined in the Declaration of Independence, did so while simultaneously creating a country (that same country) that systematically declared women and certain people of color to not only not be equal, but to also not be entitled to the very rights which they said were “endowed by their Creator.” These men, for the Committee of Five and the signers of the Constitution were all men (so far as I know), were willing to fight in order to secure their freedom from Great Britain. Furthermore, they believed, as Caesar Rodney (the Gentleman from Delaware) famously put it when he cast his vote for independence, “As I believe the voice of my constituents and of all sensible and honest men is in favor of independence, my judgment concurs with them; I vote for independence.” In other words, they believed they represented the voice of the People (i.e., other men) who were willing to lay down their lives for freedom: that was the cost of freedom.
“The one who brought his offering on the first day was Nahshon the son of Amminadab of the tribe of Judah. And his offering was one silver bowl weighing one hundred and thirty [shekels], one silver sprinkling basin [weighing] seventy shekels according to the holy shekel, both filled with fine flour mixed with olive oil for a meal offering. One spoon [weighing] ten [shekels] of gold filled with incense. One young bull, one ram and one lamb in its first year for a burnt offering. One young he goat for a sin offering. And for the peace offering: two oxen, five rams, five he goats, five lambs in their first year; this was the offering of Nahshon the son of Amminadab.”
– Bamidbar / Numbers 7:12 – 7:17
In the Hebrew Bible / the Christian Old Testament, G-d not only gave Moses instructions for how to deal with Pharaoh, but also instructions on how the Jewish people were to deal with the last days of the plague (in particular during the final plague); how to travel and camp; how to take a census (or accounting of the men); how to establish leadership; and how to build and dedicate a temple. G-d also instructed Moses that each Tribe of Israel was required to make a sacrifice, or offering, as a way to give thanks and offer devotion. In other words, according to what they were able and how many were in their tribe, each leader paid the cost of freedom.
Today in 1862, nearly nine months before the Emancipation Proclamation went into effect, President Abraham Lincoln signed the District of Columbia Compensated Emancipation Act. The act essentially ended slavery in the capital city (although it did not apply to fugitive slaves who had escaped from Maryland) and set aside over $100,100,000 as compensation for the 3,185 people who were freed.
That was the cost of freedom: over $1 million, plus an additional $100,000, for approximately 3,185 people.
But, let’s not get the facts twisted. The compensation was primarily for the slave owners who were “losing their property.” President Lincoln appointed a 3-person Emancipation Commission, which met 5 days a week, for months on end, in order to review 966 petitions and dole out compensation accordingly. Petitions included the name, age, sex, and “particular description” of the slave in question and were made on behalf of black, as well as white, “slave owners.” Yes, that is correct. At the time, certain places within the Union – like the District of Columbia – were home to freedmen who had purchased their family members so that they too could be free. (I started to put purchased in quotes, but the reality is people paid to be free.) This act did not apply to any Confederate slaver owners or anyone who had aided the Confederacy’s (lost) cause. Furthermore, it made it a felony to “kidnap” or in any way re-enslave a freed person or former slave.
The Compensated Emancipation Act paid Union slave-owners $300 per freed slave and paid former slaves a resettlement or “emigrant” fee – not to exceed $100 each – if they chose to relocate to places like Haiti and Liberia. It established payment for the commissioners ($200,000 each); a clerk ($200 per month plus an occasional 25 cent processing fee); and paid a marshal “such fees as are allowed by law for similar services performed by him in the Circuit Court of the District of Columbia.” It also stated, “that the Secretary of the Treasury shall cause all other reasonable expenses of said commission to be audited and allowed, and that said compensation, fees, and expenses shall be paid from the Treasury of the United States.” In July of 1862, an amendment was added which allowed former slaves to petition for compensation (on their own behalf) if their former masters had not already done so. The amendment did something even the Declaration of Independence and the original Act didn’t do: it gave equal weight and consideration to petitioners – regardless of their color or the color of the person who might challenge their petition.
Similar compensation was proposed, but never implanted in the rest of the United States. Today (Thursday, April 16th), is Emancipation Day in the District of Columbia. It is a public holiday in the country’s capital city and yet, outside of D. C., most people don’t think twice about Emancipation Day – unless it falls on a Saturday or Sunday and thereby delays the official federal tax day.
So, there are three examples of the cost of freedom. What’s the cost of your freedom? What, for that matter, does it mean to you to be free? And, what are you doing with your freedom – even when your movement/freedom has been restricted by the quarantine and social distancing?
While you’re considering that… please consider Kissing My Asana (starting April 25th).
Founded by Matthew Sanford, Mind Body Solutions helps those who have experienced trauma, loss, and disability find new ways to live by integrating both mind and body. They provide classes, workshops, and outreach programs. They also train yoga teachers and offer highly specialized training for health care professionals. This year’s yogathon is only a week long. Seven days, at the end of the month, to do yoga, share yoga, and help others. By participating in the Kiss My Asana yogathon you join a global movement, but in a personal way. In other words, you practice yoga… for 7 days
Are you considering it?
You don’t need to wait until the end of the month, however, to consider how you might participate. Start thinking now about how you can add 5 minutes of yoga (or meditation) to your day, how you can learn something new about your practice, or even how you would teach a pose to someone close to you – or even to one of your Master Teachers/Precious Jewels.
To give you some ideas, consider that in past years my KMA offerings have included donation-based classes and (sometimes) daily postings. Check out one of my previous offerings dated April 16th (or thereabouts):
30 Poses in 30 Days (scroll down to see April 16th)
A Musical Preview (scroll down to see March 16th)
A Preview of the April 16th Practice
### FEEL FREE, BE FREE ###
Ah, Freedom! (Passover and 42) April 15, 2020
Posted by ajoyfulpractice in Uncategorized.Tags: 42, Jackie Robinson, Nahshon
2 comments
Don’t forget, A Little Yin… & A Lotta Yang presents “Lung Health and How We Cope Right Now (viewing COVID-19 through Traditional Chinese Medicine and YIN Yoga).” This is a special live event on YouTube (not my channel) starting at 3 PM CST. Details and link below.
“Thank you, God,
Look how misery has ended for us.
The rain has fallen,
The corn has grown,
All the children that were hungry are going to eat.
Let’s dance the Congo,
Let’s dance the Petro,
God said in Heaven
That misery has ended for us.”
– “Merci Bon Dieu” by Frantz Casseus, sung by Harry Belafonte
Can you imagine being the first to taste freedom?
I mean, it’s easy to think that there would be such overwhelming relief, gratitude, and joy. And maybe there was. But, there would also be trepidation. There might also be hesitation. There might be a little doubt that you know what to do or how to act. There might be some concern about the others who would follow you.
Can you imagine the first who knows the fear of having that freedom taken away? Can you imagine the attitude of the person who is first?
During last night’s class, I mentioned that Nahshon was the first to step into the turbulent waves of the Red Sea as the Jewish people were fleeing Egypt (and slavery) during the events commemorated in Passover. Nahshon is like Aaron in that, if your knowledge of Passover comes from a Hollywood movie or only from a random Christian sermon on the events, you may not have ever heard of him. You might even think that I made him up – or, given my background in theatre, that he is a compilation of people. But, if you go a little deeper into the story, there is quite a bit of information about this young man, who is often overlooked.
“The Lord spoke to Moses in the Sinai Desert, in the Tent of Meeting on the first day of the second month, in the second year after the exodus from the land of Egypt, saying. Take the sum of all the congregation of the children of Israel, by families following their fathers’ houses; a head count of every male according to the number of their names. From twenty years old and upwards, all who are fit to go out to the army in Israel, you shall count them by their legions you and Aaron. With you there shall be a man from each tribe, one who is head of his father’s house. These are the names of the men who shall stand with you; for Reuben, Elitzur the son of Shedeur. For Simeon, Shelumiel the son of Zurishaddai. For Judah, Nahshon the son of Amminadab.”
– Bamidbar / Numbers 1:1 – 1:7
Nahshon (or Naashon, in the King James version) appears by name in a number of places in the Bible, including The Book of Ruth and First Chronicles (specifically 2:11). If you go to the beginning of First Chronicles and follow the names, you will see he was a descendent of Adam, by way of Judah. He was also Aaron’s brother-in-law; was designated by Moses, at the behest of G-d, as a prince and military commander of the Tribe of Judah; and ultimately was the ancestor of King David, King Solomon, and all the kings of the Kingdom of Judah in the 10th and 9th century BCE. (He is also mentioned in the Christian New Testament, Matthew 1:4 and Luke 3:33, as an ancestor of Jesus.) According to the census instructions G-d gives Moses in “The Book of Numbers,” Nahshon was at least 20 years old during exodus. He not only “travels” first, he is also the first to make an offering to G-d once they are delivered and the tabernacle is established (N 7:12-17).
“Of the tribe of Judah, their descendants according to their families, according to their fathers’ houses; the number of individual names of every male from twenty years old and upward, all who were fit to go out to the army. Those counted from the tribe of Judah: 74,600.”
– Bamidbar / Numbers 1:26 – 1:27
In the Christian context, we think of the story of Passover starting in “The Book of Exodus” – and this makes sense if you think of it purely in the sense of this one story, the story of exodus, of a mass of people leaving. If you spend a year studying Torah, the Jewish Bible, than the story of exodus comes to you in the weekly portion called “Shemot,” which means “names” – as the book actually starts with a list of names of people, and their descendants, who came into Egypt. The story actually starts with a little background about the people and how they became slaves in Egypt.
The writers of the Bible are fond of names. There are plenty of books that begin with this person begetting that person and that person begetting this person. It’s easy to skim over these sections; it’s easy to overlook their importance. Consider, however, that it is important to know one’s context. One could argue that there is nothing more important than knowing who you are and where you come from. It’s important to remember that our actions are a reflection of from whence we come. Yet identity is something that is often lost in mass tragedy like slavery. If you don’t know who you are, it is easy to get lost and forget your purpose.
Sometimes, when people are lost, they need a new beginning, a touchstone, someone to lead the way and inspire. April 15th is a day when the baseball community, as well as the African-American community, celebrates a young man who led the way – a man who was first to taste the bitter and the sweet that comes with a new experience of freedom. Today, (Tuesday, April 15th) is Jackie Robinson Day. So, let’s play ball – or do a little yoga that’s good for people who play unilateral sports like baseball.
Please join me for class today (Wednesday, April 15th) at 4:30 PM or at 7:15 PM on Zoom. Some of the new Zoom security protocols are definitely kicking in; so, please use the link from the “Class Schedules” calendar if you run into any problems. If you have not done so, you will need to register for the 7:15 practice. Wednesday’s playlist is available on YouTube and Spotify.
If you are following the Orthodox Christian calendar and would like a recording of last week’s classes, please comment or email me.
If you are interested in combining a physical practice (yoga or weightlifting) with the Counting of the Omer, you can purchase a copy of Marcus J. Freed’s The Kabbalh Sutras: 49 Steps to Enlightenment.
A LITTLE YIN… & A LOTTA YANG
Please join me and a special guest for “Lung Health and How We Cope Right Now (viewing COVID-19 through Traditional Chinese Medicine and YIN Yoga),” a discussion on the importance of the lungs in our overall wellbeing as well as how to just friggin’ cope right now. The conversation will include a brief overview of Traditional Chinese Medicine and YIN Yoga, as well as a brief Q&A followed by a little YIN Yoga.
If you are struggling with your physical or mental health, if you’ve always been curious about “alternative” medicine, and/or if you are missing your yoga practice, this special one hour event is for you. Please join us on YouTube, TODAY, Wednesday, April 15th, 3:00 PM to 4:00 PM.
Also, mark your calendar for April 25th – the beginning of Kiss My Asana!
Speaking of Kiss My Asana…
Founded by Matthew Sanford, Mind Body Solutions helps those who have experienced trauma, loss, and disability find new ways to live by integrating both mind and body. They provide classes, workshops, and outreach programs. They also train yoga teachers and offer highly specialized training for health care professionals. This year’s yogathon is only a week long. Seven days, at the end of the month, to do yoga, share yoga, and help others. By participating in the Kiss My Asana yogathon you join a global movement, but in a personal way. In other words, you practice yoga… for 7 days.
Are you going to be the first one Kissing My Asana?
You don’t need to wait until the end of the month, however, to consider how you might participate. Start thinking now about how you can add 5 minutes of yoga (or meditation) to your day, how you can learn something new about your practice, or even how you would teach a pose to someone close to you – or even to one of your Master Teachers/Precious Jewels.
To give you some ideas, consider that in past years my KMA offerings have included donation-based classes and (sometimes) daily postings. Check out one of my previous offerings dated April 15th (or thereabouts):
30 Poses in 30 Days (scroll down to see April 15th)
A Musical Preview (scroll down to see March 15th)
A Preview of the April 15th Practice
### AMEN, AŞĘ, SELAH ###
Envisioning Freedom, on a Tuesday April 14, 2020
Posted by ajoyfulpractice in "Impossible" People, Abhyasa, Books, Changing Perspectives, Faith, Healing Stories, Health, Hope, Life, Meditation, Music, Mysticism, Passover, Peace, Philosophy, Religion, Suffering, Traditional Chinese Medicine, Vairagya, Wisdom, Writing, Yin Yoga, Yoga.Tags: Ashtavakra Gita, Christine Grisham, Covid, Exodus, Frantz Casseus, Harry Belafonte, KISS MY ASANA, Matthew Sanford, Mind Body Solutions, Pandit Rajmani Tigunait, Rod Stryker, Saint Ignatius of Loyola, Shemot, Vyasa
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“’Speak to the entire community of Israel, saying, “On the tenth of this month, let each one take a lamb for each parental home, a lamb for each household. But if the household is too small for a lamb, then he and his neighbor who is nearest to his house shall take [one] according to the number of people, each one according to one’s ability to eat, shall you be counted for the lamb.”’”
– Shemot / Exodus 12:3-4
“’And this is how you shall eat it: your loins girded, your shoes on your feet, and your staff in your hand; and you shall eat it in haste it is a Passover sacrifice to the Lord.’”
– Shemot / Exodus 12:11
Every year, as we approach the end of Passover, I think about the first Passover Seder. What would that have been like? How would have felt to celebrate freedom? How would it have felt to give thanks to G-d for that freedom? Charlie Harary points out that while it is natural to think the first Passover Seder occurred a year after exodus, it actually happened the night before exodus. That’s right: G-d commanded the Jewish people to celebrate their freedom and give thanks for being delivered out of Egypt before they were even free – even before they knew their freedom was guaranteed.
Can you imagine doing that? Can you imagine how it would feel? Can you imagine the faith it would take to sit in the middle of your suffering, in the middle of your family and friends as they suffer, and give thanks for what’s to come?
There is a history of this kind of observation in the Hebrew Bible. Remember, in Exodus, Deuteronomy and Leviticus, the instructions for Sukkot are to celebrate what will be given – not what has been given. On a certain level, the High Holidays falls into this paradigm; as the 10 Days of Awe / 10 Days of Atonement are a period of reflection, but also a period of looking forward.
“If one thinks of onself as free, one is free, and if one thinks of oneself as bound, one is bound. Here this saying is true, ‘Thinking makes it so.’”
– Ashtavakra Gita 1:11
It seems completely backwards to the modern mind. Today we think we need to Have something, in order to Do something, in order to Be what or who we want to be. However, Harary, as well as Neale Donald Walsh in Conversations with God, point out that the Old Testament formula – the formula for success in the time of Moses – was very different. Instead of Have + Do = Be, Harary and Walsh say that the formula was Be + Do = Have. So, if we want to have certain experiences, certain relationships, and certain things in our lives, we have to conduct ourselves as the person that has the experiences, relationships, and things we want in our lives.
“This formula is infallible. There is no wish that has been fulfilled, nor any wish that has been denied, that does not adhere to the principle of the Creation Equation. Every time that you got what you wanted, your desire for it plus the energy you invested in achieving it were greater than the forces that resisted you having it. Each time they weren’t greater, you didn’t get what you wanted.”
– Rod Styker in The Four Desires: Creating a Life of Purpose, Happiness, Prosperity, and Freedom
Think about it for a moment. One of the things with which people struggle at times is what to Do in a situation. Other times, we don’t struggle. We know exactly what to do and everything falls into place. Successfully achieving our goals still takes effort, it still takes work. But, sometimes, we know exactly what steps to take. How do we know? Because we’re in the mindset of the person who is going to do the work, we take that first step.
In The Four Desires, Rod Stryker codifies a similar formula for success, which he calls “The Creation Equation:” Is + Iv > Ik = P. Here, the intensity (or energy) of desire (Is) combined with the intensity (or energy) put into achieving the goal (Iv), must be greater than the resistance to achieving the goal (Ik), in order for the goal to be achieved (P). It’s easy, straightforward, and makes perfect sense. The problem is that we don’t always realize how much resistance we have to overcome – or that a large bulk of resistance comes from not believing in our ability to achieve success; and/or, in others not believing that we can achieve our success. When we spend a lot of time focused on what we don’t have, we don’t do. When we wake up each morning knowing who we are (BE); we get to work, (DO)ing what we need; so that at the end of the day we HAVE what we need and want.
But, going back to that first Passover Seder for a moment, consider that there is also a contemplative history of imagining one’s self in a certain situation and considering how we would feel or act in that situation. In the Roman Catholic tradition, contemplation is imagining one’s self in the situations of the Gospels. This type of contemplation, along with discernment (noticing the interior movements of the heart), is a big piece of Saint Ignatius of Loyala’s “Spiritual Exercises.” Another example of contemplation in the Christian tradition is moving through the Stations of the Cross. In the 8-limbed philosophy of yoga, one of the niyamas (“internal observations”) is svādyāya (“self study” or “self reflection”). Svādyāya includes noticing how we physically, mentally, and emotionally react or respond to sacred text, music, or situations.
“The study of scripture is another way of putting the principle of self-study into practice…. Elaborating on the concept of svādyāya, Vyasa emphasizes that only those texts that embody indisputable knowledge showing us the path to ultimate freedom are an essential component of self-study. In other words, svādyāya entails the study of spiritual texts that are authentic, contain experiential knowledge, and are infused with the energy to guide us on the path of inner freedom.”
– commentary on Yoga Sutra 2:1 in The Practice of the Yoga Sutra: Sadhana Pada by Pandit Rajmani Tigunait
If you’re interested in practicing a little svādyāya, by “attending” the first Passover Seder, please join me for class today (Tuesday, April 14th) at 12 Noon or at 7:15 PM on Zoom. Some of the new Zoom security protocols are definitely kicking in; so, please use the link from the “Class Schedules” calendar if you run into any problems. Tuesday’s playlist is available on YouTube and Spotify.
If you are following the Orthodox Christian calendar and would like a recording of last week’s classes, please comment or email me.
If you are interested in combining a physical practice (yoga or weightlifting) with the Counting of the Omer, you can purchase a copy of Marcus J. Freed’s The Kabbalh Sutras: 49 Steps to Enlightenment.
A LITTLE YIN… & A LOTTA YANG
For more ways you can offer yourself “small gestures of care, affection and prayer,” please join me and a special guest for “Lung Health and How We Cope Right Now (viewing COVID-19 through Traditional Chinese Medicine and YIN Yoga),” a discussion on the importance of the lungs in our overall wellbeing as well as how to just friggin’ cope right now. The conversation will include a brief overview of Traditional Chinese Medicine and YIN Yoga, as well as a brief Q&A followed by a little YIN Yoga.
If you are struggling with your physical or mental health, if you’ve always been curious about “alternative” medicine, and/or if you are missing your yoga practice, this special one hour event is for you. Please join us on YouTube, Wednesday, April 15th, 3:00 PM to 4:00 PM,
Also, mark your calendar for April 25th – the beginning of Kiss My Asana!
Speaking of Kiss My Asana…
Founded by Matthew Sanford, Mind Body Solutions helps those who have experienced trauma, loss, and disability find new ways to live by integrating both mind and body. They provide classes, workshops, and outreach programs. They also train yoga teachers and offer highly specialized training for health care professionals. This year’s yogathon is only a week long. Seven days, at the end of the month, to do yoga, share yoga, and help others. By participating in the Kiss My Asana yogathon you join a global movement, but in a personal way. In other words, you practice yoga… for 7 days.
Can you imagine Kissing My Asana?
You don’t need to wait until the end of the month, however, to consider how you might participate. Start thinking now about how you can add 5 minutes of yoga (or meditation) to your day, how you can learn something new about your practice, or even how you would teach a pose to someone close to you – or even to one of your Master Teachers/Precious Jewels.
To give you some ideas, consider that in past years my KMA offerings have included donation-based classes and (sometimes) daily postings. Check out one of my previous offerings dated April 14th (or thereabouts):
30 Poses in 30 Days (scroll down to see April 14th)
A Musical Preview (scroll down to see March 14th)
A Preview of the April 14th Practice
