To be a yogi is to be aware of your own Path.
You are on your Path no matter what you "think."
You never leave The Path
although you may check out sights & sideroads
and "think" you have left The Path.
The Path is toward "realization," to "enlightenment;"
it's about you waking up & remembering who you are.
There is no "wrong" way to walk The Path...
you can run it, ride in a car along it, or skip blissfully
picking flowers or perhaps poison ivy bouquets
as you move along.
There is no "forward" or "backward" because you are
always on The Path and there is no wrong way to go.
We choose how we travel.
We choose how much luggage we carry with us.
We choose our traveling companions.
We choose when we need to stop & rest,
when we want to run forward in leaps ‘n bounds,
when we wish to ignore the road signs.
The Path is your teacher as well as your student.
We are on The Path & The Path is all there is.
Some questions
Why is it “shameful” to miss a Yoga class…or several? Why do we feel “bad” for not having our own personal daily practices? Why do we kick ourselves for not keeping up with the things we think are “good” for us and beat ourselves up for doing the things we think are “bad” for us? Why is it so hard to live the way we say we want to? Why do we not eat “healthfully” all the time? Why can’t we live as “green” or “spiritual” or “compassionate” as the magazines and self-help experts say we “should"? Why can’t we be like Oprah’s heroes? Why do we hide from our Yoga teacher in the grocery store because we dropped out and never returned? Why the guilt, the judgment, the self-reproach?
The Path
The Path is something I wrote way back at the turn of this century. (And when I say “wrote” I mean put down on paper. I don’t mean that I thought and thought about it and word by word edited and revised it. It came to me and I put it down. Like I do with my art, with my teaching, with my Yoga. I say that because I want you to understand where it came from….a deeper place than my busy, clouded, oh-so-human mind!)
The Path is what I so passionately want to convey about these practices that I teach, the lifestyle that I share, the truths that I build my life on. You ARE on your Path. You ARE! It’s ALL PATH! But the part that makes it Yoga is when you open yourself to AWARENESS of The Path…to ALL that is and can be “The Path.”
The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly
The Path is all that you are, all that you feel, all that you do, all that you express, all that you intend. As Rumi, a Sufi mystic, said in The Guest House...
Welcome and entertain them all…
A joy, a depression, a meanness, some momentary awareness…
The dark thought, the shame, the malice, meet them at the door laughing, and invite them in.
And you know, when we’re honest about what is really in our life… When we own what is here now AND we look to and honor our visions and dreams, the deeper we can go into our Path. The more we reject the reality that what’s here and now is actually The Path, the more unconscious we allow ourselves to be. We all have a generous mixture of good, bad, and ugly in our lives. All of us.
And to paraphrase the Wizard of Oz, don’t be fooled by “the man behind the curtain.” We teachers, gurus, spiritual leaders, and credentialed professionals might be wise, educated, trained, enlightened, and/or inspired humans…but we are full-out humans and we have our goods, bads, and uglies too! You, me, and everyone else on earth—we’re all humans being human. We’re all Being. We’re all Spirit. Some of us are more awake and aware. Some of us are sleepwalking. And some of us sometimes wish we could sleepwalk!
I can only be so good
“I can only be so good,” said my friend as we contemplated what to do with some synthetically material-ed container. We’d just finished cooking and consuming a wonderful whole foods dinner together and were in my kitchen cleaning up. The package made of who-knows-what that the mushrooms came in sat on the counter—a humongous pink elephant in the room.
I have receptacles in my kitchen area for trash and recycling, for composting and scraps for my chickens’ food. On the floor there are 3 chrome step-style trashcans…one for trash, another for certain recyclable papers, and the third for the right plastics/glass/metal. On my counter next to the sink, I have 2 plastic buckets…one for food scraps that my chickens and guineas can eat and the other for things that they don’t eat (like coffee grounds and tea bags) which then go to my compost pile to become nourishment for my gardens.
I despise throwing things away! My depression-era parents taught me well. Reduce, reuse, recycle. And I do. But then there’re things like the mushroom container. I suppose I could find somewhere to take it that recycles that kind of material. I could save it among the many other items I reuse in art projects and household needs. I could but I didn’t. It went in the trash.
So for me, the comment “I can only be so good” was about my own conflict with choosing to send something that won’t decompose to the landfill. For my dinner companion, it was more about not recycling or composting at all. And as I told her. So what? You do what you do. You’re right, you CAN only be SO GOOD! You figure out what you can do, what fits your life, what turns you on, what resonates with your own vibes, what you can manage in the midst of all else…and you do THAT. And it is ok.
Sadhana
The word Sadhana is a beautiful Sanskrit word. And so, as it is with Sanskrit, it translates through communicating a “feel,” a “flavor,” an “essence” that you “catch” upon hearing it!
Sadhana means Path and Practices. It means The Path. It means Your Path. It means The Practices. It means Your Practices. It means The Practices that bring you back to AWARENESS of Your Path. Your Sadhana is uniquely yours.
Just as Ayurveda (the most ancient “science of life” from which the path of Yoga springs) helps us understand that we are each and every single one of us completely unique individuals with distinctly different physical, mental, emotional, and energetic constitutions— we recognize that our own personal Sadhana fits our constitutional make up, our special dharma and calling! To enhance your awareness of your Path, you find The Practices that bring YOU back to awareness. This is your Sadhana.
You find, study, and hold dear the things that speak to you; the activities/people/places/things that give you energy. You give yourself the gift of those things that inspire and nurture you. You seek out and live activities that give voice to what you yearn to express from the essence of you…that make you smile, laugh, and turn on! It’s a lifestyle of practicing practices.
Yoga on and off the Mat
I recently received this email: “I miss you and I want to return to the mat soon!” It had been close to a year since I’d seen the woman. I don’t know what had kept this Yogini from class, from her mat, from me. Doesn’t matter. I suspect she is just like the rest of us…dragged in many directions. Her life is full of obligations and responsibilities that she has created and accepted as part of her life. She has many relationships to tend. As a woman she is undoubtedly caring for someone, probably many someones directly and indirectly, close and far away. She leads a full and busy life and she also has a hunger for something deeper. She dreams of time with herself, she is thirsty for refreshment, she aches to feel at home in her body, she only imagines what she longs to express, she craves a richer connection to Creation and Creator.
Sometimes we are actively and consciously “on the mat” in our Yoga, in our Sadhana, on our Path. Often we aren’t going to the actual mat or meditation cushion or what-have-ya. I have the gift of living the Yogini life as my lifestyle and yet there are certainly days when my mat stays rolled up and I forget to breathe. While going through an intensely chaotic time caring for my parents and keeping open a struggling business I recall saying to someone that I felt like I was living on French fries and Snickers bars. In contrast, right this minute in a different Path Moment, I can’t remember when I’ve had a French fry and I choose 85% organic dark chocolate for my choco-junkie-fix.
But there’ll be another period in my life when I’m living on crap, forgetting my core, and avoiding deep exploration. That’s just the way it is. As Joan Borysenko describes in her book A Woman’s Journey to God, the feminine spiritual journey differs from men’s in that the masculine journey is like climbing a ladder to snatch the brass ring at the end (“I won!”)...while the woman’s journey is around a circle over and over and over again. (“I am.”) So we move away but we return again and again and again. So you are away from your mat. So you aren’t eating “right” or taking care of yourself or reading or writing or being aware. You will return. You will leave. It’s The Path. Ahhh-ohhh-mmmmm. The call to Yoga.
Thursday Throwdowns begin in January…One Thursday evening each month there’ll be a hot time in the ‘ol Treehouse! When we roll back the rug on these evenings, you can plan to move, dance, sweat, breathe, and shake off your worries. The Madora Bowl
You pass by as you enter class. It’s where that peculiar scent curls into the air. Over there on the table on the porch. The mysterious bowl, a burning candle, a dish of who-knows-what-kind-of leafy stuff. You see folks go to it like they’ve got some kind of personal ritual going on. You’re not in on the secret so you keep walking and grab onto the safety of your mat.
It’s ok. There are lots of strange out-of-the-ordinary tools and images, words and sounds in Riverbirch Yoga! I understand. I remember. I can relate! Oh the uneasiness of dipping my toes in unfamiliar waters! My Path has introduced me to so much I had no experience with—still does. And it’s all been such a grand adventure in opening my clamshell self to the possibilities.
The Madora Bowl is a burning bowl for YOU. It gives you a chance to burn away those things, thoughts, emotions, relationships, experiences, words, etc…that you want and need to release from your life. And what better time to do that than when you have come to spend time with yourself in Yoga? You know you come to Yoga to re-create yourself, to let go and renew. So a moment or two at the Madora Bowl may be the just the right start to your experience. Go on, take this time for yourself too!
Take a small piece of paper (tear a piece off—you don’t need much and smaller burns quicker!), write what you’re letting go of, set it on fire from the candle flame, watch it flare, then drop it in the bowl.
Alongside this bowl is a small dish of white sage leaves. Various tribal peoples have used white sage for “smudging” or cleansing. Light a sage leaf and let it come to a smolder like incense. (You may need to shake the flame out.) You can simply drop it in the Madora Bowl to intermingle with what you’re sending away. Or you can wash your own energies with the sage smoke: holding the smoking leaf, draw a spiral around yourself breathing in and out consciously and paying special attention to your intention of releasing.
The Madora Bowl is very Yogic. It is very special, but it is nothing special at all really. It’s a clay bowl that my mother made and engraved with her lifeline. (You’ll find my incarnation in the midst of her lifeline as well as her own. Hers is marked by a … STAR!!Imagine that! I was deep into my own star mania when I discovered that. She has always felt she’s a special star in the world. She’s got it right….we all are!) And to share a little further…Mama also made the little raku piece that the candle’s in. Jon made the jar for the sage. I created the vessel that holds the paper.
The Madora Bowl. Yes, it’s a ritual. Yes, it’s personal. No, it’s nothing scary. It’s a simple tool on The Path. I invite you to give it a try if you like…but you certainly don’t need to use it in order to find what you seek!
Library Books Due!
Has one of our Lending Library books gone home with you some time ago? If the “some time ago” was more than, say, a couple months ago, perhaps it’s time for returns? The Lending Library (LL) is a wonderful mess of books. And even if it’s not so organized, it’s obvious that a good number of books are missing from the shelves. Please do check your shelves and baskets at home and see if you might have something to bring back. Thanks much!
Here’s a little excerpt from one of the LL’s resources…
“When explaining the method of Thai Yoga Massage I like to use the image of the tango. Linked together in a graceful dance, the principal dancer (the practitioner) and the follower (the recipient) perform a series of Yoga postures. The practitioner use her hands, feet, arms, and legs to gently guide the recipient into various Yoga postures while remaining focused and centered. The more skillful and fluid the practitioner, the more the recipient is able to relax and trust her as the principle dancer. As the dance becomes more beautiful and harmonious, it also becomes more healing and beneficial to the recipient.”
From Thai Yoga Massage by Kam Thye Chow
Comfort Food for Cold, Wintry Days
However, Angie has found potatoes and cheese to be quite comforting year-round. It would be nice if she could tell us which magazine she plagiarized the recipe from, but she claims it is long lost. Eh, copyright, schmopyright.
Porcini-Potato Gratin
1 oz. dried poricini mushrooms
1 3/4 cups hot water
2 tbsp. unsalted butter
1/2 cup finely chopped shallots
3 garlic cloves, minced
2 tsp. chopped fresh thyme
1 cup heavy whipping cream
1 1/2 tsp. kosher (coarse) salt
2 1/2 lbs. russet potatoes (about 4 large), peeled
1 1/2 cups (6 oz.) grated Gruyère cheese, divided
Heat oven to 400°. Butter shallow 3-quart or 13x9-inch glass or ceramic baking dish. Place dried mushrooms and hot water in medium bowl; let stand 15 minutes or until soft. Remove mushrooms with slotted spoon. Gently squeeze out excess water; finely chop mushrooms. Strain soaking liquid through fine strainer; reserve 1 cup. (Makes a migh-tee fine moonshine, too.)
Melt butter in medium saucepan over medium heat. Add shallots and garlic; cook 2 minutes. Add mushrooms, thyme, and reserved soaking liquid; boil gently 5 minutes or until liquid is reduced by half. Stir in cream and salt; remove from heat. (Resist urge to lap up liquid like a cat.)
Slice potatoes 1/16 inch thick with mandoline, food processor, or by hand. In large bowl, gently stir together potatotes, mushroom mixture, and 1 cup of the cheese. Spoon gently into baking dish; sprinkle with remaining 1/2 cup of cheese.
Bake 35 to 40 minutes or until browned, bubbly all over and potatoes are tender. (Gaze lovingly through oven window and whisper softly to it as it bakes if you wish.)