Omaha Yoga Path Post
Mindfulness Resources
The Miracle of Mindfulness: An Introduction to the Practice of Meditation by Thich Nhat Hanh
When Things Fall Apart: Heart Advice for Difficult Times by Pema Chodron
Wherever You Go, There You Are by Jon Kabat-Zinn
The Wise Heart: A Guide to the Universal Teachings of Buddhist Psychology by Jack Kornfield
The Science of Enlightenment by Shinzen Young
Breakfast with Buddha by Roland Merullo
Falling Upward: A Spirituality for the Two Halves of Life by Richard Rohr
Be Free Where You Are by Thich Nhat Hanh and Sister Chan Khong
Making Space: Creating a Home Meditation Practice by Thich Nhat Hanh
No Time to Lose: A Timely Guide to the Way of the Bodhisattva by Pema Chodron
Bringing Yoga to Life: The Everyday Practice of Enlightened Living by Donna Farhi
Spring Mindfulness Retreat
Here is the announcement about Spring Mindfulness Retreat 2014 sponsored by the Honey Locust Sangha / Omaha Community of Mindful Living.
It’s time to wake up
Ever since November retreat where I met Mary Pipher and read her most recent book, The Green Boat, my life has taken a change. I’m one of those thousands of people who have largely stuck my head in the sand about Climate Change. In spite of all the evidence surrounding this topic, in spite of someone who purports to believe in science and enjoys many of the luxuries it provides, I somehow wanted to believe that scientist had gotten this wrong and that we’d be OK. But thanks to Pipher and all her supporting research, I’ve come to what environmentalist call “the oh shit” moment. And with it all crippling despair that comes with it.
I wonder if a collection of astronomer came together and all agreed that the earth was definitely going to be hit with a planet-destroying meteor in fifty years, there would be other astronomer to refute it. Then if the meteor-believers came back and said we could, as a world community come up with the means to divert this meteor, but our chances would be better, if we did something about sooner than later, what do you think the world community would do? It certainly would be more convenient to believe the meteor-refuters; make you feel better too. However, if you did really believe the meteor is coming, everything else pales in the shadow of that meteor. War, terrorism, balanced budgets, the EU, Wall Street, or A Rod’s one year suspension, all become that many more deck chairs on the Titanic to re-arranged.
Well the meteor is coming in the form of climate change! I know this because of the shadow it casts. That shadow was revealed to by the website: What Is Missing, designed by Maya Lin. This was the artist who designed the Vietnam War memorial. This site shows us species, habitats, and environments that use to exist, but have been lost because of human interaction. This is the shadow that lomes over any debate about global warming. Looking at the past, seeing clearly the present, there can be little debate about the trajectory of our future, if we don’t change.
Yet ,like Mary Pipher’s The Green Boat, Maya Lin’s site offers solutions and hope, if one spends time with either. When I encountered my “oh shit” angst, I wanted to run out into the streets and yellto the world we need to drop everything and reduce our carbon footprint. But what good is a yogi in straight jacket and padded cell. So I said nothing. Now I realize it needs to be addressed; it needs to be talked about, it needs to be recognized. That’s the starting point. I encourage you to read The Green Boat and if that’s too much, take 30 minutes and watch the video on this blog’s prior entry, Reconnecting to the Web of Life. Mary Pipher does a wonderful job of summarizing her book. Then go the What Is Missing site. Give yourself another 30 minutes on it. Without any judgements, see what it has to offer, by one of the world’s most renown living artists. It’s a place to start to wake up.
[youtube=http://youtu.be/0cFbLBQ9J-A]
Ayurvedic Dosha test
Link for determining your dosha
Introduction
Ayurveda, ancient yet timeless, gives you the means of attaining and maintaining your own optimal health and wellbeing. The benefits of Ayurvedic medicine have been proven over centuries of use, and its methodologies are as applicable today in the West as they were thousands of years ago in India.
History of Ayurveda
Ayurveda is the traditional healing modality of the Vedic culture from India. It is said to be 2000 to 5000 years old, meaning it has stood the test of time. Ayurveda is a Sanskrit word that literally translates as “the wisdom of life” or “the knowledge of longevity”. In accordance with this definition, Ayurvedic medicine views health as much more than the absence of disease. The wise seers and sages of the time, intuitively understanding the physiology and workings of the mind-body-spirit long before the advents of modern medicine, explained the basic principles of Ayurveda.
Ayurvedic medicine was originally an oral tradition, taught and passed directly from teacher to apprentice, who would learn and work side by side. The oldest written codification of Ayurvedic principles is found in the Rig Veda. The fundamentals are then laid out in several major treatises, including the texts from Charaka, Sushruta, and Vaghbhat. There are also numerous other smaller works, written over time to explain the various branches of Ayurveda, which include disciplines such as general medicine, pediatrics, surgery, toxicology, fertility, and rejuvenation. The beauty in the way these have been explained is that they rely on basic principles which can be applied practically in any day and age.
Ayurveda has thus been passed down through the centuries as a complete healing system, evolving to meet the needs of the time, and yet remaining committed to its core principles. Various cultures have drawn upon the ideas of Ayurvedic medicine, and it continues to thrive in both the East and the West. In India, an Ayurvedic physician must undergo at least a 5 year post-graduate degree program (Bachelor of Ayurvedic Medicine and Surgery) to become qualified. In the West, Ayurveda is recognized as a Complementary and Alternative Health System by the National Institutes of Health, and is blossoming in various educational institutions.
Basic Principles of Ayurveda
While Ayurvedic principles can be used to explain the complexity of not only health, but also the world around us, there are several simple basics that become the building blocks for everything else:
- Ayurveda’s fundamental approach to well-being is that you must reach your unique state of balance in your whole being—body, mind, and spirit.
- Ayurveda views the world in light of 3 constitutional principles: vata, pitta, and kapha. These are explained in more detail below.
- The first line of defense in combating imbalances is to remove the cause of the problem. If the trouble-maker is out of the picture, the body starts being able to heal itself. For example, if pollutants are bothering your nasal passages and sinuses, rinse them out with a traditional Ayurvedic remedy, the neti pot
- If there are any lingering imbalances after removing the inciting cause, then bring balance by using opposites. For example, the Ayurvedic remedy to excess heat is to use something cooling. So for excess heat or acidity in the digestive system, you could use cooling and soothing herbs like Guduchi
- Always support the digestive fire, so that nutrition can be absorbed and waste materials can be eliminated.
Swimming at Black Point
A Primer for Swimming at Black Point
The bottom drops off quickly
and you’re in over your head
among the crosscurrents,
the floating sea plants.
This is where to swim, though,
if you can, the water cold enough
to stir in you what’s sleeping,
the fir trees on the other side
grand and achievable.
Just think of your fear
as alertness, and be happy for it.
Without fear it’s often tempting
to believe the water cares
about you; in its movement
your mother’s voice.
Consider getting out then.
It will never tell you
this intimacy cannot go on.
And when you get out
there’ll be no evidence
you were ever in, just a
tingling, an aliveness
that hints insurrection
in the deepest parts of you,
and it too will pass.
Don’t expect to know more
than your body has absorbed.
—Stephen Dunn
Theresa d’Avila
“Today may there be peace within. May you trust that you are
exactly where you are meant to be. May you not forget the infinite
possibilities that are born of faith in yourself and others. May you use
the gifts that you have received and pass on the love that has been given
to you. May you be content with yourself just the way you are. Let this
knowledge settle into your bones, and allow your soul the freedom to
sing, dance, praise and love. It is there for each and every one of us.”
~ St. Theresa d’Avila
The Heart Sutra
The Heart Sutra ~ as recited at Plum Village
The Bodhisattva Avolokita,
While moving in the deep course of perfect understanding,
Shed light on the five skandas
And found them equally empty.
After this penetration he overcame ill-being.
(Bell)
Listen, Shariputra,
Form is emptiness, emptiness is form.
Form is not other than emptiness;
Emptiness is not other than form.
The same is true with feelings, perceptions, mental formations and consciousness.
(Bell)
Here, Shariputra,
All dharmas are marked with emptiness.
They are neither produced nor destroyed.
Neither defiled nor immaculate.
Neither increasing nor decreasing.
Therefore, in emptiness there is neither form, nor feeling, nor perceptions.
No mental formations, no consciousness.
No eye, no ear, no nose, no tongue, no body, no mind.
No form, no sound, no smell, no taste, no touch, no objects of mind.
No realms of elements from eyes to mind consciousness.
No interdependent origins and no extinction of them.
(From ignorance to death and decay)
No ill-being, no cause of ill-being, no end of ill-being, and no path.
No understanding, no attainment.
(Bell)
Because there is no attainment,
The Bodhisattvas, grounded in perfect understanding,
Find no obstacles for their minds.
Having no obstacles, they overcome fear,
Liberating themselves forever from illusion and realizing perfect nirvana.
All Buddhas in the past, present, and future, thanks to this perfect understanding,
Arrive at full, right, and universal enlightenment.
(Bell)
Therefore one should know that perfect understanding
Is the highest mantra,
The unequalled mantra,
The destroyer of ill-being
The incorruptible truth.
A mantra of prajnaparamita should therefore be proclaimed.
This is the mantra:
Gate, gate, paragate, parasamgate, bodhi svaha.
Gate, gate, paragate, parasamgate, bodhi, svaha.
Gate, gate, paragate, parasamgate, bodhi, svaha.
(Three Bells)