Within the Lotus of the Heart

Friday, June 7, 2013

Respond with Love.

It is not at all easy.

Maybe you are a mother sharing the custody rights of your child - often receiving the short end of the stick, coupled with occasional condescension. Maybe you are a leader who believes more in service than spotlight. Maybe you are like the rest of us, subject to a million interactions - some akin to road rage. When pushed against the proverbial wall, responding with love and practicing some semblance of equanimity is tough.

It's tough because it requires surrendering our need to be right and to retaliate. It takes plenty of full breaths, lots of prayers and meditation and asana practice. It takes all that to not go into thoughts that are cuss-crusted, ego-infested, to not succumb to an all-out witty, death match of words and fists. It takes so much to not resort to passive-aggressive brooding and muttering under the breath. (Yes, that's included. Thought is behavior.)

In a world where we are taught to fight back, my fight is on the inside. I'm on the side of responding with love and it's tough as hell to stay there. Sometimes, I lose the battle but I have not lost sight. I keep remembering, even belatedly, that if we must fight, we should fight for our peace.

See, anywhere I look, anywhere Truth resides, I see the same lessons:

IGNORE THE WICKED.

"Undisturbed calmness of mind is attained by cultivating friendliness toward the happy, compassion for the unhappy, delight in the virtuous, and indifference toward the wicked."

― Patanjali, The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali

TURN THE OTHER CHEEK.

"Turning the other cheek means not to return insult for insult in retaliation, which is what most people expect and how worldly people act...When we respond in a manner that is unnatural, it displays the supernatural power of the indwelling Holy Spirit. Jesus was the perfect example because He was silent before His accusers and did not call down revenge from heaven on those who crucified Him."

STOP THE KARMIC DEBT.

Each retaliation perpetuates the cycle of retaliation. From: TheDailyEnlightenment.com Weekly 21/04/05:

On one occasion, the Buddha was invited by the Brahmin Bharadvaja for alms to his house. As invited, the Buddha visited the house of the Brahmin. Instead of entertaining Him, the Brahmin poured forth a torrent of abuse with the filthiest of words. The Buddha politely inquired:

"Do visitors come to your house, good Brahmin?"
"Yes," he replied.
"What do yu do when they come?"
"Oh, we prepare a sumptuous feast."
"What do you if they refuse to receive the meal?"
"Why, we gladly partake of them ourselves."
"Well, good Brahmin, you have invited me for alms and entertained me with abuse which I decline to accept. So now it belongs to you."
From the Akkosa Sutta

The Buddha did not retaliate but politely gave back what the Brahmin had given Him. Retaliate not, the Buddha advised. "Hatred does not cease through hatred but through love alone they cease."

* * *

Even if it is in these very arenas of "faith" where I sometimes find the lesson lacking, I'll choose to keep practicing. We are all finding our way and maybe it will take many more lifetimes to get it.

My note to self: Give way. Respond with love. Let your peace come first. That's tough shit. That's the hard part. That's where I'll save the need to fight.

I took this photo yesterday. Give way to light.

Reminder on Saturday Rest Day

Thursday, May 30, 2013

Teaching, Learning. Learning, Teaching.

Today is a gift.

From this morning's practice at YM...

(Backbending photos quietly taken by Matty Roxas Chua, beautiful Bliss Yoga teacher and friend. In the photo, my beloved soul sistah and teacher - Tesa Celdran; Lovely yogini and teacher - Beryl Ong; in Urdvha Dhanurasana, beautiful Karla Yuloque; and myself in Kapotasana)

To this evening's practice before teaching in my 6:30 class...

To everything in between.

Today, this yoga practice, our community, is a gift.

* * *

Just a few of our insights...

> We live so metaphorically only to understand what is literal. Prakriti. Purusha.

> We all draw from the same life capsule, from the moment we are born.

> We can choose. Life will move us from one end of anything all the way to the other end (sometimes painfully), for us to find balance. Or we can explore this within the width of our mat. It will always be about the balance, our experience that brings it. From there, the work begins.

Thank you, Arne!

Sunday, May 26, 2013

Loving my Chakra Chimes

I finally got myself some Woodstock Chimes after two years of thinking about it. I love the sound of chimes and I have different kinds hanging from our terrace but I especially love the quality produced by the brand known "to make the world's best sounding windchime."

These chimes have a sustaining vibration, tuned to a certain scale and have more depth beyond the vibrant clinking of the ones more easily available around the Metro. The rods are filled and not hollow.

For my collection, I got the Chakra Chimes (no surprise!) with seven crystals. It produces a lovely sound. Listen here. If you have some time in your hands, you may want to listen to the other chimes, gongs, bells and instruments too.

Oh, I got a Piccolo Chime as well. On its tag, it says - "...Hang it in a window or on a door knob, then listen...whenever an angel gets its wings you will hear it delicately ring."

I'm listening.

Saturday, May 25, 2013

Arne Espejel in Yoga Manila

What I love about Manila's Yoga Community is that when we get together to practice, it is just amazing. For the past months, we have been practicing together - sometimes over 25 of us, Mysore style, in the lovely little Yoga Manila shala in Makati.

What brought our practice together? Arne Espejel, our dedicated Ashtanga Yoga teacher since April who has decided to stay with the community for yet another month (until June 21). Arne has brought the work to us through his persistent guidance, discipline, and compassion - keeping to the tradition of Sri K. Pattabhi Jois and R. Sharath Jois.

He came to Manila willingly, knowing he may only have 8 students (us teachers who do self practice at the shala on weekdays :-)). Here we are now, students, teachers, teachers of teachers, all of us students in a space where yoga means what it is - union.

- - -

Arne, Espejel, Authorized Level 2 Teacher in the tradition of Sri. K. Pattabhi Jois

Arne discovered Ashtanga Yoga in 2003. Five years later, he travelled to Mysore, India to practice and pay his respects to Sri K. Pattabhi Jois, the founder of Ashtanga Vinyasa Yoga. Since then, he has gone back to Mysore for further studies with R. Sharath Jois and Saraswathi Jois, the grandson and daughter of the founder.

In 2010, Arne received the blessings of the Jois family and was authorized to teach both the Primary and Intermediate Series. Being one of the select few to receive this privilege, Arne would like to teach and help his students develop a Self-Practice. It is his firm belief that Self-Practice learned in mysore and led classes will help each individual attain a greater knowledge of oneself.

Full Moon

And it's more psychedelic in our minds.

Makati Avenue taken from our corner table at the Museum Cafe, May 25, 2013.

I Found Bliss in Baguio (May 10 to 12, 2013)

There's a wonderful little vegetarian nook in Baguio called Bliss Cafe. I enjoyed the food and the quaint eclectic bohemian space. One portion was naturally lit and the dining table set up feels like home. Try the mock barbecue (if you're not gluten sensitive) and the delicious salad with strawberries and honey yogurt dressing. I also had a few servings of Ahimsa (and we could all use some!) In this case, you get vegetarian lumpiang shanghai. There's enough variety in the menu - Indian, Mexican and good old Pinoy, and you could tell the meals are prepared with Metta. ❤

You may purchase some of the items on display too or just spend sometime reading up on Buddhism while having a cup of Chai. Though it says we will leave emptyhanded, I didn't. They give colorful friendship bracelets and I got Punnu Wasu's CD BhaktiChild as my souvenir.

This is a great album and it's available in iTunes :)

Of course, to see Krishna, Lakshmi and the Tibetan Goddesses in the cafe is an auspicious sign to me.

My daughter and son liked that they could strike the Tibetan gong, play drums, use the rainmaker (and it worked!), and throw in a few coins in the little fountain. Lots of good wishes here.