Volume 3 Issue 9

September, 2002

Heartsong

The only available chairs in the hall were at the back.  We opted to sit on the floor so that we could be close to the stage.  We were sitting center front.  And it was great.  The sitar player was so amazing.  We fell in love with the tabla player and realized why they are the rock stars of India.  The sitar player’s riffs were extravagant—how much did Jimmy Hendrix and his contemporaries learn from India?  The playing was so compelling, full of soul.  Our hearts followed the beat of the tabla.  It was such a great concert.  The Indian men and women who were important or early enough to gain chairs up front would gesture to the musicians acknowledging well turned notes and volleys.  It was like attending a jazz concert.

The second act was a classical Indian female vocalist.  She sat on the stage in all her shiny jewelry and silk.  We waited.  Before any musical instrument sounded she opened her mouth and released the most beautiful note I had ever heard in my entire life.  Where could this have come from?  How could anyone sing like that?  The instruments soon joined in and the next hour passed like 10 minutes.  It was a magical night.

The next morning I woke up with a song in my repeating itself to me.  Not one of those irritating tunes that get stuck in your brain and seem to never go away, no matter what you do.  No, it was the mantra given to me by Sri Parawadeshwarey the week before.  That morning my mind turned spontaneously to his mantra, and it remains with me still.

A little over a week before the concert Chitra told Melroy and I that her Guru was coming to Pune to visit and asked if we would like to meet him.  Of course we would.  Our meeting was arranged for about 2 pm.  We saw Chitra at lunch and she said she had coconuts, would we pick up some flowers?  No problem, the flower shop was practically next door to our hotel.  Unfortunately, we waited until just before meeting Chitra to pick up the flowers.  We forgot that businesses close in the afternoon.  We had no flowers.  Chitra saved the day with some marigolds she had remaining from the morning puja.  Melroy, who has more on the ball, had stopped at the fruit cart and bought some coconuts.  So, we had lots of gifts.  No thanks to me.

The apartment where the Guru and his brother were staying was filled with people.  We joined them, not really too sure what was expected of us.  The longer we sat the more positive I was that I would do something insulting, fail to follow protocol.   Chitra kept telling me not to worry. Finally, after meeting others in the room and having a wonderful meal.  The Guru and his brother came in.  He is truly a beautiful man.  Chitra gave me a picture, but it doesn’t do him justice.  He speaks little English so Chitra translated for Melroy and me.  I asked my question first.  I told him how the things that used to light up my life didn’t have the glimmer they once had.  That even my yoga practice did not tug at me as it had all the years before.  What should I do? 

He thought, moving his fingers in a way that attracted my attention, it seemed that his hand movements were his antenna to God.

“Do only yoga.” was his reply.

Okay.  I guess I can do that.  But, what does that mean?  As I sit there I am already trying to figure it out.  No more Ayurveda study?  No more personal training?  No more movies?  It was getting absurd.  But I felt it would be rude (and make me look very stupid) to ask him my question now—”just what do you mean?”  I know that I can fill quite a bit of time analyzing, questioning and pondering this one.

With Chitra’s help, Melroy asks her question.  Then stories are shared that Melroy and I don’t understand.  Everyone seems to think they’re funny.  Chitra says they’re not worth repeating. 

The Guru turns to Chitra and begins to talk to her.  My heart feels like it did the first time I saw my son.  It is a delicious feeling.  He is talking about me.  He says to Chitra that there is something dark at home.  If I have these negative feelings after my return home I need to repeat the mantra he will give me and I will feel much better. 

The mantra has his name in it.  And its pronunciation is a toughy.  I practice with Chitra’s help over the next few days.  I don’t want to get home and not know how to say his name.  Maybe the mantra won’t be heard.  Or worse, it may be insulting to say his name over and over and over incorrectly.  Then, I woke up after the musical concert and there it was.  And, guess what, it does help me to feel more positive when my meditation is filled with this mantra.

Did I discredit myself to the Guru before I left his presence?  You bet.  I handed him my gift with my left hand.  Extremely rude. Chitra had to intercede removing the coconut and placing it in my right.  I bowed, truly embarrassed and backed away before giving a gift to the Guru’s brother, not the right thing to do.  I slunk back up for that oblation and crawled blushingly back to my seat.

Chitra said not to worry because they make concessions for us western goobers. 

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  Sukhasana

Baddha Konasana

Let Peace Begin With Me

Reflect peace in your asana practice.  The first yama is ahimsa, non-violence.  Learn and practice this first with yourself.  Do not force.  Smile from the inside out.  Let each organ be refreshed.  Let the mind rest.

The sequence for this month I call the Peace Sequence.  I learned it from Manouso Manos.

To set up, sit on the floor  with a bolster and folded blanket for a pillow behind.  Place a folded blanket on the seat of a  chair, or another bolster, in front. 

This sequence  alternates resting forward and back bends with the legs in different positions.  The sequence is not about stretching.  Each position should be comfortable and relaxed the entire duration of the posture.  The sequence may be shortened by  leaving out one of the forward-back bend leg variations.  Savanasana is just as, if not more, important in this sequence as in all other asana sequences.  

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