Have you ever been to Italy, or even an Italian home or restaurant and had a salad like this: sun-ripened, fresh tomatoes, olive oil, basil leaves and salt and pepper. And that’s it? And it’s like the most simple and delicious thing ever?
It’s an auspicious time for honouring the Goddess Laksmi as we enter the middle of Chaitra Navratri - a nine day festival honouring the Goddess in many aspects.
Laskmi’s blessing is that of abundance, prosperity and spiritual wisdom.
She’s a radiant beauty and her many names describe her as ‘Hiranmayi’ The Golden One, ‘Vibha’ The Radiant One, ‘Shuchi’ The Purest One, ‘Aditya’ Resplendant like the sun and so on. She’s also ‘Shri’ the pure essence of auspiciousness, beauty, grace.
Lots of conversations around here these days start with “How’d you go with the floods?” and then we each tell our story about where we were and how we fared when three weeks ago flood waters inundated our town and surrounding towns. I suppose you’ve heard about it. Perhaps you were here too.
Our story goes a little something like this…
I’ve thinking a lot lately about my role as a teacher and how I show up for my students and the yoga teachers I mentor. And I’ve been reflecting on an important teaching about “Looking for the Good” that I received from my first yoga teacher.
In the olden days (in the early 2000’s), I used to love to go to nightclubs and shake it like a polaroid picture (probably to some Outkast as well as other 90s hip hop but mostly dance music). And I mean, SHAKE it. On more than one occasion I woke up with whiplash after dancin’ all night long with my mate Kirsti.
Recently I read this comment online that simply said “Self Worth is sexy AF” and it struck me as so true.
Not only is it attractive in another person but it’s a sexy feeling within.
I find mantra a powerful tool for meditation. One of my teachers, Anandra George, who is a nada yogini, taught me that each syllable has it’s own Shakti, it’s own power. And I experience chanting as stepping into a particular energy stream. It’s like, rather than just popping your kayak in any old body of water, you are choosing a particular river to take you to the ocean of Consciousness.
