DHARMA IN PLAYA, PART VI
Jumping Jacks and Lemony Oranges





On Thursday morning, Dharma discussed the eight limbs of yoga.

Then it was time for the physical practice - or what Dharma calls "the exercises."

I had the privilege of assisting Dharma with the class, which meant I didn't have to do the warm-ups.

In other words, I got out of doing the dreaded kapalbhati jumping jacks.

Instead, I got to assist and adjust, which was wonderful - and something I will always remember (and be grateful for).




* * *





That afternoon, instead of going back to the hotel, I stayed in the jungle - where it began to rain. I abandoned the hammock and took cover in the small palapa. There, I stayed in the digestion pose for 20 minutes after eating, as Dharma suggests (and which one rarely has time for). Then I rested, followed by asana, breathing and meditation. It was wonderful to sit still as the rain fell, the tiki torches were lit, and the sun went down.

That night we did no asana. Instead, Dharma discussed the three gates to hell (wrath, lust and greed) and the kleshas, among other things. He also told many wonderful stories to illustrate the points he was making. I heard things that were completely new to me, and again was floored by his knowledge and generosity.

As he was leaving that afternoon, I handed him a peeled orange. He wanted to know where I got it.

"Right here," I said, pointing to the table near the door.

"The orange you gave me yesterday tasted like lemons," he said.

Somehow, it made me love him even more.

I'M BA-ACK!
And teaching today in the snowy snow




On Friday night I found myself dining on a sandwich made of the cactus and the local spinach with a group of American, Mexican and Guatemalan Dharma students (the Americans were sleepy, while the rest of the group was as animated as could be).

On Saturday night, I found myself ordering in Spanish at Pockets on the snowy drive home from the airport.

And today I am teaching.

And it is snowing. All day.

The temperature is falling....

Making conditions perfect for yoga,

perfect for contemplating Dharma's teachings,

and perfect for creating more Mexico posts.

DHARMA IN PLAYA PT V



Today we did various breathings.

We did many rounds of Oms.

Dharma discussed the Koshas and karma and reincarnation.

And many other things, including rebirth and initiation and the two reasons to marry (to reproduce or to have help on the spiritual path).


Oh, and we did some poses, too -

including the hands-free headstand.

DHARMA IN PLAYA PART IV
Scorpion Pose





Tuesday was our first full day with Sri Dharma - ie; a morning and evening session in the beautiful, handmade (ie; no machines were used), super-shanti jungle shala called Otam.



I woke up with super-shiny eyes that morning, after basking in the presence of the guru. Then I made the short walk with the others to the bus.

Dharma spoke a lot at the beginning of class. He spoke of the three things are needed on the path:
-knowledge of the Supreme Self
-compassion for all
-surrender of the ego


He said that we are all like 100-watt bulbs, but some shine more brightly than others.

Then we did asana.

When you look up in, say, Parivritta Parsvakonasana, this is what you see:





During "the exercises," when it was time for forearm stand, I did my stiff-back version of Scorpion Pose.

Later, Dharma explained that that stiffness can be caused by anger. And by not trying to get the head to the floor in downward dog and not working hard in Kapyasana.

We learned this while trying Viparita Dandasana.

Thankfully, he showed a variation for people with tight upper backs - simply coming onto the toes in Backbend when the forearms are down, and then lifting the pelvis, getting the head off the floor (no small feat), and moving the chest away from the feet.

The savasana was amazing.

Afterwords, a scorpion skittered across my mat.

Dharma saw it, and reacted calmly as usual; the Supreme Self is the same in all.

He and some students scooped it up and set it free outside.

Ahimsa in action.

DHARMA IN PLAYA, PART III




On Monday night, the eyes teared up right after the first "Om," when Dharma quoted from the Bhagavad-Gita:

And the Lord said,
'Fix your mind on Me alone
Rest your thoughts on me alone.
And in me alone you will live hereafter.
Of this there is no doubt.'



He spoke a lot about ahimsa (non-harming, the first Yama), and giving up meat, and seeing the Self in all. All of the other virtues stem from compassion.



How I love, adore and revere him and his infinite generosity and patience.
How lucky I am to be in his presence.
How blessed I am to be a part of his family.

DHARMA EN PLAYA PART II: SUNDAY 12/5/10
Vamos a la Playa-a-a-a-a




Is there anything better than awakening to the smell and sensation of warm, humid sea-air and the sound of screeching tropical birds?

Add to that the fact that the usual day-after-travel migraine has not appeared.

Add to that the knowledge that one has nothing better to do all day than practice and enjoy a complimentary breakfast and go to the beach and sit on the balcony and write - all at an unspecified time - and one realizes that yes! I am on vacation.

(Actually there is something better - knowing that you will see the Teacher very soon! Then, all the migraines and vacation constipation in the world fall away).

This is the view of the balcony, from Prasarita Padottanasana (notice the beautiful green coconut palm, just like India):



During practice I realized that the tight, painful, about-to-be-pulled right hamstring that appeared two weeks ago was completely healed by the lack of mental tension and warm, humid air.


After practice I headed down to a complimentary breakfast.

Everything had been put away, even though there was a half-hour remaining.

Armando pointed to the clock: "Son las once." (It's 11:00).

Oops!

Turns out I was still on Central time.

Armando was so sweet, and made me a massive, wonderful salad and a basket of wheat bread.

It was wonderful.

And, unlike India, I wasn't afraid to eat it.

And, unlike, India, I ate it while listening to a recording of "Arthur's Theme" by Christoper Cross - played on the pan flute.


* * *


Later, J and I headed to the beach.

On the way we saw this:




And this:


Go Bulls!



And this:


Jai Gautama!




This is the view from our chairs:




Looking up:




Looking right:




Looking left:





Straight on:




The water was warm, salty and welcoming. I actually went in, and made sure that I put my head under. Being immersed in the water felt renewing, like a re-birth.


On the way back we came upon a U.N. Bird Convention:





And other things:


This one reminded me of India.





And then we reached the goal:









This is Jorge, who is a whiz with a machete and incredibly patient with my attempts to have a conversation in Spanish. ¡Así se corta!



















* * *











Later we kept running into other members of the Dharma family (the workshop starts tomorrow) and marveled at the Indian influence here.

DHARMA IN PLAYA, PT I
From Snow to Sand: Saturday 12/4/10




This is how O'Hare international airport looked when I left Chicago on Saturday morning.


And this is how Cancun International Airport looked when I arrived in Mexico a few hours later:




In the morning, the feet were walking in snow.

In the afternoon, the feet were walking in sand.

And the mind could not comprehend it.


* * *





Driving to the El in the dark during a snowstorm at 5am and schlepping bags through the snowy streets of Chicago had the mind thinking, "Why are you doing this?" The sensation of freezing cold salty slush oozing through vacation shoes and soaking into bellbottoms was not pleasant.

Nor was the long wait for the elevated train to the airport. People looked miserable! And the snow was falling hard and the wind was blowing like crazy and it was dark and cold.

But eventually the train came, and - much to my surprise - the airport was half empty (or do you say half full). The plane actually left on time. A United plane.


* * *


I had considered spending a month with Lino Miele Kovalam, India this winter, but it didn't make sense. Besides, I needed to see Dharma.

Perhaps the universe is aware of the latent desire to return to India. The movie they showed on the plane was Eat, Pray, Love. The second part of it takes place at an ashram In India. (NOTE: This film is much better the first time around).

When I got on the bus in Mexico, they were also showing a movie that took place in India, only it was dubbed in Spanish.



The mind was, like, saris? Cricket? En Espanol? What?

Where am I? / Donde estoy? I wondered.




Turns out they were showing The Namesake, and I was exactly where I was meant to be; on a quest to see the guru.


* * *





The bus to the city took about an hour and cost $11. We made a slight detour and it took a bit longer than usual because the United Nations Climate Change Conference is taking place here through Saturday. I think that Al Gore is in town.

I walked from the bus station to the hotel.

There, I was greeted by this:



The senses were pleased.

I unpacked and called J's room; she didn't pick up.

So I made a beeline for the beach.

On the way, I saw this, and knew I was in the right place:





Then I dipped my feet in the Caribbean. The air was salty. The mood was calm.

Except for the pelicans, who were having a field day fishing. I wondered what you have to do in life to come back as a pelican; dive-bombing head-first into the sea seems like a difficult way to scare up dinner. And you need perfect eyesight to boot.




The late afternoon light was beautiful.







Next I headed to 100 Percent Natural for a green juice and a dish called Arrozote (brown and wild rice stir-fried with green vegetables).




It was exactly as I remembered it.



Even the light fixtures are lovely.





Then I made the traditional first-night pilgrimage to Wal-Mart to buy sattvic, juicy fruit (on our first trip here in 2008, we asked the locals where we could buy fruit, and that's where they sent us - Wal-Mart. Later we found a cute little local organic place that has limited hours).

It seems that Wal-Mart is now called Mega.



The thought of a Wal-Mart failing was not an entirely unpleasant one - at least to the lower mind.

Inside, I had a nice conversation en espanol with the fruit-wallah, about which of the very green oranges were the most ripe (the lemons are also green; I think that's why they're called limas).

Outside, the Christmas decorations are the more-or-less the same. Christmas in tropical climes is a bit disconcerting for this Midwesterner. It always seems like global warming has finally won.






Next I stopped by the XOXO mini-mart (which I call Hugs & Kisses) and saw a familiar figure. I tapped her on the shoulder - and there she was, my friend J from New Jersey (who did all the research and found the wonderful hotel).

Hugs & kisses all around.

It was just like India.

(Except for the public display of affection of course).

IS PRAYING TO A BRIGHT STATUE A FORM OF IDOL WORSHIP?:
AN EXCERPT FROM RADHANATH SWAMI'S THE JOURNEY HOME
In which he addresses the westerner's fear of worshiping a "cartoon character"





The further you read The Journey Home, the better it gets. It starts with the exciting snapshots of 1960s hippie culture, world travel on a shoestring and thrilling brushes with death. A bunch of rajas (action) to draw the reader in. And then it hits home (so to speak) with a brilliant passage like this:

I told him how, when I first saw deity worship in India, it had repelled me a little, striking me as strange and superstitious. "But after spending so much time with holy people who naturally accept their deity as a form through which to communicate with the one God, I have come to accept deity worship as beautiful. Now I want to understand the scriptural philosophy behind it. Can you help me?"



Asim sat up near a patch of tulasi bushes, rubbed his chin in deep thought and took a moment before replying. "Really, I'm not qualified to explain these things, but I'll share what I heard from my guru and what I've read in the Vedic Scriptures." As the bees moved from flower to flower, collecting nectar, I drank in his words.



"God is unlimited and independent," Asim began. "To say He cannot appear in the deity form is to limit Him. The Vedas also condemn idol worship. Historically, there were traditions in both East and West where people concocted forms and worshiped them out of superstition with no clear conception of the one God. Quite often, they had selfish or evil motives. It is this type of idolatry that has been condemned through the ages. In the age of the Bible and Koran, it was common among non-believers. But this is not the type of deity worship approved of by the Vedas. Legitimate deity worship, according to the Vedas, is a science in which the Lord is called with devotional rites to appear in designated forms. In these forms He accepts our devotional offerings, all for the purpose of purifying the worshippers' body, mind, and words by fixing in us the remembrance of the Lord. The aim is to please the Lord through surrender and love."




A butterfly with iridescent purple, red, and yellow wings fluttered by and landed on Asim's thigh. He sat still, appreciating its beauty. "Just look," he said, his voice overflowing with happiness. "Creation is a gallery of art with a masterpiece wherever we look. I long to meet the artist. Everything emanates from the Lord. All material elements are the Lord's energy. By His will He may choose to appear in His own energy as a deity to help us focus our minds and senses in loving servitude. Just as electricity manifests in a light bulb to radiate light, so God can permeate the deity with His presence. Electricity is invisible to the naked eye and the bulb by itself gives light only when the electrical energy infuses the bulb with its presence. Then we can see and fell the light. In a similar way the Lord may appear in the tangible form of a deity to help us see and feel His presence and reciprocate with our love."

TEACHING YOGA, PART IV: JNANA-WHO?
Yet another astonishing teacher-trainee revelation





Last week in class we were doing one of Chandra Om's lovely variations of Vasisthasana when I asked the students to place the fingers of the right hand into Jnana Mudra. Everyone touched their index finger to their thumb - except for two students. I was a little taken aback, since they were recent graduates of a respected teacher training program.

Again, words came out of the mouth - this time in mock horror: "You just finished a teacher training program, and you don't know Jnana Mudra? Oy!" I put hands on hips and then pretended to shake my fist. "Kids today!"

And then I explained Jnana Mudra. And they did it.

And now I will explain further.

Yogis believe that each finger has a different energy, and there are hundreds if not thousands of mudras or hand positions with different meanings and healing capacities. Jnana Mudra is one of the simplest and most common mudras in yoga.

Jnana means wisdom or knowledge. Its root is similar to the Germanic root for the word "know." Mudra means seal or gesture. Jnana Mudra is the seal of wisdom.




The index finger is said to represent the individual ego. The thumb is said to represent the universal consciousness. Joining the two symbolize the joining of the individual soul with the universal consciousness; the enlightened state. It leaves behind the other three fingers, which represent the body, mind and intellect - all of which are useless without the thumb.

I've also heard that it simply "circulates the energy."

I've also read that it bestows intelligence and wisdom, purifies the mind of the practitioner, cures many mental ailments, gives a feeling of joy and "cures intoxication and addictive habits."


Whether you believe this or not, both Pattabhi Jois and Dharma Mittra teach jnana mudra with the hands resting palms-up on the knees, the arms and remaining three fingers straight.



NOTE: It is not necessary to practice jnana mudra in Times Square in order to receive the benefits.







* * *



On a related note - At least once a week in ashtanga class, when I teach jnana mudra, I see newbies joining the middle finger to the thumb. I'm not sure what that means (although in Kundalini Yoga this is Shuni mudra, or "seal of patience." Perhaps they don't understand the term "index finger," or perhaps I garble the explanation. When I explain that they should join the first or pointer finger to the thumb, the correction is usually made.