Awakening Ganesha

    January 1, 2005                       Monthly  Newsletter                                           Volume 2 

Join us for New Year’s Eve Chanting!

Join the Sedona Kirtan Wallahs with ecstatic chanting in the tradition of the Indian Masters.This will be a special Kirtan to bring in the New Year, 9pm-Midnight. Bring your voice and tell your friends. No cover. Donations welcome.

Namaste,

This Year marks our 15th teacher training beginning January 8th...  we are proud to have graduates from all over the United States and internationally at the 200-hour level Yoga Teacher Training. It is always a profound spiritual adventure for us and we are delighted with the addition now of 500-hour level yogic training. January 20-23 is the first of a series of four modules through the International Yoga College, taught by Rama Jyoti Vernon and other faculty. Dr. Vijay Misra will also be offering a Sat. workshop Jan. 22 on Ayurveda (see below for more detail) with the opportunity for personal consultations on Sunday, Jan. 23. As part of the training we always bring Lawrence Graziose with his insight into the Enneagram and its play in our personality and life choices. His workshop will happen Friday evening and Saturday, January 28-29. Every Tuesday evening in January the Ancient Siberian Wisdom Institute will offer a weekly class, practicing the Power Dance, with a Journey to Shambala and other Siberian shamanic practices starting January 4th. Please join us for any events that intrigue and interest you!

                                  Blessings for the New Year, Ruth

The Adventures of  Lionheart, Temple Cat

I received some mail and so have temporarily departed from telling stories of the excitement of my life to offering my humble opinion on this spiritual dilemma.

A Dharma Talk ...What is Right Action?

Dear Lionheart,
On issues of spirituality and mice....how do you reconcile the two? I have mice in my attic that party through the night, squeaking and having mice races across the attic floor. I have tried to just relax and leave them to their Karma, but I am having difficulty sleeping, and it has now been 7 years of this so we have gone through generations of mouse revelry. After failing with mousetraps, my husband is trying to persuade our cat, Gracie to spend a night up there in hopes that there will be a mouse massacre. What are your thoughts on this?        Sleepless in Seattle

Dear Sleepless,                                                                 

I am a cat of some talent - I have canine teeth, I sharpen my claws daily and I LOVE to play with mice. I can discriminate with Claws in or Claws out…but sometimes I get overexcited and bite their heads off (with loving compassion, of course). This is just part of the balance of Nature – someone is always eating someone else. Life is about recycling. It is my dharma to be a hunter – this is part of my job as a temple cat.

The more interesting question is – what is your dharma in this situation? The overwhelming presence of mice in your life could be significant. They Might be telling you something. Have you looked up Mouse in Animal Speak? I quote: “Are you taking care of the trivial but necessary things in your life? Are you trying to do too many things and scattering your energies? Mouse medicine can show you how to attain the big things by working on the little things..” In the temples I come from, there is a practice of cultivating the virtues of respect by honoring the life force of all living beings no matter how small. Have a chat with the mice and let them know you get their wisdom, and that if they don’t settle down and take a vacation, Gracie the Terrible will be on their tails.

Best of Luck, Lionheart

Ambaya's Corner

Ayurveda asserts that everything in Nature, including ourselves, is made up of five elements: Ether, Air, Fire, Water and Earth. To the extent that we keep our original elemental make-up called PRAKRUTI intact, we will experience optimal health. Since everything in Nature is made up of these ELEMENTS, when we ingest them through our food, or life style experiences, we digest and express their inherent elemental qualities.

Look at the tastes in the chart below and see their associated physical, emotional and spiritual qualities. Do you favor certain tastes and avoid others? It is the balance of these tastes appropriate to your constitution that is going to align you with your Prakruti.

Sweet (Water & Earth) Grains, dairy, sweet fruits and vegetables.
Nurturing, building and loving effect, warm cool action.
Salty (Water & Fire) Salt, seafood, soy sauce, etc. Stimulates appetite, retains fluids, heating action and allows for enjoyment of the senses.
Sour (Earth & Fire) Citrus fruits, vinegar, fermented and pickled foods. Gently aids digestion. Promotes curiosity and engenders a warm heating action.
Pungent (Fire & Air) Hot and spicy foods. Aids digestion by cutting through mass, passionate effect, strong heating action, energetic, focused, happy and relaxed.
Bitter (Air & Ether) Green and yellow vegetables. Reduces bulk and detoxifies. Discipline effect, cooling energy.
Astringent (Earth & Air) Beans, legumes, teas, unripened fruits.
Compacts by absorbing liquids. Promotes wittiness.

In time, if you favor foods that carry the elements your body needs, and reduce those that may be in excess, you will find yourself energetic, focused, happy and relaxed. Happy New Year! 

Upcoming Ayurveda Workshop

with Dr. Vaidya Mishra January 22nd

Spend the weekend learning Ayurveda and the powerful effects of Marma Therapy with Dr. Vaidya Mishra. He has designed a series of workshop for healers wishing to master the Transdermal Marma System. He also offers one-on-one individualized educational consultations for optimal health and well-being. He will be conducting a Saraswati puja on Friday evening with a full day workshop on Saturday from 10:30-5:30pm. He is available for personal consultations on Sunday. For more information and cost of the workshop call Ambaya at (928) 282-1756.

Meet Dr. Vaidya Mishra

Ayurvedic general health practitioner as well as dermatologist, product formulator, researcher and educator, Vaidya Rama Kant Mishra was born into a family of Raj Vaidyas that boast of a 5000-year-old History of healing - the familial lineage is mentioned in the ancient Vedic text, the Puranas.

Upon his graduation from the Ayurvedic College of Medicine in 1974, Vaidya Mishra entered upon an intensive 7-year training with his father, renowned Vaidya Kameshwar, during which period he received additional training in the family specialty of ayurvedic dermatology.

Vaidya Mishra's millennial ayurvedic knowledge and awareness of contemporary cutting-edge technologies allow him to formulate herbal creams that are time-tested in conceptual efficacy and that are nevertheless adapted to the optimal principles of modern dermatology and phytotherapy. These transdermal rasayanas are prepared according to cutting-edge methods of extraction and processing that retain the essential intelligence and life-force of the individual herbs used.

Vaidya Mishra has recently introduced an enhanced line of transdermal rasayanas to be used in conjunction with marma therapy. He calls this new alternative strategy for well-being “Transdermal Marma System.” TMS incorporates the healing knowledge of the transdermal rasayanas with the energetic pressure points located at the marmas to provide the physiology with a deeper balance on the physical, mental, emotional, spiritual and sensual levels. TMS is the result of two decades of research and development in India, Europe and the United States. www.vaidyamishra.com

2005 Yoga Teacher Certificate Trainings

7 Centers Yoga Arts offers classical Hatha Yoga Teacher Training in a 30 day immersion style four times a year. Yoga Alliance registered.For more info call Sydney 203-4400 or go to www.7centers.com

Jan. 8th-Feb 8th,  March 26-April 26

   May 28-June 28,  August 27-Sept 27