Kundalini Yoga Monthly Newsletter - New Format!

Greetings this Full Moon SuperMoon in Aquarius!  

Papaji (a great non-dual Indian teacher) said his teachings could be summed up into three, two, and one word(s):

Make no effort
Do Nothing
Stop

That was perhaps the greatest teaching I received this past week-end at a retreat in Sooke led by Ramana.  

As well as the inquiry, "What would you have to let go in order to not be attached to or identify with this body and mind?". This question we were contemplating as we walked through the forest, with instructions to bring back a representation of that inquiry to burn in the fire.  

We barely started on the walk when I saw a beautiful small white butterfly gently perched on the ground. I crouched down and it did not fly away.  I put out my finger and it crawled up onto my finger and delicately breathed there, as though it only had a few breaths left. The wind blew it off my finger and she lightly floated down and clung to my pant leg, holding on, faintly. I put my finger out and again she climbed on. Then the wind nearly blew her off my finger, again, and so I brought her back down to the ground, and she clasped onto a blade of grass, hanging, delicately, upside down. I watched her for a while, and then left her there and continued on my walk, with the words "Gracefully Dying" arisen in the mind.

After an hour I returned and looked for her, and there she was, dead, laying on her back, legs all tucked up with her wings folded all the way in, enveloping her legs and belly. I picked her up, knowing that she was my "representation", though the thought of putting such a beautiful delicate creature into the fire seemed harsh.

Dying (transforming) Gracefully is beautiful. And yet, the butterfly was a message to let go of the desire to Die Gracefully (attachment to this body and mind). Because sometimes, really, it is such a royal mess, and not the least bit graceful. And that's o.k.


Drop-In Kundalini Yoga Classes at Hemma, Victoria BC:
Tuesdays, 9:00 - 10:15am
Thursdays, 4:45 - 6:00pm

Hurray! We completed the 21 Stages of Meditation, a journey in Kundalini Yoga classes over the past seven months! Thank you to all who shared in part of this journey! The next couple of weeks in August we will be deepening into the Laya Yoga Chant (explanation below). This has become one of my favourite mantras recently - it brings incredible lightness and joy.

In September we will start an 8-week series on the Chakras. Whether you can make all or one of these classes, it will be an excellent opportunity to deepen your understanding into these psycho-spiritual energetic centers - which are foundational to Kundalini Yoga and Tantra.

Training opportunity from a master teacher:
In February, 2015, I will be going to Rishikesh, India for a month to take a Kundalini Yoga Teacher Training.  It is offered through Golden Bridge Yoga, and led (partially) by my first Kundalini Yoga mentor, Gurmukh, who came into my life 13 years ago.  It has been my dream to do a training with her.  If you are interested in deepening into Kundalini Yoga, I highly recommend this (or any) program with Gurmukh Kaur Khalsa, one of Yogi Bhajan's original students.  Please come chat with me if you are interested - it would be amazing to have you there!! 

Kriyas:
Two lovely Kriyas that we have been working with this past month are:
Awakening the 10 Light Bodies of Consciousness and, 
Kriya for Morning Sadhana.
(Click on the title to see pictures and instructions for these Kriyas)


As you can see, I'm trying something different with this newsletter (to link it more naturally with my website). Please bear with me as I 'play around' and find the right fit.

I hope you are enjoying this fabulous summer and I look forward to seeing you in class, reading your questions or comments on-line, or speaking with you on the phone.  Sat Nam!  Dawn

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