Holidays! Take a Break (December 2021 Newsletter)
Thank you to Fourth Avenue Christian Church for hanging the wreath, and for all their kindness and generosity. The church, Pastor Ken Slenkovich, Tom Davis and family, and the congregation has made it possible for us to stay in our beautiful studio and in business, through these many months of shutdowns and slowdowns.
The end of the year is a time for gathering and celebrating. Gather with an open mind. Celebrate mindfully; every gift chosen with discernment and care; every hug meaningful and warm, every bite of food enjoyed fully by each mouthful. Accept whatever it is in the spirit in which it was meant.
When the selection, preparation and presentation are fully focused on, it becomes a meditation in itself. It is deep and soulful. It is quiet and heartfelt. In the Tantric sense - one of sensuality with all senses engaged - physical, mental and spiritual – it becomes self-absorbing, and an act of devotion. Find the rapture and the Union with your Real Self, let it become Samadhi (the union with the Divine).
Happy Holidays. May it be free of stress, full of good health, love, and laughter.
Namaste,
sipra
Choices and Calling (November 2021 Newsletter)
The strained smile of indecision
This month as we begin to settle into collecting our harvest, both literally and spiritually, we want to reflect on where we stand with respect to our own expectations. These quotes from Rumi, 13th Century mystic, perfectly sum up what I’d like to bring to you on your ‘Hopes’ and ‘Spiritual Calling’:
When you let go of who you are, you become who you might be.
Yesterday I was clever, so I wanted to change the world. Today I am wise, so I am changing myself.
What you seek is seeking you.
When you are engaged in work that inspires you, you become absorbed in the work and everything else becomes extraneous. Nothing else matters – none of the negativity around you sticks. It drips off like falling rain. You are left always doing your best each moment and always focused on just that.
The smiling face of joy and bliss
My dogs and I encountered these untouched arrangements of twigs, leaves, berries and pavement stains on a walk, and they fit this month's theme perfectly.
On the other hand, we are often in a job or relationship that leaves us incomplete and hoping for something better. We continue day after day, and year after year intending to change things and hoping to make it happen. ONLY YOU CAN CHANGE THAT! Before taking that first step in the new direction, do some soul-searching. Does the thought of doing something different recur constantly? It doesn’t go away, right? Well, that’s because it’s your calling. It doesn’t need to be anything grand or earth-shaking. It just is who you are, and what you need to be to blossom into who you truly are. Come on Angel, take flight!
Don’t burn your bridges right away but take that first step in the right direction. Step by step with commitment and dispassion (abhyasa and vairagya).
Namaste,
sipra
The Perennial Garden (October 2021 Newsletter)
Summer is at an end, and the flowers at the Park of Roses are in full bloom, just before the point where they keep on trying to bloom and simply over-bloom and shed their petals. But look! There’s a new little bud low down on the stem waiting its turn to bloom, but it may turn too cold by then and the little bud may never get to flower. Close by are other seasonal plants that are just getting ready for their own season of growth. I took this photo last week of the Perennial Garden at the Park of Roses in Northwest Columbus, where we meet for class on weekends. (You should try it. We will continue classes there as long as weather permits and the temperature remains above 55°F.)
The perennial garden is an allegory for our own lives. In constant bloom, in constant motion, so that it appears to be uninterrupted and perpetual. But everything is continually changing depending on the varieties planted. Do you have plants for every season so we can call it a true perennial garden? How do we nurture it, and how well and how often do we tend to it? Do we weed and cultivate it, or let it run wild?
It makes us think! Everything is everything and nothing is nothing. But then, everything is nothing, and nothing is everything. Of course, that means nothing is nothing. When you close your eyes, the garden is gone. Open your eyes, and there it is again. It was there all the time, but it’s changed just a little bit from a moment ago. That is the nature of the everlasting garden! It's always there in the external manifest world, just never exactly the same, but it's never there in the internal landscape of the spirit where it's always the same, season after season of life and life renewed.
At YWB we want to help you think about both external and internal perennial gardens to make them last forever. In Sanskrit अमर्त (amarta/amartya) means perennial, immortal. (There are many other words to describe this state.)
We hope you will consider the many ways to raise your spirit and refresh your body coming up this fall.
Kundalini Meditation workshops
Ayurveda workshops: from sowing the seed to making the it your best thriving garden.
Yoga Nidra meditation workshop
Living right makes for a good life.
Namaste,
sipra
A Tribute to Jeff Kohn
No matter when you were at YWB, you would never have met or heard of Jeff. On the other hand, you've probably taken class with his wife Janet Kohn, either virtually or in the studio. Jeff passed away last night after many years of struggling with pain. Through all his pain, he was always virtually attending classes just off screen, where he lay in bed, always humorous, cheerful and kind. Janet has always been by his side, smiling and optimistic, regularly attending class three times a week. Janet has always been the first to jump in and help out if there was a need at YWB. She represents what YWB is and what it wants to instill in its students - loving, kind, compassionate, positive, disciplined and always happy. (Ask us if you'd to be in touch with her.)
Rest in peace, Jeff.
Moving On... (September 2021 Newsletter)
Image by Ronny Overhate from Pixabay
Have you noticed how every show on every news, documentary, and social media is trying to sell you stuff? It’s always a new, better, smarter, prettier version of merchandise you may already own. One category of items is designed to keep you looking better, appearing healthier, always chasing the dream of being ‘picture perfect’. Even the medical procedures and surgeries are designed to keep up the appearance of youth and vitality.
While we continue to buy the latest, life is slipping away and soon we are thinking about retirement and bucket-lists between visits to health providers to keep us going.
Aging is a natural process; it is not a disease. It is in fact true for all manifest, living things: birth, life and death will follow in that order.
In Ayurveda, old age is referred to as Jara (pr. jaraa, personified as the daughter of death).
Chronological aging is biological. Since it is time-based there is no going back. Cells, tissues, organs, and body systems begin to wear out. However, there is the magic of Dhari, that which prevents the body from decay. Jivita is what one does to help keep one alive and functioning. Think YOGA! It's multifaceted effects extend through the body; elevating, calming and clearing the mind till one can conquer it, so that death is not to be feared.
A daily practice of yoga, meditation and introspection helps to delay the aging process. Yoga enhances muscular strength and body flexibility, improves respiratory and cardiovascular function, promotes recovery from addiction, reduces stress, anxiety, depression, and chronic pain, improves sleep patterns, and enhances overall well-being and quality of life. Pranayama (breathing techniques) oxygenate the blood, reducing inflammation and joint pain. Yoga helps in elimination of waste and toxins regularly, smoothly and completely. Body, mind and emotions maintain their balance in homeostasis. Continue with a regular practice for a longer, more active, healthier life, however long that is...
Practically this means
that you keep up the practice of yoga at least 3 times each week doing different styles of classes for a balanced outcome
that you watch what you eat, when you eat, and how much you eat. Check your body type or Dosha. Eating less rather than more will keep you trim and healthy. Ideally, a fistful of food is all we really need. Be sure to add some fresh cooked or raw greens like spinach, kale, collard greens etc. to your daily diet. Reduce the consumption of meat. Eat seasonal and fresh produce
Drink plenty of fresh, room-temperature water daily
Get a good night’s sleep with about 7+ hours of sleep. Go to bed early and wake up early.
Keep up the random acts of kindness. Sadvritta or moral reasoning, good conduct, and compassionate living transform us into the spiritual beings we truly are
Spend time outside daily, and enjoy the moment. Put away the devices. Instead look, listen and feel. Be at peace!
In my articles I often refer to Ayurveda and it's amazing science. While I have limited working knowledge of Ayurveda, we are fortunate to have on our staff Vandana Baranwal, Indian Ayurveda physician, who is always willing and eager to spread this information. Growing up in the holy city of Banaras, India she has been very fortunate to learn from some of the world's most renowned teachers. Before moving to the USA, she was Professor of Ayurvedic Obstetrics and Gynecology in Rajiv Gandhi University of Health Sciences, India. Ask us about taking a class with her.
Namaste,
sipra
August: Month of grandeur; Exalted and Glorious (August 2021 Newsletter)
A near and dear one suggested that I constantly talk about religion and Hinduism. Another suggests that the conclusion to whatever I talk about is always, “The One”. The latter is true, the former not so much. While to the casual reader these articles would appear to be religious topics, Hindu-ism is not an ‘ism’ at all. And thereby I mean that it is not a religion. The word ‘Hindu’ refers to those who lived on the banks of the Indus River. ‘Hindusthan’ is another name for India, and is the land (sthaan – land where these natives live). Essentially made up of heterogeneous peoples with varied cultures, Hinduism has been presented as monotheistic or believing in one God, polytheistic - in many Gods. (Indeed, worship can be mystical, moral, or religious, and ultimately a deep sense of spirituality is what is transforming and creating joy (ananda). It doesn’t really matter what religion one follows.) Hinduism is monism, where the idea of one, two or endless gods is seen as reducing this pulsating Source and Intelligence to a finite number. Numbers are limiting and the Divine is limitless. The One referred to above is the source from which all comes, and to which all returns and is not a number like 1 or 1,000.
How do we know what this intelligence is? Traditionally, there are three primary means to ‘discover’ the Supreme Intelligence.
Experimental (vai-sheshika) using logic or Nyaya. This has to do with seeing the impermanent or destructible form of things.
Cosmological or in modern scientific terms, as in Quantum Mechanics, (Samkhya). This uses direct supra-mental experience as in Yoga mind training.
Metaphysical (Vedanta) with language as its means, uses dialectics and semantics of all the many seers (rishi, pronounced rhi-shee) who have received direct wisdom through their chanting, meditations, writings, insights and so on, through Mahavak (Ma-haa as in Supreme or the highest, vak - uttered words.) These are the chants, mantras, practices that repeated frequently, incessantly, become second nature to one, and create magical effects such as calmness, acceptance and awareness and love and in more developed states access past and future time and events and even change their course.
Following are the four practical Mahavak that we use in class from time to time and all refer to Brahma/Brahman representing Pure Consciousness pervading everything but which Itself is without shape or form.
Prajñānam Brahma (प्रज्ञानम् ब्रह्म) “Awareness/Consciousness is Brahman," (Pra meaning Supreme, jnana - knowledge)
Ayam Ātmā Brahma (अयम् आत्मा ब्रह्म) - "This Self is Brahman" (Atman or Self/soul)
Tat Tvam Asi (तत् त्वम् असि) - "That You are, or You are that” (tat - That which is Real, or True)
Aham Brahmāsmi (अहम् ब्रह्मास्मि) - "I am Brahman" (Aham means I am)
Each is drawn from the original insights in the different Vedas and formed into practical meaningful statements in the later Upanishads. They have been passed down the centuries by word of mouth.
Namaste,
sipra
Present and in Presence (July 2021 Newsletter)
Be Present
In body,
be mindful of how you move, where you go, what is around you; in front; and behind.
In mind,
focus your attention on the simple task of breathing - spiritus in Latin, is the breath. Breathing in is the inspiration, breathing out is the expiration. So every time you breathe in, renew life, and with every exhale, or expiration, allow the moment to die.
Inhabit your body! Allow the mind to rest.
In breath,
respiration, the next breath, should be smooth, regular, slow, long, and deep. Think about each of these as you breathe and breathe again.
Be in Presence
You are perfect, having derived from Perfection. It is present within you all the time, making you the compassionate, naturally empathetic being that you are. There is no place for negativity here.
You are capable of Joy, (Ananda), because you instinctively know Truth (Sat), through Pure Consciousness (Chit), which is unconditional and beyond the thinking mind, to ultimately realize the combination known as Sacchitananda, (Sat, Chit, Ananda) - transcendence back to perfection!
Mindfully live each moment with gratitude and humility.
Namaste,
sipra
A Return to Normalcy (June 2021 Newsletter)
Thank you for continuing to support YWB. We deeply appreciate our monthly sustaining members, our Patreon subscribers, and all of our students who have supported us during this time in whatever way.
What is the ‘normal’ that’s almost here again? Statistically represented in a bell-shaped curve, it is the center of the hump where most of us would be at any given time. What is that? Where is that?
Normalcy for most of us is socializing and getting back to the things we enjoy and look forward to most in life.
Let’s not forget the lessons we’ve learned through this forced isolation. We are totally capable of living a semi-solitary life. We should recognize that there is no normal. We’ve learned that there are alternatives for doing anything such as buying and selling, communicating, working and entertaining. We’ve learned that both too much togetherness and too long a separation can be torturous, and that sickness and sometimes death comes swiftly and may sweep one off the face of the earth going from health to death in a breathtakingly short interval.
As our lives return to pre-pandemic normal, all the stress of too much to do and not enough time will certainly haunt us again. Our expectations are so high for the return of those grand old times. But were those days so perfect? Here are some simple things you need to do all the time: Stay calm and in the moment. Stay mindful of each moment instead letting your enthusiasm for the newfound freedom become an uncontrolled spinning of the wheel caught in a rut; enjoy at a steady pace; try something new and different this time around. You are not the same individual returning to the same normalcy. You are a new individual returning to a new phase in life.
“In the infinite consciousness universes come and go like particles of dust in a beam of sunlight that shines through a hole in the roof,” the sage Vashishtha in one of the great texts of the Vedanta reminds us. It is never the same. You are not the same. You are better than you were. Don’t lose the clean, polished soul that is you! Your light shines. Spread it wherever you go.
Namaste,
sipra
Story Time (May 2021 Newsletter)
Thank you for continuing to support YWB. We deeply appreciate our monthly sustaining members, our Patreon subscribers, and all of our students who have supported us during this time in whatever way.
Everything appears to be more appealing and comprehensible when presented as a story or has a reference to an experience in our own lives. Being human and sharing the same world our experiences are similar to someone else’s, somewhere and at some time. These stories resonate with us. The ways in which we use stories to satisfy us are varied. We are glad to get the thrill of an adventure without really being exposed to the dangers. We are electrified by mysteries and horror stories while sitting comfortably and safely somewhere. We even populate our stories with strange and exotic creatures and scenes that have nothing to do with reality. It’s great for fun and relaxation. But life is more.
Look around you. Springtime is bursting at the seams with unusual colors and clarity. Sounds and sights and smells pervade the senses. When you are tempted to settle down to another episode of make-belief, spring out of that chair/couch and get outside. Start from the ground up. Look closely at the ground seething with life. Look at the insects, soil and plants. Raise your gaze to take in the stems and stalks, and leaf and blossom buds. Experiment with what you see. If you cut off the main head of a plant, it will die or not bloom again. Or will it? Do you know why? Research.
Look higher at the trunk of trees. Fungi and moss! Beautiful and other worldly! The birds are nesting or have already started producing chicks. Do you know how the chick hatches when it’s ready to emerge? A perfect triangular notch at the apex of the egg by the baby chick and then the egg cracks and with varying degrees of pushing, pulling and knocking, the egg cracks open – new life emerges. This is the miracle of nature and life. A true story that will move you deeply and stay with you for the rest of your life. Build on these happy inspirations. No more stress, no more depression. You weren’t thinking about yourself but were lost in the wonder of it all. Spend more time doing this, not that.
Namaste,
sipra
Stephanie DeValencia
Stephanie, March 15
Having lived a full, loving and giving life, Stephanie DeValencia passed away in the early hours of Monday morning. I was so proud to call her my friend. Stephanie was given one month to live in mid-November, but she made it through five, most of it fully functional with minimal meds almost to the end.
Stephanie did more in her short life than we often do in a lifetime. She loved nature and everything natural and organic. She was not so much about doing things that seemed to be trending. She had much to do with her life. She was constant in her efforts to help others, animals/birds and to protect the environment. She loved her family dearly and leaves behind her husband, Don, children and mother who put their lives on hold to be with her.
Stephanie, March 30
If there is one thing you can do to honor her life, commit to one simple act each day to protect the environment. What can you do? Remove invasive weeds wherever you see them, buy products that aren’t smothered in packaging, recycle, don’t waste, feed the birds… It’s simple, and it will make Stephanie so happy.
Namaste,
sipra
In her honor, Stephanie has requested that friends and family use the following small businesses companies or individuals that she trusted and believed in over the many years of her life. You may choose to make a monetary donation for general operation and scholarship or buy services/products from them. Either way she would rather see money passed on to them than flowers, claiming “the yard is my garden of love. It will continue to be the sight of hope and joy in and around my home. I need no more than that."
"All of the below businesses have owners I have known well, enjoyed their companies and personal trust the integrity they started and continue to have for any individual they meet. They believe in producing fantastic products and environmental protection in many ways.
Owner sipra knows so much about yoga and more! She is the most giving person in the industry I know and such a great coach. Great yoga, reiki and many other classes
Fantastic organic products to use or combine to produce your own
This is a small great eating spot in Columbus- also plant-based and gives back to community
One of Don's favorite micro breweries- but my many sources of recycled grains (now my secret is out! Coffee grounds and spent grains, manure)
Mattie at Penzones
This individual took my hand, looked at my long locks of Gray hair and gently removed 20” off my head, and left me with a haircut that has made me feel comfortable to pass these final days. Her kindness and love of her profession gives her +10 in my eyes.
Last but not least please remember we share this earth and the universe with other beings. The need to mental and physically be aware of all energy in this universe depends on all of us. If none of the above are something you desire to use, then let it be yourself that proclaims love and goodness in and around you!"
Silence is More (April 2021 Newsletter)
Thank you for continuing to support YWB. We deeply appreciate our monthly sustaining members, our Patreon subscribers, and all of our students who have supported us during this time in whatever way.
Spending time in silence is not something most of us think of during our day. But silence speaks. It has a lot to say.
Personally, I am finding more and more that its practice, much like meditation, has created a completely different dimension to my being. Listening to my silence I hear my breath and not much else.
Without sounding contrary, sometimes I am addressing the silence and sometimes there are revelations which are obvious, but profound. Recently, my thought in silence was that the Ultimate Energy has created and continues to create amazing life and forms far beyond our imagination. Where life form has been destroyed by changing climatic conditions, natural disasters and the like, new shapes and forms resembling the old are being formed out of the ashes, so to speak. Rapidly moving to a point of no return, I have the thought that life is full of wonder even in our limited view of the world. We can’t even imagine what lies beyond. Most scientific conclusions suggest an ultimate collapse of the world as we know it with limited possibility of life continuing as we know it. I speak to my silence and ask if this wonderful Universe can prosper and continue to grow happily for just a century? The response is immediate. Yes, certainly, but there can be peace and contentment only when there is no (NONE) violence, greed, avarice, lust, sloth or acquisitiveness for the 100 years from anybody. This has to include all beings. Do you abide by these restrictions each day? Can you do so everyday from now till your time has come? There may be no second chances for any life form simply because life is too busy for me right now! Stop, breathe, meditate and do what's best for all, all the time!
I’ll get to ‘silence’ as a topic next time but that’s what got me here! Be silent and listen. The answers, directions, guidance will come in clear-cut words, thoughts, directions and guidance even through the silence.
Namaste,
sipra