Week 9

Monday – September 28, 2020 – At-One-Ment

Yesterday, we experienced the “View From Above” guided meditation. How was that for you? Tonight, it our Meditation/Map-Questing session we will do it again. After 6 months of practicing yoga together we have finally reached our destination along the Eight Limb Path of Yoga. Samadhi is the eighth limb. Samadhi is connection to Source. Steve, said it best in a previous class……..and I am paraphrasing him….”Isn’t Samadhi a moment to moment arising and passing away?” Just like the flame of a candle; every moment the flame is new and fresh. Just like the passing river; the river is new and different. “Better a single day experiencing the reality of arising and passing away, then a lifetime of being blind to it.” Samadhi is a “view.” It is a perspective. It is a process of perception. It is elusive and cannot being grasped. It is continually arising and passing away. How do we stay connected to Source? By increasing our awareness and equanimity.

Today is Yom Kippur. It is a very auspicious day. It is the best day of the year to contemplate our place in the universe. It is the best day to explore Dharma. The force of the opposing force has the day off. It is a window of opportunity to connect to Source in the most powerful of ways.

Meditate today. Be still today. Be the witness. Thank the Creator, Source, God for the past year as a way of purifying yourself for the new year.

As most of you know, I am not Jewish. However, I was introduced to the spiritual map of Kabbalah about 21 years ago and have been studying since. I have found much value in my inquiry into this map. I love the Christian map as well and spend time in the New Testament. I mentioned in yesterday’s class that I heard someone say…….”The New Testament is the Old Testament Revealed and The Old Testament is The New Testament Concealed.” This is one of the best descriptions comparing the two “Books” of the Bible I have heard. They are connected just like the Jew and the Gentile.

I love this………The final seal on Yom Kippur……….Gmar Chatima Tovah!

Thursday – October 1, 2020 – Now What?

I am your yoga guide. That is my role during our zoom sessions, emails and these postings. I would say, and I think you would agree, that I am not a typical yoga “teacher.” In fact, I am a bit of an enigma as a “Yoga Teacher.” Most yoga teachers are female. Most yoga teachers are into a kind of new age spiritual perspective. What do I mean by new age spiritual perspective? To answer this properly would take a few pages of writing but, in sum, it is a perspective that sees the world as Light and Love. God or Source is often found in Nature. There is not a dark force, adversary or opponent. This is not my perspective. I see the human experience as a kind of school. That we are here to learn and, more specifically, to correct something that needs to be fixed. I believe humanity is in a fallen state. This is in direct opposition to the concept of Humanism; that human beings are basically good. When I was in graduate school and studying developmental psychology Humanism was the underlying assumption of what we were being taught. I became a rebel to this assumption which eventually led to my demise as far as graduate school went.

I have been continuing to research the map of Kabbalah and The Weekly Torah Portions. Yom Kippur was this past Monday. The perspective I am now seeing here is that Yom Kippur was the seal for the past year. And from now until October 16 we are in a time of planting seeds for the upcoming year. Leading up to Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur one is engaged in Teshuvah (Repentance). I have recently been introduced to a new way of understanding Teshuvah. Break it down into three parts. 1.). Becoming Aware of the “SIN” and feeling sorry or regretful. Understanding that what you have become aware of is not in alignment with how you want to be or do. 2.). Experience Atonement. Make restitution. Return to state as it was in the beginning. Make brand new. 3.). You can do step one and two but step 3 involves another. For example, you did something that was wrong to a friend. You became aware of it and recognized it as not how you want to be. You feel sorry and regret. You go to your friend and ask forgiveness. You say you are sorry ask how you can make up for it. Your friend forgives you. Now, step three is about what happens to the relationship from here on out. Does your friend forgive you but decide not to engage with you anymore. Your friend may forgive you and the two of you begin to manifest an even closer relationship than before. Think about this metaphor in your relationship with “Source”, The Creator, GOD.

From now until the 16th of October we will be cultivating the ground and plant the seeds for the New Year. The spiritual work is all about accelerating the process of transformation leading to the final correction. Of course, if you are a humanist this makes no sense. Let it go like water off a duck’s back. It is only my perspective.

On the 16th we will start anew. The seeds will have all been planted and watered. Exciting times!

Friday -October 2, 2020 – Think Big!

In the spirit of planting seeds and creating a vision for the future I share this video with those of you intrigued with The Weekly Torah Sections. Fascinating Times we are living in……

Sukkot begins tonight. Is it all a dance between fulfillment and desire?; The Light of The Creator and The Vessel of The Human Soul?; Yang and Yin??? I don’t know….

For weeks 1-8 see next pages………