One of my favorite spiritual practices is soaking my feet in really hot water. My teacher, who I call “Basil” in my books, and who I now honor with the name Yogi Shambho (since he left his earthly body in July, 2009), first suggested the foot soaks to me. In accordance with my nature, I then created a whole elaborate ritual around the foot soaking sadhana (spiritual discipline). I’ll share the practice with you here, in case you’d like to adopt this practice for yourself.

First I selected a stainless steel bowl that my feet fit comfortably in, and I attached a label that says “Teja’s Foot Soaking Bowl” — just to make sure that no one uses it for a bowl of popcorn! Next I place a towel on the wood floor in front of the couch. Beside that I put a tea kettle full of boiled water, so that when the water starts to cool, I can keep adding more hot water. To the water I add some Epsom salts (or sometimes just sea salt), and several drops of essential oil. Sometimes I put lavender or rose oil, but lately I have really been enjoying the scent of pure cedarwood oil.

Before I sit down and plunge my feet into water as hot as I can stand it, I light some candles on the table in front of me, where I also place reading materials, my journal, and a cup of hot tea. While reading and writing, I soak my feet for at least 20-30 minutes.

My teacher Basil told me that soaking the feet in hot salt water helps to bring toxins down out of the body. It also warms the system, while calming and grounding the energies. It is particularly a good practice after one has been on the computer for a long time. Try it out and see how you like it… and then please share your experiences with me.

May all beings everywhere know Peace and Happiness.

Om Shanti (Peace),

Yogini Tejaswini

Photo of Teja’s feet soaking by Teja Shankara.

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Day by day I am more profoundly experiencing the truth of Kahlil Gibran’s words: “The deeper that sorrow carves into your being, the more joy you can contain.” I am finding that the more I allow myself to grieve over life’s pains, the more Light I then shine out to others.

And, the more I authentically explore all of those sad places inside myself, the more compassion I feel for the sorrows of others. I accept that we are each just exactly where we need to be, learning just the lessons we need to learn.

And, the more I allow myself to feel the genuine heartaches, the better I understand that inner change is not usually a quick fix. Just telling myself to “change my thoughts” isn’t enough when I’m going through some kind of karma that just has to be gone through. The more I give myself space to just go through whatever is arising in the moment, the more my heart is cracking wide open.

May you also allow yourself to feel through the sad spaces, and may those experiences of sorrow crack your heart wide open.

May all beings everywhere know Peace and Happiness.

Om Shanti (Peace),

Yogini Tejaswini

Photos of Teja's walk in autumn sun by Teja Shankara.

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“Teja, Surrender. Teja, Surrender. Teja, Surrender.” As I listened to the Radiance Rising Circle attendees say those words during my turn of the introductions, I witnessed myself taking it in on a very deep level. Despite my resistance to the cold weather season, there is something about the chill in the air that makes it easier for me to go deeper inside myself.

That evening, after we each said our names and the qualities that we’d like to call into our lives, we chanted to Kali Ma, the Hindu Goddess of Time, Death, and Rebirth. Kali is a fierce aspect of the Divine Mother, but her ferociousness arises out of her Deep Compassion to help free us from our limited selves. Her many weapons and garlands of human skulls represent her ability to help us cut through our egos, thus freeing ourselves from attachments, expectations, and illusions of all kinds. In short, singing to Kali Ma calls in an energetic vibration that quickly assists in surrendering the little self and experiencing the Bliss of the True Self.

After chanting to Kali Ma, I read from the teachings of Sri Ramakrishna, an ecstatic, mad-for-God saint who lived in India, 1836-1886. He said, “You should ceaselessly affirm, with every breath, every heartbeat, every action and intention: “I am freedom from every limitation. I am the principle of timeless awareness.”  And, here is a verse from one of his love songs to Kali:

The bright face of the Goddess,
Her tender and ecstatic Gaze,
melts every heart in creation,
causing the universe to fall in love.
At Her dark blue Lotus Feet,
long-haired yogis and yoginis
are dancing with abandon,
transcending all convention.
The victory is Yours alone,
O blissful Mother.
Victory unto Thee!

(Great Swan: Meetings with Ramakrishna, by Lex Hixon, Larson Publications, Burdett, NY, 1992.)

As I continue my yogini journey of Surrender, I am continually amazed by the multi-layered, on-going process of surrendering. For most of us, surrendering isn’t something that happens in one big, grand “Ah-Ha” moment, but rather Surrender is a practice that we engage in, surrendering again and again and again. This spiritual practice requires great patience, perseverance, and determination!

So the practice of surrender goes like this: again and again, with thoughts and words, affirm your desire to Surrender, and then, on the occasions when you actually feel yourself surrendering, it is very important to pause and take the time and space to really experience what the vibration of Surrender actually feels like in your being. Chanting (singing) songs to Kali Ma (or any aspect of Divinity that takes you deep) helps with vibrationally integrating the experience of Surrender.

May we each enjoy some Surrender and spread that vibration to others!

Mall all beings everywhere know Peace and Happiness.

Om Shanti (Peace),

Yogini Tejaswini

Photo of rose, leaves and light by Teja Shankara.

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Photo by Ashley Marie - CC license

We create our realities with our thoughts. Cultivating the witness, that part of our minds that objectively watches everything we are, allows us to clearly see all of our thoughts. Through the power of watching our thoughts, we gradually change the way we perceive the world. We shift from viewing the world as a serious court of justice to seeing this universe as a joyous playground. Like gleeful children, we get to play and celebrate during this lifetime we've been given. On the playground we enjoy ourselves fully, even if sometimes we scrape our knees or get our hearts broken! No matter what pains we go through, we can't let the heartbreaks keep us from opening up and having a good time on the playground.

Here is a bit of news from the fun I'm having lately on the Tejaswini Playground ~

~ I continue to enjoy creating all kinds of vegan food combinations. This morning I heated up some leftover rice (long grain brown rice and wild rice), along with some walnuts, raisins, and dried cranberries. Then I stirred in some raw cacao nibs, cinnamon, and two potent powders by HealthForce Nutritionals: Vitamineral Green and MacaForce.  As I ate that incredibly delicious bowl of nourishment, I felt deep gratitude for all the organic vegan food that supports my temple body.

~ Even though I’ve still experienced some romantic-lila-related-sorrow in my being (despite continually focusing on my brahmacharya vow), the overall theme emerging in my life this past month has been one of gratitude, praise, and celebration. One day I ran into a woman who had attended the Radiance Rising Circle the night before, and she said, “So you’re a healer and a praiser?” I loved that so much – I hadn’t thought of myself as a “praiser” before, but indeed that is a large part of who I am.

~ Albert Einstein said, “If you want to live a happy life, tie it to a goal, not to people or things.” I understand that the sorrow states that pass through my being are caused by an attachment to a certain person, so I am now consciously focusing my attention (again and again) on my goals for life. To that end, I wrote out the following intentions: attitude of Gratitude; positive thinking; enthusiasm; merging in Union with Lord Shiva; and serving others. Union with Shiva represents detachment and the Pure Bliss gained through detachment.  Anandamayi Ma, Blissful mystic and sage of India (1896-1982), describes the process of merging with Shiva in this way:

“Shiva, the Eternal Spirit, has resolved Himself into jivas, sentient beings, and every creature has to become reconverted again into Shiva. Just as water freezes into ice, and ice melts into water, so this play of transformation of Shiva into jiva and jiva into Shiva goes on and on through eternity.”  (Women of Power and Grace: Nine Astonishing, Inspiring Luminaries of Our Time, by Timothy Conway, Ph.D., the Wake Up Press, Santa Barbara, CA, 1995.)

~ As I am slowly building my Reiki energy healing practice (www.ashlandholistichealth.com), I have had the opportunity to enjoy some trades with other practitioners. One such trade was with a very gifted Tarot Card reader. Through the reading I received guidance to remember that everything serves Spirit and all energies are workable. One of the cards indicated that I should become the Master Alchemist and work with the energies associated with my current life situation.

~ A few weeks ago a brief stomach flu passed through my body. I went for acupuncture, and during the session a new mantra/affirmation/intention arose in me: “I am happy and healthy, and I WANT GOD!”

~ That affirmation echoed the little mantra that was buzzing in my head during the Radiance Rising Circle on Ammachi’s 57^th birthday: “I want to sit in circles with people singing to God until I die!” Here is one of my favorite quotes from Amma, the Hugging Saint from India, who is a Guru to millions of people (including me): “Life should blossom into total laughter. This is religion. This is spirituality. This is real prayer. God is the innocent, spontaneous smile that blossoms from within.” (Lead Us to Purity: A Selection of Sri Mata Amritanandamayi’s Speeches, 1990-1999, Compiled by Swami Jnanamritananda, M.A. Center, San Ramon, CA, 2007.)

~ At the weekly Radiance Rising Circles, my natural smile blossoms from within. The week after we celebrated Amma’s birthday, we honored the birthday of Mahatma Gandhi. I had already celebrated Gandhi-ji’s birthday at a fire circle on his actual birthday, but since I love birthdays, I brought his photo (with curly ribbons attached) to the Radiance Rising Circle too. In his honor we chanted to Sita and Ram, and sometimes I substituted, “Be the Change You Wanna See, Jai Jai Ram,” for the traditional Rama mantra, “Sri Ram Jai Ram Jai Jai Ram” (Victory to Lord Rama).

~ For more detailed musings about many of my life happenings, please follow this Teja Blog. Recent blog article titles include: “My Vegan Tempeh Dinner,” “An Abundance of Gratitude,” “Grounded at the Root,” “The Story of a Blessing Way Circle,” “Happy Birthday to Ammachi and to Gandhi-ji!,” “Vegan Risotto,” and “Nourished by the Light of the Divine Mother.”

~ Regular, daily spiritual practices continue to nourish and strengthen me. Through sitting in silent meditation morning and evening, and through cultivating the Witness, working with the chakras, chanting (singing) devotional songs, studying spiritual teachings, and serving others, I raise my vibration and strengthen my core. I feel so inspired to share these practices with others, because they have helped me so much on my journey.

~ In high school I was a cheerleader, and those cheerleading qualities of enthusiasm and passion still live in me. Now, instead of cheering for the Tigers to win the basketball game, I’m cheering for people to open their hearts through doing regular spiritual practices. That is why I wrote Radiance Rising: Spiritual Practices for Daily Living. In this easy-to-read pocketbook, I give basic instructions for beginning a meditation practice, and I outline the other practices that I do on the Raja Yoga Path. This book would make a great holiday gift for yourself and for many of your friends and family, so I recently put it on sale at half-price, through December 16^th, 2010. Please go to thhis website store to order your copies today! (Please note that 10% of every sale and donation on my website goes to Amma’s charitable organizations. www.amma.org)

~ A few nights ago, I attended an amazing event with renowned storyteller, author and mythologist, Michael Meade. Since he was promoting his new book, Fate and Destiny: The Two Agreements of the Soul, his dynamic presentation centered around fate and destiny. He explained that we are each born seeded with a destiny, and that destiny is hidden within the challenges of our fate. Through colorful storytelling, he imparted the message that we each have a responsibility to discover who we truly are and what gifts we have to give to the world. He ended the beautiful and inspiring evening with Rumi’s poem “Each Note.” Here is my favorite part of that poem:

God picks up the reed-flute world and blows.
Each note is a need coming through one of us,
a passion, a longing-pain.

Remember the lips
where the wind-breath originated,
and let your note be clear.
Don’t try to end it.
BE Your Note.
I’ll show you how it’s enough.

Go up on the roof at night
in the city of the soul.

Let Everyone climb on their roofs
and sing their notes!

Sing loud!

~ This autumn has been a particularly busy time for this yogini, because my two sons (ages 10 and 13) are now involved in sports and musical instruments, along with all the school stuff. The past few weeks I witnessed myself going through a cute little cycle of overwhelm, so this weekend I took a lot of time alone to remember that I am not the doer, and I am not in charge of time! Since last night was the final night of the 9-night Hindu festival, Navarathri, that honors Shakti, the Divine Feminine, I sat down with my harmonium and chanted to Kali Ma, the most fierce Hindu aspect of the Divine Mother. Kali represents Time, and She helps to conquer the illusions of the ego, such as me thinking that I’m really in control of time here! Again and again, I surrender my little will to the Divine Will.

May you enjoy the playground of your life.

May all beings have food, clothing, shelter, and spiritual upliftment each day.

May all beings everywhere know Peace and Happiness.

Om Shanti (Peace),

Yogini Tejaswini 

Photos of Teja’s table and autumn tree by Teja Shankara. Photo of Teja in the creek by Vivek.

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Tonight is the fifth night of Navarathri, a nine-night Hindu festival that celebrates various aspects of Shakti, the Divine Feminine. At the Radiance Rising Circle last night we chanted to Durga and Kali (two powerful forms of the Divine Mother), and I read some teachings of Anandamayi Ma, a blissful mystic and sage who lived in India 1896-1982. She said, “Whether you worship Christ, Krishna, Kali or Allah, you actually worship the one Light that is also in you, since It pervades all things. Everything originates from Light, everything in its essence is Light.” (Women of Power and Grace: Nine Astonishing, Inspiring Luminaries of Our Time, by Timothy Conway, Ph.D., the Wake Up Press, Santa Barbara, CA, 1995.)

That reminds me of a passage from Reiki Master William Bagley’s Reiki Guide: “Light is not solid. Yet its pervasive and radiant quality is deeply satisfying. Love is light. It can touch our hearts everywhere and anywhere. We relax into this light and become light.”

I felt that deeply satisfying inner radiance during the circle last night, and also during a small home kirtan that I hosted Friday night for the first night of Navarathri. With fresh red roses in a vase next to Goddess Durga’s image, I relaxed into the bliss of chanting (singing) “Jaya Jagadambe ~ He Ma Durga” which means “Victory to the Mother of the Universe, ‘O Mother Durga.” I played harmonium, my son played violin, and a few friends played bells and drums. Just as we finished the last chant, I heard my son crunching a snack, and I heard the delightful sound of a baby breastfeeding. The little one in attendance had enjoyed the music so much, but he had grown tired and was ready to be nursed to sleep.

As I blissed out on the sound of a mother nourishing her child, I finished the last note on the harmonium, and I said quietly, “Gratitude to the Divine Mother who nourishes us throughout our lives: when we are babies, with breastmilk; when we are ten-years-old, with veggie booty; and when we are older, with chanting the Divine Names.”

My teacher, who I named “Basil” in my memoir, The Rita Lila: A Western Yogini’s Journey to Bliss, once described the key qualities of the Divine Mother in this way: “She is always present, always nourishing, and always interested in our well-being.”

This morning when I first sat down to work, I looked out the window above the computer and saw a fawn trying to get under its mother. The mama deer hesitated – no wonder, since they were in the middle of the street – but then she surrendered and let the babe have a little nourishment… until the next car drove up! Unfortunately I could not get my camera out fast enough, but I did sit in Gratitude for being gifted with that moment of witnessing the sustenance of the Mother.

May all beings be nourished by the Light of Shakti. May all beings experience the Love and Warmth of the inner Radiance.

May all beings everywhere know Peace and Happiness.

Om Shanti (Peace),

Yogini Tejaswini

Photo of deer in Lithia Park by Teja Shankara.

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Recently people have been asking for more vegan recipes, so this past Friday night, while my boys watched a movie, I made up this recipe for vegan risotto. Of all my regular spiritual practices, one of my favorites is cooking with love in my heart. When we prepare food in a loving way, the meal is then infused with spiritual vibrations that are healing to those who eat the food.

To help yourself get in a loving state for cooking, light a candle or some incense, turn on some music, or sit quietly for a few minutes before you begin. If you notice any agitations in your being, simply cultivate the Witness part of your consciousness and intend to cook with love in your heart, even if you are temporarily in a funky or contracted state. Remembering “this too shall shift” helps me a lot in those moments. Regardless of your mood, I do hope you will enjoy preparing and eating this vegan risotto.

~ Please buy organic whenever possible.
It is better for this sacred earth,
and it is better for our beloved bodies. ~

Vegan Risotto Ingredients

1 ½ cups long grain brown rice
½ cup wild rice
1 vegan vegetable bouillon cube
¼ cup flax oil
1/3 cup nutritional yeast flakes
1 tsp. Himalayan krystal salt
1 tsp. black pepper
2 Tablespoons fresh ginger root, chopped finely
2 Tablespoons grapeseed oil
2 small red onions, chopped
15 crimini mushrooms, chopped
5-9 cloves of garlic, chopped finely (or more – or less – depending on how much you love garlic!)
parsley (Italian leaf preferred)
arugula

Soak rice overnight and cook in the soaking water with a pinch of Himalayan krystal salt and the vegan vegetable bouillon cube. While rice is cooking, sauté onions, mushrooms, and garlic in the grapeseed oil. Combine cooked rice and mushroom sauté with the flax oil, yeast, salt, pepper, and ginger. Toss well. Serve topped with parsley and arugula. Enjoy!

May all beings everywhere have food to eat each day.

May all beings know Peace and Happiness.

Om Shanti (Peace),

Yogini Tejaswini

Photos of Teja’s table and vegan risotto by Teja Shankara.

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I have always loved celebrating birthdays. This past week was a very special time for me, because I got to honor the births of two very high beings. On Monday, September 27^th, at the Radiance Rising Circle I led a celebration of my Guru Ammachi’s 57^th birthday. I put some curly ribbons on a framed photo of her, and we chanted along with a CD of Amma singing a bhajan (devotional song) called “Gopi Gopala.” I read some of her teachings, and then we shared the prasad of Fig Newman cookies. 

Then, on Saturday, October 2^nd, it was Gandhi-ji’s birthday, so I put the curly ribbons on his photo and took him along with me to a fire circle gathering that evening. During the opening circle, I said “THIS is how I want to live on this planet: under the sky and trees, in a sacred circle, dancing by the fire with live drumming.” Then I shared that I had brought my harmonium and would love to lead a chant to Sita-Ram, in honor of Mahatma Gandhi.

After dancing around the fire for a while, I set up the harmonium on a blanket in front of the drums. Before the chant, I explained that in Hindu cosmology, Lord Vishnu promises that any time humans are in trouble he will incarnate to help restore Dharma, Beauty, and Truth. Thousands of years ago he took birth as the beautiful, glistening blue being, Lord Rama, and Sita (Goddess Lakshmi) came to be his wife. Sita and Ram are the Eternal Union of the Divine Feminine and Divine Masculine, and they can also be viewed as the individual soul (Sita) in union with the Cosmic Soul (Rama).

Anytime we chant (sing) to a Hindu deity, we call in the energies that are associated with that deity. These actual energy states arise in our beings and also in the space around us. So chanting to Sita-Ram helps each of us to experience the Union with our deepest selves.

This was the first time that I had led a chant away from the Radiance Rising Circles, and it was fun, but also a bit challenging, because I had smoke in my lungs from dancing by the fire, and because there were so many drums! It was actually an amazing experience to be carried along so fast with that much drumming! It was definitely a new edge for me. In the playfulness of the moment, I changed the words to “Sri Ram Jai Ram Jai Jai Ram,” and instead chanted Gandhi-ji’s famous quote: “Be the change you wanna see, Jai Jai Ram."

That night when “we” got home, I was filled with incredible Gratitude as I snapped the photo of Gandhi and me. I thought of MC Yogi’s lyrics: “The word Mahatma, it means Great Soul, and it’s inside of us just waiting to unfold. If you follow your heart, and act real bold, next time it’ll be YOUR story that’s told.”

Last night I brought Gandhi-ji to the Radiance Rising Circle, so I could celebrate his birthday just one more time. We noted that a few years ago the United Nations declared his birthday, October 2^nd, to be the International Day of Non-violence. During one of the chants, I sang “Hallelujah, Hallelujah. Hare Krishna, Hare Krishna. Jai Sri Rama, Jai Sri Rama.” At the “Jai Sri Rama” part of the chant, I got blissfully lost in bhakti bhav, the mood or state of devotion, during which I felt an intense longing to merge with the Divine. And then, after reading some from Gandhi’s Book of Prayers, we shared prasad of fresh figs, and I was filled with Gratitude for yet another sweet circle.

May all beings everywhere have food, clothing, shelter, and peaceful sleep each night.

May all beings everywhere know Peace and Happiness.

Om Shanti (Peace),

Yogini Tejaswini

Photo of Gandhi-ji and Teja by Teja Shankara.

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Today’s date has a nice ring to it: 10-1-10. October in Ashland is such a mix of leaving the warmth of summer behind and heading into the cold of winter. Once again I will be bringing out my mantra to help me keep a positive attitude: “The cold air is strengthening me.”

Regular, daily spiritual practices also strengthen me. Through sitting in silent meditation morning and evening, and through cultivating the Witness, working with the chakras, chanting (singing) devotional songs, studying spiritual teachings, and serving others, I raise my vibration and strengthen my core. I feel so inspired to share these practices with others, because they have helped me so much on my journey.

In high school I was a cheerleader, and those cheerleading qualities of enthusiasm and passion still live in me. Now, instead of cheering for the Tigers to win the basketball game, I’m cheering for people to open their hearts through doing regular spiritual practices. That is why I wrote Radiance Rising: Spiritual Practices for Daily Living. In this easy-to-read pocketbook, I give basic instructions for beginning a meditation practice, and I outline the other practices that I do on the Raja Yoga Path. This book would make a great holiday gift for yourself and for many of your friends and family, so I am putting it on sale at half-price from today through December 16^th, 2010. Please click here on Store (or on the book title) to order your copies now!

Please note that 10% of every sale and donation on this website goes to Amma’s charitable organizations.

Thank you all for your continued interest and support. It is my intention to help raise the vibration of the human species. I work to spread the Light through giving Reiki healings, publishing blog articles, and offering weekly Radiance Rising Circles. At each circle I remind everyone that any time we do spiritual practices, we create healing energies that we can send out with our conscious intention. I send those healing energies out to the Whole, where-ever they are needed for healing and for peace.

May all beings everywhere know Peace and Happiness.

Om Shanti (Peace),

Yogini Tejaswini

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