After taking over a year's break, I am once again inspired to offer the weekly Radiance Rising Circles, beginning this Saturday, April 21^st, 2012. This time around, the circles will be held at the Unitarian Universalist Center, corner of 4th & C Streets in Ashland, on Saturdays 10:30am - 12noon. As before, the circles will be free of charge and open to everyone each week. The last time around, I offered the weekly circles for 15 months, and because there wasn't any money involved, the circles had a unique purity and sweetness about them. 

I am offering these circles because I really see the benefits of all the spiritual practices I do daily in my own life, and so I feel inspired to share the practices with others. It is very powerful to come together in prayer and meditation. I initially became inspired to offer circles after reading Book of Prayers by Mahatma Gandhi, who led interfaith prayer gatherings morning and evening each day, all throughout his political, revolutionary activities. In the book's introduction, Michael N. Nagler writes, "Squarely in the time-honored tradition of Hindu devotion, Gandhi accepted the validity of all forms of genuine worship. Love of God is love of God. At the same time, he explained, we need forms suited to our culture and even to our personality; since most of the ashramites were Hindu, so are most of the songs."

The simple chants that I lead, in a call-and-response singing format, are mostly Sanskrit chants that call upon Hindu gods and goddesses (primarily Shiva, Durga, Kali, Hanuman, Sita, Rama, Ganesha, and now I am learning a chant to Krishna), since I am a dedicated yogini on the Raja Yoga Path (with Ammachi and Neem Karoli Baba-ji as my Gurus), but I also sometimes lead chants to Green Tara, or chant Hallelujah, or chant for Peace... I am just a beginner at playing the harmonium: I had never played a musical instrument in my life, so I have stickers on the keys with the appropriate letters, and I've just started taking lessons with Krishna Deva (Prema Mayi's son).... so the chanting that happens at these circles is not performance kirtan, but rather it's a co-creation with whoever shows up and sings... and it's great when someone shows up to drum along with me! I always bring a drum and bells, and I welcome people to bring drums as well.... also, if you think you can't sing, don't let that stop you from attending ~ singing from the heart is so beautiful, whether it's perfectly sung on key or not!

Each week, I bring a reading to share after the chanting and silent meditation. In selecting the readings, I tune in to what is most inspiring to me at the time, and also to what I sense might be needed by others. At the circles, we chant mantras with the chakras, going from the root up to the crown at the beginning of the circle, and then chanting back down to the root to close the circles feeling grounded. We also send the healing energies (created by the practices) out for healing and peace wherever they are needed... 

Each person attending these Radiance Rising Circles will be given a free copy of my pocketbook, Radiance Rising: Spiritual Practices for Daily Living.

Radiant Cheers to the Spiritual Health of the human species on this Sacred Planet Earth!

Om Shanti (Peace),

Yogini Tejaswini

Flyer for Radiance Rising Circles designed by Gaelyn Larrick, a bright artistic star shining in our midst! ~ Photo of Teja (on flyer) taken by Britt Magadini, another radiant being shimmering on the river of life!

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At the end of January, 2012, my teenage son and I were talking about how fast the first month had gone by, and I said, “If February goes this fast, we are all going to start getting dizzy.” So then, at the end of February, my son said, “I’m getting dizzy!” And now, I can hardly believe it is already the tenth day of March, and I am only just now getting around to writing this blog about my top three priorities for March!

Upon reflection, I see that I haven’t had time to write about these priorities since I have been so busy focusing on them. On the first day of the month, I wrote these three priorities in big letters at the top of the Amma wall calendar hanging in my kitchen: 

1.     Walk and stretch.
2.     Play harmonium and sing.
3.     De-clutter and clean.

These are goals that I’ve been writing about, over and over, in my journal, but then I haven’t been finding the time and motivation to actually do them. Somehow this month is different. I am actually going for walks in the trees, doing stretching exercises, playing my harmonium and singing, and cleaning out some things in this temple cottage. It feels so good to actually be doing these things, and I am filled with so much Gratitude for all the unseen support that must be giving me the boost of energy to do them!

What are your top three priorities for March? Hurry, quick, and decide or the month will be over and you’ll be pondering over the priorities for April instead!

May all beings be happy and free.

Om Shanti (Peace),

Yogini Tejaswini

Photo of the trees on my walks taken by Teja Shankara.

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Ten days after Maha ShivaRatri, I am finally finding a few moments to write about my wild party of One… This year, since I didn’t have the energy to organize another all-night chanting event for ShivaRatri, I decided to have a quiet little chanting hour by myself. “Decided” is the key word here. I have to laugh every time I think I have a plan, because the Universe has a way of teaching me (again and again) that I’m not really in control of the “plans”! And ShivaRatri is the perfect night for letting go of the little mind’s attachments, since that is what Lord Shiva is all about. He helps us let go of everything that blocks our ability to rest in Pure Consciousness and Bliss.

So, I thought that I would just chant quietly to Shiva for an hour and then go to bed and get a good night’s sleep for work the next day… But, instead, here is what actually unfolded:

A certain lila (“divine play”) that I’ve been engaged in for a few years presented me with a situation that gave rise to some anger in my system, so when I lit the nag champa incense and sat down to chant to Shiva, instead of sweetly singing a lullaby to my Beloved, I sang louder than I have ever sung in my life. Let’s just say it was borderline yelling, and it went on for two hours, during which time I played bells and drums, and sang along with chanting CDs (and also briefly played my harmonium and sang my own chants), and rubbed my hair in Kali Wildness… Needless to say, once I got in bed it took me two more hours to fall asleep… and then I arose at 4:30am to continue chanting to Shiva for a while before work, and that’s when the Magic of ShivaRatri really descended into my being: suddenly the anger transmuted into Clarity, and I was able to calmly write a letter setting clear boundaries and bidding that lila a final farewell…

Sometimes I have to put up the Big Cosmic Shiva Mirror for me to see clearly what I need to let go of… And once I let go, I am amazed at the Bliss that flows into my being… And, in the ten days since ShivaRatri, I am astounded by all the Grace that is flowing into my life from all directions.

Repeating the Names of God really does have such a profound affect on my daily life. As the Indian poet-saint Tulsidas said, “The Name repeated with either good or evil intentions, in an angry mood or even while yawning, diffuses joy in all the ten directions.”

May all beings know the Bliss of letting go of attachments.

Om Namah Shivaya! ~ I bow to Shiva, who is Pure Consciousness and Pure Bliss.

Om Shanti (Peace),

Yogini Tejaswini

Photo of Teja with Shiva & Nandi taken by Teja’s son Gabe.

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Each week I pick an angel card, and occasionally I know instantly why I picked that particular card, but more often I discover the reason as the week goes along. That was certainly the case this past week when I turned over the Grace card. All week, I felt a sweetness when I looked at the card on my kitchen table, but it was not until last night that I understood its significance for me in this round of seven calendar boxes (a.k.a. “days”).

The week prior, whilst diving ever deeper into my spiritual practice of Cultivating the Witness, I had been noticing a familiar flavor of depression passing briefly through my system. I acknowledged it by saying to myself, ‘You were so excited about the New Year, fresh with possibilities, and now you’re feeling disappointed because your little mind is impatient and thinks nothing has happened.’ Of course then I coached myself into feeling better by recognizing all the blessings in my life and by cultivating gratitude for all the good that is most definitely happening.

So then this week, I witnessed myself indulging in some petty pleasure-pain pendulum sorrows, which culminated yesterday in a full-blown feeling sorry for myself state. Not knowing what else to do, I did what I often do in such a state: lit candles, burned incense around my temple cottage whilst chanting the Hanuman Chalisa (along with Krishna Das’ CD “Flow of Grace”), and began preparing a meal. Once I begin cooking in my kitchen, some kind of magic happens and regardless of my initial state, I am usually transformed by the process of conscious cooking whilst chanting the Names of God.

As I washed the vegetables, I suddenly became inspired to watch a film that had been on my to-watch list for a while, so once my food was ready, I selected the movie on Netflix and sat down to eat and watch… And that’s when the real Bliss hit! The meal tasted so amazing: tempeh sautéed in toasted sesame oil, soy sauce and spices; sunchokes and carrots roasted in olive oil and Himalayan krystal salt; and a very large handful of fresh cilantro. The film, Fierce Grace, about Ram Dass’ life since his stroke, was incredibly well done and oh, so inspiring. 

Currently I am reading Ram Dass’ book Still Here: Embracing Aging, Changing, and Dying, and it was sweet to see how that book fit into the overall process of his experiences before and after the stroke. Reading that book and now seeing that film has me once again inspired to look into doing hospice caregiving work with the dying. And amazingly, since everything in our lives is connected and leading us forward on our paths, my 97-year-old Grandma, who is close to dying and who has hospice care in her midwest home, called me on Skype video about ten minutes after I began watching Fierce Grace! Talk about Amazing Grace… Wow.

So I may think that I’m just a simple little nobody yogini in a cold (and windy!) town, but even a simple little alone evening can turn into the most potent and powerful Grace. I can still see my Grandma’s face saying into the computer screen, “You look as cute as ever!”

Big Gratitude!

May all beings everywhere experience Amazing Gratitude and Delightful Grace.

Om Shanti (Peace),

Yogini Tejaswini

Photos of Teja’s simple vegan yogini evening taken by Teja Shankara.

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New Year’s is an auspicious time to call upon Sri Ganesha, the elephant-headed Hindu god who is the Remover of all obstacles. Last January, at the Radiance Rising Circles, we chanted to Ganesha the first five weeks of the year! This year, in absence of the weekly circles, I have been chanting to Ganesha whilst doing household chores. Yesterday I found this cosmic Ganesha image on a sweet blog called balanced spirituality by a yogini named Ekta. After reading about her path with another saint called Amma (Sri Karunamayi Amma), I then went to the website of my Guru Ammachi’s ashram, and printed out excerpts from her New Year’s Message 2012.

At Amritapuri, on the 1^st of January, Amma said the following: “Nature – which was once like a kamadhenu, the wish-fulfilling cow – has dried up. The oil supply is rapidly decreasing. The food supply is dwindling. Potable water and pure air are becoming scarce. Where did we go wrong? The real mistake we committed lies in our inability to differentiate between requirements and luxuries. If our current generation could reinstate such an awareness of Dharma, then poverty and starvation would vanish like a bad dream.”

Indeed, there are many obstacles facing humanity as we begin this New Year, and thus it is a very good time to call upon Lord Ganesha, who blesses new beginnings. In the talk, Amma goes on to say that many people tell her that the world will end in 2012, but she doesn’t feel that will happen. She says that Nature is agitated and tragedies are always taking place everywhere in the world, and that will continue to be so, but we should not live in fear. Instead, Amma says we should cultivate an attitude of acceptance in which we say “Whatever happens I will remain strong, courageous, and happy.”

To read the full message, please click here: Amma’s New Year’s Message 2012.

Om Gam Ganapataye Namah! May Sri Ganapati (Ganesha) bless all beings and remove all obstacles on the path to goodness and happiness. 

Om Shanti (Peace), 

Yogini Tejaswini

Image of Cosmic Ganesha from balanced spirituality blog. When I learn the name of the artist I will share it here…

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Each year on January 1^st, I spend some time writing in my new desk calendar and picking an angel card for the year. Spiritual practices like these help keep me grounded and focused here on the earthly plane… As I’ve mentioned in previous blogs, for 2011 I picked Release, and the year was indeed filled with much painful release work. So on the evening of December 31^st, 2011, when I had the thought, ‘What if I pick Release again for 2012?” I was filled with a sense of dread, but then I quickly thought, ‘Well, if I pick it again, I’ll just have to approach it with a different attitude!’

I had no idea that those thoughts were a psychic “warning” of what was to come the next day… until the moment when I picked Release again for 2012! When I picked the card, I just sat there staring at it for a long time. It felt like time stood still, like all the gods and goddesses were just waiting to see what this yogini would do with that one! Honestly, at first I just could not grok the information… I sat there bewildered and wondering if I might indulge in a little screaming, crying tantrum yoga fit… but then I remembered that before picking the card I had lit candles and waved incense all around my temple cottage while chanting the Hanuman Chalisa (along with Krishna Das’ CD “Flow of Grace”), and I had asked my Beloved Gurus, Amma and Neem Karoli Baba, to please pick the angel card through me. Remembering that I had asked them to pick the card, I began to see the humor in it all, and I was reminded of something I recently read in Ram Dass’ book Be Love Now (which I will be posting a review of soon):

“If a situation seems full of cosmic irony, that’s probably your guru. If your life seems to be running on crazy coincidences and synchronicity, that’s the guru too. The guru’s a rascal, always playing with you, always showing you where you’re not.”

It sure does seem like a crazy bit of cosmic irony, that I would pick Release again this year, especially since I worked so hard in the month of December to release as much as possible so that I could be “done” with that work. Ha! Good one, Gurus! Guess I’m not done with that work after all… However, I do see the opportunity that this hilarity presents: in 2011, I released a lot through grief and sorrow, and now in 2012 I get to learn how to release in new ways. I intend to learn how to let go with happiness and joy and song and dance and gratitude!

By evening, I was in a very funny mood, so funny that during my sitting meditation time, I kept laughing out loud… I was laughing because I was witnessing the absurdity – after all I’ve been through in the past 8+ years – of the mental fascination that still remains with earthguy lilas and attractions. In my laughter, I saw the first glimmer of what is hopefully to come: boredom and non-interest in earthguy attractions, the same kind of total boredom I feel when people around me have conversations about alcohol. (I haven’t had a drink, not even a glass of wine, in over four years, and now I have no interest whatsoever in alcohol or stories about it.)

In that vision of my future brahmacharini self, I saw that the boredom with alcohol came naturally, and so will the boredom with unreal romantic lilas. I just need to trust and be patient and cultivate the witness in each moment… and I pray that I won’t need to endure any more painful dramas before the boredom comes!

This Year 2012, I intend to lovingly and laughingly release anything and everything that blocks me from being fully Tejaswini, the name that Amma gave me, which means full of Light, Radiant, and Bright.

I pray that my healing release work will ripple out and benefit the Whole. May all beings have food, clothing, shelter, and peaceful sleep this year. May all beings be happy and free. 

Om Shanti (Peace),

Yogini Tejaswini

Photo of Teja’s 2012 Release angel card by Teja Shankara.

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Much to my initial dismay, this year I was not able to spend the Thanksgiving holiday with my beloved Guru, Sri Mata Amritanandamayi Devi, the “hugging saint” from India who is popularly called Amma, which means “Mother.” Due to financial, health, and other issues, I just was not able to make the pilgrimage down to California. Although I felt some sadness, I remembered Amma’s teachings about the importance of celebrating life and of making the most of each moment, so I consciously transmuted the sorrow into joy by bringing Amma home to my heart here in my temple cottage.

On Thanksgiving Day I gave thanks for so many things, especially the memory of three years ago on Thanksgiving Day, when Amma looked in my eyes and gave me the name Tejaswini. Whilst cooking festive vegan foods, I listened to CDs of Amma’s bhajans, burned her Rose-Sandalwood incense, and remembered all the times I’ve sat near her, watching her give darshan (hugs). After serving the meals (lunch to my sweet boys and dinner to a beloved friend), my friend and I watched Darshan, the Embrace, a film by Jan Kounen. I had heard about this film for a while, but just hadn’t gotten around to watching it. Now I am glad I waited, because watching this film on Thanksgiving was the perfect way to bring Amma’s Darshan home to my heart!

I highly recommend this film. I loved it so much that I watched it again the next evening with my sons, and then today I watched my favorite parts one more time before returning it to the video store! The film really captures the Love and Beauty that Amma embodies, and I am ever filled with Awe and Gratitude that I have had the amazing opportunity to be one of the millions who have received her darshan in the form of her loving embraces. Kritajuutaa! Amazing Gratitude!

May all beings everywhere know the Sweetness of Deep Amazing Gratitude.

Om Shanti (Peace),

Yogini Tejaswini

Photo of sweet orchids from Advait taken by Teja Shankara.

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If you read my last blog article, then you know that my first attempt at this recipe was “a fail.” Well, I am happy to report that when I prepared “Teja’s Turkey-Free Thanksgiving Vegan Delight” again on Thanksgiving Day, it tasted quite delightful! Although I was feeling a tad bit sad that I wasn’t sitting near Amma at her California ashram, I made the very best of the day. I dressed up in Indian clothes that I had purchased in Amma’s store, placed a sparkling bindi on my third eye, and chanted the Gayatri Mantra many times for all the turkeys who were killed for Thanksgiving.

I have always loved Thanksgiving, and I find that being a vegan is no reason to stop celebrating the abundance of the harvest season. After all, there are plenty of ways to create a festive vegan meal. (For the full menu that I created, see “A Vegan Yogini’s Thanksgiving Menu: Turkey-Free!”)

I was filled with Infinite Gratitude as I prepared this vegan stuffing recipe, which of course I did not stuff into a dead bird! My boys really enjoyed this stuffing, topped with cranberry sauce (from a can but organic!)…

Teja’s Turkey-Free Thanksgiving Vegan Delight

Before cooking, I lit candles, burned some of Amma’s fragrant Rose-Sandalwood incense, and turned on a CD of Amma’s Bhajans (devotional songs). Then I placed 3 Tablespoons of walnut oil into a large skillet, turned the burner on medium-high heat, and added the following ingredients, in this order, as I chopped or measured them:

1 medium yellow onion, chopped
15 crimini mushrooms, chopped
2 celery stalks, chopped (a very full ½ cup)
2 Tablespoons soy sauce
2 Tablespoons dried oregano
½ Tablespoon dried sage
½ teaspoon Himalayan krystal salt
¼ teaspoon black pepper
¼ teaspoon garlic powder
1 ½ cups pecans
1 ½ cups walnuts

Sauté all of the above ingredients on low heat for a while longer, while tearing the bread. In a large mixing bowl, place 6 full cups of your favorite loaf of bread, torn into small pieces. Currently, my boys and I are really enjoying a specialty artisan bread from the Village Baker in Ashland – it is a hearty loaf called “Basil Garlic -n- Onion”. Add 1 cup of applesauce, ½ cup of vegetable broth, and the sauté to the bowl of bread. Stir gently, being careful to not totally break the bread down into mush!

Place 1 Tablespoon of walnut oil in a pan (I used a 9 ½ x 13 glass pan), and spread the stuffing evenly in the pan, pressing down on the top slightly. Bake at 385 degrees for 40 minutes. I covered it for the first 20 minutes, and then uncovered it for the remaining 20 minutes. Serve with cranberry sauce for a wonderful taste sensation!

Breathing in Gratitude. Breathing out Gratitude.

May all beings everywhere have adequate food, clothing, shelter, and peaceful sleep each day. And may all beings realize that One Bright Energy connects everyone and everything… including the majestic bird beings who grace this sacred planet earth with their beauty.

Om Shanti (Peace),

Yogini Tejaswini

Photo of Teja with Delightful Stuffing by Teja’s son Gabe. Photo of Teja with sons (Gabe and Zak) taken by Teja Shankara.

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Yesterday morning, when I awoke at 4:00am to take my brother and his wife and baby to the airport, my bleeding cycle began, and it was raining. My adorable six-month-old niece thought that the dark car ride was pretty funny – she smiled and even laughed at me the whole way! When I returned home, I was filled with such a deep love, and I felt in synch with the Flow of the Universe.

By mid-afternoon, the rain turned to snow, and my mind shifted into some hormonally-induced negativities. In Amma’s little book Immortal Light: Divine Mother Ammachi’s Advice to Householders, she says, “Some women experience more negative thoughts during their monthly periods. It is all the more necessary to chant the mantra during that time.” Knowing this, I did a lot of chanting, especially as I took out the ingredients to begin creating my new recipe, “Teja’s Turkey-Free Thanksgiving Vegan Delight.”

Well, that recipe did not turn out so delightful. As my teenage son would say, I was “emo” and the recipe was “a fail.” Our emotional state, when cooking, really does affect the food we create. I even wrote about just that in the helpful hints section of the vegetarian soup cookbook I published! (Love Soups: A Vegetarian Soup Cookbook Inspired by the Soup Devas) Unfortunately, even with lots of mantra chanting, I was not able to maintain a calm, balanced state of mind for preparing that new recipe. I will try it again on Thanksgiving, and if it turns out delightful then I will share it here.

The funny part, which did not seem so funny last night, was that the reason why the recipe failed was like a metaphor for all the watery flowing that was going on yesterday, with the raining and snowing and bleeding and copious tears falling. The recipe failed because I put way too much vegetable broth and then stirred it way too long into the bread, so that the bread broke down into mush and then baked itself back into gooey dough. Uggh! Time to light the Fire in my yogini heart and balance out all that water!

May all beings know Dynamic Acceptance of What IS.

Om Shanti (Peace), 

Yogini Tejaswini

Photo of wet day by Teja Shankara.

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Several weeks ago I invited a dear friend over to chant and have lunch. He played my harmonium and led us in singing some beautiful chants. We sang Om Namah Shivaya, and also a chant that was new to me: Rama Ragava, Rakshamam; Krishna Keshavam, Pahimam. I dropped into a wonderfully deep, peaceful place inside myself, so then the rest of the day I couldn’t stop exclaiming, “Chanting is the Best Bliss on the planet!”

So then, this past Saturday evening, I attended the Ashland Amma Satsang, and I hadn’t been to an Amma Satsang since early September in Mt. Shasta City. I hadn’t realized how much I had missed it, until we were chanting the bhajans (devotional songs), and I was witnessing myself unwinding. I thought, ‘Wow, how did I get wound up so tightly again?’ And even as I thought that, I watched myself unwinding even more! In total awe, I reveled in the Bliss that arises from within when I am chanting the Names of God. 

Whilst reveling in the Bliss Energies, I was also tuning in to a beloved friend who was sitting right behind me. I received guidance to give him Reiki healing energies, so I asked if he would like to sit in front of me, and I would send Reiki into him by touching his back. He gratefully agreed, and for the remainder of the bhajans, I channeled Reiki energies while we sang the chants. Afterwards I said that was “Bhajan~Reiki”, and we both commented on how special that combination was…

Later, when I got home, I took the above photo of myself, trying to capture the Teja~Bhajan~Reiki~Bliss~State I was in! Combining Bhajan Bliss Energies with Reiki Healing Energies was super sweet and nourishing, and I was filled with incredible Gratitude for the experience.

May all beings everywhere experience the sweet nourishment of Divine Love.

Om Shanti (Peace),

Yogini Tejaswini

p.s. Today is my Grandma’s 97^th Birthday. Happy Birthday, Grandma!

Photo of Teja~Bhajan~Reiki~Bliss~State by Teja Shankara.

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