Similar Posts

  • | | |

    Prakasha-Vimarsha?

    At the Tillai Kali temple in Chidambaram, above the murti of Kali where ritual offerings are made, is a mirror that reflects the viewers, bringing their reflection into the puja. I noticed the mirror and asked Douglas Brooks, who was standing next to me on the trip he was leading, “prakasha and vimarsha”? He affirmed my guess—saying it had taken him many visits to appreciate the presence of the mirror and its purpose to remind of the S/self reflected in the light of consciousness.

    Seeing the “free” sign on this mirror when I was out walking, that place and time came to mind.

  • | |

    Spring

    When I was walking about yesterday, I thought I could not bear to leave the exuberance of DC’s spring. Only my house sitter would be able to watch all the new seedlings coming up in my garden. I would miss the last of the cherry blossoms. Then I thought that it would be spring where I am going–and no doubt gorgeous in its own way.

    In photo from front to back: tulips, azaleas, redbud, dogwood (pink and white).

    Peace and light, E — Posted with WordPress for BlackBerry.

  • | |

    Toasted Pumpkin Seeds (and Jack-O-Lanterns)

    Jack-O-Lanternspumpkin-skullAs I walk around the neighborhood seeing all the pumpkins on stoops, like Proust with his madeleines, I remember the scent of roasting pumpkin seeds and the salty taste on my tongue, and I return to the place of my childhood.  My mother wasn’t much for holidays, but she very much enjoyed arts and crafts projects.   The jack-o-lantern, was something then that showed up when we were little kids.  I don’t think there was ever a jack-o-lantern carved when we did not eat the seeds.  Part of the project was cleaning the seeds, oiling a cookie sheet, spreading the seeds out on the sheet, salting them, and roasting them until golden, and then enjoying the seeds as a special salty treat.  I think it unlikely she has decorated a pumpkin at home since I was in early elementary school, but if she were to do it now, in addition to roasting the pumpkin seeds, I am sure she would decorate the outside instead of cutting it into a jack-o-lantern, so that the pumpkin could also be used for soup or pie.

  • | | | | |

    Another Storm Passes Without Any Rain Falling Inside the Beltway

    What’s a gardener and concerned for the trees and the health of the planet citizen to do?  I’ve got enough water in the rain barrel to water the vegetables and herbs once or twice, but what impact does that really have?  At work, people were grumbling because it was cloudy.  They seemed shocked when I advised them that we are an inch under normal rainfall for August and have a fairly significant deficit for the summer despite the July rains.

    Wouldn’t it be great if we could move some of the flood waters that have fallen only a couple hundred miles away to irrigate our fields without disrupting our eco-system?  Part of me just wants not to know about the consequences of global climate change, but it is hard not to notice that all the weather patterns I used to know and understand do not seem to apply quite the same way anymore.  What do we do when the systems and practices we have in place for our ease, comfort, well-being, and understood day-to-day peace of mind are disrupted?

    Yoga will not fix the big outer problems, but it can provide us with the steadiness and ease needed to stay present and be flexible in the face of crisis, upheaval, or disease.  It can also provide insight into how we can live in better alignment.  In the meantime, I am practicing gratitude.  I know how blessed I am that, so far, the wild upheavals I read about in the news have not kept me from all the food and comfort that a person could possibly want.  And I pay attention, because to be ignorant ultimately never serves ourselves or others.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.