Further Musings on the Anusara Teacher's Gathering
The Gathering of Anusara Yoga Certified Teachers in North Carolina, concluded yesterday afternoon. That was followed by a nearly 4 1/2 hour meeting of the Anusara Yoga Curriculum Committee that I attended, where we discussed a number of pertinent issues, and sought to make some refinements to the Anusara Immersion Curriculum we implemented last December.
I drove back home with a friend, and we chatted the whole way back, which made the 5 hours or so that drive back home took - pass more quickly.
I am full to the brim from the week and so many incredible moments and memories are floating in my mind. I have so much to say and so much to write - but I am also tired, and I am not sure if it will be transmitted. And of course, some things aren't necessarily meant to be shared either...
I came away more deeply convinced that there is much value in our coming together as a community on a yearly basis to share, to practice together, and to connect with one another. I was very moved and touched by the depth of conversation and the caliber of the discourse on so many levels. Each year I feel more and more like it really is a coming home, and I feel more comfortable and connected with the radiant souls that come far and wide from the 4 corners of this land and beyond. We are different, but we are one, and I am continually amazed by the level of support, encouragement, affirmation and unconditional love that we give and receive from each other...
One of the many highlights was the opportunity to hear Dr. Bill Mahoney of Davidson College, a Vedic scholar, come to speak to us. He spent nearly all of Thursday afternoon with us, sharing how so many passages from the Rig Veda supported many of the Tantric teachings that provide the philosophical framework for Anusara Yoga, and more specifically, how they related to a primer on Shiva/Shakti Tantra that John Friend, the founder of Anusara, had prepared for us to review and study this week.
We had the opportunity to spend time with Bill once again on Friday morning. At one point, John asked Bill to speak to us on the topic of grace, and here are some of the beautiful insights he shared with us:
"Grace is a power - it is Shakti energy - and without power there is no growth or transformation in our lives...
Without grace, there is nothing...
Anything that moves towards its inherent perfection, does so because of grace...
Grace returns us to our body, our way of being, and the pulsing of our hearts...
Despite whatever happens in your head, your heart always continues to beat...
There is a power that is living me - and this is grace. There is a power that lives and breathes the universe - and that is grace.
Grace is there all of the time. Without it, we do not live...
When we enter into the flow of grace, we align with it...
When you look into anothers' eyes and your own eyes soften with tears - it is the benevolence of grace that is enfolding you...
Grace is the yogic discipline of remembering...
Grace leads us to the experience, but it is also clarifies that experience...
When we practice yoga, we are aligning with grace, and entering into the transcendent unity of being that is also affirming of diversity..."
I know I will soon be transcribing my notes and enjoying every morsel, every gem that was freely offered and received this week...
I drove back home with a friend, and we chatted the whole way back, which made the 5 hours or so that drive back home took - pass more quickly.
I am full to the brim from the week and so many incredible moments and memories are floating in my mind. I have so much to say and so much to write - but I am also tired, and I am not sure if it will be transmitted. And of course, some things aren't necessarily meant to be shared either...
I came away more deeply convinced that there is much value in our coming together as a community on a yearly basis to share, to practice together, and to connect with one another. I was very moved and touched by the depth of conversation and the caliber of the discourse on so many levels. Each year I feel more and more like it really is a coming home, and I feel more comfortable and connected with the radiant souls that come far and wide from the 4 corners of this land and beyond. We are different, but we are one, and I am continually amazed by the level of support, encouragement, affirmation and unconditional love that we give and receive from each other...
One of the many highlights was the opportunity to hear Dr. Bill Mahoney of Davidson College, a Vedic scholar, come to speak to us. He spent nearly all of Thursday afternoon with us, sharing how so many passages from the Rig Veda supported many of the Tantric teachings that provide the philosophical framework for Anusara Yoga, and more specifically, how they related to a primer on Shiva/Shakti Tantra that John Friend, the founder of Anusara, had prepared for us to review and study this week.
We had the opportunity to spend time with Bill once again on Friday morning. At one point, John asked Bill to speak to us on the topic of grace, and here are some of the beautiful insights he shared with us:
"Grace is a power - it is Shakti energy - and without power there is no growth or transformation in our lives...
Without grace, there is nothing...
Anything that moves towards its inherent perfection, does so because of grace...
Grace returns us to our body, our way of being, and the pulsing of our hearts...
Despite whatever happens in your head, your heart always continues to beat...
There is a power that is living me - and this is grace. There is a power that lives and breathes the universe - and that is grace.
Grace is there all of the time. Without it, we do not live...
When we enter into the flow of grace, we align with it...
When you look into anothers' eyes and your own eyes soften with tears - it is the benevolence of grace that is enfolding you...
Grace is the yogic discipline of remembering...
Grace leads us to the experience, but it is also clarifies that experience...
When we practice yoga, we are aligning with grace, and entering into the transcendent unity of being that is also affirming of diversity..."
I know I will soon be transcribing my notes and enjoying every morsel, every gem that was freely offered and received this week...
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